#pup!sam

It takes weeks, but Dean finally caves under Sam’s constant pestering and infuriatingly sound logic and agrees they can adopt a dog. He acts all put out over it, but the younger Winchester knows his brother will love their pet as much as he will.

Sam’s buzzing with excitement the whole drive over to the shelter, practically bouncing in his seat. He knows he looks like a child on Christmas morning, but he can’t help it. He’s wanted a dog forever. Now they have a home, with a yard and plenty of space, and enough money to take proper care of a pet. He can hardly wait.

A little bell jingles when they enter the shelter, and an older woman smiles at them from behind the front desk. “Can I help you?”

“We’re looking for a dog.” She nods and gestures to a door in the back right corner.

“Go on in, we’ve got plenty. Castiel’s in there refilling water bowls right now, if you have any questions, just ask him.” The boys nod their thanks and follow her direction.

“Let’s look at them all and each pick a favorite.” Sam suggests, taking Dean’s hand and squeezing. His brother nods and they set off down the hall, looking carefully into each cage. There must be about thirty dogs in all, not counting the small ones. A third of the way down they run into one of the workers - Castiel, they assume - coming out of one of the cages with a watering can.

“Hello!” He flashes a smile at them, and the two glance at each other. The brothers have long been able to share certain messages through look, and this time they were both broadcasting the same thing: Damn that man is fine. “Are you looking for a dog?” They nod. “Wonderful! Anything specific you’re looking for?”

“A larger breed would be nice.” Sam starts off.

“Fully grown and fully trained already would be great too.” Dean adds.

“And our work takes us away sometimes, so one that’s a bit mellower and can either ride with us or not mind being left at home for a whole day would be great.”

“I’m sure we can find you the perfect pet. I’ll start with three I think would be good for you.” Castiel nods, smiling at them. The corners of his eyes crinkle, and the eyes themselves are a shocking shade of blue. The brothers share another appreciative glance. Castiel leads them along the rows and introduces them to three different dogs.

“This is Ella.” He starts off with, stopping them in front of a cage holding a boxer. “She’s a bit clumsy but incredibly sweet and very friendly. She’s two years old and fully healthy with all her shots.” Sam feels like Castiel stares at them a little more intently than is normal as he talks. It’s like he’s trying to see inside them, to figure them out and note down their characteristics just like he has for all the dogs.

Next is Heart. He’s a four year old german shepherd. “His name comes because he was born with a heart defect. Luckily we were able to pay for the surgery to fix it and he’s perfectly fine now.” Castiel explains with a soft smile, watching as the dog comes up and pokes his nose through the wires on the cage door. He obviously has a deep love for his job and the animals he cares for. The more he talks about them, the more Sam feels drawn to his kindness.

“Finally, this is Snowflake.” Castiel announces as he leads them on to the next cage.

“Snowflake? That dog is the size of a small car.” Dean raises an eyebrow, gesturing inside the cage. The husky in it is admittedly, rather large.

“You’ll find he’s actually mostly fur.” Castiel comments with a small laugh, shrugging. “He’s a sweetheart too, very cuddly and easy-going.” After scratching Snowflake through the cage the Winchesters request a moment to talk it out. “Of course. I’ll be waiting just outside, come tell me when you’re ready.” Castiel nods and heads back down the hall and through the door.

“I know my favorite.” Dean says immediately, smirking.

“You’re gonna say the worker aren’t you?”

“Yep.”

“Well I gotta agree he’s hot, and really nice…” He set off that… vibe, inside Sam too, and he could tell Dean had also felt it. That draw of dominance. They did fairly well together with Sam being a switch, but they’d often discussed finding someone who could take care of them both.

“Too bad this isn’t Adopt a Boyfriend.” Dean chuckles, looking around. “Anyway, we should probably actually pick a dog.”

“Right. I really like Heart.” Sam walks back over to the german shepard’s cage, kneeling down and smiling as the dog walks up and leans against the door, tail wagging lazily.

“Me too.” Dean agrees from behind Sam’s shoulder, smiling down at the dog. “Wanna just adopt him or… take him out to the yard for a little test-run?”

“You mean, do I want to adopt him or loiter around and flirt with the cute worker.” Sam corrects, grinning as he stands up. “Why not?”

They head to the door and poke their heads out, finding Cas waiting right there as he’d promised.

“Ready?”

“We’d like to take Heart out for a bit if that’s alright, get to know him a little better.”

Castiel smiles and nods. He goes to a box of leashes by the door and pulls one out, then heads over to Heart’s cage and opens the door. Heart doesn’t try to run through the door or shy away, just stands still and waits until the leash is clipped onto his collar before following Castiel out into the hall.

“He’s very well trained.” Sam comments.

“Thank you. I train all our pups myself.” Castiel smiles up at him, and Sam is damn sure that he’s toying with him on purpose. He leads them out a side door into a small fenced-in yard, and unclips the leash. Now Heart does take off, running around the yard a few times just to stretch his legs before coming back and jumping up on Sam. The younger Winchester laughs and rubs his head.

“There’s toys over here.” Castiel offers, gesturing to a plastic tub by the door. Sam finds a tennis ball and tosses it, grinning as Heart barks happily and dashes after it.

“So, you train them all yourself?” Dean asks, watching his brother play with the dog.

“I do.” Castiel nods.

“You’re pretty good at playing alpha for them, then.”

“I think of myself as a kind and fair but firm master.” Castiel replies evenly, raising an eyebrow at Dean. Obviously he’s caught on to the fact that they’re not entirely talking about the dogs anymore.

“Ever think of adopting any yourself?” Sam has his back turned to them so he feels safe in rolling his eyes, though he has to swallow down a laugh. He loves his brother, but Dean’s much less subtle than he likes to think.

“I have in the past.” Castiel turns towards Dean a bit more. “Haven’t had any pups of my own in a while though.”

“You looking?” All pretense appears dropped at this point, so Sam decides to turn around and join in.

“We know two pups in need of a master.” He adds in bluntly, throwing an arm around Dean’s shoulders.

“The adoption form will request all your contact information. Perhaps I can use that to call you sometime? We can arrange a meeting to see if me and… the pups would be a good fit.” Castiel smiles up at them, and gestures towards the door. “Shall we?”