Title: Monday's Child
Summary: 20things. Strictly speaking, he's probably crazy – Gabriel.
Pairing(s): Hints of Lucifer/Gabriel, Kali/Gabriel, Gabriel/Luke, Sam/Gabriel, as well as a nice dose of Dean/Castiel.
A/N: Pretty much pure speculation on my part, as well as quite a heavy handed slap to established SPN angel hierarchy. Also ignores canon after 'Changing Channels' because my dream team is better than yours, SPN writers.
Notes are at the end.
i.
In the beginning it was the four of them – Michael, Metatron, Raphael and Logos. Five if they included Gabriel – which they didn't – and six if they remembered Father – which they wouldn't – and everything slid almost neatly into place, like a jigsaw puzzle with the pieces not quite matching.
Michael was always a little too pompous for Gabriel to ever enjoy spending time with, and Raphael delighted in tugging his wings just that little bit too hard when they trained, so he was not much either in the way of company. Metatron ignored him, and Logos considered company a burden.
Gabriel liked to think he kept them all entertained. Liked to anyway, he was fairly sure Metatron was the one who set fire to his wings that one time, but he is pointing absolutely no fingers.
Especially not at the angel of death.
ii.
Lucifer was a little short of perfect – unfortunately he was not Gabriel, and therefore missed out on the chance to be perfection personified - and despite everything only ever spoke to God twice.
Twice.
The first time He told him his name meant light giver, and his Grace burned brighter than any star in the sky. Lucifer defended their Father with unyielding loyalty, something that made Gabriel almost embarrassed, and only occasionally fought with Michael about who was favourite.
(At least in the beginning. Things went from playful to ugly in a horrifically short amount of time.)
Gabriel was forgotten in the midst of their scuffles, but he always nursed his own kind of fierce pride in his name, and the memories of his Father, and knew for a fact he was really the favourite.
iii.
Before Lucifer came along, Gabriel could have probably been quite happy in heaven.
And that thought was so morbidly depressing he really tried not to dwell on the alternatives.
iv.
He can remember exactly where he was when the humans were snaking their way up the beach. He was with Lucifer, Michael, and their Father. He could remember the endless fascination that burnt through his entire Grace, the desire to go down and shove that miserable little thing further up the sand and say try harder, damn it, you can do this.
Michael admired because Father said so.
Lucifer said nothing, but later he pulled Gabriel aside and whispered – "disgusting, aren't they?"
And just like that the seeds were planted.
v.
Logos was the first to leave, ripping out his Grace and throwing it to the wind, and Metatron followed after, taking a vessel and retreating without a single goodbye.
Gabriel liked to imagine he stayed because he was brave enough to hope for change.
Really, it was because he was scared of it.
vi.
Michael killed first.
Her name was Babiel – angel of virtues, courage and motivation – and she had dared to ask when Father was coming back, and whether Lucifer had a point, if he did love the humans more than he loved them, and what were they even supposed to do now that Father was gone and-
Babiel was the Example, Michael had said. She was dissent, and disharmony, and a lot of other things that began with d's.
Babiel was also the only angel to have a kink in her wings, and Grace that burnt orange hues when she was happy. And Gabriel is probably the only one who remembers her.
vii.
"He's going to rebel, Gabriel. He's going to overthrow Father, and I don't think you understand."
"You're overreacting, Michael, go play a harp and calm down."
"At least I'm reacting, since Metatron left all you've done is watch those slugs crawl up a beach and learn to burn oxygen."
"I like the slugs, Michael, they don't have such outrageous temper tantrums."
For a second it looked like Michael was going to try and make him an Example as well.
viii.
Gabriel doesn't know when they stopped being a family and started being a garrison.
And although he isn't the strongest angel in heaven – despite Michael's lies, he remembers Metatron, and delights in reminding Michael about the multiple times he had his holier-than-thou ass handed to him - he's certainly not weak either. He is God's left hand, after all, and Michael could do well to shut up, and fucking remember that sometimes.
When he says this – more like explodes it, Balthazar corrects with savage glee – he takes great joy in reducing both his brothers into rather terrified clumps of feathers.
ix.
The peace between Michael and Lucifer isn't the shortest in history, but it is quite close.
x.
The vessel Gabriel ends up with is fairly accidental.
He was dying, and alone, and waiting for whatever thing he prayed to for a speedier transition to the afterlife, because the arrows in his gut weren't really doing anything for him, thank you, when Gabriel happened to be listening in, just trying to get a brief respite against his brothers constant feuding.
"Hello?" Gabriel asked, hoping he didn't just blow the poor guy's head off.
"…you sound like you don't have breasts…" The fallen warrior complained.
And that pretty much settled it from there.
xi.
The whole Loki thing started off as a joke involving a dragon, too much ale and a pretty bar wench – as all of Gabriel's best stories do – but then people start to pass it on and he soon has Thor himself turning up and declaring him to be his long lost brother, and Odin taking him in as a son and he quickly loses himself amongst Baldr, Freyja and the coming of Ragnarök.
When he hears about Lucifer, and his cage, and God sitting back and letting it all happen, he realises he's stopped thinking of them as his real family altogether.
xii.
No one ever goes looking for Gabriel.
On occasion he reminds himself to be annoyed about that.
xiii.
Only four people ever found out on their own steam that Gabriel was actually an angel – archangel a-thank you, just because he doesn't like his relatives, doesn't mean they get to demote him.
The first one was Mary, who grabbed him by the neck whilst in labour and screamed that if their child wasn't able to fart fucking rainbows, walk on water and make the sky rain wine on Sundays she was going to rip off his stupid wings and shove them so far up his ass he'd have feathers for teeth.
(1.5 out of three was apparently suitable.)
The second one was Luke, who wasn't fooled at all by the whole Loki thing – aren't you a little short to be a pagan God? - and had the most diabolical sense of humour in history. Gabriel can remember quite clearly the young prophet glancing up from his manuscripts, wriggling his eyebrows and saying – let's see who will actually buy this crap~
(Gabriel misses Luke.)
The third one was Kali, who really didn't react pleasantly to the news.
Dean was the last.
And the less said about the Winchesters, the better.
xiv.
The church makes Gabriel the patron saint of communication, postal workers and diplomats.
Only the second one makes any sense at all to him.
xv.
When Lucifer is released from his prison, a small part of Gabriel is actually relieved. But then again he always saw his brother, his little golden brother, through rose tinted glass.
When Lucifer is released from his prison, Gabriel starts praying again.
Naturally no one answers.
xvi.
Castiel is the first angel Gabriel sees after his self-made exile. It's…good, to see him again, to see Grace again, and someone who believes. He looks at Castiel and thinks there, that is an angel, everyone else can just go home. He doesn't say any of this, of course, because Gabriel isn't supposed to give a shit, and he's trying to remain incognito.
Though he quite kindly appears in Dean's dreams, and politely informs the meat sack if he so much as ruffles a single feather, Gabriel will show him that Michael and Lucifer are nothing compared to his personal brand of wrath.
Dean gets the message.
xv.
Strictly speaking Gabriel is probably crazy. Whether it's because he's an archangel or a Pagan God, or just because he's Gabriel, is something not even God could probably answer.
xvi.
"All you guys need now," Bobby grouses when Gabriel shows up inside his home, proud new member of Team Free Will, "is some kinda wise crackin' 14 year old and you idjits got yourself a sitcom."
He looks more than a little worried when Gabriel says he can arrange that.
xvii.
"Maybe I don't want to be an archangel," he says when Castiel first asks him about his seemingly random life choices. "Maybe I just want to be human."
"I get that," Castiel replies slowly.
Gabriel pretends not to see him glance at Dean.
xviii.
Sam doesn't take kindly to Gabriel's nickname for him - 'His Illustrious Moose Prince' - and takes even worse to the notion of bequeathing the younger Winchester with an equally dashing set of antlers.
Sam calls him an asshole, and about seven other terrible words – 3 in Enochian, 1 in Latin, and the rest in English – but that's okay, because he also buys Gabriel bags of sherbet and takes the blame when the powder somehow ends up all over the back of the Impala.
xix.
"I can't kill my brother," he explains as they wait for Lucifer. Always waiting for Lucifer, these days, and the Prince of Darkness enjoys being a little too late for it to be considered fashionable.
"Can't or won't?" Dean snaps, and his tone grinds against a nerve Gabriel wasn't aware he had.
"Both," Gabriel replies, voice remarkably controlled considering the situation. "And in case you forgot, let me remind you how you were told to kill your brother, Dean."
Dean doesn't have an answer for that.
xx.
Balthazar annoys him endlessly, and Castiel is not much better. Dean is a complete prick, and Sam has the stupidest hair he's ever seen.
Gabriel would die for each and every one of them.
Notes & A/N:
- In traditional Christianity there are only three archangels – Michael, Gabriel and Raphael – however Metatron – the voice of God, and official transformer of the garrison – is generally regarded as the strongest. Logos is the oldest angel.
- Gabriel is the angel of Monday, hence the title.
- Gabriel is also the second strongest archangel – after Michael, Metatron doesn't count, he's out hanging with Optimus Prime after all – and the left hand of God. He is also the angel that acts as a coordinator on God's behalf. His name means 'Strength of God' or 'Man of God' or 'God has shown himself Mightily' – which means he could have wiggled his eyebrows in that showdown with Lucy and the guy would have exploded.
- No, I am totally not bitter about his death or anything so shut up whilst I eat my feelings.
