"Dean, Sam, Cas... Please, let me explain." Gabe pleaded. His head still pounded and he had a hard time forming thoughts and words. Around his bed stood Sam, with a reserved expression on his face, and Dean, with a rather pissed off one on his. Cas sat on the edge, his face unreadable. "How long, Gabriel?" he asked, disappointment colouring his voice. "Wha? What do you mean?" Cas frowned, even more disappointed. "What he means, asshat, how long have you been pulling our strings?" Dean intervened. Gabe winced. "It wasn't like that, guys, believe me." Sam crossed his arms over his massive chest. "Really? Then what? You needed to mess with us, then erase it?" Gabe's head was swimming. "No, no... I... I..." He saw Cas tilt his head in a worried manner. Then the world went hazy and ulitimately faded into black oblivian.
"What the Hell, Cas? I thought you healed him?" Dean asked, but he sounded worried. Cas put his fingers on Gabriel's forehead. "I did... It seems the symptoms are not caused by physical trauma." His deep blue eyes looked worried and he kept his fingers pressed to Gabe's forehead. "So what? The symptoms are psychosomatic?" Sam asked. "Is that even possible for an Angel?" Cas looked up, his blue eyes desperate. "I don't know." Dean stepped next to his friend and put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll keep him here, until he's back to his annoying little self." Cas looked up thankfully. "And then we'll roast him for messing with us!" Cas smiled, but he still kept his hand on his brother's head. Sam sat down on the other side of the bed. "Of course we'll take care of him. He's your brother. Even if he's an annoying little asshat. Besides..." Dean looked at him questioningly. "... I must admit, I kinda like him." Deans eyebrows threatened to disappear in his hair. "Excuse me?" Sam chuckled. "Yeah, I do. He can be a little shit sometimes, but he came through in the end, and we owe him that." Dean nodded. "Can't fault you there. I actually like his style too. When we're not the ones being had that is. " Cas smiled at his friends. So easily as they accepted his brother. "You know, I remember Gabriel telling me something about the human body once. He said that not all pain is physical. If a human gets emotionally hurt enough, the body will shut down. Was he telling the truth?" Dean widened his eyes. He suddenly remembered Cas sinking in a dead faint after he found him sobbing like a child and repeating : "It can't be him." He swallowed hard. "Ehm, Cas, when did he tell you that?" Cas turned his deep blue eyes on Dean's jade ones. "I... I honestly can't remember exactly when. I just remember him telling me." He frowned in confusion. "Like the Norwegian blessing, actually." Dean rubbed his mouth in a signature move. He was thinking deeply. "Allright. Come on, Sam. We'll leave the angelbro's alone for a bit." Sam nodded, patted Cas on his knee and followed his older brother outside.
Sam was passing the guest bedroom where they had put Gabe, when he heard the deep voice of Castiël. He was singing.
"Believe it or not,
I'm walking on air.
I never thought I could feel so free.
Flying away on a wing and a prayer.
Who could it be?
Believe it or not it's just me."
Sam's mouth curled in a tender smile. 'Awe. That is cute! I hope Gabriel hears it.' The door to the room opened and Cas stepped out. He jumped when he saw Sam. "Oh, Sam. I didn't hear you. Have you found anything about what could be wrong with Gabriel?" Sam shook his head softly. "Sorry, Cas. But I think that your singing might help him wake up. But why Joey Scarbury?" Cas actually blushed a bit. "I.. Er.. I sang that once, when I was babysitting for my manager at the Gas-'n-sip. The little girl seemed to like it." Sam patted his shoulder. "That's ok, buddy. I'm sure Gabe liked it too. Why don't you and Dean go out for supplies, and I will look after your brother for a bit." Cas looked thoughtful. "If you're sure. It might distract me for a bit." He left Sam to sit next to Gabe and he went looking for Dean.
Gabriel was sitting under a starry sky and wondered what he was doing there. He couldn't remember how or why he got there. 'Well, with all that I have been through lately, this is just the cherry on the cake, isn't it?' he thought bitterly. 'I'm actually fed up with things. I hate having to lie to Cas and the Winchesters, and I hate it even more to have to toy with their memories.' He felt his eyes sting. All the emotions that rolled over him just knocked him flat on his back, litterally. He let himself fall down and he cried. He cried for his brother, having to mourn him, while he was still alive, he cried for the times he had to lie to him and his friends. And he cried for himself, because he all of a sudden felt utterly alone. He rolled over onto his side, and curled up like a child, wrapping his golden wings around him. "Well now, Gabriel. Look at you. Crying like a whiny baby." He looked up and saw himself, but he thought he was kinder. This version of him was about as soft as granite. "Huh, Excuse you." Gabe huffed, sitting up and drying his eyes. "Guess you don't care about Cas or his friends, right?" His other self sneered. "They can fend for themselves, can't they?" Gabe felt anger rising. "You really are an angel, aren't you?" The other Gabriel let his Archangelblade slip into his hand. "Darn right, bucko. And you can choose now. Either you fight me, and when you win you can leave here... Lose, or don't fight, and you'll stay here." Gabe cocked his head. "And where exactly is here?" He kept his eyes on the prowling double. "You, mr. Emoboy, are in your own head. After your crashlanding at the bunker, you retreated here, to avoid confronting the Hardy boys and our baby bro." He swished the blade around. "You're scared..." he sneered. Gabe sat there, eyeing his opponent. 'I could just stay here... I wouldn't cause any more harm to Cas, Sam and Dean. Besides I like watching the stars.' The double threw his blade from hand to hand, impatiently pacing around. "What'll it be, bucko? Flee, or fight? You can bet our bro doesn't care." Gabriel wanted to tell him otherwise, but then he remembered the distance Cas had kept and the disappointment in his face and voice. Gabe opened his mouth to tell the guy to buzz off, that he was staying, when clear as a bell, a voice rang out over the field. It was deep and gravelly, and it was singing.
"Look at what's happened to me,
I can't believe it myself.
Suddenly I'm up on top of the world,
It should've been somebody else.
Believe it or not,
I'm walking on air.
I never thought I could feel so free-.
Flying away on a wing and a prayer.
Who could it be?
Believe it or not it's just me"
Gabriel felt his eyes tear up and yet his heart leapt with joy. Cas! He did care! He leapt up and tackled his nemesis. They went down like a tree and Gabe managed to get his hands on the blade. "Guess what, bucko. Our brother cares. He is singing for us, while he rarely sings. He wants me to wake up. I'm going back." His opponent smiled. "Good for you, sport, but you've got to beat me first. I'm older than you. You, Emoboy, you only hatched after centuries of living with the humans. I'm first press. I'm the original works. Besides, baby bro could just be singing for the fun of it." Gabriel aired a blow at his grinning face, but his nemesis rolled his head sideways. "And even if Cassie-dearest does care, his friends hate your guts." An evil grin played around his mouth. "You're lying! Sam cares! He said he missed me!" This time Gabe's aim was true and blood splattered from a split lip. "Who says he wasn't on to you from the start?" Gabe growled like an angry wolf. "I'm going to make you pay for this." They rolled around, grunting and aiming blows at eachother.