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Castiel felt Daphne’s hand on his arm. “Good luck, Emmanuel. I hope this works out the way you want it to.”
“So do I. Thank you.” He kissed her forehead and closed his eyes, waiting for sleep to come. Most nights, it didn’t come easily. On nights when Daphne wasn’t there beside him, he might spend hours waiting for sleep to come. Sleep didn’t come naturally to him, despite his need for it being as great as any human if not greater.
When sleep finally did come for him, his eyes opened to the room. “Gabriel?”
“Cassie.” Gabriel reached for him with shaking hands, pulling him into a hug. “Missed you, little brother.”
“I’m just glad I made it back here. We know there’s always a risk.” He looked over his brother. Gabriel was in the same condition he had been the night before, with no signs of further torture or draining.
Several weeks ago, Castiel had not remembered who he really was or why he could do the things he could do. He had believed himself an amnesiac human who could work the occasional healing miracle. Then, one night, he felt something in a dream. He didn’t immediately recognize the man with the golden eyes staring at him in shock, but he knew it was someone who knew him. For the first few nights, the man – Gabriel – had explained to him that he was a fallen angel, and everything that meant.
Then the focus had shifted, and Gabriel explained where he was. He was a prisoner of the demon prince Asmodeus, and would need rescuing if he was going to have any hope of getting out. Asmodeus had been draining his grace, just enough to keep him at a level where there was no risk of burning him out but also no risk of him overpowering the magic binding him there.
Together, they had worked out a plan. The final step had happened earlier that week, with Castiel explaining everything to Daphne and asking her permission to bring Gabriel into their home to recover. Not only had his wife agreed instantly, she had spent the past few days preparing the guest room and telling people around town that Emmanuel had recently gotten in contact with a long-lost brother who was coming for a visit. She had explained that he’d gotten into something over his head when they were both young, and hadn’t seen each other in years, so they would appreciate being left alone.
“So explain the whole wife thing to me while we’re waiting on things to line up,” Gabriel said. “I get that you were without memories and she brought you home to help get well. Why’d you tell people you were married?”
“I needed a legal identity, and establishing myself as Daphne’s husband gave me a place and a name. It benefited Daphne as well, as she is sex-repulsed and has no desire for a more traditional marriage. There’s no pressure for children, since I gladly agreed to represent myself as infertile due to a childhood illness. She gets an easy explanation for why she’s not interested in marriage or motherhood, I got a home and an identity. Even now, remembering my own identity, I don’t plan to abandon her to return to my old life. I will tell Sam and Dean I’m alive and help them out when they ask, of course, but Daphne is my home now.”
“You sure Dean will go for that?” Gabriel asked, and Castiel flinched. “He can be a little… demanding.”
“A little, yes,” Castiel agreed. “However, we didn’t exactly part on the best of terms, after… he didn’t take my betrayal well. I don’t even know if he’ll care that I’m alive. Sam will, but if Dean holds to his opinion that we’re done, Sam will follow his lead.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that, kiddo.” Gabriel started to explain more, but the signal they had been waiting for – a flickering in the ropes – came then. Castiel used his blade to cut them and grab on tight, plunging a hand into Gabriel’s throat to connect to his grace. The archangel screamed, but the scream itself helped overpower the wards in the room. Castiel flew the two of them home.
Daphne, to her credit, only shrieked once, and apologized profusely immediately after. Gabriel waved her off. “There’s a strange man in bed with you and your husband. Even expecting me, I can’t blame you for screaming.”
“Still, it was rude.” Daphne got to her feet, then turned and helped Gabriel to his. “Come on. Emmanuel said you would probably need sleep to recover, and you probably won’t be any better at it than he is. He has old friends to reestablish contact with and doesn’t need me to drive him, so if you think it would help, I can lay beside you and cuddle you and sing you lullabies.”
Gabriel stared at her, mouth hanging open. “That’s… way more than you need to do for me. You’ve already done so much just letting me crash here until I can get my feet under me.”
“I know. The only person I feel obligated to is myself.” Daphne smiled sweetly at him. “You need help that I can provide with only mildly inconveniencing myself, and I am willing to accept that inconvenience because I genuinely love the way I feel when I help someone. You’re not putting me out any.”
“Bet the humans around here call you an angel,” Gabriel snarked.
“They do. Please don’t take offense.”
“Mostly I’m offended on your behalf, Daphodil. You deserve so much better than to be associated with us.”