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"Did you burn sage again?" Dean asks as he comes through the front door of Castiel's little cottage. He can smell it in the air and it ruffles the energy of his own magic, all while allowing him to relax.
There's no answer from him, but a black cat comes trotting around the corner and sits down in front of him giving him a wary look.
She's the reason Cas has been smudging. She hasn't been around in the last week, having a habit of dropping by whenever she wants.
"Hello, Meg," he greets. He attempts to step over her, but she goes for his pant leg and bats at him. "Leave me alone, you devil," he grumbles and shakes her off.
Ever since Castiel's familiar found him, he's been at war with her for Cas' affection. Meg seems to always come between them at the worst moments and, while Dean won't ever entertain the idea of asking Cas to part with her, it's been hard work letting her have some of Cas’ attention too. It certainly didn't help that he was allergic.
The black cat gives him the stink eye, and seems to raise her brow at him, but Dean moves through the plant filled cottage to try and find Cas.
Every inch of the place smells of burnt sage, and Dean breathes it in, letting it soak into him. He enjoys how it affects his magic, making it fizzle and then relax, a stark difference to his day job in the nursery, dealing with miniature witches who barely have a handle on their gentle magic. Just three days ago a little boy nearly set Dean on fire — by accident, of course.
"Cas?" Dean calls again, but there's still no answer. Dean frowns and then digs into his pocket for the small pebble he keeps of Cas, it’s a token, something of Cas’ that has meaning to him. It’s the pebble Jimmy found for Castiel when they went to the beach when they were kids. Dean’s token that Cas has is the amulet that Dean’s brother gave to him that one Christmas they spent alone. It’s their way to locate one another anywhere, no matter how far. The pebble is pure white, unblemished and, when Dean holds it out on his palm and whispers a short distance location spell, it glows pale blue, a tendril of magic floating from it and leading him in the direction.
His dad would call him lazy for wasting his magic on simple things like finding people in the same house, but Dean enjoys it. He uses complex magic all day so coming home and using it for the simple things eases his mind.
Dean follows the spark, and it dances towards to the outside. Cas must be in the back yard then, which likely explains why he couldn't hear Dean calling for him.
The magic leads him to the shed, a large space Dean and Cas built a few years ago to allow Cas to work from home.
Castiel is the most intelligent witch Dean has ever come across, even more so than his brother, and that's saying something. He works hard creating new remedies and essences, new spells too. People come to him with all kinds of queries and demands and he takes them all on and figures out a solution. They're often tailored to each person's need, but some have gone out to the highest councils to be implemented officially.
He watches Castiel work from the doorway, the man is really focussed and pouring over at least six textbooks. Castiel's tongue pokes out between his lips as he works and he scribbles down notes and ingredients.
"Hey, Cas." Dean stays at the doorway to announce himself. As intelligent as he is, he easily startles when someone turns up. Dean learnt that one the hard way.
"Dean!" Castiel grins and the books around him close up. Another wave of Castiel's hand and they stack themselves neatly into a pile at the side of the desk, parchments roll up and bury themselves back into the pigeon holes and Castiel catches the quill as it takes a nose-dive off the dark wooden desk in his moment of distraction.
"I'm home, Meg tried to start something, but I had a good day at work. Hey, Jack finally got the hang of levitating pencil. It didn't end up in my thigh again." Dean smiles, remembering the cheer and encouragement he gave Jack over the past several weeks. The poor kid was behind on his skills since his mother wasn't a witch and was unable to begin teaching him like most other students. He was kind of Dean's favourite, not that he would tell anyone. It was a bit tragic, really, especially as he'd recently heard that Jack's mom was sick.
"That's great news, especially for your leg. How's that coming, by the way?"
"Whatever you put on it was a freakin' miracle," Dean tells him, and it's true, there's hardly even a scar there.
Castiel kisses him then, and wraps his arms around him and squeezes him tight.
"How's your day been?"
Castiel lets him go and sighs. "Hectic. I'm kind of hating what I'm doing right now. I love a challenge, I really do. But something about this feels weird ."
"Like bad weird? …Dark weird?" Dean asks cautiously. Dark magic isn't a light subject.
"I… maybe? Some of the ingredients I need to complete the remedy are on the banned list and I've looked through everything I can think of and there's no substitutions for them."
Dean listens, and feels Cas tremble.
"Dean, if I get caught messing with this stuff then they're going to arrest me, strip me of my magic and then what? What use am I then?"
"Jesus, Cas. Look, if you're not comfortable with the request then you need to refuse it, right?"
"There was a lot of money involved. He already gave me half of it as encouragement," Castiel tells him.
"What's the guy’s name? We can report the request to the Council, they can deal with him and you won’t take the hit for trying to start dark magic," Dean suggests. When he came home from work today, he never expected to run into an issue like this.
Friday nights were usually reserved for relaxing, taking care of one another after long weeks and making new recipes for dinner. Tonight, however, seemed to have dissolved into stressful problem solving, and a potential trip to the Council.
"Nick Kline."
The name sounds familiar to Dean. He's definitely run into the name before. Then it dawns on him. Jack's father.
"I know him - of him - he's Jack's father, the one who abused his mother. Oh… Kelly, Jack's mom, is sick, like real sick, I haven't seen her for weeks to drop Jack off, it's always their neighbour - never been a fan of Alastair." Dean shudders. "But what if all of it is connected. Is Nick trying to keep Kelly alive or something? Is that what this spell would do?"
Dean paces. Looking at Cas every so often and how his face has paled and his foot taps anxiously on the floor.
"Dean, this suddenly feels so much worse. I'm sorry - I shouldn't have taken it on in the first place." He throws his hands up over his face and growls in frustration. A couple of the shelves in the shed rattle and shake, glass vials and pots clinking against one another.
"Cas, stop," Dean warns, gently and then pulls Cas in to calm him. "Let's go inside. We'll go to the council."
Once inside, Dean makes Castiel a cup of herbal tea, fashioning it himself from the different dried herbs and flowers in their pantry and infusing them with the freshly boiled water. Taking it to Cas and watching him inhale the steam before taking a sip calms Dean himself.
"Don't rush your tea, but we'll go when you've finished. I don't think something this big can wait."
Castiel just nods and then Meg comes sauntering into the room. Dean eyes the cat, and grumbles lightly as she hops onto the sofa and wriggles her way onto Cas' lap.
Dean can feel the extra balance Castiel gets from Meg, and tries to not feel upset that she can do it better than he can. Familiars are rare, but they're special and Meg means a lot to Castiel.
Castiel sips his tea, all while scratching Meg between her ears.
"Hey, is there anything you need from the shed that could be good evidence against your case?" Dean asks.
"My journal perhaps, and the papers I was working with. The journal is in the top drawer and the papers are probably in the stack of books. They all have today's date on them."
Dean nods and then heads back outside to grab everything Cas asked for. He finds his journal, turns it to the last written on page and finds Castiel usual neat handwriting detailing the requests he has been given. Right there at the end is the one from Nick, his request seems benign on the surface, but Castiel knows its intricacies more than he does, so all he can do is trust Cas on this one and hope what evidence Cas has is enough to get the council to investigate.
If the council do investigate, Dean will have to make sure the cottage is warded a little more heavily to stop any unwanted guests in the potential fallout. He won't put Cas in harm's way if he can help it. Sure, Cas could probably ward his own house, but if Dean helps then the protection will be stronger if anything.
By the time Dean has collected everything Cas wanted, Cas is ready to go. His teacup is left on the side, just the leftovers that filtered through the tea strainer sitting at the bottom. Cas is putting on his long coat and his scarf, it's not that cold out but Dean knows that the layers bring him comfort.
"Here's your papers, have a look through and make sure everything you want is there."
Castiel rifles through them before nodding and bending down to pet Meg again. "We won't be long. It would be nice if you stuck around for a while though," he tells her and the cat sits, looking up at Castiel with what Dean can only describe as a smile.
If you asked Dean, he would say it's creepy, but his relationship with cats is non-existent.
The drive to the Council is long and quiet. Dean keeps the radio off, knowing it will just make Cas more nervous. The Council used to be hidden away but in recent times they've moved to a tall industrial building in the city which is more accessible.
It never made them more friendly towards those that go there. They still use the old ways of questioning and interrogation, and Dean's sure there's no lawyers present. They're the last line, but this matter is one that goes straight to the council no matter what. Dark magic is forbidden.
Parked up and heading into the building Dean holds Cas' hand and he relaxes a little with the affection. "It's gonna be okay," he whispers moments before they're affronted with a grumpy looking witch who looks less than pleased to be there.
"Hello, um…" Cas starts and Dean feels his hand tighten in his own. "I think…" Castiel looks over to Dean and his face is one of desperation.
"He's got evidence of dark magic. He takes requests for tailor made spells and remedies and the one he's been working on today has links to dark magic - and we know who it is."
The witch before them - a short man with dark hair and wearing a crisp suit with a red tie, looking all kinds of out of place - raises his brow. "Excuse me?"
The English accent throws Dean for a moment not expecting it. "Dark magic. He has evidence, notes that he made while preparing the remedy and the spell he was asked for."
"What's your name, please?"
"Dean—"
"Not you," he points at Dean with a scowl. "His name."
"Castiel Novak." Cas answers. Between them, their palms are sweaty but Dean doesn't want to let go of him. He has a feeling he's all that's holding Cas together right now.
"Okay, I'll contact who you need to speak to and they'll talk to you. Dean, you'll have to wait outside. Are you capable of being apart?" He asks snidely and Dean frowns.
"Yes," Dean answers.
The guy makes a phone call, clearly charmed so neither of them know what's being said and it makes Dean uneasy.
"Okay. Mr. Novak, they want to see you immediately. The Councillor will come and take you both up. There’s a space to wait outside for you, Mr.-?"
"Winchester."
"May I implore the nature of your relationship to Mr. Novak?"
"He's my fiancé, we live together."
That seems to settle the receptionist, even when he looks to their hands and finds no rings. It's not always the case that they exchange rings, Dean and Cas bound themselves together instead.
Naomi comes down in a few moments and leads them up nine flights of stairs. Dean's breathing heavily by the time he gets there and does his best to hide it. Running around after small children all day apparently doesn't keep him fit enough.
Dean turns Cas to him before they split up, pressing a kiss to his forehead. "You'll be okay. Just tell them everything you know."
Castiel nods, giving Dean a small smile and then turning back to Naomi, who's looking impatient at the door.
Dean collapses in one of the chairs lining the corridor as the door shuts. Head in his hands, he breathes deeply and calmly.
It's already late, they never had dinner and Dean is starving. Hopefully this doesn't take too long and they can stop off somewhere still open on the way back.
Dean gets antsy and fidgety, pacing up and down as the first hour wears on, by the second hour Dean has played all the games on his phone and the third hour he spends staring resolutely at the door Castiel went through.
Finally, there's voices close to the door and then swings open. Castiel all but stumbles out, face pale and looking exhausted . He stands up quickly and goes to him, pulling him into a tight embrace.
"Are you okay? What did they do to you?" He asks, and glares over Castiel's shoulder towards Naomi. She doesn't pay him any attention so Dean just pulls Cas away.
Seating him down on the chair Dean was sat on a moment ago, Dean crouches down in front of him. "Hey, Cas? You okay?"
"He'll be fine," Naomi says with a sign. "He resisted some as we had to search pretty deep. He's free to go, we have all the evidence we need."
"I'm okay," Castiel whispers after she finishes. "Can we go home?"
"Of course," Dean assures and then takes Castiel's hand and they head back to the car.
Dean doesn't let go of Castiel the entire way home, even as Cas falls asleep, head resting against the window. When Dean rolls the Impala to a stop, Castiel still doesn't wake. He looks exhausted, face still pale and drawn. He hates seeing him like that, it used to be a permanent feature before Meg found him, and for that Dean is grateful for her.
"Hey, Cas? Wake up, we're home." Dean shakes Cas' shoulder gently.
Cas frowns before opening his eyes, rubbing a hand over his face and yawning.
"Come on, inside. We'll go straight to bed." Dean doesn’t wait for an answer before he's out of the car and opening up Cas' door to help him out.
They stumble together into the cottage, brushing past plant after plant as they head to the bedroom. They change into boxers and t-shirts before falling into bed, Dean curled around Castiel, one arm over his waist and his forehead resting against the nape of Castiel's neck.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Dean asks tentatively.
There's a long pause, for a moment Dean thinks Cas is already fast asleep but then he takes a long, deep breath in.
"They went deeper than I expected, it hurt a lot, they saw what happened to Jimmy, not that it means anything in all this. But they pushed and pushed and I wasn't trying to hide anything but the more they pushed the more I felt like I was resisting subconsciously. As if I couldn't help it. They stopped eventually, told me everything was in order. They kept all my documentation though, they have my journal which is full of private information about other clients' needs. I guess nothing is private to them."
"I'm sorry," Dean says, clutching Cas tightly and then releasing him.
"Its okay. It needed to be done. They did seem to think something dark was going on, asked me to keep an eye out and suggested extra warding. I'll be fine in the morning."
"Anything I can do?" Dean asks.
"That lavender thing? I've always liked that."
Dean turns his hand over, palm up, where it's resting over Castiel's torso, and he whispers a short incarnation before a faint purple glow shines from the centre of his palm. Three shoots of lavender grow too, releasing a calming scent. It revolves like a child's mobile, letting Cas calm and drift off to sleep. Dean smiles warmly and follows him, the spell deactivating as he sleeps.
The next few days are quiet. Castiel doesn't work, he just makes sure the warding is improved. Dean finds out the hard way as he's almost strangled by the English Ivy on his way down the hall.
The main worrying thing is that Jack hasn't been in school since the night they went to see the council and he's been worried. Jack is a really sweet, and hard working kid, and he hates to think anything has happened to him.
It's a full week later when Dean's on the verge of marching round to Jack's address when they receive a letter from the Council. It must contain sensitive information as it's been charmed for Castiel's eyes only.
Castiel tells him everything anyway, explaining how Nick has been taken into custody, along with Alistair and another man.
"And it is with great sadness that we must report that the body of Kelly Kline was found. Further research informed us that Nick was trying to keep Ms. Kline alive using dark magic," he reads.
"Oh, Cas," Dean whispers, kneeling down next to Castiel who's sat on their old, worn couch.
"Um… there's more." He carries on, "One child was also found at the scene in good health. He is being housed at the Children's Centre, until a suitable home is found for him. Kind regards, Naomi Angels, Councillor of Kansas.
This was worse than I expected." Castiel breathes and in the next breath comes a rash decision that even Dean isn't prepared for. "I'm going to contact them back. We'll take Jack."
"Wait, what?" Dean says, exasperated. "We? Where? Adopting a kid isn't—he's a kid, that's a big thing, Cas."
"And what? You want him to go to some random family? Dean, you know Jack. You know he looks up to you. Besides, I think this will be good for us, and him too."
They argue and discuss for the whole day, but they come to a decision by the end of it, refusing to go to bed mad at one another, and it seems that means going to be at three in the morning.
When Castiel finally gets through to Naomi and Jack's carer, they find that the process is simpler than expected. With Dean's background as Jack's teacher, and the fact they've already delved into Castiel's mind, and only a little apprehension over how close Dean and Cas are to the case, they hear that both Naomi and Hael agree that placing Jack with them is a wise move.
They go back to the Council a week later, and are directed to where Jack is currently living.
"Mr. Winchester?" Jack says as they open the door. "Am I going back to school with you?" He asks, eyes wide and so innocent for a six-year-old.
"Yeah, buddy," Dean says with a smile, and crouched down to his level. "And you know what's better? You're coming to live with me and Cas too. Would you like that?"
Jack looks sad for a moment, but he nods and rushes forward towards Dean and hugs him.
Dean has to swallow hard and try not to cry when he feels Jack's tiny hands clinging to his shirt. "Okay, buddy. You're okay now."
Dean sets him down and then introduces him to Cas. He's a little shy, but Jack always has been, but with Dean's encouragement, Castiel gets a hug too.
With only some paperwork to finalise, they're soon back on the road, Jack already asleep in the back of the impala in the newly purchased car seat.
Dean reaches across the bench seat to Cas and takes hold of his hand. "Between the cat, and the kid, we’ve got ourselves a strange little family. Why don’t we make it official and get married soon?"
Castiel gives him a smile, glancing back at Jack. "I'd love to."