#empty rescue

[watchandread02]

A drag path etched in the surface as evidence. I left there on purpose

[sailorsally]

sorry to inform y'all but I wrote another destiel poem in 2025 what's new

[destieltaggedfic]

hi!! would you happen to have any 15x18 fix-its where it's specifically Dean alone that rescues cas? i've tried the 'dean saves castiel from the empty' tag, obviously, but everything there really seems to be 'sam and rowena and/or jack save castiel while dean just stands there' lol. specifically looking for something where Dean goes totally off the rails and pulls something crazy to get Cas back without telling anyone, but anything where he doesn't have sam or jack's help would be amazing. tysm!

oh cool. I'm going to try and keep these as much 'Dean does it with not much help from others' as I can

With Us You Will Ride – eachainn   Ao3

Set 15x20 didn’t happen AU.  After the latest failure to rescue Cas, Dean goes to get drunk.  But he is approached by Death, who offers him the opportunity to possibly rescue the angel if he assists the entity to draw The Empty out.

Word Count: 38k                              No Sex

Silent Lucidity - Tierra469   Ao3

Set 15x20 didn’t happen AU.  While listening to music one night, dean accidentally sends himself into a trance where he encounters Cas.  Maybe with enough work he’d be able to use this way to get him back.

Word Count: 18k                              Graphic Sexual Acts

Caveat Emptor - goldenraeofsun   Ao3

Set 15x20 didn’t happen AU.  In the empty to get Cas back, The Shadow presents him with a number of versions of Cas.  If Dean can guess which one is the real Cas he can take him home.

Word Count: 7k                                 No Sex

I'll Follow You Into the Dark – FriendofCarlotta   Ao3

Set 15x20 didn’t happen AU.  Eventually Dean realises that since humans can’t enter The Empty he’s going to need a different way to get Cas back.  But if humans can’t get in there he knows that demons can.  Now he just needs to find a way to become a demon and hope that he does forget why he’s doing this once he has black eyes.

Word Count: 15k                              Graphic Sexual Acts

for which no words exist – MediaWhore   Ao3

Set 15x20 didn’t happen AU.  He got him back, but in the wake of the rescue, Cas is bloodied and covered in empty goo, so its up to Dean to look after the ex-angel until he’s back on his feet again, and that means getting him clean, fed and plenty of rest.

Word Count: 14k                              No Sex

[thatgaybreadstick]

Thought about making a full comic, but lost motivation so decided to just post the finished version by itself. Anyways Dean Winchester would not have left his best friend dead without several suicide attempts. 2026 year of the Destiel reunion (lying to myself)

[em-bitterred]

For November 5th: my I Saw The TV Glow destiel fusion (secretly an empty rescue):

Another Version of Me

[destieltropecollection]

Destiel Trope Collection 2024 | Day 9: Empty Rescue

his and mine are the same | @cascigarette Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 1,510 Main Tags/Warnings: Post Canon Fix-It, Dean Winchester Has Abandonment Issues, Alcohol, First Kiss, Newly Human Castiel, Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Castiel and Dean Winchester Use their Words Summary: Dean rescues Cas from the Empty. They end up having to talk about that final confession.

Two lesbians, two bicons, and their cat walk into super turbohell | @nuttysaladtree Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 2,038 Main Tags/Warnings: crossover with She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, the Empty, Fix-it, first kiss Summary: And they bury one person and zero gays. 15x20 "Carry On" finale fix-it that Castiel deserves. Mentioned Bow/Glimmer. Sam Winchester shows up, too, as well as the OTP Dean x pie. Melog is best kitty, and good riddance to the Empty/Shadow/Cosmic Entity and Horde Prime.

sometimes you just don't know the answer (wait for me) | @cassiecasyl Rating: General Word Count: 7,992 Main Tags/Warnings: Canonical Character Death, Episode: s15e18 Despair - Castiel's Confession Scene, Grief/Mourning, Album: evermore (Taylor Swift), Grieving Dean Winchester, Episode: s15e18 Despair, Alternate Ending, Inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice (Ancient Greek Religion & Lore), Reunion, Castiel in the Empty (Supernatural), Castiel Loves Dean Winchester, Dean Winchester Loves Castiel, Angst, Hope vs. Despair, Love Confessions, Angst with a Happy Ending, Inspired by Hadestown, Song: Doubt Comes In, The Fates (Hadestown) Cameo, First Kiss, Reunions, Epic Love Summary: As Dean grieves, Jack tells them of an old story, one that has been told and sung over and over again anyway. Two lovers challenge the universe to escape death. They walk the long way home, but the one in front is not allowed to turn around for the whole way. Every entity of grand power knows this, for the pact has to be respected were it ever to be attempted again. Of course, Dean goes to find Castiel, because if anyone can do this, it's them.

Can't Stop Lovin' You | @teeparadigm67 Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 9,512 Main Tags/Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Castiel is Saved from the Empty, First Kiss, Castiel and Dean Winchester in Love, Castiel/Dean Winchester First Kiss, Happy Ending, Fix-It, Idiots in Love, Love Confessions, Dean Winchester Saves Castiel from the Empty Summary: On paper, the plan seemed simple. Jack opens the portal between the worlds. Dean walks into the Empty and makes it loud enough to wake the dead. Drag Cas’s feathery ass out of there. Simple, right? Cloaked in Cas’s grace, tape deck in hand with Van Halen blasting out its little speaker, he plans to bring the angel home and tell Cas all the things left unspoken between them for all these years. Now they have a chance, he can’t throw this all away. The only problem is, the Empty has other ideas. It doesn't stop Dean however, it’s his turn to be the one who drags Cas out of perdition. Inspired by: Van Halen - Can't Stop Lovin' You

Bring Me To Life | @Taymarpigeon Rating: Explicit Word Count: 10,960 Main Tags/Warnings: Post-Canon Fix-It, Angel Castiel (Supernatural), Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gratuitous Smut, Castiel/Dean Winchester First Kiss, Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Dean Winchester Calls Castiel "Angel", Bottom Dean Winchester/Top Castiel (Supernatural), Interrupting Sam Winchester Summary: In 2008 Dean Winchester met a man who changed everything; he says a man, Castiel Angel of the Lord was so much more than a man and not just because of the whole halo and wings thing. November 5th 2020 Castiel sacrificed himself to save Dean and by extension the world, but not before turning the hunter's life upside down one last time. In 2025 Dean was... moving on, let's put it that way. He hadn't forgotten Cas, spending the past five years trying to be all the things the Angel said he was in that teary goodbye. He put one foot in front of the other, day by day, because as Frank Devereaux once said: 'that's what you do'. This life only ends one way for most hunters though and Dean was no exception. Skip four months into the future and he's back, only this time he's done playing by the rules, done pretending his life didn't end with Cas that day in the dungeon. He's done. Time to do what he should have from the beginning...

stay | @thisisapaige Rating: Explicit Word Count: 15,073 Main Tags/Warnings: Fix-It, Post-Canon, Minor Eileen Leahy/Sam Winchester, Light Angst, Happy Ending Summary: Standing on the bridge beside his brother, Dean looks around. Something’s wrong. Because this Heaven, this place Dean supposedly deserves, just seems so... empty.

The Little Issue with the Mission to Perdition | @amaranthhiding Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 16,460 Main Tags/Warnings: Canon Universe, Post-Ep 15x19, Jack and Amara Try Fixing Things Together But Make Everything Worse (at first), Amara is Part of Team Free Will, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Temporary Major Character Death, Angst with Happy Ending, First Kiss, DCRB 2023 Summary: Chuck is defeated and his power now belongs to Jack and Amara. They struggle with adjusting to their newly-shared existence, and with big questions such as, how can (almost) all-powerful beings avoid becoming what Chuck was? What even is all that power good for when it doesn't allow Jack to save someone from the Empty who absolutely deserves being saved? Who thought it was a good idea to hand all that power to two beings who, together, have spent less years on Earth than the average human child? ...And why is there suddenly black goo everywhere?

Until the Moss Had Reached Our Lips | @alulangel Rating: Mature Word Count: 20,543 Main Tags/Warnings: Fix-It, Everybody Lives, Lake House, Saved from the Empty, Groundhog Day Loop, Castiel’s True Form, Castiel’s handprint, Creepy forests, Inappropriate use of pie Summary: After everything with Chuck went down, Dean thought he deserved some time off. Not a retirement, just a break. A little cabin by a lake. Fishing. Baking. Time to process and reflect. Except he doesn't remember exactly how he got there. And he doesn't know why he can't leave. And there's something about the woods around the cabin, creeping closer and closer and closer every day...

one working part | @mittensmorgul Rating: Explicit Word Count: 40,051 Main Tags/Warnings: Inspired by It's a Wonderful Life (1946) Episode Fix-It: s15e19 Inherit the Earth (Supernatural) Angst and Fluff and Smut POV Alternating Not Canon Compliant with Episode: s15e19 Inherit the Earth (Supernatural), Human Castiel Summary: Wherein they actually inherit the earth. Again. Because I will never be done retelling the end of their story in more sensible and satisfying ways. This time, via the power of a classic holiday film... with a slightly demonic twist.

Empty Earth (WIP) | @amaranthhiding Rating: No Rating Word Count: 102,437 Main Tags/Warnings: Post-15x18, Epic, Plotty, Angel True Forms, Consensual Possession, Enochian, Apocalypse, Rebellion in Hell, Angst with Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Slow Burn, Witch!Sam, Destiel and Samwena, Jack & his three fathers, Crowley & Jack Summary: After Castiel's confession, Dean carries a spark of hope telling him this can't be the end. This spark is the strongest weapon for Dean, Sam and Jack in this final war. The enemy is God. The battlefield is an Earth devoid of humans, a Hell in rebellion against its queen, and a Heaven betrayed by its creator. And the stakes are everything and everyone they have ever cared about.

[nezyy78]

Apologies for the long post but had to get it out of my head….So get this…Post empty rescue:

Cas is restored by Jack to Angel status but more of a hybrid angel since he grew a soul during his time with humanity. Jack restored EVERYTHING so the memories deleted by Naomi come back. He remembers that during apocalypse 1.0 in 5x03 the brothel didn’t work out so Dean deflowered him. He hadn’t remembered and Dean never mentioned it again because he didn’t think Cas would feel comfortable.

So it comes as to him one morning in the bunker seeing Dean in the kitchen eating his breakfast sandwich and moaning and Cas gets some flashbacks and is like WTF?! I can’t believe it. He doesn’t let Dean know at first but he’s acting stranger than normal and is just so revved up about it since his angelic memories can recall everything about that encounter which makes him so very frustrated.

Of course it comes out during an argument with Dean and he’s like oh, that’s it? Wait what do you mean you just remembered? I thought you just never wanted it since you’re an angel and stuff, best to never bring it up and keep our friendship. Cas is thoroughly bewildered at this point and makes it a point to remind Dean that he’d never NOT want it, in fact he’d never had done half the things he did to appease heaven because he’d already found heaven in the brightness and closeness to deans soul at the peak of their lovemaking.

So after a very flustered conversation they don’t say anything more about it and they get awkward because how can Cas now remember such a passionate night where his dreams quite literally did come true and no he’s just supposed to move on?? How did Dean do it? He’s had a lot of experience so maybe it was just another meaningless encounter for him. So while Cas is freaking out about everything from his performance, the meaning behind his feelings and the overall encompassing bliss he feels even though he thinks it meant nothing to Dean. Dean is having a time, a really handsy time reliving that night with Cas, admittedly he’s relived it many times over the years it’s been a moment of comfort for him. And he can admit he wants it, badly…..

So one random day Cas is like I know you’ve had a ton of sex and that time I was so inexperienced, I was probably terrible to your standards and I’d like to try again, I know you don’t reciprocate my feelings but I don’t feel comfortable being out there just yet can we try it again. Deans like sure buddy, what are friends for?

Cas fucks him within an inch of his life over and over and over again over the course of 2 days, since Sam is with Eileen for the weekend and Jack went to visit Claire, and let’s Cas know he’s truly wonderful in the sack but that he can’t let Cas get out there because wants him not only carnally but forever, he professes his love to Cas and Cas immediately blows out the power then they spend the next day making love all over the bunker.

Upon everyone’s return they update the family and Jacks like what do you mean, just getting together? I thought you were married this whole time??

[nayeliq1]

And You’ve got your Demons, and Darling, they all look like me

Rating: Explicit

Length: 42k (so far)

Pairings: Dean/Cas

Ao3 tags for warnings

Summary: Just another fix-it with a little bit of a darker twist after Cas went to the Empty...

Prologue

It had been four months.

Four months, two weeks, ten hours, forty-seven minutes and thirteen seconds. Not that Dean had been counting or anything. Sixteen seconds now. Four months since he lost Cas.

No. Since they lost Cas, Dean reminded himself. Just...it didn't feel that way.

Sam had lost a friend, too. Jack had lost a father. Many of their friends had been shaken by Cas'...disappearance. Not death. No. Dean refused to call it that. It sounded so damn final.

Four months. Three and a half since they finished Chuck, since Amara took over the role of God, since everyone had been returned to earth. Everyone except Cas.

Sam had Eileen back. Dean was happy for him. For them. He truly was.

They'd heard from Jody, Donna and the girls a few times. It had been particularly hard for Claire, hearing the news that the angel was gone. But she had Jody and Alex and Kaia. She'd be fine. Dean was sure. They'd all be fine. (Actually fine. Not like him. Dean had told people he was fine. So many times that he'd lost count. I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine. What did that word even mean at this point?)

But the world kept turning. It kept turning because they'd made damn sure it would. The sun came up every morning, went down with the promise to appear again the next day.

Yes, life went on. Time moved forward. And everyone seemed to move along with it just fine.

Only Dean didn't. Couldn't.

He watched Sam press a kiss to Eileen's temple while she was reading in the library and told himself to be happy for them. He ruffled Jack's hair while the kid stuffed his face with sugary cereal at the breakfast table and managed a smile when the boy grinned up at him.

He didn't blame them. Most of the time. He wished he could be like them, just move on and keep living, make the best of it and learn to be happy again. He envied them, most of the time. But sometimes he couldn't help the feeling of anger clawing at his heart and boiling in his veins, couldn't stop the hateful thoughts that popped up in his head unbidden.

Why did they get to be happy when he felt so miserable? How dare they be happy while he felt like a piece of him had been carved out of his chest, leaving an empty hole that could never be filled? (As empty as the place Cas had been swallowed by.) How could they allow themselves to be happy when they knew that Cas was gone? Cas had sacrificed himself for them, for Dean, but for all of them, really. Cas was fucking gone, and this was how they repaid him?

Dean hated himself in those moments. He knew it wasn't fair to them. They were just trying to get by. He should do the same. He just couldn't. He couldn't.

He saw the happiness all around him, but he didn't seem to be able to experience it, was nothing but a numb spectator. He spoke and smiled and laughed along, but it all felt empty, hollow and fake. He was pretty sure they noticed, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He wouldn't have been able to put on a better show anyway. There were looks sometimes, when he'd forced a smile again. But no one ever said anything, and Dean was glad.

He just stood by and watched, watched as they lived and made themselves forget by making new memories and new laughter. New happiness. New love.

Dean couldn't do that. It just reminded him of all the things he had lost. Everything he had lost by losing him. Trying to find them anew with him gone felt like he was trying to replace him, like he was cheating on him somehow.

So Dean made himself forget in other ways. He'd lost his best friend, so he found others. They were called Jack Daniel's and sleep. He drank and slept and woke up from nightmares of that day, images of black goo swallowing what little light he'd had in his life. So he drank more, drank himself to sleep just so he wouldn't have to dream for once. The pounding headaches were a welcome punishment during the following hours he spent consumed by guilt, guilt for allowing himself even for a second to forget about Cas.

Memory was all he had, all that was left of Cas. And here Dean was, trying to drink it away just so he could find peace for a few hours.

But he didn't deserve peace. And Cas didn't deserve to be forgotten.

So he drank to get through the day, embraced the nightmares at night, and wondered if he was ever going to feel anything else again but this emptiness that kept nagging away at him, every day that passed.

~oOo~

Six months.

Six months on the day, and Dean couldn't do it anymore.

He hadn't told anyone. Not even Sam. It hurt to think about how he'd react when he found out, but Dean couldn't risk it, couldn't risk telling anyone in case they tried to stop him.

The books he'd sneaked into his room at night to research sat back on their shelves as if they'd never been taken in the first place. His room was a mess as per usual, the bed unmade. No sign that there was anything about to happen, no sign that he wouldn't be here anymore tomorrow like he'd been here every morning for the last half-year. He hadn't even packed anything. There was no need for luggage where he was going.

He paused on his way down the hallway, his socks making no sound at all on the cold tiles beneath his feet. He could hear the sound of breathing coming through Sam's door, two bodies sleeping, calm and peaceful and not plagued by nightmares. Jack would be down the hall, eyes closed and hugging that stupid talking bear to his chest that Cas had gotten him once.

Dean had to squeeze his eyes shut for a second, leaned his forehead against the wall as he breathed.

In. Out. In. Out.

He tried to keep the stinging in his eyes under control. Failed.

In. Out. In. Out.

He pressed his lips together, hands clenching into fists until he could feel his nails biting into his palms, nearly drawing blood. He welcomed the pain.

I'm sorry.

Sammy would be devastated. He'd probably blame himself for not seeing it sooner, for not saying anything. (There was nothing he could have said, anyway.)

I'm so sorry.

They'd look for him. Wouldn't find a trace.

I love you, all of you. I hope you know that.

Dean wished it didn't have to be this way, wished he didn't have to do this.

He wished this would be enough. His family surrounding him, peaceful and happy. He wished they were enough.

Forgive me.

With a last deep breath, Dean straightened, blinked the tears from his eyes.

And went.

~oOo~

Continue reading under the cut or on Ao3

~oOo~

"Hello, Rowena."

"What an unexpected pleasure."

"Fancy seeing you here, Dean. And alone." The Queen of Hell looked down at him from her throne, red hair cascading over her shoulders like flames.

"I was so sorry to hear about your wee little angel", she added, the smile on her face turning into something sad and empathetic. Dean believed that she meant it.

"Yeah." He swallowed hard, cursed the stinging in his eyes that threatened to make a reappearance. "Thanks. That's...why I'm here, actually."

"I can't get him back, Dean", she said immediately, apologetically, as if they hadn't already talked about that. Been there. Tried that. Failed.

"No. I know."

"Then what is it that you wish, may I ask? I'm sure you're not just here for a friendly visit. Not that I'd mind one, from time to time."

"No, you're right."

Dean took a deep breath, gathering himself.

Now or never. For Cas.

His words were sure and steady when he spoke.

"Are you sure this is what you want to do?", Rowena asked when he was done. "Samuel-"

"I know", Dean broke her off a little too forcefully. Don't fucking remind me of Sammy. "I know. But I just-"

They'd tried everything to get Cas back. Everything they could find, weeks of tired eyes searching through every word in all their fancy old books. Everything they could come up with. Nothing had worked. This was all he had left.

"I gotta do this", he said, because that was all there was to it, really. "Please, Rowena."

She looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, sadness and pity in her eyes, and for a second Dean already feared she would refuse him, but then she nodded.

"Alright, dearie. If this is what you want."

Dean released a long breath of relief.

"And you can't tell them", he added. "Sam. Eileen. All of them. They'll come looking for me. You can't tell them."

"Dean-"

"Please." Dean took a step forward, balling his hands into fists to distract himself from the painful clenching in his chest. "I need your word. They'll try and get me back. They wouldn't understand. But I don't want to. I just can't. Promise me, Rowena."

The witch sighed.

"Very well. I promise."

"Thank you."

And there was that small sad smile in the corner of her mouth again.

"It's alright, dearie", she said, and for a moment Dean was sure she understood, understood why he was doing this, why he needed to do this.

"Go and get your wee angel back", she told him with a smile. "And if you see him, give him my love, will you? Always had a soft spot for that one."

~oOo~

So now here he was, standing in a filthy motel bathroom, staring at his own face in the mirror.

His hands had a white-knuckled grip around the sink, the demon knife placed within reach. He'd plunged that knife into Cas' chest when they met. Dean had never been one for chick-flicks but this one did have a compelling sense of poetic completion to it.

He could do it. He would do it. He was just sorry for the poor cleaning lady that had to do this room afterwards.

Dean stared at his reflection and breathed. His hands were trembling. He blinked.

In the mirror, his eyes turned black.