Hey Loveys! Here's the next installment. The next few chapters are going to be really involved with life at the bunker, since I can't really further my plot until I see the mid-season finale. If you review Dean will give you a ride in the Impala! Also, I know Dean is standoffish but that's going to be developed. This is NOT a Dean-bash fic (bcilovehim). Enjoy!

Chapter 6

When they got back to the bunker, Sam and Dean sat Lily down, wrapped her in a blanket, made her some soup ("Since when do we have soup?") and got right down to the ground-rules.

"Ok. Listen up. No magic, number one. No running off, number two. Number three, you do what we tell you, no questions. We have a dangerous job, we don't always have time to explain ourselves. You cook, you clean, you help us out with our Rowena problem, and we give you a place to stay and protection. Got it?" Dean had been pacing back and forth in front of her chair like a professor giving a lecture, hands clasped behind his back, but now he turned and faced her, waiting for an answer. Lily nodded and Dean cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Yes, sir." She amended. Dean stepped aside and Sam took his place.

"Until we can figure out how to enroll you in school without raising suspicion, I'll be teaching you here. This is not optional. You'll have homework and tests just as if you were in school. Ok?" Lily nodded, biting her lip. "In addition-"

"Uh..Mr. uh Sam sir?" Lily's voice was shy, and she half raised her hand as she interrupted. Sam chuckled at the title.

"Just Sam, Lily."

"Oh…sorry. Umm well..will I really be going to school?"

Dean stepped forward before Sam could answer; "Are you really fighting us on this already? Because I just got done saying you do what we say."

Lily's face fell at his reproach and she stuttered, trying to answer quickly. "N-n-no! I'm not.. I just. I've never been to school. I'd really like to go."

Sam looked flabbergasted and Dean stepped back from his aggressive stance, shocked. "Never been to school?"

"Rowena never let me. She taught me to read and write so I could help her with spells and basic numbers and math so I could run errands. I mostly just did a lot of reading in the library when she would send me out. But I'm not stupid! I taught myself lots of things!" She said the last bit vehemently, glaring at her shoes. "But…I would really like to go."

Sam and Dean had recovered by the end of her admission and Sam stepped close to her, his voice neutral and friendly. "Of course you're not stupid, I'll just do some testing and figure out where you are and then we'll find a way to get you into school, ok?"

Lily nodded, mollified.

"Ok, let's get your stuff and find you a room."

Lily looked up, surprised. "I'm not going to sleep in the storage room?"

"Of course not." Dean's voice was gruff and his jaw was tight, "Sam give her the tour, I've got stuff to do."

Sam nodded, frowning. He walked over to Dean and quietly asked him if he was ok.

"No. Never been to school. I'm gonna kill Rowena, first chance I get."

Sam smiled, shaking his head

"What? What's so funny?"

"Sure you don't care." And with that, Sam walked back to Lily and helped her get her stuff together. They walked down the winding halls, Sam pointing out the kitchen and library and various other rooms, explaining what she would need to clean and what she needed to stay out of. Lily recognized the storage room and hurried past it, hoping Sam wouldn't change his mind about her sleeping in a bed. Finally they arrived at a long hallway with doors all along the length.

"This is your room. Dean's is down there, second door, and mine is up that way, third door on the other side." Sam opened the door and led her into her bedroom. Lily looked around at her new home. A simple twin bed sat in the center, flanked by shelves on either side. The blanket was spare but durable, and the mattress looked luxurious compared to what she was used to. There was a plain, flat weave rug on the floor and off to the side a door led to a vintage bathroom tiled in white with black accents. "It's not much but the bed is clean and the bathroom works."

Lily was almost lost for words. She had never had her own anything and now all this space was hers. "I think it's the most amazing room I've ever been in!"

Sam laughed and rested his hand briefly on her shoulder, "I'm glad you like it. Need anything?"

Lily shook her head and whispered another thank you. "I'll let you get settled then. Meet back in the main room in a few hours, ok?"

Sam turned to leave, but Lily's soft voice stopped him. "Sam? Is…is Dean mad at me?"

Her face was so concerned that Sam's heart broke. "No, Lily. He's just- We're both surprised you haven't been to school. He's…upset with Rowena and this isn't helping her case."

"Don't worry." Dean's voice in the doorway startled both of them. His face was inscrutable but his voice had tightness in it, as if he was barely containing himself. "Rowena will never hurt you again. She'll have to go through us."

Lily blushed and, embarrassed, turned around to busy herself unpacking.

"Ok well, we'll let you get to it" Sam and Dean exited and closed the door behind them, leaving her alone in the room. She slowly circled the space, touching a light here, trailing a finger down a shelf there, before lying down on the bed and sighing in happiness. Never in her lifetime did she ever believe she could be this content. A room of her own, good food, new clothes, and best of all, a family. She knew Sam and Dean were close, but she couldn't help but hope that she could become a part of that; that there might be a place for her in their hearts. The thought of Dean's mistrustful scowl came unbidden to her mind. She wanted his approval more than anything. She resolved to be on her absolute best behavior. She would make amazing food and everything would be spotless. She would do all the laundry and listen to everything he said and get A's on all her work. Everything would be perfect.

Lily lay there for a long time, daydreaming about her new life, until she fell asleep. She was awoken by a knock on the door, followed by the sounding of the latch. "What happened to meeting in the great room?"

It was Dean's gruff voice and she scrambled to sit up, blinking the sleep out of her eyes. "Sorry…I didn't mean to fall asleep. I'm coming"

"No- it's fine," his tone was not unkind, even though there was always that underlying roughness. "Just wanted to make sure everything was uh…all right."

"Oh yea, thanks. This is…amazing. You guys have been so nice to me, I- can't thank you enough." Dean cleared his throat but didn't say anything, holding the door open for her and gesturing towards the hall. They walked side by side silently, with Lily stealing glances at Dean every once and a while. She felt painfully shy and awkward around him, and hesitated to speak, trying to choose her words carefully. "So, what are we..uh…what's happening now?"

"Introducing you to someone." Lily balked at this. She didn't realize anyone else lived in the bunker, and anxiety gripped her. Who was this person? Were they nice? What was their role? Would they like her? These thoughts swirled around her in a cloud of worry as they entered the main room with the map table. Standing at the far side with Sam was a short figure in a trench coat. They both turned to face her and she shrank instinctively back towards Dean before suddenly remembering herself. She pulled away, blushing furiously. Dean cracked a half smile above her head where she couldn't see and put a large, warm hand briefly on her back, propelling her forward.

"Lily, this is Castiel. He's our resident…uh-"

"I am an angel of the Lord." His voice was like tumbling pebbles and Lily balked at his extended hand, not sure what to make of his introduction. "I believe the shaking of hands is customary."

"S-Sorry sir. It's nice to meet you" Dean had given her another push and she extended a shaky hand, looking behind the man in the trench coat to Sam, who smiled at her reassuringly. "It's just…you're not really what I thought angels looked like."

"Yea, he gets that a lot." Dean came around to face her. "The rules apply with Cas as well. If Sam and I are gone, what he says goes. Got it?"

Lily nodded, still a little confused, but feeling more comfortable around the strange angel in a trench coat who hadn't released her hand yet.

"Cas," Sam spoke with a barely concealed laugh, "You can let go now."

"Oh. Right." Cas let her hand drop awkwardly and the brothers both laughed. Lily smiled in spite of herself and felt a tentative happiness bubble up in her. This is what belonging must feel like, she thought.

"Ok. Let's go grocery shopping. Do you know how to make pie?"