Dean was in the library, sipping on a glass of whiskey and flipping through a journal of one P. R. Richards; a man of letters who had a lot of interesting theories on angelic interactions. He heard the open and shut of the outer door and glanced at his watch, frowning at the late time. He listened to the foot falls get closer, and saw his brother stroll in while slipping off his jacket. "Where were you off to after midnight?"

Sam tossed his jacket over the nearest chair. "I found a book on sigil work that should prevent any reapers from getting inside the bunker."

Dean raised his eyebrows, impressed. "No kidding? See, even less to worry about."

Sam gave a short laugh. "Yeah well, try not to drop dead inside the bunker. Only Death himself can collect."

"Sounds like fun." Dean quipped, finishing off his glass and setting it aside.

"Anyway, I'm going to get some sleep. Don't stay up too late."

"Thanks, mom." Dean rolled his eyes as his brother left. He closed up the journal and leaned back in his chair, taking a deep breath and rolling his head to crack his neck. Deciding that Sam's advice didn't sound half bad, he pulled himself to his feet, indulging in one more deep stretch before kicking his chair back into place and heading towards his room.

He hesitated before pushing open his door, looking down the hallway and noticing the light coming from beneath Cas' door. He frowned, heading over and knocking gently, getting an invitation before entering.

Cas was sitting on his bed up against the headboard, arms crossed. He looked up and nodded at Dean.

Dean walked in, shutting the door most of the way behind him. "You good?"

Castiel hesitated, but nodded. "I found sleep for about an hour, but my dreams were most unpleasant. Sleep has eluded me since."

"Yeah, it has a way of doing that." He sighed. "You try counting sheep?"

Cas' mind flashed back to the nice man under the overpass giving similar advice. He gave the hunter an almost painfully confused look, but didn't voice his question.

Dean raised his hands. "Never mind."

"I know you are no stranger to terrible torment in dreams, what helps you sleep?"

Dean pulled a face at Cas' bluntness. "A bottle of jack and some decent luck?" He gave a weak laugh, but frowned as Cas continued to look at him imploringly. "Honestly, there isn't much." He shook his head. "Some nights you just don't win that battle no matter what you do."

"Doesn't that drive you mad?"

"That's being human. Or at least that's being us. You see that much fucked up shit, it's bound to give you a few nightmares."

The former angel deepened his frown, unsatisfied with the response he got. "Being human is more difficult than I have given it credit in the past."

"You'll get the hang of it."

"Will I?"

Dean shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe. But you've only been at it a few days, give it a few more." He shook his head. "Meanwhile, why don't you try taking off your shoes, and maybe laying down while you're at it."

Cas slid forward, kicking off his shoes. He considered for a moment before choosing to lay on his side in the middle of the bed.

"That's it. No, under the blanket Cas."

Cas readjusted and pulled the sheet and blanket out and over him, looking at Dean one last time as if for approval.

Dean just rolled his eyes. "Alright, maybe that'll help. I'll see you in the morning, Cas." He reached up and switched off the main light before walking towards the sliver of light coming through the slightly open door.

"Dean?" Cas asked, and the silhouette of the hunter paused in the doorway. "Thanks."

"No problem." Dean replied, slipping out and closing the door behind him. He headed to his room, planning his own prize fight with his sleeping demons for rest.

.

When morning arrived, Dean fell into his normal routine of shower, clothes, then caffeine. He wasn't surprised to find Cas sitting in the kitchen. He started a pot of coffee before turning around and looking at the former angel more closely. "That all you gonna eat?" He gestured at the bowl of milk-less cereal Cas was currently eating with his fingers.

Cas followed his gaze to his food and back, and he frowned. "Is it not adequate?" He considered that he didn't know much about the human body or how to keep it alive, and this meal may not be satisfactory to that goal.

Dean rolled his eyes again and resigned himself to the fact he would probably be doing that a lot in days to come. "I'll make us some real breakfast." He switched the stove on before heading to pull a pile of food out of the fridge. He threw the bacon on right away before turning back to the counter. Cas came to stand beside him, curiously watching the hunter work. "Hand me that bowl over there."

Castiel passed him the bowl, and stepped back slightly when Dean reached forward and grabbed a whisk. "What are you making?"

"Eggs and bacon." He cracked a few eggs into a bowl, throwing in a bit of cream and cheese before seasoning it with a touch of salt and pepper. "Here, mix these together." He instructed, before he turned to a smaller bowl. He cracked a few more eggs, this time making sure to separate and remove the egg yolks. He'd never stop making fun of his brother for it, but he'd make it for him to make him smile. Satisfied with Sam's boring eggs, he took a look at Cas' work. "That's good." He said, taking it back and checking the heat of his pans.

Dean caught the small smile that crossed the former angel's face out of the corner of his eye. He felt a small smile of his own before he set the eggs to cook in some of the bacon grease from earlier. Cooking with his angel shadow reminded him a bit of when Ben used to watch him cook. He caught himself several times almost giving narration to what he was doing, as if he were teaching Cas. Though as he watched the eggs cook, he wondered if he should have been teaching him. Not too long later he was turning off the heat and plating the eggs.

As if on cue, Sam walked in, clearly recently returned from one of his runs. He nods and takes a seat when Dean holds up a plated egg white omelette, and he gratefully accepts the mug of coffee he is offered. "You cooked breakfast?"

Dean shrugged, putting a plate and mug in front of Cas who immediately dug in. He finally grabbed his own plate and joined them at the six person table in the corner of the kitchen. "Cas' first breakfast in the bunker. Deserved more than dry cocoa crunch." He leaned back against the wall, absently picking up the paper Sam slid over to him. "Anything look like our kind of deal?"

"Nope. Seems kind of quiet out there. Checked in with Garth. He thinks the angels falling might have scared a lot of the monsters into hiding for a while."

"I suppose heavenly fire raining from the sky might have that effect." Dean muttered. He threw a sympathetic wince at Castiel as he noticed the angel frown at mention of his fallen brothers. "Kevin still locked up in his room?"

"Yeah." Sam sighed. "I'll run him a plate after we finish up. I wonder if we should try and get him out of the bunker for a while." He mused. Silence fell back in as both brothers set their attention to eating.

Cas recovered from the earlier thoughts of fallen angels, forcing himself to let go of his guilt for a few moments to enjoy the meal Dean had made. "This is excellent. I understand now why humans eat all the time."

"And this is just eggs." Dean said firmly, placing the paper back down on the table. Sam noticed the hint of a grin forming on his brother's face. "We're going to make a list, all the best foods. You're going to try them. And not just shitty knock offs. I don't care if I have to drive your ass all the way across the country, some food is worth it."

Sam rolled his eyes. "Maybe at some point I'll show you what a fruit or vegetable is before Dean kills you."

Cas wrinkled his brow. "I have seen both fruits and vegetables in the past."

Dean stood with his now empty plate and clapped Cas' shoulder. "Exactly. So we can skip over those." It was Sam's turn to roll his eyes. Dean snatched his brother's plate, leaving to put them in the sink to wash later, letting the former angel finish up savoring his own plate of food.

He hesitated at the sink, feeling a sudden rush of overwhelming emotion. He'd been successfully pushing it down for days, but the longer he went without taking stock of them, the harder they became to bury. It was too easy to put on a front, make breakfast, tell Cas about all the great food they'd eat, move around like things were alright.

But they weren't. Cas becoming mortal, his brother almost dying, the angels falling, one living inside his brother. Things were far from normal and he wasn't sure how long he could keep his calm facade. Normally he'd take a few days while it was quiet, go off in his car, drink, get his bearings, but right now he couldn't risk the time away.

"Dean?"

The hunter startled and turned around. His brother was gone, and just Cas was standing directly behind him, empty plate in hand. He wasn't sure how long he zoned out for.

"Are you okay?" the former angel pressed.

Dean put on a shaky half smile. "Yeah." He tried to will some of the tension out of his shoulders as he took the plate and added it to the growing pile of dishes. "I'm fine, just, still catching up to the last few days." Putting it lightly.

"A lot has happened. It is quite overwhelming." Cas agreed softly.

"Yeah well…" Dean didn't know how to finish the sentence. He took a moment to study Cas, really look at him.

Cas looked tired. Not just from lack of sleep, though that was most certainly a factor, but Dean recognized a tiredness in the man that he often felt himself. If Dean thought being witness to the angel's fall was exhausting, being an unwitting pawn in the spellwork for it had to be crushing. He could see ten shades of guilt reflected in those blue eyes, and not an insignificant amount of worry for the future.

As bad as Dean was feeling, he wasn't alone in those thoughts. He sighed, letting his barriers down the slightest amount, allowing himself not to force a smile, and instead clapped Cas on the shoulder. "Come on, get your jacket. Let's go for a ride." He looked around, bringing his voice down a touch. "Don't tell Sam, he'll just worry." Or rather his angel co-pilot would.

Cas nodded, looking confused, but never arguing.

Dean led the angel towards the garage, sparing just a brief glance behind him over the kitchen. Things were a lot now, but he had to muscle through it. Everyone was counting on him this time.