84. Chapter 84

"Can we go shopping again today?"

Castiel paused in the middle of cutting up a pancake and turned to Dean, surprised. "You want to go shopping? What for?"

"Christmas," Dean said, like it should have been obvious. "I need to buy gifts for Sammy and Bobby and Jody." He lightly kicked his heels against the rung of the highchair. He still didn't like sitting in it, but at least he was no longer throwing food for being put into it. "And probably for Balthazar and Anael and Charlie too."

"Ah, right," Castiel murmured, resuming his work on the pancake. Jody had mentioned that gifts were a huge part of Christmas, and he realized that he should have been expecting this. Dean wasn't the kind of person to spend the days leading up to Christmas wondering what he was going to get. No, of course he would be far more preoccupied with trying to figure out what he should get for other people. He wondered, though he didn't ask, why he and Gabriel had not been included on that short list.

Instead, he picked up the plate and set it down in front of Dean. Dean immediately grabbed a couple of sticky, syrup-coated pieces with his fingers and shoved the food into his mouth. Castiel had to bite his lip to hold back a laugh. Most people probably would have blamed that behavior on Dean being a hatchling, but he was pretty sure that was just par for the course when it came to Dean Winchester's table manners - or lack thereof. Had Sam been there, he definitely would've been making a face and calling his brother out right now.

"So, can we?" Dean asked.

"Of course," Castiel said with a smile. At least this time Dean was looking forward to going shopping. Enough so that he'd actually suggested it, even if it was for the benefit of someone else. Being around Charlie had been very good for him. Whether Dean consciously recognized it or not, Charlie was helping Dean to normalize being a hatchling to the point where Dean no longer cringed at the idea of being seen by other people. That was definite progress.

"Good," Dean said, grabbing a few more pieces of pancake. He set himself to eating while Castiel watched him thoughtfully.

Shopping for Dean would not be difficult. Even though Gabriel and Castiel had already bought him some toys, Dean still didn't have a lot. Castiel also planned to get him more crafts, since Anael had mentioned how much Dean enjoyed doing crafts with Charlie, as well as some new books for them to read together at night. So he felt like Dean would be well covered in that respect. However, Castiel hadn't actually done any of the shopping yet. Seeing as how Christmas wasn't that far away, he realized that he should probably start.

Once breakfast was over, he took Dean upstairs to change his diaper and get him dressed. Dean spent a moment saying goodbye to Sparks before he took Castiel's hand and they walked back downstairs to find Gabriel lounging on the couch, waiting for them. Castiel let Dean pounce on Gabriel while he went to gather up Dean's jacket, scarf, hat and gloves. He also made sure to put Dean's fox into the stroller, just in case he ended up needing to collect it later. Dean could get tired and cranky fast from overstimulation, so it was entirely possible they'd need the stroller at some point.

"You know, I think you're forgetting someone on your Christmas list," Gabriel said as Castiel got Dean dressed. In spite of himself, Castiel's ear perked up.

"I am?" Dean said, sounding puzzled.

"Sparks, of course!" Gabriel exclaimed, and Castiel deflated a bit.

Dean gave a horrified gasp. "Oh shit, I almost forgot!" he cried, clapping a gloved hand to his mouth. "I have to get a Christmas gift for Sparks too! Daddy, I almost forgot!"

"It's okay, Dean. I'm sure Sparks would forgive you," Castiel said reassuringly, plonking Dean's hat on his head.

Gabriel stroked his chin. "Maybe we should give Sam a puppy."

"Sammy would love that! He's always wanted one," said Dean, momentarily distracted from having forgotten Sparks.

"Absolutely not," Castiel said, realizing that he needed to put a stop to that plan immediately. "Gabriel, you know better than that. Sam is in college right now. He's living in the dorms. You may have reconfigured his room a little bit, but that still doesn't mean he has the space to care for a puppy."

"I could always change things again," Gabriel said, ready to snap right then and there.

Castiel shook his head. "No. Sam doesn't have space in more than one way," he said, shooting Gabriel a meaningful look. Dean was well on his way to being a lot better mentally, but Sam was still stuck barely holding on - too stubborn to give up yet, but burning himself out in the process. Adding a dog into the mix might be just the thing that sent Sam over the edge irreparably. He was pretty sure Gabriel didn't want to end up with a newborn hatchling because Sam Winchester had a stress-induced breakdown.

"Spoilsport," Gabriel muttered, but he nodded at Castiel to show that he understood.

Dean frowned at this. "Can Sammy have a puppy someday?" he asked, looking between them.

"Of course. In the meantime, you should think hard about what kind of puppy Sammy should have," Gabriel said, patting Dean's shoulder. "Alright, we ready? Let's go."

Castiel wrapped his arms around Dean and spread his wings. Gabriel flew alongside them. In no time, they were standing in the carpark of the same place that they had taken Dean to before. Only now it looked a little different. There were thick, tall piles of snow lining the carpark. All the nestlings and hatchlings were wearing winter gear very similar to Dean's, and even a few of the angels were wearing heavier jackets. In addition, all of the stores now had holiday displays. The bright lights and decorations drew the eye immediately.

"It's so pretty," Dean breathed, staring at the display with wide eyes.

It belatedly occurred to Castiel that this was probably the first time since his mother died that Dean could properly stop and appreciate the Christmas decorations that everyone put up. When Dean was younger, Christmas was just a reminder that Mary was dead, and that John was too busy out hunting to bother with his children. As Dean got older, he'd made himself believe that things like Christmas didn't matter anymore. He'd thrown himself so far into hunting that there was a good chance Dean hadn't even noticed non-hunt-related things like decorations.

"It's beautiful," Castiel agreed, more determined than ever to make this the best possible Christmas. "Where do you want to start, Dean?"

Dean pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes, thinking hard. Finally, he said slowly, "I don't really know what to get for anyone except Charlie. Sammy and I usually give each other porn or booze, but..."

"We'll find something else," Castiel said flatly. Normally he was all for honoring Winchester traditions, but that was one tradition that was not going to fly this year.

"You guys go on ahead. I'm gonna do a little shopping of my own," Gabriel said, which meant that he was going to start shopping for Dean. It was Castiel's turn to nod at his brother, and then he took Dean's hand and they started walking towards the shops.

"What do you want to get for Charlie?" Castiel asked.

"She loves crafts," Dean replied. "She had a ton of fun showing me everything that she has. I'd like to get her something new that she doesn't have."

"Well, let's try the toy store first," Castiel said decisively. If Gabriel happened to be in the same place, he could just make himself invisible to Dean.

They crossed the threshold to the toy store and Dean’s eyes rounded in wonder when he saw that the inside of the store was fully decorated for Christmas. Castiel counted at least half a dozen Christmas trees, each one festooned with a different color. All of the trees had wrapped boxes underneath them to complete the look. Overhead were dozens of tiny twinkling lights and sparkling snowflakes, and several toy displays had been set up.

Including one with remote controlled cars, which Dean gravitated towards immediately. He gasped out loud when he spotted a car that just happened to be an Impala, and which bore a striking resemblance to the Impala sitting in their garage right now. Castiel looked around until he spotted the controller, which he picked up and handed to Dean.

“Oh, I shouldn’t,” Dean said, even though he clearly wanted to. “I might break it.”

Castiel gave him a fond smile. “Baby, I’m an angel. If you break it, I can fix it,” he said gently, rather than pointing out that it was very unlikely that Dean would break it. And even if he didn’t, Castiel didn’t think the store’s proprietors, even if they were human, would mine. The multiple displays had clearly been set up for children, nestlings, and hatchlings to enjoy.

Dean tentatively took the controller, but quickly forgot his hesitations. Castiel’s heart warmed to see Dean having so much fun driving the little car around the course. He was going to have to make sure he bought Dean one of these for Christmas – and maybe even one for Sam. Sam didn’t have quite as much of an attachment to the Impala as Dean did, but the car had still been home to him for years. Maybe the toy would help give Sam a way to relax a little bit too.

“That was so cool,” Dean said gleefully as he drove the car home. “It almost felt like driving the Impala again. I wonder if you could take it outside?”

“Probably not in the snow, but maybe in the spring and summer,” Castiel said. “Do you want to go again?”

Dean looked longingly at the car but shook his head. “No. I’m here for Charlie, not me.” He set the controller down, and Castiel contemplated telling him that Charlie would be very happy indeed if she knew Dean had been having this much fun. But he decided against it. Dean would feel awkward and embarrassed and lose any enjoyment from the toy if he was pressured into playing.

“Okay. If you want to come back later, we can. But for now, I think the crafts are over there.” Castiel pointed out the large section of the store.

It was interesting to watch Dean look the crafts over with a focused expression. He was so determined to pick out just the right gift for Charlie that it was adorable – but this was also giving Castiel some notes on what he should buy for Dean. Not that Dean was being open about what he might want, of course, but it was obvious in the way he lingered over a few things and touched them longingly.

At last, Dean picked up a big paint set. “I think she’ll like this,” he said.

“I’m sure she will too,” Castiel said. The paint set had over 500 different colors and promised up to 20 different kinds of paint.

Dean hesitated for a moment, then looked away. He mumbled, “I don’t have any money.”

Ah. Castiel mentally shook his head at himself. He really should have seen this coming. Dean and Sam had never had much money, but they had always prided themselves on figuring out a way to make things work. Normally this would be the time when Dean was either filling out a fake credit card application or hustling people at pool to make some extra money. Thankfully, he wasn’t capable of doing either right now.

“Dean, I told you before that you don’t have to worry about money. Gabriel and I have plenty of money, and what belongs to us also belongs to you,” he told Dean.

Dean’s frown deepened. “But this is expensive. And I have a lot of people to buy for. It’s not really from me if I don’t pay for it,” he argued.

“Money isn’t a concern, and you’re wrong about that. You’re the one who is putting all the effort into picking these gifts out. I wouldn’t know what to buy Charlie or Bobby or Jody. You thought about it, you got us here, and now you’re the one putting the work into it. That’s what matters,” Castiel told him.

“Really?” Dean said uncertainly.

“Absolutely,” Castiel said. He wrapped an arm around Dean’s shoulders and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “Now come on. Who’s next?”