Castiel woke up feeling warm and wrapped in blankets, his entire body ached like a bruise and he opened his eyes slowly jumping when he stared at Ellen, Jo, Sam, Gabriel, and Uriel staring at him quietly. His hand reached up touching his cheek and he winced at the sharp sting that came from that.

"It won't scar" Sam said softly nodding at his cheek.

Castiel nodded glancing over to the fireplace and stopped at the figure crouched now next to it cradling his arm and keeping his head down. He pushed up out of the covers walking over and signalling to Ellen and the gang as they came over slowly.

"What happened?"

"Wolves" Dean snapped not meeting his eyes and keeping his head down.

"It needs to be cleaned or infection will grow" Castiel said softly kneeling on the ground nodding to Ellen who understood jumping out and returning with a bowl and a clean towel. Castiel dipped it into the water shuffling over and held out a hand for his arm and shoulder.

"I don't need help, get back into bed, you need to rest"

"I need no such thing" Castiel said with narrowed eyes pressing the towel over the cut and jumping back when Dean hissed wrenching his arm away knocking his arm back.

"That hurt!"

"It will sting, it's a bite, Dean, and all I want to do is help…"

"Well maybe if you hadn't run away it wouldn't be like this!"

"Well maybe if you hadn't frightened me and scratched my cheek then I wouldn't have run away!" Castiel shouted back seeing out of the corner of his eyes as Sam and the gang inched slowly away wary of what was happening. Dean was still looking down at the floor before he raised his head meeting his eyes. Castiel swallowed taking him in this close and took in his appearance. Dean was half human in a way but with the curse causing his hands to be shaped like claws, his back slightly hunched over, his eyes a deep black but showed emotion, and his face for Castiel was hard to describe. It was like a half formed wolf but more twisted and deformed to show nothing but ugliness and no beauty on the outside, Castiel could tell by the way Dean flinched looking down and away that he was deeply ashamed of his appearance.

The silence grew between as Castiel attempted to clean his arm slowly and carefully.

"When I told you to get out…I didn't mean leave the castle"

"I was afraid"

"Then you shouldn't have been in the west wing…I forbade it!" Dean growled at him.

"Well I ran because you cannot control your anger and look what you did" Castiel snapped glaring at him. "However…you saved me and I would like to thank you for that"

Dean flicked his eyes over to him and away with a heavy sigh. "You're welcome"

Castiel pulled the towel away with a nod. "It should heal without a problem"

"Thank you" Dean murmured looking up at him. "I'm sorry for…"

"Scratching my cheek or yelling at me enough for me to leave and feed myself to wolves?"

"Both"

"Apology accepted" Castiel said wringing out the towel and nodding at Sam as he walked out of the room. Dean watched his every movement till he walked out of bedroom and stared down at his now clean arm.

"One step closer" Gabriel sang dancing out of the room with the rest till Sam was left in the room staring up at him.

"How did you know?"

"I was on the balcony, I saw him run and I heard the wolves…I didn't want him to leave…"

"You need to be kinder, Dean, he's vulnerable, he's all alone, and you need to control your temper before you lose him forever"

Dean didn't say anything as he stared into the fire hearing Sam hop out and close the door leaving him to stare into the dancing flames as he thought about the soft touch of Castiel on his arm and shoulder. He didn't flinch at him and it caused a small glow to burn in his chest.

Balthazar slid into the chair facing the man that looked like Death himself with a small smile.

"You better have a very, very, good reason you have dragged me out of the asylum in the middle of the night"

"I do have a very good reason and…your payment" he said chucking the bag of gold at him.

"Ah…I'm listening" he said gesturing at him.

"It's like this, I want Castiel, I want him to be mine, but he can't see it…he won't see it and he's rejecting me. I need a little…persuasion"

"You want Castiel Singer? How does this involve me?"

"You know about his lunatic father ranting about beasts in the forests, fairy tales, and inventions that are too ridiculous to stomach! He's a mad man and he needs locking up!"

"Bobby is harmless, Balthazar"

"He is not harmless! He's a raging lunatic and Castiel loves his dear little daddy and I think he will do…anything to keep him out" Balthazar said with a cruel smile.

"Oh how diabolical of you…I'm in"

Castiel was sat in his bedroom staring down at the handkerchief thinking of his father before sighing and getting up to go for a walk throughout the castle. He was walking down the stairs when he saw Gabriel running forward.

"The liege said…would-would you join him for supper this evening?" Gabriel said staring up at him.

"Tell him I accept his offer" Castiel said with a nod watching the clock beam up at him if it was possible before skipping away. He slipped down the rest of the stairs taking his time as he stared up at the pictures on the walls.

"I'm glad you're still here"

Castiel gasped turning to see Sam on the table. "You frightened me"

"I'm only a candle"

"But a very smart candle…have you always lived here?"

"Yes"

"What can you tell me of your history here?"

"I don't want to tell you, I think Dean should tell you…you should get to know each other better"

Castiel nodded straightening up. "Do you think he'll ever let me go?"

Silence stretched between them for a long moment before Sam spoke up. "No, not yet anyway"

He swallowed with a bob of his head moving on as he walked down the long corridors trying rooms which were either locked or covered in dust. He was about to collect his cloak and go outside when he heard a small voice shouting for him and paused waiting for Gabriel to come into view frowning.

"Where have you been? Supper is ready" he said with a low bow. Castiel followed with a small smile of amusement before it faltered when he entered the dining hall and was suddenly left alone with Dean. He swallowed moving to the table one hand braced on the chair and looking over to Dean who refused to look at him.

"I was surprised you said yes"

"It's the least I could do…how is your arm?"

"It's healing" Dean said quickly and gestured a hand. "Sit"

Castiel sat in the chair and waited till Dean sat opposite him. "It's a large table for one person"

"It was filled with many people once"

"What happened?"

"Death" Dean said looking to the doors as they opened and food was served. The silence settled between them heavy with tension and Castiel stared down at the soup with a twist to his stomach.

"Will you ever let me go?" Castiel said dipping his spoon into the warm liquid. "Sam said no"

"He's right…do you want to leave?"

"I will never see anyone ever again…"

"Does that bother you?" Dean said not touching his food and choosing to watch Castiel instead. Castiel puzzled over this for a moment before shaking his head.

"The villagers are cruel and unkind people, they call my papa a lunatic and I have an admirer who won't stop till I'm his"

"That will never happen" Dean snapped looking down when Castiel looked up surprised.

Castiel smiled softly shaking his head and continued to eat the soup slowly. "It's my papa…I'll never see him again and he's my whole world"

"You care deeply about him"

"Yes, he's my father"

"I want to hear more, I want to know more about you" Dean said softly meeting his eyes before looking away nervously.

"It works both ways"

Dean nodded still looking down as they slipped into silence and ate their way through the courses till Castiel was full and feeling sleepy. He blinked when Dean stood abruptly.

"Will you walk with me?"

"Yes" Castiel said softly standing up and circling the table to stand near him. "Where?"

"The gardens" he said with a nod out of the window.

Castiel made a soft sound in agreement when a coat stand appeared out of nowhere draping a cloak over his shoulders. He blanched in surprise looking over to Dean who nodded at the moving coat stand.

"Raphael" he said before moving swiftly out of the room. Castiel nodded at the cloak stand huddling in his cloak before following after Dean who was moving with surprising speed till they reached the back doors and they stepped out. Castiel breathed out shakily in the cold wrapping the cloak tighter around him as they walked through the snow. The silence stretched between them as they walked in step till Dean broke it.

"Tell me about your childhood" he ordered in a soft voice barely restrained.

"I'm a lone child, I have no brothers or sisters and my mama died when I was very young. I barely remember her, I know she was beautiful, kind, and a doting mother before she was taken away. Papa raised me, we had nothing but we survived with fire, water, rice and bread that kept us alive. He's an inventor, an inventor whose ideas are classed as insane and ridiculous by the other villagers who look down on us both" Castiel said staring up at the whitish grey sky with a thoughtful look. "My papa would tell me stories, stories of knights, princesses, faeries, and other mad and odd things that made me dream. I love to read more than anything and it was classed as "odd" and they classed me as a "freak" but I did not let it get to me because I knew, I knew there was something more out there"

Dean paused for thought looking over to him. "Is this something more?"

"Yes, in a way, but I didn't imagine being in a castle surrounded by talking objects and…" he said trailing off.

"A monster" Dean snapped with a hard swallow.

"No, a cursed man" Castiel said with a tilt of his head. "You're not a monster"

"Then you're blind"

"I can see perfectly well, Dean, and I see that you are not a monster"

"I hit you, Cas"

"Because of your temper" Castiel argued back stopping in the snow. "Look at me, Dean"

Dean raised his eyes slowly staring at him.

"You avoid looking at me constantly"

"You're scared of me"

"I'm not scared of you…do you think I would be out here if I was scared of you?"

"I don't know, I don't think I understand humanity anymore"

Castiel smiled amused looking away and continuing on his walk across the lawn. He hummed softly moving forward away from Dean who was watching him with a mixture of curiosity and humour that was odd but sort of nice. Dean turned to look at the castle when a solid whack to his face from a snowball startled and he spun facing Castiel who stared innocently back with mischief dancing in his eyes.

"Did you throw a snowball at me?"

"Yes"

"I think you better run" Dean suggested as he bent down keeping his eyes on him as he collected snow while Castiel turned running towards the big tree on the lawn frantically.

Sam and Gabriel watched down from the balcony as the snowball escalated down below.

"Oh look at that" Gabriel sang looking down at the playful fight below. "I told you it would all be okay! Dean lashes out, he saves him, and now they're playing in the snow"

"It's the start I guess…"

"The start? They could be in love by tonight and the curse could be over!"

"Are you really that stupid?" Ellen said hopping towards them. "It's not that easy"

"Oh and why not?" Gabriel said with a frown.

"Love doesn't just happen, it needs time to grow, to nurture, and they're getting there but it's not as simple as falling in love tonight"

Castiel collapsed in the snow lying on his back and spread his arms and legs and looked at Dean amused and soaking wet.

"What are you doing?"

"My papa shown me one winter, it's called a snow angel" he said struggling up and moving to stand next to him.

"Snow angel" Dean murmured glancing over to him. "I never had a snow day, we weren't allowed outside"

"Why?"

"Mother didn't want us getting sick" Dean said drifting off and tugging at Castiel's cloak. "Come on, you'll catch a cold"

Castiel nodded following after him as they walked inside and he walked to his room shivering as he shred out of his wet clothing and dressed into clothes from Anna who cooed at him.

"You look like you had good fun!"

"It's so strange how one moment I'm running for my life away from wolves, he saves me, and then we're throwing snowballs at each other"

"You look flushed with excitement"

"It's the cold" he said kneeling next to the fire and holding his hands out warming them up.

Dean entered the west wing with a sigh collapsing against the beam closing his eyes and looked up towards the rose. The rose glowed brightly underneath the glass and he sighed softly again leaning against the table.

"Dean" Sam's voice piped up in greeting as he hopped over and onto the table to face him.

"It's been two days and I feel…different, there's a warmth inside of me I haven't felt before…I don't know what's happening"

"He's changing you, you haven't been yourself today" Sam said with pride shining in his tone. "Gabriel and I saw your snowball fight in the snow"

"I would have never done that without him" he murmured flexing his claws. "I feel like I need to do something for him but what?"

"I'm sure he's mentioned his love for reading and I'm sure you haven't noticed that he has yet to see the library" Sam hinted his flames brighter in smugness.

"The library…get the servants to clean it up" he ordered to Sam who saluted hopping away.

Castiel was lying on his bed dozing when a knock startled him and he jumped up opening the door and stopping in surprise.

"Dean"

"I have something to show you" he said moving away and gesturing at him to follow. Castiel followed him in confusion but interest as he led him down a corridor till they reached two white doors.

"I want you to show something but I need you to close your eyes"

Castiel narrowed his eyes at him till Dean shot him a look.

"Fine" Castiel said shutting his eyes and letting Dean guide him in as he was placed in the centre of the room. Dean moved away with a small flicker of a smile before darting away to open the curtains. Castiel flinched away from the light shining through his closed lids.

"Can I open them now?"

"Yes"

Castiel gasped covering his mouth with both of his hands as he took in the gigantic library.

"Dean" he breathed pulling his hands away and turning towards him. "This is…this is beautiful!"

"It's yours"

"What?" he whispered stunned.

"This is your home now, this is yours, you can do whatever wish, read whatever you want" Dean said gesturing around.

Castiel felt tears prick his eyes and he nodded rubbing his lips together to keep himself from breaking down and crying.

"I love it, it's huge and wonderful…thank you" he murmured moving towards him and not even hesitating as he took one of his clawed hands the other touching his cheek. Dean stared at him in shock for a moment too stunned to react when Castiel pulled away with a smile hurrying over to a bookcase like an eager child. The touch burned hot on his hand and his cheek but the shock was still there that he had actually touched him without flinching or in pity. He dared a look over to him to see him now currently looking through a book and looking up at the same time to smile at him.

Castiel felt warm all over as he looked around the library that was now his. He couldn't quite believe this was happening to him and that the cursed man who had clawed him was showing kindness he didn't know existed till now.

~O~O~O~O~

The days blurred as they spent more and more time together eating breakfast while Castiel watched in disgust while Dean ravaged his food like an animal. Castiel caught the eye of Ellen and Jo grimacing at Dean who paused looking around. Castiel let his eyes drop as he pressed his fork into the meat he was eating but when he looked up again to his surprise Dean was now eating with a fork. It was one random act at a time as he saw a completely different side to Dean. There was kindness, mystery, and a softer side to him that Castiel was really beginning to like and it was alarming for him.

They spent all hours of the day with each other even when Castiel was in his library reading, Dean would watch afar in longing and wonder. It was only when Castiel started to notice was when he plucked up the courage to go up to the west wing and knock on the door. Dean opened immediately staring at Castiel confused and looked down the hallway.

"Is anything wrong?"

"No, I'd like to read to you" Castiel said holding up his book. "I can leave if you wish"

"No" Dean said letting him pass and shutting the door quickly. Castiel walked with him till they went into the bedroom Castiel had laid in.

"It's the most comfortable" Dean said watching him walk in and perch on the bed clutching the black book. "Do you…are you sure want to read to me?"

"I see you watching, Dean" he said shuffling up and patting the other bed. "Can you read?"

"Yes I was taught as a young child" Dean said with an annoyed huff joining him on the bed staring across at him. "I find no enjoyment in it"

"I love to read, I love to lose myself in an universe that were not meant for"

"Read to me" Dean said with a nod watching Castiel hum amused before opening it and beginning to read out loud. Dean closed his eyes listening to the lull of Castiel's words coming out smoothly as he read from the book he had never heard of.

"I think there's something there that wasn't there before" Ellen whispered to Sam and Gabriel as they watched from the door.

"What are you talking about?" Jo piped in confused.

"Hush" Jo scolded her. "There's something there that wasn't there before…what else could it be?"

"Love?" Jo said looking between the three of them. "Seriously?"

"Maybe" Sam said and frowned shoving his candle handles at them. "Privacy, you know Dean doesn't like it when we spy"

"What are we going to do then? This is getting old and quick! I want to be human again" Gabriel whined.

"You will be!"

"The last petal is…"

Sam scowled thrusting a candle at Gabriel. "Don't say a word! Now come on, let's go be useful"

Castiel leaned into the cushions while Dean looked through the book carefully turning the pages so he wouldn't shred it.

"My papa told me a fairy tale once, a long time ago…I barely remember it but it spoke of magic, family, and a cruel man"

"It mustn't have been important if you forgot"

"No it wasn't…it was just another bedtime story ten years ago when I was a child and I begged for a story. It reminds of me this, it had a castle, a family with two brothers, a mother and a father who were hunters…"

Dean's head snapped up and he stared at Castiel stunned. "What was the rest of the story?"

"I barely remember"

"Try" Dean urged closing the book with a snap. Castiel blinked leaning his head on the pillow feeling tired.

"It was a fairy tale, one of the brothers was kind and the other selfish, very unkind, and their parents died…I can't really remember the best, I just remember the family and magic being involved" he said softly looking over to him shutting his eyes. Dean swallowed hard with a frown watching him slowly fall asleep before inching close as he could with eyes tracing his features. He reached a hand out slowly trailing a clawed hand down his cheek being careful not to harm him because Dean cared now, he really did care about him and everyday was slow torture not being able to do a thing. Dean looked up at the rose illuminating light and he swallowed watching a petal slowly fall to the ground and he realised time was running shorter and shorted.

A/N: Aw wow! Your response is so awesome for this. Thank you so much and keep reviewing.