"What in the bloody hell?!" Gabriel's shrill voice echoed through the corridors of the bunker just as Dean and Sam were coming back from an exhausting hint. Foxes and wolves and shapeshifting…exhausting.
"Oh god he's still here?" Dean groaned as he saw the little Trickster sitting in the library with his short little legs up on the table. He was flipping through a rather thick tome and didn't look happy with what he was reading.
"Gabriel, get your feet off the table." Castiel said with a glare at his older brother as he came in to the room to greet the Winchesters.
"Calm down Cassie, its not like my boots are dirty, you won't let me outside." Gabe said offhandedly.
"What are you reading?" Cas asked as the hunters dropped their bags and fell into the chairs next to them.
"Its a book on Trickster Lore. Do you know they didn't even give me props for some of the shit I've done in the last 100 years. Its all Loki in the Avengers this and Tom Hiddleston that. Handsome British bastard!" Gabe fumed.
"How the hell did that information get into that book?" Sam asked confused.
"Book? Oh you mean this? I'm not reading a book. Jesus Moose give me some credit." Gabe said pulling and iPad out from the pages of the large book.
"Why were you hiding it?" Sam asked.
"Because Cassie here wouldn't leave me alone if he thought I was just laying about browsing the internet. Hence 'research'." the archangel said with the air quotes and all.
"I cleaned that kitchen all by myself while you looked yourself up on the internet?" Cas asked accusingly.
"That's why I didn't want you to know." Gabe grinned at his brother mischievously.
"God you two really are brothers." Dean grinned and stood. He stretched his back and heard a pop.
"I'm going to shower, eat my weight in burgers and then sleep for a week. Later." he said sauntering from the room.
"Sounds good to me, without the burgers." Sam agreed and wandered off.
"Why are you looking yourself up anyways?" Cas asked his brother.
"Because I like to see what they say about me, duh!" Gabe rolled his eyes. Castiel just shook his head and left the room before he asked any more stupid questions.
Gabriel put down the book and the iPad but continued to stare off into space. Why the hell did Hiddleston get all the love? Was it because he was tall? Handsome as fuck? British as fuck? Ah who the hell knew? Gabe gave up on his search and wandered off to find a brother to annoy.
"GABRIEL!" Sam's voice shook the angel out of his movie and he turned to see Sam striding in to the room with anger all over his face.
"What's up Moose?" he asked tossing some more caramel corn in his mouth.
"I told you not to mess with my stuff. If its in my room its off limits." Sam raged."And I haven't been in your room." Gabe said.
"Then why is my bed filled with shaving cream?!" Sam shouted. Gabriel took a second but then he burst into laughter. Sam just looked at him in disbelief as he laughed until he cried.
"Oh that's a good one!" Gabe gasped out finally coming to end of his outburst.
"Gabe!" Sam shouted again.
"Oh calm down Moose. Its a good one but it wasn't me, I swear." he said wiping at his eyes.
"Yeah right, who else could it be?" Sam asked still not convinced.
"Your brother maybe?" Gabe suggested.
"You swear it wasn't you?" Sam asked.
"I swear on my Dad it wasn't me Sammy." Gabe held up his right hand in earnest. Finally Sam seemed to believe him and left the room.
"Get out of the way Cas, I'm skinning an archangel!" Dean's voice boomed through the bunker and Gabriel had the good sense to jump to his feet before a very angry Winchester stormed in from the garage.
"I didn't do anything!" Gabe pleaded innocence with his hands up and backing away from where Castiel was trying to hold back his angry human.
"I warned you Gabriel, I told you if you ever touched Baby I'd kill you." Dean growled.
"You might want to run brother." Cas said as Dean tried to fight his way out of his grip.
"I haven't been out of this room all day I swear! And I don't think I've ever been in the garage." Gabe insisted.
"Then who the hell scratched up Baby's paint job?!"
"Oh snap." Gabe said and his entire body slumped. This was bad, this was way beyond bad.
"Dean I may be a bit of an asshole but I swear I'd never do something like that. Its too far." he said trying with every fibre of his body to look honest.
Dean seemed to sense his honesty and backed off a little. Cas still crowded against him but turned to watch Gabriel as well.
"Then who did it? There's no way anyone could get into the bunker without us knowing." Cas said.
"I have no idea, but I it wasn't me Dean, I swear." Gabe still professed his innocence.
"100% honest Gabriel?" Dean asked with one final dark look.
"On my honour as the Messenger of God." Gabriel said and it was his most powerful oath.
"Ok." Dean said finally. Castiel seemed to relax but still looked wearily between the two of them.
"I can fix it if you want me to." Gabe offered. Dean looked at him, anger still fuming but at the mystery vandal not the angel.
"Thanks Gabe." he said. He turned to go back to the garage and Cas nodded once at Gabe in thanks as well.
"What in the hell is going on around here?" Gabe muttered as he followed them out to the garage and the awaiting Impala.
"Dean-o you little shit." Gabe chuckled to himself as he found the iPad he was using had been turned to a Wikipedia page on tricksters. It was currently on the listing for a Slovak trickster named Kuma Lisa. As a trickster himself Gabriel was vaguely aware of the others with the title but a female trickster was a rarity. Maybe Dean was trying to get him laid.
"What?" Dean's voice asked from where he was passing the doorway to the living area.
"Trying to set me up on a date are we?" Gabe asked pointing to the little computer.
"What? Why in the hell would I do that? If you can't get a chick on your own then that's your own sad little fault." Dean said with a seriously disgusted look on his face.
"Cassie then." Gabe looked at the article with his golden eyebrows scrunched down. This wasn't really Castiel's style though.
"Nope, Angel is gone with Sam on a food run." Dean said and wandered off. Gabriel continued to look at the computer for a while but then shrugged his shoulders and went back to the porn site he had been browsing.
"Maybe we've got a ghost?" Sam sighed as they were sitting around watching Dean help Cas clean oil out of his trench coat. The poor angel had been dumped with holy oil when he came home earlier today and he refused to let go of the poor coat.
"It sure as hell wasn't me. There's no way I'd risk Cassie going poof with the holy oil." Gabriel said and his voice betrayed how angry he was. Playing innocent tricks was one thing, giving just desserts to assholes who deserve it was another. But dousing his angel brother in holy oil? That was miles beyond the line of ok.
"Maybe it was meant for you?" Dean suggested.
"Thanks for that." Gabe gave him a look.
"I still say ghost. We've been having things go missing for days, the pranks seem to be amping up in their severity and Gabe claims to have nothing to do with it." Sam said.
"How would a ghost even get in here? We're warded against everything and anything." Dean asked dabbing at the edge of the coat. He was as hesitant to let the coat go as Cas was, it was a part of his angel.
"We've had ghosts before. Kevin was here for a while before he was able to project enough for us to see him." Sam reminded his brother.
"But Kevin died here. I haven't heard or read anything to say anyone has."
"Maybe we should look into it more. I'll check out the library to see if the Men of Letters have any records of death here." Sam said already standing and going to the library.
"Ghost just doesn't feel right." Gabe pondered as he sat there watching the other two. "You two do know you can poof that right back to new with one snap of Cas's fingers right?"
"I don't like to use my powers unless its necessary Gabriel. Something you might like to consider the next time you want a beer from the refrigerator." Cas gave him a look.
"Jesus Cas, live a little baby brother. Its not like its a non-renewable resource." Gabe rolled his eyes.
"After being cut off from Heaven and its powers I would think you'd be more reserved about chancing your grace."
"So why doesn't a ghost feel right?" Dean cut of this argument again. He wasn't in the mood to hear them hash it out until they were both yelling and red faced and Castiel was too worked up to have sex. Not again.
"Because its playing tricks. Ghosts are more grrr than haha." Gabe said taking the bait.
"So it seems more…you?" Dean asked.
"Right?" Gabe threw his hands up.
"Are you…"
"Yes Dean, I'm sure its not me. Can we just accept that I would never douse my brother in life threatening holy oil and move on?" Gabriel was really tired of that accusation from Dean.
"Alright, its accepted. Moving on." Dean said quickly.
"So while Sammy looks into ghosts I'm going to do some digging of my own. Good luck with the coat Cas." Gabriel said getting up and stretching. With a flick of his wrist he had a lollipop in my fingers.
"Waste." Cas shook his head and Gabe laughed at his conservative little brother. Who would have ever thought Castiel would rebel against heaven and end up the bottom of a human/angel relationship?
Gabriel, being an archangel and one of the most powerful angels in creation, didn't really need many material possessions. Even in the bunker his room only had a few simple things to make it his. Once was a gift from the goddess Kali that she had given him when they were doing their thing. For some reason she had thought it appropriate to give him a little necklace with golden wings. Gabe had never worn it but he kept it to remind himself that he was indeed worthy of love. Kali would always have a special place in the angels heart and he kept the necklace in his bedside drawer to take out and look at when he was feeling particularly lonely. Like tonight.
Only when he opened the box to look at the wings they were gone. In its place a little pendant in the shape of a fox.
"What the hell?" he mumbled picking up the little fox and looking it over. It was very well done, delicately crafted and made from materials he was unfamiliar with. It sparkled in the dim light of his lamp.
But as nice as it was it wasn't his wings. He placed the pendant back in the box and then searched the drawer in case the wings had gotten misplaced by who ever put the fox in there. And who the hell would do that? None of the boys in the bunker knew he even had the necklace. Unless they had come in here rooting around while he was gone on a candy run.
"Castiel!" he shouted as he gave up his search. Cas was at the door in seconds with a curious look on his face.
"Did you look through my drawers?" he asked with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Of course not Gabriel, I'd never invade your privacy like that." Cas said honestly.
"Dean maybe?" Gabe mused.
"Dean wouldn't do that either. He respects everyone's need for privacy as well. And Sam would never enter your room without your permission. Why?" Cas came in the room.
"I'm missing something. Or rather its been replaced." Gabe said picking up the box and showing it to Cas.
"There's supposed to be a pair of golden wings in this box, but now there's a fox." Gabe was getting more and more frustrated.
"Why do you have golden wings?" Cas asked.
"It was a gift." he said. Who in the hell was riffling through his stuff?
"From who?"
"Can we focus here Cas? I'm missing something of value and you're concerned with who it came from." Gabe shot him a dark look. He didn't need his baby brother to know about Kali, that was his own special thing.
"Ok brother." Cas said placating the angel. He stood up and glanced around.
"Could it be our mystery guest?" he offered.
"I…never even thought about that to be honest." he said.
"Any ideas about what it could be?"
"Nope, but now its gone on the top of my priority list. You can't just steal a man's wings and get away with it Cassie." Gabe set his brow in determination.
"Of course not." Cas agreed.
'What the devil?" Gabriel thought to himself as his head snapped up from the book he was using for research and caught the bright white fluff of a fox's tail. It had disappeared around the corner of his doorway and he quickly gave chase. He didn't see the creature but when he got closer to the kitchen he saw that white fur again.
"Where did it go?" Gabe skidded into the room and looked around quickly. All three of the others looked at him and then back at each other.
"What?" Sam asked.
"The fox, where did it go?" Gabe looked under the table and behind the counters.
"A fox…in the bunker?" Dean asked in doubt.
"Yes, I saw the damned fluffy tail come in here."
"Uh…Gabe…" Sam started to stand and Gabriel fixed the Winchester with a dark glare that made him sit back down again.
"I saw a fox tail. It passed my room and then came in here. And you didn't see it?" Gabriel was at a lose.
"Maybe its time to get out of the bunker buddy?" Dean offered.
"Angels do not see things." Gabe glared.
"I saw things all the time when I was possessed." Cas pointed out.
"I am not possessed Cassie." Gabe argued.
"No, I suppose it would take quite a powerful being to possess an archangel." Cas mused.
"Whatever, I saw a fox." Gabe threw his hands up in the air and stomped from the room looking down the hallway for any tails. Seeing nothing he muttered to himself all the way back to his room and his research.
"AHHHHHHHHH!" Gabriel screamed as he turned the corner to go into his bedroom and was confronted with the prettiest little fox he had ever seen in his long life sitting on his bed. It was licking its paws and glanced up at him.
"Fox!" He said pointing. The fox tilted its head and lolled its tongue out.
"Gabriel?" Castiel asked running down the hall at his brother's shout.
"Cassie, look! I knew it!" he said but when he turned his head the fox was no where to be seen. Castiel looked at between his older brother and the bed.
"Gabe, I don't see anything." Cas said.
"It was just there, washing its paws on my bed." Gabe insisted.
"What book are you reading brother?" Cas asked looking at the cover of the book.
"Its Slovak mythology." Gabe said still looking at the bed.
"Maybe its time you take a break from research Gabriel, take a walk outside the bunker?" Cas offered slipping the book from his hands.
"Not you too Cassie." Gabe groaned rolling his eyes.
"Trust me Gabe, every one needs a break now and then, even an archangel. Go and torture some humans for a while." Cas said and then scowled. "Figurative torture, not actual torture."
"Fine, maybe I do need a break. I'll be back by sunset Cas." Gabriel said and flew off to find something to distract him.
"How in the hell could I be so blind?!" Gabriel said a few days later as he was tapping his finger on his turned off iPad. He was glaring at the thing like it should be spitting out the answers to his problems. And of course that was when he pieced together all the pieces of the puzzle he was brooding over.
"What?" Castiel asked as everyone looked up.
"Kuma Lisa!" he said pointing to the blank screen.
"Uhhhhh…" Dean looked around at the other two in case he was missing something.
"Gabriel…" Cas pleaded in a tired voice as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"She was begging for my attention for weeks now. First she pulled the tricks which is just something she does naturally. But then she put her wiki page on my iPad. I ignored that so she swapped out my wings for the fox. Then I was chasing her tail around the bunker. Ha, chasing tail." Gabe shook his head with a smile.
"I am so lost." Dean sighed.
"Kuma Lisa is a Slovak trickster goddess who often take the form of a fox. Her adversary takes the shape of a wolf." Gabriel said with a large smile on his boyish face.
"And you think she's the one playing pranks in the bunker?" Cas asked but Sam was already sitting back with a look of realization on his face.
"The wolf we killed last month." he sighed out.
"What? Ok I'm getting real tired of being the only one who doesn't know whats happening around here." Dean said with a scowl.
"The wold we hunted last month, remember how we kept saying he didn't seem like a usual shifter. And definitely not a werewolf. And there was fox sign all around his victims. Maybe we only got half of the job done." Sam explained to his brother.
"Kumcho Vulcho, he's her opposite and arch nemesis in the mythology." Gabriel said.
"Great, so now we got a goddess playing tricks on us. How do we kill her?" Dean asked.
"I'd appreciate it very much if you didn't." came a female voice from the doorway.
"Kuma Lisa?" Sam asked jumping to his feet as the blonde woman sauntered into the room. She had very strong bone structure in her face and her pale blue eyes were intelligent as she looked over each and every face in front of her.
"Just Lisa these days." she said. She wore absolutely nothing and all the boys were able to see just hoe perfect her body was in human form. Dean particularly was having trouble keeping his eyes on her face and Cas was scowling at him for it.
"Here sweetheart, why don't I save Dean the coronary and the lecture from his boyfriend and cover you up." Gabriel snapped his fingers and suddenly the woman was wearing a nice long dress that covered her from neck to toe. She glanced down at the golden fabric and rolled her eyes.
"Ah yes, I still forget modern human modesty." she sighed.
"What are you doing here?" Sam asked her now that he was able to think.
"You killed my partner." she said.
"In the books he's your enemy." Gabe said. She turned to look at him and a shy smile crept onto her face.
"He was that as well." she agreed. "But what is the sun without the moon? Good without evil? Darkness without light?" she shrugged.
"He was the yin to your yang." Dean smirked.
"Yes, exactly." she said with a smile.
"So now you're down a wolf and bored." Gabe said.
"I'm down a wolf and unbalanced." she said correcting him.
"All the gorgeous ones are." Dean chuckled and Cas glared at him.
"I am unsure how to proceed. I do not wish to die but I can not be left unchecked. My nature makes me a trickster but without someone to keep in line then I can be a danger to others." she said. She was running her long fingers over the back of a chair now.
"You need a keeper." Gabe said and she glanced at him with that shy smile again.
"Yes, in a loose sense of the word." she agreed.
"And why shouldn't we just kill you? Save the world a lot of trouble?" Dean asked her as his hunter side took over.
"Because I'll watch her." Gabriel said with a warning look to the others.
"What?" Castiel asked.
"She needs a watcher and I'm bored. I can't stay here Cassie, its too…domestic." Gabe seemed to shudder at the word.
"You can't just run off with some unknown creature." Sam argued.
"I can and I am." he replied.
"You're a menace! You can't watch out for someone." Dean argued too.
"I may be a trickster but I never hurt those that don't deserve it. I can make sure the tricks she plays are harmless or called for." Gabe argued. Lisa was looking between them all with interest.
"Do I get a say in this?" she asked as they all took a minute to think.
"Of course." Cas said, being the voice of reason as usual.
"I came here because I intended to kill the ones who killed my wolf. But then I saw you." she looked at Gabriel and this time the look she gave him was one of absolute hunger.
"I knew what you were, what you are. And I made my decision." she explained.
"You chose me." Gabe said and it wasn't a question.
"It took you a while but you got my hints. And now I will formally ask you if you would be my partner?" she said and the air shimmered between the two of them. It wasn't just a question of going to the shop or dating or anything as mundane as that. The universe knew the importance of Gabriel's answer and awaited it.
"I would gladly watch over you for eternity." Gabriel answered and a bright golden light surrounded both of them. When it disappeared Gabriel was wearing a brilliant golden collar around his neck and Lisa had become a fox again with the matching collar.
"Are you absolutely sure about this brother?" Castiel asked as Gabriel lifted the little fox into his arms. She enthusiastically began to lick his face and he chuckled.
"100% brother." Gabe said happily.
"You're an archangel, the last of the God's greatest. And now you've chosen to shackle yourself to a Slovakk goddess." Cas really didn't get it.
"And you chained yourself to a human. We're not in control of who we love are we Castiel." Gabe said petting the fox gently as she calmed in under his fingers.
"It took Dean and I years to find the love we share."
"And it only took me minutes." Gabe looked up at his little brother. "Maybe its because I'm an archangel, maybe its because I'm a lot older than you. I don't know. But I do know when destiny presents itself you don't hesitate Cas. She's my destiny."
"I…I just don't understand brother." Cas sighed. But he decided not to argue further.
"I know you don't. But you'll trust my judgement and let me go right? Not come looking for me everywhere?" Gabe asked him. He let the fox go and she ran off towards the trees lining the road. Some invisible link between them made Gabriel acutely aware of where she was at all times.
"No, I will respect your decision for privacy. But I will miss you." Castiel pulled his brother in for a hug. It was a human habit he had grown fond of.
"I'll miss you too Cassie. But I'll make sure to check on you every millennia or so. And if you ever need me just pray, I'll keep my ears on for you." Gabriel smiled. Lisa came back and nipped at his heels in impatience.
"And that's my cue little brother. Take care of yourself, and those boys. Try not to start any end of days while I'm gone." Gabriel gave him brother one of his signature smirks and then he was gone, his fox in his arms and wings shining golden in the sunlight.