Epilogue – All You Need is Love

Castiel watched as Sam and Sarah finished their first dance as a married couple, applauding as the music ended and Sam dipped her, a chorus of 'awws' breaking out, before pulling her up and planting a kiss on her lips, the two of them beaming as they ought to be on their big day. A memory of Amelia on their wedding day danced behind his eyes, the way her red hear had stood out against the white of her dress, how widely she had smiled, how his heart had skipped a beat when he'd first seen her walk down the aisle of the church they had grown up in together.

He sighed and pushed the feeling down and away.

He would not cry today.

It had been nearly a year, nearly a year since Dean had ridden into his life and saved it. Castiel looked over to the man who sat next to him and was currently grinning and applauding his little brother on his big day. It had been an eventful year, not only with meeting Dean and somehow carving out a space in his life where he could feel marginally happy without also feeling overrun with guilt and grief.

On the anniversary of Claire and Amelia's deaths, Castiel and Dean had driven up to Pontiac. Cas had taken him all over the town, driving past his old house, Claire's school, the office building where he had worked, and finally, the church he had attended. Dean had parked and Castiel had stared up at the massive stone building silently while Dean watched him.

"Do you want to go in?"

Cas was tempted to say no to spare himself the pain he knew entering that building would bring, but instead he had steeled his nerves and nodded, grabbing the handle of the passenger side door and stepping out of the car.

The first thing that hit him when he stepped through the large wooden doors was the smell. Musty books and incense flowed in through his nose and he was reminded of old times, happier times, when he had been secure in his faith, unyielding. Sure that no matter what came to pass; his faith would protect him, that God wouldn't forsake him.

How naïve he had been.

Their steps echoed in the vast, cavernous space as they moved slowly down the center aisle, the grandeur of the building demanding reverence from its inhabitants despite the fact that neither of the two men had much in the way of belief.

Cas and Dean took a seat, Cas grasping Dean's hand as he closed his eyes.

They could hear a woman a few rows in front of them praying for someone named Mike before standing and moving to exit the church.

Cas stopped her.

"Mike is your husband?" he asked

She nodded, "Yes, he's very sick."

Castiel nodded sympathetically, "Yes, life is so…fragile. I only learned that recently."

"I guess that's why we pray." She said, "When you get dealt such a bad hand sometimes, you need something stronger than yourself."

Castiel looked wistful.

"It's a wonderful idea, but…"

"What?" she asked kindly as he trailed off, his gaze wandering to the stained glass angels that adorned the windows of the cathedral.

"What if no one is listening? What if all your praying is in vain? What if there's actually nothing?"

She shook her head.

"You're missing the point of faith." She said with conviction, "It doesn't matter what may or may not be out there. What matters is that you believe in it. That you make it true. And then let that truth help you in whatever way you need it to." She laid a comforting hand on his shoulder before departing.

Dean and Cas sat in the church for a long time while Castiel contemplated the woman's words and his own shattered devotion.

…

"Congratulations bro!" Dean said with a smile in his voice and he hugged Sam, thumping him on the back and hanging on just a little longer than normal before moving over to Sarah and complementing her on her dress. The wedding was being held in a beautiful old mansion in New York where Sarah's family was from and most of the guests were there for the bride. Only Dean, Cas, Ellen, Jo, Bobby, Ash and a few of Sam's friends from Stanford were there for him. Still, the important people were there.

Castiel stepped forward and Sam pulled him in, wrapping his arms around the man.

"Congratulations Sam."

"Thanks Cas."

He moved over and shared a hug with Sarah.

"Congratulations Mrs. Winchester, you look lovely in your dress."

Sarah smiled.

"Thank you so much Castiel. Mrs. Winchester!" She beamed up at Sam as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, "I like the sound of that."

Dean threw his arm around Cas.

"Oh!" Sam shouted, suddenly remembering something, "We have an announcement."

"Oh my God you're not pregnant are you?" Dean asked, looking at Sarah.

She chuckled and shook her head.

"No, I'm not pregnant." She assured Dean.

"Oh, okay. Not that you look pregnant." He floundered, "You look gorgeous. Not that you can't look gorgeous when you're pregnant, I hear there's a glow…"

Castiel raised a finger and pressed it to Dean's lips before he could dig himself in any deeper while Sam and Sarah shook with silent laughter.

"No." Sam said, when he could finally speak again. "I uh, got a job offer and I took it."

Dean's face broke into a smile.

"Congrats bro." he said, clapping Sam on the shoulder with his free hand, "You're gonna be a proper lawyer. Where is this law firm? San Francisco? Or are you moving back here to be near Sarah's family?"

"Neither." Sam said enigmatically, "It's in Kansas City. And, since the commute isn't too bad, Sarah and I put an offer in on a house in Lawrence. I'm coming home Dean."

Castiel turned and noticed the muscles of Dean's jaw working to try and hold in the tears that were welling in his brilliant green eyes. He stood still and silent for a moment as he took in the fact that Sam was coming home.

Then he leapt forward, tackling Sam in a hug and Sam laughed while Sarah grabbed Castiel's arm and leant her head on his shoulder.

"You know, growing up I always wanted a big brother, now I have two!"

…

They had gone to the graveyard and laid flowers, Cas taking Dean's hand in his.

"Amelia, Claire. You know I'll always miss you and love you with all my heart. You will always be my girls. And I know that you would want me to be happy. Well, this is Dean. And he makes me happy. Very happy. Happier than I thought possible after loosing you both." His words became clipped as his throat choked up and tears shone in his eyes. He sank down to his knees on the snow-covered ground and stretched out a hand to trace the inscriptions on the shared gravestone.

Amelia Novak
Loving Wife and Mother

Claire Novak
Our little angel

Always in our hearts

"I miss you guys so much and I will always love you."

Dean held Cas as he wept, not caring that the snow was seeping in through his jeans and freezing his knees, just that he was there for the beautiful man he held in his arms and always would be.

…

Meeting Castiel's three older brothers had been interesting, and by interesting, Dean meant fucking terrifying.

John was tall and silent, his hair the same dark brown as Castiel's and his eyes serious as he took in Dean in a way that reminded him uncomfortably of his father. His handshake had nearly broken Dean's hand with its strength.

Nick's hair was a lighter brown, almost blonde, that was closer to Gabriel's colour and, though his manner was more relaxed than Michael's, he was still intimidating as hell in a much colder, more unpredictable way.

Gabriel was just as snarky and terrifying as Dean had remembered and when they all stared at him silently after Castiel had excused himself to go to the bathroom, Dean seriously doubted that he would come out well in a fight if even one of them made good on their promise to hurt him if he hurt Cas, let alone if all three of them reigned down their wrath on him.

Nick had certainly lived up to his middle name when he threatened to disembowel him if he even suspected Castiel wasn't happy with Dean.

"I hope they didn't threaten you too much." Cas had said once they were safe in the Impala.

Dean shook his head.

"Of course not." He answered, and he was pleased that his voice only shook a little.

…

Once they were on the road back to Kansas, Castiel picked up the battered box of tapes, rifling through them until he found what he was looking for. It was a testament to how much Dean loved Cas that he didn't even complain about the 'driver picks the music, shotgun shuts his cake hole' rule being broken, although if he were to be perfectly honest, that rule really only applied when the shotgun was Sam.

Castiel slipped the tape into the deck and soft, finger-picked guitar sounded through the car as George Harrison's soft voice began to sing:

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it's all right

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it's all right

Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it's all right

Dean drove silently while Cas moved in close, resting his head on Dean's shoulder and crying softly. Dean stretched his arm around the man, resting over the back of the bench seat, Cas always cried when he listened to the Beatles, having found the music to be cathartic.

Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes

Little darling, I feel that ice is slowly melting
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been clear

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it's all right
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
It's all right, it's all right

…

Dean returned from the bandstand and held his hand out to Castiel.

"May I have this dance?" he asked.

Castiel looked unsure.

"I don't really dance Dean."

"Come on," Dean said with an easy smile, "It's a slow song, you just have to sway besides—"

Before he could finish, the singer came over the mic.

"So this song is dedicated to Castiel from Dean."

Dean shrugged.

"You're not gonna leave me hanging after that now are you?"

Cas shook head and stood, slipping his hand into Dean's and followed him out onto the dance floor, moving in close and resting one hand on his shoulder, the other clasped in Dean's as the horn section started off La Marseillaise before everyone else came in with:

Love, love, love
Love, love, love
Love, love, love

There's nothing you can do that can't be done
Nothing you can sing that can't be sung
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game
It's easy

Nothing you can make that can't be made
No one you can save that can't be saved
Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you in time
It's easy

All you need is love
All you need is love
All you need is love, love
Love is all you need

"By the way, this is my way of saying I love you." Dean said softly into his ear as they danced cheek to cheek. He felt something wet against his face and knew that Cas was crying.

Dean pulled back to make sure that Cas was alright, he'd hate to have cause a breakdown in such a public and joyous forum. Sure enough there were tears falling from his sparkling eyes but there was also a brilliant smile on his face.

Dean looked in awe at the sight, a smile of his own blossoming.

"Well what do you know?" he said, "I was right."

"Right about what?" Cas asked curiously.

"Your smile." He said, brushing a thumb over the corner of his upturned mouth, "It's beautiful."

If possible, Cas's smile grew before he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to Dean's lips, smiling against them before leaning their foreheads together.

Love, love, love
Love, love, love
Love, love, love

All you need is love
All you need is love
All you need is love, love
Love is all you need

Nothing you can know that isn't known
Nothing you can see that isn't shown
Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be
It's easy

"Thank you for saving me Dean." Cas said softly

"Thank you for showing me your smile." Dean answered.

All you need is love
All you need is love
All you need is love, love
Love is all you need

...

Cheesy ending is cheesy, but sweet. Anyhoo, I hope you liked my little fic! Let me know in a review how I did :)

The Things we Hide is still alive and well if you want more to read.

I love every single one of you who took the time to immerse themselves in my little world and especially those who reviewed.

Thank you so much

:)