Title: Wolf In Sheep's Clothing
Author: downfall35
Pairing: hints at Castiel/Dean
Fandom: Supernatural
Rating: PG
Warnings: swearing, AU
Notes: Thanks to hunters_retreat for the wonderful beta. Prompt - Castiel as demon (from the very beginning, not turning into one) but still retaining the same personality, gen or slash.
Summary: "That spell was legit; no Angel can get by it, which means..."

***

"Are you almost finished?" barked Dean, impatient as usual.

"Do you want it done right or do you want it done fast?" hissed Ruby, trying to remain calm, if she was going to work the spell she needed to keep her focus and not let Dean piss her off.

"Both," retorted Dean. But he got no reply as Ruby went back to chanting something, in a language he'd never even heard before.

A few more minutes passed before a cool chill extinguished the candles that filled the room. Ruby stood from her crouching position, facing Sam and Dean.

Sam switched the lights back on, eyes shifting round the motel room. "So that's it, we're safe now?"

"Should be," replied Dean. "That's if she did it right."

"If you think you can do better by all means be my guest," spat Ruby. "It's not as if I've had much practice warding off Angels. Only you could piss off both Heaven and Hell Dean."

Experience taught Sam to know when to step in. "Cool it," he ordered, swapping his gaze between the pair. "The demons don't know where we are, and the Angels can't get into the room, let's just try to figure out a game plan here."

Hours went by as the trio researched into the night. By one am Dean had given up, he just lay awake on his bed, staring at the ceiling. Sam still sat at the table with his laptop, barely reading the pages that loaded onto his screen. Ruby had left just before midnight; she had a couple of contacts to run down, in an attempt to gather information on Alistair and Lilith. When she returned, she just sat at Sam's side, reading whatever he was looking up.

A knock on the door startled all three of them; Sam sat watchful from the table with a gun in hand as Dean picked up the knife and went to greet their visitor. "Cas," sighed Dean, resisting the urge to make a smart ass comment about the other man finally learning how to knock. "Whatever it is, I'm not interested."

At first Castiel remained silent, with Uriel in toe behind him. The Specialist went to speak but was silenced by a wave of Castiel's hand. Smug with the knowledge that they couldn't enter the room, Dean closed the door on his Angels' face, only to be shocked when a hand rose to stop the door. Castiel's arm had crossed the threshold. Dean remembered what Ruby said about Angels not being able to enter the room, and figured that because the other man's feet were still planted outside that a hand on the door didn't really count as entering the room.

Dean just turned and walked away, back to his bed. It wasn't a cold night, so if the door remained open it wouldn't be a bother, the Angels could stand out there all night if they wanted. The look on Sam's face however was enough to send a twinge down Dean's spine as he turned back to see Castiel behind him, having entered the room. At first Dean wanted to shout, to curse at Ruby for botching the spell, but he hesitated however when he noticed Uriel at the doorway seemingly unable to enter.

"Cas how did you?" gasped Dean. The other man just stood there, confusion filling his face as he frowned at Dean unsure of what the eldest Winchester was trying to ask.

"What is the meaning of this?" barked Uriel, stopped short of the doorway by an unseeable force.

"What have you done to him?" asked Castiel, watching Uriel still standing outside.

"Ruby worked some first class mojo to keep Angels out of here. But it seems to be selective if it's only keeping dick features out," explained Dean.

No way!" Cut in Ruby. "That spell was legit; no Angel can get by it, which means..." she paused, instinctively backing away from Castiel, as the pieces clicked in her mind. "You're not an Angel."

"Castiel!" shouted Uriel, still trapped outside.

Realising he had been caught out, Castiel sighed then walked towards the door. "Leave us," he told Uriel, who disappeared in a heartbeat. Slowly he made his way towards Dean's bed and slumped down hard. "No," he answered, looking at Ruby. "But I used to be."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," blurted Dean, blinking several times at the revelation in Castiel's words. "What?"

With three sets of eyes bearing down on him, Castiel's gaze settled onto Dean. "I fell long ago, when the seeds of mankind had just been sown. In fact you could say I was the second Angel to fall from God's grace."

The familiar click of Sam's laptop echoed through the room, as the younger Winchester joined the conversation. "You mean after Lucifer?"

"Yes," answered Castiel.

Swallowing a lump in his throat, Dean managed to spit out the one question that had begun to plague his mind. "Are you a demon?" The quick nod Castiel gave him sent shivers down Dean's spine and like Ruby, he too found himself backing away cautiously. Five minutes ago Dean pictured Cas as an almighty Warrior of God, now that visage had been shattered. His grip on the knife tightened as his hand twitched in fear.

"How is that possible?" asked Ruby. "Alistair, Lilith, everyone thinks you're an Angel."

"I have a few tricks up my sleeve," answered Castiel, his gaze barely straying from Dean. "When you're as old as I am you learn a few things, I also managed to retain some of my more useful Angelic abilities."

A snarky laugh escaped Dean. "I get it, so this is all a trick, string us along and pretend that we're helping when really you just want to free your ol' buddy Lucifer."

"No," replied Castiel. "Lucifer deserves to rot in his cage."



The malice was clear on Dean's face as he locked eyes with the Angel, no demon; he wasn't even sure what It was. "And why should I believe you?" hissed Dean.

"Because this is all his fault," explained Castiel.

On his feet now, Sam joined Dean's side, not wanting his brother to do anything rash. So far Castiel wasn't showing any signs of being hostile and if he was willing to talk then they should probably listen. "What do you mean?"

"Lucifer is the reason I am what I am," began Castiel. "He was my mentor, my leader, I learnt all I know from him; even how to fall."

"So he is the reason you fell?" confirmed Sam, speaking up over Dean and Ruby.

Castiel's gaze fell to the floor as he spoke. "Lucifer was ambitious, and jealous. He let himself believe that God favoured mankind more than us. It slowly corrupted him, poisoning his mind. I was too young at the time to understand, so I to fell victim to his corruption and blasphemous ways."

"I think I'm gonna cry," taunted Dean, rolling his eyes.

Sam nudged him in the ribs, silencing him. "Don't annoy the powerful ex-Angel now demon."

But it seemed too late, as Castiel sprung to his feet. "Leave," he ordered Ruby, before turning to Sam as if to say he should go with her.

"We're not going anywhere," defied Ruby, crossing her arms.

"You can either walk through that door," offered Castiel. "Or I can throw you through it."

Hesitant at first, Sam took a glance at Dean, the look told his older brother all he needed to know. This was Sam's way of asking Dean if he'd be okay alone, without using words. Dean responded with a barely there nod, telling Sam he'd better go. Unwillingly Sam grabbed his jacket and then proceeded to drag Ruby from the room. The last thing he wanted was for anyone to get killed. "Just don't piss him off," pleaded Sam as he brushed past Dean.

"Alone at last," joked Dean, pulling up a chair to sit adjacent from Castiel. He still kept the knife in his belt, even though he knew from previous experience how useless it was against the other man.

Eyes searched Dean's face, scrutinizing every movement. "You don't believe me."

"Of course I don't, you just expect me to buy it, that my Angel is a demon?" grunted Dean.

A smile broke out on Castiel's face. "You just called me yours."

Dean took a deep breath, ignoring the smug look that now adorned Castiel. "That's not the point; you gotta give me more here Cas because I don't understand any of it."

"I am a demon," replied Castiel. "But I like you wish to stop the return of Lucifer."

Dean nodded in agreement, "Yeah, yeah you said that already, but I mean what about God's will, and all that?"

"I needed to gain your trust, and knew that would not be possible if you knew what I really was," answered the other man.

"So you thought lying to me about everything would work better?" laughed Dean, covering the pained tinge in his voice. As far as he was concerned it had all been a lie.

"Tell me, knowing everything that you do now, I bet the first thing that popped into your head was the desire to plunge that knife into my chest, even though you know how useless it is." Dean opened his mouth but couldn't reply. Castiel's all knowing smirk grew as he continued. "I needed your help."

Caught out, Dean removed the knife from his hilt and threw it aside. "Go on."

Shifting his position, Castiel ran a hand through his hair. It was the first non Angelic behaviour Dean had seen. "I can't protect the Seals myself; the numbers that serve under Lilith are too great. Also it seems Samuel is destined to stop Lilith. And who better to make sure that he stays on the right path than his brother."

"Still," argued Dean. "You didn't need me; you could have appeared to Sammy, given him the same Angelic pitch and fear of God then watch over him yourself. So why pull me out?"

"True," replied Castiel. "I could have done that, and cut out the middle man, I believe is the saying. But I like you Dean, you remind me of myself at times. Stuck in Hell you tried to resist, to keep hold of what you were, till one day you gave in, only to become the thing you hated most. You are like me, no matter how much you try, how much good you do, you cannot forgive yourself, and you can't help but think that God doesn't want you back. Still you soldier on day by day fighting the good fight, clutching onto that last piece of hope because that's all you have. That Dean Winchester is why I pulled you from the Pit."

"I'm no demon," hissed Dean.

"No, you're not," replied Castiel. "I pulled you out long before that could happen."

The surrealism was finally beginning to get to Dean. Here he was having a deep conversation with a demon. If only his father could see him now. "So you like me," confirmed Dean. "And you wanna use me and Sam to stop Lilith and what save the world?"

Castiel nodded in response to Dean's words.

"Well I'm all for stopping that sick bitch, and preventing the apocalypse," said Dean clenching his fists. "But there are still some things I don't understand-"

"Uriel?" cut in Castiel.

Nodding his head, Dean continued speaking. "Yeah, if he's an Angel how do you keep him in line, because dude that's a neat trick?"

"Like I said earlier Dean, I have been a demon a long time, just on the other side of forever, I've learned a trick or two in my time. Uriel unfortunately caught me trying to protect a seal; we fought before I managed to work a spell on him, now he believes I am his boss and is completely under my control. It's much easier to make others believe I'm an Angel if I keep one as my pet." He paused when he noticed the smirk on Dean's face. He knew the hunter had a strong disliking for the specialist Angel.

"And the gas station, motel, Pam, how do you explain that?" asked Dean, before leaning in closer, as if somewhat embarrassed. "Then there is the matter of your wings, you showed them to me."

Another guilty smiled covered Castiel's lips. "The windows were another trick. The wings are mine, but corruption has turned them into the black shadows you saw. As for your psychic friend well like I told you before, she was warned not to spy on my true form, but as it turns out she has proven herself quite useful in helping me keep up my cover."

"Anna," whispered Dean.

"Exactly," replied Castiel. "I planted a seed, I guess you could call it, in Pamela's psychic abilities, it was a safeguard. When she restored Anna's memories, I knew she would remember my falling and hence jeopardize everything. So I manipulated the psychic's powers to make Anna believe that I was still an Angel."

"Wow," said Dean. "You've been planning all this for a while haven't you?"

A serious gaze that Dean was all too familiar with now swept across Castiel's face. "Lucifer cannot rise, such actions were necessary."

"So let's say we stop Lilith, Alistair and the rest of them son's of bitches. What then huh? I mean you are a demon, what's in this for you?"

"I may be a demon but an eternity of Hellfire and suffering is not as appealing as it sounds. I like this world, its sights, its pleasures, and its people. You may not fully understand your role in this war Dean, but I promise soon you will."

"So what does this make us?" asked Dean.

"Allies I hope," replied Castiel, the same piercing blue eyes looking down on Dean.

"As long as I can still kick ass and take names," shrugged Dean, still unsure of well pretty much everything. He was sure to remember to add ‘demon pretending to be an Angel' to number one of his top ten weird shit list.

"Careful now, you're supposed to despise demons remember," joked Castiel, rising onto his feet in front of Dean.

Dean stood to face the other man. Inches apart he smiled at Castiel. "You're not a demon, I know demons. You might have fallen but you're still my Angel," replied Dean before Castiel disappeared between blinks.

***