Chapter Text
First grade? Seriously? As if the half a day away for kindergarten wasn’t torture enough? His baby was going to be gone for more than nine hours and he wasn’t going to be able to drop in when he felt like it. Crowley scowled. Nope. Not happening.
“You can’t just… not allow it,” Sam persisted.
“Can too. And you, how can you be okay with this?”
“I’m not but she does need to go to school Crowley.”
“We could home school her,” Crowley suggested.
“She needs to interact with others her own age,” Sam repeated.
It was an old argument. Actually it was the same one Sam had used for sending Jo to kindergarten. “So we get her friends her age and invite them over,” Crowley stated.
“You know why we can’t do that,” Sam told him. “Besides going to school is normal for children. I want to give her the most normal childhood possible.”
“No. Normal is overrated. Besides, I can’t protect her if I’m not allowed to stay with her.”
“Crowley, millions of kids go to school and don’t need protecting.”
“School shootings.”
“Are rare.”
“But they do happen,” Crowley insisted. “What if she gets abducted?”
“From the school?”
“It could happen.”
“We’ve been through this. We watch her go into the building and get there before school’s over.”
“Bullies.”
“You’re kidding right?”
“There’s always a bully in every school.”
“And if you’re being honest with yourself you know Jo would just punch anyone that screwed with her.”
Crowley smiled. “Mm yes. My little hellcat.”
“She’s going and that’s final.”
Crowley crossed his arms and sulked.
*-*-*-*-*
“Did you pack her lunch?” Crowley asked, checking the fridge.
“Yes, Crowley,” Sam answered exasperated.
“What about a jacket? It’s getting chilly out and-”
“She’s wearing her jacket, Crowley,” Sam replied.
Crowley glanced over to Jo who immediately burst into giggles.
“You’re being silly da,” she told him. “Asides, it’s not cold outside yet.”
Crowley grinned. “Besides,” he corrected, still smiling at her.
“‘B-sides usually have better music than A-sides’,” Jo answered. “Uncle Dee always says.”
“Exactly,” Dean agreed.
“Uncle Dee doesn’t have to worry about his baby being gone for nine hours,” Crowley grumbled.
“Da,” Jo said rolling her eyes. “I’m not a baby anymore.”
“Yes sweetie. Come here and let me tie your shoes.”
Jo rolled her eyes again. “You forgot to say please,” she reminded him.
“Of course, sweetie. You’re right. Please let me tie your shoes.”
“Kay,” she said before making her way over.
“Da?”
“Yes, sweetie?”
“Are you going to drive me to school with daddy?”
“I thought I would ride with, yes.”
“Kay.”
“Do you want me to go with you two?”
“Of course. If you go with you can know where it is and stop having ‘nerves’.”
Heaven help them she even did the air quotes around the word nerves. “You really had to teach her that word didn’t you?” Crowley grumbled.
Dean shrugged.
*-*-*-*-*
Glancing at the rearview he looked back at Jo and leaned closer to Sam. “You don’t think we should let her take one of our cell phones?”
“No.”
“What if she needs something?”
“There’s no reason for a seven year old to have a cell phone, Crowley. Besides if she needs anything she can talk to her teacher.”
Crowley chewed on his lower lip. He really, really, did not like this.
“Da?”
“Yes little one?”
“Do you still got nerves?”
“It’s a da thing sweetie. We always have nerves,” Crowley told her.
“Does daddy?”
“Yes baby, daddy has nerves too,” Crowley stated glaring at Sam. How the hell wasn’t Sam freaking out about this?
“All parents get nerves angel,” Sam answered as they pulled up to the school. “You ready to meet your new teacher?”
“Yeah! And new friends!”
“That’s my girl,” Sam said reaching a hand back.
Jo promptly high-fived the proffered hand. The three of them got out of the car and joined hands. When they got to the door Crowley reached down and straightened her backpack.
“I got it da,” she told him.
“Okay sweetie. I was just double checking. You sure you’re ready for this?”
“Yep,” she said nodding eagerly.
Damn. “Okay little one, be good.”
Jo rolled her eyes. “I’m always good. Love you da, love you daddy.”
Crowley bent forward and hugged her. “Love you too little one.”
“Love you bunches,” Sam told her as he knelt down to hug her as well.
They stood there watching until the door closed and they could no longer see Jo. Crowley turned to face Sam. “Love?”
“Yes?”
“Are you really as okay with this as you seem?”
“Honestly?”
“Yes.”
“Not one bit,” Sam told him.
*-*-*-*-*
“Da! I’m home!”
“Princess! Come here.”
Crowley sat up and opened his arms. Jo ran to the bed and crawled into his arms. A few hours after they had dropped her off Crowley had gotten extremely anxious. Sam insisted they should lay down and snuggle. When it was time to get Jo Crowley was asleep and Sam hadn’t bothered to wake him. Crowley woke up moments before his little one burst through his bedroom door announcing her arrival.
“Missed you little one.”
“Missed you too da. Guess what I made?” Jo asked holding up a sheet of paper.
Crowley gripped the paper and held it steady. There was a green arch with a gray door under it. Just under the door were several stick-figures. Crowley had to suppress a groan when he noticed wings on one of them. The last thing they needed was Jo’s teacher questioning why Jo thought they lived with an angel. “Is it the bunker and all of us?”
“Yep. We were supposed to draw our family.” She began pointing to the figures. That’s me. That’s you and daddy. That’s uncle Dee and that’s uncle Cass.”
“Baby, next time-”
“I’m not a baby da. Babies don’t get to go to big girl school.”
“Yes sweetie. I’m sorry. You’re definitely not a baby.”
“She told her teacher Cass is our guardian angel who watches over us,” Sam stated.
“Ah,” Crowley acknowledged.
“Well he is,” Jo said crossing her arms.
“Very true sweetie.” Crowley assured her. “Do you want to hang that on the fridge?”
“Acourse.”
“Of course,” Crowley corrected automatically. They really needed to work on that. Eventually. It wasn’t often but occasionally Jo added random letters to words or ran them together. Sam didn’t mind in the least. In his childhood Crowley would have been punished until he learned to speak properly. It was probably why Crowley couldn’t bring himself to do more than correct the words occasionally.
“Da?”
“Yes, rùnag?”***
Jo’s eyebrows drew down and her nose scrunched up into her thinking face. Crowley leaned back against the headboard and watched. After a minute she cocked her head sideways and looked to Sam.
“Nope,” Sam told her. “Even if I knew I couldn’t tell you. It’d be cheating.”
“Really Sam, it wouldn’t hurt you learn some of my old language.”
“I don’t know that one da.”
“I know sweetie. I haven’t used it yet. Do you have a guess?”
“It’s not baby is it?”
“No, princess. It means sweetheart.”
“I like it. It sounds pretty.”
“Pretty huh?”
“Yep. I’m going to go show the picture to uncle Dee and Cass,” Jo announced.
“Cass isn’t here right now,” Sam told her. “I’m sure uncle Dee would love to see it though.”
“Kay. Bye da,” Jo said waving at him and climbing off the bed. Running to the door she wrapped her arms around Sam and hugged him. “Bye daddy.”
When she was gone Sam finally entered the rest of the way and sat down on the bed with Crowley.
“You didn’t wake me up to get her,” Crowley said crossing his arms.
“You needed the sleep.” Sam shrugged. “You’re the one she asks for when she has a nightmare.”
Uncrossing his arms Crowley sighed. He knew Sam didn’t mind that it was him Jo asked for when she had a bad dream. What bothered Sam was he couldn’t get her to go back to sleep after a bad dream. If Crowley wasn’t present Dean had to sing to her with Sam in the room.
“You know, Dean can’t get to her sleep again if you’re not in the room with them,” Crowley said softly.
“I know.” Leaning sideways Sam pressed his shoulder against Crowley’s shoulder. “I wish I knew what her nightmares were about. Maybe we could do something to stop them.”
“Doubtful.”
*-*-*-*-*
He heard the footsteps before he saw anything. Jo was usually really good about hiding but stealth was definitely not her forte. Still, Dean ignored the soft pitter-patter and continued eating his burger. Chewing the mouthful he swallowed and waited. As expect it wasn’t long before there was another soft patter of footsteps and an arm wrapped around his middle.
“Rawr.”
“Oh no! Help I’m being attacked by a vicious JoJo-beast!” Dean set the burger down and raised his hands. “I give up, you win!”
“Yay! Uncle Dee, look what I made.”
Jo brought her other hand around to reveal a drawing. Twisting Dean scooped her up and put Jo in his lap. “Okay, let’s check this out. Hey, is that me?” he asked. The question didn’t need to be asked. The figure had a shirt with large A C letters printed on it.
“Yep. I ran out of room.”
“We’ll pretend the other letters are on the back,” he told her.
“Is that one uncle Cass?” he asked pointing to the one with wings.
“Yep. And that’s daddy and that one’s da,” she told him pointing to the tallest one and the figure next to it holding hands. “And that’s me.”
“Well yeah. That one I knew. It’s the prettiest one in the picture.”
Jo giggled. Letting go of the paper she left Dean holding it and twisted. When she was facing the table she grabbed his burger, leaned forward so she didn’t have to lift it too far and took a bite. Dean had to fight the urge to grin at her tiny bite marks next to his.
“Hungry?”
Jo shook her head while she finished chewing. Swallowing she looked back to him. “I just like your burgers.”
Dean did grin at that. Jo pretty much liked everything. There was almost nothing she wouldn’t eat. His burgers were probably one of her favorites, though. She absolutely refused to eat any fast food burgers citing that they were, in her words, yuck.
“Da said I could put it on the fridge. Can you help me?”
“Sure, where would you like this one?”
“Up top. Feeze door.”
“Freeze door it is. Airplane?”
“Airplane,” Jo agreed grabbing the picture.
Reaching down he picked her up and placed one arm under her shoulders and one under her waist. Jo stuck her legs out straight.
“Vroom,” Jo called out.
“No way silly goose,” Dean told her. “Vrooms are for cars.”
“Woosh?”
“Woosh we can do. In three?”
“Three, two, one!”
“Woosh!” Jo and Dean said at the same time.
Dean ‘flew’ her around the kitchen a few times while they both continued making wooshing noises. Finally he taxied them over to the freezer.
“Chair to freeze door service completed.” He shifted her until she was almost sitting on one of his arms. With the other arm he braced her so she wouldn’t fall.
Jo grabbed two magnets and used them to stick her latest picture on the fridge.