Hello to my wonderful SPN family! I hope you all are having a delightful weekend. I wanted to drop this story in here for you today, because in real time and my A/U timeline, Natalie's sixth birthday is tomorrow- April 24, 2016! So here's the story about it :)

At the risk of sounding like a broken record (#sorrynotsorry) Thank you all for taking the time to read and review. Your reviews help me so much- they spark my imagination to make more Natalie stories, not to mention help me through some really rough patches. I treasure you all, you have no idea.

I must also thank my Sammy- Jenmm31. She writes fantastic stories- she's got two great series with a Sister character, Kate (who is one of the best O/C's I've ever read here) as well as multiple other one shot SPN stories that are wonderful. She's also got a great Grey's Anatomy series too! And she's the best beta, cheerleader, and all around good person too!

One more little side note from me, then I swear I'll shut up and let Natalie do the talking. I dedicate this one-shot to the artist, Prince. Back when I very first started playing around with writing stories, I would listen to music while I wrote. I was writing a scene where one character was wrestling with expressing his love for another character and having a really hard time with it, when the song "Purple Rain" came on the radio. The words started to flow, listening to his song. To this day, I have never felt such a deep connection to music and story and feeling as I did when I was writing that section, listening to that song. So Prince, thank you for your inspiration. RIP.

Enough from me! Read, review, and enjoy!

A/N- in this story, Natalie is just about to turn 6. Please see profile page for disclaimer.

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap...Dean felt a tiny finger tapping on his knee incessantly. He moved his car magazine to one side to find his five year old daughter boring a hole in him with her inquisitive green eyes. Even though he was making eye contact with her, the tapping didn't stop. She just stood there, one little finger jabbing his knee over and over and over. He looked up across the room, to see his brother watching the two of them, his own grin plastered on his face as he worked from his laptop. They had been at Bobby's for about three days now, just taking a break. They had been going pretty hard core recently, and had been away from home for about a month. That didn't sit well with Dean, so he and Sam had talked and agreed to stay home for a good long while this time. They were enjoying the peace and quiet. Or, at least, had been enjoying it when the tapping started.

"Yes?" he asked in a joking tone. "May I help you?"

The tapping stopped. "We need to talk," Natalie said.

Dean couldn't help but grin at her serious tone of voice. "Alright then. Let's talk." Before he could say another word, however, Natalie hauled herself up on the sofa next to him, and then climbed onto his lap. He dropped the magazine on the couch away from her, seeing that she was going to be demanding all of his attention on this one. She sat facing him, her knees pressing into the tops of his thighs as she sat back on her feet. He put his hands on either side of her, just to make sure she didn't fall. She reached up and put both hands on either side of his face. She gently pulled his face towards her, and looked him straight in the eye with That Look. The one she had clearly learned from him. Whoa, thought Dean with a smile, she means business.

"This is very, very serious, Daddy," she said in a solemn tone.

Dean nodded, while managing to put on a straight face. "Let me guess. You've finally decided to move in with your boyfriend."

Natalie shot him a bitch face- damn Sam for teaching her that, Dean thought- but then couldn't keep the giggle from escaping her lips. She quickly stifled it, and cocked her head to one side.

"No! I am not moving in with my boyfriend!" she said in precocious five year old fashion.

"Are you sure? You two are getting pretty serious."

"Nope. He has to put a ring on it first," she said, her own face becoming a mask of sarcasm. At that, Sam snorted loudly. Dean never knew how he himself managed it, but he kept a perfectly straight face. His kid was hilarious. Must have gotten that from him. Natalie tightened her grip on her father's face, reemphasizing the gravitas behind the situation.

"Next week, the most important thing in your life is happening," she said, making sure to look him right in the eye when she said it, trying to get him back on track.

Dean knew exactly what she was alluding to, but he couldn't help himself. It was like he had an inner drive to mess with people who were trying to be serious, even if it was a five year old girl. He nodded, pretending to think. "Ah yes," he said finally. "It's free pretzel day at the mall. Thank you for reminding me."

Natalie knew her father well enough to know that he was just playing with her. She giggled again. "No! It's my birthday!" she squealed delightedly.

"Oh, right. Of course. And who are you again?"

"Daddy!" she said with a laugh, but she slapped her hands down on her thighs. Dean could sense that she was just about at the end of her patience with him, so he wiped the confused look off his face and smiled at her instead.

"Alright, squirt. So yeah, I know it's your birthday next week. You gonna tell me that you want a pony or something?"

"Nope. But I do know what I want."

"Excellent. Makes my job easier. And what do you want?"

"I want two things."

"Really."

"Yup. I want an Elsa doll, and a light saber."

That threw Dean for a loop. "Wow. That's...wow."

"Uh huh. I want a purple light saber, and an Elsa Barbie doll that can sing."

"They make those?"

"Which one? Light saber or doll?"

"A...singing...doll."

"Yup. She's really sparkly and pretty too."

All of the sudden, a terrible image popped into Dean's mind. He pictured himself at a toy store, facing a wall of sparkly pretty singing Disney princess dolls. Thousands of them. Natalie had been obsessed with that stupid Frozen movie from the first time she watched it, so unfortunately for him, Dean knew exactly which one she was talking about when she said "Elsa". He still remembered the car ride where they had had to endure what seemed like hours of that damn song. And now, the thought of a thousand singing, glittering dolls invaded his mind. He inhaled sharply, at the exact same moment that Sam did. He locked eyes with his brother. Instantly, he knew they were both thinking the same dreaded thought. One of them had to get the light saber- the other one was stuck getting the doll.

His eyes narrowed at Sam. Don't you dare, he thought at his brother with a mental snarl. Before he could throw any more intimidation into the look he was giving him, Sam bolted out of his chair and away from the desk, snatching the Impala keys sitting on the table by the front door. Dean briefly considered yanking Natalie up from his lap and chasing Sam down, but Sam already had a head start. Plus, he had shoes on. Dean gritted his teeth as he heard the car door slam. He banged his head back on the sofa with an angry sigh."Dammit," he hissed under his breath.

Natalie looked in wonder at the front door, Sam's sudden departure a mystery to her. "What's Uncle Sam doing?"

"Screwing me over."

"What's that mean?"

"Not important." Dean took a deep breath. He was going to kill Sam for sticking him with this one. He inhaled, tried to speak, then just exhaled again, finding he couldn't do it. He finally summoned all his courage, and raised his head, looking his daughter right in the eye.

"Okay. Tell me more about this doll thing."

*SPN SPN SPN*

The next day, Dean pulled into the parking lot of the mega store. He hated places like this- Wal-Marts, Targets, whatever. Places like this made him shudder. He parked far away, towards the back of the lot- he knew how these soccer moms drove- and made sure the Impala was nowhere near any minivan or station wagon. He reluctantly trudged inside, hating every step he took. He thought bitterly of Sam's return yesterday- how he had made sure that Natalie was nowhere near, before smugly showing Dean the purple light saber he had purchased. He had chuckled gleefully at the disgusted look on Dean's face.

"Have fun in the doll aisle," he had said. "Hey- is this the first time you're going to be getting a doll that doesn't need to be blown up first?" Not being able to immediately come up with his usual witty retort, Dean just responded with a solid punch to Sam's chest.

He now looked around the store, hoping that the toy section would be close. That way, he could just grab the doll and get the hell out of there. No such luck. After wandering around for a good minute, which felt like an eternity, he found the toy section- at the back of the store. This was why he hated places like this.

"Geez, you think they could make it easy on us poor suckers," he growled to himself. When he was a kid, he didn't have time for toys. And if Sam wanted anything, it was whatever they could find at whatever gas station their dad stopped at or no dice. He was completely out of his element here, and he hated that. He looked quickly to his right and his left to make sure there were no hot chicks around, and dove into the doll aisle. When he looked up, it was exactly like he thought. His nightmare was a reality, right in front of him. The wall of pink sequined plastic dolls was enormous. And he was trapped.

"I'm in hell," he muttered under his breath. "I'm back in hell. And it has Frozen over."

*SPN SPN SPN*

Dean had purchased the damn doll as quickly as he had been able to, despite the cashier's gushing, oohing and aahing at "how precious it was" and "what a sweet daddy". Barf. He had made her double bag the toy, and he had practically sprinted to the parking lot, shoving the bag into the hidden compartment in the trunk, praying that he could keep it hidden until the big day.

The morning of Natalie's birthday finally arrived. She bound out of bed way before either of the boys, as she was wont to do anyways, and tore down the stairs towards the kitchen. She stopped short at the foot of the stairs, not wanting Bobby to catch her running. She skipped into the kitchen, where, sure enough, he was waiting with pancakes, her favorite breakfast.

"Happy Birthday, Little Bit!" Bobby said, in his gruff but kind manor. She giggled and climbed into his lap, throwing her arms around his weathered neck.

"Thanks, Pops!" she said, hugging him fiercely.

"I think it's time you got a Birthday spanking!" he said jokingly, grabbing her and acting like he was going to twist her around and deliver. She pushed away from him, pursing her lips like she was trying not to laugh.

"Try it and I'll scratch your eyes out."

Bobby couldn't help it- she was so damn funny when she said stuff like that. He started laughing. "Is that anyway for a young lady to talk?" he mock scolded her.

"It is if you're going to try to spank me," she retorted sassily, putting her hands on her hips and glaring at him in her no-nonsense way. She then tilted her head and gave him a saucy grin, which made him laugh even harder. Just then, a bleary eyed Dean walked into the kitchen.

"Daddy!" she squealed, and bolted off Bobby's lap. Unfortunately, her tiny foot connected with a certain part of his anatomy as she was catapulting off of him.

"Ouch! Dammit!" he hissed. "Figures. The kid finds the one place on my lower half that still has feeling." He shook his head affectionately, and watched Dean reach down and pick up his squirming six year old.

"Happy Birthday, squirt," Dean said sleepily. Natalie wrapped her arms around his neck and planted a sloppy kiss on his unshaven cheek.

"Thank you!" she squealed, not realizing how loud she was being. Dean just shut his eyes, trying to stop the ringing in his ears. "Why are you up already?" she asked.

"I heard what was either an elephant tap dancing down the stairs, or you getting up," he said with a sarcastic grin. Bobby had been wheeling his way towards the dining table, the platter of pancakes on his lap.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Natalie? Don't run down the stairs," he scolded for real this time as he deposited the platter on the table. Natalie dropped her head onto Dean's shoulder, but continued to look at Bobby.

"But it's my birthday!" she protested.

"Ain't going to keep you from breaking your leg if you hit one of those steps wrong. Now quit running down them."

"Sorry, Pops," she mumbled. She snapped her head up and glared at Dean. "Pops said he was gonna give me a birthday spanking," she tattled to her father. Dean just snorted and looked at Bobby, who shrugged and grinned back.

"I wouldn't try," Dean said. "She'll scratch your eyes out."

"So I've been told," he replied dryly. Just then, Sam joined the party in the kitchen.

"Happy Birthday, Bug," he said, wiping the sleep out of his eyes. Natalie wriggled out of Dean's grasp. He set her down just long enough for her feet to hit the floor before Sam scooped her up and tossed her in the air. She squealed with delight again, and Sam pulled her close, kissing her on the top of her head. She responded with a quick squeeze around the neck, then her eyes lit up, and they began dancing back and forth between Sam and Dean. Dean schooled his features into his typical stoic mask, watching her begin to squirm in anticipation. Sam just grinned at Dean. He loved watching his brother mess with his niece. It was hilarious, and nice to not be on the receiving end of it for once. He could feel the excitement building up in Natalie. He quickly slid her back down to the ground, knowing that it was only a matter of moments before she would explode. She clasped her hands behind her back and began to rock back and forth on her heels, tilting her head adorably at Dean. He crossed his arms, pretending not to be phased by the onslaught of cuteness she was throwing his way. Father and Daughter had a pretend stare off for a second. Sam and Bobby exchanged a quick, amused glance.

Finally Dean broke the silence. "What?" he asked gruffly, with a theatrical shrug.

Natalie just bit her lip and giggled.

"Do you want something?" Dean said blankly, not letting even one corner of his mouth break rank and smile.

Natalie began twisting back and forth harder, making her eyes go wider. Sam hadn't thought it was possible, but with those two actions, she just upped her cuteness factor by tenfold. "Yeeeeeeees," she drawled.

"Okay. What?" Dean said, fixing his daughter with his stoic look, matching her willpower to not be the first to crack.

"Can I have my presents now? Pleeeeeeease?" she said, taking a bouncy step towards him, still twisting away.

"Oh. Presents. Yeah, we all forgot to get you those, sorry," he said, wrinkling his nose in an effort to look bored.

Natalie just giggled impishly. "No you didn't," she said in her little princessy voice.

"And what makes you think that?"

"Because you're too awesome to forget about me."

Dean looked up at Sam, the barely contained laugh in his eyes. "Kid's got a point." He reached around the door frame, and picked up the wrapped box he had hidden there before walking into the kitchen. "Here ya go, squirt," he said, handing it to her. She shrieked in delight and grabbed the package, tossing it on to the table and clambering up into her chair. Sam laughed again, and went to retrieve his own gift, which he had hidden in the kitchen pantry the night before. Bobby wheeled himself over to the pantry as well. Apparently, he'd had the same idea of a hiding place as Sam did.

"Shouldn't we wait to give her her presents tonight? With the cake and all?" Bobby whispered to Sam. Sam just snorted in response.

"Are you kidding? She'll tear apart the house looking for them if we don't deliver up front. Don't you remember how well we had to hide everything at Christmas?"

"Oh yeah," the old man said, shaking his head at the memory of the five year old tornado last December. Every nook and cranny had been meticulously searched. They had found stacks of furniture in front of possibly hiding locations all over the house, owing to the fact that she was too short to reach most of the places she thought they'd hidden her presents. She had even torn the couch cushions apart, which got her in big trouble, but she didn't care as long as she could find those packages. It had only been by a very well planned group effort that she didn't find all of them. Man, when this kid wanted something, God help whatever stood in her way. They both retrieved their presents from the highest shelf where they had strategically placed heavy bags of flour underneath that she couldn't move or climb on. Sam wheeled Bobby over to the table, where Natalie was sitting up in her chair, practically writhing in anticipation. Sam placed both packages on the table, and then sat down. Natalie looked around the table.

"This is the best birthday EVER!" she declared. All three men chuckled at her.

"You haven't even opened anything yet, Bug," Sam said with a smile.

"I know! But you're all here, so that makes it the best ever," she declared simply with a sweet smile. Dean heart twisted at her words. They had been on the road for her fifth birthday, and even though they had called Bobby, it was clear she had been missing him. She was such a great kid- he knew deep inside that it wasn't the presents that mattered- it was the fact that they were there that was the most important to her. Before he really let the chick flick moment get much deeper than that, he spoke up.

"Hey! Less yappin', more unwrappin'!" he said jokingly. That was all the permission the now six year old needed. She reached out and grabbed Bobby's present. She went through the typical routine of shaking it seven ways to Sunday before she ripped off the wrapping paper. Inside was a small, leather bound journal.

"That's to record all the things you're learning about with your studies and stuff," Bobby said gruffly. "It's your own journal."

"Wow," she whispered, turning it over in her hands. "Just like Grandpa's! Thanks Pops!" she said, giving him a face splitting grin. He just nodded once, not wanting to show how much her excitement meant to him. Dean caught the old man's eye, and nodded once in thanks.

Natalie reached across the table, and picked up Sam's gift. He just smirked at Dean, his victory over his brother still bringing him pleasure. Natalie tore off the paper, revealing the purple light saber within. She let out a loud shriek of pleasure, and jumped off her chair, swinging it around before even getting it out of the packaging.

"Hold on there, Jedi Warrior," Sam said, laughing. He plucked it out of her hands. She whined for a second before she realized that Sam was just removing the cardboard and plastic zip ties. He made quick work of it, then handed it back.

"Thanks, Unca Sam!" she said excitedly. "It's the bestest!" She began swinging it around again, causing all of the men at the table to duck as she began combating the Dark Forces that were apparently all around them. Dean made a mental note- teach her how to light saber fight. She played with it for so long, that Dean finally cleared his throat.

"Hey," he said. She stopped and stared at him. "You got one more to go, kiddo."

"Oh yeah!" she said, climbing back into her chair. She placed her new light saber carefully on the table, before reaching over and grabbing the last one. Her eyes got very wide, and she looked up at Dean, almost fearfully. He wasn't sure why, but she slowly started to tear off the paper, almost as if she was afraid to see what was underneath it. She slowly unveiled the box containing the stuff of Dean's nightmares- a singing Elsa doll. But instead of jumping for joy or even smiling, she just stared at it.

Dean instantly panicked. Had he gotten the wrong one? No, that one was Elsa- he was sure. And it sang and all that crap. So why wasn't she freaking out like she did with the other gifts?

"Natalie?" he asked, trying to keep the fear out of his voice. "Are you...what's the matter?"

She looked up at him. To his immense surprise, there were tears shining in her excited green eyes. Her smile had lit up her entire face. "Daddy- it's perfect," she whispered. In that instant, everything he had gone through to get that stupid doll became worth it. She picked it up and hugged it to her, box and all.

"Want me to open it for you?" he asked. Natalie hopped down off her chair. She walked over to Dean and handed him the box. But before he could open it, she crawled up into his lap, and threw her arms around his neck.

"Thank you," she whispered sweetly into his ear. He just smiled, and squeezed her tight.

*SPN SPN SPN*

Later that day, Dean walked up to Natalie's room. She had been playing by herself for about an hour, which was pretty unusual. She was forever wanting them to play with her, but this time, she had declared she was going to play alone. He wanted to make sure that she was okay. Ever since she had opened her Elsa doll, she hadn't put it down for a moment, thrilled to death with her new treasure. She was completely absorbed with every aspect of the doll, and she had already played the song on it so many times Dean thought they'd have to change out the battery after just one day. As he got to the top of the stairs, he heard her in her room. But when he heard what she was saying, he stopped in his tracks. Without a sound, he bound back down the stairs. Sam was sitting at the desk again, working on his laptop.

"Dude," Dean hissed excitedly. "You gotta see this."

"What?" Sam said, looking up from the computer.

"Just come here," Dean insisted. Sam stood up and followed his brother back up the stairs. They snuck up towards Natalie's door, and listened. Sam couldn't resist- he peeked around the door frame. Natalie was sitting in the middle of the floor, her new doll in one hand, and a handful of green army soldiers and action figures were strewn about. For some reason, she had Batman in the middle of a...Sam's eyes widened as it registered what she'd drawn on the floor with colored chalk.

Sam turned back to Dean, his eyes incredulous. "Dude...she's drawn-"

"A devil's trap," Dean whispered back proudly. "And she's done a damn good job of it too." They both peeked around the corner again. She was whispering words in a Latin incantation. Sam just looked at Dean again, his eyes wide. Dean was nodding, his heart practically bursting. She was playing Exorcism.

"She can't read Latin!" Sam whispered to Dean, still stunned.

"She must have memorized it," Dean said with a shrug. It didn't entirely surprise him- she had certainly overheard them practicing enough. She was incredibly bright, picking things up at the drop of a hat. He felt a surge of pride- HE didn't even have all the exorcisms memorized. He couldn't help but peek again. She was using the Elsa doll to be the hunter. She was being very careful to say the words exactly right, and he watched as she finished the exorcism, and released the Batman action figure from the devil's trap.

"You're safe now," she had the princess doll say to the superhero. Dean didn't want this moment to end for anything. Digging in his pocket, he found his cell, and quietly snapped a picture. He just grinned and continued watching his little warrior princess play.