【Ａｓｈｅｓ Ｔｏ Ａｓｈｅｓ】

-𝔸 ℙ𝕣𝕒𝕪𝕖𝕣-

When Purgatory is open...Don't let yourself be pulled in. That Cage was not meant to hold little birds like you.

It had been hours since (y/n)'s interaction with the reaper she was never intended to meet in the first place and yet her heart seemed to still be recovering from the frightening experience, aching auditorium of bone and flesh host to the shaking heartbeat that echoed within her body. With the sun rising above the wall of rusted cars piled onto one another near the entrance to the junkyard, the phoenix found herself letting out a tired-sounding sigh when she leaned herself back into the splintered chair she sat in. The noise does not go unnoticed by her table partner though whose fingers freeze above the laptop keyboard he had just been typing away at, eyebrows furrowed deeply upon his freckled forehead.

"You alright?" Dean questions suddenly, the woman so used to the silence they had been sitting in that his voice seems to catch her by surprise.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It's just-"

She doesn't have the heart to continue, shying away from vulnerability like she always did. However, Dean doesn't miss that flash of hesitation in her warm (e/c) eyes. Encouraging her through a small nod, stubbled face losing its usual ruggedness to comfort the nervous woman, Dean silently offers his time. Time for her.

"Angels, Gods, Death..." (y/n) slowly begins, mind racing with the haunting images that have begun to plague her every waking moment, "It's only been, what, a week? I don't know, I guess it's just all a bit overwhelming."

He lets out a low hum in agreement, ringed fingers grasping the cool glass edge of the bottle of cheap liquor between them to pour out a generous helping of booze to ease his own nerves.

"Yeah, well, believe it or not-" he takes a long swig, jaw tightening at the somewhat comforting burn of alcohol within his throat, before continuing through a bitter murmur, "You get used to it after a while."

She lets out a dry chuckle in response, curling herself further into her own body. "Been in this business a long time?"

"Too long..." His voice is distant, eyes vacant of life as he stares through her form. (y/n) waits patiently across from him, hands fidgeting at the pilled fabric of her hoodie. It isn't until he notices the familiar shiver of someone watching him run along the scarred skin of his arms that he snaps out of his daze, blinking away the fog that seemed to take over his mind to add, "You're handling yourself pretty well though."

And, although the tenderness of his words causes her heart to tighten slightly, the phoenix can't help but respond through a teasing smile. "The consequences of living for too long, been through enough to hold my own. Besides, not all of us can drink our worries away, can we?"

Dean rolls his eyes, letting out a few dramatic laughs to demonstrate just how unfunny he found her, before taking another long drink from his nearly empty glass. Sam, the familiar thud of his booted feet against the hardwood floors announcing his presence before he's actually seen, walks through the low archway to the kitchen. Spotting the pair seated at the table, eyes almost immediately gravitating towards his brother's hands clenched tightly against the bottle of liquor to the side, the younger hunter scoffs.

"You want some coffee with that?" He questions, Dean letting out a groan of annoyance in response.

"What's with everybody getting on my case this morning, huh?" Dean grumbles out before pouring out his third glass of whiskey, a smile tinged with exhaustion pulling at his lips when he adds, "Besides, it's 6:00 P.M. somewhere."

"Yeah, well, we have to hit the road." Sam sighs, leaning his body against the doorframe before sighing out in frustration, "I mean, how are we supposed to get Cas to the lab by 3:59?"