I'll stand with you, little brother...
Title: I'll stand with you, little brother
Author: fate_incomplete
Rating: PG
Characters: Gabriel, implied Dean/Cas
Spoilers: 5.19
Word Count: Approx 2,500
Summary: Takes place during ep 5.19. Gabriel talks to Cas to try and understand why he chooses to fight by Dean's side and finds his reason to stand up to Lucifer.
Notes: after a convo with i_rise_inside I really wanted to see a scene between Cas and Gabriel and for Cas to see Gabriel stand up to Lucifer, to see that maybe he wasn't alone. So I wrote this fic.
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Gabriel slumped in the back seat of the Impala as he watched Dean walk back into the Elysian Fields Hotel. Dean’s final words seemed to hang in the air accusingly. He still loved his brother Lucifer despite everything. The very idea of killing him made his heart ache, but he knew Dean had a point. He had been afraid to stand up to him, to all his family. He had run away, hidden away from it all on earth for countless years. Pretending he didn’t care. The time for pretending was past. He did care, far more then he liked to admit, even to himself.
He caught his reflection in the rear view mirror. He barley recognised himself, he may not have literally fallen, but he was far from the powerful, certain creature he had been, what seemed like eons ago, when he resided in heaven with his brothers. He sighed and slumped even further into the seat. How had he come to this, hiding in the back seat of a car while a lone human walked back in to face his brother?
He remembered Lucifer as he had been before his rebellion. The most beautiful and one of the most powerful of all the angels, the one their father loved most. But Lucifer had always been prideful, he saw the humans as nothing more than walking monkeys, lesser beings that were unworthy of their love, or Gods. Gabriel studied the doors of the hotel where Dean had entered. He realised he had always known Lucifer was wrong.
Humans were flawed, but there was a beauty in those flaws. Dean was in many ways a perfect specimen of those imperfections. So flawed and broken, yet there was so much more. He may have played the trickster for longer than he cared to remember, but he was still an arch angel. He could see into Dean, saw what made him tick, his inner demons and turmoil, the struggles he went through. But with all those flaws he was still doing what he and all his brothers had failed to do for so long. Stand up to Lucifer, to fight for his family.
With that thought Gabriel mind drifted to another of his brothers. One who had dared choose his own path, to fight for humanity. To turn against his brothers for what he believed to be right. Castiel. Gabriel knew his other brothers thought Castiel a traitor for his actions, perhaps no better than Lucifer. But as Gabriel continued to stare at the hotel doors, he began to think otherwise. This lone, lowly brother had chosen to stand by the side of a human and fight with him, for him. He had given everything to give Dean a chance, a mere chance, to keep fighting.
He could see much in Dean Winchester, but he wish he knew what it was that made Castiel sacrifice everything for him. He didn’t think Dean understood just how much Castiel had given up for him. How could he. But Gabriel did, and he couldn’t help but wonder what made such sacrifice worth it. He may not agree with Lucifers views but was he ready to admit that Castiel was right? That humanity was worth fighting for, worth standing against his brothers for?
Castiel might be stubborn and wreckless, but for the absoluteness he had shown in his determination and faith in God and Dean Winchester, Gabriel couldn’t help but admire him. Maybe even envy him. It had been so long since he himself had felt such conviction.
He knew the angels had always thought that God had gifted free will to the humans but denied it to them. He wondered how true that could be. Castiel had chosen his own path, and he had done it without falling. Gabriel knew that there had been others who had chosen to fall, but that was merely another way of running away, hiding. But this younger brother of his had chosen to act not hide.
He wasn’t sure what had happened to Castiel, why he wasn’t with the brothers when they had arrived here. He closed his eyes and thought of him. As he concentrated he thought he could almost catch a glimpse of him, but the images were confused, jumbled. While he couldn’t get a fix on his brother’s position this way, he still caught a scent of something, pain, turmoil, weariness. Castiel’s guard was down. Not only down, almost gone. Something had happened, and not something good.
He opened his eyes and gave the hotel doors one last glance. He wasn’t quite ready to face the idea of fighting Lucifer, or where that fight might lead. There was something else he could do, he had more than one troubled brother. Both of who had chosen their own path and they were on a collision course. One perhaps needed to be confronted and stopped, he was not ready to face that. The other, was in trouble and perhaps needed help, or someone to stand by him. That seemed more manageable, less morally troubling. He had been on the sidelines too long. It was time to get in the game, time to choose a side. He wasn’t sure what he could do just yet but he knew where to start.
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Gabriel walked through a forest, water dripped from bare branches as weak light filtered through, glistening here and there where it caught the droplets. He had tapped into the angel chatter and determined what had happened to Castiel. He had gone up against no less than 5 of their brothers. Surprisingly it looked like he had survived. A hint of a smile tugged at Gabriel’s lips as he thought about Cas’s pluckiness, or stupidity. He wasn’t quite sure which it was, but to borrow a human term, he had balls.
He also knew now that Dean had been going to say yes. He could only imagine what effect that had had on his brother who had given so much so that Dean could keep fighting.
He could see a clearing ahead. Or at least it was a clearing now. Trees had been blasted outwards where the angels had touched down after the sigil Castiel had used. Or rather smashed down, he knew the effects of the sigil were usually not a pleasant trip. He could see the bodies of 4 angels, the outline of their wings spread across the clearing, the sight morbidly beautiful.
As he walked into the clearing he looked around for Castiel. Trees were strewn everywhere and the signs of battle seemed out of place in the eerie stillness of the forest. He finally saw Castiel. He was lying with his back propped up against the shattered stump of a tree. He was unconscious, bruises and cuts marred his face, blood still oozed from several of them. As Gabriel knelt down beside him he saw the bloody outline of the sigil still carved onto his chest. His shirt and coat were torn and in disarray.
Gabriel sat on his haunches studying Castiel, his head tilted slightly at the oddity before him. Gabriel’s gaze wandered from the tousled hair to the bruised and bloodied face, down over his equally bloodied chest. The fight had obviously taken almost everything out of him. He wasn’t sure how long he had been lying here, but the wounds didn’t appear to be healing. The angelic being riding within this vessel should have been able to heal it without a thought, but in his weakened state it appeared beyond him. Gabriel reached out and laid a hand on Castiel’s bare chest, feeling the being within. He was weak, perhaps even on the point of death.
Part of him liked the irony that Castiel would likely die here alone in the woods without intervention. This angel that had given everything to fight by the side of a human would die alone with only his lost faith. But as he studied his brother’s face he knew it was a fate undeserved. He closed his eyes. His hand glowed as he healed some of Castiel’s injuries. He decided against healing him completely. He wanted to talk and he wasn’t sure if Cas would stick around for that if fully healed. He was just as likely to attack, Gabriel mused.
Castiel stirred. His eyes opening suddenly as he became aware of Gabriel’s presence. “Gabriel” he growled, so much anger shining in his eyes even in his weakened state. Gabriel wasn’t sure if it was all entirely directed at him or merely an indication of Cas’s state of mind.
“What do you want” Cas snarled as he tried to sit up straighter.
“Good to see you too little Bro, and your welcome by the way” Gabriel replied. He stood up and walked to a nearby log, sitting down with his feet stretched out, looking all the world like he was lounging is some opulent chair.
“What do you want Gabriel” Cas repeated ignoring his brothers quips.
“Why the hurry, we’ve all the time in the world” Gabriel, clicked his fingers. All the sounds of the forest seemed to stop as he stuck them in a time bubble to give him the time to talk. He was aware that events back at the hotel wouldn’t wait forever. The Winchesters would get themselves into worlds of trouble if he didn’t get back soon. Assuming of course he decided to do anything about them anyway. He still didn’t know what it was he wanted to do. He did know he wanted to understand Castiel, why he chose to act, to stand by Dean.
Now that he was here he wasn’t exactly sure what to ask. He studied Castiel for a while in silence and Castiel continued to glare at him.
“I just have to ask why?” Gabriel finally asked.
Castiel brow furrowed in confusion, “why what?”
“Why all of this” he said waving his hand at the battle scene surrounding them.
Castiel looked away, a weary look settling onto his face as he gave up trying to sit straight and slumped back against the stump again. “Because I apparently have a thing for futile causes. God Dean, it’s all pointless, hopeless”.
Gabriel chuckled earning another glare, “you did all this, and you’re trying to tell me that you’ve given up faith?”
“Dean said yes, so what was the point?”
Gabriel chuckled again. “You fit right in with the Winchesters you know. Willing to sacrifice yourself for hopeless causes.” Cas continued to glare at him. “You need to work on your sense of humour if you’re going to continue fighting with Dean.”
“Continue? I gave up everything and he said yes anyway.”
Gabriel stopped smiling as he saw the complete weariness that seemed to cloak his brother. “Few things changed while you were out here sleeping” he said.
Gabriel almost winced at the flicker of hope that crossed Castiel’s eyes. He could see Cas wasn’t sure he had the strength to keep his faith any longer. Gabriel decided to put him out of his misery rather than see him in pain any longer “Dean didn’t say yes. He got his mojo back. He’s back on the lets stick it to Michael and Lucifer ride”.
Gabriel studied Castiel’s face as a flurry of emotion crossed it. It seemed strange to see so much emotion in one of his brothers. He truly was peculiar. Unique.
“What?” Castiel asked in confusion, perhaps not quite ready to find hope again.
“Yep. Him and Sam are back together again looking for a way to fight Lucifer. Oh and looking for you too by the way.” Gabriel tried to understand the still rushing emotions playing out on his brother’s face. In his weakened state or perhaps just too distracted by the news, he seemed unaware of how unmasked his emotions were. Gabriel watched in fascination, learning so much more in the silence than Castiel would ever willingly tell him.
Gabriel learnt all he needed to know in that moment. He understood why Castiel had chosen to stand by Dean’s side. Though he also understood Castiel himself was probably unaware of just why. There were many forms of love and while he wasn’t quite sure of what kind he saw in his brother’s face, it was love none the less. A love that was a far more human, intense kind of love, that most of his brothers would never understand. However Gabriel had been amongst humans for so long he understood, had perhaps even felt something similar himself.
For all their flaws humans were capable of so much more than most of Gabriel’s brothers. They accepted the flaws in others and loved despite of them or perhaps even because of them. They forgave. He saw so much of that in his brother’s eyes at the moment, it touched something inside of him. He couldn’t put it into words but he saw far more beauty in his brother then he had ever seen in another being. He had found something worth fighting for. He had chosen his side, and it was not one he had ever thought of.
Castiel seemed to finally gain control, his mask was back up. “Where is Dean?”
“He’s at a little meet and greet with the pagan Gods”
“Where?” Castiel grimaced as he tried to stand.
“Don’t worry little brother, he’ll be fine”. Gabriel stood and walked to where Cas was still trying to stand, failing he slumped back to the ground almost growling in frustration. Gabriel knelt beside him lifting a hand to cup his cheek, looking deep within his eyes. “Rest. I’ve got this one.” He paused for a moment with his hand still on Cas’s cheek, smiling at the confusion in his eyes. “I’ll stand with you little brother”. Before Castiel could reply the sound of Gabriel’s wings filled the clearing and he was gone. Leaving Castiel alone with his confusion.
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The abandoned hotel was empty when Cas appeared, the slight displacement of air he caused swirling the dust coating the floor. He looked around him, there was blood everywhere, bodies of dead pagan gods littering the floor. He paid them no heed, they weren’t why he was here. He walked with a limp, one hand clutching at his ribs as he searched. He entered the dining room and found what he was looking for.
Gabriel. The outline of his wings black against the floor. Cas knelt beside him looking at his brother’s face with his head tilted to one side, his brow creased with sorrow. He reached out to touch his brother’s face gently. “Good bye brother” he whispered. He paused as if to say more, but then stood.
He walked out of the hotel without looking back. His stride more confident as if his injuries seemed of less importance with the newfound determination and faith that filled him. He pulled his phone out of his trench coat and dialled. “Dean, where are you..”. The parking lot was suddenly empty as he wings beat to take him back to Dean. Back where he felt at home, though he didn’t know why.
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