A/N: This is an idea I had recently from reading a couple of "egg fics". Hope I do okay with this. Normally I do mpreg and wanted to try something different. Also, for the purposes of this story, Cas still has his original trench coat. I don't know about you, but I hate the new one. Reviews and comments are welcome!

Romance/Humor/Kid Fic/Egg Fic/Family/Fluff

Dean and Castiel had been together for a few months now. When the oldest Winchester had walked into the bunker library and shyly announced that he, Dean Winchester, fierce heterosexual and manly man, was now dating Castiel, Angel of the Lord, celestial being in a male vessel, he had expected there to be shock and surprise from his family members. As his eyes slid from Bobby to Sam, Dean braced himself for the inevitable backlash and the murmurs of disgust. In the end, all he received was applause. A fucking standing ovation, even. Bobby gruffly sliding a twenty dollar bill into Sam's waiting palm. A clap on the back from his little brother for finally manning up and telling Cas how he felt.

Dean had expected that things would change drastically. That his whole life would be turned upside down. The funny thing was, nothing changed at all. He and Castiel had been on the cusp of 'will they or won't they' for so long now that anything else was redundant. The angel had been his best friend for years, and no matter what mistakes either of them made, they always came back to each other. Bobby had said many times that family didn't end with blood, but that wasn't entirely true. It starts when someone is willing to die for you, and to bleed for you. Castiel had done both.

But then, everything did change, and for once, it was for the better.

Sam and Dean had been on a simple ghost hunt while Castiel was helping Bobby translate some lore in the batcave. It had seemed easy enough, since as all they had to do was get rid of a violent spirit who was haunting an amusement park in Washington. That was a typical Friday night for them. The first indication that it was all about to go sideways was when the ghost appeared to them, in all it's red-nosed, rainbow-wigged glory. Yep, a friggin' clown, much to Sam's chagrin. The second indication was when the ghost tossed Dean onto the Ferris Wheel and started it up, breaking off the lever once it reached the top. Then, the clown turned it's attention on Sam, who immediately hightailed it in the other direction like hellhounds were after him – though the youngest Winchester would have probably preferred the latter to a fucking clown. It was like some B grade horror movie, complete with creepy carnival music in the background.

So there they were, the infamous Winchester brothers, bad ass hunters who monsters told bedtime stories to their spawn about and other hunters strived to be, cowering in fear like little girls. Dean was stuck at the top of the Ferris Wheel, clutching the bar so tight that his knuckles were white, a terrified look on his face, while Sam had crouched down in a corner with his hands over his head, the clown approaching him slowly with a sinister look on his painted face.

Fan-fucking-tastic.

At some point, Dean realized that he had an ace up his sleeve – his angel boyfriend who could be there in mere seconds. Castiel appeared right in front of the ghost moments later. The clown was so shocked by the angel's sudden appearance that he faltered and tripped on his big red shoes, which would have been funny if Sam wasn't terrified and Dean wasn't picturing his inevitable demise. Castiel smited the ghost, walked over and helped Sam up, then teleported Dean back to the ground. For a few minutes, all the brothers did was cling to the angel like 5 year old's who had just been told Santa Claus wasn't real.

Then, Dean awkwardly cleared his throat and pulled away. "Thanks, Cas," the hunter said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "The uh..." He cleared his throat again, the tips of his ears turning red. "It was high and it felt like... it seemed like the seat was gonna - "

The angel silenced him with a quick kiss to the lips. "I understand, Dean." He glanced towards the youngest Winchester. "Are you alright, Sam?"

Sam nodded, running a hand through his chestnut mane. "Yeah. Thanks, man. I... the clown was... must have given me some kind of hallucinogen... to make me freak out like that."

Castiel's mouth quirked ever so slightly. "It is quite possible, Sam. The clown was using some deviant tricks, indeed." He had known the brothers a long time now, and he understood when they didn't need to be corrected. Human behavior in general was still so strange to him, but he could see why the Winchesters' wouldn't want to admit that they were afraid. Castiel had never seen them afraid of anything, but everyone had their Achilles's heel.

"So, any luck on translating that text?" Sam asked, trying to change the subject.

The three of them began walking towards the Impala, falling in step like they always did now. They had worked together so much that they were like soldiers, in sync to the last second.

"Not yet. I was about to take a break anyway when Dean called me." A flicker of worry flashed across Castiel's face. Those who didn't know the angel's expressions that well might have missed it, but Sam and Dean saw right away that something had happened.

Dean put a hand on Cas' shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. "Cas, what's wrong?"

Sam paused as well, studying the angel as if he could determine the cause of his distress just from a glance.

Castiel steadily held Dean's gaze for a moment, before quickly looking away. The hunters both felt alarms go off inside their heads at that. When the angel avoided eye contact, especially with Dean, something big was about to go down.

"Tell me," Dean demanded, as gently as he could. If he forced Castiel to tell them before he was ready, the angel would just flutter away and they wouldn't get any answers.

"Can we talk somewhere else?" the angel asked softly, glancing around at the abandoned theme park. "A diner maybe?"

"Sure, Cas," Dean replied, giving his brother a pointed look and reaching into his jacket for his keys.

"No," Castiel said quickly, "I want Sam to be there, too. He's my family just as much as you are. I've already told Bobby I would retrieve him when I was done here."

Now they were really worried, but all they could do was follow the angel into the Impala and drive, hoping that they weren't about to face another Apocalypse in the near future.

An hour later, the 4 men sat in a 50's style diner just outside Seattle. The waitress had came and went, and now there was an uncomfortable silence settling in the air. Bobby kept adjusting his trucker cap, Sam kept tapping his fingers on the table, and the remaining 2 just stared at each other. It wasn't one of their normal adoring stares. Fear was etched across the angel's face, while Dean just looked suspicious. Castiel had stopped keeping secrets long ago, but the fact that he had been keeping one now was making the hunter uneasy.

"Well, Cas?" Dean questioned, breaking the silence. "Tell us what's going on."

Castiel fiddled with the lapels of his trench coat. "I am afraid, Dean."

Dean turned in his seat to look directly at the angel. He placed a rough, calloused hand over his boyfriend's shaky palm. "Afraid of what? You can tell me anything, you know."

"I worry that you won't want this." Blue eyes looked around the table before settling on forest green. "I worry that none of you will want this. And then I'll lose my family." His voice broke on the last word.

"We aren't going to turn our backs on you, boy," Bobby said, pointing at the angel. "We've all made mistakes, and whatever this is, we can fix it. So spit it out so that we can, okay?"

"But... this isn't a mistake," Castiel replied. "At least to me. I am happy this has happened. While I didn't foresee that it was possible..." The angel trailed off, his gaze distant.

Dean found himself getting impatient, worry settling at his very core. Different scenarios flashed in his head, each of them more unsettling than the last. Had the angel's brothers and sisters finally welcomed him back to Heaven? Had God come home and demanded that Cas pack up and leave? It wasn't lost on Dean that each of those ended with Castiel leaving him.

Abandonment Issues, enter stage right.

"Cas, please, just tell me what the fuck is going on!" He was shrill and angrier than he meant to be.

"Dean. We are having a fledgling together." Castiel turned back to him, a hopeful look on his face.

With every possible scenario that they could have come up with... this wasn't even in the top 10. The men all exchanged glances of confusion, trying to figure out if they had heard that correctly. It couldn't have possible right? Castiel was a man.

Naturally, it was Sam who spoke up first. His nerdy curiosity always won out in the end, after all. "A fledgling?" the youngest Winchester said. "Like... a baby angel?"

"Yes, Sam." The angel nodded with a smile, proud as ever that the hunter was so intelligent.

"Wait, what?" Dean sputtered out. "What are you talking about?"

"We are having a child." Castiel was avoiding looking at him again, afraid to see the rejection on his hunter's face.

"Dude... are you pregnant?" Dean asked, more loudly than he intended. A few patrons at the other tables turned to look at them in surprise, but he waved them off.

"Essentially, yes. Though I will be giving birth to an egg any day now." Castiel's face was red now, embarrassed at all the scrutiny he was under. Amazing how a celestial being who could level the whole town could still be insecure.

More silence followed. Bobby stared at the angel in disbelief. It was amazing that even after all they'd been through, there were still things that managed to surprise even him. "Come again?"

"Angels don't give birth the same way a human woman normally would," Castiel said patiently, twisting up his straw wrapper. "We gestate for 3 months, and then an egg is released from our bodies. The egg grows for approximately 5 months until the fledgling, or fledglings in rare cases, is born." As he spoke, a tear began to slip down his cheek. He hastily wiped it away, but Dean grabbed his arm and stopped him.

Despite the craziness of the situation – and let's face it, it only made sense that if Dean Winchester was going to have a child, it would be by supernatural means – the hunter felt a smile smooth out the hard lines on his face. When he had gotten past his internalized homophobia (Thank you, John Winchester) and self loathing enough to tell Castiel how he felt, he had accepted that there would be no pitter patter of little feet in the future. No dirty diapers or throw up, or being forced to watch The Little Mermaid for the 50th time. He had accepted it because he loved his angel, and everything that did or didn't come with that. Now, there was a different future ahead of them, and he found himself surprisingly okay with it.

"I'm really going to be a father?" Dean nearly whispered, his hand still gripping the tan trench coat like it was a life line. In many ways it had been.

"Yes, Dean. Are you... okay with this? I know it's rather unconventional - " There was that fear on the angel's face again, as if Dean was going to flat out reject him and their child. The fact that Castiel thought Dean could be that much of a dick was hurtful, but he couldn't really blame the guy. It had taken Dean over 8 years to come around and give Castiel a chance.

"Dude, our lives aren't conventional to begin with," Dean laughed, draping his arm across the angel's shoulder. "Yeah, it's a little strange that you're..." He glanced down at the other man's abdomen. "And going to pop out a fucking egg on top of that, but it's my kid, right?"

The angel looked insulted at the insinuation, but Dean pushed ahead before his boyfriend smited him into oblivion.

"So I'm gonna take care of my kid. End of story." The hunter glanced across the table at his brother and father, who were still shocked into silence. "Well, guess you two are gonna be an uncle and a grandpa. Congrats!"

Smiles broke out over their faces and Sam reached across the table to give his brother a high five. "Congrats to you too, man!" he chuckled. "And you too, Cas," he added, with a high five for the angel.

Castiel awkwardly stuck his palm out, while Sam slapped it.

"Leave it to you to knock up an angel of God," Bobby said, shaking his head and picking up his cup of coffee. "But I'm happy for you, son. Truly."

"Thanks, Pops," Dean said with a toothy grin. "Now what do ya say we blow this Popsicle stand and head home?"