I have returned my dear readers. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I apologize for the wait. Now that my Grandfather Delmas is at peace I cane return to doing what I love. Thank you for your support. ~Noxy
Chapter 13: Healing the Body and Heart
Fire. It burned through his arm and his body ached. He felt hot, too hot, almost as if something were wrong with him. His chest was also tight, like there was a giant weight sitting on it. The strangest thing was the freezing cold that he could feel pressed against his back; it felt so good. Focusing, he used what little strength he could summon to open his eyes. His head rolled as he willed himself to try and look down at what had to be his mangled left arm; the pain wouldn't let him believe otherwise.
"Gabby?" Came a soft voice from behind him. "Are you awake?"
"Yeah...My arm..." He weakly croaked.
"Sam. Sam. Sam!" Lucifer hissed at the sleeping hunter.
"Huh?" Came the startled voice of Sam and the scraping of a chair as the brunette jerked awake. "What do you need?"
"He's awake. I'll inform Michael and have him send Dean and Castiel to us while he gets our father. They might be a minute or two."
Sam was suddenly in Gabriel's very blurry line of sight. "Hey. Easy. You're in bad shape Gabe. Nothing we do seems to be helping. You're not healing right. We think it's something Xaphanel did but we don't know how to fix it."
Gabriel nodded and his eyes closed, he was so tried that it was taking all his effort just to stay awake. "Black lines?"
Sam blinked and looked at Lucifer, who was holding the angel in an effort to keep him cool, and the blonde seemed just as confused as he felt. "Yeah. How did you know?"
"Neck?" Gabriel panted out.
"No. They're coming from your hand. The same place where you got cut with the glass." The hunter said. "Do you want to see?"
Gabriel managed another weak nod. Sam carefully lifted the angel's arm, trying not to jar it or touch any of the wounds that covered it. Gold eyes slowly opened and took in the black lines that were spreading out from the cut on his hand. The black lines faded into gray before vanishing into nothing just below his elbow. He must not have been out for very long if they were that small. He was honestly expecting them to be worse.
"Poison...Stops all...healing..."
"Look who woke up. About damn time." Came Dean's voice as he and Castiel appeared in the room. "You scared the shit out of me Gabe. My heart almost stopped when you passed out."
"Sorry..." Came the weak response. "Need...help..."
"Yeah we got that." Dean said. "That bastard did something to you. Do you know how to fix it?"
Gabriel's weak nod was nearly missed. "Not...going to...like it..."
"Just tell us what you need done." Castiel said. "We just want you to get better."
"Witch hazel...boiled with...lavender and..." Gabriel trailed off.
Sam reached out and gave the angel a gentle shake and gold eyes fluttered open. "Hey come on. No sleeping until you're better. Witch hazel boiled with lavender and what else?"
"Devil's claw." Gabriel muttered before breaking into a harsh cough. "Numb...the pain..."
"No. You can't have any. Not after everything that you just went through to get clean." Lucifer said. "I don't want you to risk it."
"Not...going to...affect me...this way..."
Castiel nodded and vanished returning a few minutes later with a large clear bowl and three containers. He spread them out over the table and quickly set about making opening what he needed. Gabriel, who was fighting to keep his eyes open, was watching as Castiel began to work. The bowl was quickly filled with the witch hazel followed by lavender and devil's claw. Placing both hands on the bowl the two hunters were surprised to see the water start to boil. It didn't take but a few minutes before the mixture turned into a translucent cerulean color.
That done Castiel brought the bowl over to the bed, setting it on the small table there. "We've boiled it. Now what do we need to do Gabriel?"
The archangel seemed confused for a moment before he seemed to remember what was happening and his arm gave a weak twitch. "Hand in the...bowl to draw it out...Once most is out...the rest needs...to be squeezed...out to ensure...healing."
Sam nodded and carefully lifted the blonde's injured arm once more. He slowly submerged the swollen hand into the blue liquid watching carefully in case something went wrong. The reaction was almost instantaneous. The black lines began to recede, the vile black substance rushing from the angel's body like a thin black snake. As soon as it connected with the mixture the black poison began to crystallize and fell to the bottom of the bowl.
Gabriel let out a whine of pain and Lucifer began to try and soothe him, rubbing his brother's bare chest in hopes of keeping him calm. Gabriel would have been thrashing had he had the strength, but the best he could do in his current state was flinch as the poison was drawn from the wound. Gabriel opened his eyes again, having not remembered closing them, and watched as Sam reached into the bowl and began gently pressing, making more black come from the wound.
"I think that's everything Gabe. Nothing else is coming out. Do you want to take a look?" Sam asked after a few minutes of gently poking and prodding at the wound.
Gabriel nodded and the hunter carefully lifted his arm up to eye level. The lines were gone and around the wound was a bit of dead white skin, a normal reaction. There were no hints of gray and the fire that was burning his arm was gone. There was no burning and his fingers were starting to feel numb from the broken bones. He gave Sam and weak nod and the human lowered his hand again.
"Did I get it all out?"
"Yeah...all gone..." Gabriel muttered, his eyes sliding closed again.
Lucifer gave the body in his arms a gentle shake. "No sleeping yet Gabby. Can we heal you now? You're in really bad shape and you're getting sick from your dip in the river."
The angel let out a whimper at being kept from sleep but did manage to answer. "Yeah...poison gone...Tired...Hurts..."
"Alright. You can sleep again. We've got you." Lucifer said softly.
Gabriel gave a weak noise before he succumbed to sleep once more. Michael and Chuck appeared not a moment later. Michael came over and looked into the bowl with disgust and anger on his face at the poison sitting at the bottom. Chuck however, went straight to Gabriel, letting his power run gently over his son, grateful that this time he could see the injuries healing before his eyes.
When everyone had returned and Michael came forward carrying Gabriel in his arms, Chuck had feared the worst. The youngest archangel had looked far worse then he had when he was brought to the bunker the first time. He had burns from holy fire, broken bones, lacerations, and bruises and to top it all off he was soaking wet as was Dean. It was only once they got him laid down that God had realized that while things were bad, the could have been so much worse; Michael could have easily been carrying his son's dead body into the bunker. Of course then came the worry when they couldn't heal him. Luckily Gabriel had known how to fix himself.
"How is he?" Michael asked softly.
Lucifer nodded. "His fever is finally breaking. I think I can get up now."
Sam was quick to help steady the sleeping angel while Lucifer squirmed his much larger body off the bed. "He was really tired but he seemed like he knew where he was and who he was talking to. I was expecting him to be disoriented at the very least." Sam admitted.
"No dice there." Dean said. "He could barely see me when I pulled him out of the river but he knew exactly who I was."
"Good. Once he gets some rest he should be alright." Chuck said. "He's going to need food and juice when he wakes up. He's still going to feel the blood loss."
Sam laid Gabriel back down and kicked his boots off before climbing into the bed with the angel. "I'll stay with him just in case. I have my phone and I'll call you once he wakes up again."
Chuck smiled. "I know you'll take good care of him."
"His hand isn't healed." Castiel said suddenly, looking at the angel's left hand as Gabriel curled around the hunter.
Chuck frowned and looked at the wound carefully and infused his power into it but the wound still didn't heal. "It won't heal. I can't heal it."
Dean heaved a sigh and went into the bathroom and came out with a needle and thread and a bottle of whiskey. "Well if angel mojo isn't working then how about we use a little human ingenuity? Just make sure he stays asleep. I'd rather not have to explain why I stitching him back together like my favorite pair of jeans."
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Gabriel twitched awake, laying perfectly still as his brain tried catching up with the rest of him. Judging by the walls, he was back in the bunker once more. A pair of warm hands ran along his back and the angel was a bit shocked to realize that his shirt was missing. He tensed but relaxed when all those hands did was run along his back in a soothing manner. Not feeling any Grace ruled out any of his brothers. It was most likely Dean who stayed with him since the human had given him an offer of friendship. It made more sense then the other option; at least Dean didn't want sex from him.
Gabriel flinched at that thought as he remembered what had happened and felt a bolt of disgust shoot through him and hoped that they had burned his clothes; he never wanted to wear them again after what happened with Xaphanel. Deciding that a shower was in order he pushed himself up only to let out a pained gasp as pain shot through his hand. He looked down at the bandage on his hand and took a quick stock of his body and realized that it was the only injury he still had. He let out a sigh and moved again, this time being careful of his hand.
"Gabe?"
The angel flinched at the sudden voice; that was not Dean. "S-Sam?"
The hunter sat up and Gabriel realized that the man was still dressed. "Yeah. I hope you don't mind but I stayed with you to give Lucifer a break. You okay? I saw you looking at your hand. We don't know why angelic healing isn't working on it. It just won't heal."
"It's healing. The poison just shows down the healing of any wounds to that of human healing." Gabriel explained. "Not the first time I've had that bastard stick his tongue someplace where it didn't belong. Next time I'll chop it off."
Sam gave him a smile. "At least you're feeling better. Chuck wants me to let them know when you woke up so we can make sure you eat."
Gabriel grabbed Sam's hand as he began to dial and stopped him. "Please...not yet. I just need a bit more time."
The hunter nodded and sat the phone aside. "Want to lay back down?"
"No. I want a shower. I feel disgusting after what that bastard did." Gabriel said looking away.
Sam nodded and got out of bed and headed into the bathroom and began running some water. "Crowley said that he did something rather inappropriate with you."
"Yeah. As he was making a meal of my Grace he decided that my pain was too good to ignore and jacked off against me. That's why I was covered in blue." Gabriel revealed.
Sam came back out. "Good thing Dean burned them. Shower is ready."
The archangel nodded and stood only to fall back down due to a wave of dizziness. "You've got to be kidding me."
The hunter came over and helped pull him to his feet. "Gabe you just spent who knows how long fighting off a demon without your full strength, you were badly injured, almost drowned, and are still recovering. As much as I know you don't want to hear this, you just set yourself back because of this."
"What would you have had me do then Sam?" Gabriel bit out as he half-walked, half-stumbled into the bathroom where a warm cloud of steam greeted them.
"You could have tried talking to us Gabe." Sam reminded him gently, trying not to let the angel know just how much he was upsetting him by not talking to them.
"It was my problem Sam. Mine. Xaphanel isn't after anyone but me." Gabriel said bitterly. "He would have killed anyone who got in his way. Like Crowley."
Sam smiled; this he could fix. "Crowley is fine. He was a bit battered but he's fine. He's actually heading up the hunt for Xaphanel. He's taken it rather personal that you both got hurt."
The Fourth Born let out a sigh of relief. "I thought...Xaphanel left me alone and went after him. I thought...I was sure I had gotten him killed."
"Nope. Crowley is like a cockroach. He always finds a way to survive." Sam said with a smile as he knelt down and began pulling off the angel's socks.
"What are you doing?" Gabriel asked.
"Helping." Sam said, as if it was no big deal.
Gabriel nodded and turned away. He felt Sam remove his sweat pants and then, to his surprise, a towel was wrapped around his waist before the hunter removed his boxers. Gabriel tried to stop the lump the rose in his throat from the simple action. They'd both seen each other naked even if they hadn't gotten around to sleeping together so nudity shouldn't have bothered either of them. The fact that Sam wanted to give him his privacy spoke volumes to him about how much the human still cared about him.
Sam took his hands and pulled him to his feet and opened the door for the shower and let him walk in, taking the towel as he passed. Gabriel stood under the spray of hot water and took a moment to savor it before the damn broke. He let a single sob pass his lips before he leaned against the tiled wall, letting the water hide his tears. Why wasn't he allowed to be happy? Had he messed up that badly that even the universe decided to damn him?
The door to the shower rattled as it closed behind him and the angel tensed feeling someone behind him. He turned just enough to see that Sam was standing there watching him. The hunter had a look of understanding on his face along with a sad smile. As the hunter leaned forward Gabriel noticed that the brunette was still wearing his boxers and another sob broke free as he realized that Sam was trying to make him feel as comfortable as possible.
Sam grabbed the soap and lathered up the rag he was holding. Once he was sure there was enough he began gently cleaning the distraught angel. He started at the blonde's neck and slowly worked his way down making sure to be gentle. Sam kept his touch as professional as he could while also making sure the archangel knew that he was there for him. Upon reaching Gabriel's waist, the angel tensed but Sam just cleaned the angel's intimate parts before moving onto his legs.
Happy the angel was clean, Sam gently pulled him back under the spray to rise off. As he did he adjusted the shower head making sure to get those blonde locks completely soaked. Grabbing the strawberry shampoo, the hunter poured a decent amount in his hand before replacing it. Rubbing the cream together he began to run it through Gabriel's hair making sure to gently massage his scalp, pulling another sob from the angel.
Gabriel felt his heart clench at Sam's gentle attentions. The last time someone had been this attentive to him had been thousands of years ago when he and Lucifer were together. Lucifer had always loved touching him, going as far as demanding a shower once a day just so they could touch. The hunter cupped the blonde's chin and carefully tilted his head back, making sure not to get any soap in his eyes. With that finished Sam repeated the actions with the conditioner.
Once Gabriel was fully clean Sam turned and began to pull open the door, intent on giving the archangel what he suspected was some much needed alone time. He had barely touched the door handle when Gabriel latched tightly onto his wrist. Sam frowned and looked back at the angel, who was staring at where they were connected. With a smile Sam moved back and his wrist was released. The youngest Winchester wasn't sure what to expect but having Gabriel latch onto him and begin sobbing was not it.
Broken words spilled forth in Enochian in between the sobs. Not knowing what else to do Sam held him letting him cry. It didn't take long until the words and sobbing stopped but Gabriel still seemed unwilling to let Sam go. With a sigh he turned off the water and opened the door to the shower. Gripping the angel tightly, he easily picked him up, surprised by how light the angel actually was for his size. Taking him into the bedroom again he sat Gabriel on the edge of the bed and rushed back to grab a towel, turning up the heat for the room as he did.
He quickly got Gabriel dry, with the angel saying nothing the whole time. It was both a little worrying and unusual. Going over to the dresser, Sam pulled out a clean pair of boxers and turned back only to see that Gabriel was running his fingers along the edge of his short sleeved shirt. With a smile it brought back memories of Gabriel stealing his shirts to wear while they were dating. Going back over to the bed Sam helped the angel into the boxers before grabbing his shirt and helping the blonde into it, despite the shock his actions drew. The look of wonder and amazement on Gabriel's face nearly broke his heart. How bad was the angel hurting that the small act of letting him borrow a shirt brought him that much emotion?
Sam just gave him smile and brought Gabriel's injured hand up to kiss his bandaged palm. "Keep it. It looks good on you."
Gold eyes went wide and he reached down and ran his fingers along the hem of the shirt once more. "I...Are you sure?"
The human nodded. "Yeah. Keep it."
To Sam's amazement an actual smile broke out over the angel's face. "Thank you Sam."
"Gabriel...I know you aren't ready for a relationship but I just want you to know that if you need anything I'm always here. If you need to talk or a shoulder to cry on, or even someone to just hold you, then you can come to me." Sam said. "What just happened in the shower can happen again anytime you want or need it to. Anytime. Day or night. I still love you but right now I want nothing more then to see you happy again. If me being a cuddle toy for you helps you cope with everything that's happened then feel free. You have an open invitation to my room."
Gabriel closed his eyes and tears fell from his eyes again. "Why would you do that for me? I'm nothing. Just a whore."
"You are not a whore. You are the most wonderful and special angel I know and I will forever hate myself for calling you that. I couldn't help but hear Xaphanel call you that too." Sam said softly. "Is he the one that gave you the scar?"
Gabriel shook his head. "No. He just held me down. It was...It was Raphael. He gave it to me while he was...he was..."
Sam gave the angel's hands a good rub, being careful of the injured one. "You don't need to say it Gabe. I think I understand what he was doing to you. I wish I didn't but I do. If you want, if you ever want to try a relationship with me again, we can take sex out of the equation."
Gabriel nodded and moved to lay back down. When he crawled under the covers he looked pointedly at Sam. The hunter grinned and quickly stripped out of his wet boxers. He dried himself off and pulled his jeans back on before crawling into the bed. No sooner did he get settled then Gabriel curled up around him, resting his head over the hunter's heart. As the angel began to drift off Sam couldn't help but think about how much he had missed this.