When Gabriel left, he really only had one person to which to say goodbye.
Castiel looked so peaceful, curled amongst the blankets, his black hair sticking every-which-way, mussed from the pillows. Gabriel watched his brother from the entrance to his heaven.
Each angel was given not a room to himself or herself, but rather a small section of heaven to tailor however they wished. Many chose to keep theirs fairly simple; looking like a standard human living space. But Castiel's was different.
Still possessing the mind of a child, his space moved with his imagination. He was so creative, so different from Gabriel's other brothers. Many nights, when he couldn't sleep, Gabriel would find himself sitting in Castiel's "room", watching how it morphed with his dreams. He would watch as rocks and trees changed in to imagined monsters and characters that bounced through the space as they did through Castiel's dreams. It was calming to the older angel.
He was always there for Castiel whenever he had a nightmare. Even when Gabriel wasn't sitting in his room on sleepless nights, he would just know when his younger brother was crying in his sleep, and would go to him.
"Hey kiddo. Shhh," he'd comfort, sitting down next to him, rubbing his back to calm him. And Castiel's breathing would slow, the evil-looking monster in his room changing back to the harmless imaginings of a child, dancing once again among ten-foot-tall flowers and trees the size of dandelions.
But this night was different. He wasn't here because he couldn't sleep, or to calm him from a bad dream. He was here to say goodbye.
Gabriel walked slowly over towards Castiel's sleeping form, dropping the bag he was taking with him on the floor as he went. He glanced around the room. Tonight, Castiel's ceiling looked like the night sky over Dover, if he wasn't mistaken, a place that Gabriel along with Michael and Balthazar had take Castiel to first look at the mortal world. A warm breeze blew, and the soft sound of waves could be heard, as if far in the distance. Castiel was sleeping very well tonight, Gabriel almost turned around, not wanting to disturb his peaceful little brother.
"Cas," he gently shook his brother's shoulder. "C'mon, wake up. Just for a minute."
Castiel's wings fluttered as he sat up, bleary-eyed and yawning. "Huh? Gabe?" he asked, his words still slurred from sleep.
"Yeah, it's me, kiddo." Gabriel had always called Castiel "kiddo". The others—apart for Balthazar, who couldn't give two sinful apples one way of another—thought that the pet name was too "human".
"Wassup? S'early," Castiel mumbled.
"Yeah, I know, I just wanted to tell you something. It's important." Gabriel turned his brother's shoulders so that they were facing him. "I love you. You know that, right?"
"'Course. Y'are always here f'me."
"Good." Gabriel pulled Castiel into a hug, holding him tight. He wished he could take Castiel with him, but the others would be hunting him soon, and he couldn't risk the younger angel's life like that. "Never forget that I'm your Big Bro and that I always love you."
"Wass goin' on, Gabe?"
"Nothing. Everything is fine. Okay, kiddo? Now go back to sleep. I love you."
Castiel looked confused for another moment before nodding. "Night," he mumbled before dropping back against the covers.
"Bye, Cas." Gabriel's voice was strained. He looked down at his sleeping brother, tousling his dark hair one more time before standing up. Before he walked over to pick up his bag, he leaned down, kissing Castiel's forehead.
Swinging his bag onto his back, he paused in the doorway again. "Love you, kiddo," he whispered into the warm darkness.
And he was gone.
