"Dean, wake up."
Dean bolted upright, awake, looking quickly back in forth in the dim light from the overhead bulb. Cas, that was Cas' voice. He had sensed his presence, could swear that he still felt the crackle of ozone in the air of the bedroom, but the angel was nowhere to be seen. Dean threw his legs over the edge of the bed, rested his head in his hands and massaged his temples with his thumbs. Did I actually think he'd come? After everything I've done? Dean, you're a grade-A idjit-
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something on the floor, by the door. He stood carefully, padding over to it in his bare feet. What the hell? he thought, unsure if he was awake or still asleep. He knelt down to have a closer look.
A pie. Someone had left a pie on the floor in front of the door.
Dean picked up the pie and examined it closely. This was definitely a real pie, not a dream pie. It was in a foil pie tin, and looked an awful lot like his favorite apple pie they served at the diner. Balancing it in his left hand, he carefully opened the bedroom door and to his surprise found another pie, on the ground directly outside. Dean shook his head, trying to make sense of the situation. Is Sam fucking with me? What is-
There it was, down the hall. Another pie.
Dean picked up the second pie carefully and headed down the hall. Upon reaching the third pie he looked ahead toward the end of the hall. Another pie. Dean half walked, half jogged down the hall until he came into the main living area. There are the table rested two more pies. A seventh pie laid at the base of the stairs, and Dean could see a pie on every third step all the way up to the door of the bunker. Dean set one of the pies on the table and followed the trail up the stairs to the door, taking two steps at a time despite his exhaustion. He threw open the door to find more pies, trailing away from the door all the way up to-
Cas.
Cas stood before him, leaning against the front fender of the Impala. The driver's side of the car was open. When they made eye contact, Dean opened his mouth to speak but could not find the words. All of this was so overwhelming. His brain just could not reconcile Cas' presence, and the pie, it was all so surreal.
Castiel took off his overcoat carefully, draping it over the door of the Impala. He repeated the procedure with his suit coat, staring deeply into Dean's eyes the whole time. The pair were illuminated by a low, waxing moon that bathed them in cool light as the autumn mist crept across their feet. Castiel reached up and loosened his tie, then pulled it off and let it drop to the ground. He unbuttoned the two top buttons of his shirt, biting his lower lip ever so slightly, and began rolling his sleeves up to his elbows, first his left, then his right. Dean was reeling. Who was this person who stood before him, exuding confidence, undressing with purpose?
Castiel was filled with terror. He fought to steady himself, to make slow, measured movements. Dean loved him, he knew that now. Loved him despite all of his faults and missteps. He needed to show Dean what he meant to him, make him feel worthy and loved.
Be the man you want Dean to love, not to settle for.
With a small gesture of Castiel's hand, suddenly the air all around them began to twinkle as tiny, blue fairy lights floated and danced, creating highlights and shadows that traced the contours of their bodies. It was then that Dean's hands fell away, dropping the pie at his feet. His chest tightened and body burned, and were his legs not frozen in place by shock it would have taken all of his will power not to run at Castiel, full-bore, tackling him into the side of the Impala.
Castiel smoothed one hand across the hood of the Impala and it rumbled to life, reassuring the angel with its familiar purr. He tapped the hood lightly with a finger, and Dean could hear a tape click and the strains of music coming from the speakers and out into the night.
Castiel took a step away from the car, arms relaxed and hanging at his sides. Dean could hear the slow rhythm of a guitar and then recognized the song. I am the Highway . Chris Cornell's voice began, but Dean's jaw dropped as Castiel opened his mouth and began to sing along.
Pearls and swine bereft of me,
Long and weary my road has been,
I was lost in the cities,
Alone in the hills,
No sorrow or pity for leaving I feel.
Castiel's voice was soft at first, barely audible over the existing song vocals. As he continued, his voice grew louder, more confident. He could see Dean blinking, shivering in the twinkling lights. It was all he could do not to run to Dean and wrap him up in his arms, but he knew he had to do this first. He had to show Dean who he was and clarify his intentions. He'd never sang before, not in his vessel's voice. As the song continued, he began to fill with purpose. He felt confident. Graceful. He knew what he wanted, and was on his way to getting it.
Dean stared, mouth agape, as his angel reached the chorus of the song. He alternatingly growled and purred through each verse, each syllable hinting at a longing that had before gone unexpressed. His eyes glowed with a blue flame that grew brighter and brighter with every word. The fairy lights began to collect and coalesce around Castiel, soaking into him as his torso began to glow. He lifted his arms outward, and Dean could swear he saw the angel's hips sway slightly.
I am not your rolling wheels,
I am the highway,
I am not your carpet ride,
I am the sky.
Castiel's voice grew louder, reverberating across the field and through the wooded thicket that surrounded the bunker. Dean could feel it resonating throughout his body, a tingling in his extremities that traced up his limbs and pulsed in his chest and down into his groin. His head swam and he felt weak in the knees. Never in his wildest dreams or nightmares could he have conjured up such a sight. This is real. He's really here.
A smile crept across Castiel's face as the song continued. He could feel himself filling to the brim with adoration for his human. He could see it reflected back as he stared at Dean intently, and his joy grew exponentially as the music played and the words he had practiced so carefully came spilling out like he had known them all along. The love and lust that had caused so much confusion previously was now exquisite and pure, and could no longer be contained. It suffused outward in the form of celestial light. He tilted his head back and closed his eyes as he continued.
Friends and liars don't wait for me,
I'll get on all by myself,
I put millions of miles,
Under my heels,
And still too close to you,
I feel.
Dean took a shaky step forward, breathing heavily with desire and relief. Dean understood now what Castiel wanted. He was not a human, and didn't operate by the same set of rules. He wanted Dean to love him for what he was, without question or judgement, and to know that Castiel would do the same. They couldn't define themselves by their failures and scars. Neither of them was perfect, and that was a good thing. They could be strong alone, and that made them stronger together. Just then, a huge grin spread across Dean's face as he saw his angel, filled with joy, begin to dance like no one was watching. He gestured to the sky and the ground around him. His movements looked unconscious, like that was just the way of things. Dean could get used to this, his uninhibited, joyful angel.
I am not your rolling wheels,
I am the highway,
I am not your carpet ride,
I am the sky.
Castiel lost himself in the song and his feelings for Dean. He could feel his grace surging through his body as his hips swayed and his head bowed. Suddenly, he felt an eruption from his back as his glow intensified.
Dean froze again as he saw two huge wings materialize in a flash of grace and static. They weren't shadows, they were real. He could see Cas' wings, actually SEE them. They were huge, black, and pulsating with every color possible, real and imagined. They were the most beautiful things Dean had ever seen. There were no words, just his angel. He dropped to his knees, tears in his eyes.
I am not your blowing wind,
I am the lightning,
I am not your autumn moon,
I am the night,
The night.