Chapter Text
Innocence
“Angels are watching over you.” That was what Dean’s mother had always told him when he was little. Castiel stood in the corner of Dean’s motel room, watching the hunter as he slept. He had done this for years, well before the Winchesters had known of even the possibility of the existence of angels. He had always thought that the oldest Winchester brother looked younger and more peaceful when he slept, the lines and worries melting away from his face. Tonight however, this was not the case.
The hunter had fallen asleep in the old, threadbare arm chair in the corner of the room, arm dangled over the side and his father’s journal almost slipping from his hand. His face was scrunched up, and it was clear that he was having a nightmare. Castiel cautiously moved over to Dean's side, before gently laying a hand upon his brow. Visions of Dean’s time in hell flashed before his eyes, before everything went dark. Castiel snapped his fingers, and a small, brightly glowing orb of light appeared before him. “Take me to Dean.” The orb began to drift away, and Castiel followed.
Lying on the ground shivering in front of him was a small, hunched over figure, merely a child. Castiel carefully sat down beside him, and wordlessly took off his trench coat and wrapped it around the infant, who leaned into him almost instantly. They stayed like that until Dean finally stopped shaking, and had fallen asleep.
Looking down at his hunter, now sleeping peacefully, with a small smile, Castiel remembered what Mary had said all those years ago, as he found a blanket in the corner of the room and put it over Dean. Still smiling, he vanished from the motel room with an almost silent flap of his wings.