Castiel had been following Dean around like a lost puppy ever since the Croatoan virus had hit. Even Sam at his most worshipful had never followed him this closely. So it was a big shock when he looked over his right shoulder to say something to the angel and Cas wasn't there. Such a big shock in fact, that he actually spun around, gun coming out just in case Cas's vessel had been taken by Croats. After determining that in fact, the diseased humans had NOT broken through the barrier and taken their resident angel hostage, he saw Cas stopped dead still 30 or so yards behind him, staring at a door of a house in the camp.

"Cas! Don't scare me like that!" Dean snapped, walking back to the angel. "If you're going to follow me around, go ahead and follow me around, but when you just STOP like that, it gets me paranoid, you know?

"My name is Castiel," the angel replied absently, still focused intently on the door.

Dean cocked the gun. "What is it? There a Croat in there?" He took nearly ten steps towards the door before Cas spoke again.

"No." A five second pause. "She is… beautiful."

Dean looked between the door and the angel several times before understanding hit. Then he grinned for the first time in several days. The first true grin since the Croats had come. "You sly dog. Finally! The body's hormones got the better of you, eh? Well, go on in and introduce yourself."

Castiel looked positively baffled at that statement, and then he figured it out. The look of piss-pants terror that he'd had when Dean tried to take him to the brothel had nothing on the horror on his face now. "It is not permitted!" he protested faintly.

"Permitted, schmermitted," Dean said, walking back and giving the angel a friendly shove in the shoulder. "Have we not covered the fact that you rebelled against heaven and a little iniquity comes with the territory? Besides, you've earned it. Just don't do the whole look in her eyes and read her soul thing and you should totally be in! In more ways of one, if you catch my drift." Dean did his most cheesy wink wink nudge nudge routine, but Castiel seemed to be petrified by the very idea of pursuing the girl. "Ok, fine. But don't come crying to me when she takes up with some other man first."

Dean didn't think it could have been possible, but the angel's eyes got even wider at that comment. "She would do no such thing! She is pure!"

Running that comment through his cryptic angel utterance portion of his brain, Dean was only able to come up with one translation. "There's a virgin in this camp? Dude, I need to fix that right now. Especially if she's a looker enough to attract you." He took a step forward only to be halted rather abruptly by one of Cas's hands on his shoulder and the other doing the two fingered touch to his forehead.

"You will leave her alone," Cas said firmly before Dean lost consciousness.

When Dean woke up, he was in his cabin and Castiel was sitting on the edge of the bed, glaring. "You will leave her alone."

"Dude, what did I tell you about the zapping thing?" Dean demanded, sitting up and rubbing his head.

"She is pure. You will-"

"Leave her alone. Yeah I get it. Jealous son of a bitch, aren't you?"

***

Not thinking, Dean turned to his right to backtrack and nearly ran into the angel that always followed him. "Dude, seriously. Wouldn't rather literally perching on my shoulder just be easier at this point?" Castiel did his extreme cocking of the head with a faintly quizzical look on his face.

"I told you that I am not here to perch on your shoulder."

"Dude, I know. But wouldn't it just be easier?" Dean paused and thought for a minute. "But not in Jimmy whats his face. He's just too heavy. And I'd get too lopsided, carrying that much weight." The head cock was even more pronounced at that comment. After another minute of stare down in which Dean was waiting for the angel to step aside like he usually did when Dean did an abrupt about face, the elder Winchester brother sighed. "Did you want something in particular?"

"You have success with… women. Not just whores," Castiel added quickly, looking away.

Dean's eyebrows shot up his forehead. "Are you asking me for a pickup line?"

Cas turned his head very, very slowly to glare at Dean. "No. I wish to… get to know her."

"Like, biblically?"

"She is pure. And-"

"I'm not allowed to touch her. We've been over this. Dude, do you want her to like you or what?"

Cas ducked his head sheepishly. "I wish to get to know her."

Dean rolled his eyes and grabbed the angel by the shoulder. "Well, we can walk and talk. And walk beside me this time, not behind me, ok? I don't like feeling like I'm talking to myself. It already feels like the flying circus around here without me feeling mad." Castiel managed to actually fall into step beside the eldest Winchester brother with relative ease. "Look, one thing chicks dig is chivalry. You know the whole opening doors crap. Makes them feel respected or something like that, I've never been all that clear on it." He glanced at the angel. "You should be pretty good at it, I suppose." In the instant that he glanced away to make sure that he wasn't about to run into anything, Castiel vanished. "Well, at least this time he isn't acting like he's allergic to straight answers," Dean muttered.

***

Susan opened the door to the cabin, about to go get rations for her and her housemates, when she saw the flower. A ribbon was tied around it, holding a slip of paper with elegant script stating, "For Susie." Slightly baffled by the apparently sweet gesture, she looked around, seeing if the person who had left it was around. She scanned the ten or so people around the camp in easy view.

Three hunters were talking in a group, but they were far more the rough and ready type than capable of making romantic gestures. Bobby was wheeling along looking as grumpy as ever. Beyond the fact that she doubted that he would so much as THINK of giving someone a flower, she also genuinely hoped it wasn't him. Chuck, she could see trying to give her a flower, but she'd seen his handwriting, and it was far too sloppy to ever come anywhere near the elegance of the handwriting on the piece of paper. Jo and Ellen Harville were leading a new recruit to the mess to feed him, because the poor boy looked like he hadn't seen a proper meal for weeks. The only other person in easy view was their resident angel, who was looking rather intently at his shoes, his chin almost hiding the fact that his tie was loose.

It certainly couldn't be him. She'd been informed in no uncertain terms when she'd been caught unabashedly staring at him that he was far too caught up in being holy to notice women, and she'd have better luck with an emasculated priest.

Giving up on the endeavor, she simply grinned down at the flower and took it inside to put in a cup of water.

Castiel looked up through his lashes at the closing door before panic hit him and he transported out of sight.

Next Chapter: Cas should know better than to take Dean's advice...