You guys are so encouraging, I love all of you that reviewed so much ;w;
BookAddict, you do have a point. The age gap between Sam and Gabriel is about the same as it is with Cas and Dean, so approximately four years. And yes, Castiel is rather tall for his age group (all of team Free Will are giants, no kidding) so he's only about four inches or so shorter than Dean. (Growth spurts, yeah!)
Cas practically flew down the stairs, pulling on his trenchcoat over top his clothes. Throwing open the heavy door, he yelled back into the house "I'm going out for a bit! I'll be back later!" He shut the door behind him before any of his siblings could question him, and smiled at Sam.
Sam gave a small grin back, standing up and brushing himself off. He gave the other a quizzical look, and motioned to the trenchcoat.
"Oh, this. It's comfortable, I like wearing it." He self-consciously stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"Okay." Sam shrugged, smiling and sticking his hands in his own pockets.
"Cassie, Luci wants to know where you're go–Moosie!" Gabriel had opened the door and caught sight of Sam. He was practically glowing with a grin, and the seventh grader took a step back. His cheeks were flushing red, and he gulped quietly.
"M-Moose?" Sam gasped out, trying to duck behind Cas, who actually moved out of the way every time he tried. Sam sent the other a pleading look, and Cas just shook his head and smiled.
"Yeah!" Gabriel closed the door behind him, hopping down the steps. He leaned on the railing that he been put up, eyeing the seventh grader with a smile. "You're like a moose-puppy hybrid!" His tone was very chirpy and cheerful, and Castiel bit his lip to keep from laughing.
"How do either of those compare to one another?" Sam folded his arms, taking a step back.
"They don't." Gabriel shrugged. "But you remind me of both." He flashed a wink at Sam as Lucifer opened the door with a scowl.
"Gabriel, get your ass in here." He snapped. Looking around the corner at Michael, he snickered quietly. "Oi! Dinner's done!" He hollered. Michael waved at him.
"I'll be inside once I get this stupid shit off my car!" He hollered. Lucifer rolled his eyes and his gaze settled on Sam.
"Who's this?" Sam shifted uncomfortably underneath the stares of three people; four if you counted Michael.
"My name's Sam Winchester. I live down the street." Sam took his hands out of his pockets and folded his arms.
"He's my friend." Castiel said quietly. Lucifer surveyed the two before shrugging.
"Whatever. You want to come inside for some food, kid?" Both Castiel and Gabriel looked startled at the offer, staring at Lucifer as if he'd grown an extra head.
Sam blinked, glancing at the other's expressions. "Ah… okay." Lucifer turned and went back inside, leaving his dumbfounded siblings and confused Winchester outside.
"Well then." Castiel snapped out of it first. "Shall we go inside?" Sam nodded and Gabriel straightened up. All three of them went inside, and Castiel made a beeline for the bathroom. He washed his hands quickly, and Gabriel nudged him out of the way as the younger one dried his hands. Sam ran his tongue across his teeth as he waited, looking around as he waited to wash his own hands.
Gabriel nudged him gently as he came up to the sink, and Sam did what he would do when Dean elbowed him; he kicked the other in the side of the leg. Gabriel yelped and took a step away. Sam quickly finished washing his hands and darted behind Castiel.
Castiel gently pat him on the shoulder after turning around. He shrugged off his coat and hung it up, pausing for a slight moment to finger the soft material.
"C'mon! Get your asses in here and set the table!" Castiel jumped and he and Gabriel practically sprinted into the kitchen. Sam followed a bit more cautiously, looking at everything in the large house. There were some paintings, and a lot of pictures. Some were of a black haired boy and a blonde boy who were grinning at the camera or glaring at each other. One showed a younger Gabriel hugging a puppy on the sidewalk, and then Sam came to the closest one. He recognized Cas, as he was the youngest. A young redhead that stood next to a younger Gabriel. A darker skinned boy who was ignoring the camera and had his nose stuck in a book. And then Michael and Lucifer, who had their arms slung across each other's shoulders. A beautiful woman stood next to them, and a man had his arm wrapped around her waist. Sam guessed it was the Novak's parents.
"C'mon Sam!" Castiel peeked back into the hallway. "Oh, and what d'you want to drink?"
Sam jolted out of his thoughts, and he turned to face Castiel. "Ah, do you guys have milk?" Cas nodded and disappeared back into the kitchen. Gabriel stuck his head out and yelled up the stairs, "Raphael! Anna, c'mon! Dinner time!"
The darker skinned man and the freshman practically flew down the stairs, and Sam was surprised at how graceful they were. They slowed as they hit the floor, and walked calmly into the kitchen. Sam trailed after them and found himself being seated in between Cas and Gabriel. Michael came down and seated himself at the head of the table, engaging in a staring contest with his twin.
Lucifer extended his hands first. Then Gabriel grabbed Lucifer's hand and so did Raphael, and soon everyone had joined hands. Sam felt warm on one side and ice on the other, as Cas's hands felt like ice and Gabriel's felt like fire. Sam closed his eyes, like everyone else, and listened to Lucifer speak.
"O Dei, et benedic hoc sacrificium, quod est in familia nostra benedicimus laminam. Et custodiant filii incolumitate Ward mones. Da Panem nostrum familiæ, simul ac nostros. Amen."
It took Sam a moment, but he quickly realized that Lucifer was speaking in Latin, and that the majority of the table was saying the same under their breath. As the word "Amen", everyone repeated it, and Sam said it quickly as to not fall behind.
Chatter started up almost immediately as prayer was over with. Questions (mainly from Anna) were thrown at Sam, asking about the neighborhood, the school, anything about the town that could be used for the entire Novak family. Sam answered them with ease, and between bites. He was surprised at how good of a cook the older man was, as he didn't make small talk and listened more than anything else.
"How was everyone's day?" Castiel asked.
"Long." Raphael sighed, leaning into his hand. He quickly took his elbows off the table at Michael's and Lucifer's stares.
"Productive." Lucifer and Michael chimed, and then they glared at each other.
"Hell!" Gabriel chirped out in the most cheerful tones. Sam looked confused at how cheerful he sounded, but the rest of the table just chuckled. The Winchester sipped at his milk, listening to Anna explain how her day went. She seemed to have had a good day, and had made a lot of friends.
"What about you, Cassie?" Gabriel leaned forward to peer at his younger brother, and then the entire table, excluding Sam, turned to watch the youngest Novak.
Castiel coughed awkwardly, sliding down in his chair. "It was good." He said quietly.
"Make any friends, beside Puppy-Moose here?" Lucifer burst out laughing as Sam's face slowly turned redder. Gabriel winked at him and Anna made a face.
"He'll land you in jail, Gabe."
"It's a four year difference!" He defended. Sam's face was a deep shade of crimson, and he made a small sound that sounded like a mouse being stepped on. The entire table, save for Castiel and Sam, burst into loud, almost hysterical laughter. Gabriel had to grab the table before his chair tipped over, and everyone just started laughing harder.
"And Castiel made friends with Sam's brother." Gabriel calmed enough to say this, a twinkle in his eyes. "He worships the older Winchester already!" He burst into a laughing fit, and then leaned away as Castiel leaned across Sam's lap, trying to get to his older brother's neck.
"Gabriel, I am going to strangle you!" Castiel hissed.
"Try me, baby bro!" Castiel actually got out of his chair, and Gabriel quickly realized he was serious.
"Oh shit!" The trickster scrambled out of his chair and Castiel chased after him. There was a loud, girly scream that came from the living room, and the entire table scrambled to their feet, empty plates forgotten.
Gabriel had Castiel in a headlock, cackling, and Castiel was clawing at his arm. He bit the elder one, and Gabriel yelped. He released Castiel, and the small boy pounced at him, elbowing him in the stomach.
"Don't hurt each other!" Lucifer moved forward to break it up, and then Gabriel got an evil glint in his eyes. Castiel was flipped onto his back and he quickly began screaming. Sam moved Anna to the side, worried, and saw that Castiel wasn't actually screaming – he was laughing. He squirmed as his brother tickled him, reaching out and getting Gabriel under the armpit. Gabriel yelped in surprise, rolling off of Castiel. The two laid, gasping for breath and laughing, on the ground. Castiel groggily got to his feet and gave Sam a slight smile.
"How about we go to the park." He said quietly. Lucifer and Michael were helping Gabriel to his feet, and Anna and Raphael had disappeared back upstairs.
Sam nodded, glancing over at the gasping and giggling Gabriel. Smiling in amusement, he followed Castiel out of the house. The sky was a deep blue as they walked towards the park. They sat down on swings; Sam turned his attention to the stars that were poking through the cloud cover. Castiel dragged his toe through the grass.
"Sam!" both Castiel and Sam looked up. Dean jogged up, leaning against the metal and looking tired. "Jesus Christ Sammy, don't scare me like that."
"What d'you mean?" Sam looked slightly confused.
"I've been looking for you for hours." He gasped. "Where the hell have you been?"
"Oh, I've been with Cas." Dean's gaze slid over to Castiel, and he seemed to droop.
"One of you, at least call me if Sam's gonna be out." He breathed quietly. Castiel stared at Dean, still wondering how Sam had gotten a god as a brother. Dean straightened, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Anyways, C'mon. It's dark out – I'll walk you home Cas." Castiel nodded mutely.
Sam shot him a knowing look, and he hopped off of the swing. Castiel climbed off of the swing he was one as well, following the brothers down the street. His heart began beating furiously every time Dean glanced back to see if Castiel was still following, and the middle-schooler had to focus on not letting his gaze go to a more rear-oriented region of Dean's body.
Cas barely noticed as they stopped at his house, and he nearly ran straight into the older one. Dean ruffled his hair. "Have a good night Cas." He said absentmindedly.
"A-alright. You too." He started waking up the steps, and paused on the porch. He turned to look at Sam and Dean, and saw they were waiting for him to go inside. He gave a small wave before opening to door and going inside. Closing it, he leaned against it. Then Castiel crawled up the stairs and went into his room. He crawled onto his bed, hiding his face in his pillow and concealing his grin.
He'd had a good first day, he thought.
I'm gonna be busy all of this week, so I am really sorry for the lack of updates this week. I'll try, I promise! Anyways, I hope this was a good chapter (quite a bit longer, I have to say) and I hope you enjoy it!
-StarryEyed Artist, signing off.
