Right. I am honestly running out of ideas for Archangel adventures, so I think this might be my last chapter. If any of you have some fun or engaging ideas, please share!

'How come it always seems to end up with questioning the decissions made by your parents? Well, parent in this case.' Gabriel had kept a close watch on Cas and the hunters after he'd litterally flown the coop, and he was partially happy at the outcome. Cas had been able to convince the Winchesters of his version of what happened, and they did trap Asmodeus, Cresil and Melchom in the Labyrinth. The Iroquoian artefact lay snuggly in a cursebox, on a shelf in one of the many storerooms at the bunker. And now Gabe was home once more, watching the boys downstairs. All through the hunt for the werewolf and the search for the demons, Gabe had been receiving fond prayers from Castiël. He had replied to them likewise, and they both had basked in their bond. Then, all of a sudden, the prayers stopped coming from Cas, and Gabriel knew what had happened. The memory of that day at the police station had been altered, wiped of anything remotely connected to Gabe. Now, for Castiël, that day had happened exactly as he had told the Winchesters. When he had realised what his Father had done, Gabriel cried. He had all but lost his brother once more. For a week, Gabe had been stubbornly watching his brother going through life with his friends, then, after almost losing one of his charges to a vampire, Gabe got a grip and picked up his own life. He wasn't mad at his Father, but he did miss his brother awfully. So, he returned to watching him during his time off, like right now. Cas was sitting in the library at the bunker, the hunters fast asleep in their rooms. Something seemed to be bothering him, and Gabe was worried he might be in pain. 'UGH, and nothing I can do about it...' Abruptly switching off his computer, Gabe decided that he needed a day off. No screens into Earth life for a day. He'd pick up his former pasttime, reading tabloids and using those far fetched stores to play the Trickster, even if it would only be in his head. He snapped his fingers and a thick pile of papers appeared next to his red leather chair. Gabe snapped again, so he was dressed in his red boxers and a T-shirt, stretched his golden wings and wrapped them around his body. 'Better than a robe.' he smiled, and snuggled into his chair, opening the first paper.

He was almost halfway through his stack, when it hit him. A prayer. Not one of those thousands that are part of the church dogma and all read approximately the same. This one was personal.

"Gabriel... I.. I feel lost. I miss you brother. I know you can't hear me anymore, but I don't know who else to turn to. You were my big brother, and you always took care of me, even as a fledgeling. When Dad was too busy, you'd teach me how to fly, how to walk and even how to prank. Although I was hopeless at it. I guess humor has never been my strong suit. I am trying to be as human as I can, but I always seem to mess up somehow. You were so good at it. You were able to mingle for eons, and until Sam and Dean figured it out, no-one was any the wiser, not even our brothers. I just wish you were still there for me. To teach me how to human, how to recognise sarcasm and irony. Oh my Dad... Now I know how the Winchesters feel when one or the other is gone. You were the Dean to my Sam, I suppose. You were my big brother."

Gabriel felt as if he'd been struck by lightning. He threw his head back in anguish and called out once: "Cassie... I'm so sorry baby brother..." Then he fell on his knees, hugging his chest with both arms and wings and crying silently. The grief was too much to even sob.

Castiël sat at the reading table in the bunker. He felt lost and alone, and he prayed to a dead brother. All of a sudden he felt anguish beyond his own grief flood him and he tought he could hear a cry. "Cassie... I'm so sorry baby brother..." Nothing else, but it kicked him in the gut and he broke down with a wail and started sobbing. He didn't notice Dean walking up to him until he felt the hand on his shoulder and heard the gruff voice say ever so tenderly: "Cas, buddy what's wrong?" Cas looked up, blue eyes swimming with tears and his cheeks soaked. All he could utter was a repeated: "It can't be him... It can't be him..." Then he sank into a dead faint.

Cas sat on the hood of the Impala, watching the stars. Gabe felt a lump in his throat. "Castiël..." Cas whipped his head around. "Gabriel? That can't be..." Gabe shrugged. "We are in a place where all is possible, little bro." Cas frowned. "I'm...I'm dreaming?" Gabriel spread his hands. "And Bingo was his name-o..." "But I'm an angel, we don't sleep, therefore we don't dream..." Gabe pursed his lips in a very specific manner, that everyone who knew him, would recognise. "True, but you are not sleeping. You, my dear feathered fledgeling, are totally out cold." Cas looked totally bewildered. "I'm unconsious? How?" Gabe sat down on the hood, next to Cas. "The human body can just switch off. Especially when it is experiencing great pain." Cas pulled up his knees and wrapped his arms around them in a very human fashion. "Pain? Last thing I remember is sitting in the library... Nothing to inflict pain or injury." Gabe raised one eyebrow. "Not all pain is physical. If a human gets emotionally hurt enough, the body will shut down, completely." "But I'm not human..." Gabe chuckled. "Your vessel is, and it recognised agony, so it shut off." "Agony? Who could hurt me like that?" Gabe raised his eyebrows incredulously. "Really, bucko? Who could do that? Who could find that specific bit of info that would release so much grief, your vessel pulls the emergency stop? Oh, right... You. " Cas remembered what happened, after his prayer. "Are... Are you..." Gabe cocked his head. "Now Castiël, you really don't want to hear that answer, do you? Let's assume I'm here, because you really, really needed me to be." Cas hugged his knees tighter and quietly said: "Ok..." Gabriel put an arm around his frame. "Look, I know you're hurting, Cas. But I also know you have the best friends in the whole wide world looking out for you. They might not be the best examples of human life, but they will stick with you through thick and thin. And if you do feel the need to talk to me... Pray. Even if I can't answer, it will help you cope, or ease the pain. Never be afraid to feel, never be afraid to ask." He hugged Castiël and ruffled his hair. "I love you, baby bro. Vær trygg." Cas looked up. "What?" Gabriel wiggled his eyebrows. "It's Norwegian. Means: stay safe." He ruffled Cas' hair again, spread his wings and flew off. He could just hear Cas whisper: "You too, Gabey... Stay safe."

Gabriel rubbed his face with his hands. Walking in dreams was always one of his least favorite things. He switched on his computer and opened a window. He watched how, in the bunker, Cas turned over and he saw a tear glisten in the corner of Cas' eye. However, at the moment, Cas smiled sweetly. Sam stood at the end of the bed and Dean sat in a chair next to Cas, looking worried. "Whatever happend, Cas. We're here, buddy." He took one of Cas' hands in his own. Gabe manifested a big tumbler of whiskey and took a large sip. He saluted the screen. "Vær trygg, boys. I'll watch over you."