Troubled Dreams

The ducks found some leaves and straw and put them together. They pressed it well with their feet and gave it a round form, like a nest.

Castiel's frown deepened when he contemplated the masterpiece. Specifically, how small it was and how very close he and Dean were going to have to sleep next to each other to fit.

Dean noticed his expression. "What's wrong?"

"Just to inform you, I don't intend to lay eggs and hatch out ducklings," Castiel stated matter-of-factly.

Dean's raised wing froze in the air and he made some unducky noise in the back of his throat. He stared at Castiel as if he were from another planet.

"Just shut up and go to sleep." He fidgeted in the nest, trying to get comfortable.

Castiel finally quit panting and grumbling and sat beside Dean. He hid his beak under the wing and closed his eyes.

Oh, yes it was so good! So many big and fat fish. And they were all his! He was swimming in the crystal clear lake, chasing the caravan of silver fish. There it is; he almost caught the biggest one by its tail! Just one movement and he's got it. He stretched his neck to grab the fish when the fish turned its head around and… laughed. Wait, what? Do fish laugh? Probably they do because he could clearly hear a loud "eheheheeee"…

Dean woke up in the middle of the night, startled. Someone was laughing hysterically. At first he didn't understand what was happening, but when the remains of sleep finally left him, Dean realized that it was Castiel.

He looked at Castiel attentively, trying to figure out what the hell was wrong with him. Castiel's beak was touching his dark green chest and he was shaking.

"Cas?" Dean nudged him.

"Heh?" Castiel quacked, hardly coherent.

"What's wrong? Are you ok?"

Castiel opened his eyes and looked at Dean with annoyance.

"Why did you wake me up?"

"Hell, I thought something was wrong with you! You were shaking in your sleep," Dean quacked, exasperated.

Castiel stared at him for a moment, but then suddenly he squirmed. "Oh…" He shook his body. "I think… Oh… Something is in our nest." He started to scratch himself under the wings.

Suddenly he yelled and flew out of the nest. He beat his wings and started to run around the tree.

Dean went running after him. "What's wrong? Cas, are you hurt? Talk to me, God dammit!"

Castiel did not stop running, he just kept running laps around the tree.

"Something is biting me in the butt! I can't help it, it's so itchy!" he kept quacking pitifully.

Dean was totally confused but only for a second. He returned to the nest and carefully examined it.

"Cas, it's full of red ants! They're biting you!"

"How am I gonna get rid of them? I can't reach my ass!" Castiel hollered as he was making his fifteenth lap.

"Whoa, no way I'm gonna peck them out of your ass!" Dean waved his wings in denial.

"Shut the hell up, ya idjits, we're trying to sleep!" the red dog barked.

"Shut up, yourself!" Dean yelled at the dog.

"Bloody hell, I'm surrounded by morons!" a big black cat moaned and face-palmed – or face-pawed – himself.

Soon a mass of cackling from the chicken house was added to the general ruckus and the yard sank into the loud cacophony of every kind of existing animal sound.

The chaos and anarchy shattered as soon as the door of the house swung open and a figure appeared in the doorway. "SILENCE!" screamed the figure and a gunshot tore the black curtain of the night apart.

Castiel instantly forgot his itching ass and thudded to the ground.

All the other animals or birds shut up and pretended they didn't exist.

"Get in the nest, you dumbass!" Dean hissed at Castiel. He was crawling towards their nest on his stomach like a professional spy, hoping he wouldn't be noticed.