Michael leans on the pillow as Cas checked him over.
"Is Dean okay?" Sam asks.
Cas turns his head and nods.
"He's fine."
Sam's worry then turned into fury.
"What the Hell were you thinking? You put my brother's life at risk. He could have got seriously hurt."
Michael responded with an eye roll.
"Don't roll your eyes at me." Mary grips the table and glares at the former archangel. "That was really stupid what you did. It was reckless!"
"Isn't that what you guys do every day?" Michael raises an eyebrow. "Be reckless."
"He has a good point." Lucifer says.
Sam ignores him and folds his arms.
"Why did you do it? You know Lucifer is capable of taking care of himself."
"I...I took extra precautions." Michael replied. "We don't want anything to happen to Jack's grace."
"Nothing would have happened." Cas says.
"You don't know that."
"Or more like you didn't want anything to happen because you really need the ritual happen so you can be powered up again." Lucifer says.
"No!" Michael said with frustration.
"Instead of standing here arguing shouldn't we be finding the kid?" Anael says.
"She's right." Cas agreed. "We need to find him."
"What about Michael?" Mary asks.
"He won't get far." Lucifer assured them. "I'll make sure of it."
"No violence." Mary warned.
"Who said violence was gonna be involved?" Lucifer laughed. "I'll just make sure he stays in bed that's all. I got my eye on him."
He points at his eye to make a point. Mary sighs.
"Alright. We'll get Rowena to do a tracking spell hopefully we can find him."
"What are you gonna do when you do find him?" Cas said with worry.
Sam shakes his head and sighs.
"I don't know."
"We're going to help him." Mary says. She looks at her youngest. "Come on."
Sam knew his mom was trying to keep everyone focused on the mission. She wanted to help Jack as much as everyone did. Her and Jack formed a bond in the other world they fought alongside together for months. Jack is like a son to her. Mary hated seeing what he is going through. She wanted to do everything she can to get Jack off this dark path and bring him back home.
Anael stayed behind as others left the room. She then turns to Michael and says.
"I will say this is not what I had in mind when I said choose your own path. Then..." She bit her lip. "I suppose saving your brother instead of killing him can count as a fuck you God. After all the Lord commands the Apocalypse two brothers fight until the death." She said the last part in a dramatic tone. "I bet God choked on His popcorn when He saw that."
"Oh shut up." Michael snapped at her.
Anael snorted at that. She leans forward and rests her hand on the base of the bed.
"While that may have been a huge twist in His books I don't think it's enough to get Him down here." She shrugs. "Oh well."
"You're enjoying this aren't you?"
"Seeing my brother from another world getting beaten by a kid" Her lips quirk into a small smile. "Maybe." Michael scoffs and turns his head away. "On a serious note." Anael continued. "You wanna talk about it?"
"About what?"
"Don't play dumb with me you know what I'm talking about."
"Oh that. No thanks."
"Oh thank God." Anael sighs with relief. "No offense but I have heard enough sob stories to last me a lifetime. So I'm just gonna..." She tilts her head towards the door. "Yeah."
Michael watched as the angel goes towards the door.
"It was an instinct." He says. Anael paused. She looks back at him. "An need." Michael quickly added. "To protect my brother. I know it sounds stupid." He laughs. "He's not even my brother I shouldn't give a damm what happens to him but..." His voice trails off. He didn't know how to finish the sentence.
"You care." Anael walks and stands at the bottom of the bed. "You care about him."
"He's not brother." Michael clenched the sheets. "I hate him."
"You saved him."
"To save Jack!"
"To save them both!"
Michael sighs and runs a hand down his face.
"Winchester."
"What about him?"
"This is his fault." Michael grits his teeth. "This instinct came from him. He has the need to save Sam and that is affecting me. This..." He gestures to his vessel's body. "This is a sick cosmic joke. The Empty thinks it can play games with me well...When I get my powers back I am going to burn the Empty down to the ground."
Michael looks at his alternative sister. He expected a horrified reaction from her. Instead Anael looked tired. Tired of the same old threats and villain monologues. Most of all she was tired of archangels blaming others for their actions.
Anael sits in the chair across from his bed. She crosses one leg over the other.
"Dean's fault. This is all Dean's fault oh Michael please you can't blame a human for this."
"Can't you see..."
"I can see just fine thank you." She huffed an annoyed sigh. "I don't think this is a joke. Dean is your Sword you both share some certain qualities. Dean is an image of the old you."
"Not this again." Michael groaned.
"It's the truth. Yes Dean is a pain in the ass but he is heroic and he cares about his family. The Empty probably did this to remind you of who you are."
Michael really didn't want to go through this again. He could make Anael leave but for some strange reason he wanted her to stay. He wanted some company. He liked her company.
He will never admit that out-loud.
"Also." Anael continued. "You have regrets maybe Dean is one of your regrets this is a perfect opportunity for you to fix that." Michael laughs at that. "You might not realize it now." Anael stands up. "One of these days you will. Saving Lucifer, that was a start." The smile fades from Michael's face as he considered her words. After a few moments Anael clears her throat. "Right..." She clasps her hands. "I'm done I am gonna leave you alone now."
Michael sat up as he watched the angel leaving the room.
"Jo."
"Yes Michael."
"You're..." He hesitated. "You're not like the other angels you're...unique."
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"
The former archangel licks his lips. He then blinks.
"Don't ever change."
Anael's eyes widen.
"So it is a compliment." Her face turns smug. "Wow I never expected to hear that from you."
"I think I heard someone calling your name." Michael quickly said.
Anael couldn't keep the smile off her face. She knew the former archangel said that as a way to get rid of her. The angel decided to humor him and go along with what he is saying.
" I better get going then. " Anael grinned.
Anael leaves and goes down the hallway. Lucifer comes round the corner.
"What was that all about?" He asks with a questioning brow.
Anael frowns.
"You were spying on us?"
"I promised them I would keep an eye on him. Jo, why do you talk to him? He's an asshole he is trying to get into your head."
"He's not. Lucifer." She sighs. "Michael cares about you he won't admit it but he does."
"You're telling me this because?"
"He's not our Michael but he is still Michael. With our Michael in the Cage..."
"Don't." Lucifer shakes his head. "I would never replace my brother. I would never replace him with that." He points at the room where Michael is. "Yeah sure he is Michael but he is not my Michael he is not the one who raised me." Lucifer bit his lip as memories of him and Michael flash across his mind. He pushes those memories to the back of his head and clears his throat. "He's nothing to me."
"I understand." Anael nods. "What I'm saying is you are both gonna be living in this world together rather than starting another War could you maybe just...make up? Get along? Be civil? Let this world have some peace for once! We are all tired of your family feud! You can't save our Michael but maybe you can save this one. Michael looked after you maybe now you should return the favor."
Lucifer glances at the room.
"He saved me back there when Jack attacked us."
"He will do it again and again and again."
The Devil does dramatic sigh.
"See now you just made all this really awkward. It's easier to see him as a villain then that way I can hate him this...I can't deal with this."
"Don't worry about it. Right now you focus on Jack afterwards you deal with Michael okay ?"
"Okay but...will you be there when I gotta..."
He gives her a pleading look. Begging her to stay with him when he and Michael have the talk. Only she will be able to hold him back only she can keep put both brothers in their place. The brothers will not admit it but they do admire her. She wasn't like the other angels she understood the archangels then Anael is the most human out of them all so it would make sense that she would understand emotions and feelings. Maybe she could be the one to bring the brothers back together.
Anael huffs a sigh.
"Fine only because you are taking me to Paris."
"And I will." Lucifer grinned.
Suddenly the Devil froze. His eyes widen with shock.
"What? What is it?" Anael asks with worry.
"I just received a prayer."
"A prayer?" Anael frowns. "From you?"
Lucifer looks at his sister. His face is puzzled.
"From Jack. He wants to see me."
I know another conversation with Anael lol. I find her the easiest to use when it regards archangel angst. I think Michael and Lucifer need one angelic sibling on their side. This chapter was difficult because it is not their Michael so Lucifer has every right to not have a brotherly relationship with Michael and I don't want Michael to bea replacement of the original Michael. Argh it's hard to explain family drama is complicated lol.
Next chapter coming soon.