Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“How would you all like to come over for dinner with my mother and I?” At those words the club all froze, halting their conversation. All heads turned to Castiel, who had been silent up until then, a few of them containing their excitement lest they heard wrong. Cas turned the page in his book, quietly reading. “My mother has always wanted to get to know you all. I think a dinner would be the perfect opportunity.”

“Tonight?” Dean asked, furrowing his brow. He couldn’t help but wonder if they were going to go out or if it was going to be homemade, the latter option making him smile almost stupidly. Just imagining Cas in a cute little apron behind a stove, sweat on his brow yet with a smile on his face… He shook his head and wiped it away from his brain. Cas nodded.

“Yes.” He closed his book with a gentle thump and looked to them. He narrowed his eyes and cocked his head to the side, confused. “Is something wrong?”

“Well, won’t it be a lot of trouble?” Sam questioned, seeming as concerned as Dean - and most likely the others - were.

“Yeah, you can’t afford all that food at a restaurant we’re used to,” LM chimed in, both earning a punch in the arm from those beside them, being Kevin and Gabriel. The pair rubbed their skin, muttering a quiet ‘ow’. Cas became only more confused.

“I was going to make something special,” he responded with a nod. He tucked his book under his arm and pulled out a pad of lined paper, neat script in blue pen written on it. “Is there anything you’d like?” He clicked his pen and gave everyone a thoughtful once-over. They were all quiet in consideration.

“What were you planning on?” Gabe asked, leaning back in his seat. Cas put the edge of the pen to his lip, thinking.

“Well, I had planned on something simple yet… Decadent, maybe. I really don’t know what you all like.” He shrugged and smiled. “From all the work I’ve been doing I have more than enough money saved for groceries.” Though , he thought almost sadly, not enough time for my book .

“Okay,” Michael and Lucifer said together, hands to their chins, “what about seafood? Lobster and crab, mussels with a bunch of sauces.” They smiled obliviously. “You think you can handle that?” Cas wore an expression of utter perplexment, eyebrow raised. They got themselves another hit and the rest laughed nervously, allowing Cas to relax. He’d felt like he was missing something, but their reassurance let him calm.

“They’re joking,” Kevin said, glaring at them, “whatever you can do.” Cas shook his head and smiled.

“Please, pick something?” He said it so innocently that the hosts were convinced, Dean rounding everyone up into a circle, whispering to each other as if Cas wasn’t supposed to hear anything.

“Why don’t we bring something, all of us?” Gabriel asked quietly, “I call dessert.”

“No,” Dean answered, “if he wants to do it, we’ll let him. Just pick something that won’t be too bad.”

“Why don’t we just take him out to dinner? That’ll work,” Sam proposed.

“Then he’ll want to pay for it,” Kevin disapproved. LM crossed their arms.

“Why is he so sweet?” Lucifer inquired rhetorically.

“He’s too nice,” Michael muttered. They held up their arms to defend themselves when everyone else stared at them angrily.

“Shut up,” Dean reprimanded. Castiel tilted his head again. They had been talking for a while now, a few more minutes of conversation going on before they turned to him again. “Okay, Cas, how do burgers sound?” Cas grinned.

“It sounds fantastic. My father had this recipe that you’d all love, I know it!” He took up his backpack and hurriedly began scribbling notes down onto his notepad. “I’ll see you all tonight. Is seven o’clock okay?” Happiness gleamed in his bright blue eyes and the hosts nearly melted at the sight.

“Yeah,” they all said with a nod, “seven it is.”

Chapter Text

Dean paced around in his walk-in closet that night at six, phone by his ear and Sam sitting on a chair not too far away. “What the hell do I wear?” he asked everyone, all the human members of the club on a conference call. “I don’t know whether I should wear a tux or what I usually throw on.”

“You’re getting paranoid,” Sam said with a roll of his eyes, “again.” Dean shot him a glare and went back to his call, rooting around on one of the many racks of clothing.

“Don’t overdress,” Michael said.

“But don’t underdress,” Lucifer added. Dean groaned from annoyance and frustration.

“You guys aren’t helping,” he muttered. “I mean, I gotta make a good impression.” Dean took down an outfit consisting of what appeared to be a suit that someone in the FBI would wear - a monkey suit, as Dean would call it - holding it in front of himself and turning to Sam. Sam shook his head and Dean sighed, hanging it back up and pinching the bridge of his nose.

“We can’t let Naomi think we’re slobs,” Kevin pointed out.

“Just put on some flannel and plaid, that always does the trick,” Gabriel said in a tone that sounded like he was shrugging. Dean sighed, placing it on speaker on a small table they had in the middle of the room. Why they had it there, Dean didn’t really know. He kept on looking around, past band shirts and formal outfits for his Dad’s business parties, school clothes and other things, until finding something of interest. It was a black t shirt, leather jacket he inherited from his father, jeans and boots. It looked okay and he showed Sam, who nodded.

“You wore it in canon,” he said with a shrug of his own. Dean quirked up an eyebrow before laughing, his brother always saying weird stuff like that.

“Guys, I found my outfit. Make sure you have nice ones, too.” He chuckled, glancing to Sam. “And Sammy thinks ‘canon’ stuff will be okay.” Sam stifled a laugh and the others sat in bemused silence.

“Alrighty then,” Gabe said after a moment. It sounded like they were about to hang up when Dean spoke again.

“Look, we gotta set some ground rules.”

“We’ve been to Cas’ house before,” LM whined, “why do we need to go over this?”

“Because we don’t want a certain pair of brothers slipping up,” Kevin grumbled. “Seafood? Really?”

“Hey, he did say we could pick!” LM defended. The rolling of everyone’s eyes was almost audible.

“Just keep your traps shut and don’t do anything stupid,” Gabe ordered.

“See you guys there,” Sam said, hanging up. The others set off on getting ready for dinner at Cas’ house, excited to finally spend some normal time with the angel.

Chapter Text

“We really should’ve carpooled,” Sam commented. He observed the three limos and the Impala that sat in the parking lot of the apartment complex building. People had begun to swarm around them, wondering what was going on. Dean sighed and tilted his head back, hands in his pockets as he looked at the sky. The sun was near the horizon, almost setting. They all shrugged and they nearly had to drag Lucifer and Michael away when those gathered began asking who were rich enough to have that many cars.

They finally came upon Castiel’s apartment and knocked on the door, the window beside it with its blinds open and a warm light spilling out of it. “Coming!” someone called from inside. The door opened not too long later and Cas grinned. They all observed as he wore an apron, his slacks, dress shoes, and button-down. Without the coat, however, they were able to see Cas’ wings. “Come in, please, we’re almost done.” He held the door open and stepped out of the way, the club filing inside.

They found the sounds of burgers and meat sizzling, the chopping of vegetables and some of the best smells they’d ever had the privilege to get a whiff of that were even better than what the cooks at their homes whipped up - which was saying a lot. Once they were in Cas closed the door and hurried back to the stove, using a spatula to move around something that had been frying. A woman beside him took up a plate of burritos and placed it onto the kitchen table, which now had more chairs surrounding it. She cleaned her hands on a rag and went over to the boys, smiling.

“Hello, everyone, it’s nice to see you all again.” Everyone said their greetings and Naomi chuckled. “Go sit down, help yourself. Everything’s almost ready.” They did so as the two angels kept cooking. Dean looking around the table.

“How do you think I’m doing?” he asked quietly, putting his hand to the side of his mouth as if to keep them from hearing. LM crossed their arms.

“We’ve met Naomi before, remember? When Cas was sick, at the recital, a few other times, too.” Dean rose his eyebrows and gave the pair a sarcastic look.

“Not officially, and not at dinner.” At that moment Cas came over, setting down a large assortment of condiments that he’d carried from the fridge. Dean cleared his throat. “Thanks for inviting us,” he said politely, “it’s really nice of you to do that.”

“The pleasure’s all ours,” Naomi replied, turning off the stove and bringing the last of the food to the table. Cas took off his apron and folded it neatly as Naomi took her seat. “To be honest, he’s been nearly begging me to have you all over for a while now.” Cas nearly paled, freezing.

“Mother!” he whisper-yelled, face flushing from embarrassment. Naomi laughed.

“Don’t be shy, Castiel, these are your friends.” Cas sighed and went to the fridge again, pulling out a pitcher of water.

“Anyone thirsty?” he asked. Naomi laughed again, prompting everyone to do the same.

“Sit down, you’ve been working too hard.” Cas did as he was told and they all started eating their dinner, talking happily. “Have you seen the book Castiel’s been writing?” Naomi asked casually. Every club member’s eyebrows rose from interest - all except Dean. They noticed this quickly, breaking out into loud chatter.

“What book?” Sam questioned.

“How the hell do you know about it?” Lucifer asked Dean, for which he got a slap from Michael for cursing, and in front of angels, no less. Dean rubbed the back of his neck with a small smile.

“He, uh, told me about it. When we were stuck in a closet.” Naomi nearly paralyzed completely, Dean doing the same. Cas almost slapped the heel of his palm to his forehead, thinking better of it.

“Mother, it was nothing,” he explained, “we went looking for paper towels to clean something when the door jammed. It only closed because we’d left the windows open; the breeze was strong.” He chuckled nervously, yet Naomi seemed convinced, going back to her dinner.

“Alright. Well, you all should see it! It’s an amazing story, it sounds like one could make a television show from it.” Cas smiled a little.

“I’m trying to emulate my father’s work,” he said, “it’s like a ‘behind-the-scenes’ look at a few of the character from his hit series Supernatural.” Kevin’s and Sam’s eyes grew wide.

“Wait… your Dad wrote Supernatural?” Kevin asked. Cas nodded.

“I love that series!” Sam added. They continued discussing the book until dinner was finished, only a few pieces of food left over. Cas was humming and washing the dishes, the other hosts having begged to help alongside him as Naomi rested, the young angel handing a plate to Dean. Dean smiled as he wiped it down with a dry washcloth, glancing to Naomi before whispering.

“Hey, Cas… How’d I do?” Cas laughed quietly, making Dean cringe. Cas rose an eyebrow, confused as to his reaction, before shaking his head.

“You were all fantastic.” Cas looked around himself, then saying, “Dean, I’d like to talk to you privately. Would you mind?” Dean wiped down the last dish and nodded. Cas smiled, drying his hands and motioning for Dean to follow.

Chapter Text

Castiel went to a door down a small hallway, glancing past the wall to watch for the others. With any luck, Gabriel would have suggested dessert and they’d all be chatting. Cas turned back to the task at hand, opening the door silently and beckoning Dean inside. He closed the door behind them, albeit leaving it open a crack, and Dean looked around. The room was washed in a light blue, every necessity for a bedroom inside. There was also a large shelf of books beside a desk, where a gigantic notebook sat, crisp pages ready for anything. “Cas, is this your…?” Dean asked, mouth having gone dry a little.

“This is my room.” Cas smiled and shrugged. “I just thought we could talk without them interfering.” He sat down on the edge of his bed and smiled. “I have something I’d like to tell you.” Dean was sure his heart skipped a few beats, and he nodded quickly, sitting beside the angel. “Close your eyes.” There was a giddiness in his voice, Dean doing as he had been told. He rose an eyebrow as he heard Cas stand, going over to something and opening doors. There was a small scuffling sound and cooing, Cas soothing… something. Questions popped into Dean’s head quickly, and he soon opened his eyes when Cas’ foot tapped his. Dean was met with something adorable; Cas cradling a small black kitten in his arms.

“Woah,” he said in awe, not having expected it. Cas grinned and sat down once more, petting the kitten.

“She’s my little secret,” he informed the human, “I found her one day. Oh, she was starving, weren’t you, Huggie Bear?” The kitten meowed a soft, small meow, Dean smiling.

“Huggie Bear?” he asked, Cas nodding.

“I thought it appropriate.” Cas kissed the top of the kitten’s head gently, Dean catching a glimpse of the animal’s bright blue eyes. It was as if Cas was a kitten, or it was Cas in kitten form. If Dean had Cas for a kitten, he’d never neglect the perfect little thing, he’d always keep his belly full and bed warm and- “Dean?” Cas tilted his head at him when Dean realized he had been spoken to.

“Yeah?” Dean asked. Cas held out his arms and the cat playfully meowed.

“Would you like to hold her?” Dean nodded and took the tiny kitten into his own arms, the animal playing around a little. It purred and snuggled against him, Dean grinning before he sneezed loudly. Cas narrowed his eyes, Dean furrowing his brow.

“Sorry.” He went back to the kitten but sneezed again, confusing both people in the room. He had to wonder if he had a cat allergy. His third sneeze startled the kitten and it lept out of his lap, running out the door.

“Huggie Bear!” Cas shouted, sounding somewhat ridiculous. They both shot out of the room, seeing the cat scuttle down the hall and go toward the kitchen. They both ran to the dining room, breathing heavily and seeing Sam holding the kitten, Naomi with her hands on her hips. Cas’ eyes grew wide for a moment, observing the scene, before he lowered his head, ashamed. I knew I wasn’t allowed to have pets , he thought.

“Uh, Naomi, I can explain,” Dean said with a chuckle, holding up his hands. Naomi suddenly smiled, laughing. Cas looked up in surprise, his emotions quickly turning to utter befuddlement.

“Mother…?” he questioned quietly. She chuckled, the other hosts smiling and going along with it.

“I’ve known about your Huggie Bear for a while now,” she said with a sparkle in her eye, scooping the cat from Sam’s grip and holding her. “I’m very proud of you for taking care of her despite my order not to. But…” Her tone suddenly became serious. “I know you’ve been keeping her in your room.” She narrowed her eyes, Dean realizing where Cas got the habit from. “Why was Dean in your room?” The club instantly blew up, assaulting Dean with different questions all ranging from how much skin he saw - much to his disgust - to why, exactly, he was there in the first place. Michael even asked why he was the only one who got to see the cat. As everyone argued, Cas went over to his mother.

“They’re very fascinating, aren’t they?” he asked, watching them with a warm smile. Naomi nodded.

“Indeed they are.”

Chapter Text

The next day the Host Club sat in anxiety as they waited patiently for Castiel to arrive. It was unusual for Cas to come so late, a few of them even wondering if his wings were molting again.

“What if his mom said he can’t be in the club anymore?” Gabe wondered aloud.

“Don’t say that!” both Lucifer and Michael said at the same time, “you’ll jinx it!” Dean chewed on his nail, nervous. He asked himself if it was true. Since they were in different classes, if Cas were to leave the Host Club, then he wouldn’t see him unless he visited. That didn’t seem likely, however, considering he was a busy guy.

Everyone’s head whipped to the side, toward the door, when the knob turned with a click. Cas poked his head in, stepping inside. “Hello, everyone,” he said cheerily. They all stood, confusing him. “Is something wrong?” The room exploded in chatter, the hosts rushing over to Cas and speaking hurriedly.

“I thought your mom wouldn’t let you come back!” Kevin said.

“How did everything go? Did we do okay?” Sam inquired.

“How’s Huggie Bear?” Gabe asked with a small smirk. Dean pushed his way through and came to stand in front of Cas, putting his hands on the angel’s shoulders. The simple action silenced them all.

“Cas,” he said slowly, “is everything okay?” Cas looked down toward the corner and chuckled, then laughing. The hosts stepped away from surprise, Cas holding his stomach and nearly doubling over. They’d never seen him laugh like that before, leading them to assume something went very wrong or very right. Cas finally stopped, straightening himself and taking a deep breath, calming down.

“Everything’s fine,” he assured, “my mother loved all of you. She thinks you’re a wonderful group of young men and she says this club is a good way to have fun.” He shrugged, continuing. “Though, I should probably focus on my studies a bit more.” The hosts laughed and they all returned to the couches, sitting down and talking casually for a bit.

“So, what about that book?” LM wanted to know.

“Yeah, how’s that going?”

“What’s it about?” Dean and Cas exchanged a quick look, glancing away from each other with blush on their cheeks.

And, once again, the hosts were interrogating Dean, Cas laughing quietly as he struggled to answer.