Castiel fidgeted in the front seat of the Winchesters car, watching as Sam sat in the backseat with Gabriel practically in his lap. The witch was pressing his jacket on the wound in Gabriel's stomach, unable to heal it until they got to their house.
Next to Cas, Dean was driving as fast as he could while still being safe, obviously worried and eager to get home as soon as possible. Much as Castiel was worried about his brother, he couldn't help the fascination he felt towards the witch.
He thought he could feel faint traces of fear and curiosity in his mind, but he was positive that those emotions weren't his. Somehow, he knew it was Dean's presence in his mind. Was this what it was like to be Bonded?
He was drawn out of his thoughts when Sam cursed from the back.
"Dean, hurry!" he shouted. Castiel was pushed back in his seat a bit as they went even faster, reaching the house in only a few minutes. The three of them ran to the door, Sam clutching Gabriel to his chest.
Cas followed them to the basement of the house. It was filled with all the things one would expect a witch to have: altars, spell ingredients and strange symbols painted all over the place. Sam gently placed Gabriel down on a cot in the corner of the room and Dean started preparing a spell, throwing various herbs into a large stone bowl.
When it was ready, Dean placed the bowl in front of Sam and stepped back, pulling Cas with him. Sam sliced his palm open with a small dagger and let a few drops of blood fall into the bowl. He struck a match and said a chant, saying Gabriel's name a few times, before dropping the flame into the bowl. Bright flames roared up and Cas looked at Gabriel anxiously.
He didn't look any different, but Sam was grinning and Dean looked relieved, so Cas took that to mean that the spell had worked. Sam lifted Gabriel and walked upstairs, Dean and Cas trailing behind. The witch led them to what appeared to be a guest room and put Gabriel on the bed.
He closed the door softly and turned to Cas.
"He'll be fine after he gets some rest," he said.
"Thank you so much for helping us," Cas said, looking back and forth between both witches.
"It's no problem," Dean told him, "considering."
"Considering what?" Cas asked, confused. Sam and Dean shared looks and Cas felt a flicker of surprise tickle his consciousness.
"Well," Dean started, but Sam cut him off.
"Maybe we should wait for Gabriel to wake up so that we only have to explain it once." He shot Dean a meaningful look that was lost on Cas, but the familiar was too tired to care. The adrenaline was wearing off and Cas knew he would crash at any moment.
Dean must have seen this, for he gently grabbed Cas' elbow and led him to a different room. He didn't protest as Dean pulled off his shoes and jacket before tucking him into bed. He pushed his worry for his brother, the strange behaviour of the witches and all thoughts of Lucifer out of his mind and let himself drift off.
...oO()Oo…
The next morning, or afternoon, Cas was woken by Gabriel barging through his door and throwing himself dramatically onto Cas' bed. The older familiar wrapped himself around his brother and refused to let go.
"Good morning," Cas said after a failed attempt to get Gabriel off of him.
"It's two in the afternoon," Gabe answered promptly, still not letting go. "And I'm alive."
"I noticed." Cas' voice may have been sarcastic, but he was extremely relieved that his brother was alright. He managed to slip out of Gabe's hug and out of bed.
Morning, Sleeping Beauty.
Cas froze. He could have sworn that he just heard Dean's voice in his head, but that was impossible. Then again, if he hadn't thought that, then who had?
Sorry dude, I couldn't resist. Sam said that we should explain all this to you guys first so we don't freak you out, but I know you can handle it. Anyway, we're gonna go get some lunch so hurry up and come downstairs.
Cas slowly turned to Gabe and licked his lips nervously. Gabriel cocked a single brow, silently encouraging him to go on.
"Um, I think I may have...Bonded with Dean," he said nervously. Gabriel's eyebrows shot up.
"What makes you think that?' he asked.
"Well, sometimes I think I can feel his emotions, and I swear he talked to me in my head just now."
Gabriel looked thoughtful. "How do you know that's what Bonding is like?"
"Remember that familiar we met in Idaho?" Gabriel nodded. "Well, I talked to her and she told me that when you first start Bonding with a witch, the first thing to develop is the mental connection. She said that a witch and familiar will be able to hear each others' thoughts, and feel each others' emotions."
"Well, if that's true," Gabe said, "then I may or may not have Bonded to Sam."
Cas looked at him incredulously. This was way too weird.
Hey, are you guys coming' or what?
Cas shook his head to clear it and turned back to the door.
"They're waiting for us," he said. "I guess we're going to lunch or something."
"Lead the way, Cassie," Gabriel said, following his brother downstairs. The two witches were waiting by the front door when the familiars descended the stairs. Cas' eyes were instantly drawn to Dean and he saw that the witch was staring right back at him.
The clearing of a throat made them look away, and Cas saw Gabe and Sam exchanging amused looks. Cas smirked when he saw how short his brother was in comparison to the witch.
He looks like a midget.
Dean's voice was filled with mirth and Cas laughed, causing Sam and Gabriel to look at him funny. He just shook his head in response to his brother's questioning gaze.
"So, shall we go?" Sam asked, heading to the door. The others filed out after him and pile into the car, Sam and Gabe in the backseat and Cas and Dean in the front. The drive to the diner was tense and quiet, no one daring to break the silence.
When they finally arrived and slid into a booth, all of them were feeling pretty awkward.
"So," Sam said, trying to relieve the tenseness. "We have some stuff to talk about."
Gabriel snorted. "Yeah, understatement. Alright, go ahead." He leaned back in his seat and indicated that they should start talking. Cas mimicked Gabe's position and looked at the witches. They seemed a little taken aback at Gabriel's abruptness and Cas had to hide a grin.
"Okay," Sam started. "So as you might know, Dean and Castiel have Bonded, as have Gabriel and I."
"I totally called that!" Gabriel exclaimed, leaning forward. "Didn't I call it, Cassie?"
Cas nodded seriously. "You did indeed call it."
Dean's eyebrows rose and Gabriel cleared his throat. "Sorry. Please continue."
"To complete the Bond," Dean said, "we have to do the thing, as you know."
Gabriel looked at Castiel curiously and Cas shrugged. He had no idea what they were talking about. "What thing?"
"The ritual thing," Sam said, furrowing his brow. "Didn't your parents teach you what would happen when you became Bonded?"
Castiel shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Our dad died when we were really young, and we never knew our mom."
"Oh, sorry," Dean said, and Cas could feel that he actually meant it. "What happened?"
"Hunters," Gabriel spat. "A hunter killed our mom and then tracked down our dad and killed him, too. They thought we were witches."
Cas leaned into Gabriel and his brother wrapped an arm around him, offering comfort.
"So, what about you guys?" Gabriel asked the witches after a moment. "Are you Borrowers, Naturals, or what?"
"We're Naturals," Sam said. "Both our parents were witches and they taught us everything we know about magic."
"What kind of magic do you guys do?" Cas asked, curious as to what kind of witches he and his brother found themselves bound to.
"White magic," Dean answered.
We don't use our power to kill people.
Cas gave him a small smile, which Dean returned. A young blonde waitress bounced up to the table, smiling widely at Sam and Dean.
"Hey, guys," she greeted.
"Hi, Jo," Sam and Dean said in unison.
"What can I getcha?" All four of them scanned the menu quickly while Jo patiently stood by the table.
"Can I have a Caesar salad and a Coke?" Sam finally asked.
"Sure thing, Sam. How 'bout you, Dean?"
"Bacon cheeseburger and a beer."
"No problem." She turned to Gabriel and Castiel. "What'll you boys have?"
"I'll take the grilled cheddar burger and water, thanks."
"Sure," Jo said, scribbling Cas' order down on her notepad. She looked at Gabriel. "How 'bout you?"
"Can I get a slice of double chocolate cake and an extra large strawberry milkshake?"
Jo nodded, smiled and left. Cas and the witches stared at Gabe, who shifted in his seat.
"What?" he asked defensively. "I like sugar."
Cas snorted and shook his head at his brother. Gabe flashed him a huge grin and turned back to Sam.
"So, anyway, what is this ritual that we gotta do?" he asked.
"Basically," Sam explained, "to Bind a witch and a familiar together, they have to touch."
"Touch?" Gabriel repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Care to elaborate?"
"That's literally all we have to do. The witch and familiar must touch, and a mark will appear where the contact happened that binds the two souls together."
"But you and Gabe have touched before," Cas pointed out, "and nothing happened."
"Well, yeah, because we weren't trying to Bond at the time. You have to actually want it for the Bond to happen."
Jo came by with their drinks and interrupted whatever Gabe was about to say.
"Here ya go, guys," she said, putting the glasses on the table. "Your food'll be out in a few minutes." She offered them bright smile as she left.
Gabriel took a sip of his milkshake. "So, what happens if we Bond?"
Sam looked taken aback at the question. "Uh, you come and live with us, I guess."
"And?" Cas asked. Dean looked confused.
"And what?"
"What else happens? Surely the point of Bonding goes beyond just offering companionship."
"Actually, that's exactly the point of Bonding," Sam said. "A familiar's purpose is to balance out the natural darkness in their witch."
"That's why there aren't that many white witches," Gabriel realized. "Because familiars are so rare that not many witches find that balance."
"Right," Sam said, looking a little surprised. "You guys are actually the first Unbonded familiars we've ever met, and we've been around for a while."
"Yeah, there are only eight familiars in the city, and all of them are Bonded. There used to be more, but Lucifer killed them." Dean's expression darkened when he mentioned Lucifer and Cas noticed Gabe's hand move to his stomach.
"On a less disturbing note," Sam interjected, "I think our food's here." Sure enough, they could see Jo headed towards their table with a huge tray balanced on her hand.
"Here we go," she said as she passed the food out. "Bacon cheeseburger for Dean, Caesar salad for Sam, grilled cheddar burger for Blue-Eyes and double chocolate cake for Mr. Gold."
She winked at them over her shoulder as she sauntered away and Gabe frowned at her retreating figure.
"Why'd she call me Mr. Gold?" he asked. Cas rolled his eyes.
"It's because of your hair and eyes, Gabe," he explained. Gabe made an 'oh' with his mouth and dug into his cake. Cas took a bite of his burger and looked at Dean.
So if we Bond, we move in with you guys?
Cas sent the thought to Dean, interested to see if he actually could. Dean smiled at Cas and nodded.
Yup. Familiars always live with their masters.
Why?
In the past, familiars have been targeted by their witch's enemies. It's not common, but not unheard of either. That was centuries ago, and since then it's become sort of a tradition for the familiar to live with the witch for protection.
Makes sense, I guess.
Dean chuckled and went back to his burger. They finished their meal in silence, the four of them thinking about the inevitable changes in their future. After they paid and left, Cas finally voiced a concern he had had since learning that he and Gabe would be living with the witches.
"Hey, Gabe?" he started. His brother looked up expectantly. "How will you transform here?"
Sam and Dean looked confused, but Gabriel instantly grasped what Cas meant and frowned.
"That might be a problem," he said.
"What might be a problem?" Sam asked. They reached the Impala and slid in, Cas once again claiming the front seat with Dean.
"Let's just say that my animal form is a hell of a lot more conspicuous that Cassie's is," Gabriel responded. "He can get away with traipsing all over town in animal form, but I have a feeling that if I tried, animal control would be called and that is not an experience I want to repeat.
Sam shot Gabe a questioning look and Gabriel smirked. Sam nodded and Cas guessed that they were communicating telepathically.
"What are your animal forms?" Dean asked, looking at Castiel.
"Dean, look at the road," Cas said. He refused to answer the question until Dean looked forward again and he felt Dean's amusement in his mind. "We're birds."
"What?" Sam piped in.
"Just what I said, we're birds."
"What kind of birds?"
Gabriel leaned forward in his seat. "I'd rather show you than tell you. Oh, and can you stop by our motel so we can grab our stuff?"
He gave Dean the name of the motel they had been staying at and looked at Castiel. His usual mask of cockiness and sarcasm was gone and Cas saw the real Gabriel, the Gabriel he only ever showed to Cas.
Cas saw excitement gleaming in his eyes and Cas could relate. They were extremely lucky to have found their witches this early in their lives, and even luckier to find witches that lived together so that they didn't have to be separated.
He watched Sam give Gabe a reassuring smile and realized something. Sam could feel Gabe's emotions and hear his thoughts. Cas was no longer the only one who would know the real Gabriel. He felt a tiny stab of jealousy, but quickly extinguished it.
He was extremely happy for his brother and himself. They'd still be together, it's not like he'd never get to spend time with his brother. With that reassuring thought in mind, Cas settled more comfortably in the worn leather seats. The animal part of his brain pushed forward a little and when he inhaled through his nose, he could smell a scent that was purely Dean. It was intoxicating.
Judging by Dean's tiny smirk, he knew exactly what Cas was thinking, but Castiel was surprised to find that he wasn't embarrassed about it. In fact, it sent happiness spiraling through every part of him. He had found his witch, a Natural white witch, no less.
He was happy, his brother was happy and life was good. Or so he thought.
For those of you who don't know, a Natural witch is a witch who genetically inherited a natural talent for magic. A Borrower is a witch who has sold his or her soul to a demon in return for magic powers. I got all this off of the Supernatural Wikipedia page, in case you guys want more information on it.