Castiel never got tired of seeing God's work on earth; especially when it came to his works in nature. Thunderstorms, without the help of ethereal intervention, never failed to amaze Castiel. Before humans had made their way out of cave dwellings, Castiel would come down to earth and simply watch the weather change. Weather, plants, wildlife, the smell of earth in early morning were all fascinating to Castiel. They're unique to earth, and were a sort of treat for an angel who'd spent most of his life being a foot soldier in Heaven. Now that he had more occasion to be on earth, with Dean, he found himself with more time to admire those works up close.

Dean had pulled the Impala over on the side of a Texas country road to look at the map, stretch his legs, and get his thoughts together. He and Sam were bent, heads together mumbling and softly bickering with each other. It was mid-March, and the bluebonnets were in full bloom. They created a soft violet haze that spread straight through to the next county, and Castiel was once again marveling at this place his Father had made for these fragile humans.

He inhaled deeply, breathing in the crispness of the air. His vessel's body seemed to revel in the freshness of this particular area. Castiel's true form was eager to capture moments like these, where everything wasn't about the Apocalypse, or the impending doom of Satan rising. These rare moments where Dean and Sam weren't stressed to the point where it was palpable to Castiel were, for Castiel, close enough to Paradise on earth to satisfy his heavenly needs for quite a long while.

Castiel waded into the field, the flowers lapping at the hem of his coat. There was a light breeze coming in from the North, combined with the warm rays of a Southern sun and Castiel's vessel felt as if it were in pure bliss. He tilted his head to the side, closed his eyes, and let his face soak up the rays beaming down on him.

Dean looked up from the map between him and Sam, and did a double take as his eyes passed over Cas. He nudged Sam, and Sam couldn't help but let a small smile creep into place as he saw what had made his brother start.

"Peaceful, isn't he?"

"Mmm" Dean made a non-committal sound in response to Sam.

They'd been friends with Castiel for a little over three years now, but Cas had only been traveling steady with them for the past 5 months. It seemed every day Dean and Sam found a new thing to chuckle about, in regard to Cas. They'd see him staring intently, head cocked, at some random piece of machinery as it quietly whirred while doing its job. Or they'd catch him gazing at birds as they sang, and fluttered among the leaves of the trees. Once, in Alabama, there'd been a mocking bird, who took just as much interest in Cas as Cas had in him. The bird seemed to be able sense that Cas wasn't a human threat, and came down from its perch to rest upon his shoulder. Even though his face had remained neutral, Dean had known that his friend was tickled pink by the bird's odd behavior, and acceptance. From them on, Cas had made a sort of conscious effort to mingle with whatever wildlife they came across on their treks. It seemed the bluebonnets had ensnared him this time. Cas was currently lying himself down among the softly swaying flowers, as he ran his fingers up the stalks and stems.

It'd been years since Dean or Sam had even acknowledged things like bluebonnets, but Dean remember the first time he'd come to Texas in the spring. He'd been about 10 years old. He'd still been young enough to take a kind of innocent joy in the sight. John had been in a good mood that spring. There'd been no casualties among friends, and no major monsters, but several leads to Azazel, so he'd indulged Dean by pulling over and letting him and Sam run among the flowers. It'd been one of Dean's fonder memories of his father.

He and Sam shared a look, and silently agreed they could delay their trip a little while longer, long enough to smell the roses with their angelic friend who was teaching them how to take smaller joys again. They tossed the maps back in the car through the open windows, and made their way into the field.

Castiel cracked one eye open and gave the brothers a small smile as they laid down beside him. Dean closest to him, and Sam beside his brother, Cas placed his hand on Dean's forearm and sighed contentedly.

"I know faith isn't your area of comfort, Dean, but look at this place. Smell these wildflowers, hear the wind whistling through the big oak trees, and feel the sun beaming down on your face. These are the reasons I haven't lost faith, Dean. These small things, these are how I know he's still out there. How I know he's watching over us."

Beside Dean, Sam seemed to relax completely, agreeing with Cas as he made a quiet humming sound.

"I know, Cas. I know." Dean sighed as he took Castiel's hand in his own, and nudged Sam's foot with his own. "I haven't given up on faith, Cas. I just have faith in different things. I have faith in this; in family. I have faith in Sam, in you, in the fact that we'll be there for each other."

Sam nudged his foot back, and Cas squeezed his hand in reassurance.

"For now, that's enough. He knows you have faith in these things, Dean, and faith in one thing can easily lead to faith in another. He has faith in you."

And for the rest of that mid-morning in mid-March two brothers and an angel dallied amongst the flowers looking up at a light blue sky. If only for a moment, they were wholly content.