Chapter 1

It's 19 years 5 months and two days after the funeral of Castiel Novak's mother. This time will henceforth be known as now. We find Castiel working and living in a pie shop in New York. Baking has become his passion, and with the help of his sister Anna, and brother Gabriel he had been able to set up shop at 'the pie hole' two years previously. Castiel's fruit pies were well known for containing the freshest ingredients, and for good reason. With one touch his ingredients would be rejuvenated, and would never wither. As long as he only touched them once.

In the past 19 years Castiel had experimented with his gift. It soon became clear that it came with it's own rules and regulations. Instructions for use, if you will.

One touch, equals alive again. But the second touch, means dead. And dead forever.

The subject can be revived for one minute, and one minute only. Or else something else must die in it's place.

For this reason Castiel used his gift sparingly. He would use it on old fruit that had died, and some flowers in Anna's window box would die. However as she did not know about his ability, there was little she could do to pin it on him. And he enjoyed watching her sigh in exasperation as yet another batch of tulips withered away for no good reason.

In reality only one person knew of Castiel's gift other than himself, and that was his older brother, Gabriel. When Castiel was 12, Gabriel had packed a dead pigeon inside of Castiels school bag. Gabriel had sat in the back of the classroom, trying not to laugh as Castiel opened his rucksack to find the decomposing bird. Unfortunately for both of them, Castiel's finger brushed against a feather and the pigeon flew squawking out of the bag, and around the classroom. While Gabriel found this hilarious, it was not the joke he had intended to play. That night Gabriel confronted Castiel and the truth came out. Cas had to demonstrate on a few unfortunate insects before Gabriel had believed him, but soon enough the brothers found themselves sharing the secret.

This is where the story really starts. At 2.13 pm on a Monday afternoon. Gabriel and Castiel sit opposite each other in a booth at 'the Pie Hole'.

'Commmeee oooonnnn little brother!' Gabriel whined. 'Please please please for me?'

'No Gabriel, I've had enough'

'Ah but Cassie, it's not like we've not done it before! Please? I need your help'

'Well maybe if you didn't suck at being a detective, you could solve this without my help?'

Gabriel smirked. 'Yeah well what can you do little bro?, oh come on. One minute, and we can find out who killed this chucklehead, and I can solve a case and keep my job!'

Cas frowned. 'I have never known a private detective less willing to do their own job Gabriel'

'Oh you love me and you know it. Come on, just take half an hour off tomorrow, Meg will be fine holding the fort here, we go, you zap the sucker, ask him who killed him, errr kill him again, and we'll be on our way!'

Castiel sighed. Once again he was being dragged into a life of cons and tricks by his brother. 'Fine, but just once more ok'

'Yeeesss! You wont regret it man.'

Castiel was sure he would regret this. He had had bad experiences with using his power when his brother was involved. One time, the victim had freaked out and tried to run away. He had made it nearly halfway down the corridor before Castiel had caught up with him and touched him. And then they were faced with a dead body in the middle of the hall. He'd got blood on his trench coat trying to drag it back to the morgue.

At times when he was forced to use his gift on human beings, Castiel couldn't help but wonder about the boy next door when he was little. Dean Winchester, who's father he has inadvertently killed. How much had Castiel ruined his friend's life?

'So what happened to this guy anyway?'

'Stabbed. From behind, no clues. Poor guy. But just think Cassie, you and I could bring his killer to justice! Don't that feel good?'

'And I guess the money doesn't matter to you?'

'Well yes private detective pays well, and it pays a helluva lot better when I solve the case now doesn't it! But that doesn't matter to moi.'

Cas smiled, 'oh yeah, the justice thing is what matters to you though right?'

'Exactamundo' said Gabriel, snapping his finger out in Castiel's direction. 'now how about some pie?'

Castiel put his hands out onto the table and pulled himself up. 'Sure thing Gabe, Grasshopper?'

Gabriel winked 'you know it!'

Castiel sighed and walked over to the counter. There was no one else like Gabriel in the world. Or at least, he's never met anyone quite as annoying. Or as bouncy, honestly he was exhausting to look at.

Cas leaned on the counter and smiled at the waitress behind it. 'Meg, please will you fetch a slice of Grashopper pie for my brother?'

'Sure think Clarence, although I'm sure you could flutter yourself over three feet to the left and get it yourself.'

Cas glared at her and walked into the kitchen. Meg took a lot of pleasure in mocking Castiel for being named after the angel of Thursdays, and yet never seemed to pester Gabriel about his name. Which frankly, was a lot worse than Castiel.

At five o clock, Castiel finished serving customers, and shut up shop. He turned the lights out in the cafe, and went back towards the counter. He made a list of all the types of pie he had sold today (Castiel is a 'lists' sort of person) and decided he would need to bake at least two more apples, a rhubarb and a kiwi and lime pie before tomorrow.

As he baked, Couldn't help thinking about the man who had been stabbed. The man who would be lying , cold in a drawer at the morgue right now. And tomorrow, Castiel would bring him life. Only for 60 seconds, granted. But still, that was something. He couldn't help but feel a connection with the man. What paths had he chosen to have found himself there in that hospital awaiting Castiel's touch? How different their lives must have been, and yet they were being brought together now, in the middle of Castiel's life, and beyond the end of the strangers.