Sam had the radio playing as he researched in the bunker's library, and as Dean walked into the room, the song 'I'm coming home' started playing.

"Why do you listen to this crap?" Dean whined, grabbing a book from Sam's pile and sitting on the couch. Sam just shrugged.

Tell the World I'm coming...home

As the final note resonated from the stereo, there was a loud banging on the front door. The sound rang out, and then happened again. Dean and Sam looked at each other. There was a third bang, and then a muffled voice, shouting something. The brothers dropped their books, and each grabbed a gun from the table as they ascended the stairs to the entry way. They slowed as they approached the door, and Dean was about to swing it open when whoever was on the other side banged on the door again.

"Dean!" A less muffled, and very, very familiar voice hollered.

"Cas!" Dean shouted, and swung open the door, revealing the angel. But Cas looked different from last week, when Dean had last saw him. His eyes were red with fresh tears, and his scraggly beard had grown more scraggly. His trench coat was slightly torn, and he had the beginnings of shadows under his eyes.

"Cas?" Dean whispered, completely shocked at the state of his friend. Cas' bottom lip trembled slightly, and then he threw himself into the hunter's arms. He clung to Dean's jacket and buried his face into his shoulder, sobbing. Dean put his arms around Cas, and carefully guided him into the bunker so that Sam could shut the door. Sam and Dean exchanged a worried glance.

"Cas, what the hell happened to you?" Dean asked after Cas quieted.

"My g-grace." Cas wailed, shaking with sobs, "Metatron t-took it."

Dean felt fury rip through his mind. How dare that bastard! He had thought Cas was dead, but for an angel, this had to be worse than death.

"Oh my God." Sam whispered, clearly feeling shocked. He opened his mouth to ask a question, but Dean shot him a 'shut up or so help me' glare. Sam shut his mouth, shuffled his feet, said,

"I'll go tell Kevin." and then left.

Cas was trembling, and Dean wasn't really sure what to do. He realized that Cas was now human, and was probably feeling chaotic because of how strong his emotions were. At least he had had some experience with emotions before.

"Cas, take a deep breath. It'll be okay." He said, and Cas obeyed, focusing on breathing. Finally he steadied, stepped away, and wiped the tears off his face with his sleeve. Dean watched him, worried that he was going to start crying again. It wasn't like Cas had no reason to do so, but Dean wasn't comfortable with emotions, and he felt helpless. Cas looked at him, and although his eyes teared up again, he didn't cry.

"Dean. It's all my fault. Naomi was right, we shouldn't have trusted Metatron." He said in a broken voice.

"No, Cas it isn't your fault. Metatron used you. He's the one who caused this, not you. No one's blaming you, Cas."

Cas laughed at that. "You're wrong, Dean. I was attacked, twice, while I was trying to get here. Twice. By angels who were my friends. They all think that I did this."

Dean winced. It was true that Cas had a rocky past, especially with his own kind.

"They're the ones who are wrong. Cas, there's nothing you could have done. Metatron took your grace for God's sake. Once they realize that, I'm sure the others will know it wasn't you."

Cas shook his head, and a look of pity flashed across his face. "Dean, when they know he took my grace, it will only convince them more."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"They'll think I wanted to become human. On purpose."

"Why would they think that?"

"Because of you." Cas said bluntly.

"What?" Dean looked at him skeptically. "What would I have to do with you becoming human?"

"The angels know that I care about you. Naomi knew. Metatron knew. Others have seen me with you, too. They'll think I became human to be closer to you. At the cost of them."

Dean rubbed the back of his neck in discomfort and asked, "By 'you' do you mean me and Sam, or just me?"

Cas sighed. "Just you, Dean. Yes, Sam is my friend, but you mean...more to me."

They watched each other in silence; Dean wasn't sure how to respond. Had Cas just confessed love for him? Dean wasn't sure. He didn't get the chance to confirm anything, however, because Cas started trembling again.

"Let's get you downstairs." Dean said, changing the subject, and he held out his hand. Cas took it, and Dean lead him down to the living room area and had Cas sit on the couch. He put a blanket on top of him, sat next to him, and put an arm around his shoulder. Cas leaned against him, and rested his head on Dean's shoulder.

Kevin and Sam appeared then from the residence hall, and Kevin looked shocked to see Cas in his broken state.

"Hi, Kevin." Cas said quietly, adding, "Good to see you're okay."

"You too." Kevin returned, shifting his weight awkwardly. Sam folded his arms across his chest.

"So, Cas, is it too soon to ask you what happened?" He finally asked, ignoring the look Dean gave him.

"There really isn't much to tell. Metatron used a spell to cast all of the angels from Heaven. And he killed Naomi." Cas added.

"Good, I hated that bitch." Dean said.

"She tried to help us, Dean." Cas chastised. Dean shook his head.

"It doesn't matter. She hurt you. Screwed with your mind." He replied. Cas relented, knowing Dean had a point.

The group fell silent, and Kevin went back to his room after again telling Cas that it was good to see him. Sam went into the kitchen to try and make some food. Cas' eyes fluttered shut soon after, and he fell asleep. Dean rested his head on Cas', and shut his own eyes.

When Sam returned from the kitchen, he found his brother the ex-angel and in a deep sleep. Sam smiled to himself, knowing that this was the first time since the Fall that Dean was at peace. At best, during the past week, his brother had only slept three hours a night, and Sam had assumed from the get-go that it was because of Cas. Even if Dean wouldn't admit it, Sam knew he loved Cas, and that he worried about him constantly. Dean hadn't been in the best mood since the fall, yelling and being a lot more moody than usual. It was good for all of them that Cas was home.

-end-