Title: A Little Help From A Friend
Fandom: Supernatural
Characters: Castiel, Sam Winchester
Prompt: 31 Day Place Challenge – Day 24: A Cemetery
Word Count: 899
Rating: K
Genre: Friendship, Family, Humor
Summary: Sam calls Cas after Dean goes missing during a routine salt-and-burn. They finish the job before finding him.
Author's Notes: Just a little Sam/Cas friendship.
Disclaimer: I own nothing …

"Sam?" Castiel called out as he exited his borrowed car. "Sam!"

"Over here, Cas," Sam replied as he came into view.

"What happened?" Castiel asked as he rushed to where Sam stood with a shovel in one hand and an electric lantern in the other.

"I don't know. The area we needed to look in was pretty big, so Dean and I decided to separate to look for the right grave," Sam explained as he led the way back into the cemetery. "He texted me to say he found it but when I got to it he was gone. His shovel was there and he had already removed the grass." They had learned long ago that, when the lawn had overtaken the gravesite, it was often easier to cut away and roll up the rectangle of grass from the top before using shovels. It also made the grave look cleaner when they reburied it. Dad hadn't particularly cared, but the brothers believed in presentation whenever they had the luxury of time.

They arrived at the exposed grave. Sam took a flashlight out of his pocket and shone it around, looking into the trees that lined the graveyard a few yards away. "Dean!"

"Dean!" Cas shouted as well, taking off towards the trees and looking around with his enhanced sight. He returned to where Sam had started digging after finding no evidence of Dean's whereabouts. "I can't find anything."

"Let's get this done and then get back to looking for him," Sam said as he kept digging. "I don't want to have to deal with this spirit getting even more pissed off." He paused his movements and sighed, his head dropping. "This was supposed to be a just simple salt-and-burn."

Castiel placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. "We'll find him, Sam."

Sam sighed again and offered his friend a small, thankful smile. He was glad he wasn't alone. "Thanks, Cas."

Cas smiled back. "Of course, Sam. Let's finish desecrating this grave."

Sam couldn't hold back his eye roll and chuckle. "Could you at least not call it desecration?"

Cas frowned a bit. "But we are disturbing a person's final resting place with the intent of setting their remains on fire. Most cultures would deem that desecrating."

"Yes, I know Cas," Sam grinned as he resumed digging. "But it sounds so crass when you put it like that."

"Oh," Cas replied, filing it with the other information he'd been taught by the Winchesters – most of the information he'd gathered from each brother was colourfully annotated by the other. He removed his trench coat and hung it on a nearby upright grave marker before picking up the second shovel and beginning to help Sam. He stood back and watched as Sam simultaneously sprinkled salt and flammable liquid on the exposed corpse.

"Care to do the honors?" Sam asked as he held out a box of matches for Castiel to take. In response, he tilted his head and stared down at the corpse. Instead of taking the matches, he did something that a number of his eldest brothers preferred to do: he snapped his fingers. Sam looked a little surprised as the corpse lit up and chuckled. "Show off."

They watched the fire burn until it went out and reburied the now charred skeleton. Sam had just rolled the grass back into place when he gave a startled yelp. "Hey! What!?"

"Sam, are you alright?" Castiel asked, looking at his friend in alarm as the giant man started jerking around erratically. "Are you being possessed?" he asked.

"N-no! I- get- get it…" he flailed his arms and grabbed at himself.

"Is this a curse? Are you being attacked?"

"Sort of," Sam shouted, looking around himself. He paused. "Where'd it go?"

Castiel frowned in concern. "I don't know what yo- what is that?"

"Where!?" Sam spun around, looking frantically for whatever it was. He looked back to see Cas staring at him, blue eyes opened wide and shining brightly, a tiny grin on his face. "What? What is it?"

"There's a squirrel on your head!" Cas exclaimed, his grin broadening to a wide smile.

"Get it off me!" Sam shouted, freezing and staring at Cas with a similar look that he'd had that time he'd been chased by clowns. "Cas! Get it!" he gestured wildly. "Get it off me!"

Cas just smiled and slowly approached Sam, trying not to startle the chittering creature who looked quite at home in Sam's long hair. He used his grace to send calming waves to it as he gently removed it from his friend's head, cradling it in his hands. "Where did you come from?" he asked it in a voice usually reserved for infants and domestic pets. It chittered again, sounding very much like it was laughing.

"Hmph," Sam crossed his arms and glared at it as though his gaze could turn the little woodland creature into a pile of ash. "Yeah, keep laughing," he shot at it with an undeniable pout. "I got a gun and I'm not afraid to use it." It chittered again.

Castiel shot a bitchface at him. "Really, Sam? It's just a…" He frowned and looked at the squirrel, tilting his head in concentration.

"What? What is it?" Sam asked as he drew his gun, ready to fire if needed.

Cas' eyes widened and he lifted his hands to face level. "Dean?"

- 30 -

A/N: Mwahahahaah! Literal squirrel!Dean !

Completed: February 13, 2017