a/n: no really this was supposed to be an au one-shot up until I made Dean a hunter

A FLYING GLASS OF MILK ADJACENT PRODUCTIONS

NOT ASSOCIATED WITH FLYING GLASS OF MILK

CHARACTERS BELONG TO ERIC KRIPKE

BASED ON TRUE FAKE EVENTS

Dean stood awkwardly and stumbled back as he pulled the demon knife from his inside jacket pocket. "Angels don't exist," he stated.

Castiel shook his head. "You do not know how wrong you are, Dean." He took a hesitant step forward while Dean took another back.

Dean chuckled darkly. "Oh yeah, well if you're some 'Angel' where are your wings?"

"Your human eyes cannot perceive them."

Dean squinted pointedly. "Ok then do something to prove you're an angel."

Castiel rested the metallic object he was holding on his desk. He raised his hand with the index finger extended. Dean's eyebrows lifted in obvious confusion. "Pull my finger," the 'Angel' commanded.

Dean shortened the distance between them with a few steps and reached slowly and grabbed the teacher's finger. He tugged lightly and suddenly the room was filled with the crashing sounds of light bulbs bursting. The two were standing in a now darkened room with Dean still holding Castiel's finger.

"What the hell?" he breathed and pocketed his knife.

Castiel laughed quietly. Dean let go of his finger and took a big, determined step back.

"Okay, so you're an angel," he tested the fact on his tongue. Bleh. "Why are you a substitute teacher? Shouldn't you be out doing God's work or whatever?"

"I am doing God's work." At Dean's confusion, he continued. "By being your substitute teacher, I was able to become an authoritative figure in your life and therefore I can look after you properly. I was commanded to protect Dean Winchester."

The young hunter knitted his eyebrows together. Shit, he meant to make a scarf. "So you're like my…guardian angel?" he guessed.

"I wouldn't use that exact terminology, but yes, I suppose so."

Dean nodded in understanding. "So what's that thing?" He pointed to the chrome thing on the desk.

"It's my angel blade," the angel said as he picked it back up. "It is the only thing that can kill an angel. It can also kill demons." Castiel held the blade to Dean, hilt first. Dean grabbed it cautiously and felt the weight of it in his hand.

"Huh, it's got a nice heft to it," he said as he bounced it lightly. Dean then turned away from Castiel and held it up in an attack pose. He followed through with the shiny blade and pretended to kill. "Would be nice on the field," he commented as he handed it back to the slightly attractive angel.

Castiel nodded and returned the blade to his desk. "So now I understand the reason why you must drop out. I was not informed of you being a hunter."

"Geez, who's the messenger up there? The tumblr messaging system?" Dean guffawed. Castiel's head tilted.

Dean's body stiffened. "What?" he asked accusatorily.

"What are you trying to insinuate, Dean? The messenger is Gabriel. Who is tumblr?"

He sighed in response. "Nevermind." Dean casually pushed past the angel and was at the door before he turned around. "If you're my 'guardian angel'," he began, putting air quotes where needed, "does this mean you're going to follow me around now? It might seem kinda odd to see a high school kid and the teacher he called 'Daddy' in class just walking around together."

"I'm an angel, Dean. I possess the ability to become invisible when necessary." At that, Castiel disappeared into thin air. Dean slowly turned away and walked out the door.

Dean quickly located his precious car in the parking lot and all but ran to it. He always missed seeing his Baby during the day and greeted her warmly after school, despite Sam making fun of him the whole time.

"Shut up, Sammy," he'd say. "I don't pick on your love for your computer."

"Actually, you do," Sam would reply hastily.

Dean would scoff. "Whatever."

He slid into the front seat and lovingly caressed the steering wheel before gliding the key into the ignition. The Impala started with a low growl that turned into a gentle purr that too often put Dean in a good mood. So good, in fact, he forgot there was an angel on his ass.

"Dean," a voice came from the passenger side. The Impala jerked to the right and barely missed a mailbox.

"Damn it, Cas!" Dean exclaimed as he centered the car back on the road, relieved to have not hit anything and damage his beautiful car. "What the hell, man?" He asked once the car was once again righted.

"I am not a man, I am an Angel," he flatly corrected.

Dean angrily sighed. "It's a figure of speech, Cas. What do you want?"

Castiel was silent for a moment. "Why do you keep calling me that?"

"What, Cas?" he asked, putting the correct amount of emphasis on 'Cas.' The angel nodded and Dean answered, "It's just easier than 'Castiel.'"

The angel stared at him blankly from the passenger seat. "Isn't it true that humans give others these 'nicknames' as a form of friendly affection?"

Dean turned his head and shot Castiel a look that read dude-what-the-fuck. "Don't read into it. It's just a shortened version of your name for convenience." He turned his face back to the road ahead of him and rolled his eyes inwardly. This was going to be a long drive.

They finally arrived at the Winchester residence. It was a modest home with light colored siding and dark shutters. Just kidding, it was a garbage heap. But not to Dean. For Dean, most of the time it was a nearly safe haven in which he and his brother could be protected from the elements of the cold in the winter. But other times it was a training ground where his dad was the drill sergeant and he and Sam were the maggots.

That was when he was home, though.

Currently, John Winchester was out hunting a vamp nest a few towns over. He said he'd be back in a few weeks.

It's been two months.

Dean used the small amount of money their father left them to take care of Sammy. Some nights he would split a can of Chef Boyardee ravioli with his brother, other nights he would go to bed with only a bottle of beer in his stomach.

John usually only let Dean drink when he was there but his son had inadvertently found a way to obtain beer without his father's intervention.

He stole from the neighbors.

Tonight seemed to be one of the better nights. Sam explained to Dean that the friend who drove him home stopped by Burger King on their way home and bought him a few burgers. Dean scolded Sam for taking their charity but was grateful when he realized his brother saved him one. He ruffled Sam's hair on his way into the living room and the younger Winchester immediately scowled and fixed the stray hairs.

"Hello, Sam."

Sam turned quickly on the couch to face the direction in which the deep, foreign voice came from. "Dean, who in the—"

"Oh yeah," Dean said as he swallowed a bite of his burger. "This is Castiel; he's apparently my guardian angel or whatever. Don't call him 'Cas' though, it confuses him," he said the last bit pointedly with a smirk.

Sam's eyes never left the dark haired man in the entrance to the living room. His head tilted at Dean's 'Cas' comment, but said nothing as he continued to study the angel.

"Um…okay," the younger hunter finally said after a long awkward silence. "Nice to meet you, Cas…tiel." He heard Dean snicker at his long pronunciation of the angel's name.