Of Hunters and Agents
By Night Flame Miko
An: You know, I'm actually surprised by how many people didn't see Dean's death coming. For some reason, one of the Winchesters dying in front of the Agents just seemed like an inevitability to me, I mean it's not like they don't die an awful lot anyway.
Though I can honestly say that you guys have no idea how tempted I was to have Sam say, "Youkilled my brother, prepare to die!" instead of "Bad move Meg."
Damn those Princess Bride quotes, they are so tempting in their sneaky awesomeness.
Also, all of your responses to the Gabriel thing made me die. For some reason this seemed just as obvious to me when I was writing it, and yet it wasn't until I had posted and gotten another surprised/ecstatic review that I realised that maybe this was going a bit off the beaten path...again. Yay for accidentally being awesome XP
In my version of reality, I honestly cannot have a Spn crossover of any kind that does not, in some way, include both Crowley and Gabriel. They're too awesome to ignore (or kill, you Directing bastards).
So anyway. Hope you all enjoy and that it was worth the wait.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but this plot
xXx
"Gabriel's alive?"
Tony blinked at Sams honestly surprised response, as though an Archangel apparently being dead was a well known and undisputable fact. Tony was still trying to get his mind around the fact that Archangels could apparently die in the first place...or you know...exist...at all.
Crowley actually seemed marginally surprised as well, although that surprise was heavily outweighed by his amusement by, apparently, life in general.
"You can't tell me you're truly surprised Winchester. You may have missed it, but those who sacrificed themselves for your little cause had about a 70% chance of being resurrected. I challenge anyone who says God doesn't play favourites to look at you idiots and not change their mind."
Sam blinked at that before shaking his head and getting back on track. Tony felt much like doing the same or, you know, pinching himself and seeing if he would wake up. That 'twilight zone' feeling he'd been pushing back whilst there was a potentially homicidal serial killer in the room was increasingly returning. Maybe he'd just gone crazy? Hallucinogenic's in the air? Then again Tony wasn't sure he wanted to be in a position where he and his boss are both high. That situation was almost crazier than demons and angels really existing.
"So how long has Gabriel been back? If he was here at the end..."
Sam's eyes flashed and although he didn't actually move, Tony still got the impression that he was getting ready to exact violent revenge on someone. He kind of wished he could do that; it would be great for intimidating suspects.
Crowley just shrugged and returned to examining his nails, seemingly uninterested in the conversation.
"Oh, I wouldn't blame him. He couldn't take part in your little confrontation; he was otherwise occupied at the time."
Sam paused, taking that in for a long second before his eyes sharpened and he turned a raised brow on Crowley.
"Otherwise occupied as in 'molecules currently spread across the cosmos', or otherwise occupied as in 'needed to go pick up some groceries'?"
Crowley froze before he slowly grinned and looked back at Sam, raising a hand to wipe away an imaginary tear.
"Remember when you were all bright eyed and gullible? Now look at you. Sammy's all grown up! Well you're right, otherwise occupied as in 'didn't actually exist at the time the showdown took place' would be more accurate."
Sam sighed and wiped a hand down his face, muttering something that sounded a lot like 'fucking demons', though Crowley grinned like it was a compliment. Once Sam had regained himself he glanced at Crowley, seemingly exasperated.
"So what? Do I just call for him or pray or..."
Crowley spread his hands and gave a half-hearted shrug, his attention dragging back to the walls, clearly trying to memorise as much of whatever was on them before they were apparently destroyed by an Archangel.
Tony got the distinct impression his life had taken a left turn somewhere. By this point he had sort of resigned himself and was just sitting back for the ride. He would ask all his questions when shit stopped happening.
"Whichever floats your boat, though praying may be less effective, considering these sigils..."
Crowley trailed off before flipping open a notebook in one hand and clicking a pen in another as he started anxiously copying what was on the walls, acting as though he had been holding both items all this time. Tony struggled with the knowledge that pen and paper hadn't been there before the demon started using them, before just shrugging and letting it go. Clearly this was a different game and he just didn't know the rules yet, for now he'd leave it be until there was time to set up the parameters of this reality. Glancing at Gibbs, his boss was watching the demon with narrowed eyes, his arms crossed and a stern frown on his face but he too didn't say anything. Clearly he had reached the same conclusion as Tony, not that Tony was surprised, he had learned from the best after all; a little thing like the supernatural really existing wasn't likely to throw off Gibbs' game.
Sam watched Crowley as well, but unlike the Agents he had no qualms about confronting a demon.
"Crowley, don't you think you should leave? I mean I am about to call down an Archangel and they tend to get a little...smitey around demons."
Crowley paused long enough to wave a hand at the younger Winchester before quickly returning to his rough sketches of the things only he could see,
"Aw, didn't know you cared Winchester. Don't worry about me. I have an...Arrangement with Gabriel."
Sam grimaced, it was pretty obvious he was actually trying to stop the demon from getting a copy of whatever was on the wall. With that tactic gone Tony wasn't that surprised when Sam shrugged and tipped his head back to yell at the ceiling.
"Gabriel! Gabriel, I need your help! Get here ASAP!"
Sam paused and drew breath, obviously planning on just keeping on going until he got a response. Personally Tony wondered how long that would be, I mean this was apparently an Archangel, they probably had more important crap to worry about than answering the call of one human.
Of course that was right before all the sound seemed to suck itself out of the room, the air stilled and even though Tony could see Crowley's pen skidding across paper, the demon muttering lowly to himself, he couldn't hear a thing. This stillness seemed to last for a few long seconds before the walls started smoking, symbols burning themselves into the cement as a pressure began to fill the room.
For a second it was like the walls were caving, it felt like there was suddenly no space to move at all and Tony realised belatedly that he had started hyperventilating, even as he and Gibbs dropped to their knees, Sam and Crowley somehow remaining standing despite the unearthly pressure and unnatural silence.
Just when the pressure would have been too much, everything seemed to pause, everyone forcefully stopped moving (even Crowley) and then with a sound like cymbals clashing all sound rushed back and the pressure released itself with a flash of light from the symbols surrounding them, leaving blackened markings and a short man standing in the middle of the room, grinning at the younger Winchester.
"Sammy! Long time no see!" 'Gabriel' glanced at a wall and whistled softly, "Hooey, it's been a while since I've had to do that!"
Tony winced, the sounds seeming abrupt after the silence, before pushing himself to his feet and examining the person that was apparently Gabriel the Archangel. Tony didn't quite know how to take it. He had been imagining someone a lot like...well, Sam Winchester to be honest. Someone tall, imposing, and inherently dangerous. Instead he gets a short guy with funny hair that was apparently sucking a lollipop and grinning far too much for an angel.
Sam, on the other hand, seemed to slump with a bit of relief before grinning back at Gabriel, expression a stark mixture of sadness and relief.
"We thought you were dead."
Gabriel shrugged, his eyes not leaving Sam, like his gaze was trapped there,
"I was kiddo, but apparently my Grace imploding isn't nearly as permanent as it used to be." Gabriel paused for a second, seeming to realise something, "But if you still thought I was dead, then why'd you-"
Gabriel had started scanning the room as he talked and now his eyes came to rest on Crowley, said demon was switching between glaring at the blackened wall and Gabriel, clearly blaming the Archangel for ruining whatever was written there.
"Oh, hey Demon."
Crowley's glare increased, though an eyebrow did rise, as if taking the word as a challenge.
"Hello, Pagan."
"Hell spawn."
"Archangel."
"Opportunist."
"Pessimist."
"Backstabber."
"Daddy's boy."
"Oh you did not just go there."
Gabriel raised a hand, looking like he was about to snap his fingers, before Crowley grinned and spread his hands,
"I win."
Gabriel slowly dropped his hand and, honest to God, pouted.
"Yeah well, it's been a while. You can go suck it, Crowley."
Crowley smirked, seemingly not put off at all. Sam was watching everything with a raised brow, having notably not made a move to help Crowley when it looked like the Archangel was about to smite him. Not that Tony blamed him; personally he never wanted to get between an Archangel and something he wanted dead, even if the guy was barely five foot and pouting ridiculously.
Finally Gabriel sighed and returned his attention to Sam, pulling the sucker out of his mouth (when it got back there, Tony had no clue),
"So what'd you call me for Sammy-boy? It sounded important."
Sam's gaze immediately darkened and he glanced at his feet where his brother lay, somehow unnoticed by Gabriel. Said Archangel took one look before letting loose a string of vitriol (some of which was in languages that Tony was certain didn't exist anymore) that made even Crowley's eyebrows touch his hairline in surprise, his mouth twisted in reluctant admiration.
"I leave you two alone for one year after the Apocalypse and already one of you is dead! For the love of Dad, how did you two even make it to adulthood?"
Sam grimaced and gave a half shrug, crouching down and lightly touching his brothers hand before glancing up at Gabriel who was scowling at the Winchesters as if they had somehow personally offended him.
"I know Gabriel, just...can you bring him back? Please?"
Gabriel actually winced, his eyes closing for a second before he stared down at Sam, who was looking up at the Archangel with that face. The one he used on his brother that made you feel like his whole existence would shatter if you didn't just do as he asked, though in this case Tony couldn't help but wonder whether he really would break. It didn't take much to see that the brothers were all they really had, without each other they may as well have nothing.
"I'm sorry Kiddo. I'm on a bit of a time-out right now. I'm not allowed to abuse my powers or else 'Bye-Bye Gabriel'."
Sams' expression twisted, though he didn't move from where he knelt, looking up at Gabriel like the other held his life in his hands.
"What do you mean 'time-out'?"
Gabriel shrugged, a vaguely resentful expression briefly rising before his grin stretched back into place.
"While apparently sacrificing myself to save your sorry asses is enough to warrant a resurrection, it apparently isn't enough to erase a couple millennia's worth of drunken debauchery and false deification."
Sam blinked before letting out a slightly hollow laugh,
"And, you know, killing a couple hundred people for your own morbid amusement and sense of justice."
Gabriel shrugged and put on a look of mock confusion,
"I thought that came under false deification."
There was a brief silence during which Tony felt vaguely ill. What did they mean 'killing a couple hundred people'? Wasn't Gabriel an Archangel? Surely that wasn't true; he couldn't have killed so many people, especially not for something like 'morbid amusement'. How could Sam be talking with such camaraderie about something so horrific?
The silence was broken by Sam, who had been staring down at his brother, clearly thinking everything through.
"What constitutes 'abuse'?"
He glanced up at Gabriel who had been silently watching the younger Winchester, along with everyone else, clearly wondering what he was going to do now.
Gabriel shrugged, eyebrows dipping in thought as he absently sucked on his lollipop. Tony could have sworn it was red the last time he looked; now it was purple.
"I can't kill anyone, that's for sure. You know, I don't really know what Dad considers abuse, though I imagine it's anything a normal Archangel's not allowed to do."
Sam lifted his head completely, his eyes sharp and expression hopeful.
"So you could bring him back? You don't know if you're not allowed to do that?"
Gabriel shrugged but gestured with his lollipop at Deans body,
"Like I said, I'm not sure, but I'm fairly certain that bringing someone back from the dead for no apparent reason would constitute as abuse."
Sam glanced around the room before gesturing at the ceiling with a hand, his eyes getting brighter as he gained conviction.
"I'm not seeing any pre-emptive dissuasion, are you? Why don't youjust ask? Say you're going to bring him back; if that's a no-no in God's book then he has to give us a sign."
Gabriel raised a sceptical eyebrow,
"I'm sure it doesn't work like that..." As Sam's face started to twist towards devastation, apparently thinking the Archangel wasn't even going to try, Gabriel hastily backtracked.
"Though I could always give it a try, but if I die I expect you to take it up with Dad and have him bring me back."
It was said playfully but Sam nodded, as if of course he would just go to God and demand he bring back the Archangel. Even Gabriel looked vaguely surprised that Sam was willing to go through with his teasing suggestion. Gabriel stared at the younger Winchester before shaking his head, a small smile on his lips as he turned honey coloured eyes to the ceiling, eyes narrowing on the devils trap before dismissing it,
"Hey Dad, if you've got any problems with me bringing Deano back, I suggest you let me know in the next five seconds...1..2..3...Nothing? Well then I feel I should let you know that I take silence as tacit consent...Still nothing? Well then...thanks."
Sam looked ridiculously hopeful once more and Tony couldn't help but to hope as well, if anything could bring back Dean Winchester, then an Archangel would be it. Though Tony did find the irony of this amusing, as now he was the one hoping Dean Winchester wouldn't stay dead. Life sure seemed to love its curveballs.
"So you'll do it?"
Gabriel gave another shrug before his eyes narrowed and even Tony could see them gain a mischievous spark.
"Yeah, but I want you to promise something first."
Tony was a bit surprised by how instantly wary Sam became, like he distrusted the angel as much as he had distrusted the demon.
"What, eternal servitude?"
There was something scary in the way Sam said that. Sure, there was the requisite sarcasm, but underneath was a layer of consideration; like if Gabriel actually asked it of him Sam would seriously consider it, if it would bring his brother back. Tony found the idea of that slightly terrifying.
But Gabriel just waggled his eyebrows and adopted a leer, something Tony found a bit disconcerting on the face of an Archangel.
"Sounds like fun, Sammy, but I get the feeling that comes under 'abuse'. Nah, just small things. Like no attempting to off or trap me if I ever pop in, that includes Deano and Singer. Also, I would appreciate it if you guys gave me a call if you need help; it's easier if I don't have to revive you idiots after you've died. Less like I'm playing favourites, you see."
Sam's eyebrows were actually touching his hairline, they were so far up.
"You actually want to help? Who are you and what have you done with Gabriel?"
At that Gabriel sneered.
"Ha bloody ha, Sam. I'll have you know that the only reason I didn't want to help you before is because you were asking me to murder my brother. And, I'll have you note, in the end I did try and I did die. And I did it for you. After going through all that, is it any wonder I want you two to stay alive."
Throughout his short speech, Gabriel's voice didn't change in pitch, but that didn't stop a chill from working its way up Tony's spine. Just listening in on the conversations the Winchesters had with everyone was like starting an awesome action movie halfway through, there are references to past awesomeness but no extrapolation. It was actually really frustrating. What was worse was the feeling Tony got that not all of his questions would be answered.
On Sam's part, he looked equal parts sad, sheepish and guilty. Sighing he reached out with a spread hand.
"I'm sorry Gabriel. That was uncalled for."
Gabriel just grinned and took a bite out of a snickers bar that he pulled out of nowhere. Tony was starting to see a theme with this.
"Don't worry about it Kiddo. There were those few incidences before that may have made you a bit biased."
Sam snorted at that,
"Yeah, personally I wasn't too fond of your version of Groundhog Day. Having Tuesday keep repeating after watching my brother die brutally was a bit...aggravating."
Gabriel 'hmm-ed' while he chewed before making a motion with the bar,
"It is quite amazing that you didn't become at all desensitized to his death, even after living through almost a year and a half of it. Have I ever mentioned how stubborn you Winchester's are?"
"You may have mentioned it once or twice, though I admit I wasn't really paying attention, too busy trying to kill or escape from you."
"Yeah...good times."
Sam snorted again before motioning towards his brother lying in front of him.
"You mind fixing him now? Every second we waste his soul is being damaged by a blood ritual...isn't it? Or did Gabriel's entrance break it?"
This was directed at Crowley who had been watching the little dialogue with as much interest as the Agents, though once attention was directed towards him he squinted at the walls before 'hmm-ing'.
"I'm not too sure, it looks like Angel Sr. only damaged the Enochian sigils, but the ritual's covered by all these burn marks. If I were you I would waste time and hope for the best."
Crowley smirked at them before pulling out his mobile and starting to type, apparently becoming bored with the proceedings.
Gabriel blinked at the mention of a blood ritual before staring intently at Sam; Sam seemed used to this kind of behaviour and didn't even blink. Personally Tony found that to be amazing, it looked kind of like Gabriel was stripping Sam apart and reading him down to his soul. There was no way Tony could just take a look like that.
After a few seconds of staring Gabriel abruptly moved forward, crouching by Dean's side and looking him over,
"Why didn't you say so earlier? If I'd known his soul was being slowly ripped apart I would have fixed him first and then done the playful bantering. Don't you realise Cas will angst at me if I let anything happen to Deans' soul?"
Sam grinned at that, watching as Gabriel snapped his fingers, the blade in Dean's chest disappearing and reappearing next to the body, clean and much newer looking. Sam didn't so much as twitch, merely picking it up and sliding it into a sheath at the small of his back. Tony edged around; Gibbs right next to him so they could watch as Gabriel placed his hands on Dean's chest.
At first, nothing really seemed to be happening, when without warning there was a flash of light and the wound was gone. Tony blinked and almost missed when Dean suddenly gasped in a breath of air, his back arching and his eyes snapping open. Along the walls, something under the charred cement glowed blood-red before fading.
Dean simply breathed for a few long seconds, his eyes unfocussed as he regained his bearings, before he seemed to realise where he was and his eyes snapped to his brother, Gabriel, Crowley and back again.
When he finally spoke his voice was a low growl,
"Sam, what did you do?"
xXx
An:
Ok. I know. Another cliff-hanger. I'm sorry, but to be honest I've found I'm actually motivated to keep writing if I do this. It seems I can't handle my own cliff-hangers. At least this one isn't as bad right?
On an unrelated side note, I'm starting to think that slash has infested my brain. I'm not actually trying to write slash, this fic isn't supposed to have pairings, it's just supposed to be a fun crossover that everyone can enjoy...
And yet the slash keeps sneaking in!
Like Dean and Tony with their taunting each other, and then Sam and Crowley's kiss (never mind the actual Bobby/Crowley), and now Sam suggesting eternal servitude to Gabriel.
*headdesk*
I'm not even trying and it's happening! Oh well, I won't actually introduce any pairings but I apologise for the squinty slash that keeps ninja-ing in. I can't help myself.