HK: The second part of my Calthazar! Set right after Balthazar returned, literally about three seconds after Bal disposes of Raphael's vessel. A bit more angsty, but with some sap at the end. Not sure I like it, but whatever.

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural or any derivatives thereof! Except my cracky little alternate universes. :P But I make no money from them.

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As soon as Raphael turned into a pillar of salt, Castiel fell into Balthazar's arms.

"I missed you brother... So much..." his voice choked off as he burrowed into the familiar warmth. Bal swallowed, doing his best not to cry. "I missed you too Castiel... I'm sorry I had to leave." He wrapped his arms as tightly as he could around Castiel, and was startled when the younger angel pulled away to glare at him.

"I grieved for you. Every day! Every day for a thousand years, I tore myself apart because I thought you were dead! I dove into the depths of Hell to retrieve the Righteous Man because I no longer cared! And you were alive..." Castiel's voice broke again, and Balthazar was horrified to see tears in his eyes.

"If I could have told you sooner I would have, Cas... You know that..." Balthazar paused, finally recognizing what else she had seen in Castiel's eyes. Guilt. "Is... Is there someone else, Cas?" Castiel looked away, unable to meet his eyes.

"Dean," he confessed, a light blush rising on his cheeks. Balthazar tried to fight the sudden feeling that an elephant had sat on his chest.

"Winchester." It wasn't a question. Bal had seen the way Castiel watched over the hunter, but he had deluded himself into believing it was just because Cas had raised him. Parental instincts, kind of thing.

Of course, Balthazar knew that it was his own fault for leaving. Castiel still wasn't looking at him, that adorable brow creasing into a frown.

"You were gone, Bal... And Dean taught me how to live again. How to feel. He made me feel important." Cas wasn't apologizing, Balthazar knew that much, knew he shouldn't want him to. But he did. More than anything.

He wanted to be angry, to yell and scream at Cas for his betrayal, but he knew that he had brought this on himself. He had betrayed Cas first, when he faked his death and left. He hadn't thought about Castiel then. Hadn't realized that his beloved brother might grieve.

It had been so long, centuries since they had seen each other, and Bal had almost completely forgotten about his angel. He had gotten used to the gaping hole in his heart where Castiel belonged, trying to fill it with women and men and food and sex. It hadn't worked of course.

Now that he was within arms-length of Castiel it all came back and Balthazar could kick himself for letting his angel slip away. He shook his head slowly, letting his hand rest on Castiel's shoulder.

"I'm… I'm happy for you, Cas. You deserve to be with whoever you want." He didn't sound like himself, his voice was all choked like he was trying not to cry. He wondered why that was, until he realised that his eyes were damp. Castiel looked up at him again, his eyes flashing.

"I am not "with" Dean! I have not been "with" anyone!" The younger angel sounded a little too defensive for Balthazar to pass it up.

"Really? You mean… never?" Alright, perhaps the incredulity in his voice was a bit much. Castiel was probably completely justified in narrowing those blue eyes into a glare that could melt steel.

"You were the only person I ever wanted to be that close to! And then you died!" The hurt was still raw in the angel's voice, and Balthazar flinched. He had to ask though.

"But… then what about Dean?" He wished he didn't sound so hopeful. It was completely inappropriate. Castiel sighed impatiently, but a small smile was curling his lip.

"Dean is in love with Sam. He thinks of me as a friend and nothing more." Cas sounded a little resigned, and Bal would do anything to remove the sadness from his voice. So he did. He leaned in, kissing Castiel gently, the same way he had so long ago in the Garden. This time though, Castiel was awake, and his eyes widened as Balthazar pulled back. "Bal… what are you…"

"I love you Cas," Balthazar declared, pulling the smaller body closer to his own, "I love you, and if you'll let me, I'd like to have a chance to prove myself to you again." Castiel shook his head, but a fond smile was barely visible.

"You are a terrible romantic, Balthazar. But… if, after the war in Heaven is over, you and I are still alive… I would be glad to give you a chance." His voice was soft, and as he spoke Cas raised a hand to rest on Balthazar's shoulder. The older angel growled, tugging Castiel closer still.

"I'll make sure you win this war Cas. Whatever you want me to do, I'll do it, I swear!" For the first time in years, he felt like he was alive again. Castiel smiled up again, but this smile was nothing like anything Balthazar had seen before.

"I need you to help me, Balthazar. I need souls." Castiel had changed since he left Heaven. He had raised a man from Hell, fallen in love with a human, fallen from Heaven…

War had changed Castiel a lot. It had stripped him of his innocence, which had remained pure even with the corruption taking over Heaven. Cas and Bal had been young during the first war, and had barely seen any action. It had mostly been training and maneuvers for them.

Now Castiel had been thrown headlong into real, true war, fighting almost constantly against his brothers and sisters alone. He had a few followers now, but the time alone had made him cunning… artful.

The angel before him was no longer the same sweet Castiel he had sat with before the war. He was cold. Manipulative. And somewhere deep in his heart, Balthazar wept for the beautiful young angel who would never tell a lie.

Then Castiel leaned in, pressing his lips to Balthazar's, and hope blossomed in his chest. The kiss was soft, tentative and pure. Like the Castiel he knew and loved. His angel was in there somewhere. And Balthazar would do anything to bring him back.

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HK: The end! :) And wasn't that an interesting foray into someone else's ship. :P Leave me a review and let me know what you thought!