Dean was asleep when Sam was awoken by a thud that echoed gently through their "home". He waited, still, in his bed for something else. Another thud and a crash, likely from the kitchen. Sam practically rolled out of bed, getting a silver pistol from under his mattress before going out of his room and down in the long dark hallway.
It was quiet for a few moments as Sam tiptoed across the dark flooring, his gun clutched with both hands, to the living room. Light trickled over the room through a small circular window up high so Sam kept to the walls, where no light was to be seen.
He listened, hoping, for the first time ever, that it was just Dean, home late, drunk. But when a floor board behind creaked and he whipped around to see his brother squinting at him through the darkness, the silver of a blade about neck high to Sam, reduced Sam's hope to fear.
They nodded at each other and Dean signalled Sam to carry on walking the way he was going, that Dean would go the other way.
They carried on walking to the kitchen. Big and filtered with light from the moon, low in the sky now. Sam ignored the details of his kitchen and scanned for life, other than Dean who had slipped silently into the pantry.
Then a figured was formed, a silhouette of a man, struggling to stand. Just as Sam was about to get close enough to hit him in the head with his gun handle, a bright light burst from the figure and an echoing cry shook Sam's whole body, "Close your eyes"
Sam obeyed the voice and turned his head into his forearm, squeezing his eyes shut while keeping a firm grip on his gun.
The light died out and the bone-shattering voice came to a halt and the figured dropped to the floor.
Dean came running in from the pantry and held his hand up to Sam as he tiptoed the rest of his way to the figure. Sam went to the door of the kitchen and hit the light switch, Dean's face dropped.
"Cas…" was all he could get out before his knees gave way, Sam rushed back to Dean. The angel had his usual suit and trench coat on, this time he was covered in blood and his face was pale, his body still as stone.
After getting the angel onto the low table and checking vital signs, (pulse, breathing and circulation all fine) Dean and Sam slumped into chairs beside the table, both letting out a frustrated breathe.
"What do you think happened?" Sam asked after a while of silence.
"The light… was angel or grace or something… this" He gestured a hand to Castiel's body, "is Jimmy"
"Do you really think so?"
"Got any other ideas, Einstein?"
"Well… no but I just-"
"Then shut up" Dean spat back. He would have said sorry, but Cas could be gone, gone back to Naomi, back to Dean killing training and it wasn't something he liked thinking about.
The silence engulfed them again, this time with the stronger breathing of Cas.
Sam lent forward and checked his pulse again, "it's getting stronger." He stated before getting up to the fridge where 2 beers, that needed to be drunk, waited for Sam to grab.
After a while of pulse checking, beer drinking and idiotic theories from Dean, "Maybe he needed to be naked for a change, that meat suit probably gets hot" Castiel woke up.
Cas's breathe shook and his chest and hands where shaking, but he was awake.
"Cas?" Dean asked while Sam cupped the angel's head, helping him to sit up.
"Yeah"?" Cas asked in a rough voice, roughed than usual.
"Anything I can get ya?" Dean asked, covering his smile of delight. Knowing Cas would say no he started to help Sam get the angel up.
"I… May I have a drink? My throat is dry"
A little shocked, Dean headed to the fridge and pulled out an icy cold beer, popped it cap off and handed it to the angel.
Cas gulped greedily at it, water and beer alike slid down the angel's cheeks and chin as he gulped the beer down. When he had finished, he nodded thanks to Dean and smacked his lips.
"That's better" he said with a smile, his voice sounding more like Cas again… more like Jimmy.
"Cas?" Dean asked again, his heart dropping slightly as the angel wondered around the kitchen, peeking into the cupboards.
"Yes Dean?" he answered as he took out a loaf of bread from the wooden bread bin, sliding the lid shut as he dug in, pulling out 4 slices and setting them on to the counter.
"You okay?"
"Yes I… I'm hungry, it's okay if i…" he gestured to the bread, Sam nodded and Cas continued his search for food. Ham, lettuce, tomatoes, salad cream and some other sauce Dean didn't remember buying ended up on the bread in two perfectly lined sandwich's.
Cas ate them with a satisfying look on his face shaking his head slowly form side to side.
"Sorry, I don't know why… I'm just… this is lovely" he smiled, looking down at his handy work before taking more bites.
"Cas… do you remember what happened?"
"No… I, I was with Naomi"
"Naomi… as in kill Dean or die, Naomi"
"Yes… she found me. She shouted, I attacked she… oh no" Cas's face fell from sandwich heaven mode, to 'oh fuck no' mode in a matter of seconds.
The boys frowned and waited for an answer, when they didn't get one Dean rolled his eyes and lent forward, "Cas what is it?"
"She… I think she erm… I can't be sure though yet"
"Spit it out." Dean said, frustrated now
"She made me human… my punishment for choosing Earth…. " He looked down, guilty for a second before looking back up at Dean. "For choosing you."