When Dean woke up, he felt more refreshed than he'd been since… well, ever. He sat up, and met blue eyes. The angel looked at him curiously, as though he'd never seen someone wake up before.

"What are you looking at?"

The angel tilted his head; he looked confused.

Dean sighed and ran a hand down his face. "Never mind."

He stood up and stretched. Castiel's eyes followed him. He dressed. The angel watched. He moved to the bathroom. The angel was right behind him. Dean turned. "Look, I'm taking a shower." Castiel's look did not change. "That means you can wait out here." He took a step. The angel moved to follow him. He stopped. "That means you can wait here."

He closed the door securely and turned around to check that he hadn't been followed. He sighed and leaned back against the door. God damn angels. Begrudgingly he brushed his teeth and splashed water on his face. And then a thought struck him. Dean pulled the door open. "Can you see through walls?"

"Yes."

"Are you watching me?"

"Yes."

"But…I'm… just turn around, okay?"

Castiel obediently turned his back to the door.

Dean noticed a strange shadow on his back near his shoulders. He reached out a hand, and felt something solid and strangely soft. Under his hand, Castiel jerked. Dean gripped his arm tightly to hold him still as he traced out shapes in the air. "Dean – "

"Hush, Cas."

The angel glared at him. "Dean."

Dean suddenly seemed to realize what he was doing, and sheepishly let go. "Were those your wings?"

"Go take your shower, Dean."

When Dean emerged, the angel was gone. Dean he knew he would be. Only he could be given a guardian and still manage to scare it away in less than a day.

As he moved down the stairs, he smelled something delicious from the kitchen. He knew from personal experience that Bobby just could not cook, that left only one person. With a heavy heart, he entered the kitchen. "Damn, Sammy you'll never guess what I just –"

Sam was standing beside the stove with a pan of eggs, and sitting at the table was his angel. "Cas…"

"Hello, Dean."

"What are you… What are you still doing here?"

"Where else would I be?"

Dean closed his mouth with a snap and walked over to the stove. Sam gave him a generous portion of eggs. Dean wolfed it down and headed outside.

He entered the garage and grabbed a box full of tools, then headed out to the Impala.

The angel was leaning against a door.

Dean ignored him, and popped the hood, going to work on making his baby purr. As the sun climbed high into the sky Dean pulled back, wiping sweat from his brow. He was panting and almost considered going in to grab a beer.

The angel was in front of him.

Dean glanced down at his lips. They were very tempting. Hell, everything about the angel was tempting. His short black hair begged Dean to run his hands through it, his blue eyes were far too wide and innocent, and he was so small; Dean knew their bodies would fit together perfectly. He cleared his throat. "What?"

The angel handed him a cold bottle, beads of perspiration dripping down the sides. Dean felt a smile tug at his mouth as he accepted the drink. "So you just carry around water?" He smirked. "Got anything stronger?"

The angel's head tilted to the side. Dean sighed dramatically and put an arm around Castiel's shoulders, escorting him inside the house. "Water is all well and good, but we humans tend to prefer things of an alcoholic nature." He opened the fridge and pulled out two beers, handing one two Castiel.

He popped the cap off of his, and drank deeply. Cas mimicked his hand movement, and sniffed the beer dubiously. Dean laughed. "Drink it."

The angel cautiously tipped the bottle, and drank the contents in one go. He licked his lips, his eyes studying Dean. Dean laughed into his bottle, drinking decidedly more slowly. A comfortable silence settled over them. Dean paused and took a deep breathe. "Look, I'm sorry about earlier with your wings."

The angel tilted his head. "I admit I am… surprised you were able to touch them."

"What?"

"They exist on a different plane. They should be completely intangible to humans."

Dean's breathe hitched. He remembered how soft they'd been and he wanted to touch them again. His hand twitched towards Castiel, but he resisted the urge. "Come on, lets go back out."

When the evening was starting to wear on, they went back inside. Bobby was cooking dinner, and they joined Sam at the table, falling into easy conversation. After a while silence fell. Dean got up and went to the living room, pouring two glasses of scotch. When he got back to the table he handed one to his angel. Dean sipped at his drink, and Castiel followed suit.

Sam stared at them.

Dean froze. "What?"

"Seriously?"

"What?"

Sam took the glass from Castiel's hands and tasted it. "Dude, are you corrupting an angel?"

"Corrupt is such a strong word."

"Dean, you're making him drink alcohol!"

"Making? I wasn't forcing his hand."

Sam glared. "Dean."

Dean held up his hands placatingly. "Fine. You know what? Let's send him back. I'm sure he's still good as new. Besides," He shrugged, "I want to get back to hunting as soon as possible."

Castiel narrowed his eyes at Dean, while Sam's widened in surprise. "Hunting?"

"Yeah, Sammy." Dean tried to smile. "It's what I do."

Sam stared at Dean imploringly. Dean sighed. "Look Sam, I need to get out of here. I'm not used to sitting around, you know? I need to get back on the road."

Sam was about to say something when Bobby cleared his throat. "Get up you lazy idjits and help out. Otherwise I'll eat this all myself."

Dean laughed and got up, grabbing plates out of a cabinet. Sam followed after a moment, still frowning in thought. Castiel moved up behind the elder Winchester and spoke into his ear. "I am not so easy to get rid of. You will not scare me away, and you cannot order me to leave. I am here to protect you, and I will." And then he was on the other side of the room, helping Bobby serve the food.

Dean couldn't help but watch him. Then Sam elbowed him. "Ow! Bitch!"

Sam glared. "I want to come."

Dean stared him down. "You need to focus on school."

"It's two months away!"

"Damn it, Sam, there's going to be at least one educated Winchester!"

"It's not like I'm going to forget everything in two months."

"You could still die."

"So could you!"

"You're not coming Sam, and that's final."

Castiel and Bobby walked between them and set down the plates. They all sat down. Bobby looked at the glares the boys were exchanging, "If you wanna go back hunting the same rules apply."

Dean rolled his eyes. "I know, I know, call every day, come home every now and again."

"No." Sam glowered. "You come home every week."

"What? No!"

Sam moved to stand, but Bobby grabbed his arm, and pushed him back into his seat. "I think he's got a point. Every week, son."

Dean scowled at his plate, and stabbed at his food. "Fine. But I'm leaving tomorrow."