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Sam wasn’t sure why he went back to the hotel. The Elysian Fields Hotel was probably the last place Sam wanted to be. But, something was telling him - screaming at him - that something was wrong. Sam didn’t know the outcome of the fight between Lucifer and Gabriel; the brothers were both very strong (and stubborn). The scales could have tipped either way. Sam supposed that’s why he went back to the hotel; to see the carnage from the fight.
The doors opened easily and the lobby was still painted in red. Lucifer really messed this place up. Gabriel might have said his older brother “redecorated the place,” to which Sam might (definitely would) have laughed.
Sam entered the halls of the hotel, examining the walls and trying his best to step over the stains that were not quite dry yet. Again, Sam couldn’t help but think that Lucifer really did a number on this place, or a number on the pagan gods. Most of the walls were splattered with maroon and dark red.
Sam placed a hand on the door to the grand ballroom before hesitating to open it. Behind the closed doors before him was either the body of Lucifer’s vessel, the body of Gabriel’s vessel, or both of their vessels’ bodies.
Worst case scenario was that Gabriel died for nothing. That made Sam’s stomach drop. If that’s what waited for Sam, he should turn back now.
Next to worst was that both of them died. Gabriel would be out of the game, but his life would be a noble sacrifice to stop The Apocalypse. A sacrifice that would only be recognized by Sam, Dean, and Castiel. None of Heaven exactly wants to put the breaks on Doomsday, and no one else knew the world was coming to an end. That thought also made Sam uneasy.
Best case was that Gabriel was alive, standing over Lucifer’s body and waiting for Sam behind the door. Sam would run in and hug the shorter archangel. Gabriel would hug back, giving Sam his usual, smug smirk.
Sam couldn’t take anymore waiting, so he shoved the two wooden doors open and immediately burst in, staring at the floor. His heart sunk as the familiar golden-haired archangel’s vessel laid dead on the ballroom floor. The wings spanned twenty feet each, scorching the floor and climbing up the chairs.
Sam approached the green and black clad vessel, crouching over the body of the deceased Trickster. With one last sliver of hope, Sam checked Gabriel’s pulse. Of course, nothing. Sam stood up, not taking his eyes off of Gabriel’s body. Still, something told him everything was off.
As if it was a trick.
Sam’s mouth thinned to a line. He needed to find something, anything that was wrong. He needed to believe that he could find something wrong so that he could believe that somehow Gabriel survived the ordeal.
First, he checked Gabriel’s belongings. No archangel blade, which checked out because he would have been using it to fight. There wasn’t anything else in his pockets, which he did find suspicious, but Gabriel was strange and Sam didn’t know what the archangel usually carried.
Next, the stab wound. From what Sam saw, it was the exact same as a normal angel blade’s wound. Sam didn’t know whether or not an archangel blade was any different from a normal angel blade, so he really had nothing to go on.
Then, Sam checked the burn marks left from Gabriel’s wings. He quickly dabbed his finger on the wing marks. Sam could faintly see ashes left on his pointer finger. What was weird to Sam was that the floor was stone cold. Sam placed his hand in the middle of the left wing mark. They were supposed to be burn marks. If the blood outside wasn’t even dry from the pagan gods’ slaughter, the wing marks on the floor from Gabriel should be at least warm. It was as if they were just placed there.
Like they were an illusion.
Sam felt an adrenaline rush surge through him as he shot up. He looked up at the ceiling, half expecting an answer to all his questions to be written up there for to read.
“Gabriel,” Sam said, still trying to look through the ceiling. “Gabriel, please. If you’re still alive, I’m here.”
When nothing happened, Sam shut his eyes and started praying silently.
Gabe, this isn’t funny. I know you’re alive. Unless I’m delusional and everything was real…but I know it's a trick. Hell of a trick, really, if you tricked Lucifer with it. I just…I just need to know you’re okay, at least. Can you just pop in real quick? Or give me a sign, at least?
Sam opened an eye and peered at the wooden floor. Gabriel’s corpse was still stiff on the ground and Sam frowned, opening both eyes and staring at the lifeless body before him.
Suddenly, Gabriel’s remains seemed to glitch out of existence, disappearing in a burst of static. Sam snapped his head up when he heard a flap of wings. Now in front of Sam was Gabriel, who gave the younger Winchester a single clap.
“So, where’d I screw up?”
Sam gave him a small laugh. That was the same line he used when Sam and Dean found out Gabriel’s true identity.
“If you really want to know,” Sam started, walking up to the archangel and stepping where the fake body once was, “it was the wing marks. If they were real, they’d still be warm since they’re burn marks.”
Gabriel nodded to himself, “...Noted. Of course, it would be Sam Winchester that could Sherlock his way into finding out I’m alive. It hasn't even been a day, Sammy-boy.”
Sam laughed again, “I know. I just…I knew something was off, but I didn’t know what. So, I came back.”
“Glad ya did, huh?”
The younger Winchester smiled, “Yeah.”
The smile from Sam’s face slowly faded as tears welled up in his eyes. Gabriel’s smirk dropped ever so slightly as he hurried up to Sam.
“Hey, hey, kiddo. What’s wrong?”
Sam breathily laughed at himself, wiping his eyes. “Nothing. I…I don’t know why I’m crying.”
Gabriel hesitated before wrapping his arms around Sam and hugging him. Sam froze in place before bending down and doing his best to wrap his arms around the shorter archangel. Gabriel pulled away and smiled at the taller man.
“Turn that frown upside, Sammy-o,” Gabriel smiled. Sam smiled in return. “And wipe your eyes. I hate seeing you cry.”
Sam wiped his eyes clear with his hands and looked back at Gabriel. Sam didn’t know exactly what he was feeling, but it was something. The golden-haired archangel was looking up at Sam with a hint of gold in his eyes, and Sam couldn’t help but stare. Gabriel’s eyes, though human, still shone like the sun and shimmered like honey.
Gabriel rolled his eyes, “Care to speed up the process, Samster?”
Sam snapped out of his thoughts and stared at Gabriel, dumbfounded, “What?”
“I can hear your thoughts, Samosa. Just kiss me already, would’cha?”
Sam’s mouth fell slightly agape. Slowly, Sam put his hand under Gabriel’s chin and lifted the angel’s head up. Sam bent down and connected their lips together. Gabriel placed his arms on Sam’s shoulders, loosely wrapping them around the taller Winchester. Gabriel didn’t push Sam any further, only eagerly following his lead. When Sam’s tongue poked as the archangel’s lips, Gabriel quickly opened up. That night, Sam learned the youngest archangel tasted like honey with a hint of whiskey and whatever brand of cherry lollipop Gabriel always seemed to be eating whenever the two brothers used to hunt him down. And when Sam pulled away to catch his breath, Gabriel pulled away, as well.
Gabriel smirked, “Don’t think we’re done.”
Sam smiled back at him, “Didn’t say we were.”