Chapter Text
“What can you ever really know of other people's souls — of their temptations, their opportunities, their struggles? One soul in the whole of creation you do know: and it is the only one whose fate is placed in your hands...”
― C.S. Lewis
In the old days, the fae of Neamhia and the humans of Mannazlund lived apart, but it was not uncommon for the two to interact. Human kind learned of the fae’s ability to control the elements of nature and their predisposition towards plants and animals. The fae learned of Human kind’s ingenuity with weapons and crafting and their determination to expand and learn.
However, both races’ differences and short-sidedness only led to their drifting apart. Humans failed to understand the fae’s proclivity for open affection and came to fear the fae’s awesome powers over nature and the elements. Fae found the human’s taste for propriety ridiculous and some fae believed humans to be less than worthy due to their lack of magical ability and lack of respect for nature
As time went by, the fae retreated further into their own kingdom and ventured out to interact with humans less and less. . They became less trusting of the humans and young foolish fae even went so far as to mock humans and even play cruel tricks on them. As a result, humans were less and less trusting with any fae they encountered despite who they were or their intentions. Rumors of the humans’ disdain and the fae’s trickery spread and escalated (as rumors do) and eventually, neither were willing to venture out of their own kingdoms tomake contact.
The fae and human kind continued on without each other for over three hundred years. Neamhia entered into a time of turmoil as their land fell on hard times that even their powers could not help. Some fae wished to reconnect with humans in order to learn new crafting techniques and to trade for supplies. However, old habits of distrust and prejudice persisted and the population split into two factions: One supporting cooperation with Mannazlund and another clinging to the old ways. The new movement grew and became more outspoken and adamant until a civil war broke out.
Humans continued on in the usual fashion, conquering, expanding and prospering, though never expanding towards Neamhia. On the edge of Mannazlund, nearest to the fae kingdom, sat a small village called Lawreville where a family named Winchester resided. This story truly began here, with a boy named Dean.
Dean was only seven when he found the lost fae boy in the woods.
He had finished his chores for the day and was heading through the forest towards the river. It was a balmy day and he was sweaty from his hard work. Caring for goats and chickens was a messy job. The river wasn't far, so Sam came with him and Dean had to make sure he didn't fall and hurt himself along the way. His dad would be mad if Sammy came back with scratches and bruises. He was only three and it was Dean's job to make sure he stayed safe.
Dean spotted the river and held a branch away from the path to let Sam through. Sam toddled through and gasped, "Wow!" like he'd never seen the river before. Dean grumbled about stupid baby brothers and ran out onto the bank. The river was low this time of year and there was no risk of getting swept away as long as they stayed on the correct side of the rock barrier in the water.
Dean immediately removed his shirt and his chausses, leaving him only in his breeches. He looked over and noticed Sam was having trouble undoing the laces on his chausses, so he went and helped the poor kid. Once Sam was ready, Dean led him over to the swimming pool and waded in. It only went up to Sam's armpits, so as long as Dean made sure Sam didn't fall under or anything, he didn't need to worry.
Dean dunked under the surface quickly and the water was a relief on his sweaty, heated skin. He started rubbing the dirt and grime off of himself as Sam splashed around a couple feet away in the pool. "Sammy! Stop it," Dean whined as a splash hit him in the face. Sam just blew a raspberry at Dean and went on playing. Dean continued to wash, enjoying the cool water against his skin.
Sam wandered back up onto the beach eventually and started pushing sand into piles. "Sammy, you have to stay where I can see you! Don't go away!" Dean warned.
"Okay, Dean!" Sam said with a grin, and continued his sand sculptures.
Dean wandered into a deeper part of the pool and dipped under the water, swimming around and looking for pretty rocks. He liked to collect them and kept them in a hollow tree near their house. He wasn't seeing anything good, though. He came back up and gasped loudly, pulling air back into his lungs. Dean wiped his eyes of river water and immediately searched the beach for Sam. Sam had moved to another spot of the beach and was picking up sticks.
Dean ducked under the water again and returned to his stone search. He wriggled under the water, turning this way and that, eyes scanning the bottom. He spotted something promising, a glint of blue. He pushed himself over to the shining thing and plucked it up. Dean burst through the surface again and eyed the stone, fingers slipping over its smooth curves. A vein of sparkly gem ran right through the middle of it, reminding Dean of lake water. "Sammy! Look what I found!" Dean cried, looked up and found that Sam was not be found.
"Sammy?" Dean stumbled over the slippery river rocks and sand below his feet towards the beach. "Sammy!" he called, feeling fear creep in. He heard nothing in response except the gurgle of the river and the wind in the trees.
"Sammy!" Dean screamed desperately.
If he lost Sammy, he was going to be in such big trouble. If Sammy got hurt his dad would kill him. Dean ran across the beach, looking for any sign of the boy. He called Sammy's name so loud his throat started hurting. Tears started stinging his eyes and he was breathing fast. "SAMMY!" Dean tripped and fell into the sand and it hurt. Sammy was gone and Dean was going to get into so much-
Just then, a tiny light came bursting through the shrubs at the edge of the beach. It zoomed towards Dean, bounced around excitedly and zoomed back into the same shrubs from which it had appeared. Dean could only stare dumbly, he had never seen anything like that before. When he was younger, his mother had told him about Will o’ the Wisps and the fae and their fairy light. Could this be something like that?
Again, the tiny light came through the bushes. This time, it was moving slowly as it danced around the far end of the beach. What was it? What did it want?
Before Dean could do anything, though, Sam came walking out of the same bushes, smiling at the ball of light.
Dean was up in seconds, running towards his little brother. "Sammy!" He slammed into the smaller boy and knocked them both to the ground. Sam immediately started whining.
"Deeeeaaaan! That hurt!" Sam screeched.
Dean let the boy up and promptly set to checking him over for hurts or cuts. "Sammy! I told you not go away! You scared Dean!"
Dean stood and held out his hand for Sam to take. Sam's lip quivered and he stared down at his feet, but grasped Dean's hand dutifully and was pulled up to stand. "I'm sorry. I wanted to explore and I got lost. The boy was so pretty."
"What boy?"
"The light!"
"What?" Dean's face scrunched up in confusion.
"The boy in the light," Sam said, and pointed.
Dean looked to where Sam was pointing. A few feet away, looking sheepish and unsure was another boy about Dean's age. The boy was wearing fancy clothes, but they were torn and dirty. He wore a sort of pale bluish-greenish tunic, grey leggings and black leather shoes. His dark hair was unkempt and sticking up in all kinds of places.
"He's nice, he showed me the way back!" Sam said excitedly, and swung their clasped hands back and forth.
Dean moved forward, towards the other boy, pulling Sam along with him. The unnamed boy was very nervous, he kept fidgeting and looking around. Once Dean and Sam were close enough, he said, "Hi. You helped Sammy?"
"Yes. He was lost," the boy said, barely above a whisper.
"He was the light!" Sam exclaimed simply. Like that explained it or something.
The boy's gaze was locked onto Dean. "He was scared. I wanted to help."
Dean looked the boy over. He seemed normal, not like he had been a ball of light a few moments ago. "You were that ball of light flying around?" The boy hesitated to answer and Dean offered, "It's pretty neat. Are you fae?"
The boy jerked, obviously worried about Dean's reaction, but he still nodded. "Are you scared?" he asked sheepishly.
"No!" Sam declared loudly.
Dean laughed and said, "No, you were nice and helped Sammy. And it's neat that you can fly." A thought came to Dean. "Wait, do you have wings? Can I see?"
The boy's face softened and a tiny quirk of his lips told Dean that he did. The boy squeezed his eyes shut in concentration and opened them again before turning around. A pair of translucent wings sprouted from the boy's back, shimmering in the sunlight. They were only about a square foot in size, still small.
Dean's face lit up and he exclaimed, "Wow! They look like a dragonfly's wings! And they're blue!"
Sam giggled beside him and reached a hand out to touch the wings. The boy turned the wings away from the smaller boy's touch and faced them again.
"I thought humans didn't like fae," he said.
Dean frowned and thought about it. "Well, I think most people think fae are scary or something. But you're nice. I like you."
The boy finally smiled and said, "Thank you. You're nice too."
Sam spoke up, asking, "What's your name?"
The boy looked at Sam and pleasantly answered, "Castiel. What are your names?"
"Well, I'm Dean, and this is Sammy. We're brothers."
"I'm three!" Sam provided.
"Yeah, he's three," Dean confirmed with a shake of their clasped hands. "So, I've never seen a fae before. Do you live around here?"
Castiel shuffled his feet and mumbled, "I suppose."
"What do you mean you suppose?" Dean questioned.
"I- I…" Castiel's eyes began to water, and panic was clear on his face. "They were so scared. My brother Gabriel, he- they- told to me run away. I- I- was scared and I flew so far-" Castiel let out a sob and wiped at the tears on his cheeks.
"Wait, wait, Castiel, it's okay." Dean let go of Sam's hand and wrapped an arm around Castiel's shoulders. "Don't worry, you don't have to talk about it. You're all alone out here?"
Castiel sniffled, then wiped away a couple errant tears before looking at Dean with dewy eyes and nodding silently.
"You can't stay out here alone. That's not right."
Sammy piped up, "Dean! Dean! We should take him to Uncle Bobby!” He turned back to Castiel to explain. “He can help. Daddy’s in charge of the village and Bobby’s his friend. He knows all about magic stuff.”
Dean considered this for a moment and a toothy grin spread across his face. “Yeah! He’ll know what to do. Put your wings away, Cas. Come on!”
The boys stood in front of the Singer house at the edge of the village called Lawreville. It was so different from the fae villages that Castiel had seen in the few short years of his life. For one, all the houses were on the ground with dirt roads running in between. The houses were made of wood, but they were not grown out of trees the way fae houses were. They were nailed together and some were even painted white. Some even had two floors and what looked like fenced in areas for animals behind them. This house was nice, but a little worn down, and Castiel wondered if that was because Dean’s uncle lived alone as Sam had said. Castiel shuffled his feet nervously and watched carefully as people further into the village went about their days. He didn’t notice as Dean disappeared into the house, calling out to his uncle.
“Dean will fix ev’ryting! You’ll see!” Sam said as reassuringly as a three-year-old could manage. Castiel could only offer a nod as acknowledgement. He could hear Dean talking to someone inside. It sounded like a man, maybe an older one. Footsteps neared the door and it swung open. A middle-aged man stood there and he frowned down at the children on his doorstep. Castiel wasn’t sure that such a grumpy-looking man would want to help.
“Bobby!” Sam cried, and ran forward to wrap his arms around his legs.
“Hello, Sammy. Who’s your friend here?” he asked as he ruffled his hair.
“That’s Cas-Cas-Castiel,” Sam managed. “He’s a fae!”
Dean appeared from behind his uncle and bopped Sam on the head. “Sammy! Be quiet!”
“Heeeey,” Sam whined, and rubbed his head.
“Dean, don’t hit your brother,” Bobby growled. After a quick look around to make sure no one had heard, he said, “But yes, let’s get inside. Come in, Castiel.”
Dean’s uncle stepped aside and ushered Castiel in. Once the door was closed behind them, Castiel looked around the house. It was one big room with a large stone fireplace in the far corner, a cauldron hanging over the fire. A table sat in the middle of the room and two doors led away to other rooms.
Dean’s uncle walked to the table and pulled a chair out. “Castiel, take a seat.” As Castiel climbed into the chair, Bobby poured a cup of water for him. Dean and Sam also climbed into two of the other chairs. Bobby took his own seat and watched as Castiel sipped his water.
“So… Castiel, you look a mess. Dean said that you’ve been living in the forest near the river.”
“Yes. I… had to leave home,” Cas said quietly. “My brothers and sisters. They told me to run away and I did. I- I don’t…” The memories came swimming back and he felt his lip start to quiver in distress.
A warm hand settled down on Castiel’s head, then he was encircled in a tight embrace. “Okay, kiddo. It’s okay. We’ll figure something out for you.” He pulled back from Castiel and rubbed a tear away from his cheek. “Have you eaten, Castiel?” he asked as he stood and began rummaging around the kitchen.
Bobby found some snacks for them as the boys found new games for Castiel to learn. The boys were attempting to teach Castiel how to play pickup sticks when a knock came at the door. John had come by to pick up his sons. Bobby moved over to the boys and said lowly, “Boys, let’s not tell your father about Castiel being a fae yet, alright?”
The Winchester boys nodded, but Castiel questioned, “Why? Dean and Sam know.”
“John isn’t too friendly to magic creatures, is all. Don’t worry,” Bobby placated.
Bobby moved to the door and let John Winchester in. He was a big-looking man with dark hair like Sam’s and a short beard. Dean looked up when the door opened. Sam leapt to his feet and ran over squealing, “Daddy!”
“Hello, Sammy,” John said affectionately, and lifted Sam onto his hip. John looked around for Dean and when he spotted Castiel, he asked, “Who’s this, Dean?”
Bobby stepped forward with a sigh. “John, this is Castiel. He’s been lost in the woods. Separated from his family. Dean found him at the river.”
Castiel felt his face heat up. He wasn’t sure how he felt about needing so much help. His brothers and sisters had always warned him about the humans’ distrust in fae, too. They told stories about the horrid things humans used to do to fae in the old days.
John eyed Castiel; the boy shrank under his scrutiny. Dean stood up and walked over to his father, looking wary. “Daddy, he’s real nice. He was scared and alone. I just wanted to help.”
Castiel felt a surge of warm feelings for Dean. The boy was really nice, even when they had just met today.
John tore his eyes away from Castiel and looked at his older son. “I know, Dean. It’s alright. You did well.”
John’s face turned hard. He looked over Castiel again, this time much longer with a much more stony expression. He took Sam off his hip and set him down. “You boys play. I need to talk to your uncle for a moment.”
Bobby left his pot of stew simmering over the fire and grumbled to the three boys, “Don’t worry, boys. Your father and I are just going to go talk.” He followed John into one of the other rooms.
Dean grinned at Castiel, who still felt nervous. “Don’t worry, Cas. Bobby and Dad will figure something out.”
“I don’t know if your Father likes me,” Castiel whispered.
“No, he’ll like you. Bobby will change his mind,” Dean assured him.
When John and Bobby emerged, John announced that he would be staying for dinner and sat down at the kitchen table. The brothers looked to their uncle who offered a small smile to Castiel. “Castiel, I think we may have a solution for you. In the meantime, Dean, Sam, set the table.”
The rest of dinner passed with amiable conversation. John and Bobby talked about work in their co-owned leather shop, and Sammy asked Bobby to tell them a legend from one of his old books. Bobby regaled them with a story of a dragon and a princess who wanted to be kidnapped. The princess wanted to get away from her royal duties and expectations, and the dragon was lonely. Castiel enjoyed the story a lot and asked questions, but Bobby insisted they would finish the story another time.
When dinner was over, John ushered the boys outside to clean up at the water pump. Dean took Castiel’s and Sam’s hands and led them over to it. “Alright Cas, you gotta get all the dirt off your hands and face. I’ll pump the water.”
Dean reached up and pulled down on the lever. Nothing came out, but Dean kept pumping the lever. Castiel leaned over to look up the spout. “Cas, look out!” Dean yelled just as water came gushing out, splashing over Castiel’s face. Sam collapsed in a fit of giggles. Dean said, “I tried to warn you. Well, just scrub your face.” Castiel frowned and did as he was told.
The boys cleaned up and came back inside. Bobby and John were sitting by the fire. John looked up and said, “Boys, Castiel is going to stay the night with us. Dean, take the others home, give Castiel something to sleep in and get everyone into bed. The grown-ups need to talk.”
“Is Cas staying with us?” asked Sammy.
Bobby patted Sam on the head from his seat by the fire. “He is. For tonight.” He rubbed Dean on the head too and pushed him off towards the door. Then, he turned his attention to Castiel. He reached out and pulled him into his arms and gave him a gentle squeeze. “Get some sleep tonight. You’re safe here. We’ll have it figured out before morning.”
The arms around Castiel loosened and he headed off to follow Dean out the door. Dean took both Sam and Castiel’s hands again and led them only a few doors away to their own home. The Winchester house was a little bigger and nicer, and Castiel wondered if that was because Dean’s father was the village leader. Dean used a key from his belt to unlock the front door. They went inside and Castiel saw that the inside of their house was similar to Bobby’s. However, there were stairs where a door had been in Bobby’s house; Dean led them up to the second floor. They found the boys’ room and Dean started making a space on a plain straw mattress. When the door closed behind him, Dean looked up and beckoned Castiel over.
“Here you go, Cas. You can sleep here,” he said as he pointed to the mattress. He went to a dresser and tugged some clothes out of a drawer. When he returned to Castiel, he handed them over. “And those clothes are for you,” Dean said as he crawled into place on the mattress. Castiel took the clothes and quickly changed, leaving his once-fine clothes on the floor in the corner. Dean shuffled over into the middle of the bed, throwing the blanket aside.
Castiel climbed on the bed and said, “There’s not much room.”
Dean’s cheeks colored. “Yeah, well, you can squeeze in.”
Castiel saw Sam on the other side of Dean, already asleep with the blanket covering half of his face. Dean must have seen him looking. “Sam always falls asleep super fast,” he explained. Castiel scooted in closer and pulled the blankets up to his chin. He laid there for only a moment before Dean said quietly, “Cas, can you blow out the candle?”
Castiel turned his head and found the candle on a table next to the bed. He leaned over and blew the flame out. Now, it was dark and unfamiliar. It seemed like the darkness might crush him, it was so dark. His mind went to his brothers and sisters. He wondered if they were alright. They had all been so scared and nervous the day before he had to run. He missed them so much.
Dean moved next to him; he could feel the mattress shift below him. Castiel felt his lip quiver again. He also felt tears welling up in his eyes and his shoulders beginning to shake. Now he was going cry in front of his new friend, and he didn’t want to cry.
“Cas?”
Castiel froze. Dean spoke again. “Cas, it’s okay. You can cry.”
Once again, Castiel was pulled into a tight hug. The tears in his eyes trickled down his face as he clung to Dean.
Dean asked, “Do you miss your family, Cas?”
Castiel nodded, his face rubbing against Dean’s shirt.
“I miss my mommy. She’s gone. I know how bad it feels,” Dean whispered.
“What happened to her?” Castiel asked shakily.
“She… Dad said that it was bad men that came and took her away when we were little. I don’t remember it much and Sammy was just a baby. Dad told me to take Sammy and run. So I did. Kinda like you, I guess. But when I came back, the bad men were gone and mommy was dead.” Dean was sniffling himself now.
“I’m sorry about your mother, Dean.”
“Me too, Cas. But Daddy says that we need to be strong and it’s my job to look out for Sammy. I take care of him, and I’ll take care of you too, okay?”
Castiel squeezed Dean tighter. “Thank you, Dean.”
The boys drifted off to sleep tangled up in each other, and Castiel dreamed of being held by his father again.
The next day, Dean showed Castiel around the house after he gave them a meager breakfast of bread and cheese. Dean’s father was already gone, working at the leather and blacksmith shop with Bobby. He showed Castiel the small amount of animals they owned: A goat for milk and cheese and a few chickens for eggs and the occasional meal. The rest, they had to trade for at the small market just down the road. Dean showed Castiel his crude little wood carvings. One was of a deer; Castiel had a hard time seeing the resemblance, but he thought Dean would be very good at it someday.
Dean also took Sam with them everywhere. It was amazing how much Dean loved and cared for his little brother, cleaning, cooking, and teaching him things. Sam talked quite a bit and asked a lot of questions, but it was obvious he was going to be a very smart, capable man someday. For now, though, Dean rarely let go of Sam’s hand.
After Castiel had helped Dean finish his morning chores, they visited John and Bobby at the leather shop and both men were happy to see the three of them. John greeted his sons, but sent them away because there was work to do and chores to be done. However, it was clear that John loved his children by the way his eyes softened around them.
That night, The Winchesters and Castiel went to Bobby’s for dinner again, and the night was just as pleasant as the night before. Bobby prepared a dinner of chicken and root vegetables. Castiel was not used to eating such rich foods; the fae didn’t eat much cooked food other than the occasional bit of meat. The food was all good and he supposed he would get used to it someday, though it made his belly gurgle a bit at first. However, in the middle of dinner, John cleared his voice and gained the group’s attention.
“Castiel, did you know that Bobby lives alone?”
Castiel stopped mid-chew and looked over to Bobby. He tentatively shook his head.
Bobby spoke up then, though it was clear he was a little uncomfortable. “Yes. I have this whole house to myself.”
Castiel looked around the table. Dean looked a little confused and Sam was just continuing to eat. John looked on calmly.
John spoke again, “We thought that you should stay with Bobby. So you’ll still be close by and Bobby is a very good man. You can trust him.”
Castiel’s eyes widened and he looked to Dean. A wide grin was splitting the boy’s face. “If you live with Bobby, I can see you every day!” Dean exclaimed. “You’ll love it, Cas! Uncle Bobby is great!”
Castiel swallowed the lump in this throat and turned his eyes to the gruff older man sitting at the end of the table. “You would do that?”
Bobby nodded, and the corner of his mouth curled upwards. “Yes, boy. You would be safe with me.”
Castiel only hesitated a moment longer before he said quietly, “Alright.”
Dean and Sam cheered. Castiel smiled at their exuberance. After dinner, the Winchesters left, and Castiel moved into Bobby’s spare room.