Merry Christmas!

So it's been a year since I published the first chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, and somehow it became a series. I'm still not quite sure how that happened. But this is (tentatively) the final piece in that series. Now that it's Christmas again, I feel like we've come full circle and this is a good place to end this series.

I hope you enjoy the (probably) last installment in the Holidays With The Winchesters Are Always Fun series!

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural.

For once, Dean isn't buying all his Christmas gifts from Wal-Mart. He's moving a step up in the world.

Actually, he's moved a few steps up, because he's on his way to a nice jewelry shop. He hasn't gotten anything for Sam yet, but he's thinking he would get that nerd the Game of Thrones series, considering they started watching the show and Sam said he wanted to read the books. But for Castiel, Dean's getting something special.

He's getting him an engagement ring.

That's to say, Dean's going to get Castiel an engagement ring if he doesn't chicken out first. He's terrified to do it. To get down on one knee and propose to Castiel is a scary thought. It means commitment; it means trust; it means letting Castiel in to be a permanent part of Dean's life. And to be honest, that sort of thing scares the shit out of Dean.

It's not that he thinks he'll stop loving Castiel. That won't happen. He knows it. And logically, he knows that Castiel probably won't abandon him either. But at the same time… Everyone in Dean's family has left him at least once. Who's to say Castiel won't be next?

No. He won't be. Dean shoves his fears aside as he enters the jewelry store. The bell above the door jangles cheerily to indicate he's entered.

"Hello, sir," the man behind the counter calls, coming around and over to Dean. "What are you looking for today?"

"Um, an engagement ring," Dean replies. The man beams.

"Right this way, sir," he tells Dean. "We have some rings over here your girlfriend is sure to love."

"Um, I'm actually going to propose to my boyfriend," Dean corrects. The man switches directions without breaking stride.

"Then the ring you want is probably over here," he tells Dean, not making any remark about the gender of Dean's partner. "Our more masculine rings are on this side of the shop. What exactly were you thinking?"

"Something durable," Dean replies. "And, um, not too fancy."

"Why don't you look around?" the man asks. "I've got to finish up something in the back room, but if you need me, just call. I won't be long."

Dean nods as the man leaves. He looks over at the rings. One of them catches his eye instantly. The tag says it's tungsten. The ring is a simple band of the gray metal. There's a sheet next to it with possible engraving ideas, with the added fact that other engravings are possible if they're not too difficult. Dean likes the ring and he particularly likes one of the engravings, so he decides he'll ask about it when the sales associate comes back. Dean has a budget, after all, even though it's currently pretty high. He made a lot hustling pool a few days before, and a few days back, he was given a good amount from a young woman who needed car help that Dean had been happy to provide. Altogether, Dean figures he's got enough for a nice ring, if not an expensive one. He hopes the tungsten one won't be too expensive.

"Have you found anything you like?" the man asks as he reenters the room. Dean sees he's put on a nametag that says he's named Nate.

"Um, I like the tungsten one," Dean tells him. Nate smiles.

"It's a nice ring, isn't it? And it's on sale too. We're having a Christmas sale. This ring is twenty percent off. It's normally $300, but now it's only $240."

"Wow, really?" Dean asks. Nate nods.

"And all engravings after the first are free, which means you can get as many as you want for only $20," he adds. Dean smiles slightly. He can get this ring, this perfect ring that just screams Castiel in his mind.

"Could I get it with these engravings?" Dean asks, pointing out one of engravings. It's a pair of wings that circle around the entire ring. Nate smiles.

"Of course. Is that all?"

"Could you put this on it too?" Dean asks, pulling out a slip of paper. Castiel wrote the Enochian for "love" on a note he left for Dean a few days ago, and Dean's kept the paper in his pocket ever since. Nate looks at the paper.

"This should work. Where do you want it?"

"Between the wings," Dean says. "Like this." He takes one of the business cards from the desk and sketches out what he wants. Nate nods.

"Looks good," he replies. "Do you want me to photocopy the symbols?"

"Oh, uh, sure," Dean replies. Nate takes the slip of paper and sticks it in the photocopier. Once it's done, he hands the paper back to Dean.

"So we normally have a downpayment of fifty percent when you order the ring," Nate tells Dean. "Then you pay the other half when you pick up the finished ring."

"When will it be finished?" Dean asks anxiously. Nate laughs.

"I'm assuming you want it done for Christmas?" he asks. Dean nods.

"If possible, yeah."

"Well, the earliest this would be ready would be in two days, which is the twenty-second. The latest would be Christmas Eve. If you give me your number, I can call you when the ring is ready."

"Thanks, man," Dean says, scrawling down his name and number. He hands over $130 - half of the price of the ring - in cash. Nate accept it with a smile.

"Just doing my job. Good luck with your boyfriend."

"Thanks," Dean replies, taking his receipt. He clutches it tightly as he walks out of the store.

Then it's off to Wal-Mart for Sam and Gabriel's gifts.

Dean never said he wouldn't go to Wal-Mart eventually.

For the next few days, Dean's glued to his phone. Sam rolls his eyes every time he sees it.

"Dean, you don't have to have your phone in your pocket 24/7," he's told Dean multiple times. Dean just flips him off.

He can't leave his phone somewhere. What if Nate calls him to tell him the ring is finished when Dean doesn't have his phone? Sam doesn't understand; Dean hasn't told him what he's going to do. He's worried Sam will tell him that he's going too fast or he's being ridiculous. Yes, perhaps a proposal after a year of dating is a little ridiculous, but Dean's known Castiel for years. He trusts him not to leave, and for Dean, that's saying a lot. He's ready to take the next step.

Today is the twenty-second, which Nate said was the earliest the ring could be ready. Dean's even more glued to his phone than normal. While he's wrapping Sam and Gabriel's presents, it rings and he scrambles for it. "Yes?" he asks quickly.

"Hey Dean!" Dean deflates a little, although he's still happy about the call.

"Hi, Charlie. How are you and Emily?"

"Great!" Charlie replies happily. "How about you and the others?"

"We're good," Dean replies. "Snowed in, though." They're up in Whitefish in Rufus's cabin, which was supposed to be a temporary spot. However, a snowstorm hit a few days before, dropping over a foot and a half of snow over the town. The roads are almost unusable, meaning everyone has to walk if they have to get anywhere. That's how Dean got to the jewelry store; Baby hasn't left the driveway of the cabin for a while.

"Snowed in?" Charlie asks, sounding a little disappointed. "Then I guess you can't come down to have Christmas with us."

"Yeah," Dean replies regretfully. "Thanks for the offer, but it won't work. We can't even get the car out of the driveway."

"It's fine," Charlie replies. "Emily and I don't have anywhere else to go for Christmas. Emily's folks are a bunch of dicks and mine are dead."

"What's up with Emily's folks?" Dean asks. Charlie sighs.

"They kicked her out of the house when she came out. They haven't talked since, and every time Emily tries to contact them, they ignore her."

"Oh, right. She mentioned something about that when I met her last year," Dean replies, the explanation striking a dull chord in his memory. "That sucks."

"Yeah," Charlie replies. "Em's a little lonely. So I thought I'd surprise her by inviting you and the others down for Christmas. But if you're snowed in, that obviously won't work."

"Tell you what," Dean replies. "We can set up a video chat with you guys on Christmas, and once the roads are clear, we'll come down to visit you."

"Sounds awesome!" Charlie replies. "What are you guys gonna do for Christmas anyway? Emily and I were thinking we'd go see the new Hobbit movie."

"Sam and I went last week," Dean replies. "It was great."

"No spoilers!" Charlie squeals. Dean sighs.

"You've read the books!" he protests. Charlie huffs.

"Yeah, but they've changed a lot. Like this whole pale-Orc-being-alive storyline? Totally not in the book."

"But still cool," Dean adds.

"You're right," Charlie admits. "But if they can change that, they can change anything."

"Okay, you have a point," Dean conceded "And there were parts of the movie that weren't in the book."

"Tell me nothing, Dean Winchester!" Charlie demanded. Dean laughed.

"So you two are going to see the movie on Christmas? Is that it?"

"Yeah, pretty much. What about you? Are you and Cas doing anything special?" Charlie's voice is laden with innuendo. Dean sighs and looks around. The cabin is empty; Castiel is God-knows-where on some sort of Christmas-related business and Sam is off shopping with Gabriel. They all said they wouldn't be back until late, so until then, Dean is alone in the house. No one can overhear him.

"Charlie, I'm going to propose to Cas on Christmas."

Charlie's squeal is so loud Dean needs to hold the phone away from his ear until she stops. "Oh my God that is so cute!" she screeches. "You're going to propose! I wish I could be there! What does the ring look like?"

"It's tungsten," Dean replies. "A dark gray band. And I got some engravings on it. Personal sort of stuff." Dean hedges for a moment, then asks the question that's really been bugging him. "But Charlie, we've only been officially dating for a year. Our first kiss was on Christmas of last year. Am I moving too fast?"

"How long have you two known each other?" Charlie asks. Dean thinks for a second.

"Around six years," he replies. "Why?"

"Cause the couple I saw at Thanksgiving didn't look like a couple that had been together for less than a year," Charlie replies. "You have that we've-been-together-forever vibe going on. You two clearly love each other."

"But what if Cas doesn't want to get married?" Dean protests. "What if he-"

"Why wouldn't he want to marry you?" Charlie asks. Dean opens his mouth to respond. "And don't say because he doesn't love you, because that's bullshit and we both know it."

"What if he thinks I'm moving too fast?" Dean asks. Charlie sighs.

"You're not moving too fast. You're moving just fast enough. Trust me; Cas will say yes. He's crazy about you. Anyone can see it." Charlie lets out another squeal and Dean holds the phone away from his ear again. "I can't believe you two are going to get married!"

"Okay, I'm gonna hang up now," Dean replies.

"I'm helping prepare the wedding!" Charlie calls. Dean rolls his eyes.

"Hanging up. Bye Charlie. Tell Emily I said hi."

"See ya, Dean!" Charlie hangs up on her side and Dean does on his side as well, chuckling slightly. Charlie is always fun to talk with.

And if she's right… Well, that eliminates most of Dean's worries right there. Now if only he could get the phone call from the freaking jewelry store, he would be completely prepared for Christmas.

Castiel is the first to return that night. He flutters into the cabin while Dean is searching the cabinets to try and find something to eat. He brings with him the smell of Chinese food.

"I love you," Dean tells Castiel seriously as he takes the bag. Castiel smiles slightly.

"And I you," he replies. "Should we not wait for Sam and Gabriel?"

"No," Dean replies, grabbing his food out of the bag. Castiel rolls his eyes. "I'm hungry!" Dean protests, starting to eat. Castiel smiles.

"I can see that," he replies teasingly. Dean sticks his tongue out at him. "It's only a few days until Christmas," Castiel muses, sitting down next to Dean. "Do you remember last Christmas?"

"How could I forget?" Dean asks. "You almost died cause you're an idiot that couldn't stop messing with your wings and screwing up your back."

"That's not quite how I remember it," Castiel replies mildly. "Nor is that what I was thinking about."

"Then we had an awesome Christmas," Dean adds. "And we kissed under the mistletoe."

"I shouldn't have left when we kissed," Castiel said regretfully, looking down. "I should have stayed with you."

"Hey." Dean tips Castiel's head back up and makes the angel meet his eyes. "We made it work out eventually. It's okay. I wouldn't have wanted it any other way."

"I love you, Dean," Castiel whispers, resting his head on Dean's shoulder. Dean smiles softly.

"Awww…" The moment is ruined by Gabriel's obnoxious noise as he and Sam appear in the room. "How cute!"

"Go screw yourself," Dean retorts. Gabriel shakes his head with a sigh.

"You're so rude," he scolds.

"Gabriel, leave him alone," Sam puts in. "Sorry, Dean." Suddenly, Sam's eyes go wide. "Is that Chinese food?"

"Thank Cas," Dean replies. Sam grabs the food and starts eating.

"Thanks, Cas," he mumbles through a mouthful of food. Dean gives Castiel a pointed look.

"At least I'm more mature than that." Castiel rolls his eyes.

"Barely," he replies. Dean huffs.

"You're supposed to be on my side," he protests. "You're my boyfriend."

"Hey!" Gabriel puts in. "He's my brother. I've known him longer. Shouldn't he be on my side?"

"I am on no one's 'side,'" Castiel interjects. "I wasn't even aware there were sides to be on."

"But if there were sides, you'd be on mine, right?" Dean asks.

"No, he'd be on mine!" Gabriel protests. Dean narrows his eyes.

"You wanna go?" he demands. Sam sighs.

"Guys, could you stop-"

"Sammy, would you be on my side or Dean's side, if there were an argument?" Gabriel demands. Sam sighs.

"I wouldn't be on either of your sides. You're both idiots." Gabriel pouts.

"That's not very nice."

"If Sam wouldn't be on my side, then Cas wouldn't be on yours!" Dean puts in triumphantly.

"Sam wouldn't be on my side either, dumbass, so he's not helping either of our arguments," Gabriel replies. Dean reverts to the mature option of sticking his tongue out.

"You're all acting like children," Castiel groans.

"I'm with Cas on this one," Sam agrees. Gabriel frowns.

"So Sam's on Cas's side? Does that mean that I should be on Dean's side? This is getting confusing."

Sam sighs, burying his face in his hands. Dean can only laugh.

The twenty-second finishes. The twenty-third comes and goes. Christmas Eve arrives and Dean's about to panic.

What if the call doesn't come through? What if the ring isn't ready in time? What if there's another snowstorm and Dean can't get to the store? What if there's another snowstorm and Nate can't finish the ring? What if-

Dean's phone rings and he grabs it madly. "Hello?"

"Hi, this is Nate," a familiar and very welcome voice replies. "From the jewelry store, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah," Dean replies. "Is it ready?"

"Completely!" Nate replies cheerfully. "Sorry it took so long. It would have been finished yesterday, but the power at the shop went out for a few hours."

"It's fine," Dean replies, his relief making him feel almost giddy. "When should I come get it?"

"Any time is fine," Nate replies. Dean's already pulling on his coat.

"I'm on my way now."

"Alright. See you in a few." Nate hangs up and Dean stuff his phone in his pocket, about to go out.

"Dean, where are you going?" Sam calls.

"Christmas stuff," Dean replies, unlocking the door.

"We're going to decorate the tree!" Sam protests. Dean turns to face his brother.

"Important Christmas stuff," he tells him, then he's out the door. Dean can imagine Sam fuming on the other side, but that's not important. What's important is that the ring is finished. Dean can't wait to see it.

He makes it to the jewelry store in record time. Nate chuckles as he enters. "Wow, that was fast."

Dean's pretty sure he's blushing slightly. "I just wanted to get the ring," he replies. Nate grins.

"I was the same way when I got the ring for my wife. It's not a problem." Nate picks up a small box. "Here you go."

Dean takes the box and opens it slowly. The ring inside is even more beautiful than he ever imagined. The delicate wings surround unfamiliar Enochian letters that Dean knows spell out love. "This is perfect," he whispers. Nate smiles.

"I'm glad you like it." Suddenly remembering the money, Dean pulls out $130. Nate accepts it and gives Dean his receipt. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Dean replies, tucking the little box into his pocket. He steps out of the store, barely able to control his excitement. He has the ring! He's completely prepared to propose.

Then a thought occurs to Dean. He doesn't know what he's going to say. Horror washes over him. He can't just adlib it. What if he ends up stumbling over his words and sounding like a bumbling idiot? Or what if he ends up saying something stupid? No, Dean has to prepare his words.

He's going to propose right before midnight, just when he and Castiel kissed for the first time the year before. He's got Castiel a decoy gift, Dante's Inferno. Dean wonders idly if Castiel will get the irony of it. He doubts he will.

No, no, no! Dean needs to focus. It's Christmas Eve. He needs to prepare the words he'll say the next day.

"Okay, I'll start out by mentioning something about how it was exactly a year ago that we kissed," Dean mutters to himself as he slides into the Impala. He's reached the cabin, but he can't enter yet. Instead, he sits in his Baby and thinks.

"Screw it," Dean mutters to himself after a few minutes of fruitless thinking come to naught. "I'll figure it out when I do it. Adlibbing it is."

Dean tucks the ring box in his pocket again and steps out of the Impala.

He's got a day. Surely he'll figure something out by that point.

Sam wakes Dean up on Christmas morning. Dean groans and complains that it's far too early to be awake, but he's really just happy to see Sam that happy.

"Is it present time?" Gabriel demands once Sam and Dean enter the living room. He looks as giddy as a five year old.

"No," Dean replies, flopping into one of the chairs. "It's breakfast and coffee time. Then it's present time."

Gabriel rolls his eyes. He snaps and a huge pancake breakfast appears on the table, complete with a steaming mug of coffee for Dean. "Eat up, then," he tells him. "I wanna open my presents!"

Dean and Sam eat their breakfast quickly. As much as Dean hates to admit it, the pancakes are pretty damn good. Gabriel has some pancakes too, with far more syrup than is necessary. He snaps up a mug of hot chocolate for himself as well.

"Aren't you going to have some, Cas?" Dean asks between bites. Castiel shakes his head.

"I'm fine."

"Come on, baby bro!" Gabriel calls. He's got syrup everywhere. Castiel gives him a disdainful look.

"You're a mess, Gabriel."

"Oh, so you don't want to get messy?" Gabriel snaps his fingers. Castiel's eyes go comically wide as a huge bib appears, complete with the words "my little angel." Dean almost dies laughing.

Castiel yanks at the bib to pull it off. It doesn't budge. "Remove this, Gabriel," he snarls. Gabriel shakes his head.

"I thought Christmas was a day where we celebrate family, Cassie!" he sighs. "You're not acting very family-oriented by snapping at me."

"Gabriel!" Castiel snaps. Gabriel rolls his eyes and snaps his fingers again. The bib disappears. "Thank you."

"Are you two done yet?" Gabriel demands, turning on Sam and Dean. "I wanna open presents!"

"I'm done," Sam says, pushing his plate away. Dean stuffs one last bite of pancake in his mouth.

"Me too," he adds around a mouthful of pancake. Sam gives him a dirty look. Dean swallows and sticks his tongue out.

"Alright!" Gabriel snaps and the leftover pancakes disappear. "Present time!" Everyone relocates to the couch. "Who's gonna go first?"

"I will," Sam offers. He reaches under the tree and grabs two wrapped presents and a gift bag. He hands the bag to Gabriel, who quickly pulls off the tissue paper.

"Candy!" he exclaims, reaching into the bag and pulling out a huge chocolate bar. "Love you, Sammy!"

"You're welcome, Gabriel," Sam says, dropping a quick kiss on Gabriel's lips. Dean covers his eyes in an exaggerated motion. "Oh, shut up, Dean," Sam groans.

Next, Sam hands one of the two wrapped presents to Castiel. "Here you go, Cas." Carefully, Castiel pulls off the wrapping paper without ripping it at all. It's a cookbook. "You said you liked cooking after Thanksgiving," Sam says in an almost shy voice. "So I thought I'd get you a cookbook so you could try out more recipes."

"Thank you, Sam," Castiel says with a smile, starting to flip through the book. Sam smiles back as he hands Dean his present.

"Okay, this one is admittedly a little self-serving," he tells him as Dean rips open the wrapping paper. Inside are all three seasons of Game of Thrones. Dean laughs; he can't help it.

"What?" Sam asks. Dean shakes his head.

"Thanks, Sammy," he tells his brother. "I'll give out presents next." Dean grabs the heavy wrapped gift for Sam. "Here you go, nerd," he tells him, passing the present over.

"Wow, is this heavy enough?" Sam asks sarcastically, pulling off the wrapping paper. Once the gift is revealed, he laughs too.

"The Game of Thrones books! Thanks, Dean!" Immediately, Sam pulls out the first book and starts to flip through it.

"I think you'll find the series is actually called A Song of Ice and Fire," Dean tells Sam in a pretentious voice. Sam sticks his tongue out at him.

"Here you go, Gabriel," Dean says, tossing a triangular package to Gabriel. He instantly puts aside the candy in favor of a new present.

"Tolberone!" he crows as he opens it. "Yes! I've hit the motherload!"

"I'm pretty sure your boyfriend is actually five years old," Dean tells Sam. Sam sighs.

"What're you gonna do?" he asks, shrugging. Dean laughs.

"Here, Cas," he tells Castiel, who shuts the cookbook and accepts the gift from Dean. Again, he takes off the wrapping paper without ripping it at all.

"Thank you, Dean," he tells him once the title is revealed. Sam looks over to see what it is and starts laughing.

"The Inferno, Dean? Really?"

"I thought it was funny," Dean protests. Castiel looks at him, confused.

"Why would it be funny?" he asks. Dean sighs.

"Cause it's about Hell and we met when you pulled me out of Hell and…you know what, never mind." It's clear from Castiel's expression that he doesn't get the irony. "It's in the original Italian," Dean adds, pointing at the book. "And at the end are some pages of illustrations." Castiel smiles.

"Thank you," he says again. Dean smiles.

"Alright. Our turn, Cassie," Gabriel says, putting aside his candy and getting up. Castiel sets aside his books and stands with him.

"We are aware that you do not have any pictures of you in your childhood," Castiel begins. "They were all lost when your house burned down."

"Or maybe they weren't," Gabriel adds. He snaps and a huge photo album appears in his hands. "Here."

Dean accepts the photo album with shaking hands. Sam looks over his shoulder as he opens it up.

"Oh my God," Dean whispers, looking at the picture of him as a baby that used to be on his bedside table. Sam's eyes are wide as he takes in the pictures of John and Mary, smiling and posing with a baby Dean.

"If you go farther in, there are some of Sam's baby pictures as well," Castiel says softly. Dean tears through the album until he sees the first one.

"Sammy, that's you," he whispers, pointing to a picture of a little baby with huge eyes, staring at the camera.

"Oh my God," Sam whispers, echoing Dean. "How?" he asks, looking up at Gabriel and Castiel.

"We went back in time," Gabriel tells them. "We've been doing it for the past few nights, while you guys were sleeping."

"We created copies of every picture we could find. If there are more-"

Castiel's voice is abruptly cut off as Dean literally flings himself into his arms. "Thank you thank you thank you," he whispers, clutching Castiel like a lifeline. Tears well up in his eyes.

"You're welcome," Castiel whispers, hugging Dean back. "You are very welcome."

After presents, Christmas is a pretty lazy day. Castiel and Gabriel perform the same blessing Castiel did the year before. Castiel does it on Dean as Gabriel does it on Sam, then Castiel and Gabriel bless each other. Sam starts reading Game of Thrones and Dean pours over the photo album, looking at every picture. He still can't quite believe it. He always assumed all of the pictures were lost. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't remember all of them. It never even occurred to him that he could ever see the pictures again.

"Thank you so much," Dean whispers to Castiel as he finishes looking through the entire album. Castiel smiles at him, looking up from the Inferno.

"It was our pleasure," he tells him. "Gabriel and I knew how much the pictures would mean to you."

"Why didn't you and Gabriel get Christmas presents for each other?" Dean asks, setting aside the album. Castiel sets aside his book as well.

"Angels do not traditionally engage in gift-giving. We get gifts for you and Sam because it is a part of your culture. But for us, it is not a common thing, so we do not give gifts."

"Huh." Dean guesses it does make sense. He looks over at Gabriel, who's sitting with Sam and happily making his way through the bag of candy. "Well, at least you two are pretty easy to shop for."

"What do you mean?" Castiel asks. Dean shrugs.

"Gabriel just wants candy. And for you, I just look at cool old books. Do you like Inferno?"

"I love it," Castiel replies. "Where did you find the original Italian?"

"There's a great little bookstore downtown," Dean replied. "They've got your normal books like the ones I got for Sammy, and then there are old books. I found Inferno and thought you'd like it."

"I do like it," Castiel replies, smiling. "Thank you, Dean."

Dean's phone buzzes in his pocket. He pulls it out to see a text from Charlie. popped the question yet? it asks. Dean sighs.

"One sec, Cas. I need to respond to this."

"What is it?" Castiel asks, moving as if to look over Dean's shoulder. Dean shifts the phone away slightly.

"Text from Charlie," he replies. no, he texts quickly, sending it before Castiel can see what he's doing.

"How is Charlie?" Castiel asks. Dean shrugs.

"She and Emily are good, I think. She said they were going to see a movie, but if she's texting me, I guess they're not doing it now." Dean's phone buzzes again. what are you waiting for? the text reads. Dean rolls his eyes.

we had our first kiss at midnight, he replies. i'm gonna propose then.

"Are they spending Christmas with family?" Castiel asks. Dean shakes his head.

"They don't have any family to spend it with," he replies. Suddenly, he remembers the promise he made Charlie. "But I told Charlie we'd set up a video chat with her and Emily today. I'll go get the laptop."

"What are you doing?" Sam asks as Dean grabs his laptop off the table.

"I'm gonna video chat with Charlie and Emily. Wanna join in?" Sam and Gabriel immediately move over to the couch, where they join Dean and Castiel. Dean sets up the chat quickly. Charlie accepts it on the other side and the visual of her and Emily pops up.

"Merry Christmas!" Dean and Sam call loudly. Emily's jaw drops.

"Oh my God, guys! Hi!"

"Hi, Emily! Hey, Charlie!" Sam says with a smile.

"A little birdie told me that you guys were gonna be alone on Christmas," Dean says, winking at Charlie. "So we thought we'd say hi."

"You guys are the best! Merry Christmas!" Emily replies.

"Have you seen The Hobbit yet?" Dean demands immediately.

"Dean!" Sam protests. Charlie and Emily just laugh.

"No, and if you say anything, I will skin you alive," Emily threatens. Dean's eyebrows go up.

"Wow. Okay. No spoilers here." Sam smirks at him. "Shut up, Sam."

"So what are you guys doing for Christmas?" Emily asks. Dean shrugs.

"Not much," he replies.

"Too much snow," Gabriel adds. "We can't even get the car out of the driveway, and Dean would have a fit if we did anything that might hurt his precious Baby."

"Shut up," Dean mumbles. Castiel smiles.

"You know he speaks the truth, Dean," he puts in. Dean sticks his tongue out, making Emily and Charlie giggle.

"Dean, look what Emily got me!" Charlie holds something up in front of the screen. "It's a phaser! From the original Star Trek!"

"It lights up and everything," Emily adds. "Charlie's having lots of fun."

"That's awesome!" Dean replies. Sam rolls his eyes.

"And you said I was a nerd."

"I never said I wasn't too," Dean retorts.

Suddenly, something black and fluffy appears right in front of the screen. "Hello, Jimmy," Castiel says, smiling at the cat. Jimmy meows. He looks confused.

"I think the computer is confusing Jimmy," Emily says with a smile. "He's wondering where you guys are." Jimmy tries to paw at the screen, but Charlie grabs him and pulls him away before he can.

"No claws on the computer screen," she scolds. Dean grins.

"What did Jimmy get for Christmas?"

"We got him a bell on a ribbon. He shredded the ribbon," Charlie replies. Sam laughs.

"Guess he didn't like that," Gabriel puts in. Charlie shakes her head.

"No, he did not."

As Emily starts to say something else, Dean sneaks a look at the clock. It's almost noon. Still over twelve hours until he proposes. And he still has no idea what he's going to say.

This is going to be a long day.

At eleven-thirty that night, Dean settles down next to Castiel on the couch. "We had a fun day, didn't we?"

"Yes, we did," Castiel replies. "Even though Gabriel cheated when we had our snowball fight."

"It wasn't cheating," Gabriel protests. "It was making use of all the available resources."

"Using your Grace to pelt us with snowballs from all directions is totally cheating," Dean replies. "Don't even try to deny it." Gabriel sticks his tongue out in response.

"Hey, Cas, why don't you sing us another Christmas carol, like last year?" Sam suggests. Castiel's cheeks go pink.

"Well, I-I suppose I could…"

"Sing! Sing! Sing! Sing!" Gabriel chants. Dean punches him in the shoulder. "Ow! Not necessary!"

"Alright, I'll sing," Castiel relents. "What carol should I do?"

"Whatever song you can remember," Dean replies. Castiel thinks for a moment.

"Angels we have heard on high, sweetly singing o'er the plains. And the mountains in reply, echoing their joyous strains," Castiel sings. His voice is even nicer than Dean remembers. "Gloria, in excelsis Deo. Gloria, in excelsis Deo."

"Wow," Gabriel says softly. Sam slaps his hand over his mouth to shut him up.

"Shepherds, why this jubilee? Why your joyous songs prolong? What the gladsome tidings be which inspire your heavenly song?" Castiel continues. "Gloria, in excelsis Deo. Gloria, in excelsis Deo." There's a pause, then Castiel continues. "Come to Bethlehem and see him whose birth the angels sing. Come adore on bended knee, Christ the Lord and newborn King. Gloria, in excelsis Deo. Gloria, in excelsis Deo."

"Wow," Gabriel repeats when Sam takes his hand away. "Cas, why the hell didn't I ever know you could sing like that?"

Castiel blushes. "You're too kind," he mumbles. Dean wraps an arm around Castiel's shoulders and squeezes gently.

"Come on, Dean. Let's sing a Christmas carol for Cas. You said you wouldn't do it last year, but we should do it this year."

"Would you?" Castiel asks shyly. Now Dean knows he can't refuse.

"Fine. What should we do, Sam?"

"Rudolph," Sam says decisively. Dean rolls his eyes.

"Fine."

"Is this the one about the reindeer?" Castiel asks, looking confused. Dean rolls his eyes.

"It wasn't my choice," he protests.

Sam ignores them. "We'll switch off line by line," he tells Dean. "I'll start." Dean groans. Sam seems to take that as encouragement.

"You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen," he starts. Dean sighs.

"Comet and Cupid and Donder and Blitzen," he sings.

"But do you recall…" Sam sings. He gestures for Dean to sing the next line.

"The most famous reindeer of all?" Dean finishes.

"Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer!" Sam sings loudly.

"Reindeer!" Gabriel puts in. Dean rolls his eyes.

"Had a very shiny nose."

"Like a lightbulb!" Castiel is looking from Sam to Dean to Gabriel, confused and amused at the same time.

"And if you ever saw it-"

"Saw it!"

"You would even say it glows!" Dean's starting to have fun, not that he would ever admit it.

"Like a flashlight!"

"All of the other reindeer-"

"Reindeer!"

"Used to laugh and call him names."

"Like Pinocchio!"

"They never let poor Rudolph-"

"Rudolph!"

"Join in any reindeer games!" Dean can't help but smile a bit. Castiel smiles back at him.

"Like Monopoly!"

"Then one foggy Christmas Eve," Sam sings.

"Santa came to say," Dean continues.

"In his underpants!" Gabriel sings loudly. He's having far too much fun. Castiel looks slightly scandalized.

"Rudolph, with your nose so bright-" Sam gestures at Dean to finish the line.

"Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"

"Then how the reindeer loved him," Sam sings loudly.

"Loved him!" Gabriel throws in.

"As they shouted out with glee!"

"YIPPEE!" Gabriel practically screams. Dean shakes his head.

"Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer."

"Reindeer!"

"You'll go down in history!" Dean finishes.

"Like George Washington!" Gabriel sings loudly.

"You're basically five years old, aren't you?" Dean asks Gabriel. He nods in response, a huge smile on his face.

"That is a very strange song," Castiel says. Dean nods.

"Don't I know it." Suddenly struck with a thought, Dean checks the time. It's five minutes to midnight.

"Hey, Cas," he says. "Do you remember what happened exactly a year ago?" Castiel looks at him and smiles.

"We kissed for the first time," he replies. Dean nods.

"A year ago today, Cas, you and I shared our first kiss. Around five years before that, you first became a part of my life." Dean takes a deep breath. "Now I'm asking if you're willing to continue to be a part of my life forever." Pulling out the box, Dean drops to one knee. Castiel's eyes go wide. "Castiel, would you do me the honor of becoming my husband?" Dean asks, opening up the box and revealing the ring.

"Dean…" Castiel's eyes are wet. "Of course!" Dean takes Castiel's hand and slips the ring on his finger. "Oh, Dean, it's beautiful!" Castiel gasps, looking at the ring. "And is that Enochian?"

"Isn't that how you say love?" Dean asks, suddenly worried. Castiel nods.

"It's perfect," he whispers. As the clock strikes midnight, Dean grabs Castiel and kisses him tenderly.

"Awww…" Gabriel says in the background. Dean barely hears him. He's got Castiel, and the ring on his finger means Castiel will stay with him forever.

Life is pretty much perfect.