I'm sorry for my editing procrastination... this took so long to edit an I'm still unsure of perfection but I hope you enjoy it :) It felt like finale type chapter, though it probably isn't the last, and I'm sorry for the angst in advance (though it may have some fluff towards the end) I feel like i'm saying sorry a lot, anyway as always feedback is greatly appreciated and encouraged, thanks for all of you that are still following this story! What has it been, two years? Wow ^.^

Kevin sat in the corner of the cell, hands tied behind his back and knees pulled up to his chest. He heard them talking outside the door, harsh whispers about how they were planning to use his death to get back at the Winchesters. Their family hadn't done anything to this community, they were the ones that hurt them. Gabriel was dead and they used him for entertainment, and they were the ones who came and shot up the prison. If anyone should be getting back at someone else, it would be them finally killing the bastard in charge. Sam wasn't in the room, they had dragged him off somewhere else. He had been still knocked out at that point, some blood flowing down from his hairline. Kevin couldn't stop worrying about him. Even if he woke up and was okay, there was no doubt he wouldn't cooperate and try to kill the guy first chance he got. Which would definitely get him killed instead seeing as how they were the ones with their hands tied behind their backs. Kevin wished Andrea was around, he hadn't seen her when they were first brought in, of course he also had a damn blindfold over his eyes that complicated things. There's no way she would be okay with this, with the Governor planning to attack her friends, it wasn't like her. She may not know their family that well, but she was a good person, and she seemed to get along with Cas of all people.

The door started to creak open and Kevin glared towards the person entering. He'd never seen him before, probably one of the Governor's assistants that did all the dirty work for him. As much as he wanted to make a remark at the guy like Dean would have, he decided to keep quiet so that maybe he'd live a little longer. The cell was shaped like an old shed. There was stuff lying around everywhere, from broken furniture to rusted and unusable tools. He had been slowly scooting towards the broken lamp to pick up the glass from it, but was still only halfway there by the time the guy walked in the damn room.

"Don't even try." The guy muttered when he saw that Kevin had moved from the place they left him.

"Try what? My hands are tied behind my fucking back, asshat-"

"Watch your language before I put a bullet through your skull." The guy interrupted, Kevin rolled his eyes at him when he turned his back.

"Where's my brother?" Kevin asked quietly after a few minutes, the guy turned around to stare at him and tilt his head to the side in confusion.

"You mean the Sasquatch? Kid you aren't even the same ethnicity-"

"Basically adopted into the family, but either way I need to know where he is-"

"Oh, you need to know? Because you're making orders now, huh?" Kevin stopped asking questioned and leaned back against the wall in frustration. "We make the orders around here, kid, and right now all we want from you is information. If you don't give us the information, one of these knives are coming in contact with that red skin a yers." Kevin glared at the guy and wished like hell he could get out of these damn ties and beat the shit out of him. But at the current moment the guy was walking towards him with knives in his hand. Yeah, it would hurt, but there were enough of them for Kevin to somehow get ahold of one in the process. Then maybe he'd be able to get out of the ties.

"So... Tell me about Rick's plans."

"Can't even try to guess at those, dude is a keep-to-himself kinda guy with a depressing attitude. Trust me, I know nothing. But hey, you don't care, do you? I could guess as much because that's how every friggin movie goes, doesn't-" Kevin was cut off by one of the knives stabbing into his thigh. He tried to repress the scream, but it didn't work. He didn't do too well with pain, even though being in this position seemed like a common trend now. At this point he might actually pick Crowley over this guy. Crowley had grown to have more of a soul and emotional tie to their family in the recent years, and he's always seemed to have a soft spot for Kevin. Which is of course why he kidnapped and tortured his mom, it apparently ran in the family. He really didn't want to start thinking about his mom, after the outbreak things didn't end so well for her.

Kevin had been so lost in his thoughts that he had completely zoned the guy's bitchy voice out, so seeing as how he didn't hear the question in order to answer, another knife was cutting into his side. He squinted his eyes shut against the pain and started counting down from ten. When he got to zero and the pain was still there he started over. It was something Sam had taught him awhile ago. If anything scared him, anything hurt, he told him to just continue to count down from ten. Only ten little numbers, over an over again, he could get through that. It worked most times and calmed his anxiety, there were no paper bags around to breathe into while tied up in a shed somewhere in Woodbury being tortured, counting was all the previously panicky advanced placement student had.

"Tell me what the prison is doing to prepare-"

"I'm not telling you shit." Kevin muttered, earning knuckles against his jaw that sent his head banging back into the wall behind him. "That all you got, bitch?" He asked, spitting blood in the guy's face. He really shouldn't have said that.

Sam woke up to the sound of screams coming from the room next to him. The room was dark and his hands were tied behind his back. He looked around quickly and spotted a seat in the very middle of the room, dim light shining down on blonde hair drenched in red.

"Andrea?" He called out, his voice hoarse. She lifted her eyes to him, staring sadly through the dark as the screams next door continued. He knew it was Kevin, he just tried not to think about it, tried to zone it out. The very thought of someone hurting Kev made him murderous, but actually hearing the screams...

"I'm so sorry." Andrea said, Sam couldn't walk over to her if he tried, even his feet were tied together. It wouldn't have taken long to get out of the ties, except for the fact that they were wire instead of rope and were currently digging into his skin so tightly it bled. Andrea had it worse, metal cuffs hooked to the chair were locking in her wrists and ankles.

"It's okay, he'll be okay, he's always okay." Sam was only half convincing himself as the screams got worse and he wished he couldn't hear anything anymore.

"Not just that. I should have stayed at the prison when I could. I shouldn't have come back, I thought this place had potential but apparently he's too far gone. Cas and Dean? Charlie and all of them, they're still back at the prison, right?" Sam nodded and Andrea sighed in frustration. "He's taking a whole army back there to shoot the place up, please tell me Rick at least has the slightest idea of this happening-"

"He does. They'll be fine, they're strong. And none of this is your fault, Andrea, you trusted false hope is all. You know that saying, satan has a silver tongue, well I would know. He was charming and he seemed like the only hope left to start over. Then he turned around and unleashed the psychotic dickhead he is." Sam said, leaning his head back against the wall of the cell. Andrea laughed emotionlessly and shook her head.

"And I always thought Eve was such a dumbass for eating that damn apple. Look who's the dumbass now." She muttered, spitting some blood on the floor. Sam frowned at her and closed his eyes as the screams got worse, counting back from ten and hoping Dean would find Kevin. He didn't need saving, this was basically a suicide mission, but he couldn't leave Kevin to follow in his lead. The kid's lost so much and he looked up to him, what a sucky ass role model Sam was. He'd already failed him more than once.

Suddenly the door opened and the Governor shoved a small guy in, who was almost as bloody as Andrea, before walking in himself and closing the door behind him. The guy looked too weak to move, Sam had never seen him before, but Andrea seemed to recognize him.

"Im not hurting her-"

"Then You're not leaving the room." The Governor spat, picking up the guy by his shirt collar and pushing him against the wall. Sam wanted so bad to attack the Governor while he was so close, but he couldn't do anything about it.

"As for the Winchester, I just wanted you to witness this, I have other plans for you-"

"You're sick." Sam muttered, trying his hardest to get out of the wire ties as the Governor began to usher the bloody guy towards Andrea. It only took a matter of seconds before the guy lost it and rushed around to attack the Governor with the only sharp object he had on him, gaining a knife in the gut. Sam tried to struggle against the wire, but there was nothing he could do. Andrea was screaming at the Governor, but he continued to stab the poor guy over and over again until he couldn't stand anymore and was bleeding out of his mouth.

"What the fuck?!" Sam shouted at him as the Governor let the guy fall to the floor against the wall. He tried to slide across the floor towards him to try and stop the bleeding somehow, but it was useless. The guy didn't even look to be fighting for life anymore.

"I do what needs to be done. He will turn, and he will tear the flesh off of her. Say your goodbyes now, Winchester, because you're not sticking around to watch."

Cas was sitting in his cell bunk as Dean started packing everything they had. Rick decided they were all going to evacuate the prison before the Governor could attack. They weren't abandoning it altogether, just making it seem like they had fled so they had the upper hand in the attack. Everyone in the prison was quiet. Rick felt guilty of his association with Michonne's kidnapping, Carl hated him for it and was giving everyone the silent treatment in response, and Daryl was keeping to himself again. He was most likely still upset about Merle, but tying not to show it. Everyone seemed uneasy around Dean as if he'd explode at any second, and Cas couldn't say he blamed them. Their family was separated and everyone's expressions towards them varied from sympathy to walking on eggshells. Cas backed up on the bunk and brought his knees up against his chest, resting his head against the wall behind him. He closed his eyes and tried to pretend everything was still okay, but it was never okay to begin with. Thoughts of how much harder life would be if they do lose Sam and Kevin like they lost Gabe clouded his mind and made thinking unbearable. Dean's always called him a pessimist, when really he was just rightly intoned with reality.

"We have to get going, buddy. You okay?" Dean asked softly, dragging Cas out of his thoughts. He opened his eyes to look up at him and nod.

"Yeah, fine... I'm fine." He tried a smile and sat up off of the bunk, almost hitting his head on the top bunk in the process. "Y'know, when all of this is over and we're back in this cell, we're putting these damn mattresses on the floor. I'm tired of these bunks." Dean managed a laugh, handing over Cas's duffle as they began walking out of the cellblock and into the prison courtyard. They had been the last two left inside, everyone else was already packed up and getting into cars. Charlie was trying to get some talk out of Carl to no avail. Glenn kept an eye on the kid from that point on, which Charlie used to her advantage of finally giving up and looking for them. She was currently running up to them with her red hair flying in her face, Cas's jacket looking two sizes too big for her.

"Think the plan will work out?" She asked when she reached them, taking the extra bag from Dean and slinging it over her shoulder.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Cas said before walking past them to start packing the Impala. Charlie seemed concerned but didn't say anything, instead she stayed back and left all the questions to Dean. She knew she probably wouldn't get much out of him, but she made it her mission. Once Cas had his duffle in the trunk, he put his gun on his belt and got in the passenger side. He just wanted away from all the activity, all the people rushing about, all the fear and anger. He wanted out. He wished he could just shut his eyes and wake up back in the bunker, the smell of Dean's blueberry pancakes and coffee in the morning, Gabriel and Sam arguing about candy stashes in the room next to theirs. Now they didn't even know if half of their family was still alive. Cas looked over when he heard the door open, watching as Dean sat down beside him and sighed in annoyance.

"I'm sick of all this waiting, I just want to go." He muttered, not even bothering to look over at Cas, knowing he wouldn't get a response. Charlie put the remaining bags in the trunk before hopping in the backseat.

"So Rick told me once we get these cars out, I'll be watching over Judith with Hershel and his son in the woods just outside the prison. For some reason he's really starting to trust me, but I wish I could be on my way to Woodbury already." She said before laying across the back bench seat. Cas and Dean would be hiding with the ambush team, partnering with Glenn and Maggie. He liked being in the line of fire, but what he really wanted was to leave. Rick assured them that that was the first place they would go once they drive the Governor away, but he was still anxious about Sam and Kev's safety.

Sam was in handcuffs, sitting in the back seat of the Governor's truck. There was no way he could get back to Kevin, especially if he died now. They were close to the prison, and he hoped like hell they already got out. The Governor had a lot of people willing to fight, and a lot of weapons to fight with. He didn't know why the Governor brought him. Maybe he wanted him to watch, maybe he wanted to kill him in front of everyone to make an example. Who knew? At this point he didn't care about himself. He was too worried about Kevin, about Andrea, he couldn't care less if he died. But he couldn't stand the thought of losing anyone else. Everyone looked at him like he was the enemy, as if he were the psychotic one here and not the Governor. It was all a matter of perspective, and the Governor had single handily turned them into the murders. When the truck pulled up to the prison gate, it crashed right through it and continued into the tire traps. They wouldn't be moving any further, Michonne's plan worked. They didn't seem to care and shot up everything in sight anyway. Sam tried not to worry too much, he didn't see any cars in the courtyard, maybe they made it out. One of the perch towers caught fire and the Governor's soldier sitting next to Sam opened his door and shoved him out. Having his hands locked behind his back made him land on his face in the dirt, groaning in agitation as he spit some blood onto the ground, before the Governor picked him up by his shirt.

"We're goin' inside. You're stickin' with me." Sam glared at the man's confident winning smile. He wouldn't win, Sam knew it, in the end the psychotic ones finally break and they're taken down. It might take awhile, but he'll get what's coming for him. They broke down the gates and walked up to the cellblock doors, trying to pry them open and break the locks. Sam was being escorted by two of the Woodbury soldiers, one of which kept pushing the barrel of a gun into his side. He didn't fear anything anymore, it just agitated him. They got out flashlights and pushed into the cellblock, thank God it was empty, he knew Rick would be smart about this. They were either far from their place, or hiding out somewhere. Sam hoped they were gone, he hoped they wouldn't have to see the Governor kill him, he hoped they weren't stupid enough to put their lives on the line for him. Especially Dean. They should be on their way to Woodbury while they had time to get Kevin. Sam knew the Governor needed every soldier he could get, so maybe Kevin wasn't being tortured anymore. Then again he could be bleeding out, all alone in that small room. The thought made Sam's blood boil.

When they couldn't find anyone inside the prison, they started to walk back outside in agitation. Sam smiled to himself, the Governor was pissed, and he couldn't be happier at the sight of that. The prison group knew what they were doing. As they were on the way through the courtyard the groups of soldiers split up along the expanse of the walls, and suddenly guns went off from behind them. The shots came from everywhere, and Sam had that sinking feeling again because yes, they were that stupid. The Governor turned around and shot back, pushing Sam out of the way as the soldiers that had been holding him fled.

"What are you doing? Fight?!" He shouted, but most of the people were on their way back to the cars, some already taken down by gunfire. Sam tried to get out of the guy's grip and run towards the source of the gunfire, but instead the Governor put the gun to his temple and held Sam in front of him as a shield. At that point Sam just wished a stray bullet would hit him.

"Stop shooting, or I'll blow his head off!" The Governor shouted. The gunfire only hesitated for a second, shouting coming from behind a wall, or inside one of the cell exits, before someone was shoved outside. Sam cursed under his breath when he saw Dean running towards them with his gun held out.

"That's exactly something a coward would say, asshole." He said, Sam glared at his brother before shaking his head subtly in Cas's direction where he hesitated in the doorway Dean had run out of.

"I have an army here, you have one gun-"

"Your army doesn't really seem to be helping much. Did they know you planned a massacre? Were they okay with that-?"

"I will pull this trigger. I'm not opposed to killin' anyone in my way-"

"I've noticed, that's why I'm not opposed to killin' you-"

"Dean, no." The rest of the Governor's main group from the barn attack yesterday were already joining them and pointing their guns at his brother. "I'm... not important. Kevin, you need to-"

"Stop it Sammy, don't start this nonsense-"

"-get Kevin. Get Charlie, get Cas, get all of them out of here. Just leave me." Sam pleaded, he was done fighting, he was done surviving, he was done keeping his head above the water. He just couldn't swim anymore, all the weight was dragging him to the bottom and he was fine with never resurfacing. Glenn, Maggie, and Cas were still shooting at the rest of the intruders as they began making a run for it, not knowing the source of the gunfire coming in from all sides. The Governor kicked Sam behind the knees until he was on the ground again, gun still pointed down at his head. He looked at Dean one more time and managed a sad smile for barely a second before closing his eyes against the commotion around him. The look on Dean's face was too much to watch, he didn't look disappointed or angry, just scared. He looked like the terrified kid who lost dad on a hunt, the kid who worried about a scrape on Sam's knee, the brother who already had to watch the world implode. Close your eyes, Sammy. Sam heard a gun go off, but he didn't feel the impact he expected. Nothing went dark, there was no white light to walk into, just nothing. He opened his eyes to see legs running at him and picking him up off the ground. More shots fired past him as Dean dragged him away. Sam struggled against his brother's hold, but it didn't do any good. He looked back over his shoulder at where the Governor was running back with his hand clutching his chest. He was bleeding out, getting paler by the second as the few men with him were shot at by the prison goers, until they finally ran them off. Everyone got in the trucks and sped away. Everything happened in seconds, but it felt like an eternity. Sam was covered in some of the Governor's blood. Dean shoved him into the door Cas was standing in, yelling curses in his ear before he wrapped his arms around him. He held on to him as if he were already dead, face hidden against Sam's shoulder.

"Don't ever... ever think you're not important. Do you know what would happen to me if I lost you? Do you?" Sam gave up and fell into the undeserving hug, arms wrapping around his brother as he stared over his shoulder at Cas, whose eyes were red.

"We need to get Kevin, why didn't you shoot at the guy's head, you had a clean shot?" Sam asked, Dean pulled him away at arm's length and glared at him.

"Because I didn't shoot him. If I had made a move he would have killed your stupid ass on the spot. He was shot from behind by Rick, which gave me enough time to get you the hell out of there. What do you think you were doing giving into a bullet in the head? What what Bobby say? What would Gabe say-?"

"Nothing, because they're both dead, Dean." Sam interrupted, Cas flinching at his words. He looked seconds away from walking away before he moved between the brothers and pushed them apart angrily.

"I've had enough. I've had it. You two just need to work things out at a later time. Sam, I understand why you would think a bullet is the easy way out of this life, but Dean doesn't understand at the moment, and he may never understand when it comes to you or me. The best thing for you to do is not argue. Kevin is still in Woodbury, and whether the Governor is wounded badly enough or not, he'll be heading back there. We need to ambush them. We don't have time to pity ourselves, you both need to grow the fuck up." Cas shouted, turning to look at both of the Winchesters sternly with no emotion left in his eyes, and right then he looked near terrifying. The prison community had come out of their hiding places and were staring at the small family with concern. Sam's eyes softened as he looked from Cas back to his brother, who looked seconds from breaking apart. "We're getting Charlie, and we're saving Kevin. All we have is each other, and as much as either of you want to give up and fall to pieces, just realize how much that affects the rest of us. Realize how it would affect me if either of you... we'll figure it out, okay?" Cas continued, eyes returning to Dean, who nodded, his hand reaching out for Cas, who pushed it away and walked off towards the rest of the prison community. Dean looked hurt at the motion but brushed it off and looked back up at Sam.

"Let's go find Kev." He said, Sam hesitated for a second before he turned around and walked away as well, spotting red hair running through the small crowd that had gathered in the middle of the courtyard. Charlie practically jumped into his arms, holding onto him so tight she could've crushed his ribs.

"I thought I'd never see you again-"

"I'm okay, Charles-"

"Where's Kevin?" She asked, pulling back to look around in concern. Her eyes darkened at the realization that he wasn't there. "He isn't... He isn't de-"

"No, no, Charlie, don't think that. I don't know for sure, all I know is he's still at Woodbury, and that's where we're heading-

"Exactly, we need to finish the guy off. We were sloppy, we've only managed to weaken them, but they could come back anytime." Rick interrupted, Daryl walking at his side with his crossbow slung over his shoulder. Dean had walked over by then, Charlie still attached to Sam's arm and holding on tightly as if she'd never let go again. Carl and Hershel had gone inside with Judith, both looking like they'd seen the worst. Maggie and Glenn were stripping off the prison gear and celebrating the small victory, but they didn't want to be part of the team going back to Woodbury. Sam could understand why, after what happened to them last time, no one could blame them. He just wished everyone would hurry up.

Kevin woke up facing the floor. His cheek was lying against the cold floor, something sticky all over his skin. His head felt like it was constantly being knocked into with a metal bat, the pain increasing as he tried to sit up. The room seemed to rotate around him, so he squeezed his eyes shut against the dizziness and groaned in pain as he sat the rest of the way up. That's when he realized that all of the sticky stuff was his own blood. He opened his eyes and looked down at the wounds, finally remembering everything that happened before he blacked out as he traced over the cuts in his skin delicately. There was an open gash on his head, which must have been were the headache came from, as well as the cause of him passing out. His arms were lined with cuts, some deeper than others, and blood was soaking through his jeans from where the guy decided to stab a knife into his thigh. He felt pain in his shoulders and collarbones but he didn't even want to look, everything he did hurt. Simply blinking felt like someone punching him in the nose, which of course might be broken. Hopefully not, they didn't have doctors to set noses anymore, and he'd rather not have a crooked one the rest of his probably short-lived life. Kevin rubbed his wrists where the wire used to be, wondering why they had left him untied. They probably thought he'd die, or maybe they just knew he wasn't strong enough anymore to find a way out. He knew he should be trying to stand up and take the opportunity to escape given to him, but the slightest movement hurt. On the other hand the screaming coming from the other room across the hall made him a little uneasy. It wasn't Sam, it was a girl, but the screaming was short lived. He cursed under his breath, she was probably dead now, whoever she was. He couldn't even try to help her. He pushed himself across the floor and rested his back against the wall, leaning his head against the hard surface and closing his eyes. At this point he knew he was going to die, it was inevitable, at least he'd get to see his mom again. Maybe.

"Well isn't this a sorry sight. I honestly thought you'd be stronger than that, kid." A voice came out of the darkness. Kevin's eyes shot open at the thick accent and familiar tone.

"There is no fucking way you're here... Stupid headache, stupid gash-"

"I'm pretty sure I'm real. Took me awhile to find you Winchesters, I just followed a trail of plaid shirts." The source of the voice stepped into the light and kneeled down in front of Kevin, cocking his head to the side with interest. When he got a better look at Kevin, his eyes seemed to soften as if they were even capable of emotion. As far as Kevin knew, the king of hell was the furthest thing from emotional.

"You're... not here." Kevin muttered again, his head felt worse and worse which each word he said. But there he was, Crowley, missing in action ever since hell closed up, just sitting there in silence and staring at him as if he cared about his wellbeing.

"You need to listen to me, Kev. Listen carefully. You need to wake up. You need to wake up and you need to get to your feet, as much as it may hurt, and get the hell out of that place. Big things are coming, these gates have been sealed shut ever since the beginning of this disease, but it won't be that way forever. Cas gets them too, doesn't he? The premonitions, the bad dreams? Kevin they're warnings, I'm a warning, you need to listen to me. There are big things coming, and you need to wake up now." Crowley reached out and rested a hand on his shoulder, almost comfortingly, as Kevin stared at his sincere eyes in shock. He was about to ask what things, and why he was supposed to wake up if he were already awake, when Crowley disappeared and the black faded around him until Kevin's eyes opened again to hands shaking him where Crowley's hand had been placed.

"Wake up- oh my god, he's awake! You're okay, we're here, you're okay." Kevin's eyes focused on Sam kneeling in front of him, eyes full of worry. He was still rested against the wall of the room, maybe he'd dozed off and dreamt up Crowley. He couldn't be sure, but it scared him more than anything. Before he could say anything, or even think, Sam was lifting him off the ground and holding him carefully in his arms, trying not to hurt him too badly as Kevin winced in pain from the change in position. He realized some pieces of Sam's shirt had been tied tightly around the bigger wounds that were still bleeding. Kevin rested his head against Sam's chest and closed his eyes again as he felt him start to walk out of the room. He heard Charlie's voice following after them, but it sounded distant and airy. He knew he wouldn't be awake much longer, so he took the chance to tell Sam what he'd heard.

"We need to get out of this place... big things are coming. Crowley told me."

Once they knew Kevin was safe with Sam and Charlie, Cas had followed Dean into the other room that had blood pooling under the door. Rick and Daryl managed to knock it open, and what they found inside must not have been too pretty. The expressions on their faces ranged from shock to sadness, and Cas didn't know if he even wanted to see for himself. Dean had already walked into the room with Rick, Daryl, and Michonne, and was now looking back at Cas sadly. It had to be Andrea, he just knew it was, who else would be here in Woodbury that they knew? He finally walked in to see for himself. Rick was kneeled on the floor in front of the blonde woman he knew so little about, yet still felt an attachment to. Blood was covering her clothes and hands, she'd been bite on the shoulder, there was no way to stop the disease from spreading. Cas had completely drowned out all the conversation between them and watched in silence as Michonne sat at Andrea's side, close to tears, while Rick handed over his gun. After he stood back up and him and Daryl left the room, her eyes traveled up to Cas's.

"Hi." She said, forcing a smile on her face as he walked over to kneel in front of her. "You found Sam and Kevin, right? They're okay?" Cas nodded, she seemed very pleased to know this.

"Kevin isn't in the best shape, but he'll be alright. I wish you would have stayed at the prison with us, Andrea. I'm so sorry, I should have asked-"

"Hey, it's okay. I tried my best, made all the decisions I could have. I may have some regrets of my own, but you have a lifetime to forget about yours." She said, reaching out to hold onto his hand, fingers weak and burning with the fever. Cas managed a smile for her as much as he felt like breaking

"This is just a world full of loss and plenty of regret, you will be with your sister again. If anything, know that." Cas said sincerely, squeezing her hand one more time before letting go and standing up. Andrea smiled at him as Dean reached down to say his goodbyes as well before they both left the room, shutting the door behind them and waiting for the gunshot to sound. Cas walked further away from the group, over to where Sam was waiting with Kevin in his arms and Charlie at his side. She was clutching at his jacket as if he'd disappear if she ever let go again. Dean was at Cas's side in seconds, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him against him. This time he didn't pull away, giving up and shutting his eyes against his chest as the gun went off and echoed throughout the room.

When they got back to the prison, Hershel finished cleaning and bandaging all of Kevin's wounds, giving him loads of pills before saying he'd be okay for the night. Sam wasn't convinced, he explained how Kevin told him he talked to Crowley, which worried all of them even more. It was something about big things coming, and seeing as how he was still technically a prophet, it could have been more then just a simple hallucination. But they wouldn't know the full story until Kevin was well enough to tell it, and at the moment he was sleeping in Sam's cell on the bottom bunk, Charlie curled up at his side. She had pulled a blanket over them and was moving the blood soaked hair out of Kevin's eyes, tear streaks dried up on her cheeks. Sam walked into the cell and kneeled down beside the bed, looking over at her in concern.

"He'll be okay, Charles." Sam said quietly, Charlie's eyes lifting to meet his as she rested her head down on the pillow beside Kevin.

"I know. I'm just worried, and I don't want to leave him. You'll stay on the top bunk, right?" She asked, sleep deprivation showing clearly in her voice as her eyelids grew heavier by the second.

"Yeah, I'll be right up there. We'll all be fine Charlie-"

"Maybe we should leave this place. Start over." She interrupted, staring at Sam with the greatest sincerity. He was taken aback, but he didn't bother to question her, he knew why she wanted to go.

"Maybe, but that's something we can talk over later. Get some sleep." Sam whispered, smiling at her as she nodded in agreement before he climbed up to the top bunk and fell asleep within seconds of his head hitting the pillow.

Cas couldn't sleep, he sat on the floor against the wall, knees pulled up to his chest and head in his hands. He was exhausted. Tired of living, tired of keeping everyone safe, tired of pretending he was alright, tired of pretending to be happy here. He didn't have any hope left, he just made it seem like he did so no one would worry about him. All of them were living lies. Dean was out checking on Kevin again, just making sure he was still breathing. He was beat up pretty bad, and these premonitions of Crowley of all people were starting to worry Cas even more. His nightmares have gotten worse lately, he just refrained from waking Dean, he was sick of feeling weak. The human emotion of fear bothered him the most. Of course he'd been scared before as an angel, but he only thought he felt that way because of the things Dean told him, he never actually felt it. Not like this.

"Hey." Cas lifted his head out of his hands to find Dean in front of him, sitting back on his knees and reaching out to wipe the stray tears off of Cas's cheek. "Talk to me." He whispered, moving to sit next to him and rest his hand on his leg. Cas didn't say anything, he just laid his head against Dean's shoulder.

"Castiel, please." Dean continued, squeezing his hand. Cas stared at the two bunk mattresses pushed together on the floor in front of him, covered with all the blankets they've picked up along the way.

"I see you've moved the mattresses off the bunk-"

"Cas, really-"

"So... you plan on staying here, huh?" Cas asked, looking up at Dean in question. Dean just stared at him in silence, trying to figure out what Cas was really getting at.

"Of course. I mean, this is the safest-"

"Is it though?" Cas interrupted. He saw Dean actually take a second to think harder about it. Yes, it was the safest they've been from walkers, but was it really the safest from everyone else? From people like the Governor who shot up his whole army because they failed their mission. He just took off after that, he could be anywhere now. They were used to monsters, used to every possible thing that lived to kill, but God's creations becoming their own monsters terrified Cas. Not because he didn't think he could win against them, but because it made him doubt the existence of his dad at all. At this point he could be gone for good, never coming back, for fucks sake he left them with this mess. This plague of death. Everyone already had the disease, what was the point of all of it? Was he angry? This was no flood, this was a sick massacre that kept the dead alive and killing. Humanity was falling apart and the gates to heaven and hell were shut. There were no monsters anymore, there were just humans. And humans have become the worst monsters of all.

"He doesn't have an army anymore, Castiel, all it takes is another shot and the guy's dead. Rick should have taken the chance when he could, but like Andrea said, we have to live past our regrets. Look at me." Dean said, waiting for Cas's eyes to lift up to his before he continued, "yes, the world is fucked up. Yes, we can't save everyone anymore. Of course we've lost a lot, and we'll continue to lose a lot. But we can't lose ourselves, and I can't lose you. God, Cas, my brother was willing to just give up and die today, and you seemed like you understood his reasoning and weren't angry about it. I don't care where we go, how long we keep fighting, but that's just it: we always keep fighting. And when I look to my side the only remaining hope that I have left is to see you standing next to me. That's what we live for, Cas. We live for this family, we live for the people we love, we live for ourselves. As much as I try to keep you guys safe and alive, the only one who can save you is you. All I can ask is... please stay with me." Cas just wanted to curl up in his arms and never have to deal with the world again, but he knew that would never be the case. He was about to explain how he'd never even think of leaving his side when he felt something cold and metallic being dropped into his palm. He looked down at it in confusion as Dean closed his hand over his.

"Dean-"

"Let me have this. If anything, just this." Dean interrupted, eyes traveling down to Cas's hand as he opened his palm to stare down at the silver wedding band. "Charlie and Kevin found them, apparently they've picked them up along the way." Cas looked from the ring back up to Dean, uncertain of what exactly to think. Charlie had spoken about this certain tradition once before, but he only half understood.

"You mean-"

"I know, it's stupid, it's just a label and all and I suck at timing-"

"Marriage-?"

"You don't have to, I mean, this is-"

"Shut up." Cas said, closing his hand over the ring and leaning in to kiss his cheek. "Where's yours, aren't there usually two?" He asked softly against his skin, pulling back enough to get a good look at Dean's bright red cheeks as he reached to pull the other ring out of his jacket pocket. Cas stole the metallic object from his hand and gently slid it onto Dean's finger. He knew which one the ring finger was ever since their engagement, which seemed like forever ago. Dean was watching Cas as he traced his finger over Dean's ring absentmindedly, before he reached for Cas's ring and did the same. It was cold against Cas's skin, and looked out of place against his blood and dirt ridden hands, but he didn't mind. He didn't realize how long he was sat there, staring down at his fingers curled through Dean's, until Dean reached out to lift his chin up and meet his eyes. After everything, after Gabe, after Kevin and Sam getting hurt, after the Governor, after all the fucking walkers, after God himself not paying enough attention to the world... As miserable as Cas was, or as bad as he ever felt, having Dean staring at him that way he always did with those bright green eyes and laughter lines and freckles dotting over his nose, made everything seem okay. If even for the smallest fraction of a second, he felt like he was home again.

"Please stay with me, too." His whispered after awhile, voice smaller than usual.

"Always."