Five Years Later

Chapter Nine: The Reunion

"I need you do to something for me, Winchester."

Negan's voice was raspy from a combination of the cold morning air and the smoke from his cigarette, which he had discarded onto the frosty grass only moments ago. He had invited Dean to go on patrol with him that morning, and Dean was now standing there, shivering and regretting the decision. The trees behind them that lined the border of the base defenses were hunched over with ice forming on their branches and weighing them down. Occasionally, when the wind would gust by, an icicle would fall and pierce the blanket of snow above with a sickening thud.

"What is it, sir?" Dean bit his lip at the word sir. It reminded him of how he used to act around his father, and those were memories he never intended to revisit. Unfortunately, there was no other way to get to where he needed to be in terms of Negan's command. The more Negan trusted Dean, the more lax he would be, which would give Dean a chance to either look for the others who had come with him and find out what happened, or to escape.

"In order to prove your loyalty to me, you have to go up to Castiel Novak and tell him everything that you absolutely hate about him."

An excuse for what followed must have been that the frigid air penetrated Dean, because he stood there, shocked and frozen. His fingers suddenly felt numb and he couldn't tell how fast his heart was beating, but he knew he had to calm himself, lest he slip back into unconsciousness for a third time that week.

"What do you mean by this, sir?" Dean said in reply, trying to sound anything other than surprised in order to seem collected. It was all about appearances with Negan – it was only a matter of keeping up with each disguise so that he never caught on.

"What I mean is what I said, but I will break it down for you if that's what you want." Negan huffed, frustration edging into his voice. "I can't have you two together. It would be detrimental to everything the Saviors stand for. I kidnapped Cas from the bunker five years ago and as soon as you come waltzing back, the two of you are allowed to live happily ever after? You can't seriously expect that most of these people came here out of free will, and I can't have all of their estranged partners flooding into my gates. We'd have a full scale rebellion on our hands, and that's the last thing I need to put up with right now."

"Of course, sir." Dean cringed at the sound of his own voice reverberating in the empty courtyard. Flakes of snow began to fall listlessly against the grass, swirling in a breeze that carried them to a gentle landing. An icicle thudded in the distance, resounding dully as it penetrated the snow. 

***

The moments that Dean spent outside the door, behind which stood his challenge and greatest fear, were the most agonizing minutes of his life. He found himself for the first time in his life praying that Negan were standing there, if only to shove him in and make him get it over with. This was the last thing on earth he wanted. When he finally worked up the courage to walk in, he came upon Cas alone in the room, a bottle of beer in one hand and a package of cigarettes in the other. It must have used to be an office; chairs were strewn in every direction, rolled away from the massive oak table that stood in the heart of it all. 

Cas glowered at Dean apprehensively, tapping the edge of his cigarette expertly and letting the ashes fall against the stains. He did not look particularly pleased to see Dean standing there, but it was already going better than Dean had hoped for; Cas didn't lunge for him or try to walk away. The two of them continued to stand there, taking in the scene and one another for minutes on end. Dean noticed that Cas' trench coat was past his fingertips, and when Cas saw where Dean was looking, he adjusted the sleeves and took a swig of his beer.