Spencer slept for twenty eight hours straight. His grace needed the time to recover and so did his vessel. Diving into hell wasn't an easy task. When Castiel had done it to rescue Dean, he'd gone with a whole contingent of angels and they'd just barely made it. Angelic lives had been lost in that effort. And that was only to descend into the Pit. Where Gabriel and Spencer had gone was much worse than that. They'd had to fly through all the levels of Hell, straight down to the bottom, to the place that contained two of the strongest archangels God had made. They'd had to fight against Lucifer, Lucifer, to retrieve Sam's soul, and Spencer was convinced they never would've done it without Michael's interference. In the end, it'd been his fighting inside that had distracted Lucifer just long enough for Spencer to wrap Sam's soul up inside of his wings. Not just Sam's soul, but another as well, one that Michael had practically thrust towards them. Spencer had cradled them within his wings and then let Gabriel fly them out of there with all the speed the Messenger possessed.

Once they'd fought their way topside, Spencer had holed himself up in the place that Gabriel brought them, some sort of safe house he'd assumed, while his brother went to the Winchesters. Because, while rescuing Sam, they had discovered something very, very important—Sam's body wasn't there. Someone had resurrected his body, without his soul.

While Spencer waited, he tucked Sam's soul in close, letting the natural light of his grace work to begin healing, and he'd focused on the other soul, one which had sustained far less damage than Sam's. This was the soul of Michael's vessel and as such had been more protected. Michael had shielded his vessel, unlike Lucifer. He'd protected him. Spencer had only to extend a small amount of healing to make it whole once more. Whole enough to bring close, to read and understand, and to finally grant the soul's wish. A light brush of grace sent it up to its final resting place. Adam Milligan's soul shone with peace as it returned to its Heaven.

Spencer had focused then on doing what healing he could for Sam's soul before Gabriel came back for him. From there, the choice had been easy to make to stay hidden, to keep his name away from this. He had passed Sam's soul to Gabriel, had watched soul and grace both brighten as they came in contact with one another, the glow of their joy in one another a beautiful thing to see. Maybe they hadn't admitted anything to one another—hadn't even kissed, Spencer knew from Gabriel's memories—but the very essence of who they were recognized one another and rejoiced in each other's presence.

Silently, invisibly, Spencer had leant the last of his strength to Gabriel to help guarantee that Sam's return went off without a hitch.

All of this had left the archangel drained lower than ever before. He and Gabriel had done a job that could've destroyed them if they hadn't gotten lucky. A few days of recovery were to be expected.

Unfortunately, he hadn't had time to warn Aaron about that.

Spencer was still mostly exhausted when he woke. His grace was still pretty low, too, as he proved to himself by snapping and changing his clothes. He could do it, but he was still tired. It'd be smart to limit his grace use for another few days until he could recover a little more.

A look around the room had him surprised as he pushed himself up. This apartment, as far as he knew, only had two bedrooms—Aaron's and Jack's. And this definitely wasn't Jack's room. That meant that Aaron had put him in his room. Had given up his bed so that Spencer could have somewhere to rest.

He didn't have long to sit and wonder about it. Just as he finally managed to sit up—without falling over—the bedroom door opened and the man he'd just been thinking about stuck his head in. One look and the door was pushed open and Aaron was striding quickly towards the bed. "Reid!" Everything about the man was practically radiating relief. He took a seat beside Spencer on the bed without any sign of hesitation and reached out to push his bangs back and palm briefly over his forehead in a gesture that spoke of the father inside of him. Spencer sat there, feeling about as weak as an infant, and let Aaron indulge himself for the moment in checking Spencer's temperature and looking at his eyes in what was most likely another assessment. Inside, Spencer could feel the passage of time, knew just how long he'd been out, and he knew that Aaron had a right to worry. Even if he hadn't known, he would've now. "You've been out cold for a little over a day." Aaron told him. He must've finally been satisfied with whatever he'd discerned from his check of Spencer because he dropped his hand back down. "I didn't know what to do for you, but I had a feeling a hospital wouldn't be a smart choice."

"This was perfect, Hotch. Thank you. And, I'm sorry." The words weren't enough, he knew, but they were what he had. "I was a little, frazzled when I arrived. I should've warned you that my body would need time to rest."

"You ran a pretty constant fever. Not too high, but enough."

Spencer winced a little. Damn. He lifted a hand to try and wipe it over his face and was appalled at how shaky it was. He could only manage to briefly rub at his eyes before he lost the strength to do even that and his hand dropped limply back to his lap once more. "I really am sorry, Hotch. I just, I used a lot of grace. Too much, almost. When it gets down that low, it kind of leaves an angel human for a while. Our grace usually sustains our vessel but when it's low human needs kick in." Sighing, he looked up at his boss, his friend, and found dark eyes watching him with concern, yes, but also with the steadiness that had helped prompt his decision to come here. It took a lot to throw Aaron. No matter what came his way, he always stood tall, always held on. That strength and practicality had been exactly what Spencer had needed. "I'm sorry if I've inconvenienced you or caused any trouble. I just, I needed somewhere safe."

Something flashed through Aaron's eyes at that too fast for Spencer to really take note of what it was. He wasn't strong enough to really sense things. Hell, he was barely strong enough to sit here. Even now, his body was swaying a little and slight tremors shook his hands.

He wasn't the only one to notice those things. Aaron took them all in and he straightened up a little. "If you're mostly human right now, your body needs more than rest. It needs food as well. Why don't you get comfortable while I go get something to eat? It's just about breakfast time."

"Oh, Hotch—Jack…"

"Is fine." Aaron cut in. "He's with his Aunt right now." Pushing up from the bed, Aaron gave him a firm look, one of the ones that everyone on the team had learned to heed over the years. "Scoot back and get comfortable against the pillows. I'll be right back with breakfast. You need anything, call out. Don't try getting up. If your legs are anything like your hands, I doubt you'd make it far."

That was a bit of an understatement. Spencer doubted he'd really be able to do more than stand up. He needed food, water, rest, and energy, not exactly in that order.

It took him almost the entire time that Aaron was gone just to scoot himself back to the head of the bed. He was just pushing the pillow behind him and finally laying back with a sigh when his boss came back in. The man bore a tray of what looked to be simple yet filling food. Oatmeal, fruit, toast, juice, and coffee. Spencer hummed happily at the scent of coffee.

Chuckling, Aaron brought the tray over, opening up the legs and setting it over Spencer's lap just like he was a child. "I thought you might like some coffee. The rest of it, well, you said you were running a bit towards the human side of things, so I tried to get you things that might help return a bit of your energy to you."

"Thanks, Hotch." Spencer said, smiling at him. "Really, thank you. I appreciate all of this so much."

"You want to thank me? Eat."

Spencer chuckled and let himself turn his attention to the food. Privately, he had to bless Aaron for choosing what he did for breakfast. With still shaky hands it would've been hard to eat things like eggs or cereal. Oatmeal stuck enough to the spoon to not shake off when Spencer's hand trembled. Toast was easy to hold, and fruit could be speared on a fork. They were all things that, with a bit of care, he could eat on his own. "So, have I missed anything important?"

At his question, Aaron settled in a little more at the foot of the bed, leaning back against the bedpost. It gave Spencer a bit of space while still allowing the man to watch him. Spencer had to fight back the bit of amusement he felt at seeing the fatherly side of Aaron triggered. It wasn't the first time the man had turned it his direction. He did it each time Spencer was hurt, or sick. The archangel resigned himself to be watched extra closely for the next few days. Then all those thoughts faded away as Aaron answered his question. "I called both of us in sick to work yesterday. Dave covered for us with the others, but since they know you don't get sick, I imagine you'll have a few questions to answer with them."

"I missed work?" Spencer's spoon hung in the air, halfway to his mouth. When he and Gabriel left, it'd been the start of the weekend. Had it really taken those two days to do it? Spencer knew that Hell ran on a different clock, just the same as Heaven did. Time in Hell ran faster, and it ran even faster down by the Cage. He thought he'd calculated it all correctly but apparently not. His calculations had only accounted for a day of earth time.

"Don't worry about work." Aaron reassured him. "It was a paperwork day, and from the sounds of it, you didn't really have a choice on needing the rest."

There was an unspoken question under all of that. Spencer heard it loud and clear. He knew what Aaron wanted here. What he deserved. Taking a bite of his oatmeal, Spencer thought carefully about what to say and how to say it. He was grateful that Aaron kept quiet and simply waited him out. It gave Spencer enough time to figure things out.

His oatmeal was half gone when he finally decided to speak again. Picking up his fork, he speared a piece of strawberry, staring down at it for a moment. "I feel safe in assuming you know the story of Lucifer." He asked, sneaking a look up at his friend. He didn't really need Aaron's small nod to confirm it. Pretty much everyone knew some variation of Lucifer's story. Blowing out a breath, Spencer dropped his gaze back down to the fruit, taking a moment to gather courage. "Things didn't happen quite the way that the world thinks. Once, Lucifer was one of our Father's most beloved children. The Morningstar." A soft smile of remembrance touched Spencer's lips at the memories of one of the brightest and most beautiful of his brothers. The smile faded, though. "But when Dad created humans and ordered us to bow down before you, to love you more than anything, Lucifer refused. He argued that humans were flawed and that he could never love them the way he loved our Father. Really, I think Gabriel's description suits better. I love him, but Lucifer was like a spoiled child, jealous that Dad loved humans more."

A shaky breath slid from Spencer. This was a story he didn't like to tell. One he didn't even like thinking about. Very carefully he laid his fork down and sat back against the pillows. Aaron was watching him, he knew. He could feel his gaze. But this was so much easier if he didn't have to look at him. If he didn't have to let his friend see the pain in his eyes.

"Everyone knows that Dad cast Lucifer out of Heaven. Humanity knows of how Lilith was made, a human soul twisted into the first demon. What the world doesn't know is the real punishment that Lucifer suffered. Under Dad's orders, Michael fought with Lucifer and cast him down, sending him into the Cage, deep in the pits of Hell. On that Cage are over six hundred seals keeping my brother locked inside. Only sixty six needed to be broken to free him. Last year, in St. Mary's Convent, the last seal was broken and my brother once more walked the earth."

In a low voice, Spencer walked Aaron through the things he'd learned from sharing with Gabriel. He gave his friend a bare bones account, omitting things that weren't important. He told him about the vessels, about Sam and Dean Winchester. That was a bit of an amusing shock in the midst of this crap story.

"The Winchesters?"

Spencer saw as it clicked in Aaron's head. It was a fascinating thing to watch the process as the profiler's mind ran over everything and came to the right conclusion. "They're hunters, like what you told us about. The delusions in their files, those weren't delusions."

Smiling, Spencer nodded. "They're some of the best hunters out there. And they may have broken the world, pushed there by both Heaven and Hell, but they saved it, too."

He explained then, only briefly, about how Sam had saved the world. This, he'd seen in Sam's memories as he'd helped to heal him. He'd seen how Sam said 'Yes', how he fought and finally took control, and how he cast himself down into the Cage with both Michael and Lucifer. "He saved the world by sacrificing himself." Spencer said into the stunned silence of the room. "He saved us all. Even knowing the torture that awaited him, he saved us."

The soft prayer that slipped past Aaron's lips was so soft, Spencer had a feeling the man didn't even realize he was saying it.

Clearing his throat, Spencer picked up the coffee mug and took a drink of the slightly cool liquid. A tiny bit of grace helped to warm it back up. "I'm sure you're starting to piece together why I told you this story." He drew in a careful breath and watched as Aaron's gaze lifted to him once more. For the first time through his story, Spencer made himself watch the other man, made himself look as he finished his tale. "On Friday, I ran into my brother, Gabriel. I hadn't seen him in hundreds of years. It was with him that I learned about all of this. Most of it happened while I was still human. My brothers, they were locked away just shortly after I got my grace back. From Gabriel, I learned of what happened, and we went together to retrieve Sam's soul from the Cage. We resurrected Sam's soul, and sent the soul of Michael's vessel to Heaven where he wanted to be."

"You flew…to Hell." Aaron repeated slowly. "To rescue two human souls from a Cage that holds your two big brothers—Michael and Lucifer."

"It took a lot of grace. Lucifer didn't want to let go. If it weren't for Michael helping us, I don't know if we would've won." At the incredulous look that Aaron was giving him, the archangel started to shift in his seat, fiddling with his cup and dropping his gaze away. "I couldn't just leave them there. Sam didn't deserve that, and neither did Adam. They deserved to be free."

The room fell quiet for one long moment. Then, softly, "You are an amazing being, Spencer."

Color flooded Spencer's cheeks. "It was the right thing to do. They didn't deserve to be there. Lucifer—he's not the brother I once knew."

For a second Aaron was frozen in place. He recognized that look on Spencer's face. It was the same look Aaron saw on his own face every morning in the mirror since Hayley died. It was the look of someone who had loved another so very much, and who had lost. Startled by this revelation, Aaron just stared at him for a moment. "You loved him." He breathed out softly.

Spencer flinched ever so slightly, but he didn't deny it. "Oh, yes." His lip curled, just slightly bitter looking. "But he loved himself more—and Michael. And I didn't love him enough. Not the way that he wanted. Love humanity, our Father bade us, and I did. I do." Spencer blew out a shaky breath and looked away, unable to handle seeing the pity in his friend's eyes. "Lucifer never did. He wanted me to stand with him, to Fall with him, but I couldn't, and then…then we lost him. He was locked away in the Cage and I hadn't seen him since."

"Until now."

"Until now." Spencer echoed softly.

The room fell quiet then. Neither man said a word as Spencer slowly finished his breakfast. There wasn't anything that could be said after a story like that.

The silence wasn't broken until Spencer was almost done eating. The sound of Aaron's cellphone ringing out in the living room broke through. The archangel watched as his boss hurried out to answer it. It only took a few minutes before he came back. The instant he did, Spencer was on alert. "There's a case." It wasn't really a question. He could see it on Aaron's face.

"You need to rest." Aaron said in lieu of an actual answer.

That was answer enough, though. Spencer pushed himself forward and forced his body to move. "I can rest on the jet, reading over the files with everyone else." When he saw Aaron start to protest, he firmed his spine, straightened his shoulders. "I can do my job, Hotch. I need to do my job."

There was something there in his tone that Aaron recognized once more. Something that told him that Spencer wasn't lying; he needed this. If there was anything that he could understand, it was the need to bury grief under work. He'd done it so many times himself. How could he deny Spencer the same thing? Sighing, he gave a small nod, and then he reached out to take the breakfast tray so that Spencer could actually stand up. "But you take it easy." He warned him firmly. "You told me you need rest and that's what you'll get. No pushing yourself, Reid. I mean it."

"Yes, sir." Spencer said smartly. He grinned as Aaron gave him a dry look before turning and walking away.