Sam relaxed onto his bed, grabbing his laptop out of his bag, deciding to search whatever lore they had on the boogity boogity that stole lungs and livers. He waited for the computer to come to life, sincerely wondering if his mothers mischievous plan had actually worked on his stubborn brother and the angel he loved. The screen booted up, and Sam let out a scream, dropping the computer to the floor. It wasn't even a holler or a yell, but rather a high pitched girlish scream that made his throat hurt... Mary jumped, her hand clutching her heart as she stared at her younger son in utter shock.

"S-sorry, mom." Sam grabbed the laptop off the floor, trying to change the background from the horrific murderous clown picture Dean must have changed it to earlier. "Fucking, Dean..." he grumbled.

His mother stared at him with wide eyes. "Ahh... care to explain?" She asked him, eyebrows raised.

"I have a-uh- a clown... thing." He told her, his hands shaking nervously as he clicked and clicked, finally setting it back to its original picture of a sunset.

Mary was still staring at him, and he huffed out an awkward laugh. "A clown thing?" She questioned.

"Yeah... I uh-I hate them. I really hate clowns, it's... good god they're awful." Sam said. He saw his mothers lips quirk a half an inch. "It's not funny!"

Unable to control herself, Mary burst into laughter, her arms clutching at her waist. "So... so let me get this straight... you're a hunter, you've literally fought just about every type of monster, god, angel, demon, what have you possible... and yet you're afraid of clowns?"

Sam ducked his head, a furious blush creeping into his cheeks. "Are- are you making fun of me?"

Mary clutched her hand over her stomach, on still clasped over he mouth as she stared at her youngest, humor flashing across her features. "No, no... not at all honey. I am sure it's very real for you..." She shook her head, trying to avoid Sam's disgruntled gaze, bursting forth with giggles again. "I swear, I'm not making fun of you at all."

Sam had a very distinct feeling he finally understood where Dean got his sarcastic sense of humor from.

Mary tried to breathe, and finally, reluctantly, Sam joined in her laughter. "Trust me," he told her. "I get that it's irrational."

She came over and ruffled his hair. "Well that's good, son. Otherwise I might have been worried."

Sam smiled at his mother, glad that he finally felt genuinely at ease in her presence... even if it was because she laughed at him mercilessly. She felt like family, the family he had known his whole life. Soft on the inside, but sarcastic and teasing on the outside. Between Bobby and Dean, Sam was used to being the butt of every joke. He could see so much of Dean in her, the way she teased him, the way she cared, the way she smiled... he had no idea so much of her was reflected in his older brother.

"So," she started, settling herself down on her own bed. "Do you think they're talking?"

Sam looked at her. "Knowing Dean, they're either fighting or ah... well... not fighting." He trailed off awkwardly. He cleared his throat, "you did a good thing, back there." He told her, and he meant it. He had watched Dean pine for the angel for long enough, lord knew.

She smiled. "Well, what are mothers for if not forcing their children into situations they don't want to be forced into if it's in their best interest?"

He set the laptop aside, rolling onto his side to look at Mary while he spoke. Sam wasn't sure he would ever get used to the sight of her face, alive, healthy, and real. "How did you know? I mean honestly I have been around Dean my whole life and it took me years to pick up on him and Cas. Dean tries so hard to hide it."

"I've been around long enough to know what it looks like when two people are in love, Sammy." She told him. "It's hard enough for people to find that in this world, and add hunting on top of everything else... it's damn near impossible. So what if Castiel is a guy? Dean clearly loves him, he clearly loves Dean. There are so few precious moments we get to be in love in this world, it seems to me Dean has wasted a lot of time."

Sam cleared his throat. "Actually, mom... Cas is an angel, so he doesn't actually have a gender. Right now, he's using his human vessel."

Mary's eyes grew wide. "You mean... there's a human in there?"

Sam sighed, "well, no... not anymore. Cas sort of got exploded by Lucifer and after that... well the human that was inside him is in heaven now. We have a friend looking after his kid... The guy that Cas inhabited wanted it, he uh-he prayed for it, even. Or that's what Cas has told me, and I believe him." Sam felt oddly defensive of the angel; the story of Jimmy Novak wasn't exactly his most shining moment. Briefly, he wondered if Dean had told her about the time Cas decided he was God. He decided that one was a story for another time, just in case.

Mary looked pensive for a moment, as if she was still letting herself process this new information. He could practically see the gears turning in her head.

"You should know, Cas was very different before he came to Earth the first time. He was a warrior, but falling from heaven; or more accurately, falling in love with Dean... well it made him a better man." Sam told her.

She stayed silent for a moment longer. "That must be hard on him," she said. "On Castiel, I mean... knowing that to be here, someone lost their life."

Sam decided it definitely wasn't the time to tell her about the whole God thing.

Mary turned on him with a look that Sam was now learning was a very dangerous thing from her. A look that told him that she was about to get right to the point again.

"Sam, tell me the truth... what was your father like?"

Sam closed his eyes, it was the only other subject she could have picked that would make the muscles constrict around his neck and a lump rise in his throat. In that same heartbeat, an quiet anger flared up inside him. He had been expecting the question ever since he handed her the journal, knowing eventually she would want to know everything.

Mary Winchester was nothing if not thorough in her investigation.