The Power of Two:

"Michael?" Lucifer whispered.

"Yes, brother. It is I." Michael spoke in Nathan voice.

He was as still as Nathan had been, but Dean wondered if it had been Nathan at all and not Michael the Archangel the whole time.

"When?" Lucifer finally asked, gaining control of his emotions, setting Sam's shoulders and straightening his back.

"Four days after Nathan's capture." Michael told him. "I've been at your side for three weeks, brother. And you noticed me not."

Lucifer opened his mouth, but closed it soon after. He couldn't believe this; it was not supposed to have happened this way. He had a plan, and it was magnificent. His plan was going to knock the Winchesters and these mud monkeys off their rockers, prove to his brethren that he was better than them. That he was better than soldier-boy Michael.

Every muscle tensed in his Vessel's body, the Demon blood turning magna-hot. Boiling. Right now, he didn't run cold, but held the fires of Hades.

"I'm disappointed in you, Lucifer. I was next to you for a whole month's time, and you did not sense my presence at all. I would not say that I went beyond you in masking myself in this Vessel, because as you know, we can always sense each other." Michael looked at his brother, his feelings clearly showing in Nathan's green eyes. He pinned Lucifer with his steely gaze, one that Dean had never seen nor ever wanted to see Nathan pull. "You've been away from Father for way to long brother, He went soft and you've caused more trouble than you did before He punished you."

"I'm not going anywhere." Lucifer growled and Dean could swear that he just pulled Sam's patented bitch-face. "I'm sick of being control by Father, and if you haven't yet come to this conclusion, Michael, Father is gone!"

"Do you honestly believe that?" Michael demanded.

"Of course!" Lucifer scoffed, rolling Sam's brown hues. "If Father weren't gone, then he'd be right here with us."

"He is, you fool!" Michael yelled at him.

"No. You're the fool, brother." Lucifer threw back, jabbing a finger into his chest. "When are you going to realize that Father doesn't care about us any longer? He abandoned us, he created these insects and put them on our world because he doesn't' love us anymore. He doesn't love you!" he snapped in Michael's face.

Michael's eyes flashed and a tremble seemed to travel through his body. It wasn't with fear though, but was instead fury. His nostrils flared as he sucked in a long breath. "I know you're trying to make me snap, Lucifer, and I have to say that you're succeeding quite well." he spoke quietly. "Father was soft on you, Lucifer. And yes, at one point I may have thought that He loved you more than I, being as your punishment wasn't more severe. But he sent you away like a man does with the offspring that he distastes; while he kept me at his side."

"He let me go," Lucifer said through clenched teeth. "He pushed me from the nest and I flew, brother. Wind under my wings. I was free to do as I wish while you were chained to His side, only going free when He wished it. Not you. Not ever you, Michael. You're his puppet, and He is the Master. Face it," he sneered. "You're nothing without Him. You are no one."

"You're right," Michael agreed and Lucifer raised his brows. "I'm our Father's pet, and I'm sick of being chained-up! Father wanted me to bring you back to him, so he could gain control over you. But I'm not going to do that."

"You're not?" Lucifer said in surprise.

"No, I'm not." he narrowed his eyes. "I'm going to kill you instead." he drawled without hesitation or remorse at even the thought of it.

They glared at each other.

Dean was sure that he'd gone mental or something, that he'd some how gotten knocked out and was now hallucinating. Here, right in front of him was the Devil (in possession of his brother) and Archangel (in possession of his other brother), not fighting (at the moment), not ripping each others throats out or destroying Earth, but instead arguing about family matters. This was supposed to be the big battle, the one that led to the Apocalypse or at least Dean had thought so. He wasn't saying that he wanted the world to end because that would be the worst case here, but this, whatever this was, was totally freaking him out.

He didn't know what to do. He was afraid that if he tried to make any kind of move on the pair of them, he'd be dead—and it wasn't as if he had anything on his person that would do any sort of damage to wither one of them. And he felt that if he moved, then that would put him back in their sights—figuring that they'd forgotten about him while they were arguing.

This was not how the plan was supposed to go, it just wasn't. And now he had nothing to fix this, to get his brothers back. He didn't have the Colt—not like that would have worked even if he did have it—Castiel, even if he was at full Angel-mojo wouldn't be able to take on the Archangel as well as the Devil, and he to would die. And it wasn't only him who'd lose somebody if this whole thing went to shit, Bobby would suffer loss too.

Dean tried to press himself back harder into the wall, trying to sink into it. His heart was pounding painfully in his chest, blood rushing in his ears, his fist clenched so hard that the nails biting into the flesh of his palms drew blood. His jaw clenched, his knees locked, his head pounding, breath fast.

"You down have the guts, brother." Lucifer challenged him.

Michael's lips twisted. "You have been gone far too long." he told him.

Both tensed, wound up like springs.

This was when Dean realized that this was really going to happen... like, right now. He held his breath, wanting to turn away, but unable to. As it turned out, he didn't really have to hold his breath that long because, nothing turned out as it was supposed to.

Dean could have sworn that before it happened, he heard the clop of horse hooves thundering away, a wheeled carriage to go along with it and thunder streaking through the dark sky. A gust of unseen wind... And there he appeared.

"Chuck?" Dean whispered in complete confusion, definitely sure that he had now lost his entire brain.

Chuck looked winded albeit slight nauseas and it seemed to take him a minute to orientate himself.

Dean wasn't sure what was weirder, Chuck suddenly appearing in the middle of this or the fact that both Michael and Lucifer had frozen, their eyes wide with fear as they both stared at the smaller man.

It wasn't long before Dean got the answer.

"Father?" they whimpered.