The Headless and the Hoarse man (SPN)

[spirkestielgirl87]

Hey there! I'm new to the forum- brand new actually. This is my first post, so be gentle

So first off, I wrote this last year before the start of season 9, so there are a few things that don't fit with canon, namely the Sam-Ezekiel situation. In my story Sam was already healed, or was okay without needing to be healed, you can decide which. Also, I have several parts, but I am yet to finish it so I'll post what I have in parts and then if anyone wants to make suggestions to where to go with it from there I will be more than happy to listen:)

A brief summary: Set at after the angel fall, Sam and Dean are on a case when Dean starts coming down with something.

I think I'm also supposed to mention that I don't own Supernatural or any of its characters (sadly).

Ok so here goes...the first part is kinda short, but I assure you there is plenty more to follow if you all like it .

Part 1

The room was silent except for the sound of rain pouring heavily against the roof of the motel and the clickity-clack of Sam’s keyboard as he sat at the table doing research on the new case. Listening to the calming effect of the rain, he thought to himself how refreshing it was to be researching a normal case again.

Since the angels had fallen, the bulk of his research consisted of afternoons at the bunker uselessly peering over Kevin’s shoulder while he worked on deciphering the angel tablet. For the last month or so, it seemed all of their time and energy was spent searching for a way to send the haloed refugees back upstairs rather than looking for new cases. It wasn’t until the news of some unexplained decapitations in Colorado struck their radar that the brothers finally decided to hit the road, leaving Kevin at the bunker to work alone. Well, almost alone. Castiel was there too, hiding out from his brothers and sisters who, not surprisingly, weren’t too happy with him since he accidentally aided Metatron in his plan to force them out of their home. Now that he was human, he was particularly vulnerable to the angels’ vengeance and couldn’t risk being out in the open. So for now, he hid safely in the Winchesters’ angel-proofed bunker patiently waiting to find a way to make right what he had done.

Yawning, Sam decided to take a break and closed his laptop. He glanced at the clock and, realizing how much time had passed, was about to call Dean to ask what was taking so long when he heard the rustling of keys at the door. A minute later he was greeted by a dripping wet Dean carrying two equally wet Burger King bags.

“Dude, what took you so long? And why are you so wet?”

“I walked from a parking garage down the street. Have you looked outside? The whole damn place is flooded, couldn’t leave Baby out there.”

Sam just rolled his eyes. Leave it to Dean to walk God knows how far in the storm, with their dinner in hand no less, just to protect his precious car from a few inches of muddy water. Sniffling, Dean dropped off the food on the table before grabbing some clothes from his duffle bag and heading to the bathroom to dry off. Sam continued talking to his brother through the bathroom door.

“Right, well while you were doing that I was researching things that like to behead their victims.”

“And?”

“And nothing. So far as I can see, the only things that are into decapitation these days are vamp-hunters. And seeing how none of the vics had an extra set of teeth hiding in their gums, I think we’re at a dead end.”

“Awesome. Maybe we should… “Dean stopped.

Not seeing the contorted look on Dean’s face from the other side of the door, Sam was confused by his sudden pause. “Maybe we should what?”

“Achoo!” Dean sneezed into his elbow, sniffled, and then continued.” Maybe we should talk to the victims’ families, see if we can’t get some more info seeing as the police report didn’t tell us crap.”

“I think you’re right, we’ll talk to them first thing tomorrow.” Sam said as Dean exited the bathroom in fresh attire.

“Why not now? There’s still some daylight left.”

“Well for one because it’s pouring outside and who knows how far you parked the car. You just changed, why don’t you stay dry for a few minutes?”

Sam went over to the table and opened the Burger King bag. He pulled out a Whopper and tossed it to Dean before pulling out his own chicken salad.

Unwrapping the burger and taking a seat on his bed, Dean relented. “Fine, first thing tomorrow.”

That was easy, Sam thought. Dean would usually never agree to wasting an entire evening while there was a case to be solved, pouring rain or not. This prompted Sam to observe his brother as he ate, watching for any other signs that something might be askew. He noticed he was eating very slowly. Yes, something was definitely off with him. Normally, he would have scarfed his burger down in under a minute and moved onto his Hershey chocolate pie, but instead he ate like a bird. He also seemed to wince slightly with each swallow.

“Hey, you okay?”

“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” Dean asked with a scowl.

“No reason”. But Sam knew Dean was lying. He had suspected Dean was feeling less than 100% this morning when he kept rubbing his temples at breakfast, and that was before his stroll in the rain. Now he was positive his brother was coming down with something.

After they finished eating, Sam went back to his laptop to do some more research. Dean flipped on the TV and lay back on his pillow. Not even fifteen minutes passed before Sam heard congested snores coming from Dean’s side of the room. He glanced at the clock- it was barely 9:30. Figuring Dean could use some good sleep if he was fighting off a bug, he turned the TV off and laid a blanket over his older brother’s sleeping body. He continued researching for another hour or so before deciding he should get some shut eye as well.

As he climbed into his sheets, however, he glanced at Dean in the adjacent bed and noticed that, despite the cold temperature of the room, he was sweating. That can’t be good, he thought. He got up and filled a glass of water for Dean in case he woke up dehydrated and set it on the nightstand between their beds before switching of the lamp and falling asleep.

Unfortunately, Dean was going to need a lot more than a glass of water when he awoke before dawn the next morning.

[HPG]

I love the title!

[Anilkex]

Welcome! No Zeke is FINE!!!! I agree with HPG - the title is awesome. Can't wait for the next part!!

[Lace Butterfly]

I love the title!

I agree completely! Love this fic already, keep it up!

[spirkestielgirl87]

Wow wasn't expecting replies so soon! Thanks everyone! I feel so welcome:) So the next part has some very brief V, nothing too detailed or gross, but it is there so be warned if you're emetephobic. There's also not a whole lot of sneezing in this part, but there is lots of Sick!Dean and Caring!Sam.

Part 2

Sam had just pulled off Amelia’s blouse in his dream when he was stirred awake by the echoing sounds of retching coming from the motel bathroom. He glanced at the clock- 5:03 am.

“Dean, you ok in there?”

Dean only answered with the sound of more retching. Sam got up and went over to the bathroom door. “Dude, you sound awful. Open the door.”

This time Dean responded. “Trust be, you dod’t wadt be to do that. I’b fide, Sabby. Go back to bed.”

Sam stood at the door for a minute. He knew his brother was feeling miserable and wanted to help him with whatever he could. He had a sinking feeling though, that the thing that would help Dean the most was letting him keep his pride and giving him some space. He decided to compromise and went back to his bed, but didn’t let himself fall asleep. Instead, he lay awake listening for the sound of Dean passing out and knocking his head on something, ready to spring up and break down the bathroom door if needed.

After fifteen minutes or so, the sounds of Dean emptying his stomach died down and eventually he came out of the bathroom. Sam watched as he crossed the room toward his bed.

“Dean?” He sat up and turned the light on to get a better look at his ill brother. He was wearing nothing but his boxers and a t-shirt and was drenched in sweat from head to toe. His eyes were sunken and bloodshot, and he had the flush of fever on his cheeks. He winced at the light, holding his hands up to his eyes and scolding his little brother with an annoyed “What the hell?”

“Sorry,” Sam said, turning the lamp back off. “Here take this, you need to drink some water.” He handed Dean the glass he had placed on the nightstand earlier. Dean took it hesitantly, and mumbled “thanks” before taking a small sip. He laid his head back and closed his eyes and was about to drift off to sleep when he noticed a cool hand on his forehead followed by the sound of Sammy digging around in his luggage. When he opened his eyes, Sam was standing over him with a bottle of Motrin. “Take these, you’re burning up.”

Dean was about to protest, but realizing he was beyond the point of denying he was unwell, he sat up slowly and took the pills from his brother’s hand and downed them with another sip from the glass on the nightstand.

“This is awesobe” he said sniffling. He wiped his nose with the back of his hand, earning a grimace from Sam. Sam grabbed a roll of toilet paper from the bathroom and handed it to Dean to blow his nose.

“You sure picked a good time to get the flu. We’ve been hangin around the bunker twiddling our thumbs for almost a month and you were healthy as a horse and now our first night on a case and you start hurlin.”

Dean tried to force a smile. “I try dot to be predictable…. I think it bakes be bore idterstidg.”, he replied, blowing his nose before delivering a harsh cough into his shoulder. Sam noticed his cough sounded awful, but at least he had gotten past the point of denying there was anything wrong, that was a plus.

The rest of the morning was spent with Dean in and out of sleep and Sam doing research on his computer. The rain had died down since the night before, but there was still a constant drizzle. Sam had debated going to go meet with some of the victims’ families like they had planned, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave Dean. Although he had stopped puking for the time being, his cough had started sounding worse and his fever showed no signs of breaking.

It was a little after 2 o’clock when Dean started moaning and crying out in his sleep. It was hard to make out the words, but when Sam heard him say the name Alistair he knew he must be having a nightmare of his time in Hell. Dean hadn’t had a nightmare about Hell in years, as far as he knew. It must be the fever. Sam went over to the bed and touched his brother’s face. It was scorching hot.

Sam thought about what Dean had done for him a few months back when his fever hit dangerous levels due to the effects of the trials. He considered filling a bath with ice and dunking his heat-radiating brother in it just as he had done, but he decided to try some more Motrin and a cold washcloth first. After all, the flu wasn’t quite as intense as the trials had been and he hoped to avoid going to that extreme if possible. Thankfully, the meds seemed to do the trick, as Dean slowly became more lucid.

“Hey buddy, you with me?” Sam asked as Dean opened his eyes and peered around the room.

“Yeah, I’b good. What tibe is it?”

“Almost three, you’ve been out of it for a while. Your fever got pretty high; you were talking in your sleep.”

Dean noticed the wet wash cloth that had slid off his head and was lying on his pillow beside him. “Huh…did I say adythidg interestidg?” he said as he picked it up the washcloth and set it on the nightstand.

“Nah, just mumbling. Something about Anna Nichole Smith jumping out of a pie.” Sam lied.

Dean chuckled. “Souds like a good tibe, I should get fevers bore ofted.”

Sam just rolled his eyes.

Dean coughed briefly into his elbow and sat up. “So what did the fabilies have to say?”

Sam looked puzzled. “They didn’t say anything, because I never interviewed them.”

“Why dot? I thought we agreed to go first thidg id the bording?”

“First thing in the morning you were puking your guts out, remember? “ Sam said with a laugh.

“You could have gode without me; it was a ode-mad job.”

“Yeah, well I was little preoccupied looking after your delirious ass.”

Dean paused for a second as he took in what had happened. “Yeah thadks for that” he said sincerely. “But I’m doidg a lot better now, so I thidk it’s time we got back to what we cabe here to do before adother head rolls…literally.” He got up out of bed and, stifling a sneeze, crossed the room to collect his suit from the motel closet where it hung next to Sam’s.

“Are you sure you’re up to it?” Sam asked concerned. Although the pink had faded from his brother’s cheeks, the dark circles under his eyes hadn’t. Not to mention that his voice sounded, quite frankly, disgusting.

“I said I’b good” Dean declared as he headed to the bathroom with his “costume”, shutting the door behind him.

But Sam knew Dean was lying. This was confirmed by the sound of more sneezes as Dean turned the shower on, followed by several rounds of coughing fits.

Sam was ambivalent about continuing on with the case. His better judgment told him to call Garth and ask him to put another hunter on it so he could take his brother back home so sleep off the flu in his own bed. His experience, however told him that Dean would never go for it. Then he got an idea.

[Lace Butterfly]

OhMyGod this is awesome! Can't wait to find out what Sam had planned.

Aww poor sick Dean, he's lucky he has Sam to give him some much needed TLC.

P.S I actually love the way that you've made Sam not be healed by an angel, it was sad seeing Sam and Dean at such odds for so long.

[Always-a-Ginger]

Really enjoying this.

[Seniorstatus14]

This is sooo awesome!!! I can't wait for you to continue!!!

[spirkestielgirl87]

OhMyGod this is awesome! Can't wait to find out what Sam had planned.

Aww poor sick Dean, he's lucky he has Sam to give him some much needed TLC.

P.S I actually love the way that you've made Sam not be healed by an angel, it was sad seeing Sam and Dean at such odds for so long.

Thank you! And yes I agree! I hated seeing Sam and Dean fighting- especially so soon after the conversation they had in the church when Sam was about to do the last trial, I had really hoped their relationship would be good after that!

Really enjoying this.

Thank you! I'm glad you like it!

This is sooo awesome!!! I can't wait for you to continue!!!

Thanks you're so kind. I will continue now

So another emesis warning- this one slightly more detailed, but nothing too gross. I don't even know why I put so much of it in there, guess I just couldn't help but make Dean as miserable as possible... I'm evil I know lol. And again, more caring!Sam because I can't torture Dean without giving him some love well.

Part 3

Sam immediately got up and began packing up his and Dean’s belongings. He made sure to grab the car keys from the pockets of Dean’s dirty jeans that were lying on the floor before tossing them into the dirty clothes bag. Once he had gotten the last bag zipped up and set by the door ready to go, he put on his jacket and headed out to look for the parking garage down the street. He took advantage of the walk to call Garth on his cell phone and tell him about the case.

It was a good twenty minutes before he finally reached the impala. It was not nearly as close as Dean had made it sound. No wonder he had come back so wet, the dummy, serves him right for getting sick.

By the time Sam got back to the motel, Dean was out of the shower and fully dressed. He was sitting on his bed with his cell phone in one hand and a tissue in the other. His nose was bright red, and it was obvious he had been blowing it frequently. This was confirmed by the abundance of used tissues in the waste basket that had been positioned conveniently next to Dean's bed.

“Hey, why are all the bags packed?" the suited hunter asked placing his phone in his jacket pocket. And why...acshoush! ugh... why ared’t you wearidg your suit?” Dean rubbed his nose with the tissue and threw it in the waste basket.

“Bless you. So, good news, Kevin called!” Sam lied, “he had a breakthrough with the tablet, we need to get back to the bunker a.s.a.p.”

Dean shot up at this, wide eyed. “Seriously?! What did he say? Does he dow how to break Betatron’s spell?”

“He didn’t say, just that we need to get back.” Sam replied, taking a mental note of how hoarse Dean was becoming.

“What about the ca...case? Ackusch!” Dean asked following his sneeze with a deep, wet cough. The fact that Dean sounded so awful definitely helped assure Sam he had made the right choice in calling it quits on the case.

“I already talked to Garth, he’s gonna make sure it’s taken care of. You ready to hit the road?”

Dean blew his nose and grabbed some more tissues and shoved him in his pocket for later. “Sure, let’s roll.”

The distance back to the bunker was pretty short; at least by Winchester standards anyway. It should have been a mere seven or eight hour drive, but that was only if they kept going without stopping. Thanks to Dean’s unsteady stomach, however, that wasn’t the case.

They had been on the highway for less than ten miles when Dean lifted his head from the window where it rested and demanded Sam pull over. Sam immediately began changing lanes in an attempt to exit the highway, but unfortunately there was a stubborn driver in a blue Nissan that threw a wrench in the plan. By the time Sam got to the shoulder, both Dean and his leather seat were covered in vomit.

“Aw, Baby, I’b so sorry!” Dean looked at the mess he had made with an expression of desperate remorse.

“And to think you were worried about some muddy water.” Sam said, amused with the irony. This resulted in a fierce scowl from Dean as he opened the door and climbed out.

It took him a second to find his balance as he stood up, and before he knew it Sam was standing beside him with his arms out ready to catch him.

“Dude, I’b fide. Back off.”

“Yeah, clearly you’re fine. That’s why you just decorated your most prized possession with bile. ”

Dean shot Sam an annoyed look before finding an old t-shirt from the dirty clothes bag to wipe down the seat. Sam stopped him. “I’ll clean the seat, you change out of that suit. You smell.”

Dean agreed for two reasons. First, he wanted to be sure the seat was cleaned thoroughly, and seeing as how his vision kept blurring he figured Sam would probably do a better job. The second reason was that Dean wasn’t exactly fond of being covered in his own upchuck. Sam was right; he friggin smelled. He definitely needed to change his clothes stat, that he was sure of.

The thing Dean wasn’t sure of was exactly how as to proceed. He’d never changed clothes on the side of the highway before. He started by taking off his suit jacket and tie which were the most heavily soiled pieces of clothing and dumped them in a pile on the side of the highway. Luckily, he and Sam didn’t spend very much money on their Fed get-ups so he could afford to replace them.

Next, he climbed into in the backseat of the impala to remove his slacks and shirt and replace them with a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt from his duffle bag. It wasn’t easy changing his clothes in such a confined space, but somehow he managed. It wasn’t long til they were back on the road, almost as good as new. The smell of puke still lingered in the car, however, making Dean feel as though any minute he could have a repeat performance.

Sure enough Sam had to pull over four more times over the next few hours. At one point Sam began to worry that Dean was becoming dehydrated, but luckily the seemingly relentless nausea did eventually subside and Dean was able to fall asleep. He slept the rest of the way, only waking slightly every so often when he was assailed by a cough or sneeze.

As they pulled up to the closest thing they had to a home, Sam thought about how he was going to break the news to Dean that he had lied to him about Kevin calling. He considered letting Kevin in on it and asking him to cover until Dean was back on his feet, but he realized that it wouldn’t do any good. Dean would want to know exactly what was going on with the tablet before he even thought about resting.

Instead Sam decided to just come clean from the get-go and hope his brother felt too exhausted to argue. Fat chance.

[MoonDuck]

Poor Dean I need moreeeeeeee

Edit: omg yay another part posted as I was typing this again it was awesome I am happy

Edited July 30, 2014 by MoonDuck

[Seniorstatus14]

Awwww poor Dean!

[spirkestielgirl87]

Thanks for the replies guys! They'r def inspiring me to keep going!

So the next part has some Concerned!Cas and Kevin as well. (Kinda makes me sad seeing how I wrote Kevin before season 9, I def gotta do something great with his character now) Also this one gets a tiny bit angsty- but just a tiny bit.

Part 4

They stood outside the front door for a good five minutes arguing.

“What the Hell, Sabby!!!”

“I’m sorry, Dean, but there’s no way you could have worked a case in your condition. You can barely stand!”

“We’re hudters, Sab, we dod’t take sick days. People’s lives are od the lide, I cad work through a sdiffle.”

“A sniffle? Dude you spewed all over the impala!”

"Ugh, dod’t remid be.” Dean said with a tone of defeat in his voice.

They entered the bunker to be greeted by Kevin aiming at them with a squirt gun filled with holy water.

“Dude, dot agaid! It’s just us!” Dean bellowed.

“My bad guys, I wasn’t expecting you back so soon. The case over already?” Kevin inquired setting down the squirt gun as the boys came down the stairs.

Looking behind him to shoot Sam an annoyed look, Dean explained “Dope, iddocedt people still gettidg their heads chopped off. We should be..." his eye lashes fluttered and he delivered two quick sneezes into his elbow before clearing his throat and continuing. "we should be out there gadking whatever sick, fugly sod-of-a-bitch is respodsible, but sobeode lied add idsisted we cobe back here.”

Sam shook his head. “Trust me, it was for the best. Unless you’ve found a way to sneeze a monster to death, I highly doubt you’d be ganking anything right now.”

Kevin looked at Dean. He was pale, except for his nose which was bright pink. He also had bags under his eyes and the sheen of sweat on his forehead. He definitely didn’t look his usual tough self. He considered saying something caring to Dean, ask how he was feeling maybe, but thought better of it. He didn’t exactly seem approachable at the moment, it was clear that he was pretty pissed. Instead Kevin stayed quiet and went back to work.

“Whatever, I’b godda go udpack. Add dod’t follow be!” he warned Sam, throwing his duffle bag over his shoulder and and stifling another sneeze as he began heading down the hall. Once he was out of sight, Kevin looked up again and gave a slight chuckle.

“What?” Sam asked.

“Nothing, I just… I guess I never pictured Dean getting sick. He always seems so… strong, sometimes I forget he’s just human.”

Sam laughed. “Yeah I know what you mean. I used to feel the same way about him. My dad too. For so long they seemed… I dunno invincible. But then…” He trailed off. Pushing the thoughts out of his mind, he changed the subject.

“Anyway I better go after him, make sure he’s not sneaking out to go finish the case.” Sam got up and went to find his stubborn, flu-riddled brother.

Not surprisingly, the only trace of Dean in his room was the duffle bag thrown on the floor. Great, Sam thought to himself. He wondered across the hall to Cas’ room. He found the ex-angel sitting quietly reading a book from the Men of Letters library.

Castiel looked up. “Sam! It’s good to see you back in one piece. I take it the case went well?”

“Actually, we didn’t finish the case; I had Garth put someone else on it.”

Cas looked confused. “I don’t understand.”

“Dean got sick…flu I think. I’m actually trying to find him, he kinda gave me the slip. You haven’t seen him?”

“No, I haven’t. Is he alright?” a look of worry taking over his face.

“Yeah, he’ll be alright- if I can get him to take it easy. He’s been being stubborn, keeps trying to work.”

Cas considered this for a moment, then got up. “Yes I agree. If he is ill, he should be resting. I’ll help you find him.”

They split up and began searching the bunker’s multitude of rooms for the suddenly vanished sick man. It didn’t take too long for Castiel to find him in the back bathroom.

“Dean? Are you in there? It’s Castiel, I need to speak to you.”

“Yeah Cas, I’b a little busy at the bobedt.” Dean said between hurls.

“But Sam said you were ill, and that you needed to be in bed.”

“Yeah, well tell Sab to shove it.”

“But Dean, I am worried.”

Dean flushed the toilet, wiped his mouth, and opened the door.

Cas was taken aback by Dean’s rugged appearance. “Dean, you do not look well. Perhaps you should listen to your brother and lie down.”

“Yeah, yeah” Dean said, coughing as he walked down the hall. Castiel followed.

“I mean it, Dean. I realize I have very little experience with human illness, but even I can see that you need to rest.”

Dean turned around to look Cas in the eyes. “Fide, if it’ll bake everyode stop fussidg, I’ll go lie dowd, okay? Dow stop followidg be aroud like a lost puppy.”

Satisfied for the time being, Castiel nodded and walked away.

Dean made good on his promise and went to his room to lie down. It really did feel good to be in his own bed, with his own mattress that “remembered” him. Within minutes he was sleeping.

Sam didn’t know whether to wince or smile when he came in to find Dean under the covers snoring loudly, his mouth wide open and a thin stream of mucus running down from his right nostril. He looked pitiful.

Sam stood in the doorway looking at his brother, reflecting on what Kevin had said about not expecting Dean to ever get sick. He thought about all of the monsters, spirits, demons, even angels whose asses Dean had kicked in his lifetime. Hell, he took down the damn Leviathan. And yet, here he was knocked out by a tiny little virus. It was ironic.

Cas wandered up from behind Sam and stood beside him in the doorway. “It’s strange to see Dean weakened by something so…natural, isn’t it?” Sam agreed. It was funny; Castiel seemed to be able to read his mind, even without his angelic powers.

The two stood there another minute watching Dean sleep before heading to bed themselves. Little did Castiel know, however, he would be getting very little sleep.

[Seniorstatus14]

Ooooo!!!! Cliffhanger!!!! Thanks for the awesome update!!!

[spirkestielgirl87]

Ooooo!!!! Cliffhanger!!!! Thanks for the awesome update!!!

You're welcome, thanks for reading!

Here's another part. It doesn't any sneezing , but there will be more soon I promise! (Dean's illness may soon be spreading...) Also there is a slightly angsty Cas. I was really interested in speculating how physical sensations changed for Cas when he became human and how that would affect how he viewed the brothers. Kinda funny I actually wrote this before season 9 even started, but it kinda reminds me of the conversation Cas has with Sam in First Born. Anyway here goes:

Part 5

Castiel was still getting used to the concept of sleep. It was strange. Falling asleep, dreaming, being woken up suddenly; they all bared their own set of sensations, and even emotions. For example, he couldn’t help but feel irritated when he was awoken from his unstable sleep by the sound of Dean coughing. After adjusting for a second, though, his annoyance turned to concern for his hunter friend. He rose from his bed and hurried across the hall to Dean’s room.

Just as he had suspected, Dean was awake and leaning over in yet another coughing fit.

“Forgive me, but I must tell you that your current state is causing me alarm. That cough appears to be relentless, and I suspect it is preventing you from sleep.”

“You bean its prevedtidg you frob sleep?” Dean joked between gasps with as much of a smile as he could manage.

“Yes, it is. But that’s not why I am concerned. “ Cas responded, a bit puzzled. Dean continued hacking, holding his chest like it hurt.

Cas came over and put his hand on Dean’s back. “Perhaps you should see a medical professional?”

Dean quickly shook his hand off. “I already told you, you dod’t deed to worry, I’ll be fide id a few days. Add, sidce whed are you all Floredce Dightidgale adyway? I dod’t rebebber you beidg this addoyidg whed you had your halo.”

Castiel looked a little hurt. “I’m sorry, Dean, I don’t wish to annoy you. It’s just…” Cas sighed.

This hint of emotion from Cas surprised Dean and he immediately regretted coming off so harsh. “Talk to be” he said, more as a command than an offer.

Taking a seat in the chair next to Dean’s bed, Cas took a deep breath and began opening up to his friend. “ It's just that...everything I thought I knew about humanity was wrong. As an angel… mentally I knew what pain was. But I’d really never felt pain. Not like I do now. When angels feel pain, it’s…different, like a faded reflection of pain. I knew humans felt things differently, but I suppose I just didn’t grasp how intense it really was. I mean, you and Sam were the only humans I was ever really close to and it was quite rare for either of you to complain about physical discomfort, even when you were wounded.”

Dean nodded, listening as his friend continued.

“And then when Metatron took my grace, suddenly all of these sensations I’d never even given thought to came rushing into me. It was like a switch had been turned on, and for the first time I could sympathize with what you and Sam feel every day. The sting of the cold on a rainy night, the ache of fatigue after a long day of labor…even something as simple as itchy fabric rubbing against your skin can cause discomfort.”

Castiel paused a moment looking at Dean, sickly and weak. “It wasn’t until now I realized just how vulnerable you really are. I can’t help but worry about you.”

Dean didn’t say anything at first, he merely looked at his newly human friend. He couldn’t imagine what Cas must be going through. To suddenly be stripped of the angelic essence he had been accustomed to for thousands of years and be left with nothing but his vessel’s fragile human body. In many ways, Cas was like a newborn infant; experiencing life for the first time.

“Wow Cas, I dod’t kdow what to say. I appreciate your concerd, I kdow it must freak you out a little, seeidg be sick. I know I probably look disgusting, but I’b alright. This isd’t by first rodeo; I’ve had years of experiedce id feelidg crappy, I’b used to it. So you can ease up od the bother-hedding, okay?”

“I don’t understand your reference to maternal fowl, but I assume you would like me to stop vocalizing my apprehension regarding your health. So, yes, I will stop…” Cas threw up his best air-quotes “mother-henning you.”

“Thadks.” Dean said with a soft smile. “So you goidg back to bed?”

“Actually, I’m afraid I’ve been awake for too long. I’ve found that once awoken, if I do not resume sleep within a manner of minutes it becomes very difficult.”

Dean chuckled. “Yeah, I dnow the feelidg. You wadda hadg out id here add watch a bovie for a lil bit udtil you get tired agaid?”

Cas smiled. “Yes Dean, I would like that.”

Dean fell asleep just twenty minutes into Pulp Fiction, and by the time it was over, Cas had too fallen asleep, crouched up in the chair next to Dean’s bed. It wasn’t until morning that he awoke to the sound of Sam laughing at the sight of him.

“Hey Cas, I know you’re still getting used to the whole sleep thing, but usually we humans like to sleep lying down. You should try it.”

Cas jumped up and looked around the room, forgetting for a second where he was.

“I must have fallen asleep watching the film Dean put on. It was very interesting, there were several different characters, all following their own path, but ultimately connected. Much like life.”

Sam laughed. He had never heard someone describe Tarantino so profoundly. But then again, this was coming from the guy who had likened the Roadrunner to the Divine.

Just then, Dean woke up with a slight groan, grabbing Sam’s attention.

“Hey, how ya feelin?” Sam asked, moving to the bed to feel his brother’s forehead. He was relieved to find it cool.

Dean slapped his hand away and sat up. “Better” he replied, clearing his throat. He did look a little better, but he still sounded hoarse and congested. Sam decided he would still need to take it easy for at least another day or so. This was confirmed by Dean trying to hide a wet-sounding cough a second later.

Dean looked at Cas still positioned in his seat on the chair from their late night movie. “Guess fallidg asleep wasd’t as difficult as you thought, huh?”

Cas moved around uncomfortably. “I suppose not. However, I have to agree with Sam that this was not a preferable position for slumber. I feel… I believe the word is sore.”

“Walk around, it’ll loosen you up.” Sam suggested.

Cas took Sam’s advice and slowly rose from his temporary sleeping place, stretching his arms and legs the way he had seen the brothers do after sleeping in the impala. He left the room after giving a quick smile to Dean, as if to say he was looking better. This reminded Dean of the conversation they had had the night before.

“So, you feel up to eating something?” Sam asked.

“Hell yeah, I’b starvid’. We got adythidg id the kitched?”

“I’ll check. You stay put; watch TV or something.”

Dean rolled his eyes before Sam left him to make breakfast.

When Sam came back with eggs and toast, Dean was at his desk on his laptop.

“What are you doing? Wait, you’re not, uh…should I leave?” Sam averted his glance toward the floor praying he didn’t just walk in on his brother utilizing his BustyAsianBeauties.com membership.

“Do Sab, I’b lookidg up idfo od that case we left. Looks like there was adother murder last dight…sabe as the others.” Dean let a cough escape into his shoulder as he continued reading.

Sam sighed as he set Dean’s breakfast next to him. “That sucks, man, it really does. But Garth already put someone on it. It’s not your job to worry about it anymore. You should be focusing on getting rid of that cough.”

Dean rolled his eyes. “There’s do harb id reading. I could catch sobethidg Garth’s hudter misses.”

Sam would prefer his brother to be in bed, but he supposed sitting at the computer wasn’t too strenuous. He did seem to be doing better, and he had slept the majority of the last twenty-four hours. His cough still sounded pretty bad though.

“Right, well good luck with that. I’m gonna head over to the drugstore and pick you up some cough syrup, my throat hurts just listening to you.”

“Souds like a plad, Sabby. Add hey, see if you cad get the ode with codeide.”

Sam arched his eyebrow at Dean. “Sorry, I think you need a prescription for that.”

Dean looked disappointed.

“Call me if you think of anything else you need.”

“Will do.”

[Seniorstatus14]

Awww so cute!!! Thanks for updating!

[MoonDuck]

You write Dean and Sam and Cas really well!

“Souds like a plad, Sabby. Add hey, see if you cad get the ode with codeide.”

Sam arched his eyebrow at Dean. “Sorry, I think you need a prescription for that.”

Dean looked disappointed.

I liked this part xD

[LeadaAlexys52]

So awesome! I have been yearning for some Sam and Dean, and you have just satisfied my craving in just the right way. Mmm MMm! Please, please keep going!

[spirkestielgirl87]

You write Dean and Sam and Cas really well!

“Souds like a plad, Sabby. Add hey, see if you cad get the ode with codeide.”

Sam arched his eyebrow at Dean. “Sorry, I think you need a prescription for that.”

Dean looked disappointed.

I liked this part xD

I am in love with these characters, so I take that as a great compliment, thank you! And I'm glad you liked that part!

So awesome! I have been yearning for some Sam and Dean, and you have just satisfied my craving in just the right way. Mmm MMm! Please, please keep going!

Thanks! I'm glad I was able to satisfy your craving!

So here is the last part I have pre-written. As hinted before, Dean has infected somebody else at the bunker I stopped writing when season 9 started; as much as I hate hell-atus it seems to be the only time I manage to stay on top of my fics lol so if anyone has any ideas of where they'd like to see it go from here, I am now officially open for suggestions!

Part 6

It wasn’t long before Dean became restless. Sam was right; there wasn’t anything he could do for the case from home. He had yet to cleverly come up with the solution based on nothing but internet news articles and public records, and his patience was wearing thin. For a second he considered taking off and finding a car to high-jack to hit the road back to Colorado, but then he thought better of it. As much as the hunter in him wanted to solve the case, the brother and friend in him couldn’t do that to Sam and Cas.

Instead, he wandered into the main living...er, working area to distract himself with a chat with his favorite prophet. He found Kevin scribbling away at the table, drawing some weird symbols on a piece of paper.

“Heya kev”

“Dean” Kevin said without looking up.

“So, how’s operatiod adgel returd goidg?”

“Not so good. There’re still a lot of holes in the translation, nothing intelligible.”

Dean nodded and was about to respond with something, but he was interrupted by two powerful, wet sneezes. "Ekschew!.. Es..esskkeew! Ugh"

Kevin finally looked up. “Don’t take this the wrong way, man, but you sound like shit.”

Dean just laughed as he pulled a tissue from his pocket to blow his nose. “Yeah, guess I’ve seen better days. I’m getting better though.”

Dean came closer to Kevin to get a look at what he was writing. “What are those hieroglyphic-looking things?”

Kevin's eyebrows came together in a look of frustration. “I don’t know. They just keep popping into my head.”

“Seriously? When did that start?”

“Months ago.”

Dean's eyes widened. “Months?! Why didn’t you say anything?”

“Why would I? They’re nothing but a bunch a doodles, they don’t mean squat. Trust me, I’ve tried analyzing them a million ways from Sunday.”

“They have to mean something, why would they be popping into your head?”

“Maybe I’ve finally flipped my lid. I don’t know. All I do know is trying to make sense of them is a complete waste of time.”

“Then why do you keep writing them down?”

Kevin didn’t have a good answer for that, and luckily he wasn’t held accountable for one because Sam came in before he could say anything immediately grabbing Dean’s attention.

“Sabby, you’re back! Where are by drugs?” Dean asked with a grin.

Sam tossed him a brown paper bag full of meds. He opened it graciously and immediately began chugging the cough syrup.

“Lecgh! That’s dasty. Hope it at least gives be a good buzz.”

Sam shook his head. “Its not meant to give you a buzz, Dean, its meant to keep you from hacking up a lung.”

The cough syrup made Dean very drowsy and it wasn’t long until he excused himself and went back to his room to lie down. He tried watching Pulp Fiction again, but just as he had the night before he didn't even get to the Mia Wallace story line before drifting off to sleep.

By the time Dean awoke it was already dark out. Great another day slept away, seems like it was just morning he thought to himself with a hint of shame. The sleep did him well, though, as he was feeling a lot better. And hungry.

He went out to the main room to see what the others planned on doing for dinner.. Kevin was working as usual, in fact looked like he hadn’t moved an inch since earlier that day.

“What’s up Kev? Where’s Sam?”

“He went to go pick up dinner. He should be back any minute.”

“Awesome, I’m starvin!”

Kevin didn’t respond, only kept reading. Dean sat in silence for a while thinking about what kind of food he hoped Sammy would bring when his thoughts were interrupted by Castiel coming in from the hall.

“Hello, Dead, Kevid.”

Dean noticed Cas’ nose was pink and he sounded a little stuffed up.

“You okay, Cas?”

“Yes, Dead, I ab alright. How are you? You’re soudidg much improved.”

“Yeah, I’m on the mend.”

Cas nodded in approval as the room filled with the sound of Sam coming in the front door.

“Dean, you’re up! You feel like eating? I got pizza. Extra peppers, figured it would help with your sinuses.”

“Yes, that sounds great.” Dean said trying not to drool.

The room was quiet for the next few minutes as they ate until suddenly the silence was broken by Castiel.

“Ahchsoo”

Dean immediately looked up.

“Ah….ah…ahcchhooooo!” Castiel sniffed, looking embarrassed. “Excuse be. That was…strange.”

“Actually, it wasn’t very strange at all considering you slept next to sniffles over here last night.” Sam said, gesturing to Dean.

Dean stopped eating and looked at Cas, then Sam. "You slept next to me the night before, how come you're not sneezing?"

Sam shrugged "I've had thirty-one years to build up defenses to your germs." Then looking at the sniffling ex-angel added "Cas, on the other hand, has only been human a few months. He probably has the immune system of an infant."

Cas looked a little offended at this. He looked to Dean to back him up, but the recovering hunter agreed with his little brother.

“Sorry Cas, but I think Sam's right, I think I got you sick, man. My bad.”

Cas looked a little confused. “Do deed to apologize Dead, I dod’t believe I ab ill. It’s just this odd feeling id my dose that is botheridg be.” He scrubbed his septum with the back of his index finger.

Dean felt a twinge of guilt as he remembered his own tickly nose from a few days before and how quickly it had transformed into something much worse. “Hate to break it to you, Cas, but that’s only the beginning. Soon your throat will start to get sore and you’ll start coughing, then the chills and nausea will set in. In fact, you should probably eat as much as you can now, cuz pretty soon food will be the last thing you’ll wanna even think of.”

Cas looked at Dean with a bit of panic. “How bad will it hurt?”

“It won’t hurt too bad, just be really uncomfortable. Don’t worry though, Cas. I got plenty of meds, and Sam and I will look after you. You’ll be fine.” When Cas still looked skeptical, Dean added “I’m getting better aren’t I?”

This helped relieve some of Cas’ anxiety, but he still decided to take Dean’s advice about eating and hurriedly helped himself to seconds. The food tasted bland to him though, even the peppers, as his sinuses were quickly gaining congestion.

[Seniorstatus14]

D'awww!! Cas caught what Dean had!

[Masked.Maiden]

Aww, so cute. Sick Cas and Sweet Sam and Dean gonna look after him.

I love your writing style, I hope you continue.

[MoonDuck]

It was Cas! Yay! Now I really need the next part o.o I love his worried-ness and confusion.

[HPG]

Uh oh, poor Cas!

[spirkestielgirl87]

Thanks everyone! Glad to know there are so many Cas fans out there! He's actually my favorite victi...er character Anyway here is the next part, hot off the press:

Part 7

After dinner was cleaned up, the four men gathered around the TV room to watch a movie. It had taken some convincing to pry Kevin away from his work, but he eventually caved when they agreed to let him pick the movie. About two hours into Lord of the Rings, Sam noticed that Dean and Kevin had nodded off. Cas continued watching, seemingly intrigued. Sam noticed, however, his frequent swallowing and pained expression signaling that his throat was becoming sore. Without saying anything, Sam got up and left the room returning a few minutes later with a steaming mug. He handed it to Cas with a smile.

“Drink this, it will help your throat.”

Castiel looked grateful as he took the tea from Sam’s hands with a congested “Thadk you” and beginning taking slow sips. The warm liquid soothed his throat. The steam rising from the mug, however, began irritating his sensitive nose.

“Eh..shew! Eh..eh…ehshheew!” the sneezes caused Cas’ nose to start running copiously. He tried to suck the liquid back up with a strong sniffle, but this only resulted in a disgusting bubbling sound and the snot continued dripping toward his lip.

Noticing Cas’ predicament, Sam grabbed a tissue from the box Dean had left on the end table earlier and handed it to the ailing, graceless angel with instructions to blow.

Cas complied, albeit awkwardly as he had never blown his nose before.

Sam watched with sympathy. “How you hangin in there Cas? You feelin a lot worse?”

Cas wasn’t sure how to answer. He was in fact feeling loads worse than he had a few hours ago, but he didn’t want to take advantage of Sam’s concern by complaining. He settled for his best Dean impression.

“A little, but I’ll live.”

Sam saw right through this. He put a hand to Cas’s forehead, almost surprised when he didn’t pull away the way Dean had been doing all week. Just as Sam had expected, his head felt atypically warm.

“Yep, just you’re getting’ a fever just like Dean did. How’s your stomach feelin’? If I get you some Tylenol you think it’ll stay down?”

“I do not feel any discomfort in my stomach, I believe medication would be helpful, thank you.”

Sam smiled and left again this time returning with the brown pharmacy bag full of meds that he had gotten for Dean earlier. He took out the bottle of Tylenol, opened it, and handed two tablets to his friend.

Cas took them in his hand, remembering the last time he had taken the same pills a few years back when he was recovering from his liquor store binge. He had still had his grace then, although dwindling, and had needed an entire bottle to put a dent in his angelic hangover. He realized that if he took the same quantity today without his grace he would probably die. It was a strange thought. He swallowed the pills with another sip of tea and lay back to continue watching the movie.

Sam also continued watching the fellowship’s journey he had seen a million times, but also kept an eye on Cas just in case his stomach did decide to copy Dean’s.

It wasn't until the movie ended and Sam got up to turn it off that Dean was startled awake. Noticing the prophet was now the only one asleep, Dean tapped Kevin on the shoulder to wake him up as well. “Hey Kev, the movie’s over.”

Kevin opened his eyes and looked around sleepily before dragging himself off the couch giving a mumbled “G’night guys” and staggering off toward his room. It was obvious that his long days working on the Angel Tablet were leaving him exhausted. He’d had only a measly few weeks to rest after his taxing work on the Demon tablet before he was once again put to work on the Angel one. Dean hoped it would be solved soon, so that his young friend could have some time to enjoy his youth.

Sam seemed to be thinking the same thing as he shouted out to him as he was leaving “Hey Kev, why don’t you skip the 5am alarm and sleep in tomorrow huh?” Kevin pretended not to hear him.

Once Kevin was out of sight, Dean looked over to Cas who was sitting very still as if in a daze. He noticed his cheeks were slightly pink. “He got a fever?” he asked Sam gesturing to Castiel.

“Yeah, I gave him some Tylenol about an hour ago.”

Cas looked up and tried to give Dean a reassuring smile. “I ab alright Dead. Your brother has been bost helpful.”

Dean couldn’t help but feel a slight bit of both guilt and jealousy that Sam had been the one taking care of the no-longer-angel. Dean had been the one to get him sick, and he therefore felt it was his responsibility to care for their newly human friend. Sam had already been charged with the caretaker role for the past three days, he figured he could use a break. Plus, he couldn’t help but feel that Cas was his. It was irrational, obviously Cas was Sam’s friend too, but even he himself had said that he felt a more profound bond with Dean.

Dean decided to make up for it by staying in Cas’ room that night just in case he needed something. Cas insisted it wasn’t necessary and that he would be fine sleeping alone, but Dean wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was a good thing too, because Cas would in fact be needing Dean's care that night.

[NorthernLady]

Dean decided to make up for it by staying in Cas’ room that night just in case he needed something. Cas insisted it wasn’t necessary and that he would be fine sleeping alone, but Dean wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was a good thing too, because Cas would in fact be needing Dean's care that night.

Awwww some P&C (puke and comfort - emphasis on comfort ) I have to agree, your characterization is good! And this thing :

For the last month or so, it seemed all of their time and energy was spent searching for a way to send the haloed refugees back upstairs rather than looking for new cases.

I adore you use of haloed refugees for the fallen angel, every creative and so very true Can't wait for the next chapter....

[spirkestielgirl87]

Dean decided to make up for it by staying in Cas’ room that night just in case he needed something. Cas insisted it wasn’t necessary and that he would be fine sleeping alone, but Dean wouldn’t take no for an answer. It was a good thing too, because Cas would in fact be needing Dean's care that night.

Awwww some P&C (puke and comfort - emphasis on comfort ) I have to agree, your characterization is good! And this thing :

For the last month or so, it seemed all of their time and energy was spent searching for a way to send the haloed refugees back upstairs rather than looking for new cases.

I adore you use of haloed refugees for the fallen angel, every creative and so very true Can't wait for the next chapter....

Thank you, you're so kind!

So I am doing GISHWHES this week (I'm assuming anyone reading this is a SPN fan and knows what i'm talking about, but if not and you're curious Google it, it's awesome!) But anyway I won't be having a lot of free time so it may be a mo before I update again, but I promise after next Saturday when I return to real life I will update