Dean's legs were unstable as he stood, pulling Sam up with him. His little brothers face was streaked with tears and grime and even some blood, Dean supposed it was his own from his back wound.
Sam looked terrible. His eyes were red and hollow looking, tired. His body was shaking and felt weak against Dean's side, his hands and face were filthy. When he spoke his voice trembled like he had tried to keep it strong for too long. "How?" he whispered. "I saw you die, I felt your heart stop."
Dean blinked heavily, his body was exhausted but he stood upright, bearing the majority of Sam's weight, staying strong for his crumbling brother. "Call Gabe," he said. "Let him, Lucifer, and Asmodei explain."
"Asmodei?"
"Other Angel," Dean explained quickly. "He helped bring me back down."
Sam shook his head. "I'll call him," he said. "God Dean, I though I was never gonna see you again. It was horrible." Dean noticed his death grip on his sleeve hadn't loosened.
Dean wrapped an arm around him. "Hey. It's okay, I'm not going anywhere again. Neither are you."
Sam patted his back and opened his phone. Lifting it to his ear, he began to talk. "Hey Gabe."
"Sam! What a surprise. I'm sure you want to know what dearly departed Dean is doing back in the land of the living, yes?"
"How fast can you get here?"
"Bunker, I presume?"
"Right," Sam said, sparing Dean a glance and furrowing his brow at how tired he looked. "Hurry."
"Hello Sam," came the voice behind them. Gabriel strolled into Sam's line of vision accompanied by two other Angels. Lucifer and a darkly handsome vessel with Indian heritage he guessed must be Asmodei. "Dean, how's everything working?"
Lucifer passed Sam, he felt the blonde mans arm brush him and flinched. "Gabriel," he said, trying to ignore the Devil. "I need an explanation. Now."
"Of course," Gabe replied. "I'd be more than happy to grant you that...if you stop looking at my brother like he's, well, Satan."
Lucifer froze, processing his brothers words. "I am Satan," he pointed out, averting his gaze from Sam. He knew where this was going and he wanted to avoid it.
"I know but shush," Gabe said, waving a hand absently. "Listen Sam, you know what I mean. I know what he did to you, he's told me some and I'm smart enough to figure a bit out on my own, and I know you'll never fully forgive him but please Sam, please try to at least treat him like you treat me."
Lucifer closed his eyes and raised his head to the ceiling. "Gabriel," he began, forcing his voice to stay steady.
"Lucifer," Gabe said, mirroring his tone. "Shut up."
Across from the three Angels Dean put a hand of Sam's shoulder, watching the Angels with suspicion. "Why?" he questioned. "Why can we trust you? How?"
Lucifer's devious and competitive nature refused to let him not answer. "Okay," he said. "I didn't hurt Cas when I was inside of him, I haven't hurt Sam despite having every opportunity to. I defended you Dean, I brought you back! Why couldn't you trust me?"
Dean moved away from Sam to bring himself only a foot from Lucifer. "Family," he told Lucifer. "You did everything for Cas. You didn't hurt him because you care about him, you haven't killed us because you know he cares about us. You defended me because you knew Cas's heart inside and out, you brought me back to get him for you! What's stopping you from killing me the second we find Cas? What's stopping you from destroying his memories of us and killing Sam and me?"
It was Lucifer's to move to Dean, glaring at the taller mans face with a stubborn expression the mirrored his own he said, "you answered the question already. Cas is in love with you, God Dean, if you could see what it's done to him...it's something I could never take from him."
"I don't believe you."
"You don't know what I've done!" Lucifer snapped. "You don't know what I've sacrificed, all that happened in the cage. Dean Winchester if you think Cassie's the broken on then listen to what happened to me! In that forsaken place where you two locked me up I endured the most agony ever inflicted upon Angel, worse than Sam's pain, so much worse for it was inflicted on my not by an enemy but by a brother."
"What do you mean?" Gabriel asked, his voice filled with worry. "Lucifer..."
"Lucifer," Michael said, his voice low and agonizingly soft.
"Michael," Lucifer said in the exact tone, looking out from the bars of the cage. He turned to half face his oldest brother. "Perhaps we could talk this out."
"You killed your own brother! Lucifer, you loved Cassie, why?"
Lucifer turned fully. "I don't know," he whispered. "I don't know. I was angry, frustrated and so close to winning."
In the farthest corner of the cage Sam stirred. His eyes widened as he took in the Angels and the scenery around them. In the opposite corner Adam lay, still unconscious. He scrambled away from Lucifer with fear in his eyes.
"Brother," Michael said. "I do believe you now having what humans call a 'punching bag. Take out your anger on him and I will let our conversation slide."
Lucifer grinned and started towards Sam.
For several Hell years he ripped and cut at Sam's soul, and not once did the man ever scream until Lucifer began to taunt him, speaking of Dean, speaking of killing him. That was the first time Lucifer heard him speak in the cage.
"Dean..." It was a small sound, weak and pathetic but somehow it struck Lucifer hard. Sam was looking up at him with huge, agonized and slightly crazed eyes. "Do what you must to me," he said, voice trembling. "Don't touch him."
Lucifer staggered backwards, his Fall flashing in front of his eyes. Those words, those ten small words had broken the dam he had built to block out the pain. Michael stopped his dissection of the younger one, Adam, and looked up.
"Brother," he said. "What is it?"
"I can't," Lucifer whispered, staring at Sam in shock. "Michael, I can't."
"Of course you can," he said, annoyed now. "My powers have influenced you before to do this. Go on. He put us in here, destroy him."
Lucifer looked up and over at his brother. "You...you used your powers to control me? I have taken you for many things but a torturer to the very beings Dad wanted us to protect? Never."
Michael picked up and Angel blade and handed it to Lucifer. "There are many thing you don't know brother. Kill him again and again, destroy his soul. The blade is sharper than that knife, it's cuts are lethal."
Lucifer felt sick. "No," he snapped. "I won't hurt him any more." He handed the blade back to Michael.
Michael leered at him. "Really?" he said softly. "You haven't figured it out yet?" Lucifer looked confusedly at him. "Oh for Dads sake! You're not the one Earth should fear."
"Michael," he said slowly. "What do you mean?"
The Archangel moved into his face, forcing him to look away. "I'm still your big brother. I can still beat the shit out of you, of anyone but Dad. And I've decided Humanity's a waste of time, they kill, they soiled Earth, they have dug themselves a clear path to Hell, beyond redemption."
Lucifer felt sick rise in his throat as Sam watched on, staring in a confused half conscious state. "This isn't how it was supposed to be," Lucifer whispered. "You were supposed to fight for Humanity, not destroy it. That's my job!"
"It was," Michael hissed. "If only Heaven could see us now. The Soldier and the Rebel have switched. You can't even hurt the human who caged us and I can destroy the planet once I get out."
Lucifer looked back and saw the younger boy, Adam, scrambling towards Sam who grabbed him and pulled him close, shielding his half brother from anything that might happen. "I won't hurt him," Lucifer said calmly. "But I don't love Humanity, not like you were supposed to."
"Fine." Michael flicked a hand and caused Adam to fly from Sam's grasp and hit the wall of the cage, were he stayed, pinned by an invisible force. Michael then started to move towards Sam, holding an Angel blade.
It took Lucifer a second to realize what Michael had planned to do. Then, without a second though, he threw himself in front of Sam. "Michael no!" he shouted.
The angel blade stopped centimeters from his chest. Adam slid down the wall and crawled weakly to Sam who once again pulled him into a protective embrace.
Sam shook behind him. "Why?" he croaked. "Why are you defending me?"
"I don't know," Lucifer whispered, not taking his eyes off Michael who still towered over them. "Michael, I hate most of Humanity. I hate Dean, and Bobby, and I hated their parents so much. But Sam, Sam I can't hurt because...I don't know but he reminds me of myself."
Sam drew a shaky breath from behind him. "What?"
"You fell for a family who you love so much, I fell for loving my Father above all else. You have been rejected by blood, as have I. We have been tried with unfair causes."
Michael stepped forward. "No more games Lucifer darling brother." He grabbed Adam's arm and yanked him up. Sam let out a hoarse cry.
"Adam no!" He moved to get up but Lucifer stopped him.
"Take me!" Lucifer cried. "Leave them and take me! Michael, I know you are angry but you cannot hurt Sam and Adam is innocent, he wanted a normal life, he had nothing to do with this until Heaven made it so! If you kill Adam I will rise from here in Sam and I will kill Dean then my own vessel. If the Winchesters die then Cas's following will rally against you, even if he's dead, besides, if they all die then you have no vessel, no claim to a body that is suitable to fight in."
Michael's grip on Adam weakened. "Fine." Quick as a flash he reached down and yanked Lucifer up. With a wave of his hand he threw the Archangel against a wall, grinning manically as he heard the hiss of pain as his head collided solidly with a book hanging down.
Lucifer could hardly see Sam and Adam through the blood in his eyes but they were safe, and that's what he had fought for. "Brother," he whispered. "What has become of you?"
Michael's eyes were crazed with lust for bloodshed. "I could ask you the same. Shall we begin?" He picked up a large meat hook made of the material used in angel blades. "Ah, this looks fun."
AN: I completely forgot to upload this chapter! Oops! Hopefully things make more sense now
