Archive of Our Own ^beta

Purgatory is nothing like he expects. Days and nights go by but the sun is hidden in the haze.

His clothes are dirty and he is nearly useless. For the first time he is lost.

But Dean – oh Dean – is more at home here than he can believe.

Here, covered in dirt and blood, Dean grows.

Here, Eve’s children, gone to die, die again. Dean’s blade slicing through flesh and bone. Shots are fired. Blood splatters.

And a weight lifts off Dean’s shoulders.

Here, he sees Dean smile. Dean’s face lights up, eyes open. The joy of survival, no taint of heartbreak.

Here, his heart breaks. He throws himself into the fray, anything – anything – to see something else Dean’s eyes.

Panic grips him, knowing he’s gone too far. A scream, and he realises that it’s his own.

Here, covered in dirt and blood, Cas dies.