Balthazar stood in the doorway watching Sam sleep. He regretted all the times he never kissed Sam or confessed his love when he had the ability to do so. When he'd been taken back as an angel he'd begged to be able to love Sam. It wasn't fair that the hunter got to feel the love they shared without him. He remembered what it was like when they were in love but he couldn't feel it. The way he saw Sam had changed and he would give his wings to get the way he used to feel back. But he knew Sam didn't want that. Sam would rather him serve his original purpose than to be mortal and learn to resent him. As much as Balthazar could have denied it, he knew that loving Sam wouldn't have been enough to keep him happy being mortal.

Balthazar felt the pull from heaven after a few hours. He was summoned to an office he'd only been in once before. The angels responsible for his extraction wanted to speak with him. With every fiber of his being, he hoped they weren't sending him back. There hadn't been a single rule break since he'd been back. Not even when they told him he was to help Cas and the Winchesters save the world until he was needed in the heavens.

"Balthazar," the woman said not looking up from her desk.

"You rang," he said.

Normally meetings and being summoned would annoy him but because of his reinstated job he was really hoping there was a war going on. His mind wandered back to Sam for a moment but he quickly put the hunter from his mind. If he was needed to defend heaven he would gladly do the job. Cas was there to tell Sam what was going on if needed.

"I've been reviewing your files," she said looking up, "the Winchester hunter, I believe his name is Samuel, seems to have a lot of notation."

Balthazar watched the angel as she stood and stepped towards him. He knew something was going to happen. Every bit of him started to hate the woman in front of him. If she was going where he thought she was then there would be trouble. Memories of his former life flashed behind his eyes.

"Is there a point to this?" Balthazar almost growled.

"There is," she challenged, "You're being reassigned to heaven. It turns out there's too much history between the two of you to make you an asset to their team. We didn't pull you out so you could break the rules again for a silly human. I didn't make you a guardian, I made you a warrior, and he will do nothing for our cause."

A strange feeling tore through Balthazar. It hurt him in his deepest parts, tearing a part of him away. He was sure it wasn't supposed to hurt so he hid the pain. With a curt nod he turned to leave the office. She stopped him before he could teleport out of the room.

"We're not finished yet. You see there is a problem with just extracting you from his life. He loves you, I know it's such a silly idea, but it's the truth. And because of this love he feels he will long for you making him useless in the fight to save humanity. So you're going to have to erase yourself from his memory. He can't remember you, Balthazar. It might not seem fair but we've all been given a path to follow and you can't be any part of his. The both of you are too important to let silly emotions get in the way of your destiny," she said.

He felt like someone had punched a hole right through him. How was he supposed to just erase himself? If Sam didn't remember him then there would be no chance of them ever being able to be happy together. His heart pounded painfully pumping nothing but ice through his veins. She was asking him to do the impossible. Even though he wasn't allowed to love it seemed wrong to take that away from Sam. But he knew the truth in her words. Sam was already affected by the new Balthazar. By disappearing, Sam would spend much of his life broken and not on his a game. He needed to be in tip top shape to save the world on earth. So Balthazar nodded and zapped himself back into his house.

When Sam woke up he went to find Balthazar. The angel was in the kitchen drinking copious amounts of alcohol. He easily saw the sorrow in Balthazar's eyes when he pulled the bottle away. Balthazar did his best not to let himself forget his job.

"What happened?" Sam asked.

"I was called away while you were sleeping," Balthazar seemed to crumble under his task.

Sam didn't know what to do to help the struggling being. There was obviously something important that needed to be said. He knew it wasn't good if it was affecting Balthazar so intensely so he waited for him to continue.

"Ok so why do you look like they've killed your puppy?" Sam asked.

"I'm being reassigned to heaven. My new assignment won't allow me to ever return to earth. But you'll be too affected by my leaving so I've got to erase myself from your memory," Balthazar explained.

Sam knew he couldn't do anything to stop what was ordered by heaven so he just nodded. It was hard to imagine not knowing Balthazar but if it was best for him, Sam would allow it. There were beings out there that knew what was best for the world as a whole and who was he to step in the way. As much as he hated it, he wouldn't remember in the morning.

"Then I can't stop it. Will you be alright, knowing that if we meet again I won't have a single emotion towards you?" Sam asked.

"I'm going to have to be," Balthazar replied.

A moment later they were teleported back to Bobby's house. Sam saw Dean and Cas through the window arguing about something. As he and Balthazar entered both stopped talking. With a sigh Sam realized that Cas told Dean what was ordered. They were fighting over what had to happen.

"Hey guys," Sam smiled.

"Don't 'hey guys' us. This is not ok! They can't just rip him from your life! It's not fair!" Dean seethed.

"It sucks Dean but I won't remember it. If we ever see him again he will be a stranger to me. And we aren't strong enough to fight heaven. I have no choice, none of us do, so there's no point in trying to stop it," Sam shrugged.

"But you love him!" Dean shouted.

Sam laughed. He'd never known Dean to beat around the bush, but hearing him shout the obvious caused his chest to tighten. The feeling wouldn't last, when Balthazar was gone he wouldn't feel anything. Realizing that made him suddenly afraid. He wouldn't be in love anymore, the fluttering in his stomach would leave, and he'd feel just as empty as he had before he met the angel.

"I won't anymore. If there's nothing in my head to tell me I love him then I won't feel it. When he doesn't exist to me anymore there won't be anything for me to remember or feel this for," Sam said just as bluntly.

If anyone were paying attention to Balthazar they would have seen the breath hitch in his chest and him slump momentarily. Maybe it wasn't love he felt but he felt some form of connection to the hunter. This assignment was hurting him, which surprised him because he wasn't supposed to feel anything.

"Love is stronger than that Sam. You're not just going to forget him. You might not remember him but if you see him again your body will remember! He can't just pop out of here and expect you not to be affected. You'll be empty and have nothing in your head but your heart will know something is missing, you won't be fine," Dean argued.

Cas looked forlornly at Sam and Balthazar before teleporting himself and Dean away. The look he gave them before leaving made Sam feel that there might have been some truth in Dean's words. But there was nothing anyone could do.

"How do we do this?" Sam asked.

Balthazar took Sam in his arms hugging him close and breathing in his scent. His heart stirred because he knew Dean was right. Even though he wasn't supposed to feel things he felt his heart tugging in his chest like and imaginary bond had formed around them both. His job was to sever the bond but even he knew it could never be destroyed. When they pulled away Balthazar gave Sam a kiss trying to tell him just how he felt about their situation. Sam wanted to think there was love in the kiss but he knew better than to allow himself to feel like that.

When Balthazar pulled away he was invisible to Sam. Sam looked around feeling like maybe he'd forgotten to do something but couldn't remember what. With a shrug he went to the kitchen. Balthazar followed him before teleporting himself back top heaven. His job was done so there was no point in sticking around.

As Balthazar left Sam felt something in his chest. He felt a strong tug and had to stop for a moment before he could breathe again. His heart felt like it was being squeezed but as quickly as it started it was over. Moments later Cas and Dean appeared in the kitchen. Cas was glaring at Dean rather intently causing Sam to cock a brow.

"Lovers quarrel?" Sam asked.

"So it's done then? Just like that?" Dean asked Cas sadly.

Sam looked at the two and watched as both of their shoulders sagged just a bit. The look of sadness shared between the two of them reminded Sam of something but he couldn't place the feelings and figured they were just projecting their feelings on him. With a shrug he left to search for a new job to keep them occupied.