One month, fifteen days

"Where do you think they are?" Gabriel muses, sipping his frappuccino as he scans the surrounding crowds at the mall with apprehension. "I bet they got distracted by each other in the parking lot and-"

"Gabe," Sam warns, waving his gingerbread cookie at the angel. "Let's not go there."

Laughing darkly to himself, Gabriel immediately sobers when Dean and Cas are visible, standing at least a head taller than the ridiculously short population around them. "Heads up," he nods at the approaching two.

Sam turns around, waving at them. Dean grins and heads over, meanwhile Castiel states wide-eyed at the window of a toy store, before wandering off to inspect the toys inside.

"Heya Sammy, sorry we're late-" Dean greets, before whirling around to where Cas was a few seconds ago. "Sorry I'm late - God knows where my fiancé disappeared to."

"Toy store," Gabriel nonchalantly replies, before his eyes go wide at the sight of a shiny red train chugging in circles behind the illuminated window. "Oh man, can't resist - see y'all!"

"Trains?" Dean mumbles when they're alone - the angel now pressing his face against the glass to gape at the train set.

"Apparently so." Sam sighs, scooping up the frappuccino and bagging the cookie. "Well, I guess they'll be there for a while so we might as well get some shopping done."

"Yeah," Dean gruffly agrees, before, "why do we end up with the weird ones? You'd almost think they're brothers or something."

Snorting, Sam nudges his brother's shoulder. "You'd be surprised."

Dean lets out a laugh when he looks over to the toy store, only to find Cas and Gabe excitedly chattering about the train set. "We got lucky, man."

There's a pause, before Sam agrees. "Yeah - what are you getting him anyhow?"

"Oh I have a few things in mind," Dean glances around at the surrounding stores, before his eyes come to land on a store that sells mostly strange nick knacks. "That looks weird - he likes weird, let's check it out?"

Nodding in agreement, Sam follows his brother into the store, immediately taking notice of a little plastic bird that poops jelly beans (according to the package). "You've got to be kidding." He remarks, before scooping it up. "Gabe'll love it."

"Seriously?" Dean scoffs, before nonchalantly sliding a stuffed bee off the shelf into his arms. "We don't talk about this."

"Agreed."

***

It's been an hour and a half, and no matter how often the staff ask if the two need help, neither Gabriel or Castiel will get the hint and leave. They're both captivated by the mystical train set, neither one speaking or moving.

"Do you think Sam will notice if I buy this?" Gabriel whispers, daring to break the trance they've both entered.

Cas spares a glance at the angel, the corner of his mouth twitching up. "You can hide it, if you really want it." He bluntly replies, his gruff voice amiss surrounded by the background noises of a hundred or so excited kids.

"Yeah but like he's the jolly green giant, where can I hide it where gigantor isn't gonna see?"

"On the ground?" Cas suggests, cocking his head to the side when Gabe snorts.

"And then let Arizona have a hay day with it?" he dubiously asks, just as another employee walks up.

"Hi boys, are you sure you don't need help with anything?" she asks in a high voice, her warm, chocolate brown eyes meeting Gabriel's. The angel shakes his head, longingly sparing one last at the train set.

"No, we're alright," he glances at her name tag, "Rose, but thank you."

She nods, before speaking up again. "I never had one when I was little either, if it makes you feel better."

"How'd you know?" Gabriel questions, finding the light behind her eyes gentle and reminiscent. No matter how long he's around humankind he'll never understand their uncanny ability to pick up on the most subtle expressions and react appropriately.

"You had that far away look - I know it well, trust me." Her face falls for a split second; crumbling into sadness, before she re-assembles her mask with a bright grin. "Anyhow, I'll just be up at the counter if you need any help!"

"Yeah," Gabe absently breathes, "but we're probably going now, right Cas?"

The previously mentioned man shakes himself out of a daze he'd worked into, nodding at the angel's words. "Indeed." He agrees.

They bid goodbye to Rose, before making their way out into the rest of the crowded mall without a train set or the slightest semblance as to how the human race works. (People - how ridiculous! Gabriel scoffs under his breath a few times.)

"I think Dean would like a waffle iron for Christmas." Castiel announces as they pass a Sears, eyes frozen to the brightly coloured waffle iron display.

"Are you just saying that because the display is pretty?"

Narrowing his eyes, Cas nods slowly. "I might be - maybe he wouldn't like one."

"Definitely not," Gabe agrees, pushing his clueless brother away from the department store - only to be stopped by a small little shop, advertised with mostly black signs and heavy punk music. His jaw falls open at the countless shelves of merchandise, a squeak slipping out at a Harry Potter display. "We gotta." He decides, dragging Cas in behind him.

"What?" Castiel complains, throwing dirty looks at the screen showing music videos. "It's so loud!"

"Once again: humankind is weird." Gabriel mumbles, picking up a small stuffed dog (a corgi, maybe, he doesn't really know). "Sam likes dogs, this'll do, eh Cas?"

And of course he turns to find Castiel scowling at a display with trench coats, blue ties and a lot of pentagrams. "This is stupid," he announces.

Laughing, Gabriel pulls at cas' (trench) coat sleeve. "Don't worry Cas, you're a model." He reassures, barely containing another laugh at the other man's expression.

As he pays, he listens to Cas' whispers of "This is some sort of cult!" and "What is this store?"

Gabe doesn't have the heart to tell him he sounds like every whiny, middle aged white dad to walk this Earth.

***

Once the four meet up again, they decide on a restaurant for dinner and chat over what happened during the day. (The train set is indeed a large part of their conversation.)

And when they part ways, Gabriel still yammers on about it as him and Sam drive home.

(And Sam doesn't tell him that he visited the store shortly after Gabriel left to buy said train set.)