January 1, 2021

The Bunker was crazy. As Sam and Eileen cleaned house from last night, which, to say the least, was nothing short of crazy, but memorable, Cas helped Dean get them ready for a hunting trip.

"No, Cas, we don't wanna waste those bullets. Check under that box of shoes in my closet." Dean laughed. "We're hunting white-tailed deer, not black-eyed demons..."

"Oh..." Cas took a big container of salt out of his stretched-out pocket and set it on the nightstand. "But, Dean...I still don't understand why humans would want to hunt...for fun?"

"And for food...venison is to die for..." Dean's eyes widened in excitement.

"Well, I think I'll pass, and you should too. We've come this far, and for us to just give up-"

"Cas, no, baby..." Dean was about to hyperventilate. "Hunting season...for normal people, is not year-round. Depending on the wild-life and the region, well, we play a little Circle of Life so rodents don't overpopulate and send the world into chaos...kinda like spiders with bugs..."

"And bees with pollinating?" Cas tilted his head, squinting his eyes in that confused puppy look that sent Dean into orbit every time.

"Yeah, Cas...just like the bees." Dean patted him on the shoulder, a job well done with another way of human life learned.

Everyone was so patient and willing to help Cas figure out how to live like a human. And Cas appreciated it, because there was a lot to cover. Including different types of hunting.

"Ok, I think we're ready..." Dean did a once-over, and grabbed his bags. "Let's load up..."

Cas followed Dean out to load the car, then they came back in to find Eileen packing them tons of food for the trip.

"Dean, batteries!" Sam tossed Dean a pack of new batteries, knowing he would forget something practical.

"Oh, right, yeah, thanks, Sammy. Cas, get our yetis out of the freezer..." At Cas' confused look, Dean rolled his eyes. "The giant containers we filled with water!"

"Of course, Dean..." Cas went to do just that.

Dean gave Sam a look.

"What? You're the one who wanted to bring him..." Sam shrugged.

"I did, yeah, he's completely co-dependent and so naive, I mean, just look at him! He's adorable..." Dean whispered that last part when he saw Cas put on his deer stalker hat.

God, I love you...

"Well, you two have fun, but not too much fun...cause I want some deer meat. Sam says he learned how to do it." Eileen gave each of them a hug, whispering something in Cas' ear Dean could only imagine was funny.

"See, I knew that big brain of yours would come in handy one day..." Dean ruffled up Sam's hair. "That better include some jerky!"

"Whatever jerk."

"Bitch...bye!"


A few days later, the door to the Bunker slammed shut, causing Sam and Eileen to run to see what the commotion was.

"Dean? What's wrong? You're already back? It's only been two days..." Sam asked, worried.

Dean took a long, over-exaggerated sigh. "We finally see one, he was beautiful, Sammy, a big, hunkin' ten pointer, just..." Dean rubbed his head like he was nursing a migraine.

Cas shamefully walked in behind Dean, carrying some store-bought jerky and frozen meat.

"Hunting is...not for me..." Cas simply explained.

Sam looked to Dean for further explanation.

"HE DIDN'T WANT ME TO HURT THE DEER, SAMMY! HE DIDN'T WANT THE NON-EXISTENT BABY WE NEVER SAW TO BE FATHERLESS AND GROW UP TO JUST BE MY FREAKING JERKY!" Dean whined.

"Oh..." Sam nodded in understanding, trying to hold it together, because Dean does not like being made fun of when it comes to the downfall of a particular food item he really, really wanted. "Well, Cas, it's ok...there's a lot of other recreational activities that humans do that I'm sure you'll love..."

"Yeah, like knitting..." Dean grumbled. "I'm going to take a long hot shower. If I'm not out in four hours, then you can call 911."

"I'm sorry, Dean..." Cas apologized again for the upteenth time.

"I still love you, Baby..." Dean called, halfway to the shower.

"Love you too..." Cas replied. "Am I a lost cause, Sam?"

"No, no...hunting...that kind of hunting, isn't for everyone. You'll find something...your thing. We've got all the time in the world, thanks to Jack, I mean, God."

"We do, don't we?" Cas said with a smile.