A/N This chapter can be read on it's own, but it is a sequel to the previous chapter. Enjoy!

Dean regained consciousness with his face pressed to a cold wooden floor and he heard a groan beside him. Years of habit made him call out automatically for his brother, but as soon as Sam's name had passed his lips he realised that it wasn't Sam beside him. He sat up suddenly, eyes wide as he tried to see through the darkness.

"Cas?!"

"I'm here." Dean searched around until his hand found Cas just a few feet behind him. "What happened?"

"I have no idea," Dean said, holding on to Cas's arm. "Last thing I remember we were outside the hotel." It was completely black. Dean could feel the heavy, unbroken darkness pressing against his eyes. He felt suddenly claustrophobic, his pulse beginning to rise as his mind filled with terrible images of what could be surrounding them in the dark, unseen, waiting to strike.

Before his anxiety to grow in to complete panic, he reached inside his jacket and pulled out his flashlight, clicking it on and scanning the room. They seemed to be in some kind of cabin, somewhere windy judging by the eerie whistling that floated through the otherwise silent air. And they were entirely alone.

It was a single room, small and square. All it consisted of was a table, a fridge, a bed and a fireplace. Dean stood, pulling Cas up with him. Despite being able to see every corner of the tiny cabin, Dean took his gun from his jeans, holding it tightly as Cas walked over to the window. In the small beam of white light streaming from his flashlight, Dean saw the breath rise from his mouth, and for once it wasn't because of a ghost.

"I can't see a thing," said Cas. Taking one last apprehensive look around, Dean kneeled down to the fireplace, finding it already stacked high with wood. He took a lighter from his jacket pocket and within a few seconds the dry wood was up in flames. It was only then, as the cabin was lit up by a dim orange glow, that Dean realised why it had been so dark before. The windows were piled almost to the top with thick snow, driven up against the side of the cabin by the wind, blocking even the faintest moonlight from entering.

"What the hell are we doing here, man?" Dean asked.

"I don't know," Cas said, "but perhaps we should just go." Behind the confusion and trepidation, Dean was a little curious as to why they had been suddenly transported to this strange little shack. But a slight curiosity wasn't enough to keep him here when he couldn't shake the unsettling feeling that something was watching him. Cas walked over to Dean, and raised his hand to Dean's forehead, ready to send them back to the hotel. But nothing happened.

"Uh, Cas," Dean said, watching the angel who had a serious expression of concentration on his face. "I don't think your angel powers are working... I mean, you're pretty much just standing there with your hand on my face."

"I don't understand," Cas said, dropping his hand and frowning deeply.

"Looks like we're going the old-fashioned way then," Dean said, heading to the door and pulling it open. But instead of an exit, he was greeted by a solid wall of snow, completely sealing them in. It was so thick and compressed so tightly against the cabin wall that there was an imprint of the doorknob moulded in to it.

Dean pushed against the snowy barricade but it didn't budge. It would take some time to dig them out, not to mention how long it would take them to drive back from wherever the hell they were, assuming they could find a car. At that moment, Dean was hit by a sudden realisation that sent a wave of cold panic down his spine. They were trapped, but they didn't seem to be in any danger. Maybe the only reason they were up here was to keep them out of the way while Sam was alone at the hotel, unprotected. By the time they got back he could be long gone. Or worse. But before Dean could voice his fears, he heard Cas speak behind him.

"He's alive?"

Dean turned around to see Cas holding a framed photograph that had been sitting on the table.

"Who is?" Dean asked. Cas held out the picture frame to him, and Dean saw with surprise and slight horror that the picture was of Gabriel, smirking suggestively out at them, his false black moustache affixed firmly to his smarmy face. "Son of a bitch," Dean growled.

"I can't believe he's been alive this whole time," Cas said.

"More importantly what the hell has he done with Sam?" Dean asked, dropping the photo back down on to the table. Cas turned to look at him, an unexpected look of anger on his face.

"More importantly?" Cas echoed. "I've just discovered that my brother is alive after months of thinking he was dead. That is important."

"He dies all the time," Dean said, without thinking. Cas let out a disbelieving laugh.

"So do you and Sam! You of all people should know how it feels to find out your brother is back from the dead."

"That's different."

"Because Gabriel is an archangel? He's still my brother, Dean."

"Yeah well right now he's got my brother and I want him back."

"What are you so concerned about? He isn't going to harm him."

"Seriously? Do you know how many times I've died at the hands of that dickbag?"

"Never permanently."

"Does that make a difference?" Dean asked, his own temper flaring. "He killed me over a hundred times and you think he's going to play nice with Sam?"

"This isn't about Sam," Cas said, looking back toward the table.

"This is entirely about Sam," Dean shot back. "While we're stuck up here he's alone with a homicidal nut job."

"Damn it Dean!" Cas snapped, his voice rising, taking Dean by surprise. "The world doesn't revolve around you and Sam. I have tens of thousands of brothers of sisters who I care about as much as you care about Sam. And I have made terrible mistakes and I have killed thousands of them. Imagine how you would feel if you killed Sam, if you watched the light leave his eyes as you drove a blade in to his chest. I have to live with that guilt every single day so don't try and make out that your brother is more important than any of mine. Especially Gabriel."

"Okay, okay," Dean said, shocked by Cas's outburst, but he wasn't finished.

"No, it's not okay," Cas continued, his voice lower now, but just as dangerous. He advanced on Dean, forcing him to walk backwards until he hit the wall with a thud, but Cas didn't stop until he was toe to toe with him. Dean held his breath, remembering with painful clarity exactly how strong Cas could be. "Gabriel isn't insane, he's not a murderer, he's not a nut job, he is my brother and he's back from the dead so maybe you could take your head out of your ass long enough to realise that I might have some feelings about that."

Dean stood frozen, unable to drag his gaze away from the firelight burning in Cas's furious eyes. They stared at each other for several long seconds and then suddenly Cas glanced down to his lips, and the breath caught in Dean's throat.

"Cas," Dean said, his voice cracking slightly. "Are you going to hit me or kiss me?" Another pause, the only sound was of the firewood, crackling and sparking.

"I don't know yet." They both stood frozen for a long moment until Cas seemed to realise what he had said and turned away.

"I'm sorry," he muttered, rubbing his face. "It's Gabriel I'm angry at, not you."

"Don't worry about it," Dean said, his voice faltering slightly as he took a moment to regain his composure. Dean's eyes followed Cas as he approached the table again, picking up the picture of Gabriel and peeling something from the back of it.

"When I said this had nothing to do with Sam," Cas said, holding out a folded piece of paper to Dean, "I didn't mean he isn't important. But this situation really isn't anything to do with him." Dean took it and saw that it was a letter in neat, almost elegant handwriting.

Baby Brother,

Not dead, by the way. Tell Angry Winchester his brother is fine. You'll probably have noticed I've taken away your powers. I suppose you could say you're grounded until you and Dean do something about your situation. Grounded. Get it? Because you can't fly. I suppose you'll have to find some other way to entertain yourselves... don't say I don't do anything for you. Enjoy little bro. If everything goes well we can double date.

Lots of hugs and kisses,

Gabe

Dean's initial reaction when he finished the letter was one of confusion. What does he mean our situation? Dean thought. And double date? What the hell does he mean double date?! But that feeling of confusion slipped quickly in to anger as he crumpled up the piece of paper and threw it in to the fire, frustrated by the lack of control he seemed to have over his own life, especially at the hands of that damn archangel. The fire that had previously cast eerie shadows across the dim cabin flared brightly as Gabriel's letter burned, illuminating the room fully for the first time and revealing it to be much more welcoming than Dean had imagined. The bed looked soft and warm, the thick duvet patterned with red and green plaid with a fluffy brown blanket lying across it. Every piece of furniture was the same rich, dark wood, even the mantelpiece, upon which was a bottle of scotch and two glasses that Dean could have sworn hadn't been there before.

Dean's eyes fell on Cas again, who was glaring in to the fire, looking frustrated and sad in equal measures and Dean felt an involuntary smile cross his face as so often happened when he looked the angel. And much to his surprise, he found himself silently thanking Gabriel.

"Okay, so let me get this straight," Dean said, pouring two glasses of scotch and handing one to Cas, although he had to tap him a few times on the arm before he got his attention. "Sammy is safe?"

"Yes," Cas said, a little snappily. "I've told you that."

"And Gabriel is alive and well?"

"Yes."

"And we're stuck here together in a cozy log cabin with no one to bother us for hours?"

"Yes."

"And we're unhappy about that?"

Cas smiled reluctantly. "Well, when you put it like that..."

"Look, Cas, I can't believe I'm saying this but I think Gabriel's right. We have some things to talk about."

Cas nodded. "I think you're right."

Dean looked around and for the first time he realised that there were no chairs. Instead he pulled the blanket from the bed and lay it in front of the fire, sitting himself down and patting the space beside him for Cas to join him.

"So what do you want to talk about?" Cas asked when Dean didn't speak.

"Us, I guess? I feel like things have been a bit different with us these past couple of months, like we've been getting closer."

"Would you like me to stop visiting so often?"

"What? No, that's not what I'm getting at," Dean said, hurriedly. "I mean, I'm happy about it."

"You are?"

"Of course I am, Cas. I..." a rush of panic made him falter, but he forced himself to continue, knowing they would never have another opportunity like this. "I think I might have... fallen for you. A bit." Dean felt himself become suddenly very warm, but refused to take his eyes off of Cas, waiting for his reaction.

"You have?"

"Yeah. I didn't want to tell you in case you freaked out, but I can't keep pretending anymore, man. It's killing me."

Cas looked surprised, then thoughtful, then, at long last, he smiled. "I'm not freaking out," he said.

"Good."

"But I'm still going to kill Gabriel when I see him," he added.

"I think I might kiss him," Dean said.

"He can get in line." Dean laughed, and discarding his glass of scotch, he turned to Cas. There were so many things he wanted to say, so many things he had been holding on to for years, that he didn't know where to begin. He reached out to touch Cas's face, exploring this sudden new freedom. His thumb brushed against Cas's lip, and the corner of Cas's mouth lifted in a soft smile.

"I love you, Dean." Without a word, Dean caught Cas's lips in his, feeling the rough stubble of his chin, his hands on his neck as Cas pulled him closer, his fingers in his hair. It was everything he had ever imagined it would be. When they parted, Dean felt slightly breathless. He looked at the angel, and could barely believe that he could possibly deserve something so good.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to hear you say that," Dean said, grinning as Cas grabbed him by the jacket and pulled him down on to the blanket.

All the while, the picture of Gabriel looked out from the table at the scenario he had so carefully engineered, and he saw that it was good.

A/N I really hope you enjoyed this follow-up. Please leave me a quick review, you'll make my day!