The Year of Redemption

Chapter 59: Ever the Same

Dean, Cas, and Samandriel spent the next two hours making Christmas-shaped sugar cookies, then frosting and putting sprinkles on them.

While Dean made most of the cookies, Cas and Samandriel spent a majority of their time frosting one or two cookies perfectly, then decorating them with sprinkles as if they were painting Rembrandt portraits. Cas made a gingerbread boy and two stockings which actually spelled out their names in sprinkles, and Samandriel made a reindeer and Santa Claus.

As Dean was decorating a few angels, Castiel and Samandriel decided to start recreating a manger scene of Jesus's birth as it actually happened – out of Christmas cookies. However, they ran out of cookie batter before they were able to fashion all of the people and animals that had been there.

"Here you are, a spitting image," Dean said, holding up one of his angels for Cas's inspection. Its wings were covered in pink sprinkles, there was hardly any frosting on the rest of it, and the top of its head was yellow.

"Actually, that reminds me more of Lucifer..." Cas mentioned, glancing at his brother.

Samandriel took one look at the cookie and nodded. "Definitely Lucifer." Dean rolled his eyes and turned around, frosting another angel cookie and covering it with all black sprinkles. He held it up. "That's Castiel!" Samandriel exclaimed.

Cas looked up and punched Samandriel in the arm. "At least the wings are accurate."

"Eh, the rest looks pretty fitting too – black wings, black soul, black halo," Dean joked.

"Funny, this one reminds me of you," Cas remarked, holding up a cookie from his manger scene which looked to be wearing farmer clothes. As Cas held him up, the head fell off. He picked it up and delicately reattached it with more frosting. "Yep, spitting image."

"You're such a jerk," Dean scoffed, tossing the black angel cookie onto one of the plates. "Besides, I'm much more stylish than that." He spun around to take the last tray of cookies from the oven, scooping them onto the cooling racks in front of Cas and Samandriel. "Here, these are the last of them. Better finish up your little history reenactment, boys, I'm going to finish up wrapping in the living room."

Dean started walking out of the kitchen, but Cas grabbed his wrist, pulling him down to the angel's eye level. "I love you," he stated and pecked Dean on the lips. "You know that, right?"

The hunter glanced over at Samandriel, who was busy frosting the new manger characters. He looked back at Cas. "I love you too," he whispered, kissing the angel back. "But you're still a jerk." Dean swiftly pulled away, and Cas barely caught the edge of his smirk as he strode off to the living room.

Samandriel turned out to be much more proficient at wrapping presents than Cas was. It also helped that Dean was able to show him by demonstrating on one of the presents for Cas – after making Samandriel promise to Santa Claus himself and all his little elves not to tell Cas what the present was. After that, Samandriel would wrap the presents, and Cas would tie ribbon around them or tape a bow on top, then place them under the Christmas tree.

They wrapped the presents in the living room, sharing the paper and bows and tape, but staying back-to-back. Sometimes, Cas would turn around to grab the tape from Dean's side and sneak a kiss on the hunter's neck or cheek. Dean glared back at the angel, but every time, Cas was already all the way turned back around, looking to be intently focused on the present in front of him.

"Oh, you are going to get it tonight," Dean hissed towards the side of Cas's head as the angel was turning back around after pecking Dean's jaw. He kept his voice low, even though he knew Samandriel could hear him. The hunter caught Cas's mouth twitch just a bit before the angel turned his face completely away. Dean rolled his eyes and smiled, still feeling the lingering texture of his angel's lips.