Mother knows

Chapter 4

Any angels on earth had all returned home by now. With both mother and father back in heaven, everything was great. Michael and Lucifer still fought over silly things but they were brothers, they did that anyway and it never really went anywhere. It was still a little too much to ask for everyone to settle right back into family life. It was certainly true for young Castiel. Rose was worried about him. He was isolated from everyone, he spent most of his time on his own. He was still young. His mother worried that all that time away had taken a toll on him. She still had many young angels that she placed in their beds that night. She cared for each and as she settled them down to sleep, she looked over at Castiel. He was still sitting awake. The rest of course had slept, they were still young and nothing kept them from sleeping but she knew that nightmares had plagued him of his time on earth. Of all her children, he seemed particularly damaged which she expected after all, he had died about five times all as a result of his older brothers, but she didn't know how to help him. She got him to lie down again and pulled his blankets over him. He just looked up at her. So she smiled and started to hum. She kissed his forehead, adding weight to his eyelids as tiredness filled up his beautiful blue eyes,

"I will watch over you" She stroked a wisp of hair away from his face as the kid dozed off. Her gentle voice encouraging sleep over him like a blanket and soon her song just echoed in the far reaches of his unconscious mind.

He shot up awake, breathless. Everyone around him was sleeping and his mother wasn't there either. He climbed out of his bed and wandered away. With night full and no one awake he went unnoticed and took up his usual spot at the edge of heaven, staring out over earth below him. He sat like that for a while, his nightmares replaying over and over again in his head and he closed his eyes, burying his face in his knees, trying to calm himself even though he already felt the tears streaming down his face. His black wings wrapped around himself. The little angel sat alone as no one else was awake to be there for him. At least, that's what he thought but one was awake and wandered over to the quivering body. In his actual vessel, Gabriel was more mid-teens. He put a hand on his brother's shoulder,

"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked. Castiel lifted his head, still trembling through suppressed sobs, looking up at possibly the only brother he hadn't fought with or wronged,

"I messed up. A lot" Cas rest his chin on his knees, his eyes trained to earth below him for he knew if he looked at Gabriel again, he would burst out in tears,

"How have you messed up?" Gabriel asked,

"How have I not? I rebelled, started a civil war, made a deal with Crowley, even expelled every angel from heaven. How am I even welcome up here?"

"That's the past" Gabriel said, "This is a second chance for us. All of us. I think in your adult vessel, it's easy to forget that you are still very young and naive. You just trusted the wrong people and were led astray"

"I'm far past a second chance, or third. I've messed up so often I've lost count" Gabriel pulled his brother close to him,

"You're not the only one. After abandoning heaven, I was let back in. Lucifer and Michael are now welcome once more. If we can get another chance, why can't you?" Cas still hadn't looked up at him, "If Crowley hadn't approached you with that idea about purgatory, would you have done it?" Cas thought for a while then shook his head, "Exactly, and with Metatron's spell, would you have helped if you knew it would expel all the angels from heaven?" Cas shook his head again, "You're still good. You just get a bit lost sometimes. What's happening right now is all about forgiving the past. You should forgive yourself. We've all forgiven you" Gabriel lifted his bright golden wing and ruffled Castiel's hair with it while he pulled him off his seat, "So quit moping would ya, I want my fun little brother back. Tomorrow, we're starting where we left off" Cas tilted his head at him,

"With Raphael?"

"Of course with Raphael Cas, we gotta start our pranks off with a bang"

"I don't think that's such a good idea" Cas said,

"Why? Because you killed him? Hey, he killed you first and Lucifer was joking around with me despite killing me" Gabriel got back up and pulled Cas to his feet, "Get some sleep. I'll need you sharp for tomorrow" Cas gave a little smile as his brother led him back to his room. From a distance, Rose smiled. It looked like someone was still able to get through to him. She went back to her room, lying down next to her husband. On feeling her warm body next to him, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, the two falling asleep like this.