A/N: Written with Kamina-nee at her request, which took longer than I had expected, but it was awesome! So thank you for that.
Disclaimer: Sadly, we do not own Supernatural.
Sam was sure that the older Winchester hadn't noticed the changes himself, but living with Dean for as long as he had, the younger brother did. And Sam blamed Castiel for it. He was thankful to the angel for bringing his brother back, but he still could not trust the angel like Dean seemed to be able to.
The changes were subtle at first, things that Sam had nearly missed, becoming less agreeable than he was before his trip to hell, acting like he was right all the time. But then suddenly something changed within Dean, as if he had gone back to being their father's soldier once again.
And now, with Castiel, who had started to drop by more often than not, and Dean had seemed to gravitate towards the angel whenever he was around. His brother and the angel had a strange relationship, Cas didn't even have to announce his presence anymore, his brother would simply turn on the spot as soon as soon as the angel was in the room, as if he could feel his presence there.
Cas didn't take note of these changes in the beginning, it wasn't in his orders for him to notice the emotional changes within his charges. It was not until Dean seemed to be acting more and more like a soldier, like his brothers, his sisters, like him, did he start to realise something was wrong.
Dean still seemed like the rebellious human he had heard about but there was something that had changed within his soul ever since he raised him from perdition, but it was familiar, as if he had become used to the energy, even before he met Dean. He couldn't quite tell what had happened with the human, but there was something wrong, he could feel it. Something was happening to Dean Winchester, and he could feel whatever it was manifesting within the human. He wasn't too sure how to react to the thought of this.
Part of him was concerned for the human, on the other; he could not care for him and his problems, for it was against his orders. But with each passing day, he felt more compelled to help the irritating Winchester, for he had started to care for him, and his brother.
Dean had not noticed any changes, nor had he noticed the strange looks his companions would send him when he wasn't looking, instead, he was too busy trying to keep Sam from the demon that is Ruby and trying to stop the oncoming apocalypse. Needless to say, he had a little more pressing matters at hand than some changes he had gone through.
It wasn't until after hunting a particularly angry poltergeist that Dean started feeling strange. Along with the usual aches and pains of a long hunt, the elder Winchester started to experience a strange sensation just between his shoulder blades. He didn't think too much about it, deciding it was just another pain he had gotten from the hunt after being thrown into a wall.
The feeling on his back intensified, and his shoulder, where Cas had gripped him tight started to burn, when the brothers heard the unmistakeable sound of wings within their crappy motel room. "Hello," they heard the familiar gruff voice of Castiel. The tingling between his shoulders continued, escalating to an annoy itch, finally fed up, Dean all but tore off his jacket and began to scratch his back over the loose button down shirt he had worn for the case.
The angel, noticing the human's discomfort, moved closer, only for Dean to scratch harder. "Are you alright Dean?" Cas asked, alerting Sam of his older brothers pain. Dean refused to answer, instead, his fingers moved quickly, unbuttoning his shirt to get a better reach.
"Dean?" Sam called out from his side of the room, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Dean snapped back, "Think that damn ghost might'a done something when she threw me at the wall."
Sam stared at the spot that Dean was scratching relentlessly, seeing no sign of a wound that Dean might have gotten from the fight. Before either of the humans could do anything Cas moved towards the distressed human. His hands placed firmly on the painful area.
"Uh, Cas," Dean mumbled, trying not to blush, "Come on, we've talked about this. Personal space,"
It was at that point that Cas realised that Dean might have felt uncomfortable with what the angel had done, "I apologise, Dean," Cas said, but didn't move from his spot, instead his moved his hands down to the bottom of his shirt, "but this it is of utmost importance that you let me do this,"
"Woah," Dean yelled, as Cas let his hands drift underneath the material, "what the hell are you doing?" Sam and Dean shared an incredulous look before looking back at the angel who had yet to say anything.
The angel still refused to talk, continuing to push Dean's shirt up rather than offering answers. Dean raised his arms automatically, allowing Cas to move the shirt up further. Sam just looked on in confusion, was Castiel going to let them in on what he was doing?
Cas continued until the shirt was just above the hunters shoulders, his eyes locked onto something on Dean's back, Sam followed Cas' gaze, only to see the scarred flesh of his brother, nothing unusual. So why was Cas staring at his back like it was the holy grail?
Dean started to freak out trying to see what they were looking at, "What? What's happening?" Dean looked at his brother for answers, who just shrugged in reply. "Cas? What's wrong?" Dean asked, trying to stop the worry seeping into his voice.
"I am sorry, but I have to leave," and without another word, he left, angel poofing himself away from the room.
"Damnit Cas!" Dean shouted at the empty space, trying to fix his shirt, "Give us something!" But there was no answer from the angel.
Cas knew that he would have to return to the Winchester brothers, but first he needed answers, because how was he suppose to explain to the humans that the older human had wings, that were identical to his own.