Authors Note: I'm so sorry. Two prompts in one! Yes, I skipped a couple seasons, but I've only seen up to like episode 5 of season 8 and I didn't want to mess it up! I should also mention I used Google Translate for the Latin. Please note the tags on this one.
Warnings: Sadness. Major Character Death. Minor Character Death, Rituals, Mentions of previous relationships, Violence, Sacrifice.
*** Special notice: I am in the process of deleting my other account and migrating the fics to this one. Please note that the prompts for this series were pictures.
Christmas Packages
"Are you sure you wanna do this?"
Gabriel turned and looked to the woman, her dark eyes saw right through him in a way he knew most people couldn't. He had always liked her, had run into her a few years ago long before Sam and Dean had even known she existed. Nodding his head Gabriel gestured to the box full of smaller packages. All wrapped in the same brown paper and candy cane piece of twine. Glancing at the woman again, Gabriel gave her a soft smile before looking behind her at the thundering presence he could sense miles away.
"Yeah, Missouri I'm sure. Nobody else I can trust to find him with the way that boy lives." Closing his eyes for his moment, Gabriel took in a deep breath. Opening his eyes, Gabriel stepped forward and reached out, taking Missouri's hands in his own. "They're numbered… just… make sure he gets them, yeah?"
With a deep sigh, the larger woman pulled Gabriel into a tight hug, her voice cracking slightly when she spoke. "You boys are always takin' on the world, why can't you let someone help instead of gettin' yourself killed?" Clutching the woman back just as tightly, Gabriel felt his time was nearing its end. Letting the woman go, Gabriel gave her the look he had patented as Loki ages ago only for her to frown.
"Now don't you go doin' that. You ain't gonna be pullin' no wool over my eyes; you take the mask off when you speak to me." Grinning, Gabriel nodded his head and placed a kiss on the woman's brow before pulling away. "You're right, well I guess this is goodbye… remember one a year, yeah?" Getting a nod in response, Gabriel flew from the house leaving behind a single golden feather. Moving time forward again, Gabriel held back his pain, soon he wouldn't feel anything at all.
The first present arrived in a broken-down motel where Sam was working a case with Samuel. They had managed to narrow the suspect pool down and were about to head out and take care of the werewolf when Sam was called to the front desk. Thinking it had something to do with their fake IDs Samuel had gone with. Instead of finding trouble, Sam was given a small package. Thanking the man, he waited until he was in the truck with Samuel before he tore into it. Inside the brown paper was a note along with a container of herbs.
"What is it?" asked Samuel, glancing at his grandson. Sam shrugged his shoulders before opening the card, reading the message out loud. "Samster, figured you might need this soon. It's an old Campbell recipe on how to cure a vampire. Only works if the vamp hasn't eaten, you're also going to need the blood of the sire. I chose you, you giant. Don't let me down."
"That's it?" asked Samuel, his eyes wide as Sam passed him a second sheet containing the mentioned recipe. Nodding his head, Sam put the container in the back. "Wonder who sent it?" Samuel wondered out loud, not recognizing the elegant writing. Shaking his head, Sam grunted. "Doesn't matter, we can check it out later, the werewolf is gonna shift in a couple hours." Samuel passed Sam the paper before putting the truck into gear, intending to research the cure on his own time.
"Dude, you gonna open it?"
Sam turned to his brother who was looking almost anxiously at the package Sam was holding. It was a small box, but Sam had been staring at it for nearly five minutes since he took it back into the car. "Yeah," began Sam his eyebrows scrunching together for a moment. "It just… I feel like I got one of these before?" Carefully, Sam removed the twine before unwrapping the small gift. Inside was a letter, along with a large vial of blood.
Passing the vial to Dean to inspect, Sam opened the letter. "Gigantor, when it's time use the blood I gave you instead of your own, it will hide you from even a new god. It won't last long, a couple hours at most, but it will give you too yahoo's time to figure things out. Now that you're all together again, I'm gonna end this like I should have last time. Keep fighting, Sammy… and p.s. I love you."
"Hide from a new god? Who's your love letter from anyways?" asked Dean, his tone curious while looking over Sam's shoulder. "Doesn't say," responded Sam. "Wouldn't hurt to keep it though, maybe Bobby has some idea."
"Yeah," answered Dean. "We'll ask him, next time we're talking to him. Or you could ask him when you're having your secret meetings about Cas behind my back."
Sam sighed heavily before placing the vial Dean passed him along with the note inside the glove compartment for now. He had other things to worry about.
Leviathans sucked. It was because of them tracing their typical means of income the two Winchester brothers were squatting in an abandoned house with no heat. It was thus a surprise when there was a knock on the door. Glancing at Dean, Sam picked up a handgun before making his way to the doorway which was empty when he arrived. There was nobody standing there but on the step was another brown package like the one from the year before. Picking the package up, Sam took it inside and sat down on the floor.
"That from the same girl as last year?" asked Dean, taking a seat beside Sam. "Don't know, but that blood bought us the time we needed before wouldn't hurt to see what they sent." Seeing Dean nod his head, Sam started to unwind the twine holding the package together. Instead of going for whatever was inside the small hex bag, Sam opened the letter.
"Samosa, Merry Christmas! I'm sorry it took until now before I could have this sent at the right time. I'm also sorry about Singer, I have enough of my own Daddy issues to know it must have hit you hard. By now you should have ditched the Impala (tell Dean I'm sorry about that too, that was a comfy car) but there's still a large chance of Dick tracing you. Inside is a hex bag, list of ingredients is inside. Keep one with you and put one in whatever car of the week you're driving. It won't stop the assholes if they see your face, but it will create enough of an illusion to hide you in the background. Next bit you're going to hit the ground running… won't hear from me until after. I know it doesn't mean anything to you now, Kiddo, but please try and stay safe. P.S. I love you."
Looking inside the hex bag Sam found a list of ingredients and checked the herbs to make certain they were correct. Dean was the one to break the silence. "Dude, whoever this chick is? If these things work, marry her."
Rolling his eyes, Sam didn't answer but instead tried to figure out who was sending him his annual gift. More importantly, why didn't they deliver them personally?
By the time the next package arrived, Sam was living in his own house. Still, he wasn't expecting whoever it was to send him anything again. He was done hunting, had even turned a blind eye to anything that cropped up on the news. Curious, Sam was thankful Amelia was at work, it being one of his few days off since he started at the local inn. Taking the package inside, Sam went to the kitchen before opening the package. With how useful the previous two had been he didn't want to simply throw it away.
Inside the wrapped package was a dog collar. It was made of thick leather with a tag displaying Riot's information. There was a small hard area inside the leather, but besides the small area, it seemed normal. Opening the letter, Sam sat down before reading.
'Samala, I thought you could use something a bit more practical than that dollar store collar you got the poor thing. There's a microchip inside the collar in case the pup gets lost, web address and registration information are at the bottom of this letter. I'm sorry about Dean and Cassie, but you should know by now that you two keep bouncing back. I'm sure your brother is going to give you shit about taking so much time off, try to be patient with him there are some places worse than Hell. I'm glad you found some happiness. P.S. I love you.'
Sure, enough at the bottom of the page was the registration information he would need. Easily plugging the information into his computer, Sam sent Amelia a copy as well before putting the collar on Riot and patting the happy dog. Closing his eyes, Sam let the knowledge that Dean would be back wash over him. If Dean was coming back then he wouldn't have much time here with Amelia, he would savor it while he could.
Year after year a new package is left at the doorstep or for a hotel clerk to deliver. Every year a message and gift which proved to be useful. It wasn't until they learned Chuck is God that Sam decided to do anything about it. That year the package arrived in front of the bunker, this time, however, standing in front of the doorway was a woman Sam would recognize anywhere. Shocked, Sam stood there with his mouth agape before the woman spoke.
"Boy, are you just going to stand there all day or are you going to let me in?"
Gulping, Sam stood to the side to allow Missouri to walk past him. Shutting the door behind her, Sam looked at the woman who had always managed to take control of the room without even trying. "I'm sorry, it's a surprise to see you… why are you here? Not that you aren't welcome or anything." Sam began to stumble while chasing after Missouri who was making her way into the bunker towards the kitchen. Knowing who was all in the kitchen, Sam tried to stop her, but by the time he realized where she was heading, it was too late.
It being early in the morning, everyone was in the kitchen trying to get something to eat. Chuck was at his laptop, Castiel nursing a cup of coffee and Dean putting something together resembling food. All three looked up when Missouri dropped her bag onto the table and turned to Dean. "I'll have two milk in my coffee, no sugar." Without waiting for a response, not that Dean did anything more than stare wide-eyed before mixing the beverage, Missouri looked between Castiel and Chuck before taking a seat at the table.
"Now," began Missouri once Dean passed her the mug of coffee. "I'm supposed to wait a few months before sending off the next package, but if my cards are right, and they always are, I have a few hours before I meet my reaper." That shocked everyone in the room, Dean and Sam looking at the woman with sadness. While they hadn't kept in contact, both Winchesters had a fond spot for Missouri.
"Don't go lookin' at me like that, I'm not gone yet boy, I can still pull you over my knee." Chuck laughed lightly at the look on Dean's face before Missouri glared at him which caused Chuck to become silent. "I wouldn't laugh if I were you, you're far from off the hook with me. God or not, you hurt one of my boys and I'll be damned if we're not going to talk that out before I leave."
"Missouri…" began Sam only to be interrupted by the woman. "Look in my bag Sam." Glancing at Dean for a moment, Sam pulled the large bag towards himself before opening it. Inside was a brown paper package. With wide eyes, Sam pulled the package onto the table, Dean turning off the stove to stand behind him. This one was the largest yet. Wrapped in the paper was a long thin box, setting the letter aside, Sam opened the box to see an angel blade. It looked just like any other blade, however, the sharp gasp from both Castiel and Chuck made Sam think differently. Letting Dean read over his shoulder, Sam opened the letter.
'Sammy,
I think this will be my last present for you. I'm sorry I can't do much else, but with Dad around it kind of messes with my abilities to see things. I'm running out of time, so I'm leaving you my blade. Before you start with your Winchester guilt, if I had my real blade or not it wouldn't have mattered… I told you both I can't kill my brother, I wasn't speaking metaphorically. Lucifer was always a hundred times better fighter than me. On the bright side, you think angel blades are tough? Archangel trumps angel, and you better believe our blades are the same.
Don't bother asking Dad to bring me back, he won't. He kept bringing Cassie back 'cause he kept choosing humanity, every time. By doing what Dad asked and loving humanity he earned each resurrection. I didn't die for humanity, I died for you. No way was I letting Luci ride your ass before you could shove him back in the cage. Guess this is it, tell Deano he has good taste in cars, and let Cassie know he's better than any of us archangels even thought of being. If you got the balls for it, tell Dad he's an asshole and needs to think about his parenting skills, getting to know your kids is half the damn battle.
Oh, and Samsquatch?
P.S. I love you'
While he wasn't crying, Sam couldn't help but need to clear his throat once he was done reading the message. He had guessed after the letter with Amelia it was Gabriel leaving him gifts. Gabriel was the only one he knew who called Castiel Cassie. Sam had assumed Gabriel simply wasn't dead, that he was laying low while helping them out. While he didn't like the archangel only sending them a single message each year, Sam hadn't made any move to contact the archangel to demand an explanation. His postscript was explanation enough.
"Sam how long has Gabriel been writing to you?" asked Castiel, his eyes locked on the blade which was sitting on the table. "Since he died," answered Sam "Every year a package would find me, a note and a gift to help with whatever monster of the year was tormenting us." Running his fingers along the edge of the box containing the blade, Sam's lip lifted slightly in a smile. "I didn't know it was Gabriel until the note while I was with Amelia." Looking to Missouri who was looking at Sam with a warm look in her eyes, Sam continued.
"I take it he asked you to send them?" seeing her nod, Sam carefully folded the letter and placed it on the table. "So, he's really dead? I thought maybe…" trailing off, Sam felt the firm hand of his brother on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Sam. He knew he was going to die when he went back to pull you two away from Lucifer. He didn't regret it for a second, that's what you do when you love someone."
"Love?" asked Chuck, his eyes -like Castiel's- were glued to the silver blade. Sam couldn't answer, instead, it was Dean who spoke. "Yeah, he signed it the same each time; p.s. I love you. Made me think it was some girl Sammy might have hooked up with…" seeing Sam shake his head at the unasked question, Dean continued. "Can't you bring him back? I know the guy was a dick most days but… he died to save humanity, doesn't that count for something?"
Chuck shook his head to deny the request when he paused. "What all did he give you of his?" Blinking at the question, Missouri smiled before she answered for him. "I was hoping that you would ask, it's about time if you ask me. You should have what you need, Dean kept the vial of blood in the trunk of the Impala behind the shotgun shells. You can go get that angel-boy." Without hesitating Castiel went to do her bidding, glancing only for a moment in Sam's direction before leaving the room.
"I never touched his sword, figured it would taint things. Sam, if you'll dig in my bag at the bottom is another vial, we're going to need it." Not questioning the woman, Sam dug to the bottom of the bag, ignoring Missouri's personal things and pulling out a vial of what looked to be ash. Looking at the woman with a silent question, she nodded. "Collected it myself, made certain not to touch anything but the vial. Ashes from the wings of an archangel." Reaching around her neck, Missouri pulled off a leather strap which had a long golden feather attached. "Gabe left this before he left. Now all that's left is for someone to reconstruct his vessel, think you can handle that part?" turning to Chuck, Missouri raised her eyebrow in challenge.
"Should only take a couple hours, you know what I'm going to need from you, right?"
Missouri nodded her head, raising her empty mug and shaking it in Dean's direction. "Course I do, like I said… only a few hours left. You think you can keep my mug full until then? No use worrying about too much caffeine messing with my system if I'm not going to have one. And let me have that piece of pie you were saving, I think I deserve it, don't you?"
"Missouri…" began Dean, his eyes wide while he took the mug from the woman. Chuck walked out of the room to begin his work. "Don't bother Dean, I'm not doing it for you, either of you. While it may shock you I've only ever had a handful of friends, hard to keep them when you know them better than they know themselves. Gabriel was my friend. Now that Sam's on board not to hurt him I think I can spare what energy I have left to save a friend."
Reaching across the table, Sam took Missouri's hand in his own, his eyes wet though no tears fell. Dean turned from the scene and started to prepare Missouri's coffee, using the good stuff they rarely pulled out.
"Thank you," Sam whispered. Missouri didn't bother saying anything more on the subject instead she patted Sam's hand before demanding the hidden piece of the pie.
Sam didn't know what he was expecting. He had dabbled in magic before, so Sam should have been expecting something like what happened, but it floored him how easy it appeared. Chuck performed the spell, as the only one with the power to resurrect near. Before they began Missouri had taken the man aside to talk, Sam wasn't sure he wanted to know what they spoke about, but Chuck seemed almost subdued.
Chuck had constructed Gabriel's vessel as an exact replica of the one he had died in. While they were invisible to human eyes, Castiel had informed both Sam and Dean that even Gabriel's wings had been reconstructed to their former glory. When everything was set, Gabriel's vessel prone on the floor of their basement, Missouri clasping the vessel's hand, Chuck moved. It started as rituals typically did, Chuck spoke in an ancient language, candles lighting throughout the room. Gabriel's blade which was resting over the vessel's chest glowed a pale blue before Chuck picked it up, the remaining blood from the vial along with the ashes and feather having been used to construct the vessel.
"Tu consensus? Resurrecturos agis permutatione in archangeli perierunt? Sacrifice quondam iterum vultis vobis potestatem ut angelus potest fugere?"
When Chuck stopped talking, Missouri looked at each of them before turning her attention to the man standing behind her.
"Ita."
Missouri didn't so much as make a peep as the blade sliced into her heart, the same place Lucifer had stabbed Gabriel. Sam was forced to close his eyes as grace-filled the room, when he opened his eyes again Missouri's body was gone, as was Gabriel's blade. Seeing Chuck slump slightly, Sam rushed to Gabriel's side, needing to know if it worked. Kneeling beside the prone body, Sam hesitated before reaching out and placing a hand on each of Gabriel's cheeks forcing the archangel to face him.
"Come on Gabe, wake up for me… come on…"
Hearing more than seeing as Gabriel took a large breath, Sam couldn't help but sigh in relief as Gabriel slowly opened his eyes. Staring into the golden pools he had only absently noticed before, Sam wondered how he could have dismissed the being before him as anything but perfect.
"Sa-Samson?"
The soft whisper from Gabriel was enough to jerk Sam into action. With a loud cry of joy, Sam leaned down while pulling Gabriel's face to his own. Pressing their lips together, Sam ran a hand through Gabriel's hair while smiling into the kiss. Once he pulled back, Sam rested their foreheads together, a large grin on his face while Gabriel reached a shaky hand up to place it over Sam's which was on his cheek.
"Sambird?"
Ignoring the question for a moment, Sam kissed Gabriel for a moment before speaking against the archangels' lips. "I love you too, Gabriel. Next time give me your damn gifts in person, and don't you dare die on me again."
Gabriel smiled brightly, there was still an air of confusion coming from the archangel, but Sam would explain things later. "Samshine?" asked Gabriel, the two still ignoring the others in the room who were thankfully remaining silent. Humming so Gabriel knew he heard him, Sam moved to bury his face into Gabriel's neck, holding the archangel against his body as Gabriel was unable to support himself just yet.
"I love you," whispered Gabriel, and it was all either needed to hear.