Hello my darlings. I would to thank jjeess001 and OfPensAndPencils for the wonderful review. I would also like to thank those of you who have followed and favoured since my last update.

So here is the next chapter, I hope you like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Supernatural.

Dean and Castiel finally made their way down the stairs around midmorning, where Dean went about making a belated breakfast for them both. Though he did find his eyes often travelling to the two black wings he could still see attached to his angels back, even if he had folded them in so they settled perfectly between his shoulder blades. Dean couldn't get enough of the sight, it was fascinating to watch how when Cas sat the wings moved through the back of the chair as if they didn't actually exist at all. But he knew they did. He could still feel the tingle of the softness of the feathers he had stroked earlier that morning.

It was bizarre and crazy, and if he wasn't seeing it with his own eyes, hadn't felt it with his own fingers, he wasn't sure he would believe any of it. But he had had the irrefutable proof, he knew his mind was not playing tricks on him with this one. That he could feel them even when they went through every other bit of solid matter. What he did wonder briefly, was what it meant that he could see Cas' wings. Because he knew he couldn't do it yesterday unless Cas choose to show them to him. So what had changed that made it so he could see them now? What did it mean? But in truth he was really that concerned with answers those questions, he was too busy being amazed that he could.

Castiel on the other hand was plagued with the questions Dean wasn't that interested in answering. He needed to know what this meant. Because he had never heard of a human being able to see an angels wings before, and the idea that maybe this was due to something he and Dean had done sacred him. What if seeing his wings was a sign of the feelings he and Dean had for each other? What would happen if another angel came down to visit them and they found out that Dean could see that which he shouldn't be able too? Would they be able to work out what had been happening between the two of them and then force them to end it? Or worse, would they punish him and Dean for breaking one of the most sacred laws of heaven? He was not so much worried for himself, but he knew he couldn't, no, wouldn't stand for anyone to hurt Dean, be they his family or not. He would protect Dean with everything he had, he just wasn't sure if that would be enough, especially not if he had to go against Michael. Oh what was he to do? He wished Gabriel would hurry back. He wanted to ask his brother these questions, he just hoped the archangel had the answers that he did not. And he hoped he would not be too angry about this new development.

It was at that moment that there was a sound and Gabriel appeared in the middle of the kitchen, just in time to grab a piece of bacon off of one of the plates in Dean's hands and eat it reverently.

"Bacon really is the food of angels." He said with a smirk at the glare he was getting from the human. He expected to hear him grumbling to himself about archangels just turning up and stealing his food, but instead he heard… nothing. Tilting his head Gabriel's stare intensified as a puzzled look came over his face. What was going on? Why couldn't he hear Dean-o's thoughts? Because there was no question that he could the last time he had been in this house. He still remembered every one of those memories that Dean-o had relived in his nightmares.

"Dean-o, what are you thinking?" He asked stepping closer to the human, right into his personal space as if that would help him hear something, anything, from the man in front of him.

"What? Why do you ask?" Dean asked instantly going on the offensive. He had been thinking about how much he would like to yell at Gabriel for eating the food he had prepared for Cas, but he wasn't about to say that out loud. He doubted it would down too well.

"Because I can't get a read on you." Gabriel replied in his not often used serious tone.

His words caused Castiel's head to shoot up to stare at his brother, his mouth falling open. Frist Dean can see his wings, and now he can somehow block an archangel from his mind? What was going on?

"And that's important why?" Dean asked bristling at Gabriel's words. He didn't understand what was going on, but if Gabriel was trying to get into his mind, then he was glad that he couldn't.

"Because I hear every little inane thing that runs through that thick skull of yours. So tell me, what is going on?" Gabriel responded snapping his eyes between Dean and Castiel as he did so, wondering if the younger angel had somehow caused this, knowingly or unknowingly.

"Wait, you can read my mind?" Dean asked his eyes going suddenly wide as he remembered all the things he had thought about when Gabriel had been around. Concentrating mainly on the ones which went into graphic detail of what he wanted to do to Cas. Though he quickly tried to rid his mind of them as soon as they came back. He did not want to think about that now. Think of something else, anything else. But even as he thought that everything he didn't want Gabriel to know flooded his mind. Son of a bitch.

"Not any more. Cassie is this your doing? Are you blocking him somehow?" Gabriel asked turning to his brother when he saw that Dean had no idea what he was talking about. Not that he found that surprising, he wasn't an angel after all.

"Not that I know of, but…" Castiel replied, though found he couldn't continue. If Gabriel could not read Dean's mind, then he could not find out that he could see his wings. Dean would be safe the less people who knew about that. On the other hand he needed help, he needed the knowledge that he hoped his elder brother had. He was going to have to trust Gabriel if they were going to get to the bottom of the reason for these new developments.

"But?" Gabriel asked when Castiel said no more. He was starting to get worried. What had happened in the few hours he had been gone? What had changed in that time for such a dramatic difference upon his return?

"There is more." Castiel replied, still not able to get the words out, so instead he talked around the subject.

"Why do I have a feeling this is going to give me a serious headache?" Gabriel grumbled before clicking his fingers and producing and comfortable chair for himself to lounge in. He had a feeling that he would need it.

"Dean can… well he can…" Castiel tried once more, but still found he could not put voice to the words in his mind. But he did not want to speak of this over his and Gabriel's angel connection. He did not want there to be any chance that anyone would overhear.

"Cassie…" Gabriel sighed. He needed to know what was happening if he was going to work out how to fix the problem.

"He touched my wings." Castiel rushed to say before lowering his head and not looking at his brother as he pushed the food around the plate in front of him. Anything to avoid the glare he knew he was going to get from the archangel.

"Okay. Why did you have then on show?" Gabriel asked with a confused frown. What had happened that had caused Castiel to feel the need to display his wings? I mean he found that far more interesting that the fact Dean had touched. Okay sure, humans shouldn't go round touching angel's wings. But hey, these two had been doing a lot of things that humans and angels shouldn't do… so in the grand scheme of things it was a pretty minor offense.

"I didn't." Castiel muttered, still not looking up and therefore missing the puzzled frown on Gabriel's face at his words. How had Dean touched his wings if he didn't have them on show?

"What do you mean Cassie?"

But it seemed that Castiel had used up all the words he had and therefore refused to answer any further. Leaving it to Dean to explain what had happened that morning, well not the details, but the basic, important point.

"He means I can see them as clear as day, even now." He stated simply his eyes traveling to the black wings that seemed to lift slightly at his words, making him smile gently at the sight.

At his words Gabriel couldn't think. He couldn't do anything but sit there in shock for a good minute as he tried to work out what this meant. Tried to think through the law of any others who had been able to see angel wings and block an archangel from their mind. He could think of a few, but he damn well hoped that those cases were not what he was dealing with right now. He wasn't sure he could cope with Dean Winchester turning into a saint. There were some things that were too wacky for even his mind to process. Therefore he tried to think of a way to make sure that that was not what was happening here. The obvious question came to his mind, finally.

"Can you see mine?" he asked in a deceptively calm tone, relaxing his posture so Dean wouldn't see how tense he was as he waited for the humans answer.

At Gabriel's question Dean turned to him with a frown. It hadn't really crossed his mind that he might be able to see Gabriel's wings as well. Therefore he turned his eyes to the archangel's back, trying to see if he could see a golden wings he remembered from his first meeting with him.

Gabriel couldn't help it. He saw Dean look his way and spread his wings out wide for him to see. There was no way he could miss them. But as he watched Dean's eyes staring intently at his back he realised he had, completely.

"No." Dean finally confirmed, causing Gabriel to breathe out a sigh of relief. Not a saint then.

"Thank you, dad." He breathed out, not realising just how relieved he was until Castiel spoke.

"What does it mean Gabriel?" the angel asked, hoping his brother had the answers to all his questions, but having a horrible feeling that he didn't.

"I don't know. If he could have seen mine it would mean he had started on the path to sainthood-" Gabriel started to say only to be interrupted by the man himself.

"Hell no." Dean growled. There was no way he could ever be a saint, and damn it, he really didn't want to be one even if there was.

"Quite. My thoughts exactly Dean-o." Gabriel replied with a smirk before turning back to Castiel. "This is something else, it could be due to the love you have for each other, a way your grace and his soul have connected but…" he trailed off at that as his eyes stared into space as an idea of what had happened came to his mind. He had never heard of it happening before, but it was the only possible explanation he could think of. And if it was true, then it changed everything.

"But what Gabriel?" Castiel asked when his brother said nothing more. He wanted to know why this was happening, and he wanted to know now.

Gabriel could feel Castiel's frustration, but he knew he couldn't say anything. Not yet. He needed to know for sure before he spoke of it. And the only way to know for sure was to go and visit the one person he had been trying to avoid. Because only god could confirm or deny his suspicions. Because, as far as Gabriel knew, he was the only one who had the power to grant Dean-o with the abilities he seemed to now possess.

"I need to check something." He muttered, preparing himself to go off in search of his elusive father.

"Wait, you can't go yet. Sammy's coming round to help clear out the spare room. He'll ask questions if you aren't here to help us." Dean interrupted. There was no way he could explain to his brother how Gabriel had just disappeared after telling him last night that he was going to be staying with him for a while. It would raise far too many questions in Sammy's mind. And right now Dean decided they had enough questions.

"Fine. But once he's gone." Gabriel nodded, though inside he could feel relief at having an excuse to put off his journey. He really wasn't sure how well his dad would receive him, or the questions he had for him. But he needed to know. He needed to know if Dean-o's new abilities were due to the fact that somehow he and Castiel had become soulmates.

Because if that was true, then dad help him trying to untangle that web with Michael and heaven. And oh he would. He would make his father get off his ass and sort out this mess himself. He was done clearing up after him. He did make one promise to himself though, and that was that no matter what happened, he would protect Castiel, and by extension, Dean. He just hoped he didn't have to.