Beat The Devils Tattoo

Chapter 4 Dust

Chapter 4 dust

Chapter Text

When Sam rolled up to the shop for his shift, everyone could see he was in an absolutely foul mood. The Ducati was very nearly sent careening to the ground as he dismounted, a scowl firmly fixed on his face. Bobby, who'd been manning the informal front desk that sat outside so more people could sit in the waiting room, watched with narrowed eyes. While it wasn't hot out just yet, the day was shaping up to be a scorcher.

"What's got your panties in a twist?" Bobby asked, a bushy eyebrow raising. Sam just growled at him and stalked to the back of the shop to get his jumpsuit. Dean showed up 10 minutes later, a man with a helmet on sitting behind him. Bobby rocketed to his feet as the man dismounted and pulled the helmet off, revealing dark hair and a familiar face.

"Novak!"

The man smiled, looking a little nervous as everyone looked up. Tara whistled, Rufus dropped a wrench, Benny was clearly unsurprised, and Garth let out a shriek of excitement. He rushed out and the man actually smiled as Garth hugged him tight, dancing a little.

"Which one are you?" Bobby asked as he walked over. "Never could tell the two of you apart."

"Castiel," he said, wheezing a little from the force of Garth's hug. "Garth, please, my ribs-"

"Oh!" Garth hastily let go. "Are you hurt? Did I hurt you? I didn't want to hurt you, promise, it's just that we kind of thought you were kinda dead and I might've cried a little about that because I missed you a lot-"

"We get the picture, Garth," Dean interrupted, carefully reeling Castiel into his side. The man seemed a little overwhelmed by it all. "We're headed over to talk to Michael. Just thought we should let you all know he's alive and kicking. Jimmy is too, but he isn't here."

"Long as you're both still fine," Bobby said, a real smile on his face. "God damn boy, we've missed you."

Tara watched them with a light smile on her face before going back to digging in the guts of a very sad looking Nissan. Sam hadn't even looked up from where he was working, and Bobby narrowed his eyes. The boy was acting odd, and while it made sense that he already knew about the prodigal son's return, there was definitely something wrong. As Castiel talked to some of the others, he caught Dean's eye and nodded towards Sam. Dean's eyes tracked over his brother, and he murmured something in Castiel's ear before backing away.

Sam and Dean exchanged a few quiet, tense words before Dean shook his head and went back to Castiel. The two begged off more questions and got back on Dean's bike, Castiel easily settling into the seat as it roared to life. Bobby waved them off, and kept a smile on his face until they were headed out of the gates. Then it dropped like a stone, and the false cheer everyone had been keeping up dissipated like lightning.

"D'ya think Dean's told him how bad it is?" Garth said in hushed tones.

"Doubt it," Benny said, his voice somber, and everybody returned to work a good deal quieter than before.

oOo

Bad didn't begin to cover it.

"He's not a young man," the nurse said as he tucked the blankets around Michael Novak's thin, shivering body. "We've done what we can, but frankly he's sick and doesn't seem to have the will to recover. He was getting a little better maybe a few weeks ago, but then..." He swallowed hard, smoothing the blankets. "Then Mr. Winchester passed away, and it seems like he's just fading away."

The soft beep of the heart monitor was the only other sound in the room as Castiel looked down at the thin, frail body of his father. The ventilator kept him breathing as he slept, but it was clearly a fight. Dean stayed back as Castiel reached out a shaking hand to touch his father's shoulder, and looked away when he sank to his knees, clutching the thin, bony hand. He didn't cry, but made soft, heaving noises of pure pain, the kind of anguish too deep for tears.