WhoNautral - 10th Doctor/Supernatural

10

The smell of warm pizza dough filled the air, and the bunker was more alive with conversation than it had for a long while. The Doctor, Sam and Castiel sat around the table, ate and watched Dean, who had assumed his regular position on his chair, tilting it back on two legs as he stuffed as much food as he could greedily into his mouth. Sam glared at him.

"...What?" The word was lost due to the unnatural amount of pizza in his mouth. Castiel chuckled softly and shook his head. Swallowing guiltily, Dean hastily turned the attention away from himself. "So, Doctor," He said, licking sauce off his fingers and ignoring another pointed look from his brother. "I have another question." The Doctor leaned forward on his elbows, clearly ready to explain any difficult concept that was thrown at him.

"Yes?" Dean pointed behind him, where the TARDIS sat, calm and dormant.

"The sign on the front says 'pull to open.' So why do you push?" The Doctor coughed, clearly caught off guard, but composed himself rather quickly.

"I've never been a stickler for rules," he smiled. "Wanna know how I got the TARDIS in the first place?" The rest of the company nodded. "I stole her." The Doctor grinned smugly. Dean whistled, impressed.

"I think we have more in common than I first thought." This seemed to please The Doctor, who leaned back, contented. The rest of the meal carried on in a similar fashion, with the brothers recalling exciting and thrilling encounters with the supernatural, while The Doctor listened attentively. He too, told the three boys stories of his adventures, of far-away planets and exotic civilisations, and they hung on to every word. It was a while later before Dean suddenly remembered the conversation he had with Patience outside the bunker, and a wave of guilt washed over him for not bringing it up sooner. He dusted the pizza crumbs off his hands before leaning forward to address the group.

"So, I got a call from Patience earlier." Sam raised his head, concerned.

"Patience? She's okay, right?"

"Yeah, she's fine. Just seemed pretty upset about a dream she had." Sam looked pointedly at him. Of course, he of all people knew what that meant. Dean continued before he could be cut off again. "So, if this whole...thing...that happened tonight is over," He looked anxiously over at The Doctor, who nodded firmly to indicate it was. "Then I vote we drive out to Sioux Falls tomorrow morning, see if we can do anything to help, you know?" Sam nodded, eyebrows furrowed.

"Agreed." Dean then turned to The Doctor, catching him off guard with his next offer.

"You're coming too, right Doctor?" The Doctor made a strangled noise of surprise before composing himself well enough to speak.

"No, no, I couldn't. I'd only get in the way." He seemed to shrink in on himself, contrasting rather strongly with the air of confidence he had first displayed upon his initial meeting with the brothers. Dean looked him in the eyes seriously, making him shift uncomfortably in his chair.

"We could end up needing your help." The Doctor blinked rapidly, clearly conflicted. Part of him leapt at the opportunity for company, having spent way too long travelling on his own. The other half, however was pulling him in the other direction, pleading for him not to become attached with his new acquaintances. You know how this ends, said a nasty little voice in his ear, urging him along the road of loneliness that had so far kept him safe from further emotional harm. The Doctor battled with the voices in his mind for a moment, before mentally smacking the latter one upside the head and telling it to shut its mouth. He had lived in fear of it for far too long. The Doctor took a deep breath.

"Okay then. If I can be of any assistance, I'll join you." Dean clapped his hands together.

"Perfect. I wasn't gonna let you say no anyway." Dean took another massive bite of pizza before letting the table lapse into a comfortable silence. The night moved on slowly, till both Sam and Dean were stifling yawns behind their hands.

"Well, I'm gonna call it a night," Sam mumbled, rubbing his face. Dean grunted in agreement, rising from his chair.

"God knows we need it after today." Dean clapped Castiel on the shoulder, making him jump slightly before slowly shuffling after Sam and heading to their rooms. "Don't wake me unless we're in mortal danger," Dean waved a lazy hand behind him at Cas and The Doctor before the noise of dragging feet faded away down the hall, leaving them sitting in silence at the table. A few moments passed before The Doctor's face brightened.

"Oh! I almost forgot." He jumped to his feet and scurried off into the TARDIS, without giving Castiel time to react. He waited patiently until a creak of the TARDIS door announced his re-entry. He strode back to the table, holding Castiel's trench-coat, neatly folded. "Here. I had to wrestle it off that last angel, but I managed." Cas tentatively reached his arms out to receive it, gratefulness washing over him at the sight of something so familiar and comfortable.

"Thank you." He replied sincerely, swinging the coat immediately round his shoulders. The Doctor then reclaimed his seat opposite, holding his head up with his hands.

"Not tired?" he asked, wanting to engage in conversation with Cas, who had spoken so little since they had met. To his surprise, Castiel let out a soft chuckle.

"My kind don't need to sleep, strictly speaking." He picked absent-mindedly at a loose string on the fabric of his coat. "Plus, I like to be alert in case Sam or Dean ever need me." He added more softly. The Doctor nodded slightly, interest piqued.

"And what kind is that?" Castiel tensed slightly before answering, his voice low and gravelly.

"I am an angel of The Lord." The Doctor raised his eyebrows.

"The Lord? I mean, there are plenty of Gods out there, I guess it seems logical that there would be...God, you know?" He reasoned with himself for a moment before his curiosity returned in full force. "What's he like, then?" The Doctor leaned forward on his elbows like an excited child asking for a story.

"He is... distant, to say the least." Castiel sounded uncomfortable, like anything negative he said would be held against him. "Our relationship is... difficult." The Doctor seemed to struggle in finding his next words. Castiel took the silence to speak up, biting his bottom lip nervously.

"Um... about what you said. Before. About what happened to your people." The Doctor's expression softened as he listened. "I wanted to say back then that I might know how you feel. Most of my people want me dead." Castiel continued twining his fingers in his coat as The Doctor watched his face intently.

"Must be lonely," He mused, and Castiel nodded.

"It's okay though. I have a family, here." A small smile quirked at his lips. "When I met Dean, I was very different. And lost. I had no idea what loyalty meant, or love. All I knew was following orders, and completing my mission, whatever it took. And that caused me to do some horrible things. But being here," He gestured around him. "Being with humans, being with...Dean, its changed me. I think I'm more... human now. And I like it this way more than anything else in the world." Castiel's gaze dropped, heat filling his face as he realised he had been talking for a while. "Sorry, rambling." He mumbled an apology.

"No, no, it's nice to hear someone else's voice other than my own for a change." The Doctor grinned cheekily. "Humans are really something special, aren't they?" Castiel smiled fondly.

"Yes, they really are." It was after then that the two fell into silence. It wasn't awkward, with either not knowing what to say, nor was it tense. It was simply just... silence. With two people who didn't need sleep sitting comfortably in their own thoughts, their slow breathing mixing with the muffled sounds of the rain outside, each keeping the other company through the night.