Lost And Found ✔︎

79- Claire?

"This is why you called us? THIS is your emergency?" Dean asks in disbelief.

"Yes!"

"No, Cas! An emergency is a dead body, okay? Or-or a wigged-out angel, or the Apocalypse, take three. Some chick bolting on you is not an emergency. That's ... that's every Friday night for Sam."

"Dude." Sam mutters.

"Well..." I trail off.

"This isn't just "some chick." I'm responsible for her." Castiel defends.

"Since when? You met her once, how many years ago?" Dean asks.

"Look, Cas. Even if we do find Claire ... Then what?" Sam asked.

"She rolled you, and then she ran, okay? It's pretty clear that she doesn't want to play house." I cut in.

"I understand. But I need to know that Claire is safe. And I need your help."

"All right. Uh ... Why don't we go ask around at the group home?" Sam asks.

"Uh, you know what? We're going to stick here in case she circles back. You go ahead." I admit.

"Thank you."

Inside the restaurant, Castiel is studying a ketchup bottle intently.

"Is ketchup a vegetable?" Castiel asks innocently.

"Hell, yes. All right, so spill. What's with the family reunion?" Dean asks.

"I don't know. I've just been ... thinking about people. [Dean glances around, then switches their plates, taking Cas' burger and setting his empty plate in front of Cas.] No problem. I've helped some, but I've ... I've hurt some." He admits.

"So you're having a midlife crisis." I sigh with a bit of a smile.

"Well, I'm extremely old. I think I'm entitled.:

"Cas, listen to me. There's some stuff you just got to let go. Okay? The people you let down, the ones you can't save ... You got to forget about them. For your own good." Dean warns.

"Is that what you do?"

"That's the opposite of what I do. But I ain't exactly a role model."

"That's not true." Castiel counters as Dean looks at Cas, then laughs, clearly not believing him. "How are you, Dean?"

"Fine. [Cas gives him a look.] I'm great!" Dean lies.

"No, you're not."

"Yeah, well, I lost the black eyes, so that's a plus. But I still have this." Dean reaches over and gently slaps the Mark on his arm.

"Is the Mark of Cain still affecting you?"

"Cas, I need you to promise me something." Dean starts.

"Of course."

"If I were to go dark side, you got to take me out." Dean sighs.

"What do you mean?" Castiel asks, knowing not a single weapon could work.

"Knife me. Smite me. Throw me into the freakin' sun, whatever. And don't let Sam get in the way, because he'll try. I can't go down that road again, man. I can't be that thing again."

***

"Screw you." Claire starts.

"Whoa, hey, Miley Cyrus. Settle." Dean mutters.

"Eat me, Hasselhoff."

"Claire, hold on a second. Look, my name's-" Sam starts but was cut off by Claire.

"Sam. And you're Dean. We've met, remember?"

"Claire. You were going to rob that convenience store?" Cas cuts in.

"So?"

"So?" So ... it's-it's wrong!"

"You want to talk to me about wrong? You killed my dad. Is that "wrong" enough for you?"

***

"Hi. [He finishes off his beer, then turns and locks the door.] It's Claire, right? [She won't look at him, until he's standing in front of her. He reaches down, taking hold of her chin, making her look up at him.] You really are a pretty one, you know that?" Salinger mutters.

She lifts her leg, kneeing him in the groin. She runs to the door and tries to unlock it, but Salinger is right behind her, grabbing her as she screams and one of Salinger's men opens the front door to find Cas, Sam, and Dean standing there. Cas lifts a hand, and the man goes flying backwards. Randy and another of the men look towards the door. Cas and the Winchesters walk inside, and another man goes towards Cas, stopping when he sees Sam and the gun in his hand.

"Don't!" Sam pleas.

"Back it up." I order and the man does as I say, and Sam and Dean hold the men at gunpoint. Cas looks around the room.

"Where's the girl?" Castiel asks.

They hear screaming come from upstairs. In the room, Claire is screaming, trying to fight Salinger off. He's trying to hold her down, and the door flies open. Castiel is standing there, and Salinger turns to look at him, giving Claire enough of an opening to kick Salinger in the face and get up. She kicks him, over and over again.

"Claire. Claire!" Castiel grabs her arm, and she finally stops kicking. Cas leads her from the room. They walk downstairs, and Claire moves away from Cas.

"Randy." Claire mutters.

He looks at her, then stares at the floor, guilt on his face.

"Get her out of here." Dean demands.

"Yeah. Go." Sam agrees.

"Go." Sam nods, following after Cas and Claire. Dean starts to follow him, until Salinger's men start to move forward. Dean raises his gun again.

"Hey, back up! Back up. Don't be as dumb as you look."

"Hey!"

Dean turns around and Salinger smashes his beer bottle over Dean's head. Dean falls, bleeding from his forehead. He looks up, then flashes back, to receiving the Mark from Cain, the feeling of holding the First Blade, killing Abaddon. The men crowd closer around him, and he remembers beheading Magnus, holding the First Blade, waking up a demon, the ritual of the sanctified blood that made him human again. Back in the present, Dean shakes his head.

***

Dean is kneeling in the living room, a bloody knife in his hand. In a horrifying sequence, it's revealed that his dream from earlier, the blood-covered bodies surrounding him as he kneels in a room, has become a reality. Salinger and his men, along with Randy, litter the floor around Dean, their bodies sliced and bloody.