25th Hunt [Text] Lawman said get him dead or alive

[dudeimbatman]

Being a ghost friggin' sucks. All this Swayze bullshit is just that...bullshit. I don't even get a hot reaper here.

[ooc: Open to action for anyone who wants Dean to mess with them. The nice thing about being a ghost is the 'can be anywhere' aspect]

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[rehymenator]

He doesn't reply to the dig, because it's just evidence that Dean is still very much himself. Castiel does nod at the mention of Sam, of course. "Sam is okay, as far as I can tell. I've uh-- I've been out a lot."

He's about as good at apologies as a Winchester.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

Now it's time for Dean to ream Cas.

"Yeah. I heard. What the hell have you been thinking? I'm gone. That leaves you responsible for Sam, Jo even Anna. I know it's my job to take care of them but apparently I gotta tell your stupid ass that it's your job to take care of them when I can't."

He paces a little.

"Get your shit together, Castiel. They need you."

The I need you goes unspoken.

[rehymenator]

Talk about some kind of bizarre role reversal. At first, Castiel recoils and takes a step backward. Was he shirking some kind of responsibility he didn't realize he had? How could they need him when he was the one who almost blew up the microwave on a weekly basis?

"How can you be so sure about that? I have nothing to offer anymore, Dean. Anna's more suited to care for any of them than I am." Now he's begun to scowl again and he takes that step forward again, and another.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

"You really are a self-absorbed whiny little shit aren't you?" Dean shook his head at him. "They don't need you because of what you are, Cas. They need you because you're a Winchester now. It's not like there's that many of us left. Your family so start acting like it."

[rehymenator]

Castiel idly nods at the question, but of course his unspoken answer is in the context that says all humans are. He looks at Dean a little sideways at his continued rant and attempts to assess and understand just what the hell he's saying.

"And I should..." He lets it trail off. Because Castiel takes orders, he doesn't make them up on the fly.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

"Talk to them! Be around them. Harass the living hell out of them. Take away the whiskey bottle and tell them to suck it the hell up because whining isn't helping a single one of us, me included."

Order-y enough?

[rehymenator]

Whether it's because Dean's getting fired up and using more energy, or just the prolonged manifestation, Castiel has to move back and sit down lest he falls straight down.

"Okay, yes. And when they protest, I just. Continue to nag." Probably not the best word choice, but hey. He's tired.

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

Dean moves toward Cas, worry all over his face. He touches Cas' shoulder and his hand goes through him. No longer solid.

"Yeah. Don't let them get away with shit." He's not arguing about Cas' word choice. Not when the guy looks like death.

"I think we need to cut this bitch fest short. Step up, Cas. I know you can do it."

[rehymenator]

Castiel nods, a sign that he's trying to convince himself that Dean might be right. A sign of his doubt (really, it's like his doubt is endless in some ways) but also a sign that he's willing to try. Willing to believe in Dean the way that Dean believes in him.

It's all a little bit sappy but what would a Winchester emo-slash-pep talk be without the sap? "I'll just pretend to be you."

He thinks about that, then makes a snarky amendment.

"Without all of the charm."

[dude-imbatman.livejournal.com]

"Without the charm you'll just be an asshole."

He's grinning but he's fading fast. Literally.

"Which fits..."

[rehymenator]

Castiel actually laughs a little, dwindling down to chuckling as Dean fades out. He sits for a moment, happy to have had some time to chat up his best friend and more inclined to look for a way to get him back, now.

After a few minutes, Castiel gains some of his strength back and starts to clean up the little ritual. Selfish, to keep it all to himself, but with more people there would have been less time to talk and likely more stress on him.