Chapter Text
Christmastime was usually treated like every other holiday time. Cases during the holiday season were few and far between. Cas would sit with Sam and read in the library for a little while before sulking off when Dean left to do God knows what in his room, and Sam just sat quietly, pretending to be oblivious to the sexual tension that was so thick it would giggle in the face of a chainsaw murderer. Charlie was usually off somewhere with Dorothy enjoying their adventures, but this year was different. This year, Dorothy was in Oz and Charlie wasn't, so Sam invited her to the bunker.
"Sam! Merry Christmas!" The woman hugged Sam tightly, speaking directly into his chest, as he was a full foot taller than her.
Sam chuckled. "It's December fifteenth , Charlie. Don't go around spreading holiday cheer. I’m warning you, Dean's a grinch, and Cas still doesn't understand the concept." Charlie's lips formed an "o", then a mischievous grin.
"Well, Samuel, I will spread holiday cheer if I want to. I brought drinks, presents, aaaand -" Charlie paused and looked at Sam with a knowing face, "-a plan!"
Sam was intrigued by this. He looked both ways, then over the balcony to make sure nobody was listening. He turned back to Charlie to see her sprinting off towards her newly acquired yet ancient turquoise Volkswagen Bug, beckoning back to Sam to follow her. Sam rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically before running after her.
"Slug Bug!" Charlie cried happily as he approached, and when Sam was in range, she punched him in the arm with all her might. Sam laughed, but the punch had actually hurt . He knew the only reason Charlie had bought the quirky little bug was to obnoxiously clobber anyone and everyone who got near her car. "Now come use your big, strong, muscle-y muscles to help a girl get her stuff inside!"
Sam popped the trunk to find some frivolous wrapping paper staring back at him. "Charlie, you really just had to spring for the most obnoxious wrapping paper you could find, didn't you?"
Charlie pouted, crossing her arms and sticking her bottom lip out. "I like to treat my friends, Sam, and look! Each wrapping paper corresponds to who it's for!" Charlie pointed to a medium sized box that had bacon on it. "That one's for Dean," she said, before gesturing to a small box with little bees on it. "That one's for Cas," Sam was inspecting the bee wrapping paper with a smile when a heavy box thudded against his arm. "And this one's for you!"
Sam looked down and groaned. "Seriously?!" The box was covered in freaking devil emojis. Charlie hummed happily in response, grabbing a large Hello Kitty duffle bag from the trunk.
"There are other ones too, but those will be a surprise. Here, I'll carry these, and you carry the merry!" Charlie laughed. She handed Sam a box overflowing with Christmas decorations, tinsel, ornaments, and a Santa hat. Sam wobbled back to the bunker, the weight of the box almost too much for his sasquatch muscles.
Charlie followed closely behind with a stack of boxes taller than her head. She stumbled a few times, and when she got to the staircase leading into the bunker she toed each step in front of her before carefully moving down. Sam put down the decoration box to run and help Charlie before she plummeted head-first down the stairs.
"Allow me to help." Cas appeared out of nowhere and nearly sent Charlie careening over the handrail. Cas snapped his fingers and suddenly Charlie's arms were empty and her gifts were sitting in a neat pile on the table below. Charlie looked down at her now box-less hands, before looking up at Cas in awe.
"Cas!" Charlie squealed. She ran to hug the angel, throwing her hands around his neck and burying her head in his shoulder. Cas smiled softly and patted her back awkwardly before Charlie let go. "Merry Christmas!"
"Merry-uh-Christmas?" Cas said, looking at Sam with a confused expression, only to see that Sam was glaring at Charlie, who was beaming at Castiel. They stood in a triangle of stares for what seemed like forever before they heard a door shutting in the halls of the bunker. Dean walked into the room, and Charlie ran over and threw herself at him, nearly knocking him over.
“Heya, Charles.” Dean chuckled, wrapping his arms around the girl and planting an audible kiss on her fiery red hair. “How’s it goin’?”
“Oh, Dean, it’s fantasmagorical! I got a new car, I got you all some gifts, and I came to spread some Christmas cheer!” Charlie announced, motioning to the stack of boxes and bags on the table. Dean chuckled again before looking around.
“You guys seen Cas?”
Sam looked at Dean like he was an idiot (which is still up for debate). “Dude, he’s literally standing right-” Cas wasn’t there anymore. Huh. Sam turned around in a circle, looking for any awkward trench coats in his vicinity. “Where’d he go?”
Charlie glanced at Sam with a sly grin and yawned dramatically, stretching her arms above her head. “Well, boys, as much as I’d love to help you find the angel you seem so keen on misplacing, I really oughta get some rest.” She jerked her head towards the hallway, mouthing something that looked like canned honey is better than blue to the giant in the room . Sam squinted at her. “Can you help me to my room, Sam?” She said through gritted teeth, disappointed the sasquatch hadn’t caught her drift. Sam still looked confused. Charlie pasted a wide smile on as she craned her neck to an uncomfortable looking angle towards the hallway. “Dean, can you make some food? I’m starving.” She finally sighed, defeated.
Dean, who was looking down at his phone, nodded distractedly. “Yeah, I’ll whip up some hamburgers, sound good?” He was texting Cas, asking the angel where he had gone.
“Sounds delicious.” Dean wandered off to the kitchen, and Charlie looked at Sam with puppy dog eyes that rivalled his own.
“Please come to my room, we need privacy to discuss my plan.” Sam pointed at her awkwardly, remembering Charlie’s earlier claim that she came armed with a plan. He hoisted her Hello Kitty duffle bag (which was extremely heavy. What the hell could she have in there? Bricks?) over his shoulder and led her to one of the many extra rooms in the bunker. As soon as she shut the door behind her, Charlie dropped the puppy dog eyes and turned on her I-have-an-extreeemely-evil-plan-and-you-will-comply-or-I-will-slaughter-you face. She rubbed her hands together as Sam sat down on the bed.
“I have a wondrous scheme to get our boys together.” Sam motioned to himself. “No, not you, you fool. I have a full-proof plan to get Dean and Cas together by Christmas.”