"So I guess we need a moving company to help us move our shit," Jet mused aloud while Dean turned the kitchen upside down. Cas was helping but he wasn't actually searching for anything. "By the sound of your scavenging I'd say we need to go grocery shopping too."

"Well," Dean leaned on the marble countertop with his findings splayed out in front of him; Cas still pulled things out of the cupboards behind him and enjoyed every second of it. "I've got some cereal, oatmeal, and some ingredients to make shit I guess but perishables are a no-go."

"Which eliminates everything but oatmeal if you wanna eat that shit with water." Jet rolled his eyes and stood up, "I'll go get some food I guess."

Dean frowned, "I should stay here, huh?"

"Unless you want Cas screaming by the door after we leave, yeah I think maybe you should stay." Jet looked to Castiel who had successfully emptied a cupboard of all its contents; dishes lined the floor and counter while he proudly inspected the empty space. "Maybe put some pants on him, that should take up enough time until I get back."

"Ha ha, very funny." Dean knelt down and started replacing the items Cas had relocated. He was a little surprised that he hadn't tried to get Cas into pants already, especially since they slept in the same bed and Cas was a cuddler. "I'll go look to see if I can find some shorts, let's start small here."

"Still better than nothing, it's not like he knows he should cover up and the longer he runs around nude the more I feel like a creep."

Dean could see Jet's logic there, Cas had no concept of social norms therefore he probably couldn't really consent to most things. Not that Cas meant to be sexual by being nude, nor had any of them looked at him that way. Maybe it was more a comfort thing? Dean wasn't entirely sure why it was indecent to let Castiel be naked, but he couldn't find the arguments to defend it without being labelled a pervert. Pants were a good step to take.

Jet said his goodbyes as Dean cleaned up the mess he and Cas had made, Castiel was confused but he helped anyway. It was nice, Dean wasn't sure if Cas would be upset that his work was being negated by putting it all back. Good to know it wouldn't be a problem, at least for that one moment anyway. Castiel didn't understand what he was looking for or why he was doing it, if he had maybe he'd think it was as big a pain as Dean did.

"So what should we do?" he asked, a smile on his face as he watched Cas shuffle to another cupboard and peer inside. "Maybe doing some more exploring would be fun, huh?" He reached over and took Cas' hand, which earned him a wide-eyed look filled with nothing but questions. Dean wished he could hear them.

Castiel followed Dean's lead though the Winchester had no real idea what he was doing. Exploring was a good idea to get an idea about the layout and what they all owned now, but he wasn't sure he wanted to do it all just yet. As he contemplated whether or not he wanted to actually do it, Dean noticed that Cas was pausing every few steps to look at something new. There were paintings on the walls, decorative etchings in the wood on frames, and even some statues spread around the place. It was all new to Castiel, all he was used to was a dirt floor and a glass dome above his head.

"I've got an idea, c'mon Cas." Dean strolled down the main hall and went right for their indoor pool. A floor made of water might just blow the little dude's mind but Dean wanted to see that reaction. He questioned briefly if Cas could swim but figured it wouldn't be that big a deal.

When they walked inside Castiel was instantly curious about the movement of the water. He walked up to the edge and peered down, his first reaction was to dip his hand in and drink it. Cas shook his head, an immediate regret apparent on his face as he stuck out his tongue and spat the water back out.

"It's chlorine," Dean squatted down next to Cas and splashed some water at him, "keeps the water clean but tastes nasty."

Cas giggled, the first laugh Dean had heard from him, and mimicked Dean's move by splashing the water around. Dean wasn't sure what to say really, he talked to Cas like it might be understood or did things in the hopes it'd spark a reaction of some kind. But he had nothing to say that time, he just watched and listened as Castiel experienced the pool for the first time. Each noise he made meant something, it was his way of communicating and Dean wished more than anything he could understand it.

His own curiosity also surprised him; Cas was the strangest and most interesting thing to really happen in his life so it seemed normal to be involved. But Dean couldn't explain how much he cared; by all means he could have laughed and put Cas through numerous situations that made him uncomfortable. Just the idea of Castiel hurt and scared bothered him, he wanted to protect Cas and he wanted to help. Teaching Castiel how the world worked felt like the next logical step, but to do that Cas had to experience so many things before teaching could start making sense.

Dean believed that Cas could learn, from the nervous stranger to what he was just a day later told Dean that much. There were questions whose answers could change Castiel's reality, one of which being whether or not he could ever speak again. Dean wanted to teach Cas language, means of better communication, but to do that he had to know if it was going to be English or sign language.

As he sat thinking at the edge of the pool he wasn't prepared for Castiel to suddenly fall in. The winged male floundered about in shock at first, splashing Dean until he was soaked, but it only took a few seconds before Cas felt comfortable again. He touched his feet down and found himself in the shallow end of the pool; the water reached his abdomen and was completely safe. He lit up like a set of Christmas lights, his wings perked up and fluttered excitedly as he chirped at Dean about the experience.

Dean had to laugh, it bubbled up in his chest despite his anger at suddenly being drenched or the worry about his phone and water damage. "You wanna play in the water, do ya?" He chuckled before he stood up and pulled his shirts off, tossing them to the side carelessly. He kept his underwear on but jeans and socks were discarded just as sloppily, he made a mental note to throw his jeans a bit further, in case Cas decided to splash more and attack Dean's phone a second time.

He moved a little more to the deeper end and jumped in; making sure his cannon-ball would get Cas back at least a bit. He surfaced to the sound of Castiel squeaking; it came off as worried but might've been surprise as well. Cas walked closer but the deepening pool made him hesitate, he circled around to the shallow end again and paced. It was just like when he wanted to leave his comfort zone but couldn't drag up the courage. Dean smiled and floated on his back, he knew Cas would come to him, it was just a matter of time.

The soft grunting noises Castiel made distantly were a nice tell as to where he was while Dean wasn't looking. He could hear the sounds getting closer and then slip back again as Cas changed his mind about where he wanted to be. "It's okay, Cas." He said without looking, "it's safe." He wasn't keeping track of how many times he'd said that but it always seemed to work.

Castiel chirped a few times and started hopping closer; he waded all the way to Dean, his wings keeping him afloat more than anything else. He pushed his face against Dean's like a cat might, except it caused Dean's head to sink a little. He sputtered and coughed due to the sudden intake of water, he was not at all prepared for Cas to accidentally dunk his head.

Cas, of course, was very concerned. He squealed a little and grabbed Dean, who had no idea what was going on while he hacked up a lung. He blinked rapidly when he saw the pool fall away from his feet, the sound of heavy movement from Cas' wings filling his ears. Dean looked to see that Castiel had carried him out of the pool in order to save his life.

Dean on the other hand freaked out. He flailed as soon as he realized he was in the air, "Put me down!" he shouted and wrapped his arms around Cas' shoulders, his fingers digging into hard muscle. Castiel purred softly and nuzzled Dean's cheek as he slowly lowered them to the floor. Dean's breathing didn't start to return to normal until he felt the tiles under his feet. His heart was racing and he was pretty damn sure death was just around the corner.

Cas lied Dean down and perched over him, looking at his face and checking for possible injuries. Dean reached up and pat his face, "Thanks," he wasn't sure if that was sarcastic or not, but regardless he was pretty sure Cas couldn't quite understand it anyway. He couldn't help but smile though; it was nice to see Cas worried about him. Apparently he wasn't the only one who cared too much after just one day.

They spent some time just hanging out on the floor next to the pool, Dean was in no hurry to rush around and Cas seemed content in most places as long as Dean was there. He stared up at the high ceiling, marveling quietly about how nice the place was. "Hey Cas," he just started talking, he couldn't really explain why. "What do you think of all this? It's kinda weird, you know? I mean, it's a whole new world for you in a way, and it's all new to me too. I've never been rich before, I have no idea what to do with myself. We're kinda going through the same thing, maybe…"

Dean sighed and turned his head to look at Castiel, there was a soft glow to his eyes but it was nothing like when he felt threatened. Cas just watched him, didn't make a sound or wander off like someone with no attention span. He watched Dean like he wanted to answer, like there was an intention to why he was sitting there.

"Can you understand me, Cas?" Dean asked quietly, his brow creased and his mind starting to race. He imagined that Cas would nod his head, that maybe Castiel understood all of it but couldn't help the strange animalistic behaviours. But Cas didn't move, he gave no signs of understanding but he didn't exactly prove otherwise, either. Dean frowned and dropped his head back again, "I wish I understood you…"

Castiel nuzzled his cheek and lied down on the floor next to him, wings splayed out on the floor.

It wasn't until ten minutes later that Dean decided he'd been lying around for too long, "Maybe I should get you into some pants before Jet gets back." He looked at Cas with a smile, to which Castiel just tilted his head in response. He clearly didn't understand what Dean meant.

Author's Note:

Heya guys sorry this one is a bit shorter, been feeling a bit down and I slacked on writing but I wanted to get a chapter out to you all. Take care, guys