New Beginnings
Months Earlier...
"I pray to Castiel to get his feathery ass down here to help kick some witch ass," Dean prayed outloud, smirking to himself. Sammy snorted as he tried to hold in a laugh. Dean peaked open an eye, looking around the room, but finding no sign of the angel. "Fucking Nerdy Angel needs to check his messages," Dean groaned, laying down on his bed.
"Hello, Dean." Dean's eyes popped open to find Castiel leaning over Dean's face with that stupid innocent head tilt of his. Dean's cheeks turned red at the closeness between he and the angel and Sammy snickered in the background.
"Cas, we've talked about this," Dean huffed, raising a brow at the angel. Cas tilted his head farther to the right before finally pulling away and allowing Dean to sit up without having an angel in his face. "Where you been lately?" Dean questioned the angel once he was sat up and Cas was now sitting on the edge of the bed stiff like an arrow as always. It's been days since the angel dropped by on his own accord. Heaven must be keeping a tight leash. Cas sighed, looking up towards the heavens like he was looking at his brothers and sisters.
"Michael was entertaining us with a very long lecture on-"
"Cassie, you little rebel," Balthazar puffed as he and Gabriel suddenly appeared in the room. Cas looked up at his brothers not at all startled by their sudden appearance like the Winchesters had been. I can't believe you ditched Michael's little rant to go hangout with you pets without us," Balthazar continued to grumble, snapping his fingers, scotch magically appearing in his hand. Gabriel stretched his arms like he'd been sitting for hours.
"These two are a bad influence on you, Castiel," Gabriel teased, plopping down next to his brother on the bed. Cas tilted his head to the side and glanced in Dean's and Sam's directions.
"In this case I think that is most acceptable," the angel stated simply.
"What they call you here for anyway?" Gabe questioned.
"We're right here you know!" Dean shouted at the angels. Gabriel raised a brow at the Winchester and Balthazar gave him a sarcastic look. "There's been some freaky powerful witch patrolling this town for weeks, but she's too powerful to take down. We thought maybe an angel could," Dean explained. Cas got up from his spot and glanced up at the sky again.
"Better than listening to Michael's speech, no?" Cas questioned his brothers. Each looked up at the same time like they were listening to Michael talk. Gabriel rolled his eyes.
"Definitely, although I do enjoy when Cupid shows up. He always seems to speed up the lecture," Gabe chuckled. A sickened look crossed over Castiel's face while Balthazar burst out laughing.
"Come on, Cassie! It was hilarious!"
"I didn't think so." Dean turned away from the blabbering angels, grabbing his gear for the hunt while Sammy watched the angels talk with a smile across his face.
"This it?" Sam asked as they appeared in the warehouse a few miles away from town. The angels each nodded, looking slightly uneasy. Dean didn't like that look. He liked it better when they were over confident.
"Her power is strong…stronger than most," Cas whispered, meaning for only his brothers to hear, but the Winchesters had been listening. Gabriel waved a hand over a door leading to another part of the warehouse and it creaked open. They all shuffled through, Dean and Sam holding their weapons tightly. Rabbits and goat heads hanged on the ceiling, blood dripping into bowls sitting on the floor covered in strange markings. Balthazar raised a brow, pointing at one of the markings.
"That's Enochian," the middle angel stated. Cas and Gabe both glanced around the room wearily. "How does a witch know-"
"I'm older than I look." Heads snapped up at the raspy voice to see an old woman with long white hair and penetrating grey eyes. The angels sidestepped in front of the hunters, eyes in slits as they glared at her. Dean and Sam both gave each other a look. Something was definitely wrong.
"Who are you?" Castiel hissed, blue eyes shimmering with light momentarily in a menacing way that sent shivers up Dean's back. The witch chuckled, twirling a strand of hair in her fingers as she looked the angels over.
"Oh, yes, you three will do just fine,' she muttered, licking her lips. "Perfectly fine." Gabriel's smirked at her, stepping closer to the witch.
"The seraph asked you a question, Witch. I suggest you answer," Gabriel hissed. The witch stopped smirking and glared in Gabriel's direction.
"Who I am will be no help to you, Messenger. You should be worried about what I plan to do to you." The angels each frowned, lifting their angel blades when the witch started to sputter some spell. At first nothing happened, but then there was a clatter of angel blades smacking to the floor as the angels bent over themselves.
"Cas!" Dean called as the angel sputtered and wheezed in pain. He lifted his gun to fire, but the witch waved a hand at him and Sammy, sending the two flying into a bundle of crates. The Winchesters staggered to their feet only to be instantly blinded by bright light. "CAS!" Dean called out again as he heard the true voices of the angels ring as they screamed.
Dean and Sam blinked their eyes as the light began to fade. The witch was gone and all that was left of the three angels were their scorched clothing. Dean shook his head as he tried to process what the witch had just done. Then it hit him. No, they can't be dead. They're angels. Angels don't just get wacked off by some warty old lady with a few magic cards! He paced back and forth, hands running through his hair as he tried to hold back his emotions. It wasn't working.
"Dean," Sammy called, eyes frozen on the heap of clothing on the floor of the warehouse.
"Shut it, Sammy!" Dean shouted, kicking an old crate. "Son of a bitch!" he clamped his hands over his eyes. They may have been dicks, but hell they were still family! Now they were gone. It was all his fault too. He had called Cas down to help them and if he hadn't called Cas the angel the other two wouldn't have tagged along-
"Dean!" Dean whirled around to see his brother eyeing the clothes on the floor. A frown crossed Dean's face until something rustled beneath the clothing. "What the hell?!" Dean snatched up one of the angel blades left behind by the angels from the floor and slowly approached the clothes. Sam followed, gun ready to fire at whatever it was hiding under the clothes.
"Dwean! Sammy!" cried three voices from the clothes. Dean and Sam stared wide eyed at the three infants now sitting in the heap of clothes. They looked like ordinary infants at first glance, but on the second one could see that they were definitely everything other than ordinary. Each of them had a pair of wings sticking from their shoulder blades. The larger had big golden wings, the middle had shiny silver ones, and the smallest of them all had small black baby feathers. Not only that, but the smallest had bright blue eyes that could only belong to one angel of the lord.
"Holy shit. It's the angels," Dean gasped, lowering the angel blade.
"So what do we do with three baby angels?" Sam asked, holding napping Gabriel in his arms at Bobby's. The old hunter walked back into the living room, carrying a few book about angels. His eyes scanning over the three baby angels Dean and Sam had just brought to his house. Castiel was in Dean's arms, wrapped in nothing but his old trench coat and Balthazar stumbled around the room with his too big shirt still hanging off his shoulder as he searched for the liquor cabinet. Some things never change no matter what age.
"Well, look after them is one," Bobby stated, slamming a book on the table. "According to the books these guys' graces are useless. They don't even have enough power to make the lights flicker. If a demon gets his hands on them they'll be dead instantly." Dean felt a sick feeling rise in his stomach and glanced down at Castiel, who was sucking on Dean's fingers. The angel looked so innocent compared to the careless super angel of the lord Dean was so used to seeing. "Are they like other infants? Do they sleep, eat, or talk?" Bobby asked, directing his gaze towards Balthazar as the little tike opened a cabinet door only to find it full of books instead of beer. Sam glanced down at Gabriel in his arms as the tiny angel snored and nodded his head.
"They said our names when we found them and Gabe seems to be enjoying his nap," Sam informed the older hunter. Bobby nodded, glancing at Cas as the baby angel chewed on Dean's fingers. A smile crossed over his lips.
"Well, it looks like they get hungry too," he chuckled. Dean frowned at Bobby.
"Yeah, and they got teeth!" Dean added, wincing as Castiel's baby teeth chomped down on his fingers.
"You two find them some food and I'll go look in the basement for some of Sammy's baby clothes from when I used to watch you idjits," Bobby stated before disappearing. Sam took Balthazar's hand with his free one and the two hunters escorted the angels to the kitchen. Today was not the day to not own booster seats. The angels were only tall enough to stare at the edge of the table when they sat. Dean positioned Castiel on his laps so the angel was taller and Sam set Balthazar and Gabriel on top of the table while he searched for something the angels could eat. Sam frowned as he pulled out boxes of old cereal and stale bread. He glanced over at the three angels, but they didn't look at all satisfied with the food choices Sam had chosen. Sam couldn't blame them. He opened another cabinet, revealing Bobby's whiskey. Balthazar was off the table in seconds. Dean cried out, waiting for the angel to topple to the floor, but the angel simply flapped his wings and soared up to the cabinet, wrapping his tiny fingers around the neck of the bottle and pulled at the cap.
"Oh no! That is not for you!" Sam shouted, pulling the bottle from Balthazar and dragging the angel out of the cabinet and back to the table.
"Da hell! I'm thirsty!" the angel kicked and screamed when Sam dumped him next to Gabriel. Dean raised a brow at the tiny angel. The kid had a mouth on him.
"Yeah, and where's the candy?" Gabriel joined in. Dean glanced down at Cas, waiting for the angel to give his own complaint, but the simple little angel just sat contently in Dean's lap playing with Dean's fingers and the trench coat still wrapped in his tiny fist. When Cas noticed Dean's staring he glanced up at the hunter and giggled cutely, tilting his head to the side. Dean felt his heart tug. Damn angel's head tilt was cuter in baby form.
"Try these once," Bobby said, walking into the room with three pairs of footy pajamas. "They may be a bit too big for Cas and Balthazar, but they will do until we decide to go shopping for them."
"Yeah, that may be sooner then we think," Sam said, nodding at the food choices they had. Bobby frowned at the bread and cereal.
"Damn it. Sorry, Boys, I was helping Rufus with a case all weak. I guess I never got to buying food." Bobby began handed Sam a pair of blue-green footy pajamas and tossed Dean a tan pair. The hunters took the clothes and grabbed an angel. Dean had Cas of course, Sam had Gabe, and Bobby had Balthazar. Dean pulled the trench coat off of Cas and the angel wrapped his tiny fists around it. Dean frowned at the baby angel, trying to pull the coat away, but Cas, didn't let go of the stupid coat.
"Cas, you're too little to wear this and it's filthy-"
"NO!" Cas screamed, his true voice bouncing to life and the windows shattered instantly.
"Damn it, Dean, give the angel back his coat!" Sam shouted over the noise. Dean reluctantly let go of the coat and Cas stopped crying. Dean watched the angel nuzzle into the tan fabric and rolled his eyes. Baby angels had some lungs on them. When everyone was calmed down again they pulled the clothes onto the baby angels and cut holes in the back so their wings could slip out. Now the three angels were dressed in blue, green, and white-tan pajamas. "Alright, now how do we go shopping with stupid angel wings sticking out of their backs?" Sam questioned. Dean glanced at the tuffs of baby feathers sticking out of the angels' backs. Gingerly, he pushed Cas' coat over his shoulders and smirked.
"Simple, dress them in puffy coats. Their wings will be pretty cramped, but hey it works!" Dean announced, lifting Cas so the other two hunters could see how the trench coat hid the wings. Bobby snapped his fingers together, opening the box he had dragged into the kitchen that had held the pajamas in.
"They're huge, but that'll only hide the wings better," Bobby announced as he pulled out Sam and Dean's old winter coats. Dean grinned as he took a blue coat. This parenting for angels was a piece of cake.
Correction; parenting angels was a piece of two year old fruit cake. Balthazar and Gabriel sat in the cart babbling away and trying to get their grubby little fingers on every toy in the store. Dean pushed the cart out of the toy isle. Why did he get put on baby patrol while Bobby and Sam got to go look for food and other baby supplies?
"Dwean," Cas called. Dean glanced down at the little angel wrapped around neck. The angel was smiling at him with those bright blue eyes.
"Who?" Dean questioned. The angel made a pouty face and Dean held back the urge to smile at that cute little face.
"Dwean," the angel repeated. Dean pretended he didn't hear. Cas continued to pout, but opened his mouth and sounded out Dean's name slowly. "D-E-A-N."
"That's more like it! What's up, angel?" Dean asked as he pushed the cart away from the toys and to the kids movies.
"You said that you'd protects us wright?" the angel asked. Dean smiled.
"Of course. Someone's got to," Dean told the angel while looking at several movies lined up in the shelves. Hmm…maybe Cars? A good Harry Potter movie wouldn't be too bad either though. That counted as a kid movie right?
"Whats if demons find us?" Cas asked. All three angels were staring at him now and Dean stopped the cart, giving the angels his full attention.
"Now you listen to me. I will never let a demon hurt any of you. Ever."
"Yeah, but what if they do?" Balthazar questioned, reaching out to the shelf holding adult videos and grabbing for the Hangover. Dean swatted away Balthy's hand and pushed the cart closer to the kid's section.
"Then we'll protect you and if that doesn't work then you three have each other. Brothers are always stronger together after all," Dean reassured the angels.
"Got that right, Dean-o!" Gabe shouted picking Tarzan out from the movie shelf as he leaned over the bar of the cart. Dean checked the price of the movie before taking it from Gabe and tossing it into the cart. A woman watched him carefully, a smile on her face. Dean smiled back and a gleam of mischievousness appeared in the angels' eyes.
"Daddy, what were you and papa doing last night?" Gabe asked in an innocent voice. Dean glared at the angel with brows raised.
"Yeah, was he hurting you? We heard yelling," Balthy jumped in.
"I don't remember hear'in nothing," Cas said, confusion crossing over his face as he stared at his brothers. Gabe and Balthazar rolled their eyes at their little brother, but their plan had already worked its magic. A look crossed over the woman's face and she quickly strutted away.
"It's not like that! We were watching Game of Thrones, Lady! No one can't not scream when that bastard Joffery is on the screen!" Dean tried to reason. The woman just hustled up her pace and a few other customers started to stare. Dean's face turned bright red and glared down at the angels as they giggled uncontrollably.
"Damn it! Maybe I should let them demons take ya," Dean muttered, pushing the cart away from the movie section to find Bobby and Sam so they could get out of here before the angels ruined anymore chances of him getting some anytime soon. Castiel looked up at Dean with wide eyes and Dean rolled his eyes at the angel. "Cas, I was joking," Dean explained. A frown crossed the angel's face and he buried his head back into Dean's neck.
"I don'ts understands how that was fwunny," Cas grumbled. Dean chuckled, lifting the hand not pushing the cart up to brush softly through Castiel's dark brown tuffs of hair. Castiel let out a comfortable sigh, nuzzling closer.
"Awe, looks like Daddy's getting along with his little kittens," Sammy teased as he and Bobby suddenly walked out from the dairy selection with a cart of their own filled to the top from baby supplies to bird products.
"We are not kittens, Sam. We are celestial beings," Cas clarified, but it sounded like he had said beans instead of beings.
Cas it's- oh, never mind. You all ready to go?" Sam asked, Dean nodded, handing Sam the cart and lifting Balthy and Gabe out and holding them in his arms along with Cas. He juggled with the keys a little as he tried to open the door with his hands full while Sammy and Bobby bought everything. The angels jumped from his arms, piling in the back seat and begging Dean to let them choose the music. Dean chuckled as the angels fought over the radio, spinning the dial this way and that. A kind of warmth spread over the Winchester as he watched them and secretly he didn't want this to end. Little did he know that a few months after taking in the sweet little creatures he would be kneeling by their corpses that he would soon watch burn away to ash like he had seen with so many other hunters he had grown to know and watch die.
Hey I promised another chapter and it was a happy chapter. I didn't say if it would take place right after the last one. *laughs evilly* Anyway, so you get a glimpse of it all from when it all started. And hey! This fic now has over 100 reviews! WHOOP! Thanks so much! Talk to you all next chapter! I'll try to get it written as soon as possible.