The Littlest Firefly

Sam had gone on a hunt with Dean, his first one in months. He had been reluctant to leave Jess, what with her being pregnant and everything. But she had insisted. Sam had started to hover the farther along she got and it was starting to drive her nuts. Not that he wasn't very sweet and all, but she couldn't breathe with the constant hovering. He was a helicopter-parent who had decided to start before his baby was actually born. So, she had called Dean and then forced Sam to go with him.

With a groan, she stood up from where she had been laying on the couch. It was extremely irritating that pregnancy made her have pee all the time. After waddling to and from the bathroom, she made her way to the kitchen. Peeing, cravings for the oddest foods, back pain…it was all so new and frustrating.

Sighing, she made her way over to the cupboards. Opening the doors, she pulled out a jar of pickles. Then she made her way over to the fridge, where she pulled out another jar, this one full of mayonnaise.

"I swear," she grumbled, "after I have this kid, I'm never eating pickles again. Or mayo."

Suddenly, the jar of pickles slipped from her fingers. It crashed to the floor, shattering and sending glass, pickles and green liquid everywhere. Jess froze. And then she tried to turn around without stepping on any glass, but the jar of mayonnaise slipped too. It joined the pickles on the floor, properly shattered. Overwhelmed, Jess burst into tears.

There was the sound of wings rustling and then suddenly Castiel was standing there. He looked from Jessica to the mess and back to Jessica. And then without a word, he picked up Jessica and carried her back to her bed. She sobbed and clutched his coat between her fists. Glancing briefly back over Cas's shoulder, she saw that the mess had already been cleaned up. She reburied her face in his chest.

Laying her down on her bed, he pulled the covers back so that he could pull them over her. Jess looked up at him with wide eyes. He gave her a small smile and turned to go.

"Cas…"

"Yes, Jessica?"

"Could you…stay?"

"Of course." He took off his coat and shoes, and then his suit jacket. Climbing up onto the bed with her, he lay on his side and rested his cheek on his hand to look down at her.

"How did you know?"

"I was already on my way here. Sam sent me to check on you."

Jess huffed out a laugh. "Of course he did. How is their hunt going?"

"Well, from what Dean told me." Cas fixed her with an odd stare. "Jessica, may I ask you a question?"

"Sure, Cas."

"Why did you choose to become a hunter once Sam told you about this life?"

Jessica considered for a moment. "I just…I love Sam. And if this is what he does, I want to be a part of it too. I want to be with Sam. So when we graduated, I followed him and he led me here. And, honestly, I couldn't be happier."

Castiel seemed lost in thought.

"Why did you want to know, Cas?"

"I'm not sure. I was thinking about the child." He reached a hesitant hand out and almost touched her bulging stomach. He pulled back at the last moment. "If it will be a hunter."

Jessica thought but couldn't come up with a suitable answer. So instead, she caught Cas's hand and placed it gently on her stomach. He looked up and caught her eyes. She smiled at him a bit in encouragement.

"You can…you can feel the baby, if you want Castiel."

Cas smiled at her brilliantly and then sat up so that he could place both of his hands on her stomach. Jessica watched in fascination as a very faint blue light flashed beneath Cas's palms. In response, the baby kicked and seemed to flip in circles inside of her. Jess gasped.

"What was that?"

"A bit of my grace."

"Why…?"

Jess was about to say something more when Castiel gasped and lowered his head to her stomach. He pressed an ear gently against her skin. Jessica watched in fascination. A radiant smile broke out on the angel's face.

"What is it?"

Cas looked up at her with shining eyes. "Would you like to know the gender of the child?"

"Yes!"

"Jessica…you and Sam are having a girl."

Tears welled up and spilled over and Jessica choked out a laugh. "A girl, a girl, we're having a girl!"

Castiel smiled at her reaction. But he froze when she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug. He relaxed after a moment. But then he pulled away, staring at her stomach again. Jessica watched him, a look of confusion on her face. He placed his hands around the bulge and then rested his ear against the very top of her stomach again. Like he was listening.

Apparently he was.

"Yes, hello, it's lovely to meet you too. You are just as polite as your father."

Jessica continued to stare at him.

"No, I am not your father, young lady."

Jessica laughed in disbelief, only slightly hysterical. "Cas, are you talking to my baby?"

"Yes, she has quiet the inquisitive mind. I believe she gets that from you."

Jessica laughed again. "What is she saying?"

"She wanted to know if I am her father, and how I was speaking to her."

"How can she…?"

"Form rational thoughts? My grace. It appears to have accelerated her mental abilities. Hold on, she's asking another question."

They both remained silent for a moment.

"I am Castiel. I'm an Angel of the Lord."

Another pause.

"You're human, little one….Yes, I have wings…No, you won't."

Jessica began crying again and Castiel looked up at her in concern.

"Why are you crying, Jessica?"

"I just…I wish Sam were here."

"Hold on." He turned back to her stomach. "Little one, I am going to get your father now. Try not to move around too much. It hurts your mother."

And then he disappeared.

Jessica waited for a few hours, lying on her bed where Castiel had left her and rubbed a hand across her belly. But a second later, Castiel had reappeared, Sam gripped in his hand. He stumbled away from Castiel, looking disoriented. But then he saw Jessica and immediately bee lined over to her.

"Jess, are you okay? Cas said you needed me."

"Sammy, Sammy, we're having a girl."

"What?"

"Cas…he can talk to her."

After hours of sitting there communicating to their daughter through Castiel, Jessica and Sam decided it was time to sleep. Castiel disappeared to give them some privacy. Jess snuggled in close to Sam and felt his strong arm go around her. Jess had an idea and wanted to tell ask Sam what he thought.

"Sam?"

"Yeah?" He sounded drowsy and adorable.

"I think I want to name her after Castiel."

"After Cas? Really?" He tilted his head to look down at her.

"Yeah."

"Alright, well...what are you thinking?"

"Do you like Casandra?"

"I love it." Sam kissed the top of her head. "We'll tell him tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay."

"Castiel. Can we talk to you?"

"Of course, Sam. Jessica. What can I help you with?"

"Well, actually, um…" Sam looked at Jessica, unsure of how to proceed. She rolled her eyes at him and let go of his hand to stand in front of the angel.

"Cas, you've been such a big help to us during this whole pregnancy. You've done your best to make me comfortable and made sure Sam was here when I needed him. And yesterday, you let us talk to our baby…"

Castiel flushed slightly, making Sam and Jessica smile at him.

"What we're trying to say, Cas, is that we want to name our daughter after you."

Castiel froze, his face a shocked mask. Sam and Jessica waited, watching him. He didn't move for such a long time that Jessica started to glance at Sam worriedly. Sam just nodded at her and motioned for her to proceed. Jessica walked as far forward as she could without actually hitting Castiel with her baby. She grabbed his hands and placed them on her stomach. She looked up into his eyes.

"Castiel, I'd like you to meet Castielle. Cassie for short."

Cas drew in a quick breath and suddenly, there were tears coursing down his face silently. He didn't say a word, just stood there and let the tears escape.

-Four Months Later-

Jessica and Sam were peeking around the doorway to the nursery. They were watching Castiel while he crept up to the crib where their daughter lay. He peeked over the edge and stood there for a moment, just watching little Cassie sleep. They smiled at each other as Cas started to talk to her.

"Hello? Cassie? Are you awake?" Somehow Castiel had taught their daughter both Enochian and English, though she rarely spoke to anyone but the angel.

A gurgle of Enochian floated from the depths of the crib. Cas smiled and reached in to pick up the tiny human inside. He smiled at her and cooed at her a bit in Enochian, but switched back to English soon.

"You know, Cassie, you may be the most perfect human I have ever met. And I take no credit for that, even though you do have some of my grace inside you. Your mother and father are exceptional people. Though I will take credit for these."

And with that, two little wings, black with silver tips, emerged from their daughter's back. Sam and Jessica gasped but didn't interrupt.

"Cassie, you are…impossible. Or inexplicable. I have never felt such a strong need to protect anyone or anything before. You truly are a wonder. It's almost as if you are the center of the universe. As if even the littlest of fireflies exists solely to light up your world. As if that's all I were created to do. I don't understand."

Cas sighed and gently laid Cassie back in her nest of blankets.

Then he spoke the only phrase in Enochian that Sam and Jess knew: "I love you."