Ramiel wasn't sure how much time had passed when he finally opened his eyes again. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, getting his bearings again, trying to remember what had happened.

"Well look who's finally awake."

Ramiel started at the sound of someone else's voice and nearly fell off the bed in his attempt to get up and grab his blade. He ended up sitting so quickly his vision swam.

"Didn't I tell you to stay out of here?" Gabriel asked, seemingly unconcerned with his brother's current state of being.

"Yes, you did," Ramiel said, his voice hoarse from disuse. "I was passing by and wanted to stop in to check on things."

"Does that have anything to do with Michael's little visit?"

Ramiel tried to detect some kind of emotion on Gabriel's face, but couldn't find any. "Do you know what happened?" Ramiel finally asked.

"I know Michael was here," Gabriel said. When he saw the confusion on Ramiel's face, he elaborated, "You think the most powerful Angel in Heaven stopping in for a visit for the first time in a couple thousand years is something I wouldn't notice?"

"Do you know about the others too?"

"Others?" Gabriel's brow knit in confusion. "I just knew Michael was down here."

"Well, it's a long story," Ramiel sighed.

"It'd better be a good one. I came after Michael left to try to find out why he was here and all I find is you with a shred of your Grace left," Gabriel said, settling back in a chair to get comfortable. "Talk."

Ramiel sighed and told Gabriel everything. About coming back to town; about feeling two Angels and two passengers appearing out of nowhere; about Anna trying to kill John and Mary Winchester; everything. Gabriel was a good audience, listening quietly and attentively.

"I told you you didn't need to worry about them," Gabriel said when Ramiel had finished.

Ramiel wasn't sure how to react to that. "Did you miss the part where I had to tell Michael that the Winchesters were in trouble?"

Gabriel waved the question off. "Michael would have shown up sooner rather than later. Uriel may not be that high up on the food chain anymore, but he disobeyed direct orders from Michael. I'm actually sorry I wasn't in Heaven when Michael got back to see how that played out, but Michael would have been down in the next few minutes. And you act like he doesn't have the power to bring the Winchesters back if he needed to."

"The last time John Winchester died, Mary made a deal with a Demon, with Azazel, to bring him back. And according to her son, she dies a very preventable death because Azazel didn't want her soul. Where was Michael in all of that?"

Gabriel sighed. "I know you haven't been to Heaven in a long, long, time, but you seem to have forgotten that her deal with Azazel needed to be made."

"How could I have possibly known that?" Ramiel asked. "The last time I was in Heaven, the story didn't involve Azazel at all, and Sam and Dean were not hunters. They are very obviously hunters right now."

Gabriel paused, gathering thoughts that hadn't been touched in centuries. "No," he decided, brow furrowed thoughtfully. "I suppose you wouldn't know." He looked up at Ramiel, a small frown on his face. "After you and the other Watchers," he gestured vaguely, not really wanting to put it into words, "well, you know, did what you did...the timeline was altered. We all knew from when Lucifer was locked in his Cage that the fight would involve the Winchesters, somehow. And then when the Watchers fell, the events that would bring the Winchesters to the point of being vessels changed. The deal with Azazel was part of that. Mary dying is part of that. Though from there, the specific events are fuzzy, but at some point the Righteous Man will break the first seal in Hell, and then the fun begins."

"But Michael didn't know about what happened yesterday?" Ramiel looked around, suddenly uncertain. "Was that yesterday? How long have I been out?"

"Two days," Gabriel said simply, looking at his hands clasped in his lap. He sounded tired. "And no, Michael didn't know. That wasn't part of it. Azazel's deal was, because one of the Winchester boys is to be Lucifer's vessel. And Lucifer's vessel needs to be strengthened with Demon blood, so he needed to be one of the kids Azazel starts to use for whatever it is he's planning."

They were silent for a moment, each lost in his own thoughts.

"So what now?" Ramiel finally asked, his voice quiet.

"Now?" A wicked grin spread across Gabriel's face, his somber mood from just a moment ago effectively erased from his features. "Now you get the hell out of here and go have some fun for once. The clock's really ticking now."

Ramiel stared at his hands. He really didn't want to do anything. He probably could have sat on this bed for the next thirty years and thought nothing of it.

"Hey," Gabriel said, his voice and features softening. "You went from Archangel to Fallen Angel to drifter to hunter. You've done a lot in your life. You might as well go enjoy the last few years before the Apocalypse."

"And what do you suggest I do?" Ramiel asked, looking to Gabriel for guidance.

Gabriel shrugged. "I'm not here to tell you what to do. But if I were you, I'd find a small town on one of the coasts and relax. Read a book. No hunting, no stress. Maybe the occasional minor miracle if you're feeling it. Unwind for a while. You deserve it."

"I'm not sure I deserve anything," Ramiel said quietly, looking away again.

"Hey. Don't talk like that," Gabriel said, his voice stern but soft. "You do deserve it. You've been serving your sentence, and to be honest, I'd have given you your wings back a long time ago if it were up to me."

Ramiel looked up sadly. He spread his wings behind himself, though he wasn't sure why. Maybe he was hoping Gabriel would restore them.

Gabriel didn't flinch at the sight, though he would have liked to. Seeing his brother's wings looking so haggard sent a pang through his chest. He almost felt guilty for his own wings. "You deserve better, Ramiel," was all he said.

Ramiel looked around the room, unsure of what to focus on. He was still weak from lending his strength to Castiel, but he thought he could get around okay.

"Why don't you get going?" Gabriel suggested after a few minutes had passed in silence.

Ramiel nodded, folding his wings again. "How long?" he asked.

Gabriel didn't ask for clarification. "About thirty years."

Ramiel sighed as he stood. "That isn't long at all," he said.

"Nope," Gabriel agreed, standing with his brother. "But it gives you enough time to spend on yourself instead of helping people."

"Our purpose is to help people, Gabriel," Ramiel said tiredly.

"And you've helped them for three thousand years. They can help themselves for a while," Gabriel countered.

Ramiel's shoulders still sagged, but Gabriel's answer made him feel a little better.

"Now get outta here," Gabriel said, a small smile on his face as he vanished.

Ramiel stood up straighter and rolled his shoulders and neck, loosening the stiffness that had settled there in his two days of unconsciousness. He was vaguely aware that the scene outside the window was overcast and gloomy as he exited the room.

A light rain had begun to fall when Ramiel reached his car. There was a parking ticket on his windshield, but he tore it up without a second thought. As he climbed in, he tried to think of a place he wanted to go. There wasn't much he hadn't seen in his wanderings, and in the end he decided to just get on the interstate and head east until he made up his mind.