Mating Season

Chapter One

*Sam*

"Mating season?" he asked quietly, Dean nearly choking on his coffee.

"You got it, moose," Gabriel said with a little smirk, ruffling Sam's hair. "It's been overdue, honestly."

"How so?" Dean added, giving the waitress a little smile as she refilled his coffee cup.

"Normally, mating season for angels starts as spring hits full bloom here on Earth. All angels are affected, whether on Earth or in Heaven because the presence of the Grace of Heaven is the strongest in Spring. It occurs every year for 100 years every millenia. We actually were supposed to start it about a year or so ago, but the start of the Apocalypse derailed that and it was suppressed in order for us to fight the war."

"Which was brillantly won by us," Dean added, raising his mug.

Sam smiled a little and raised his mug and Gabriel even joined in, clinking his milkshake glass with their coffee mugs.

"So...how long will this...mating season, last?" Sam asked him after a bit of silence.

"About five weeks," Gabriel answered. "We go through four stages. The first three help to prepare us for the intensity of the last stage, which will last for two weeks opposed to around one week for the other stages. Once I head back to the hotel, I'm going to place up wards to protect Castiel and myself. We're going to be vulnerable because until we enter the fourth stage, our Grace is severely suppressed as it prepares for the season. We'll be virtually human and we won't be able to hide our wings. We'll need to count on you two to protect us, help us through this. Especially Castiel. Being the youngest angel of Heaven, he's never been through this before."

"I'm always here for you," Sam said softly, placing his arm around Gabriel. "Always."

"I know that, Sammy," Gabe all but purred.

Dean tossed cash on the table and walked out, a red blush hitting his face.

"Isn't it cute how he gets all embarrassed?" Gabe said with a laugh.

"It's definitely funny," Sam chuckled.

"I wonder if he'll accidentally walk in on us...," Gabriel said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"I'd rather he not," Sam replied, blushing as he remembered the last time his older brother walked in on him and the archangel. "I just hope that he gets his head out of his ass and helps Cas through this. I saw what happened when Castiel tried showing affection. Dean pushed him away and ran. And I know that chowder head loves Cas. Look at what happens to him whenever Cas has to be away for over a day or he gets hurt."

Gabriel frowned and nodded, remembering that. "Cas...he didn't come back for three days after that interlude in the Impala. Dean at least didn't bring it up. Otherwise, I might have been tempted to smite his ass."

He looked up at the clock on the wall and sighed.

"I need to go prep our rooms," Gabriel told him, handing him a credit card. "And use this one from now on."

"First Angel National Platinum?" Sam asked, looking at Gabriel warily.

"Unlimited credit line," he replied with a wink. "And the no payments or interest for all eternity was too good to pass up. Oh, and we get quadruple airline miles with every purchase."

Sam couldn't help but laugh as Gabriel walked out and disappeared.

*Castiel*

Spring was coming very soon. He could feel the Grace of Heaven becoming a more tangible presence here on Earth as it shined down, to help revive the plants and rejeuvinate the animals in hibernation. He always loved Spring and Summer on Earth. It showcased the greatest gift their Father can bestow; the gift to create life. However, he...felt different. He felt...anxious, achy. Something big....monumental even, was going to happen to him. What it was, he couldn't pinpoint it.

Perhaps it had to do with the incident between him and Dean. Ever since their Father rewarded him with an original, human form like Gabriel had made himself and for all of his brothers so they no longer had to use humans for vessels...he's had feelings for Dean. Romantic feelings. He'd never felt these emotions before, except for the few hints of some of these emotions he'd felt through Jimmy Novak, his vessel. But now, he found these were his own feelings.

He just didn't understand. Castiel had seen that Dean was attracted to him when he'd been using Jimmy. And he had asked for his original form to look like Jimmy, just made him a little bit younger to fit his preferences and added a bit of freckles. So he thought it would be ok to lean over and kiss the Hunter while they were sitting in the car together, that Dean would reciprocate. He did. For a second. But then he pushed Castiel, threw open the door and all but ran from him. Castiel had felt his heart breaking, his Grace dimming as he flew away in the opposite direction, finally stopping in a state park.

He'd sat next to a waterfall and wept for days. Praying that his Father would take the pain away. He didn't. But it did ease up by the third day. When he went back, Dean had hugged him, ranted at him as he usually did whenever he disappeared. Everything was as it had been before. Which Castiel was grateful for. But it still hurt whenever they were out on a hunt or sitting in some roadside diner or bar and Dean would flirt and look at the waitresses that took their orders. Castiel...wanted him for himself. But as Dean would put it, he wasn't into males. And Castiel, no matter what form he was given, was male.

He sighed heavily as he flew back to the hotel they were staying at, landing right outside the room he and Dean were sharing. Since Sam and his brother, Gabriel, were a couple, they preferred to have a room to themselves. He loved his brother, but he was grateful he didn't have to walk in on whatever 'activity' they had decided on. He didn't need to be reminded of the devotion...the love, they shared. It just made his heart and his Grace ache. When he walked into their room and found Gabriel inside, he double checked his key.

"What are you doing, Gabriel?" Castiel asked as he watched his brother put up several, super strong...super specific wards. "We don't need the wards against our brothers anymore."

"Trust me, Castiel," he said as he finished, "We're going to need the protection."

"Why?"

"Our mating season is about to start," he answered.

"O...oh," Castiel stuttered, shocked. "I...That must be why my wings hurt so much when I conceal them." Dread flooded his stomach, making it churn. "Does Dean and Sam know?"

Gabriel nodded. "I told them this morning. I felt it was better if they know. Give them a chance to find somewhere else to stay if they want. Got to let them have their free will." Gabriel grinned as he finished the wards. "Sam's already said he'll stay and see me through it."

Castiel smiled a little. "I...wasn't sure that it was that serious between you two."

"I care for Sam deeply. And I thank Dad every day for not only accepting me back, but allowing me to come and go as I please in order to be with him until it's his turn to go home. And I will go with him."

"I...I'm very happy for you, my brother," Castiel said as he sat on the bed furthest from the door, Gabriel moving to leave.

"Why don't you ask Dean to help you, Cas?" Gabriel asked softly. "It's going to be rough on you. And I can see how much you both care for each other. For all his faults, he's a truly righteous man. He won't leave you to suffer."

Castiel let his head hang from his shoulders, staring at the floor.

"I can't ask him," he replied.

"He does care for you, Cas. In spite of the way he's acting."

He looked up at his brother, a little angry. "I can assure you, he doesn't. I'm well aware of where we stand."

"That man is a fool," Gabriel sighed. "Get some rest, Cas. Your Grace is going to start suppressing itself for the next month and you already look tired."

He nodded as the archangel left and went back to his own room. Where he'd find Sam on his laptop, no doubt. And he'd probably lean over the back of the chair or lean against his side if he was sitting on the bed, just to be close to the younger Winchester brother. Which would of course, get Sam to put the computer down and hold his brother. He'd seen it before, when they'd all shared a room. He wanted that with Dean. A tear slid down his face as he laid on the bed and closed his eyes. But there was no rest to be found.