text; secret video

[strangelic]

Hello.

My name is Castiel, and I'm a healer. I'm pleased to tell you that I will now be available at the clinic for any purpose between healing a scratch and bringing you back from the brink of death. I would like to speak to anyone whose needs may be different from those of the average person, in particular if your physiology isn't human, or human similar. I can't heal my own kind, but it may be possible for me to assist others; I would simply prefer not to discover such flaws in an emergency.

Um. It's nice to meet you, if you're new here.

[ Unbeknownst to Castiel as he texts back to people his phone will also broadcast video of him as he texts with one of these two snapchat features auto-activated throughout the entire conversation. His text is also white. So fun. Want to tell him what's happening? ]

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[strangelic]

It's mm... [ What adjective to use? ] It's new. I should have brought a house warming gift.

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[knifecollecting]

[She laughs and sits down again, gesturing for Cas to make himself comfortable.]

What would you have brought? There's not a lot here.

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[strangelic]

I don't know. A vase, I suppose. I could have made you a sand sculpture.

[ He came closer, and chose a seat, a little less awkwardly than he would have the last time they knew each other. Calm, and contented, he looked up to meet Jo's gaze. ]

How have your first few days of the city been?

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[knifecollecting]

It's the thought that counts. [Honestly, she never would have expected anything from the angel.

She smiles as she watches him, noting the differences since that night so long ago.]

Mostly uneventful. I'm still exploring.

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[strangelic]

[ Castiel is soft and warm in ways that he hadn't been before. He cares, now, and in the wake of his experience with the Leviathan, being touched by the wamrth of Sam's soul, he's fonder still of Dean and his family. Jo counts as part of that. He's fond of her as well, even if they barely know each other; but they had faced a battle for the end of the world together; faced the understanding that this might be their last night on earth. Together.

His eyes crinkle, minutely, emoting that fondness. ]

I'm sorry that it isn't more lively, but given what I've seen of this place it's probably for the best.

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[knifecollecting]

Yeah, waking up in the arena was lively enough for the week. [Add to that waking up right after nearly being forced to kill Dean?

She's glad for the break.]

What have you seen here?

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[strangelic]

The worst of ourselves, personified. There is a region of the city where...if you wander there, you will come upon that monster, still.

[ Castiel stayed, always, at least two streets away from the place where Silent Hill clung to Hadriel still. He feared his monster more than anything else. ]

And...dreams. Dreams built on a stage of fear. They were most discomforting.

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[knifecollecting]

That's...[That has to suck, right? She shakes her head.]

Where's that part of town? [So she can avoid the hell out of it.]

Hopefully those dreams don't come back.

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[strangelic]

Hopefully.

[ He offers her some directions, and then runs his hand back through his hair, a little haphazardly. ]

Have you spoken much to Sam and Dean? They're... They've grown, since you last saw them.

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[knifecollecting]

[Jo nods at the question.]

I've gotten to talk to them a few times. [It's been a few days.] I get the feeling things got more interesting after I left.

[As if she left purposefully.]

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[strangelic]

I think so too. They're from beyond my time, as well.

[ Angling her head, he watches her, curious. It's an interesting turn of phrase to choose. ]

Dean is... He's carrying a great burden. I'd hope that he might tell you about it himself, but as his friend, as someone who will be close to him... I think you should know, if you don't already.

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[knifecollecting]

[She nods, filing that away for the future.

And then he continues and she sits up a little straighter. Dean does carry a lot of shit, but somehow this doesn't sound like a normal thing.]

He didn't tell me about anything. [Somehow she doesn't sound surprised.]

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[strangelic]

[ Castiel nodded, thoughtfully, angling his head again. ]

Um... Hm. [ He knows what he wants to say, he's just working out how to approach it. ] Dean had to fight a demon far worse than any you faced together, a Knight of Hell. He took on a mark, a curse, which... It's a powerful thing. It makes him a dangerous opponent, in battle. But it also...it fills him with such rage that he has difficulty controlling it. He fears what it will make him become.

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[knifecollecting]

...A Knight of Hell? [She'd never heard of it, but they had all just been scratching the surface of things when she was alive, right?

But taking on a curse...She shakes her head, taking a deep breath.]

He's such an idiot.

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[strangelic]

He's...

[ He blinks at the statement. An idiot? Dean? ]

I think it was very noble.

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[knifecollecting]

[Jo isn't going to back down from that description.]

Yeah, sure, it was noble, but it was still stupid. [Did he know what he was in for? Was there anyone else who might have helped?]

He doesn't always have to do everything.

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[strangelic]

It's all he's ever known.

[ He looks a little morose, now. She has a point, it is stupid, but that's what older brothers do, right? Well. Human older brothers. Angel older brothers just suck balls. ]

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[knifecollecting]

I know.

[She knows, and she loves him for it, even if it leads to stupid decisions on his part.]

It's still stupid.

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[strangelic]

[ Castiel sighed, softly, and folded his hands in his lap. Exasperated noises weren't his norm, but the Mark of Cain worried him. ]

I'm worried about him. We're trying to work through it, but I know he finds the experience discomforting.

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[knifecollecting]

Working through somethin'? Yeah, I bet. [Okay, maybe that's a little unfair, but she's frustrated. How dare he.]

Can I do anything to help you help him? [She doubts Dean would let her try directly.]

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[strangelic]

[ Castiel nodded thoughtfully. There were things that he could use Jo's help for. For one thing, the gods here had some power, and perhaps he could entreat Jo's help for satisfying Desire's needs, for instance, if need be.

How do you solve a problem like Dean Winchester? You get help. And you don't compare him to a nun, because that shit's not going to fly. ]

I'll think of something. Mostly... Dean has to hunt, sometimes, to satisfy his urges. Sam keeps an eye on him sometimes, but it would be useful to be able to spread that burden.

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[knifecollecting]

I can do that. If Dean lets me. [She has a feeling he'd protest and this is even before he locks her in her apartment.]

Anything else?

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[strangelic]

I don't know, yet. [ He considers, thoughtfully. ] He has strong feelings about you, so perhaps that may come into it.

[ Wow way to be gentle, Cas. ]

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[knifecollecting]

[Oh, God.

Jo looks away for a long moment. This is something she doesn't think either of them really want to figure out. Dean felt guilty for her death, she knew that much, but...

Well.

She shakes her head. That's her answer, Cas.]

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[strangelic]

[ Castiel paused, quiet, giving her a moment to consider it, or reconsider perhaps, before he angled his face upward, looking at the ceiling instead. ]

I know it's not... It isn't how we usually do things. He doesn't face his feelings, and while that would make things no more difficult than usual for him under normal circumstances, here, cursed as he is, in a place where your emotions yield power to gods, it is a danger that must be overcome.

He needs help, and I am trying. But you haven't been here long. It is not your burden.