Author's Note:

I think I forgot to say this last time but I've noticed a bunch of new people saying they clicked on this and couldn't put it down and I gotta say thank you so much for telling me that. It's such a good compliment and helps me keep motivated to write more. I hope you guys are still enjoying and welcome to the party :D

Cas' wings fluttered and wriggled in the coat, it was something he'd have to get used to but at that moment he clearly hated it. He could walk around in public without as many strange looks but Dean was willing to bet it was uncomfortable as fuck. Cas made faces as he tried to adjust to the fabric, it wasn't that it hurt but Cas wasn't used to any kind of cloth on his wings.

"Try not to move them too much," Dean had warned him at least once and Cas seemed to get why. If his back already looked like he had an abnormal growth on it Dean didn't imagine people would appreciate seeing it move around at all. He kinda still expected to have some assholes yelling stupid things, but for the most part nothing appeared terribly supernatural about the whole situation.

They attempted another walk down the street, a completely different one to avoid any weird moments with people they'd seen previously. Dean took a deep breath as they strolled, eyes darting about to the different faces and waiting for some asshole to pop up. A lot of people would be jerks about something as strange as wings, they'd approach no trouble but it was a little less likely if Cas appeared to be more deformed than that.

That didn't mean people wouldn't stare or say things out loud as they passed, but Dean was pretty sure it'd be a little less confrontational. More importantly Cas didn't seem to be affected by it at all. Dean wasn't sure if that was because he was hearing too many things at once to really differentiate what they were all saying, or if maybe he didn't care. Regardless, nothing was dampening Cas' current mood.

How could Dean not smile about that? He reached over and took his boyfriend's hand, squeezing it lightly as they walked side by side. Cas looked up at him, a little sparkle in those baby blues.

"Are you having fun so far?" Dean asked and Cas was quick to nod yes.

"It's been amazing!" He jumped a little, too excited to hold it all in. "The buildings are so tall and there are tons of people everywhere! And everyone's got a car too, some of them are really loud and fast, some of them are small and only have one person on them. I want to remember more of these things, I want to know more about it."

While Cas babbled on Dean noticed something very important about his speech; Cas was very close to normal speed. He barely paused at all during his expelling of words and it didn't seem to register with him. Dean smiled and listened, his heart started to flutter as he was a little more lost in how Cas spoke than what he said.

But that didn't mean he couldn't hear Cas. Dean knew that Cas was ecstatic with the number of shops and lovely things on display. Cas loved how many people were about and how fast the setting seemed to be. Everything was so big, and though it was loud too Cas was getting used to the noise. He knew what to tune out and what to listen to, what to pay attention to and what could be completely ignored. He was learning so much just by being in the city for a few hours. He saw that there were so many different types of people just in the few places they'd been, which in particular seemed to be fascinating to him.

Dean knew Cas was describing the folks he saw and how excited he was that none of them looked the same, but he wasn't as interested in the guy with the big nose or lady with really small ears. He just loved hearing Cas talk.

"Hey," Sam broke his concentration and he looked up. There was a sign with a big red arrow pointing down another street saying something about an early season farmer's market.

"Really?" he rolled his eyes and Sam shrugged him off.

"We could use fresh stuff for home, besides I think Cas would enjoy it."

"Let's do it!" Cas cheered and Dean lost all ability to say no.

The sign said they had quite a bit of a walk ahead of them but Dean didn't mind. He enjoyed seeing Cas' wide eyes scan the area around them, staring at all the strangers and new things. He wondered if there was a hint of recognition, if Cas could feel it prickling at the back of his mind. Maybe he saw an old hang out spot and felt like it was familiar, or maybe there was someone passing by he used to say hi to at a library or something. Dean would really be happy with anything like that, but he didn't need it to happen to be thrilled for Cas' new experiences.

Charlie's words struck Cas pretty hard but Dean was feeling them too. It was a level of acceptance he wasn't sure he could reach if it were him in that position. He'd never have to feel that way about Cas because he didn't know him before, he didn't have to deal with the fact he'd lost something in Cas.

But maybe that was the point? Maybe that was entirely why Castiel told him to wait, told him not to say 'I love you' without really understanding what it meant. Cas could feel he was missing pieces, Cas knew that there was something within himself that wasn't there that should be. He needed to know that Dean was there for everything, that Dean could connect to the idea that this wasn't all of Castiel.

He felt like he'd stumbled onto something but he wasn't quite sure how to explain to himself. It was more of a feeling, more something he just understood than something he would know by the words used to define it.

"Dee," Cas tugged on his arm and he tuned back in.

"What's up Cas?" He asked and looked to where Castiel was pointing, there was a hotdog vendor on the sidewalk and Dean would venture to guess that was Cas' attention grabber. "You want a hotdog?"

"It smells good," Cas sniffed the air, Dean couldn't smell it yet but he wasn't really surprised by that. "Does it taste good too?"

"Depends on who makes them," Sam said critically and Dean nudged him in the side.

"Don't be silly, all hotdogs are awesome. Sam's just a picky eater, c'mon Cas let's get you a hotdog." He almost felt like that weird 'Hotdog guy' from The Happening but shook off the feeling as he led Cas down the sidewalk.

"You gotta get one with everything," Charlie insisted, she kept up with Dean's pace and looked as excited as Cas was. "You always used to love it with 'the works.'"

"The works?" Cas looked at her for a moment and nodded, "Okay, then I'll have the works."

Dean was secretly very happy Charlie went with, she knew all the things that might just tug at Cas' brain and let something loose. Without her there Dean and Jet probably would've dragged Cas to all of their favourite spots, and then to the University for Sam's sake. Probably, he had no way of knowing what would've happened really but he was enjoying himself.

Cas was enthralled with watching the man put the hotdogs together, he was a little too close for the vendor's comfort but customer service was strong in that one. The guy just smiled awkwardly and handed out the food, hoping maybe for a tip for once. Dean felt a little sorry for the guy, what with having to do his job with an underarm attachment and all. Hell, the vendor was probably a little freaked out about Cas' appearance to begin with.

"Wow," Cas slipped around to the front of the cart again and looked at Dean with bright eyes, "Street food is really cool."

"It tastes even better," Dean winked at him and handed him the hotdog with 'the works.' Part of him knew how much of that shit would end up on Cas' face, shirt, and the ground but he didn't really want to think about it. "It's messy," he warned playfully though he was a little serious. "Try not to get it every where."

"Right," Cas smiled wide and took it with both hands, doing his best to be cautious with it.

Dean handed the vendor some cash, plenty of it being a tip. "Thanks pal," he grinned charmingly and the guy stuttered through a 'You're welcome.'

Charlie and Dean both got a similar hotdog to Cas' while Sam kept it pretty classic; the four sat together on benches watching the cars drive as they chowed down. Dean kept an eye on Cas and nearly choked. He forgot for a moment how phallic hotdogs were and he wasn't expecting an adrenaline rush just seeing Cas put the thing in his mouth for the first time.

"Are you okay?" Charlie smirked, a very knowing look in her eyes as she watched him beat his chest to ease his food down.

Cas looked up, mouth full now and cheeks doing a chipmunk impression as he gurgled something along the lines of 'What's wrong, Dee?'

"I'm good," Dean waved them off and inhaled deeply, "Just ate too fast."

"Here," Sam handed him a water bottle which Dean promptly guzzled until it was almost empty.

"Thanks Sammy," he sighed and tried to shake the feeling off. He looked back at Cas who tilted his head, cheeks still a little puffed up but less like a rodent now. "I'm fine, don't worry about it."

Cas nodded and happily went back to his meal, shoving it back into his mouth and making Dean look away before his mind fell entirely into the gutter. Cas had deliberately stated the he wasn't ready; Dean knew he shouldn't even be thinking that yet. Not to mention Cas was experiencing a bunch of new things, it was a big deal for him to be back in his hometown and Dean's thoughts could at least be appropriate for the situation. He scolded himself mentally and tried to distract himself by mentally naming car types as they drove past while he ate.

"You were right," Cas looked at Charlie, his face a little dirty but not terribly bad to Dean's delight, "I really liked it with the works."

"Told ya," She gave him a thumb's up which he returned immediately.

Dean kinda enjoyed seeing their friendship now that they were comfortable around each other. Charlie had finally accepted what had happened and what Cas was going through. She was always there for him but now her full support was available and it was an amazing thing to witness. Dean had that kind of friendship with Sam and Jet, he knew that he couldn't have made it through some tough times without them. It was uplifting to know Charlie was there.

There were still people passing by on the street, eyes constantly glancing toward Cas and then away as they tried to hide that they'd stolen a gaze. Then of course there were those who blatantly stared at Castiel with expressions Dean wanted to punch right off their faces. He glared at them, obviously and without any hesitation when they noticed his focus was on them.

Most of them didn't say anything, at least not until one guy sneered and said "I don't like that look, kid."

"I don't like yours either, grandpa." Dean cocked an eyebrow, keeping his voice low and threatening.

"It's a free country, I can look at freaks if I wanna."

Dean stood up angrily, unaware that Sam and Charlie had both done the same. All three were glaring the man down with looks that could kill and he walked off pretty fast.

"Yeah keep going, right into traffic you fuck!" Dean shouted after him.

"That was so cool," Cas breathed and Dean turned to look at him, finally realizing that the other two were just as menacingly ready to fight as he was. "You guys were in perfect sync."

"You bring out the best in us," Sam chuckled and sat back down. Dean felt pretty proud of their little team, none of them swung a fist but they managed to scare the guy off. Of course, he knew full well that Jet wouldn't have let the guy walk away and that would have been just as fun to see.

After Dean got the chance to clean Cas' face off and Cas got to do the same for him, they started down the sidewalk again. Dean wasn't really looking forward to hanging out at the farmer's market but what the hell; with Cas it could be entertaining. Assuming they ever managed to get there; Castiel started to pause in front of every shop with an even somewhat interesting window display.

There was a costume shop that had gag gifts and the like on the way and Dean wasn't sure he could pry Cas off the glass.

"Want to go inside?" Charlie asked with a smile and Cas nodded quickly.

"Can we? I know Sam wants to go to a farm."

"It's a farmer's market," Sam corrected, "But this trip is about you, Cas. Just let us know if you see something you want to do or see."

"I want to see everything, I can't choose." Cas said over his shoulder as he hopped into the shop. Dean shrugged with a laugh and followed him inside; he did usually like those kinds of places. So many opportunities for bad jokes and hey, maybe Cas would laugh at them.