AN: This is the reward story for megaotaku98 for being the 100th reviewer on Our Solemn Hour. If anyone out there is super bummed about not getting their own story, y'all can message me anytime, I take requests. Whilst on the topic of Our Solemn Hour, as you can tell from the description of this story, this one's gonna be very different from that. If you want blood and adventure, read another one of my stories, all fluff here, guys. Title from a Fall Out Boy song, Young Volcanoes.

"Really, Sam?" Dean snapped in irritation. Maybe they'd been on the road too long, maybe it was because they'd just lost Ellen and Jo, or maybe it was because after hours of theorizing plans to defeat Lucifer nothing was sounding like a good idea, but Dean was getting pissy to put it gently.

"It was just a suggestion, Dean!" Sam defended.

"Well it's a friggin' stupid one!"

"Okay, you asked for ideas, I'm trying to give you that."

"Try harder."

"It's not like you've come up with anything lately!"

"Well then, at least I have the decency to keep my mouth shut instead of throwing me all these half assed plans."

"I'm doing my best; there isn't much else I can do!"

"Then maybe you shouldn't have let Lucifer out in the first place!"

Not even an entire second had passed before Dean regretted letting those words slip out. "Sam, I-"

"Oh go to hell, Dean! I'm trying to make things better and this is what I get for it?" Sam grabbed his jacket and started heading for the door, only to feel Dean's hand on his shoulder. He jerked away from it, and kept walking.

"Sammy, wait." The door slamming shut was the only response he got, and Dean sighed. Yeah, he'd take the blame for this one. He knew going after Sam would only bring on another fight. If he just let Sam drink himself silly, he'd come stumbling back in, drunkenly apologising or laughing, it varied often

Nonetheless, Dean figured that if he gave it enough time, everything would eventually work itself out. He wasn't wrong.

Completely...

Screw Dean for ever saying that. Sam knew he felt that way, but for Dean to actually say it out loud? Freaking dick.

Huffing, Sam stuffed his hands into his pockets, continuing his walk down to the bar. In the Winchester dictionary, alcoholism was synonymous with coping.

The streets were mostly all clear at this time of day. All the immediate post-work traffic had passed, but it wasn't quite the hour for the late night partiers either. All in all, it was pretty quiet.

Despite that fact, Sam didn't really know his way around this town, so he hadn't noticed he'd made a wrong turn until he nearly ran into the dead end of the alley he had managed to stumble into. Just his luck.

"You brother's been kind of a dick lately, huh?"

Nearly jumping out of his sin at the unexpected but recognizable voice, Sam turned around. The face he saw definitely wasn't one he'd planned on seeing ever again. "Gabriel? What are you doing here?"

"I'm a little brother too, yknow." Gabriel told him, ignoring the question. "Big brother too, and I gotta say," He whistled. "Dean's been a pretty crappy one lately."

"It's none of your business."

Gabriel shrugged. "Nope. But it is my latest form of entertainment."

"What?"

Gabriel snapped his fingers.

There was a knock at the door far sooner than Dean had been expecting. Then again, he wasn't really expecting the knocking at all. Why the hell would Sam knock? Didn't he have a key? Kid probably got himself too plastered to remember that he had one.

Opening the door, Dean was fully prepared to catch a hammered Sam, and that made it all the more surprising when he didn't see anyone. Not until his eyes went lower, and there, asleep on his doorsteps was a little kid in clothes that were way too big. A tiny little hand was balled up into a fist, the other placed by the kid's mouth, the thumb stubbornly stuck between the toddler's lips.

What the hell was happening?

Looking at the kid a moment longer, Dean saw a piece of paper placed atop the sleeping child. He grabbed it, and read it.

"Dean," It read. "I noticed you've been neglecting your big brother duties lately, so I thought this would help refresh your memories of how to be less of a douche bag.

Gabriel.

P.S. Yes, this is Sam, he's just a two year, they say it's the best age! Good luck, buddy!

That stupid trickster angel was so dead. Sure, Dean had made some mistakes lately, but how does turning Sam into a toddler solve anything?

Regardless of his inner detestation of this, he picked up his now even littler brother and gently laid him on the bed. God, he was so tiny. 'Bout damn time too. Dean was older, who the hell gave Sam the right to grow three damn inches taller than him?

So... An arch-angel had turned his brother into a two year old. Now what?

If an angel did this, maybe an angel could get them out of it as well. That is if he wasn't drunk beyond recognition... Again.

"Cas?" He prayed aloud. "I could use some help here. One of your dick siblings turned Sam into a freaking two year old."

He heard the flap of wings behind him. "Cas, if I turn around and you're two inches from my face, I swear to God." He turned, and yet there Castiel was, right up in Dean's personal space, as usual. "Dammit, Cas!"

"My apologies, Dean." He stepped back and eyes the sleeping toddler in the bed. "Gabriel's work I take it?"

"Can you fix him?" Dean inquired hopefully.

Shaking his head, Castiel replied, "Gabriel is an arch-angel, I am not. Therefore, I can do nothing to undo his work. Has he given you reason as to why he has done this to Sam?"

"Some crap about me being a bad big brother or something. Can you believe him?"

"Yes."

"What?"

"You have been unnecessarily harsh on Sam ever since he released Lucifer."

"'Released Lucifer', Cas. Can you blame me?"

"Sam may have broken the final seal, but need I remind you who broke the first one?"

Reeling at the fact that Castiel had the nerve to bring that up, Dean clenched his fists. "I didn't know what I was doing."

"Neither did Sam."

Alright, Cas had him there. "Anyway, what do I do about Sam?"

"Until Gabriel decides to change him back, I am afraid there isn't much that can be done."

About to make some snarky remark about how much his life sucks, Dean was cut off with a sleepy whine. His eyes went over to the bed where the little Sam had begun to stir.

"Think he's waking up." Dean moved to the bedside, not entirely sure what he should expect from this newly toddler-fied brother. "Sammy?"

Rubbing his eyes, the tired child croaked out, "Mama?"

Oh, damn. "She's not here right now, buddy. But I am; it's your big brother Dean." "I've just aged twenty-five years but don't mind that."

A small whimper erupted from Sam's small lips, and he opened his eyes, even more puppy dog like than before. When they finally landed on the stranger standing beside his big brother, that set him off. His chubby arms instantly locked around Dean's neck, and he burrowed his head into Dean's shoulder. If he couldn't see the stranger, then the stranger couldn't see him.

"Whoa, whoa, it's okay, Sammy. This is Cas, he a friend of ou- mine. You don't gotta be scared."

Further burrowing into Dean's shoulder was all the response Sam offered.

"Or be scared. That's fine too." Dean chuckled. "You'll probably be needing food at some point won't you? And clothes. Alright, let's go."

As he headed out to the car, a thought suddenly came to him. "Oh crap. I don't got one of those stupid car-seats anymore. How am I-" He looked at Castiel. "Hey, can you get him to the store?"

In confusion, Castiel tilted his head. "I do not believe he likes me."

"Store's just a few blocks away. Please, Cas? I got no other options here. Just- wait outside so when he cries people won't think you kidnapped him."

"Wait, 'when?'"

"Thanks, Cas." Not giving Sam or Cas the chance to really comprehend that, he quickly pried Sam's arms off of his neck and handed him to Cas. He then hurried into the car, and sped off.

San stared blankly at the rushing Impala in shock for about a whole millisecond before realising that Dean had just left him, and the wailing commenced, along with the beating of his tiny fists against Castiel's trench coat, and the frantic kicking of his legs.

"I-I am sorry, Sam. He will be coming back, I promise. This is just temporary." Castiel attempted to console. Clearly, his efforts weren't working, so he did as Dean asked, and flew over to the store.

The abrupt change in scenery must have startled Sam, for when they moved, his squirming limbs locked tightly around Castiel. "Sorry. Your brother also does not enjoy when I do that without warning."

When Sam suddenly giggled, it took Castiel off guard. "Do-do you like flying?" Testing his theory, Castiel beamed himself and Sam back to the hotel room, and another giggle burst from Sam.

Smiling, Castiel zapped them back to the store. That got a series of tiny claps from Sam.

"'Gain!" He squealed in excitement.

Happily, Castiel obliged. "I suppose Dean's fear of flying is why he dislikes this so much." He figured aloud as he continuously beamed them from place to place.

More time must have passed than he realised because he kept hearing Dean's voice cutting in and out. He stopped flying when he landed back at the store again, and there Dean was.

"What are you doing? Someone could've seen you!"

Unknowingly, Castiel answered, "Sam enjoys flying."

Dean's eyebrows scrunched together. "Really?" He addressed Sam then. "You like flying with Cas, Sammy?"

Looking at Dean with those sweet little eyes, Same nodded.

"Alright, cool. Here, need me to hold you now?"

Along with his answer, Sam locked his arms and legs around Castiel. "No."

"Think he likes you now, Cas. You mind holding him while we get some stuff for him?"

"I don't believe I have a choice." He responded as he tugged at Sam's vice-like limbs wrapped around his neck and waist.

All three of them entered the store, and it was big! Dean's big brother instincts kicked in as he began to have horribly vivid fantasies of Sammy wandering off and getting lost. In an attempt to calm his nerves, he grabbed a cart with a kid's seat attached to it, but to no one's surprise, Sam refused it, and stubbornly remained wrapped around Castiel.

"That means you stay with him the whole time, got it?" Sam nodded at Dean's order. "Okay. You pick out some food with Cas, I'm gonna go find you some clothes. And a car seat."

Thank God Dean never used real money otherwise he'd be blowing all of it on clothes and food for a little brother that would only be little for God knows how long.

Venturing through the store, Dean eventually came across the little kid's clothing section. Unable to resist, Dean grabbed a couple plaid shirts for an outer layer. He then picked out a few t-shirts to wear underneath, a majority of them incorporating Batman in one way or another.

After having to swallow his pride and asking a worker where to find the booster seats, he found one that would fit Sam. Could be unnecessary considering how much Sam enjoys flying, but still. Now he just had to find Sam and Cas again so they could get out of there.

Peering around what seemed like the hundredth aisle, Dean saw a glimpse of Castiel's trench coat. "Cas!" He called. 'We good?" He eyed the contents of the cart, not surprised to see it was filled with Lucky Charms, Mac 'n Cheese, and peanut butter and bananas. Only, he did notice something very important was missing. "Where's Sam, Cas?"

"He's right-" Castiel turned around, and the widening eyes made Dean's stomach drop instantly.

"Did you lose him?!" No, no, no, no, no! Oh, God, Dean was on the verge of a panic attack.

"I swear, Dean, I set him down for only a moment.

"Oh, just a moment? I guess that makes it all better! C'mon, we need to find him!"

Running from aisle to aisle, Dean continuously shouted for his brother. "Sam! Sammy!"

"Dean." There was a hand on his shoulder, and Dean turned around to see Castiel's way too calm face. How was he so calm right now?! "I know you are worried, but you need to focus and think. Where would Sam most likely run off to?"

Okay, okay, two-year-old Sam. What does two-year-old Sam like? What do all two year olds like? Dean's eyes lit up as the answer came to him. "Think I got an idea. C'mon."

Moving quickly with adrenaline and panic giving him the energy, Dean made his way to the candy aisle almost faster than humanly possible. To his complete and utter relief, there was his little Sammy, attempting to reach a five-pound bag of gummy worms.

"Sam!" Dean was at his side in an instant.

Innocently and obliviously, Sam pointed at the candy, wordlessly asking Dean for help in retrieving them.

"What were you thinking?!" Dean forcefully scooped Sam up, ignoring how he began to squirm and whine. "You can't run off like that; you know better!"

Trying to use his new altitude to his advantage, Sam started to reach for the gummies again.

"Uh-uh!" Dean swiftly moved out of the aisle, stopping all of Sam's efforts to obtain the candy. "You're not getting any candy now, Mister."

Whines began to morph into whimpers, and whimpers turned into little angry sobs. "D-De!" Sam blubbered.

"No. We're leaving now."

That threw Sam into a fit of full-fledged crying now.

"Dean," Castiel couldn't help but feel responsible for Sam wandering off, and he didn't feel that it was fair that Sam receive all the blame. "He didn't know he was misbehaving. Is it necessary for you to be so harsh on him?"

"He knows better, Cas."

"He is two, Dean."

"Yeah, but he's also a Winchester. Winchesters know not to walk off when they're given an order."

Sam's incoherent sobs suddenly shifted to a plea of words that broke Dean's heart. "P-put me down, Daddy!"

Demeanor softening in a heartbeat, Dean looked at Castiel. "Take the cart. I need a minute with him."

Nodding in understanding, Castiel let them be and set off to go wait in line.

Crouching down, Dean set Sam down, but put a hand on his shoulder so he wouldn't be able to run off. "Listen, Sammy. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that, but you also shouldn't have left Cas and gone off on your own."

Sniffling and wiping his nose with his sleeve, Sam gave a nod.

"And even if I get mad," Dean continued. "It doesn't mean I love you any less, okay, tiger?"

Sam gave another nod. Dean wiped the tears from Sam's eyes, and then held out his arms. Sam gratefully accepted and leapt into his brother's grasp. "Sorry, De."

Holding Sammy close, Dean hugged him just a little bit tighter. "Me too, buddy." He gave Sam's head a quick kiss, and tried to set him down, but Sam protested.

"Carr' me pease?"

How could Dean say no? "Sure thing, Sammy."

With Sam in his arms, Dean met Castiel in the checkout lane.

"I take it everything has been taken care of?" Castiel asked with a smile as he looked down at the snuggly Sam.

"Yeah." Dean answered honestly. "We're good." Dean couldn't help but pick up on the way that the cashier was smirking at him and Cas.

"He's adorable." She said as she smiled cutely at Sam. "I can see where he gets it with such handsome daddies."

Daddies?! Oh, hell no! "No! This is my brother! An-and this is just my friend!" It was bad enough that Dean had to deal with this when people thought he and Sam were together, and now Cas too?

"What is the problem?" Castiel asked. Of course he couldn't see what was so weird about this.

"She thinks we're together, Cas." Dean tried to explain.

"But- we are, aren't we?"

Oh, God. "No! As in a couple! Like married!"

"Oh. I see."

"Is-is that all you're gonna say? You see?!"

"I do see though, Dean. I just do not understand why it upsets you."

"It doesn't-" He huffed. "Oh, forget it."

They finished checking out, now carrying about three bags each. "You wanna zap him back to the hotel, Cas?"

"Would you like that, Sam?"

The toddler gave an eager nod.

"Alright, meet you there." The words had barely passed Dean's lips before Castiel had beamed himself and Sam back to the hotel.

When he finally arrived at the room, Sammy and Castiel were waiting by the front desk, which was slightly odd. "Thought we were gonna meet back in the room."

"Sam spotted these- vending machines, and has been begging to get something. Would that be alright with you?"

Tiny arms had suddenly curled around Dean's leg, and those sweet little eyes peered up at him through a mop of thick, brown hair. "Please?"

Kid said 'please.' What choice did Dean have? He reached into his pocket and gave Sam a dollar in quarters. Sam smiled giddily, and scurried off to the vending machine.

"So cute." The receptionist commented to Castiel.

"Indeed." He agreed.

"You know," Her voice dropped lower, as though she was harboring a secret. "I'd be totally fine with giving you and your partner one bed. It's really not a big deal nowadays."

"What isn't?"

She fumbled on her words for a moment, trying to bring it up as discreetly as she possibly could. "Being- close- with someone the same sex as you."

"Oh, yes. He and I are very close indeed."

Taking the remark the wrong way, the woman giggled. "So, would you like just one bed for you two to sleep in?"

"I don't sleep."

"Whoa, do you like- go all night then?"

"What?"

"Never mind."

A bag of Dorito's in hand, Sam and Dean returned. "Okay," Dean announced. "Think we're all set."

As they began to walk off, the receptionist called after them. "What about your new room?"

Dean froze. "What's she mean new room, Cas?"

"She offered us a new room with just one bed. It was rather kind of her."

Cheeks and ears reddening from embarrassment, Dean wordlessly stormed off back to their two bedded room. Seriously, what was it about him that made people think he was gay? Whatever. He had something much more terrifying to think about now.

Bedtime.

Getting Sam to sleep was easier than expected, although Dean did have to bargain two bedtime stories before Sam would so much as put on his pajamas.

Big brother mode had decided to kick in again with a ferocity so intense that Dean began to worry about every little thing that could possibly go wrong. The kid was in a huge bed, but what if he rolled off? Dean had ended up creating a barricade of blankets and pillows around Sam's tiny body in case he started to move around too much.

Unfortunately, in doing so Dean had left himself with none, which meant going back to the receptionist and requesting more. Of course, as she handed them over, she had added the fact that the walls were very thick so loud noises in the room shouldn't be a concern. Dean had just given her his extremely friendly smile; whilst on the inside he was wondering how many drinks it would take him to forget that horrifying imagery.

"I suppose you will not be needing me anymore tonight?" Castiel asked in a whisper so as not to wake Sam once Dean had returned.

"I'll call you if I do. Thanks, Cas."

"Anytime, Dean." And with that, he was gone again.

Flipping on the television, Dean didn't exactly complain when it happened to be on Doctor Sexy. Dean of course never argued with fate, so he let it stay on. A few dozen episodes had passed before Dean had at last been able to drift asleep.

He wasn't sure how many hours had passed before a small, yet scared sounding noise woke him up. Not wanting to open his eyes just yet, Dean listened for another moment. He didn't hear another sound, but just as he started to fall back asleep, the sound returned, only now they had turned into words.

"No. No!"

Sammy! Practically leaping out of bed, Dean hurried to Sam's side and started to shake him lightly. "Sammy! Wake up, buddy. It's just a dream."

Sam had begun thrashing, and his cries had gotten louder and more desperate. "No! Dean! Dean! Wan' Dean!"

"I'm right here, Sammy. C'mon, open your eyes." Despite his instincts, Dean shook him just a little harder, but luckily, it worked. Sam's eyes blew wide open, and he instantly latched himself around Dean; head tucked into the crook of Dean's neck, arms and legs locked once more around Dean's body.

"Shh," He comforted. "It's okay, Sammy. It was just a dream." It wasn't fair how often Sam suffered from nightmares, especially as a child.

"S-said 'no', Dean." Sam sobbed shakily.

"'No' to what, Sammy?" Dean didn't even care how much snot Sam was getting on his shirt right then; he just cared about comforting his little brother.

"M-man try to make me say yes, but I say no!"

A child's vocabulary can only be so sparse, but within those few and simple words, Dean knew exactly what Sam had dreamt about; Lucifer had had the guts to invade his baby brother's dreams to coax a yes. Out of a freaking toddler. That damn son of a bitch!

"It wasn't real, Sammy." Dean lied. "The man's gone now, just you and me."

Dean let Sam cry himself out until he went completely silent, other than the sounds of his steady breaths, finally asleep again.

Moving as slowly as he possibly could, Dean managed to make out the clock. It was still early, even for a hunter. Well, maybe not for Sam, but Dean wasn't Sam. Nonetheless, he didn't want to risk moving Sam back to his own bed, so he laid him down on top of his arm. That way if Sam rolled, Dean would be able to catch him.

Then again, with how tightly Sam was clutching Dean's shirt in his surprisingly strong grip, neither one of them would be going anywhere.

Somehow, Dean had been able to get at least semi-comfortable, and then he closed his eyes.

A series of slow claps echoing throughout the room made him nearly fall off the bed in terror.

"Well done, Dean! You had me a little worried at the whole candy aisle bit, but you recovered nicely after that."

Reaching over and flicking on the light, Dean wasn't surprised to see Gabriel standing at the foot of his bed.

Sam squirmed for a moment at the sudden light, and then rubbed his eyes.

"Don't you have anything better to do than screw around with us, Gabriel?"

"Nope, not really. I've been keeping an eye on you two, and watching you treat Sam the way you have been-" He shook his head, like a parent scolding their child. "Glad to see you do know how to take care of him. Now I know you're just choosing to be a dick."

"You're gonna talk to me about being a crappy brother? At least I'm not abandoning my family when they need me most!'

Gabriel really knew how to hide his anger with a 'holier than thou' look. "You want Sam back or not?"

Guess today wasn't the day to debate the arch-angel, and dean huffed. "Just do it."

In mock offense, Gabriel gasped. "Manners, Dean. There is a child present."

Practically through his teeth, Dean hissed, "Please?"

Smiling in victory, Gabriel snapped his fingers, and just like that, he was gone.

"Dean?"

Thank God. "Welcome back, Sammy."

"What the hell happened?" Sam rubbed his head, wondering why he couldn't remember anything that had happened to him after he'd run into Gabriel in that alley earlier today. Or- yesterday? Since when did an entire day go by?!

"Tell you later." Dean grumbled as he crawled back into bed. Man, he was exhausted.

"I'm holding you to that." Sam made his way into the mini-kitchen. "When did we get all these Lucky Charms?!"

Dean couldn't help but smile at Sam's apparent confusion. It was good to have him back. After this little misadventure, Dean was almost ready to be a big brother again.

Almost.

The end! So sad, I know, but guess what? I got two more stories planned after this, so it won't be long before you hear from me again, even now that I've got myself a job this Summer! Anywho, thanks again to megaotaku98, you are a crazy, crazy girl, and I love you. Until next time, carry on my wayward sons!