Hello! So sorry for unexpected hiatus- I was updating on my AO3 account but completely forgot about this one! So, here's everything I've done so far!
The first thing Sam noticed when he woke up was that Gabriel was gone. He sat up slowly, realizing he'd slept the whole night in the recliner chair he'd sat down in when they first entered the house. Morning sunlight was shining through the sigil-painted windows, and the snow outside seemed to have stopped.
"Gabe?" Sam called, voice rough from sleep. He stood up when something fell from his shoulder and onto the floor, causing him to jolt in surprise. A single amber feather, nearly the size of his arm, floated lightly to the floor. It had lost its celestial glow now that it was no longer attached to its owner, and looked like it belonged to some oversized bird.
"Hello?" Sam ventured again, clearing a few stray papers from the poker table and grabbing his gun just in case, "Gabriel, where are you?"
He was just beginning to panic when he heard it. It was faint, distant, almost muted, but it was there. The familiar roar/croon of the archangel-dragon. It was a strange but beautiful noise- somewhere between a bird and a lion, something you'd hear out of a Jurassic Park movie. Running to the front door, Sam carefully opened it and stepped out onto the front porch. Are we under attack? He thought desperately, checking to make sure his gun was loaded, who could've found us all the way out here?
"Nobody, kiddo, I'm just enjoying some fresh air." Gabriel's telepathic voice rang through his mind in that echoey way that Sam had yet to get used to. The roar sounded again, this time closer, and Sam looked up to the sky when a flash of gold caught his eye.
Gabriel was flying high above the ground, massive amber wings gliding across the arctic winds. The flight feathers towards the end cut through the sky like blades, glowing and pulsating with life. Sam didn't think it was possible for such a massive creature (about the size of a boeing 737) to look so graceful, but here it was; and he was breathtaking. His dark, rich golden scaled body was strong and muscular as it sailed through the air, legs trailing behind it like streamers on a kite. Gabriel's tail was long and tipped with barbed spikes, which ran all the way up his back and long neck. His spiraled golden horns curled up around his head, almost resembling a halo, and Sam wonders if that's where the description comes from. The grace that burned behind his eyes was brighter today, almost too bright to stare at. Sam wanted to chuckle inwardly when he realized that Gabe's eyes literally are the windows to his soul.
The dragon circled round to land in the yard, searching for a good position. As he got closer, the beat of his wings caused the house to shake, and Sam had to brace himself against the rush of air as the force threatened to knock him over. Taloned feet touched the ground, causing the earth to shake just a bit. Gabriel walked on the elbow hinges of his wings, an awkward motion that clearly showed his place was in the sky, not on land.
Sam couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corner of his lips. "I see that you've got all of your grace back?" He asked the dragon, whose enormous head came down to Sam's level.
"Bingo," Gabriel said telepathically, the dragon snorting through two large nostrils on the end of its snout. Sam thought that he should be unnerved by the fact that he could see slivers of those long teeth through the slight gap where his jaw closed, but he wasn't.
The young hunter cocked his head to the side, pursing his lips. "Can't you talk normal?" He asked, still trying to get used to the idea of talking with, well, ideas.
The dragon chirped like a bird, a deep whistling sound that came from its chest. It was laughing. "Don't be silly, Sam, dragons can't talk. That would be weird." Gabriel said.
"Yes, Gabe, that's the one weird thing in all of this." Sam folded his arms and scoffed sarcastically, earning a chuckle from the voice inside his head.
"Touche," Gabriel murmured, "now head inside to eat so we can get this show on the road. There's food on the table- I hope you like mediocre scandinavian pancakes."
Sam rolled his eyes, absently wondering why he was so calm about any of this as he walked back into the house. He'd just run away from his family, his friends, possibly forever, and was alone in the arctic wilderness with an archangel. Maybe I've finally lost it, he thought only half jokingly.
In all seriousness, he was surprised at his lack of conflicted feelings over Gabriel. He didn't know if it was the grace bond or just the fact that he'd gotten to know the angel better, but a part of Sam felt like he should be more apprehensive about the angel. After all, this was the same guy who made Dean die all over again, left them in TV world and tried to deceive them. There was an undeniable time in Sam's life where he wouldn't have thought twice about killing Gabriel. I should feel something, he kept telling himself, it shouldn't be this easy. But all of those things had happened so long ago, and so much had happened in their lives since they last saw Gabriel seemingly die. They'd watched people they cared for die over and over again, they'd won and they'd lost, they'd killed and they'd been killed. Sam had gone through trials, Dean's mark of cain, losing and finding Cas, Jack being born… And Sam was just so tired. Too tired to hold on to any inhibitions from the past, no matter how warranted they were. He couldn't do it, didn't want to do it.
Sam stopped in his tracks when he laid eyes on the spread at the countertop- piles of pancakes were dripping with syrup and covered in chocolate sauce, candies, and other sweets. It looked like some little kid had been let loose in the kitchen.
"Gabriel!" Sam called, turning to see the archangel walk into the kitchen in his human form.
"What up, Sammich?" He replied nonchalantly, sitting down at the counter and pulling a plate of pancakes towards him.
Sam looked at him in disbelief, brows furrowed. "I can't eat this!" He exclaimed, gesturing to the food, "I'm pretty sure I'll drop dead of a heart attack before lunch time!"
Gabriel rolled his eyes and groaned, shoveling a fork of chocolate covered pancakes in his mouth, "Ugh, fine- why did I get this feeling that you were all work and no play?" He asked with his mouth full before snapping his fingers, and Sam's plate was replaced with regular oatmeal and a banana.
"Thank you." Sam muttered, sitting down and starting to peel the fruit, "When did your grace come back?"
Gabriel shrugged, unwrapping a snickers bar. "The tank hit 'full' at about 3 in the morning. Apparently your allowing me to… 'let loose'... helped more than I thought it would." He admitted, popping the candy in his mouth.
Sam's eyes widened in realization, and he looked at Gabriel eagerly. This was their chance. "Wait, that means we can open the rift. If you're strong enough, we can leave and stop Michael." He said earnestly.
Gabriel's eyes became serious as he gave a slight nod. "I guess, physically, I'm able to stand up to my big brother. But you gotta remember, kiddo, it's not just him. We're gonna have to go through a lot of angels just to reach him. And who knows where Lucifer is…" he trailed off with a sigh.
Sam frowned, not liking the look of stress on the usually lighthearted angel. "We'll see what we can do, how many we can take out at once. I know you're able to breathe more fire when I'm riding with you, but what can I do? I mean, do we have any idea how this affects humans?" He asked, trying to sort through the millions of thoughts racing through his head. There were definitely no books on this at the bunker.
Gabriel pursed his lips, brows furrowed as he thought about it. "I'm not sure, but I remember a while back when the great grandson of Enoch was supposedly bonded to an angel- they said he had the strength of ten men. But what the hell does that mean? They were pretty big into metaphors back then." He muttered.
Sam looked around the house, an idea sprouting in his head. He walked over to a large, outdated dresser situated sadly in the corner of the living room, it's purpose long forgotten. "Are you attached to this or no?" He asked Gabriel without looking away, continuing to stare at the tall piece of dense furniture.
"What?" The angel frowned, confused, "No, it was here when I found the place, why?"
Sam took a deep breath, closing his eyes and focusing his soul on finding Gabriel's grace. It was still an odd sense to him, like being able to smell colors or see tastes. Gabriel's grace bumped up against his soul, warm and markedly stronger than yesterday. He couldn't exactly describe how he did it, but he reached into Gabriel's grace, soul gently withdrawing a small amount of energy like water from a well. He could feel the molecular makeup of the wooden dresser, the density of the oak and the depth of the drawers. He focused, and when a loud bang sounded, he opened his eyes.
The 7 foot tall dresser was scattered in pieces on the floor, wood splintered into tiny fragments. Dust clouded in the air where it once stood, and the floorboards had scratched and buckled where the dresser fell. Even the brass handles of the drawers were twisted, warped like someone had reworked the metal.
"Wow," Sam breathed in amazement, staring at his hands in awe. Did I seriously just do that? He thought to himself in disbelief, could I really be capable of doing something like that?
"I guess that's what they meant by 'ten men'." Gabriel said absently, staring at the broken pile of wood with wide eyes. He was just as surprised as the other man was.
Sam turned around, looking at Gabriel with renewed hope. "You try," He said softly, encouraging, "use my soul. That's what I did. I think it's like some sort of channel of energy."
Gabriel looked reluctant, but hesitantly lifted his gaze upon the angel banishing sigil painted on the door. He was able to break and re-seal it when he wanted to, but that didn't make it any less of a literal headache when he was around. Arch or not, he was still an angel, and warding did affect him. Unless… He tried to replicated what Sam had said, and to his shock, it came easier than expected. He was still getting used to the feeling of a human soul, it had been ages since he last got the chance to come into contact with one. But now, his grace mingling with Sam's, he thinks that the young WInchester's soul was brighter and more beautiful than even Adam's before the fall. It reignited something in him, it heightened his ability to feel and notice his surroundings. He'd been around long enough to know that should never be taken for granted.
He didn't have to, but he took a deep breath. He felt the warding struggle against his grace, but with a sharp crackling noise and a flurry of sparks, the sigil burnt away. And to his utter bewilderment, so did every single other ward on the property. It was like a chain of dominos falling- one by one, they watched in disbelief as each demon banishing, witch-killing, ghost-proof symbol sparkled and cracked into nothing. In all his eternity of existence, Gabriel didn't remember any angel being able to take on multiple wardings at once. It would take a squad of many to get rid of just a few sigils, and he knew that from listening to many of Duma's little excursions on angel radio.
Sam was staring at him with a mildly amusing look of amazement, going to touch the singed remains of the symbols. His fingertips ran along the door reverently, as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Gabriel didn't blame him- he couldn't, either.
They didn't need words to know what the other was thinking as they exchanged glances. They didn't even need to mind-speak to know. It was etched into the expressions on their faces, and suddenly, even though he knew he still should be, Sam didn't feel as afraid. If this was just the tip to the iceberg that was their combined power, Michael wouldn't know what hit him.
"Hey, Sam?" Gabriel asked, his trickster smirk present, "You wanna show that son of a bitch how we do things on earth?"