I'm back and I'm swamped. ISU's and exams coming up so less time for writing until that's over. Sorry! Still, extra chapter to anyone who reviews. It can be for the prequel or something completely irrelevant.
Disclaimer: Nope. The mailman hasn't brought the contract for SPN, so I don't own it.
Chapter Twelve: Pictures
Castiel wasn't sure what to feel. His brother had left him not once, not twice but three times the past two thousand years. Each time it was like a piece of him left with Gabriel and it was probably because they were bound. Not quite like the archangels were, with Raphael going insane and Michael ready to snap. Maybe more of there was this feeling that he was missing something in his life, something important and irreplaceable. Bound by grace as all fledglings and their mentors were, he would definitely know the basics of where Gabriel was and it wasn't by any means definitive. For example, a few seconds ago, his mentor was in the Cage centered in Hell. Now he was being carried like a twenty pound baby up the Pantheon steps by Lucifer himself and snoring like an inebriated human. Odd thing to picture but nonetheless true.
Swallowing hard and wondering if he could face up to his brother once again, Castiel was surprised when Lucifer passed him and murmured, "Would you forgive me for my hatred, angel of Thursday? I know that my actions have condemned me beyond many of our brother's and sister's capability to live and let die but if it helps, Gabriel and Michael didn't kill me as we flew here. Can you let the past go?"
Could he? This was the proud Morning Star, by all appearances over his brief upset and calmly blinking at one of the youngest angels in Heaven asking for forgiveness. The one thing he had no right to give. It hadn't been him to witness the loss of many elder brothers or harshly fight back tears while slaughtering divine beings who made their choice, yet loved them anyways. It hadn't been him to push one of his closest brethren into a hole leading to the most boring place on earth. Also, it hadn't been him to film Casa Erotica, which was unfortunately a title fashioned from a part of his name. He really didn't need to see his brother bend that way or any way. In fact, Castiel was pretty sure he couldn't even look at his brother without thinking of that 'message'. So this is how Sam must have felt…
Lucifer was still watching him only now, there was a strange light in his eyes. Before he could ask, the former devil stated, "I didn't need to see that. Excuse me while I bleach my brain and scream in agony. Sweet mother Mary, that was scarring! Little one, do you think Balthazar would, you know, erase that image for you? Because you were broadcasting and now everyone in your garrison is feeling very awkward."
There were no words to describe how embarrassed he was right now. Pinching the bridge of his nose, Castiel apologized to his wailing brothers(and sister) before seeking out the angel of happy memories. God willing, this would soon fade and he could go on with his life. The slightest poke of his grace made Castiel jump, then relax when he realized it was Gabriel. Of course, then he tensed again. He was supposed to be extremely angry at the archangel for doing something stupid yet again. But…the happy little smile on his mentor's face made him hesitate. He had never seen Gabriel look truly happy unless he was causing someone else's misery. Right now, though, Castiel couldn't help but soften and watch him beam brilliantly to anyone who looked. The brush of grace turned into a full-on hug as the memories of that unfortunate video disappeared. He never could stay mad at his childish brother anyways.
Sighing softly, he murmured, "Gabriel, you must stop doing this. I realize that you have a different lifestyle than when you left me here but please, I'm begging you, do not leave me like that again. I didn't even know you were alive until Dean managed to speak again and that was a week after you and Sam…" stopping, he mumbled under his breath and turned to Lucifer. "Yes, brother, I forgive you although it doesn't count for much."
Staring at him in amazement, Lucifer stated, "I can't believe you grew up normal, fledgling. Look at Gabriel! Heck, Michael raised him and see what he turned into? If I didn't know any better, I'd say Father gave him the sense of a rock. Which is to say, none at all. How did you do it?"
"It's nothing short of a miracle."
"Hey!" shouted Gabriel petulantly. Sticking out his lower lip, he stated, "I'll have you know that while my mind may be long gone, at least it got good exercise. Last I heard of it, he was running away screaming. Not sure why, though. What were we talking about again?"
Snorting, Lucifer deadpanned, "Case in point. The sooner I get this idiot to bed, the sooner we can shut his mouth. It's like he never shuts up!" Turning to Michael, who had finally caught up, he asked, "Do you remember when he first became an archangel and how he wouldn't stop speaking to Father? I'll admit, it's amazing He didn't go into a trance just to escape from it. As it was, after Gabriel finally fell asleep we all had to go take a little vacation in the gardens. Wait…I think he planned that all along! How he smirked when we saw us swimming in the pool."
Michael looked thoughtful. Both of them were ignoring Castiel and Gabriel, who was making funny faces at his former fledgling and causing him to give into the urge to do his characteristic head-tilt. Laughing softly, the archangel tilted his head the opposite way to keep it interesting and made the fish face. Popping his lips and flapping his hands up and down across his cheeks, Castiel simply sighed and realized that the anger he had felt was now gone. How curious. It seemed as if the childish exchange actually made him feel better. Meanwhile, Michael and Lucifer were finally starting to realize just what Gabriel had meant by saying, 'Heaven wouldn't be the same without me.' The rock-brained idiot had actually helped de-stress Michael and made Lucifer just a tad bit warmer. Raphael was Raphael and didn't really change either way, other than becoming more annoyed. At least he had an outlet for his anger, though.
Speaking of said archangel, he was currently hurrying towards them with a delighted smile across his face. It was actually quite terrifying if you knew him. Gabriel literally screamed in terror and dove behind Lucifer to use as a 'human' shield. Even Michael cowered back slightly at the sight of that toothy grin. Lucifer didn't move but his eyes flickered around desperately, looking for a place to hide. Castiel, who had never seen his strictest brother smile, decided he would've liked it to stay that way. He ducked behind Gabriel. Now Raphael wasn't just smiling, because that in of itself isn't all too terrifying. It was the minor fact that he was covered in blood that was recognizably angelic that made Gabriel shriek like a little girl. That, and since when was Raphael in a good mood? Michael finally took the initiative to murmur, "Well, brother. I don't think I've ever seen you in a mood like this before."
"Make it stop!" wailed Gabriel. He was beyond terrified, no matter how much laughter was building up in his chest. Castiel, who's ear was right beside the big baby's big mouth, promptly poked him in the stomach and watched in satisfaction as Gabriel instantly slumped against his shoulder. Thankfully he wasn't snoring yet. The other archangels were open-mouthed in disbelief as their brother slept peacefully, slowly crushing Castiel with his wings when they moved to envelope the closest thing to him. Eyes wide, he instantly thought of the discovery program that Sam had forced him to watch with the Boa Constrictor who ate the buffalo whole. Michael appeared to take pity on him. Crouching down, the all-powerful Commander of Heaven's armies reached towards Gabriel and started to tickled his wings. It looked incredibly amusing, to say the least. Castiel believed many women would be cooing at the sight, especially when Gabriel finally let go of his gasping fledgling and held his arms out childishly for Michael to pick him up.
In short, utterly adorable.
Lucifer ruined it by murmuring, "Wow. He's an even bigger baby than before I left."
'Before he left' was one way of putting it. 'Scarring-the-entire-world-not-to-mention-his-family' was another. The Morning Star had been consumed by self-righteous anger against beings who didn't mean anyone harm. It was different now, since there were hunters who knew everything that went bump in the night or had their fun if plain daylight. Humans weren't as innocent as they used to be and it was obvious to everyone that Lucifer had finally realized what he had done. The way he stayed as close to his brothers as possible attested to that. Right now, Michael was a constant on his right-hand side with Raphael flanking the other. Gabriel was knocked out and cradled in the Commander's arms like the baby archangel he was, ironically changing into a younger form to suit the situation. The family was complete again thanks to two of the humans that Lucifer despised the most.
As Dean would say, it was a chick-flick moment.
If Gabriel had a cue, he couldn't of timed his awakening better. His eyes snapped open just before another comment could be made about him being the biggest baby in Heaven. There was absolutely no doubt he was very capable of childishness. However, there was always this knowing glint in his eyes that just screamed 'I know something you don't know, and I'm not telling'. Not only did this annoy the heck out of Castiel, it also frightened him. What if his brother had seen everything that had happened in their peaceful home? The look he sent didn't look particularly amused. That was a very bad thing, considering it's Gabriel. When is he ever serious? Apparently now, since his wings constricted in a vice around Castiel as his grace held the former fledgling in place. "What have you been up to, Cas? What don't you want me to know? Other than the fact you are a little too comfortable with dying."
This was awkward… "Sam got his soul back after Dean played Death for a day. He had to-"
"Kill a little girl. And he couldn't because even though it was her time to go, Dean Winchester tried to do the 'noble thing' and in doing said 'noble thing', put the universe out of whack. People died who weren't supposed to. Innocent people all died for the life of one girl who only have burdened her parents with hope of a good life for her when in reality, she was long dead. So Dean went back to kill her after a nice woman died after taking off Death's ring and breaking the deal. Meanwhile, what you didn't see was Sam trying to kill Bobby for his blood to break the deal Dean made with Death only to be trapped in a big dog cage made of titanium. He escaped, they had a heart to heart and I planned for this all along so Sam would get his soul back when Dean failed to kill the little girl. Does that sound about right to you? O, and Balthazar, I know you're right behind me and when I get my hands on you, you frickin pain in my ass-"
Yup. Gabriel was definitely still Gabriel. As he chased Balthazar around Heaven, holding back laughter and glowing brightly, it was hard to imagine that seconds before he was telling the story of multiple deaths and how they could have been prevented by one little girl dying without showing a hint of remorse. The archangel stopped to look at him and said, "What? I'm not heartless. Tell Dean-o your welcome for digging up Sammy's soul. By the way, that little girl? Ariella and I made a deal a while back. She's fine. I'm not the angel of resurrection for nothing, you know. "
Actually, he didn't know. After all the centuries he'd known Gabriel it had apparently never crossed his mind to tell him just what he was the angel of. Guess it was a bit of a learn-as-you-go-along type thing.
Finito! Not the story, the chapter. Bye, readers! See you when my ISU's are finished!
