Four years later

"Thanks again Lisa, for making time for this," Dean said for at least the fifth time that morning. Lisa just waved him off as she gathered her second graders in to a loose circle for show and tell.

"Sammie's been excited all week," she told him, "I don't think I've ever heard him talk so much. It's been great to see him opening up." Dean felt a warm blossom of pride at Lisa's words. After four years he felt as strongly toward his little brother-in-law as any father for his son.

"Yeah it's been a challenging time for him," Dean said, "Me and Cas thought it might be nice for him to get to be the center of attention for a little bit." Lisa smiled.

"Well a new baby brings big changes for everyone," she agreed, "It's sweet that you two are worried, but I think Sam already loves being an uncle almost as much as you love being a dad."

"He must be crazy about it then," Dean said with a grin. Lisa shook her head with a laugh.

"What?" he asked her.

"Nothing," Lisa assured him, "You guys are just too cute." Dean blushed as Samandriel poked his blonde head in the classroom door.

"She's here!" he announced to the waiting circle of kids. Outside the door Dean could just see Cas, a pink bundle tucked safely in his arms. Lisa's students craned their necks, as excited for their visitors as Samandriel.

"Are you ready for us Ms. Braeden?" Cas gravelly voice called from the hallway.

"Come on in Mr. Novak," Lisa answered, "Sam, do you want to introduce your guests to the class?"

"Yeah!" Samandriel bounced into the room eagerly, dragging Castiel by the hand. Already the second grader was getting taller, almost to Cas' waist, his proportions getting less babyish and more balanced. Samandriel had blossomed after his shy start in Dean's class into a talkative and energetic kid.

"This is my big brother Castiel," Samandriel continued, "You guys should probably call him Mr. Novak though." The class gave a polite 'Hello Mr. Novak' as Cas took a seat in the chair Lisa had set in the middle of the circle earlier. Most of their eyes however, were glued to the blankets in Cas' arms, which wiggled suddenly as Castiel adjusted the blankets to reveal a beautiful baby girl. As usual, Dean's heart stuttered when her big brown eyes flickered to him in awareness, then back up to Cas, before surveying her new surroundings curiously. Samandriel grinned widely at his classmate's enraptured faces.

"And this," he said, "Is my new baby niece."

The class oohed and ahhed. One of the girls raised her hand.

"Is she your baby?" She asked Castiel shyly.

"Yes she is," Castiel told her, his smile soft and warm as he looked down at his daughter, "She is my and Mr. Winchester's baby." He looked at Dean then, and Dean felt his heart swell for the second time in less than two minutes as he returned his partner's smile. A few little heads turned back to look at him, eyes wide. He could hear a few questioning voices murmuring low as he flushed a little under the children's gazes. Mr. Winchester has a baby?

"Yeah, Castiel and De-Mr. Winchester are married," Samandriel told them, remembering to use Dean's full name at school, even though he was 'Dean' now at home, "They wanted to have a baby, but they're both boys, so we adopted one instead. We had to wait a really long time." He nodded sagely, his expression one of infinite patience.

"What's her name?" Someone asked.

"Her name is Mary Ann," Samandriel informed his classmates, "We named her Mary because that was Mr. Winchester's mom's name, and we named her Ann too because Anna is my big sister who takes care of me sometimes when Castiel and Mr. Winchester have to be at work." Mary Ann gurgled happily in Castiel's arms, sending a wave of titters through the second graders seated around them. Castiel rocked her gently, murmuring softly to her.

"Can I hold her for a minute Castiel?" Samandriel asked. Castiel looked to Dean, who nodded, then to Lisa, who shrugged with a smile.

"Of course Samandriel," he told his brother, standing up to let Samandriel take his seat before carefully handing him Mary Ann.

"I have to be very careful when I hold her," Samandriel told the class, demonstrating how to properly support Mary Ann's head in his arms, "I had to practice for a really long time before I could do it without Castiel or Mr. Winchester's help." Samandriel continued to answer his classmates questions and Castiel came to stand by Dean, silently lacing their fingers together. Dean squeezed Cas' hand as Samandriel coddled their baby girl, who laughed in her uncle's arms.

"Really, she's like my baby sister," Samandriel was telling them, "Even though tech-ni-cal-ly she's not. That's 'cause Castiel is my brother, even though he and Mr. Winchester are like my dads."

"That sounds really hard," one of the kids said in confusion.

"Sometimes it's confusing," Samandriel agreed, "And when I was little sometimes I was worried because my family was different than other people's. But Mr. Winchester says that names and how you're related doesn't matter as long as you love each other. And we love Mary Ann very much, so she's part of our family now, too."

Dean heard a sniffle beside him, and turned to see Lisa dabbing at her eyes with a Kleenex. He raised his eyebrows in concern, but she waved him away, clearing her throat as she stepped forward.

"That was great Sam," she said, "And what a wonderful show and tell! Boys and girls, can you say thank you to Samandriel and his family?" A chorus of "thank you!"s echoed in Dean's ears as Castiel moved to take Mary Ann in his arms once more. Dean followed him, stopping to pat Samandriel on the shoulder.

"Great job, little man," he said, "I couldn't have said it better myself."

"Thanks Dean," Samandriel whispered, making sure no one heard him use his first name. The kids milled around them, gathering lunchboxes as Lisa began to line them up to head to the cafeteria. Samandriel gave Cas a hug and Dean a high five before going to join his classmates in line.

"We should probably head home soon," Castiel said as Mary Ann gripped Dean's finger with surprising strength, "She's bound to be cranky if she doesn't go down for her nap."

"Yeah I should probably go save Ellen," Dean agreed, "I'm glad I got to be here though."

"Me too," Castiel said, brushing his lips against Dean's softly as the classroom emptied out. Dean smiled as their foreheads touched, eyes locked as Mary Ann cooed in Castiel's arms.

"I love you," Dean said quietly.

"And I you," Castiel answered, "I'll see you after school."

"See you," Dean said, before leaning down to place a kiss on Mary Ann's nose, "I'll see you too, baby girl. Enjoy your nap and be good for your daddy."

"She always is," Castiel said gently, "Goodbye, Dean." He kissed Dean one more time before walking out of the class room. After a second Dean followed him, calling down the hall.

"Hey Cas," he said, and his husband turned to look at him, blue eyes questioning, "Uh, maybe we could see if Anna doesn't mind having a sleepover for Sam and Mary Ann on Friday. We could get some dinner, maybe see a movie?"

Castiel grinned. "We can ask," He said, "After all, we did name our child after her. But what are we going to do all night with no children in the house?"

Dean grinned back. "I'm sure we'll think of something."