#Cass is just borrowing the bus for a moment she will give it back

[theresamouseinmyhouse]

Hi cass fans here's her hitting jason todd with a bus

[isolavirtuosa]

That River in Egypt 8-14 of 21

[fanfiction] Dean / Cass

canon divergent AU from 15x19, Dean being Dean

Previous parts here.

- 8 -

“Sorry, all I’ve got is the couch and the blow-up mattress,” Donna said apologetically.

“You kiddin’?  This is perfect,” I assured her.

“Well it’s no memory foam…” she lamented.

“We’re just happy to have a place to stay that isn’t a crappy motel,” Sam put in.  “Thanks for putting us up, there was no way we were gonna make it back to Lebanon tonight.”

“Glad to have ya,” Donna beamed at us.  “I figure you can take the couch, and Dean and Cass can take the mattress?”

I froze.

“I don’t sleep,” Cass explained, giving Donna a polite smile while he glanced anxiously at me from the corner of his eye.

“Well, sure, but I figured ya might need a bit of a rest and a cuddle after that messy hunt of yours,” Donna barreled forward, oblivious.

Sam had his ‘oh shit’ face on.

“Did Sam tell you?” I asked, eyes narrowed.

Donna was taken aback by my tone.  “Tell me what, Deany?”

It was hard to stay mad with all that Minnesota nice pouring over me, but I managed.  “About me and Cass,” I gritted out.

“What?” she asked, starting to realize that she was in the middle of a minefield.  “No, no one told me?  I just have eyes?”

What the hell did that mean?

“I didn’t know it was a secret since you’re so… ya know, obvious about it and all.”

What the hell did that mean?!

“Gosh, I really stepped in it, didn’t I?” she said, starting to look distressed.

“It’s fine,” I said , moving towards the windows and staring out of it pointedly so I wouldn’t have to look at anyone else.  “Appreciate havin’ a place to stay,” I offered, which was all the smoothing over that I was capable of at the moment.

“Hey, Donna, think I can borrow your shower?” Sam blurted out.

“You betcha, hon’,” Donna said, though she didn’t sound quite as cheery as before, and that was on me.  “I’ll grab ya a towel, c’mon.”

I let out the breath I was holding when the two sets of footsteps disappeared down the hall.

“Dean.”

I didn’t turn around.

Cass turned me around for me, crushing our lips together.

And I clung to him like a man drowning.

He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead to mine.  “I hate when you do that,” he whispered.

Cass hated me, my panicked brain informed me.  “What, I didn’t mean to… Donna…”

“Dean,” he whispered, his nose nudging mine.  “I hate when you run off half-cocked, no plan, and almost get yourself killed.”

“Oh…”

“If Sam and I hadn’t gotten there in time-”

“But you did,” I assured him, all thoughts of me about to be shish kebabed by an angry wraith easily pushed aside.

“I need a rest and a cuddle,” he requested, sounding uncertain.  Like he wasn’t sure he could ask for that.

Was he allowed to ask for that?

“Of course, sweetheart,” I agreed, running my hand up and down the small of his back.  “I’ll take care of you.”

Cass gave me a little smile.  “I’d like that.”

I pulled away to change into my pjs.  I could probably use a shower, but that was what tomorrow was for.

Cass arranged the blankets on the air mattress and crawled under the covers.

I crawled in after him, curving my body around his and holding him close.  “Just for a little bit, okay?” I whispered, all my previous paranoia creeping back in.

“I just want to know that you’re here,” Cass replied.  “That you’re safe.”

“I’m here, Cass,” I promised, kissing the back of his neck.

He curled his hand over the one I had holding his waist, squeezing.

I promptly passed out.  Almost killed by wraiths and all that.  It was a long friggin’ day.

I woke up how I usually woke up, in an octopus-hold with Cass, but something felt different.  I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, still half-asleep, so I pressed lazy kisses to his neck instead.

“Good morning,” he rumbled at me, grabbing my ass like he did pretty much every morning to start revving my engine.

“I feel like crap,” I complained, but my hips were already starting to move.

“Then stop running headfirst into obvious traps,” Cass scolded me, but there was no bite to it as his hips moved lazily with mine.

“Yeah, yeah, blow me, Cass.”

“In front of your brother?”

“Oh, shit.”

“Yeah, I’m totally right here, guys,” Sam complained from the couch.

It took me a moment, but then I was throwing a snarky grin over at my brother.  “Well, maybe you can finally learn something.”

“All good, thanks,” he announced, hastily tossing his blanket over the back of the couch and getting up.  “I’m gonna go for a run.”

“Now?” I scoffed, looking at Donna’s kitschy clock hanging over the mantle, declaring it to not even be 7 yet.

“Yep, definitely now,” he decided, making his exit.

“He has the friggin’ energy to run when we just got finished runnin’ for our lives?” I complained into Cass’s neck.

“I believe his regular workouts keep him in shape so as to not… ‘feel like crap’ after a slight exertion,” he informed me.  “Also, in human years he is significantly younger than you.”

“Don’t be an asshole,” I complained.

“I’m not,” he replied, thoroughly groping me.

“Ya gotta cut that out,” I said, trying not to sound breathy.

“Why?” he asked, squinting down at me.  “Sam left.”

I snorted at that.  “Yeah, okay, but there’s no door on the living room, Sunshine.  Don’t think Donna's ready for the Cass full-frontal quite yet.”

“On the contrary, I think she would enjoy it,” he said, still squinting like he was thinking real hard.  “Jimmy kept this vessel in excellent condition.”

“Is that you bein’ cocky?” I asked, grinning.

“I’d fuck me,” he declared.  “I’d fuck me hard.”

I was dying.  “You did not just quote Buffalo Bill at me.”

“No, Dean, I did,” he explained.

“Shit, you’re a keeper,” I informed him, deciding it was time to make out like teenagers.

Cass seemed pleased, and was more than happy to reciprocate.

There was a loud noise that had both our heads shooting up.

Donna was sitting in the middle of the floor, obviously having tripped over Sam’s duffle bag when she tried sneaking through the living room to the kitchen.

“Good morning,” Cass greeted her, hand still obviously groping my ass.

“Mornin’ there,” she said, trying to look anywhere but at us.

“Hey, Donna,” I said, easing away from Cass’s groping.

He gave me a very disappointed face.

“Thanks for letting us crash,” I said, then pressed a very quick kiss to Cass’s forehead before getting up.

“Of course,” she said, rolling herself back up on her feet.  “The more the merrier.”

I followed her into the kitchen.  “Hey, I’m sorry about last night.”

“No, hon’, that’s okay, I shouldn’t have-”

“No, I shouldn’t have,” I said firmly.  “I’m just not used to… talkin’ about it, ya know?”

We could finally look each other in the eye again.

“You two are cute,” she said, punching me on the shoulder.

“It’s not serious,” I said, rolling my eyes.

She gave me crazy eyes at that.

“It’s not,” I insisted, taking the coffee filter she handed me and putting it in the machine.

“Men,” she complained.

“Women,” I shot back.

Donna just gave me a knowing smile and poured the coffee beans into the machine.

- 9 -

I set my coffee on the table and went over to open the fridge, ready to rustle up something for breakfast, when I heard the familiar flapping of wings.

“Good morning, Dean.”

I whirled around, a grin already taking over my face.  “Hey.  Been a while.”

“Apologies, Jack needed me,” Cass said, giving me a rueful grin of his own.

“No worries, honey,” I hummed, sticking my finger into the knot of his tie and dragging him closer.  “Now gimme some sugar.”

“You usually take your coffee black, Dean.”

I bit my lip, trying not to let my grin get any stupider.  “Cass.”

“Oh,” he said, a little light bulb turning on in that weird, weird angel brain of his.  “You want to kiss.”

“That’s the idea, yeah,” I agreed, leaning down.

Cass met me halfway and proceeded to back me into the fridge with his enthusiasm.

The enthusiasm lasted quite a while and showed no signs of letting up, until an interrupting Sasquatch cleared his throat loudly and complained, “uh, guys?  Need to make my shake.”

Cass pulled his lips away from mine which was really friggin’ annoying and I chased after him.

“Apologies,” was all he could get out before my mouth was on his again.

Then I found myself being lifted off the ground, spun around, and plunked on the island.

I gave Cass a dazed look.

“Sam needs to make his shake,” he explained, but then he was kissing me again, so I just went with it.

Sam did his thing, not that I was really paying attention to him, what with making out with Cass on the kitchen island and all.

“You have a bedroom, ya know,” he gave as his parting shot before finally exiting the kitchen and leaving us alone.

“Cass,” I mumbled into his mouth.

“Dean,” he moaned back.

I felt a little smug about that, but I pulled back the tiniest fraction.  “Honey, I’m tryin’ to talk to you.”

“Why?” he asked, looking completely confused.

“Good question,” I hummed, giving him a quick smooch.  “But Princess Hair was right?”

“About?” Cass asked, moving to my neck since I insisted on continuing to talk.

“Mm that’s nice, sweetheart.”

He did it a little more.

I groaned fingers digging into his back.  “I uh… shit… okay, um…”

“Why are you still talking?” he complained, doing really nice things with his mouth.

“I don’t knoooow,” I moaned, eyes squeezed tight.  “Oh, uh… bedroom?  We have a bedroom.”

Cass peered up at me, eyes narrowed in determination.  “I like it here.”

This friggin’ angel really wanted to get freaky in the middle of the kitchen.

Was I the prude in this relationship???

Not that it was a relationship relationship.

“Down boy,” I scolded him with a nervous laugh.

He hesitated.

I tried not to feel shy, because I hated that, I absolutely hated that, but oh well, here we were.  “Wanna blow you,” I said quietly.

Cass’s breath seemed to catch, not that he actually needed to breathe.  “I’d like that.”

“So, bedroom?” I prodded him.

Cass blinked up at me.

“Now,” I said, adding some urgency to my tone.

Which was a mistake, because suddenly the world was spinning and my stomach was turning and then we were in the middle of my room.

“Goddammit, Cass.”

“You seemed to be in a hurry,” he said sheepishly, easing me down onto my feet.

“You know I hate flying.”

“I seem to also be in a hurry…”

I grinned at that, even as another wave of nausea hit me.  “Patience is a virtue, sweetheart.”

He squinted at me.  “So you have no virtue?”

I cracked up.  “Got me there.”

“Speaking of no patience and no virtue…” he trailed off, looking down at the bulge in his pants, then batting his eyes up at me.

“You’re getting a little shameless,” I informed him, going for my nightstand to grab a condom, “and I like it.”

“Corrupting angels seems to be one of your turn-ons,” Cass mused.

I turned around to tell him the bad news, but apparently he’d graced his clothes away while I had my back turned and was standing there completely naked.  “Uhhh mmm yes?”

“Eloquent,” he said, eyebrows quirking.

I held up the empty box of condoms for him since my mouth didn’t want to work.

His whole face creased in concentration, trying to solve this seemingly unsolvable problem.  “I’ll go procure-”

“You don’t get sick, right?” I interrupted him, mouth working again ‘cause of course I was about to blurt out something stupid.

Cass looked annoyed at the interruption.  He really was a total horndog now.  “No, I do not get sick.  What does that have to do with any-”

“So that applies to like, ya know, all diseases?” I asked.  “Venereal diseases?” I added for good measure.

“Yes, Dean, I am unable to contract venereal diseases,” he said, his squint intensifying.

“Cool,” I said.  “Cool, cool, cool.  So, uh… don’t really need the rubbers then, yeah?”

He looked taken aback.  “We don’t?”

I took a step closer, trying to build my confidence.

Was this what I wanted?

I stared at Cass’s very naked body and knew this was absolutely positively what I wanted, so I gave him a nod.  “You’re not gonna get pregnant, so…”

He rolled his eyes, but he was smiling.  “I thought we were using them to contain the mess.”

“Oh, sweetheart, the mess is half the fun.”

“So we’ve only been having half the fun….?”

“Afraid so.”

He was suddenly right in front of me, gazing determinedly into my eyes.  “I would like to have all of the fun now, please.”

“I gotcha,” I assured him, sinking to my knees.

Cass dragged his fingers through my hair, looking down at me with a mixture of affection and arousal and wonder, and yeah.

We were doing this.

- 10 -

“They’re gonna be here soon, so why don’t we just put them in Cass’s room?” Sam suggested.

“We have like a hundred rooms, why don’t you set up another one?” I said, rolling my eyes.

“Do you not remember what a pain in the ass it is to set up the beds?”

“The itty bitty bed a little heavy for baby?” I asked, eyes focused on the onion I was chopping.

“Dude, when was the last time Cass even set foot in that room?”

“I don’t know his life,” I said dismissively.  “It’s his room, anyway, so why are you asking me?”

“’Cause you’re here and he’s somewhere up in heaven, doing angel stuff?”

“Did you try calling?”

“Yes, Dean,” Sam ground out, sounding exasperated.

“Did you try praying?”

“Obviously, yes.”

“Oh, well sometimes he ignores you,” I said, then magnanimously looked up towards the ceiling and prayed, “oh Castiel, angel of the most boring day of the week, Sammy has a question for you.”

We both waited.

“No answer,” I said with a shrug.

“Okay, so can you answer-”

My phone started ringing.

I grinned as I answered, mostly pleased that Cass had ignored Sam but answered for me, but also just the teeniest littlest bit pleased to hear his voice after a couple of days.  “Hey, Cass.”

“Hello, Dean.  What did Sam need?”

“He wants to know if Claire and Kaia can sleep in your room while they’re here,” I explained.

There was a pause.  “…in our room…?”

I swallowed.  Oh.  “No, uh… no, you know, the room we set up for you when you first moved in here.”

“…that room?  I haven’t set foot in there for over a year, I’d hardly consider it mine.  The girls are welcome to it.”

Over a year?  Were Cass and I living together?  Shit.  “Uh, cool, yeah, great, uh… yeah.”

“Dean…” he said, sounding amused.

“Yeah, um, okay, are you coming home soon?” I asked, not that I cared, because we were going to be busy with our house guests.

“As soon as I can,” he assured me.

I glanced at Sam, who was pretending he was not listening but of course he was, so I turned my back to him and murmured softly into the receiver, “I miss you.”

I could hear the smile in Cass’s voice as he echoed back at me, “I miss you, too.”

“Say hi to Jack, okay?”

“Of course.  I love you.”

“Yeah, uh…” I cleared my throat, feeling the heat rushing to my face.  “Later, buddy.”

“Later, ‘dude’.”

I snorted as I hung up the phone, then returned to my onions.

“…so…?” Sam prodded me.

“Well, Cass said that since your weak delicate girl muscles can’t handle putting together a bed, Claire and Kaia are welcome to use his room.”

“I’m sure those were his exact words,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“Word for word.”

Sam scoffed at that, and all was right with the world.

I finished making the burgers, Sam finished changing the sheets in Cass’s (former?) room, and the girls finally came bursting through the front door.  They were here to do research on Dark Kaia and her spear, and they were staying for however long it took.

I got everyone fed, Eileen joining us for dinner, and then we moved to the library for brews and books.

“Why do you have so many books?” Claire complained.

“Funny thing about libraries,” I mused, happy that there was someone who hated research as much as I did.  “Full of books.”

“Ugh,” she groaned.  “Fuck books.  Want another beer?”

“Nah, I’m good,” I said, shaking the beer I’d been nursing all night, a little bit still sloshing around in the bottle.

Claire blinked at that, then shrugged and got up.  “Anyone else want one?”

“I’ll take one, thanks,” Sam said, not looking up from his laptop.

‘Nerd,’ I mouthed to Eileen.

‘Total nerd,’ she agreed.  ‘But it’s hot.’

I made a face at her and she laughed.

“You’re dating the biggest nerd of them all,” Claire announced, before disappearing out of the library to go get the beers.

I sputtered for a bit.  “We’re not dating,” I finally declared as decisively as I could.

Sam and Eileen both leaned back in their chairs, their expressions clearly saying, ‘here we go again’, and Kaia looked between them, intrigued.

“We’re best friends,” I explained to her, “with benefits.”

“I mean, aren’t most romantic relationships between best friends?” Kaia reasoned.

“No,” I scoffed.  “Who wants to be in a relationship with their best friend?”

“Claire and I are best friends,” she said with a shrug.

“Eileen and I are best friends,” Sam rushed to put in.

I rolled my eyes.  “It ain’t the same.”

“It’s totally the same,” Claire announced, back a lot quicker than I’d thought she’d be, and already being annoying as she passed out beers.

“It’s not,” I protested.  “You don’t fuck your best friend.”

They all looked at me like I was an idiot.

“I mean that you don’t fuck them romantically,” I explained, because obviously they were all idiots.  “That’s why they’re your best friend.”

“Oh, boy,” Claire marveled.

“Dean is known to frequently visit that river in Egypt,” Sam explained to a confused-looking Kaia.

That made her look even more confused.

“De Nile,” he clarified.

‘Wha?’ she mouthed.

Claire was now looking similarly confused.

I smirked at my brother and his complete failure to communicate with today’s youth.

“The Nile?  Denial?” he tried desperately.

“Oh,” Kaia said, frowning.  “But who says ‘de’ instead of ‘the’?”

“Yeah, Sammy,” I tsked at him.

“Can we get back on topic here?” he asked, looking around the room desperately for an ally.

Unfortunately, he had three.

“Yeah, um, so you really don’t think you and Cass are dating?” Claire put in.

“We’re not,” I said flatly.

“Okay, but you like go on dates all the time.”

“We don’t go on dates, we just hang out like normal best friends,” I clarified as calmly as I could, trying not to lose my temper over this idiotic line of questioning.

“You go out to eat together.”

“Friends gotta eat.”

“Cass is an angel, so technically no, he doesn’t have to eat,” Sam put in.

“Shut up, Sammy.”

“You go to the movies,” Claire continued.

“Again, something platonic friends do all the time...” I grunted, really, really trying not to yell.

“Dinner and a movie, literally the quintessential date night.”

“I go with Sam to dinner and movie, are we dating?”

“You took Cass on that bee-keeping Groupon.”

“He likes bees!” I snapped.

“Gettin’ a little testy there, Winchester,” Kaia put in.

“Why do you all have to romanticize this thing with Cass?” I growled.  “We’re best friends, that’s it, end of story.”

“They’re living together,” Sam put in unhelpfully.

“They have to buy a new bottle of hand lotion every time we go to Walmart,” Eileen put in less helpfully.

Claire and Kaia seemed confused.

Eileen made a lewd gesture with her hand.

“Right, penises,” Claire said, wrinkling her nose.

“Enough!”

Everyone turned to me, unimpressed.

“We’re not talking about this anymore,” I said, downing the rest of my beer, then getting up to get another, and screw them all very much.

When I came back they were comparing notes on their dream hauntings, because that was a normal thing that hunters talked about together, not gossip about who was ‘dating’ who.

Not that anyone was dating anyone.

- 11 -

“I believe under the law that we are common-law married,” Cass said, squinting at me.

I proceeded to perform the most spectacular spit-take to have ever been performed in the history of spit-takes.

“Dude, gross,” Sam complained, wiping at his shirt with a napkin.

“Get over it,” I said dismissively.  “You’re gonna have to explain that one, angel,” I stated, glaring into Cass’s eyes.

He shrugged, leaning forward to slurp his milkshake through a straw.

“Castiel, you can’t just say shit like that and then act all innocent,” I spat out through gritted teeth.

“I’m not that innocent,” he said with a grin.

“Really?  Britney?”

His grin widened as he returned to his milkshake.  “We are legally eligible to be married.”

“Uhhh, okay, but so are a lotta people?”

“We are considered to be a married couple by our friends.”

“Just because Jody said-”

“Sam?” the jerk interrupted me, turning to my brother.

“I don’t want to get involved,” he said, shifting in the squeaky diner booth and looking between us almost nervously.  “But uh, yeah, you two totally act like an old married couple.”

Cass gestured with his hand as if to say, ‘see?’

“Yeah, but no one actually thinks we’re married,” I protested.

Sam made one of his faces that said he disagreed.

Cass just slurped his milkshake.

“Whatever,” I muttered, wiping up the last of my spit-take from the table, and shoving the wet napkins away from me.

“Can I getcha a refill?” our waitress asked, offering me an amused grin.

“That’d be great, sweetheart,” I said, and when our eyes met, there was a little spark.  Which was kind of amazing, because lately whenever I tried to flirt with the waitress I always got an eyeroll or a look of disgust and a rant about the patriarchy.

“Comin’ right up,” she said, and then she honest-to-god winked at me.

Usually Sam was mildly annoyed with me when I was on the prowl, but he actually looked angry this time.  “Really?  In front of Cass?”

“What does Cass care?” I protested, while feeling like an asshole.  But why did I have to feel like an asshole?  I wasn’t doing anything wrong.

And Cass was just drinking his milkshake, for all the world looking like he couldn’t care less.  “A dog’s gotta bark,” he declared with a shrug.

Sam let out a startled burst of laughter.

“I’m sorry, am I the dog in this situation?” I demanded.

“If you have to ask…”

“Jackass,” I muttered.

Cass’s hand nudged mine on the seat.

“Here ya go, one spittle-free Coke,” the waitress said, passing the drink across the table.

“Just the way I like it,” I accepted it with a grin.

Sam rolled his eyes.

“If you need anything else, just let me know,” she added.

“Sure thing,” my eyes dropped to her ample bosom where her name tag was, “Katie.”

She walked away with an extra swish in her step, and my eyes followed obediently.

“Satisfied?” Cass asked, slurping at his milkshake.

“How can I be-” I started to say, but then quickly cut off the very dirty thing I was about to say with a glance at Cass’s hand clasped with mine, resting on the seat between us.  I didn’t even remember taking his hand.

“How can you be…?” he prompted me.

I was being a dick.  “Yeah,” I said softly.  “I’m satisfied.”

Cass’s expression softened.

“Just needed to bark a little,” I assured him.

“I don’t mind.  I know who you’re going home with.”

“Pretty confident there, buddy.”

“I’m really good in bed,” he deadpanned.

I cracked up while Sam pretended to gag.  “Yeah, can’t argue with that,” I agreed, finding myself leaning in to press a quick kiss to his lips.

Cass looked smitten, touching my cheek gently.

“Ahem.”

Oh, fuck, I just kissed Cass in public.

In front of all these strangers.

In front of the waitress I’d been flirting with like two minutes ago.

In front of Sam’s salad.

“Always gay or taken,” Katie sighed.  Her eyes met Cass’s as she said, “sorry about that, hon.”

“Nothing wrong with admiring the view,” he offered.

I squinted at him.  ‘The view?’ I mouthed.

‘You’re beautiful,’ he mouthed back.

I rolled my eyes because no one needed to see me blush.

“It is a nice view,” Katie agreed.  “I’ll be sad to see it go, but I won’t mind watching it leave.”

Was Katie my soulmate?

“’Cause of your butt,” Cass supplied.

Yeah, no, Cass was…

Cass was…

Cass was quoting The Office and being kinda possessive, but we didn’t need to use the s-word here.

I left Katie a very nice tip, and made sure to walk nice and slow to the exit.

- 12 -

Me and Cass were curled up against the headboard, watching Get Smart.  His head was resting on my shoulder, and I couldn’t help constantly glancing down at him.

“How you doin’?” I asked, nudging my nose into his hair.

“Fine since the last time you asked,” he informed me, not looking up from the laptop.

“No need for sarcasm,” I complained, fixing my own gaze back on Maxwell Smart and his antics.

“Dean, you have asked me that question six times since the episode started.”

“Yeah, well… yeah…” I concluded.

He rubbed my thigh absently in a completely non-sexy way, like he was trying to pacify me without actually interrupting the episode.

I tried to let it go.

“Okay, but he stabbed you,” I complained, apparently not letting go.

“It wasn’t a big deal,” Cass murmured.

“Wasn’t a big deal?!” I repeated, getting more agitated.  “The nutcase angel stabbed you with an angel blade!”

He sighed, finally turning his face towards me.  “I’m fine, Dean.”

“Yeah, but…”

His gaze was patient.

“…you almost weren’t,” I spit out, trying not to let the words tear me apart.

“Dean.”

I couldn’t seem to unclench my jaw.

Cass tilted his head up, pressing a feather-light kiss to my cheek.

I cleneched harder.

“Shhh,” he murmured, like I was some frightened animal.

Maybe I was.

“I’m alright,” he whispered, pressing his lips lightly along my jawline.  “I’m alive.”

I closed my eyes, breathing out harshly.

He redirected my face towards him, and I could feel him staring at me even with my eyes shut.

I didn’t want to face him.

Cass pressed his lips to mine, unmoving, not a kiss, but weirdly comforting.

“Cass,” I whispered, my lips moving against his mouth.

“I know,” he assured me.

“But you don’t,” I choked out.  “You’ve never had to… you don’t know what I’m like when you…  You don’t know.”

“Oh, Dean,” he said softly, reaching up to cradle my face.

I caught his hands, holding them to my skin.  “I can’t go through that again,” I whispered, then tried to swallow the words back down.

Cass was quiet, hands still pressed warm to my cheeks.

I looked down, to the side, up, anywhere but into those warm, sympathetic eyes.  “Don’t need your damn pity,” I muttered.

“It’s not pity,” he said.  “How do you think I feel every time you throw yourself to the lions?  With Amara?  Michael?”

“Okay, but I didn’t die, I wasn’t gone,” I muttered petulantly.

Cass rolled his eyes.  “Metatron?”

“I was barely dead like even a day,” I protested.

“You were resurrected as a demon!”

“I was around.”

“You were ‘around’?” Cass asked, sounding exasperated.  “Is this making you feel better?”

“Yeah, kinda,” I said, giving him a little grin.

“You are incorrigible,” he informed me.

“I know you are, but what am I?” I taunted him, hooking a finger in his tie and loosening it.

“Have we concluded the ‘talking’ part of the evening and moved on to the ‘sexy’ part?” he asked, cocking an eyebrow at me.

“It’s always the sexy part with you an’ me, baby.”

“Dean.”

I started unbuttoning his shirt.  He hadn’t changed into his sweatpants and t-shirt like usual after he came back from heaven, and that suddenly had me thinking.  “Does it still hurt?”

“A bit,” he admitted.

Was I really up for this?

I slid his shirt off his shoulders, then inched up his undershirt.  A shallow cut stretched along his rib cage, but something looked wrong about it.  I pressed my fingers lightly to the skin under it, and it was hot to the touch.

Cass winced, and I quickly pulled my hand away.

“It’s okay,” he tried to reassure me.

Oh, no, no, no, I did not like this, nope, not working, I was gonna…

“It’s okay,” he repeated more firmly, taking my hand and placing it over the wound without so much as a blink.

“I don’t wanna hurt you,” I whispered, feeling the heat and the blood and the wrongness against my skin.

“I trust you,” he replied easily.

I let out a shuddering breath before leaning in to look at it up close.

It really didn’t look like much, but a little deeper, and…

Why was it so hard to breathe all of the sudden?

Cass ran his fingers through my hair, stroking soothingly.

A strangled sound tried to claw it’s way out of my throat, so I pressed my lips just above the wound instead.

Cass gasped at that, but his fingers stayed steady in my hair, and I got the impression that it was an appreciative gasp, not a pained one.

I did it again, and his fingers grasped my hair, tugging lightly.  That made me feel calmer for some reason.  “You know how I feel about you, right?” I mouthed into his skin.

“Of course,” he replied.

I mapped my way across his ribcage.

“It’s nice to hear sometimes, though.”

I paused, not daring to look up because I knew he’d have that look, that damn look he got that was full of love and and patience but also disappointment and longing for everything I wasn’t giving him.

His touch gentled.

“I love you,” I whispered, knowing my voice was barely audible.

He let out a breath that he didn’t need to take in the first place.  “I love you, too.  So very much.”

“Good,” I mumbled, feeling embarrassed.  “So don’t go dyin’ on me.”

“Well, it doesn’t hurt to have ‘God’ on our side,” he pointed out.  “Jack has said that he doesn’t want to interfere, but he is a Winchester after all.”

“He always brings you back to me,” I agreed, suddenly needing to throw my arms around his waist and hold him tight.

Cass hissed, and I sheepishly eased my hold away from his wound.

“Come up here,” he said, both hands gripping my biceps and guiding me where he wanted me.

“Sorry, I just needed ta be... close,” I mumbled.

“Me, too,” he assured me, wrapping his arms around me and tucking his head under my chin.

I hugged him more carefully this time.  “I love you,” I repeated, almost above a whisper.

It was nice to hear sometimes.

It was nice to say sometimes.

Baby steps.

- 13 -

“Dammit, Cass, how many times do I hafta tell ya?” I growled, slamming the empty coffee pot on the shelf.  “You drink the last cup, you make a new pot.”

“I thought you were finished, seeing as you already had 2 cups,” he replied all sassily, and then took a long sip of his coffee to add insult to injury.

“That ain’t the point-”

“I apologize for not asking if you needed a third cup of coffee.”

“It ain’t a real apology when you gotta use a qualifier.”

“Dean, chill out,” Sam said, rolling his eyes.  He was sitting next to Cass at the table, also nursing a cup of coffee like a smug bastard.  “You’re lookin’ kinda twitchy for a guy goin’ for another hit of caffeine.”

“Hey, do I ever leave you with an empty pot?” I snarled at him.

Sam held his hands up innocently.

“Exactly, so Cass needs to get his ass over here and make a new pot.”

Cass just raised an eyebrow at me, while Sam looked miffed.

“Dude, don’t talk to your boyfr-”

“I didn’t ask for your opinion.”

“It’s fine, Sam,” Cass said, still not moving to get up.

I glared at him.

“Dean is attempting to assert his dominance,” he continued.

I paused at that.

“Oh,” Sam said with a knowing nod.

“No, stop right there,” I interjected.  “None of your nerd talk.”

“So you’re not trying to ‘prove your manhood’ after last night?” Cass asked with a challenging glint in his eye.

“What?” I asked, not sounding at all frazzled.  “Last night?”  My voice didn’t go up an octave.  “Nothing happened last night,” I asserted convincingly.

“I don’t think I wanna know,” Sam said, going back to his coffee.

“’Cause there’s nothing to know,” I declared.

“Dean is bothered that I am more sexually dominant than he is,” Cass carried on like no one else had spoken.

I scoffed at that.  “Yeah, no.  That’s not…  No, because I’m…  So you see…”

Sam looked very unconvinced, and Cass was sitting there like the words coming out of his mouth weren’t absolutely insane.

“You’re deflecting from the real issue here!” I finally declared, waving the coffee pot around.

Sam snorted.  “Dude, you used to brag about letting chicks tie you up and smack you around.  Don’t know why you’re bein’ so cagey about your kinks now.”

“How am I being cagey?” I complained, crossing my arms over my chest.

“I do not ‘smack’ Dean ‘around’,” Cass said with a frowny squint.

I groaned, but something I didn’t realize I’d been holding onto suddenly released.  “Cass, man, ya gotta learn subtlety.”

“Huh?”

“Ya kinda give the game away when you say you don’t do the one thing but don’t comment on the other…”

“Oh…” he said, his squint getting squintier.  “Apologies.”

“Nah, Sammy’s right,” I admitted, sitting down at the table across from them.  “I own my kinks.  So, last night-”

“I do not want to know,” Sam cut me off, enunciating each word carefully and precisely.

“But don’t you want to talk about our issues?” I asked, batting my eyes at him.

“They’re not my issues,” he stated firmly.

“Exactly, so mind your damn business.”

Sam sighed loudly.

“Dean.”

I turned to my traitorous angel.

He was frowning all disapprovingly.

I thought about apologizing for being a dick.

I thought about the vulnerability of not being able to move, of not being able to see.

I thought of Cass, gentle, strong, taking care of me-

I didn’t need to be taken care of.

Yep, that was the anger talking.

“I shouldn’ta yelled at you,” I conceded, letting my eyes flit over to Cass’s.

“No,” he agreed, “you shouldn’t have.”  He was waiting for more.

“…my bad…?” I offered.

“Dean,” he said in his most disapproving tone.

But then I realized he was giving me sexy eyes.

I swallowed.  “I won’t do it again?”

“Dean,” he sighed, “you know I do not abide lying.”

“I’ll try my best not to do it again?” I offered.

“Better,” he agreed, head tilting slightly.

My lips felt dry, so my tongue darted out to wet them.

Cass’s eyes tracked the movement in what some might consider a predatory manner.

“I’m sorry,” I stated clearly.

His smile lit up his entire face.  “Thank you, Dean,” he said, reaching across the table to squeeze my hand, before passing me his coffee.

I took a grateful sip and immediately regretted it.  “Jesus, Cass, is there even coffee in this cup?” I complained, tasting sugar, milk, and not a whole lot else.

His face clouded over again, though there was still that glint in his eyes.  “One would think that you actually want me to get angry and punish you.”

I choked a little on the milk going down my throat.  “Punish me?” I sputtered.

Cass just arched an eyebrow at me.

“Fuck,” I breathed out.

Sam cleared his throat.

Shit, we shouldn’t be doing this in the kitchen.

In front of Sam’s frou frou smoothie.

But I was kinda invested.  “You have somethin’ in mind?” I asked, then swallowed.  “A punishment, I mean.”

“I have something in mind,” was all he said.

“Fuck.”

Cass looked me up and down, shrugged, then stood up.

I watched him, my mouth kinda gaping open like a fish.

He started to leave.

Sam was staring intensely at his smoothie.

“Dean?” Cass called over his shoulder.

“Yeah, c-coming!” I stuttered, rushing to my feet and knocking over my chair in the process.

“Not today you’re not,” he informed me before disappearing out the door.

I froze in my efforts to pick up my chair.  “Fuck,” I breathed out, then decided to leave the chair on the floor and my brother traumatized as I chased after Cass.

And maybe tomorrow I would take it out on him again, or maybe tomorrow would finally be the day I realized none of this masculinity-dominance-bullshit mattered.

We’d have to wait and see.

- 14 -

“Yeah, but just picture it,” I told Cass, pushing the door to the bunker open and clomping down the stairs.  “It’s angel versus Angel, one’s a servant of God and all that crap, the other is a total douchebag, who will win?”

“Dean, I’m not going to have a cage match with Criss Angel,” Cass stated flatly, dashing all my dreams.

“But you could definitely take him.”

“Being a ‘douchebag’ is not a crime worthy of heavenly retribution.”

“It should be.”

“Oh, hi, guys,” Eileen said, leaning against the table and casually holding a book over what were definitely her bare breasts.

I tilted my head to the side a little, thinking the change in angle might give me a better view.

“Dean,” Cass complained.

“Can’t blame a guy for trying,” I complained right back at him.

Cass sighed loudly.

“So,” I said, clapping my hands together cheerfully.  “Sammy here?”

“He’s around,” Eileen agreed with a nod.

“Awesome,” I said, still trying to see behind the book.

Cass smacked me in the arm.

I held my hands up innocently.

“Thought you two wouldn’t be back until tomorrow,” Eileen commented.

“Oh, yeah, the hunt was a total bust, just some kids with too much eyeliner,” I explained.  “Figured we’d drive straight back and avoid the crappy motel.”

“Good thinking,” she said.

I wondered if her arms were getting tired, because that was one heavy-looking book.

“Well, we apologize for the intrusion,” Cass said, his hand going to my lower back and guiding me forward.  “We are headed to the ‘Dean Cave’ for pizza and a film.”

I glanced down at the pizza box in my hands, then looked back at Eileen and her tireless arms.  “Yeah, we’re gonna watch Giant, so we should be down there for 3 hours or so.  In case you and Sammy wanted to continue engaging in, ya know, library banging.”

“Dean,” Cass groaned, pushing me forward a little more roughly than necessary.

“Thanks,” Eileen said, and I had to hand it to her, her composure didn’t break even once.  Sammy must have been freaking out, wherever he was off hiding.

I would have looked for him, but Cass was being very insistent that we move along.

In the Dean Cave, I decided to take one of the recliners since those long drives were starting to be hell on my back.  I plopped the pizza box on the arm of the chair and opened it, while Cass took the other recliner.

“Can you put in the movie?” I requested, holding out the DVD.

“Of course,” he said, giving me a once-over that said he knew my back was bothering me.

“I’m kinda sore,” I decided to admit, and immediately warmth was flooding down my spine as Cass brushed his fingers along the back of my hand, taking the DVD.

“Thanks, honey,” I said, settling more comfortably into the recliner.

“Of course.”

“Youwan sompizzuh?” I asked, a piece of pizza hanging out of my mouth as I held the box out to him.

“Yes, thank you,” he said, returning from putting the DVD in to accept a piece.  “Also, that is disgusting.”

I flashed him a grin, making sure he could see all the chewed-up food in my mouth.

He shook his head at me, but he couldn’t hide his own smile.

“You’re gonna love this one,” I told him, fixing my eyes on the TV.

“I do enjoy this period of cinema,” he agreed.  “Dean?”

“Mm?”

“I’ve been… thinking…”

“That explains the burning smell.”

“Dean.”

I smacked his arm, still grinning.

“I… I think that Eileen and Sam may need more privacy,” he said slowly.

“Uhhh, then they can get a room?” I suggested.

“That’s not quite what I meant.”

I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye.  “The movie’s startin’.”

Cass flicked his hand and the DVD paused.

So this was a serious conversation, then.

Something churned unpleasantly in my stomach.

“I’ve been thinking about this for a while,” he began.

“About Sam an’ Eileen gettin’ a room?” I tried to joke, forcing a grin.

“About… Dean, there’s a house in the suburbs of Lebanon,” he said.  “It’s small, but there’s a large yard and a nice garage-”

“I’m sorry, a house?” I asked incredulously.

“Yes, it’s very-”

“You’re gonna buy Sam and Eileen a house?” I asked, because I must be misunderstanding something.

“Not for them,” he said, shaking his head.

It hit me then.  Hard.  “What the hell do you need a house for?” I growled, feeling the anger rise up like an old familiar friend.  “You don’t even gotta sleep or any of that shit.”

Cass started squinting at me, so I gave him my profile.  “Well, I thought it would be nice to start a garden-”

“Oh, okay, a garden,” I scoffed at him.  “You’re gonna run away to start a friggin’ garden.”

“Dean,” he sighed loudly.  “I wish you would allow me to finish speaking before rushing to conclusions.  The house would be for us.”

My anger immediately deflated into confusion.  “Us?”

“Yes, you and me,” he said, picking up the pizza box from the arm of the chair and setting it on the floor.  He sat in its place, resting his arm along the back of the recliner and leaning closer.  “It would be nice to have our own place.  The garage is spacious enough for two cars, so you would be able to tend to Baby, and as I mentioned, there is space for a garden, and there is a slightly creaky but charming swing on the porch that would be pleasant to sit on in the evenings and-”

“Slow down, man,” I stopped him, resting a hand on his knee.  “Cass, c’mon, the bunker is home.”

“I know that,” he said.  “But you are good at creating homes, Dean, and I think that you could create a new home in this house, because it’s just what we need, it has sunlight, Dean, sunlight, because humans need sunlight-”

I was starting to realize that Cass’s run-on sentences were a sign of how nervous he was.

“Okay, honey, but like I said, slow down,” I urged him, rubbing his knee.  “This is kinda outta left field.”

“Sorry, I just… I want this,” he blurted out.

I still hadn’t quite caught up, but Cass wanted something.

Cass, who willingly sat through whatever movie I chose.  Who let me listen to my music at whatever volume I wanted.  Who ate whatever I put in front of him.

Who, if I told him to jump, would level me with an exasperated glare, but then begrudgingly ask, ‘how high?’

Cass, who never asked me for anything.

Who let me say that dates weren’t dates, that sex was just for fun, that we weren’t friggin’ common law married (because that one was true).

Cass wanted something.

I just wasn’t sure it was something I could give.

[pl-panda]

To Marry a Vigilante: Part 5

MASTERLIST || First || Previous || Next

-------

By the time the class landed in Gotham, Marinette and Chloé had enough. Their recorders, which were supposed to serve as damning evidence of blatant bullying, got ‘damaged’ when Lila accidentally splashed the two girls with a drink. Whatever it was, it was sticky, didn’t wash with water, and also ruined their hidden dictaphones. 

Of course, the liar made it look like it was Marinette who tripped her. The class almost hounded her, but they kept their distance not wanting to also get their clothes dirtied. Of course, Lila was occupying the bathroom for the next fifteen minutes, so when she finally left the drink already dried, making it even harder to get rid of. 

When the girls made their way out of the plane to meet with Sabine and their teacher, Lila pushed past them and came crying about how rude Marinette ruined her outfit, which was supposedly incredibly expensive. None of the intelligent people bothered to try and point out that it was cheap mass-produced junk. Alix was visibly conflicted, but also did not speak up in the end. 

“Marinette. I expected better of…” The teacher started, but then she saw both girls were hit worse than Lila, who cleaned most of it in the bathroom. 

“Sweetie…” Sabine started to rethink if a simple murder wouldn’t solve their problem.

“Don’t worry Maman. I can probably salvage it once we ret… get to Damian’s” Mari corrected herself. Luckily, it seemed like nobody caught her slip of tongue. 

“Ugh! Not that creep.” Alya complained. “He gives me shivers.” 

Mari glared at her former friend. She wanted to say something, but her teacher urged them to move. They were put into a small lounge. Marinette, of course, had to run them through a safety course, for reasons. She still did her best, as Gotham earned its reputation as the World’s Capital of Crime. 

When they were finally cleared and the class left the airport, there was a bus waiting, ready to take them to the hotel. Marinette and Chloé were about to board when a limousine pulled next to them. 

“Angel, Bourgeoise…” He greeted the girls. “Since you’ll be staying with us, my father decided to send a proper escort.”

The class stared in disbelief. The guy with a sword was loaded? It definitely looked like it from the car. 

“I bet his gramps just works as a driver and borrowed his work car,” Lila whispered to Alya and suddenly everyone was repeating the lie. “Or maybe even stole it…” 

A blade was suddenly pressed into Lila’s neck, a hair width away from drawing blood

“Tt. I will tolerate many things, but if you try to insult Alfred one more time, your end will be painful.” The class backed away in fear. Marinette immediately went to try and drag the boy away from a very pale Lila, but he wouldn’t budge. “Am. I. Clear?”

Lila was too paralyzed to answer, so he pressed the blade further. Now it was in contact with her skin and a moment of inattention could have fatal consequences. “Am. I. Clear?” He seethed.

“Yes…” She managed to whisper. 

“Tt. Good.” He sheathed his blade just as two security guards came outside to check the commotion. 

“Arrest him! He tried to murder Lila!” Alya immediately screamed. 

“No. If I did, she would be dead. I only explained certain values.” Damian deadpanned. 

The two guards looked between the class and visibly angry Damian Wayne and scratched their heads. They could report it, but they only had the word of some foreigners against the word of the son of the First Citizen of Gotham who was also the fifth richest man in the world. The cameras here stopped working, hence they came out to check what happened. 

“Children. We should be going or we’ll miss lunch at the hotel,” their teacher urged. That was enough for the guards. If the chaperone did not press charges, they wouldn’t bother. 

“But… But…” 

“Lila. Be a bigger person here and apologize to Damian.” Sabine grinned. 

“But he…”

“I don’t want to hear it!” The woman cut her off. “You must show our host some respect.”

“I didn’t…” The glare Sabine sent her and the murderous expression on Damian’s face made the words freeze in her throat. “Fine. I’m sorry Damien.”

“Tt.” Was the boy’s only response. 

Marinette and Chloé were about to leave when Rose protested. “Why are they not going with us to the hotel!?”

“Because as one of the host families, I’m allowed to welcome the students I choose to my house for the stay.” Damian did not care enough to elaborate more. Instead, he just jumped into the back seat of the Limousine. The girls followed, with Chloé going as far as sticking her tongue at the class. 

Once the doors closed and Alfred started the engine, Damian lowered the windshield and leaned outside. “By the way, it’s Damian. Damian W…” He didn’t get to finish because Marinette covered his mouth with her hand and dragged him inside. The windshield closed. 

When the car entered the main road, the girl finally let him go. 

“What was that about, Habibti?” He glared at her. 

“You were about to reveal that you’re the Damian Wayne.” She accused him.

“Tt. It’s time that liar learns who she’s dealing with.”

“It would only blow up in our faces. She would make it worse for all of us, including your family.” Seeing that both her best friend and her husband (still hard to get used to) were looking at her with no small amount of curiosity, she elaborated. “Damian Wayne is supposedly her ‘ultimate price’ from this exchange. She will want to sink her claws into you with all her skill.”

“Tt. She can try.” He huffed. His hand instinctively went to his sword. 

“You do know you are quite murderous for a Robin?” Chloé quipped.

“And you’re bratty for a lady.” 

“Bird-brain.”

“That’s Drake. Spoiled princess.”

“Daddy can afford it so why not? Trained monkey.”

“Grayson. Try harder. Talentless heiress.”

“I’m helping Marinette start her own company. Emo McBroodyPants.”

“Where did you even get that one?”

“I read.” She huffed. “And looks like I won.”

“Tt. As if.”

Marinette just sat back and watched her best friend and lover bicker there and back. It was nice that they were warming up to one another…

-----------

When Sabine finally arrived at the Manor, she was dead on her feet. Alfred was, of course, waiting for her at the entrance.

“Eventful day, Madame?”

“Don’t.” She cut him off.

“I assume it went worse than anticipated then?”

“Where is Tom?”

“Master Tom is in the kitchen. He decided to prepare some baked goods for the afternoon.”

Sabine stormed to the kitchen where she found her husband. He was clearly busy preparing the dough. After a quick greeting, she went to help him. 

“That bad?”

“Worse.” She sighed. “I really don’t understand that woman. How… She cut me whenever I tried to rein those monsters in.”

“Oh… Hand me the pin.” He interrupted himself. Sabine gave him the item, which she already had in hand when he started speaking. 

“I’m not sure if I can survive until school starts again. And even then there will be occasional afternoon trips. If it continues, I might just… I will get a jam. You did bring it?”

“I’ve put it on the counter,” Tom replied while still preparing the dough. “And don’t worry. I’m sure it’ll get better.”

“I hope so…”

---------

In the evening, Marinette, Chloé, and Sabine were introduced to the Batcave. It was indeed impressive, but Sabine was mostly interested in the training ring. She would lie if she didn’t want to test herself against the famous Batman. And she didn’t fancy committing crimes to do so. Well, for now. The class was making it more and more appealing.

“So you’re the girl that tamed Robin?” A redhead in a wheelchair rolled over to Marinette. 

“Tt. Shut up, Gordon.” Damian managed to spend a beautiful afternoon without any teasing from his family. Sadly, nothing could last forever.

“Come on baby bird. After the show you gave us on Christmas Eve, you can’t expect us to just drop it.” Dick was there, smiling cockily. 

“As much as I too want to tease that couple, I hoped for some sparring matches.” Sabine decided to save the teens. For now.

“Well, Madame, I’m happy to oblige.”

“Who’s with you?” She asked once Nightwing entered the ring.

“Um… I didn’t think you wanted a team match?” He replied, slightly confused. 

“No, no. I just thought I would have some challenge.” She smiled brightly. She was dressed in a dark-pink judoka and wooden sandals. 

“I… want.” Cass chimed in. She gracefully jumped into the ring before turning to Dick. “Alone.”

“Of course Sweetie. But I won’t go easy on you.” 

“Did not… expected.” 

The two women watched one another, neither moving from their spots. Both seemed relaxed but ready to react. Cass was first to start circling, with Sabine following. Neither could find any obvious flaws to exploit. Finally, Sabine lunged forward, only to jump to the side before getting in Cassandra’s range. The girl didn’t lose the bit and with a quick spin kicked her aunt, only to be deflected. Sabine tried to capitalize on the opening, but Cass followed her failed kick with another, launching herself in the air. Her target ducked low before trying to deliver an upper-cut punch toward the flying girl. It did connect, serving to push her back. She used the momentum to get some distance before landing on her hands and doing a double backward cartwheel and ending in a ready stance. 

“Not bad, Cassandra. I’m impressed. That boy would probably already be crying on the floor.” Sabine smiled genuinely. There was no need for banter between them. 

“Weakling.” The girl blew Dick a raspberry. 

Two women watched each other for a moment. This time, it was Sabine who initiated the actual fight. She delivered three quick punches that Cass blocked, but it created a small opening. She tried to deliver a side-kick to the girl’s head, but her opponent had the same idea. 

Their legs clashed by the shins. Sabine landed her leg firmly on the ground, but Cass once more lunged in the air, trying to use the momentum. She did two more kicks that her aunt blocked before she tried to put the older woman in a grip. Sabine, seeing the attempt, jumped back and tried to grab Cassandra’s hand, but instead, the girl spun around, delivering a powerful kick to Sabine’s side. 

The woman felt the kick, but she used the opportunity to timely grab her opponent’s foot and twist it. Cass, to avoid an injury, also had to spin in the air. She managed to attempt a kick before falling on her stomach. Her kick did force Sabine to let go of the foot to avoid having her head hurt. The girl quickly jumped on her feet, just in time to block an open-palm strike, which was followed with a kick. She did not get to respond, because Sabine made a low-sweep. Cass jumped in the air, only to find herself pushed away by another open-palm strike that, this time, connected with her chest, pushing the air out of her lungs. 

The woman followed Cass in the air, so she did not get a chance to stand up before getting pinned and rotated on her stomach. The grip that Sabine used effectively made it almost impossible to get out of before her aunt delivered a mock game-ending strike to her head. 

When Sabine stood up and helped her niece, both were panting heavily. It did not affect the accuracy with which the older of them made a back-kick, right below Jason’s belt. 

“Next time you try to sneak on either of us I will hit harder.” Sabine didn’t even bother to turn around and watch how the man curled on the floor, crying. “Good fight.” She focused her gaze on Cass, who blushed slightly.

“I lost.” 

“Well, depends on the criteria. You got the first hit, which is often decisive. And an achievement.” The woman cheered her with a broad smile on her face. Cassandra couldn’t help but also smile. “We could both use some more practice. I definitely would’ve taken you when I caught your foot and if you capitalized on the initial advantage you could’ve ended the fight.”

“It is an honor… training… with you.”

“Thank you, my dear. I also enjoyed it.” Sabine then turned to the gobsmacked group. The fight must have looked more impressive than she thought. 

“Did you just… defeat Cass in less than five minutes…?” Tim asked, unable to form a smooth sentence.

“Well, Sandra always said that I was the better one in unarmed combat. She does rock with swords though. And you should’ve seen her in that club in Tokyo. She’s definitely the dancer of the family, or rather was. I enjoy Cass’s ballet more.”

The great moment was interrupted by Batman speaking to everyone over the comms. 

“Suit up. We’ve got a hostage situation at Gotham Plaza.”

“For the love of Kwami… Please tell me it’s not my class.” Marinette groaned. 

“Tt. Of course it’s them.” Damian pulled his phone, showing her a live feed from the news helicopter. On the rooftop, there was a clearly visible group of teenagers, surrounded by goons with guns aimed at them. Near the edge stood a guy in a two-color suit. Half white and half black, with a red and black tie to complete the mad image. Half of his face was badly damaged and purple. 

“If Batman doesn’t show here to save his precious sidekick soon, we shall see if the little birdie can actually fly.”

Everyone who met Lila groaned. 

“I assume we can’t just let him deal with her?” Marinette asked hopefully.

“Sadly, Angel, it would be bad for our image.”

“I guess you’re right.”

“The two of you are sitting this out.” Batman walked into the cave, already in his suit. “We can’t risk any of them recognizing you two and it’s too early for Ladybug and Chat to appear. It would be too easy to associate their appearance with you two coming to Gotham.”

Seeing Damian’s irritated face, Marinette decided to intervene before she had a fight on her hands “Let’s do a movie night. I’m sure you have a theatre room somewhere in here.” 

Immediately, the boy brightened. “No Bourgeoise?”

“I think Chloé has other plans for the evening.” She nodded toward where the blonde was talking excitedly with Cass, trying to convince her to train her.

“Good.” Damian offered his hand and the two left the cave.

“Damn! I didn’t get the chance to tease him about the proposal.” Jason looked really dejected. 

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