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It had been a good birthday. Quiet was just how Sam liked his birthday, and with Dean at his side and Castiel spending most of the day there as well, what more could Sam ask for? There was even a dog to pet, as Miracle came in for pats and love. Asking Jack to drop by for his birthday seemed a bit over the top. He had so much to do getting Heaven sorted out and up to his standards that of course he wasn’t going to come watch Sam blow out some birthday candles.
It had been a lovely day, with Dean giving him the traditional birthday presents of porn and motor oil, but also building him a custom bookshelf for his bedroom. Castiel had several books to put on it, along with a very special gift. Sam reached up and touched the feather clipped to his hair with a smile. Castiel had been wanting to give him a feather to wear for years, but it was only with Jack healing his wings fully that he’d felt he had a feather worthy to give Sam. He’d tried to argue that the point was that it was Castiel’s, but Castiel insisted that the feather had to be perfect, or it would be a disaster. He didn’t want to explain how, and Sam didn’t push.
“Sam.”
Sam jumped and whirled around, grinning as he saw Jack. “I was just thinking about you! I’m surprised you’re here, but thanks for coming… unless you have a job you need us to do, in which case it’s still good to see you.”
“No, I’m here to say happy birthday and give you your present.” Jack handed him a box, which Sam opened to find a selection of candy. “All the taste and good will, none of the risk of cavities or diabetes or unwanted weight gain. I know you like candy on special occasions.”
“Thanks, Jack.” Sam popped a candy into his mouth. It was delicious. He’d have to find a way to hide them from Dean. “I’m glad you came.”
“Me too.” He reached up, pointing at the feather in Sam’s hair. “I’m glad you accepted that, but there are a couple things you should know. Castiel assured me he doesn’t intend to hold you to anything you didn’t explicitly agree to, but other angels who see it will react accordingly, and eventually you’ll get curious and want to know why they’re acting so weird.”
“He did say that there was more to it, usually, than his intention in giving it to me, and that giving it to me was a form of protection,” Sam said. He’d tried to get Castiel to give him more information, but the angel got unusually flustered and closed-mouthed and wouldn’t expand on what was going on. He only reassured Sam that it was nothing bad, just something that could make things awkward if misunderstood. “What’s up?”
“An angel wearing another angel’s feather mixed with his own is a symbol of mingling their grace. There can be various intentions, but for the most part, it’s meant to symbolize an eternal bond between the two. Of course, the angel to whom the feather was given could always just remove it if the eternal bond turned out not to be eternal after all.” Jack reached up and touched the feather. “Most angels, on seeing this, would read it as Castiel declaring that you are his mate.”
Sam reached up and touched the feather, trying to ride out the whirlwind of emotions Jack’s declaration caused. “Jack? Do you… think that Castiel wanted this to mean that, but chickened out of asking me?”
“I think you should ask him that yourself,” Jack said gently. “I’m just here to wish you a happy birthday and warn you what might happen if another angel sees the feather in your hair.” He hugged Sam. “I’ll tell Castiel to come see you?”
“Please.” Jack disappeared, and a blink later, Castiel was in his place. “Hey, Cas.”
“Hello.” Castiel fidgeted nervously with his hands. “Jack said you had a question for me? One that would likely annoy me?”
“I hope not, although it might.” Sam reached up to the feather. “He told me what this means among angels, and I know you said you didn’t mean it that way, but… did you? And then got cold feet?”
Castiel glanced down at his shoes. “I’m an angel. I can regulate my feet’s temperature perfectly well, and even if I couldn’t, I have coverings.”
Sam bit his lip, but the smile still came out. “Yeah, that might still work on Dean, but it doesn’t on me. I know you know what I mean. If it helps you to admit to it… I’m seriously hoping the answer is yes, because I would love to accept this feather for its usual meaning from you.”
“Oh.” Castiel stared at Sam, mouth hanging open. “Why?”
“Because I love you.” Sam grinned as the confusion on Castiel’s face deepened. “Because you’re always there for me, because you understand me, because you’re always the one arguing for me to make my own decisions. Because I can see how happy you are any time you can come visit. Because you did an amazing job with Jack, and he’s grown up and become amazing.”
“Funny,” Castiel said. “A great deal of that would be part of my explanation of why I love you. Yes, I did hope someday to develop the courage to tell you what it usually means and express my desire for it to mean that for us, but I was starting to fear that I never would. Sam, I won’t take the feather away no matter what, but will you wear it as a token of courtship? Perhaps, some day, we can acquire a more human token of marriage, but for now…”
“For now… yes. I will wear it as a token of courtship.” Sam closed the distance between them, pulling Castiel into his arms. “May I kiss you?”
“Please do.” Once that was done, Sam pulled back, and his eyes widened in shock as he took in the glossy black wings that now filled the room. “Accepting my love comes with being permitted to see my wings. Another reason to wait until I was healed, so that you could see them at their best instead of the pathetic, broken state they were in for so long.”
“Cas… they’d still have been beautiful to me. Because they’re yours. With you and me, it’s not about beautiful. It’s about true, and those wings were true.” He smiled as the wings wrapped around him in a hug. “Wow. This is amazing. Thank you.”