I took a deep breath and turned the corner to Uriel's cell. Sam straightened up from his leaning stance and stood in my way. I pushed past him and to Uriel. He looked up and grimaced, or it was a ghastly smile. I walked diligently up to him and backhanded him across the face. I heard him grunt and saw his blood run in strings from his lips.
"What I wouldn't do for some sustenance." Uriel coughed out. I grabbed his face and sighed, kneeling beside him.
"If I let you live, will you keep your secret about this place?" I asked. Uriel growled and lunged toward my face. My hand moved to his neck and I squeezed hard enough for him to stop struggling.
"I want to burn you, Castiel. I want to take all the scum you claim to love and burn all of them! In front of you while they scream for help." He snarled through the pressure I was putting on his throat. He was breathing heavily as I took my hand away. I could feel the anger radiating off him, I could feel anger in myself also. But I controlled it.
"I never wanted it to come to this...brother." I whispered shakily. I saw the confusion in his smoky brown eyes before I reached out with my grace and knocked him out. I stood up slowly and turned to Sam, who had been peeking around the corner.
"Do you miss him?" I asked Sam. He looked confused. "Your boyfriend, you miss him, yes?" Sam's eyes got darker as I asked the question.
"I would give up my soul to have him back again. I love him." He said seriously. I nodded and walked forward to put a hand on his shoulder. I motioned to Uriel.
"Take him to John." I said and went to keep walking but Sam stopped me. He clutched my arm as he started to shake.
"What are you going to do, Cas?" He asked. His light brown eyes shone with, what? Understanding? Horror? I gently removed his hand.
"I'm getting you the love of your life back." I said and Sam's eyes got misty. And before I knew what was happening he had wrapped me in a large hug. His dominating frame encompassing me completely. I gently patted his back as I felt the sobs wrench his body. I smiled and reached out to him with my grace, soothing him back into a normal state. He stepped back with a sheepish look on his face and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Thanks. It's just...I haven't seen him in so long." Sam said and I smiled. I nodded towards Uriel and Sam set to work as I left.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
Uriel was laid out on one of the cold metal tables, unconscious, in John's makeshift clinic. Bobby, Sam, Dean, John, and I were the only ones here. Everyone else was banned from coming, by my orders. I slowly addressed the only four people I trusted.
"What I'm about to do goes against everything that I believe in. It is not to be used unprofessionally." I warned. I held my hand out to Dean and he handed me a metal pod. I took it gently and it glowed as it touched my skin. They all looked on in wonder. I motioned for them to come closer and they gathered around the metal table. I laid my hand over the metallic pod and it opened smoothly to reveal a small, milky white ball. They looked at it curiously, especially Dean, whose bright green eyes lit up in amazement at the object.
"Scalpel?" I asked John and he handed me the silver instrument. Sam turned Uriel's head to the side for me, exposing his neck. I looked up to see if they were watching, they were, with rapt attention. I gently pressed the scalpel to the skin on Uriel's neck, making a small, thin cut. I held the white ball close to the small wound and everyone's eyes widened as thin blue lines spread from the cut.
"It's going to get brighter." I said absently and I saw them all squint as the blue smoke-like tendrils started to light up. As soon as the wisps touched the white ball a hole opened up and the smoke disappeared inside. When it had all gathered inside it shut tightly and I placed it carefully in the original metal pod. I looked at the others and saw the wonder on their faces.
"Now, that was cool." Dean piped up and I smiled shyly. I looked at the others to see their reactions when John's stare pinned me down.
"Castiel, can I speak to you? Alone?" I looked to Dean, he looked confused, and waved him off. I followed John to another cell along the clinic hallway. He turned on me as soon as we entered, blocking the cell entrance and trapping me inside.
"Why are you showing us this, Castiel? What pushed you to this?" He asked and I opened my mouth to speak when he cut me off. "And don't lie to me, son. I've heard enough lies to dig me a grave four times over." I looked at him openly, trying to keep the emotions swirling in me away from the surface.
"I would never lie to you, sir. Respectively." I said coldly. John stepped closer and I tensed, anticipating an attack. John must have seen my reaction because he stepped back just a little. I looked at him squarely and he must have seen something in my eyes because his mouth dropped open in a way that I had never seen.
"You never intended to stay did you? Right? You were just gonna leave, right?" John hissed. I stepped closer to him and he closed his mouth. The anger didn't leave his eyes though.
"I was planning on staying. Then I realized I was dangerous. I had someone try to kill me, everyone hates me and my kind. I'm starting fights between you people when you should be banded together." I took a deep breath to stop myself from raising my voice, John shook his head.
"Castiel, you're focussing only on the bad things. You helped us. You helped my boys, it takes a lot to do that. You just showed us how to free Angels from human hosts, for Christ's sake!" John sounded different as he tried to reason with me. He doesn't understand, I don't want to leave but I have to. To protect Dean from other Angels. And to protect myself from losing him.
"I led an Angel to the only safe place you have left, without even knowing it." I said plainly and John's features hardened. It was my final statement. John opened his mouth to talk but I held up a hand.
"People can mourn the loss of another life, as I'm doing with Amelia's passing. Some will mourn me and they will move on. You now know how to save humans safely while protecting my kind." I put a hand on his arm and he jumped slightly. "You must promise to never hurt my kind in any unnecessary form. Promise." I said and John nodded, he was beginning to comprehend what I was doing.
"This is something that never leaves this room. It's our secret, no one else needs to know." Then I paused and asked, " Is it too much to ask that you be the one to kill me?" I asked and John looked terrified. But, once again, he saw something in my eyes and shook his head.
"Just remember, I will never forgive you for breaking Dean this way." He threatened but I paid no attention. My heart felt it though.
"I'm truly sorry...John." I said and pushed past him. He stayed where he was, deep in thought. I returned to Dean, he asked me what had happened and I told him it was nothing. I could sense the doubt in his mind. Then Uriel's vessel started to stir, he had survived. The man slowly sat up and flexed his hands, looking at them in amazement.
"I'm actually back." He said plainly. I looked at Dean's face as it had that look of silent amusement, the kind I had learned that Dean always showed. Then his green eyes met mine and I saw, just for a second, blue smoke curl its way around his pupil then it was gone. It shook something inside me but I pushed it away. There was no time to mourn for something that wasn't mine.
"Kind of cowardly, Castiel. Is that what I taught you?" The ancient voice, from when we captured Uriel, sounded out in the room. I looked at the others but they hadn't seemed to have heard it. I looked around and saw a person standing in the shadow. I felt my eyes widen as I took in the person's appearance. The man stood about my height, similar clothes to mine, but even dressed like that I knew who it was. The brown hair with a deep amber glow and deep grey eyes could be seen even from my distance. He tilted his head.
"Michael." I whispered.