Four years changed a lot of things. Sam was no longer a small, scrawny little boy, but now nearly as tall and broad as Dean and ready to attend the university in Copenhagen. The little smithy in Kiminski was no longer run by Bobby, but by an entirely new family. Bobby, John, Dean, and Sam all lived in the icy blue castle in the northern hills, but it was no longer a sad, cold, isolated place.

The biggest change was of course the people. Gabriel was enough to take care of both himself and Castiel, but once the Winchesters and the Singers entered the picture, it drained him of his magic to keep the palace clean, so they hired a kindly lady for a maid and her husband for a butler. After that was sorted, it was determined that Sam could not attend a village school since the nearest village was ten miles down the mountain, so he of course needed at tutor. Once Anna and Lucifer found out that Gabriel was looking around for a tutor, though, they both decided that one tutor would not do for him. They both insisted on at least two, one for literature, languages and history, and one for science, math, and magic.

Tutors, however, seemed to think that they were the ones making demands on their employers, and after sending out offers to a few, Castiel found himself reading responses that specified days off, access to carriages, quantity and quality of personal rooms, and diet. Both Castiel and Dean scoffed at the responses at first until they learned from Anna that tutors were allowed to be so very picky due to the fact that they were charged with preparing the young minds of the future, so however unwilling, Castiel was soon in need of another maid, a cook, and a scullery maid.

Castiel recalled how Dean when he first came to the palace had asked about the lack of servants and had quipped that palaces usually had servants for the servants, and how true that was becoming. With the addition of a housekeeper who worked with Gabriel on the day-to-day operation of the castle and a stable hand for the new horses they required for the tutors' carriage, the servants officially outnumbered the family now.

Sam accepted Castiel as Dean's husband shortly after he had come to the palace to live, which was a relief to just about everyone involved. He dropped his hostility when he saw how Castiel treated Dean, the way he stared at him like he hung the moon, and the fact that there was nothing Castiel wouldn't do to make Dean happy, up to and including moving his ragtag family into the palace and taking care of all of their wants and desires. The part that really brought Sam around to Castiel, though, was when he discovered him searching the country for the proper sort of physician to care for John. It took some doing, but they finally found a woman who's first response was not to simply pack him off to an asylum, but to try and help him regain some of his life now that he was no longer under Alistair's poisonous magic.

Things were going slowly in that quarter. John was by turns lucid and delirious, though thankfully he wasn't violent. The most harm he did was pulling buttons off of coats, which he treated like coins, and often pressed them into the palms of the palace's inhabitants, instructing them to either buy something nice for themselves, or more often than not, begging them to look after Dean for a few days. He even asked Dean to look after Dean now and then, not recognizing him as his son.

Sam's first literature tutor had reacted rather badly to John's favors, and after throwing the buttons in John's face had demanded from Castiel what sort of nutty house he was living in. Castiel had barely contained his anger at the man when he had seen what the outburst had done to John's wellbeing, and had Dean not been close by to restrain Castiel, there might have been a new ice sculpture in the audience chamber in the shape of that very tutor. He was packed off, however, and a new literature and language tutor was found for Sam, a sojourning monk, who fit the family much better, and who didn't make such silly demands on his benefactors. In fact, he had very few demands at all, and had they not been so happy with the science and math tutor, they would have tried to find one of the monk's brothers.

At the end of the four years, it was clear that the tutors had done their jobs and done them well. Sam sat for tests at several universities and was accepted to them all, but since he was from Denmark, he wanted to go back and finish his schooling there. The entire palace was currently in an uproar, attempting to pack Sam off to the university. A list had come detailing exactly what Sam would need, and so Gabriel and Bobby were fussing over books, materials, wardrobe, pocket change, and the possibility of hiring a valet despite Sam's reluctance to have one to himself, the maids were busy taking notes on all the thoughts Bobby, Gabriel, or Sam might have on necessities, and Dean and Castiel realized they weren't needed for the time being and retreated to their room where they barricaded themselves behind closed doors and drawn bed curtains for the time being.

The one thing that didn't change was their love for each other. Whether it was forged by magic all those years ago, or whether they were simply made for each other, they never stopped feeling the desire, the pull to be together. And Dean's gentleness never changed either. He always lay Castiel down and undressed him like some sort of prize, unless Castiel took control and used his magic to snap their clothes off in an instant, then rode Dean roughly until he was a babbling mess.

This was one of those times, since they were sure they couldn't stay in the solitude of their bedroom for too long. Eventually, Gabriel would notice their absence and come looking to make mischief whether they were needed or not, so Castiel took control. He was already partially open from that morning and the night before, so Dean only needed to tease him for a few moments before Castiel was riding his fingers hard, ready for Dean's thick length in him.

Castiel straddled Dean's hips and guided him inside, steadying his hand on Dean's chest when Dean thrust upwards, bringing them together fully. Dean grasped Castiel's thighs as they thrust together.

Afterwards, they lay cuddled together, Castiel on his back in the crook of Dean's arm, playing with their fingers as they slid their palms together and linked them, teasing the pads of their fingers in the lazy way that lovers do.

"It's going to get a lot quieter around here," Castiel mused.

"True," Dean agreed. "I'm going to miss him."

Castiel turned and pressed his cheek to Dean's heart, smiling when he felt Dean press a kiss to the top of his head. "We…we could start a family," he said, timid. It was an idea that had been brewing in his head for a while.

Dean stroked his fingertips over Castiel's shoulder and arm, quiet for a long time as he ruminated the idea. "You got a magic womb or something?" he asked at last. "It's okay if you do."

Castiel smiled. "No, nothing so wonderful as that." He raised his head so he could look at Dean. "Father Michael has been volunteering at the orphanage since Sam hasn't needed him as much lately, and there are two infants, two girls, who need a home. He suggested that we might wish to take them on."

Dean pulled Castiel back to his side and was quiet for so long that Castiel started to think he'd fallen asleep.

"Infants…that would mean nursemaids. And girls, we'd need governesses, chaperones. A dressmaker to live in the palace, probably."

Castiel laughed. "Guards."

Dean rolled them over so he was on top and started kissing up and down the center of Castiel's chest. Castiel felt himself quicken and pulled Dean up so he could kiss him. It was rare that they could go twice in one afternoon. He was nearly suspicious that no one was knocking at their door yet.

Of course, that was why Gabriel chose that moment to start knocking on the door. "Open up, lovebirds!" he shouted.

Dean groaned and buried his face in Castiel's neck.

"Just a minute, Gabriel!"

They got up and dressed and found the others in the gallery, arguing over a half-full trunk of Sam's school clothes, all black suits, robes and pristine white shirts and cravats.

"There you both are," Gabriel smirked, looking them up and down.

"What's going on in here that's so important?" Dean groused. He hated being interrupted.

"Sammy only wants to take what's on the list, and he doesn't think he needs anything else," Gabriel said. "I keep telling him he'll need suits for going out with his friends, and he's rejecting the line of credit you want to extend to him."

Castiel took the list that the university had sent them and looked it over. "Sam, see reason. The items on here are only for when school is in session. What will you do on weekends?"

Sam frowned. "I just think…I think I should be studying."

"You need to have fun," Bobby reasoned.

Sam gave a pinched look that Dean termed his "bitch face," and said, "But Castiel is paying for my education, and it won't serve him if I'm out partying."

Castiel snorted. "Sam, I'm positive that you are the last person on this earth who would squander his education. I want you to go and have a good time. Study, but make friends." He pulled out from the papers the letters for Sam's credit to various tailors, haberdashers, a few of the local watering holes and the like. Anything a young man of high birth might need from his patron. Castiel went to the desk and signed them all. "Sam, here are your letters of credit. I want you to—"

"I know, don't worry, I won't use them unless I absolutely need to, and I'll let you know as soon as I do."

Castiel chuffed out a laugh and shook his head, then went to Sam and handed him the letters. "No, Sam, you'll do no such thing." He set the boy with his best glare. "You will use your credit. You will make friends. You will order a new suit of clothes within the next few months, and you will wear it when you take your new friends out for dinner and drinks one night using my money. Are we clear?"

Dean and Bobby both laughed at that. "Besides, Sam, if you don't go out, how will you spend all the buttons my dad gives you?"

Sam smiled and shook his head, taking three gold buttons from his pocket. "Good point," he conceded. "All right, Castiel. I'll do what you say."

Bobby chuckled again. "Gosh, Cas, you're just forcing my poor boy to go and have fun."

"You're mean," John smiled. Sarcasm was one of the few things he understood when it came to humor.

"I am, John," Castiel agreed with a smile.

}O{

Sam left for school and his science and math tutor went on to bigger and better things, but Father Michael stayed to oversee the adoption of the two orphaned girls from the village. One was three months old, and the other was five months old. They named them Klara and Emma and Sam wrote often to ask about his nieces, but also to assure his family that he was indeed going out, making friends, and having fun.

Castiel was probably the first and only guardian in existence when he received bills for Sam's care. He and Dean would laugh over the economy that Sam used, and Gabriel went so far as to write the tailor and insist that even when Sam asked for cotton, he was to be given linen or silk.

As Castiel sat by his fire, Dean at his feet, Emma in his lap, and Bobby bouncing Klara on his knee while John tickled her chin, he thanked providence once again for bringing Dean to him. Dean might have been under a curse for a brief amount of time, but it was Castiel who had been the most cursed. Cursed by his title, by the frost of winter.

Frost couldn't touch him anymore. Not now. Now he had the warmth of spring on his face no matter how harshly the winds battered at his door.

The End

Thanks so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it.