THE PROMISE

Pairing: Gabriel x Unnamed Female

SPOILERS FOR 13X21, 13X22 (just in case)

Characters: Gabriel, female hunter, (mentions of most characters from 13x23)

Word Count: 1747

Warnings: mentions of character death, angst, serious Gabe, gentle Gabe, comfort,(sorry in advance)

Summary: Potentially a fix-it, but not really. OC has a nightmare while the boys and their angel are in apocalypse 🌍, Gabriel wants to know what the dream was. (turns out, im crap at summaries, sorry)

Disclaimer: This is the first spn fanfic i've ever written, so bear with me.

A scream pierced the darkness in the bunker, waking the archangel who was down the hall recuperating. With a soft whoosh of feathers, he appeared in the room from where the scream had come. He could hear her soft whimpers and the rustle of bedsheets as she tossed and turned.

He made his way over to her bed and gently kneeled beside her head. He slowly touched a hand to her temple, reaching out with his mind to nudge her consciousness into waking without startling her. After a couple of seconds, she began to wake. She pulled herself upright as she became aware of the world around her, her breathing slightly labored.

"Gabe", she gasped unsure if it was really him in the dark beside her. "Gabe, is that you?"

"Yeah, sugar. It's me. You were having a nightmare, hun. But it's ok. You're ok."

He pulled himself up and edged his way into the bed, wrapping an arm around the normally stoic hunter. She scooted over just enough to accommodate him and laid her head on his shoulder as she let her heart rate return to normal.

"You wanna talk about it", he asked after a few minutes of silence. "You don't have to, but you know I'm here for you, sug."

She nestled into him even closer, her nose resting in the curve of his neck. After thinking about it for a minute, she whispered, "I'm not sure I can put it into words really. But I can show you the gist of it."

Knowing what she meant, he allowed her thoughts to flow through his own mind. They were jumbled at first, but he was able to catch glimpses of the dream that had caused her to scream as though she had been attacked.

He saw the portal through which the other hunters and his brother had gone through earlier that day. It quickly changed to what he assumed was the so-called apocalypse world. It was like looking at the world through a cameras' sepia filter. He saw the trio walking through what looked like a forest.

The images continued to flash through his mind, but he was able to make out most of the details in them. The trio had encountered a pair of hunters from that world. Suddenly the group was in a cave. They were fighting vamps. Sam was being dragged away by one of them. The images were starting to blur now.

"Sweetheart, slow down. Breathe. It's okay, do you want to stop?'

"No, I need to show you this. Just give me a second", she replied, her words barely audible with her face buried into his neck.

She tried to control her breathing and steady her mind. Her nightmare had been so vivid, and she still wasn't sure it hadn't really happened. Showing him was the only way she could think of at the moment to even start to get over it.

He could still feel her anxiety through their connection, so he slowly moved his free arm up to her head and began stroking her hair, the hand around her shoulder rubbing small soothing circles. He tried to send a calming energy through the bond and slowly, he felt her heart rate return to normal and sensed the panic receding from her mind.

"Okay, I'm ready to show you the rest", she said a minute later.

He nodded in reply, knowing she would understand the movement even if she couldn't see it.

The images started again, this time with less of the frantic motion from before. The first image was of the group meeting up with Mary and Jack but for some reason Sam wasn't there. The image transitioned again, showing Sam arriving with Lucifer in tow. Gabriel shuddered at this one. Luci had indeed escaped Rowena's binding. He had been powerless to stop him from going through the portal and had kept his promise to the hunter in his arms not to follow after him.

She felt him tense at the image and gave him a moment to adjust. When she felt him relax again, she sent the next image. This time he saw Mary punch Luci. Gabe chuckled softly at the thought.

The images continued. The group of rebels got larger. He saw the boys rescuing Ketch and Charlie. Cas was fighting some warped S.S. version of himself. Back to the group, everyone gearing up to move. The next image confused him for a second as it was just so hard to imagine: Luci was driving a school bus.

She paused for a second, her heart starting to beat faster again as she crept closer to the horror that caused her scream. He felt the change in her and went back to rubbing her shoulder.

"Take your time, hun."

She felt the warmth he was sending her through the bond, soaking it in and letting bolster her strength to get through the last few images. She began again. In the next image the group was back at the portal. It looked weaker which made sense with Luci no longer providing his grace to charge the spell. Gabe wondered at the fact that her imagination could be so accurate. It was just dream, wasn't it?

He let that thought dissipate as the next image came into focus. About half the group was now gone. Sam seemed to be stopping Luci from going through the portal which suddenly seemed stronger than in the last image.

Suddenly, Gabe saw himself in the following image. He was standing with the boys and his brother and they were looking skyward. Gabe knit his brow in confusion, not sure where this was going. He could feel her mind hesitate and figured that whatever had scared her wasn't much further along.

After a couple of seconds, she continued the dream. This time an angel, or archangel Gabe supposed, stood in front of them, wings slowly tucking back in. This must've been that world's Michael. Just the image of him exuded the triumphant arrogance and need for control he'd always felt from his Michael.

The image changed again. This time he could see himself getting closer to Michael as the boys edged nearer to the portal. Luci was on the ground, struggling to get up. The next image showed him and Michael, archangel blades clashing.

She let out a low sob this time, unable to keep the tears in any longer. She knew she had to show him the last few images but needed a minute to get a grip on her emotions. The closer she got to the end, the more the fear grew. She took a deep breath, thankful he had stayed silent this time, and showed the next image.

This time, he saw Michael landing a punch and he automatically flinched. She let the image stay there for a minute as she steeled herself and let him do the same. The following image showed Michael plunging the blade into Gabriel's chest and he could see his grace leaving his body.

After a few seconds, she sent the final image. He saw his body lying on the ground, his stare blank. He was gone. This was why she had screamed so loud, he'd heard it through the bunkers nearly soundproof walls.

"Oh, sweetheart! No, honey, it's okay. I'm here. I'm okay." He gripped her even closer to him and sent more soothing energy through the bond. He didn't care how much it drained his grace. He needed her to know it was just a dream. He pulled back just enough to angle a hand to cup her cheek, while his other hand softly rubbed her back as she let the tears flow finally.

His fingers moved to her chin and he tilted her face up towards him in the dark. He placed the slightest of kisses to her forehead and let out a sigh.

"Sugar, I'm so sorry you had to go through that. But it was only a bad dream, okay? I kept my promise, I stayed. Don't cry, sweets."

"I know", she replied. "I know it was just a nightmare, but it felt so real, it still does. When Lucifer escaped earlier today, I was so scared that you'd give chase. I know it was selfish of me to ask you to stay, but I couldn't risk losing you. Add that to the fact that now Rowena has to figure out a way to keep the portal open, I should have expected some kind of nightmare." She wiped away some of the tears and wrapped an arm around Gabe's torso, hugging him closer to her. "Thank you for staying. Thank you for being here for me."

"Hun, you never have to thank me", Gabe responded. "Did I want to go with them and finally stand up to Michael? Yeah, of course, but I couldn't leave you here worrying about me with my grace being low. And, honestly, when Luci escaped, it was pretty damn easy to promise you I wouldn't follow. What if we all got stuck over there without the portal? I couldn't stand the thought of being trapped in a world without you in it. You mean too much to me to take those kinds of risks anymore. I'm the selfish one, not you, and don't ever feel bad for wanting me to stay with you."

He tilted her face up a bit more and leaned in to place a soft kiss to her lips. He could feel her body soften against him and her worry began to recede from the bond they both still held onto. He continued the kiss, not moving a muscle, just letting his love for her flow through to her mind.

She let that love sink in and envelope her in its embrace. Her hand moved up from around his side and came to rest on his cheek.

"I love you, Gabriel," she whispered against his lips.

"I love you too, sugar. You know I do."

Sensing her fear had gone, he pulled back both physically and mentally, ending the bond in their minds. He scooted lower in the bed and tucked her in against him, laying her head against his chest.

As he felt her breathing slow and even out as she drifted back to sleep, he stared out into the darkened room. Sighing quietly, he prayed to no one that what she had shown him, really was just a bad dream.