Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

~Friday~


Four ounces of Calendula infused olive oil
½ ounce of beeswax
1 teaspoon of Vitamin E


With a double boiler, heat the oil and beeswax together on medium-low heat until melted. Blend them together. Take off the heat and add Vitamin E. Combine well then pour it into the desired container.

Following the easy recipe that he could follow blindfolded, Castiel poured the contents into the two-ounce containers spread around the table. Each one filled to the brim, he admired his work before holding his hand over all the containers to mutter a short incantation.

The salve gave off a soft yellow glow for a few seconds before flickering out.

Smiling down at his finished product, capping them, and waving his hand to seal them so that he could place them in his bag to take to work.

Right as he zipped up the bag, the clock on the wall chimed signaling 10 am. Running a hand through his already messy hair, he walked to the sliding glass door, picking up the already filled watering can along the way.

The crisp autumn air wafted over him as he turned to start on the closest plant. Watering the roots before running some over the plant itself. His backyard wasn’t huge, just average-sized. It was big enough to hold his small greenhouse and the plethora of other plants lining the fenced-in property.

He went from one side to the other, greeting each plant individually. Complimenting some of them on their growth and even snipping out the weeds that seemed to have grown overnight.

When he came to his pride and joy, a smile spread across his face when he saw a tiny purple flower sprouting from the Mandragora.

He’s had this plant for two years, a present from Gabriel after Castiel had finished his schooling in Apothecary.

“Good Morning,” He greeted while pouring the rest of the water from the can into the soil around the plant. He squatted down to the plants level, checking the leaves and stems for bugs or weeds.

“You sprouted a new flower. It’s very beautiful” he cooed, admiring the small blossom on top of the leaves. “Must be happy now to have become fully grown,” he patted the soil around the plant before standing and grabbing the watering can.

Rubbing his hands together to rid the dirt, he let his mind wander to the countless recipes for Mandragora Root that he’s learned about. It would be his first time working with it, not counting the time he watched the teacher demonstrate its use during a lesson.

He just remembered that mandrake root was also an aphrodisiac when he stepped across the threshold. Placing the watering can by the door, he glanced at the clock. 10:45 am, just enough time to get ready for work.

-

At 7:25 pm, Castiel was just walking through the door, clothes rumpled from the extra flow of customers. People were coming in to gather enough supplies before they leave town for the winter holidays.

Most people leave their quaint little town during the colder months, opting for the slightly warmer weather in the south. How that makes sense, no one knows. Honestly, Castiel loves the cold. Bundling up in winter clothes, cozying up by the fireplace, and s’mores!

The sun was just reaching below the horizon when Cas took a spray bottle, already filled with water, to the back yard to give some of his plants a once over. Some plants needed extra watering than others.

He rechecked leaves in the light of the lamps he had hung on along the walls. Spritzing leaves here and there, spraying the roots as he went.

Once he got to the Mandragora, a big smile appeared on his face. Three more purple flowers had bloomed.


~Saturday~


The alarm blared from his alarm clock, indicating that it was 6:30 am.

Why he had it set in the first place was a mystery in and of itself.

A hand appeared from under the covers to silence the noise.

“Five more minutes,” a voice uttered out from underneath the warm blankets. It was Saturday after all, there wasn’t a real reason to get up right this instant.

What turned out to be twenty minutes later of just laying there with his eyes closed, he burst up and out from his cocoon of blankets to be free. Rolling off the bed, he trudged to the bathroom to start his morning routine. Peeing, showering, shaving and brushing his teeth.

After choosing to wear just a pair of sweatpants, he walked down the hall to his kitchen, where the coffee was already brewing. He scratched at his chest as he waited for the coffee to finish, he rummaged around his cabinets for a clean cup. Even though Castiel was a witch, he didn’t want to become lazy and depend on his magic for everything. Sure, charms here and there don’t hurt, but stuff like cleaning, well, Castiel actually enjoys it.

He stood there watching the coffee drip, enjoying the relaxing feeling of a quiet morning. Nowhere to go, his hair dripping wet from the shower, not bothering to dry it like he usually did.

A loud beep echoed through the kitchen, indicating that the coffee maker was done with its brewing of the sweet nectar of life. He would need the copious amount of energy for later when he decided to harvest some of his plants from the greenhouse. But that can wait.

Speaking of, after pouring himself a cup and taking a sip, he walked over to the watering can that sat by the sliding glass door, making sure it was filled. A simple charm to automatically fill at the same time every day. That was something he could afford to do, if not, he would forget to fill it himself.

Just as he was about to turn away, something caught his eye.

A very...naked...something.

Standing in his backyard.

There was someone standing completely nude in his backyard for the world to see!

A tanned man standing exposed, with his back to Castiel, whose arms were raised above his head.

He was swaying slowly from side to side, enjoying the morning sunrise.

The cup in Castiel’s hand slipped from his grasp, shattering on the floor on impact. Spilling the sweet nectar of life everywhere on his wood floors.

At the sound, the man turned his head in Castiel’s direction and wow. Holy crap those eyes. A shade of green that he’s never seen staring directly at him.

Slowly, Castiel backed away from the door, until he bumped into the kitchen counter, heart beating in his chest.

There’s an intruder in his back yard and all Castiel could think about were his poor plants. They’re gonna dry out soon!

The man turned completely towards Castiel, a smile showing pearly white teeth. A strong contrast compared to the dirt that was covering the man’s very naked body.

Their eyes made contact with one another.

It was when the man took a tentative step forward, then another, is when Castiel groped at himself and his pants in search of his wand. That’s when he realized it was still on the nightstand. And he didn’t want to take his eyes off this guy who kept Castiel’s gaze as he got closer.

“Oomph!” came the muffled sound from the man having run right into the glass door. He looked around, a hand on the glass, his face contorted in confusion. He brought his other hand up, leaning his face so that it smushed against the glass.

A smile appeared again when his gaze found Castiel once again. He leaned back to stare at the glass, his brow creasing in frustration? Contemplation?

Castiel was able to calm his racing heart, knowing the man was stuck. He went to turn away when he realized, as his heart sank, that he had unlocked the sliding glass while he was checking the water in the watering can!

With a flick of his wrist, the locked clicked into place, but not before alerting the stranger.

The man squinted in the direction of the sound, placing his hand in the groove of the handle, giving it a small tug. Nothing.

He frowned at it and tugged again. Nothing.

Sighing in relief, Castiel looked around for his cellphone, needing to call the police to come and get this lunatic who clearly had too much of something last night. He probably smoked something to be this happy.

The man let go of the handle, both hands clenching into fists on the glass.

BANG!

He pounded on the glass.

BANG! BANG!

Castiel felt his heart jump in his throat when a crack in the glass appeared. ‘Crap!’ Castiel thought, moving around the counter to the area farthest from the man and the door. The man continued to pound on the glass, harder each time until the sound of glass shattering filled the air, Castiel stomach dropping at the sound.

If Castiel ran now for his wand, who knows what this guy was capable ok. Was he a magic user as well? Some kind of creature? A dark witch, possibly?

The man starred in amazement from the noise and from what he had done, all the glass on the floor then to his hands. It was when Castiel moved closer to the wall did he catch the man’s attention again.

It was like Castiel was his sole focus, stepping onto the glass and broken coffee cup like it was nothing, and through the threshold.

‘What the hell is this thing?’ Castiel thought, bringing his hand up, muttering a small incantation towards the intruder.

Nothing.

Spell after spell did nothing to the man, except for the one that was able to bring him to his knees. Which didn’t last very long.

If Castiel had his wand, the magic would be much stronger, possibly incapacitating the man until reinforcement came to arrest him. But he watched the guy began to crawl on his hands and knees towards him.

That’s when Castiel noticed a nasty, yellow, goo like texture on the floor from where the man had been standing.

He’s not human!

That’s when Castiel decided to stop messing around.

He stood, braced against the wall. Taking a deep breath he walked right up to the thing, bending down to look it right in the eye and asked,

“What are you?”

The response he got was not what he expected. It leaned over into Castiel’s personal space, swiping its tongue from Castiel’s chin to the corner of his left eye.