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Titlecard by ATC74
Anna was excited. She was getting to spend the whole weekend with Gabriel in a snowy little mountain cabin. Just him and her, alone. No dad. No Winchesters. To top it all off, her dad was in approval of the whole trip. It gave her a warm feeling that made her think her dad had finally, maybe, started to accept her relationship with Gabe; even trust him enough to take her off alone, states away.
That was the only downside to this whole trip. To keep up the appearances that Gabriel was a human, she had to drive to the cabin. Bobby had tried multiple times to get her to take his truck in the case of bad weather, but she insisted that she had looked into the weather, and that her little Nova would do the trick. Boy was she pressing her luck.
About a mile away from the highway turn off, the snow had turned from light, fluffy, dream-like globs to a constant white curtain that blew with wind gusts that rocked her car. Even with her wipers turned on high speed, she was having difficulties seeing the road. It’s not that it bothered her to drive in the weather, it was worrying about what other idjit could be out with her.
With some skill, and a few encouraged rubs over the talisman, she finally pulled up to a quaint cabin. Letting out a sigh of relief, she turned off all the extras working on her car before cutting the engine. Looking to the porch, she mapped out a little plan to get herself and her bags inside with minimal exposure to the cold. Taking a few deep breaths, she launched out of the driver’s seat, skidded as she grabbed her duffel from the back, and quick waddled to the door to keep from falling down.
Finding a small amount of shelter under the porch roof, she stomped her boots against the wood to knock off the snow before she thought about heading inside.
The door whipped open to reveal Gabriel clad in a red terry cloth robe with white trim and holding a mug of hot chocolate, cookies and worried expression, “One more tug on that necklace and I was going to come for you.”
Anna looked up when the door opened, sighing as the warmth from inside flowed out to meet her exposed skin. A grin spread across her face at the sight of Gabriel. “Sorry to have worried you. If it makes you feel better, doing it was keeping me calm.” She stepped up to him, and picked up a star cookie. “Aren’t we festive? Do I have to give Santa a kiss to gain entry to the North Pole?”
“It would help,” Gabriel said as he bent down so she could reach and he’d have some control on not spilling any of the goodies.
“Well, anything I can do to help.” Anna leaned in and gave him a sweet kiss with a cold nose and chilly lips.
Gabriel gave and over exaggerated shudder as he broke the kiss and stepped aside, “Get in. You’re going to get frostbite on your ass if you keep standing out in the cold.”
“The cold never bothered me anyway,” she sang playfully as she quickly entered the cabin. Stepping off to the side, she dropped her bag, and started to shed her layers. It wasn’t until she went to hang up her coat that she noticed the greenery wrapped around the coat rack. “Did the cabin come decorated with winter stuff, or did you do that too?”
Turning around so she could lean against the wall to take off her boots, she froze when she saw the rest of the decor. Every inch of the cabin was decorated in what she could only describe as a tasteful Christmas wonderland. There was even a real Christmas tree sitting in the corner, decorated completely with lights and ornaments.
Anna turned to Gabriel wide eyed, and asked, “Did you do all of this?”
Gabriel beamed at her as he sat the plate he was holding on a nearby table, “I even made cookies. The human way. Do you know how irritating it is to bake sugar cookies? They burn like they’re made of matchsticks if you don’t watch them.”
Anna crossed to him quickly and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pulling him into a tight hug. “I love it,” she murmured before kissing him, “I love that you would do something so human for me too. I’m sure your cookies will taste delicious.”
“And I’m glad that you love it, because you spilled your cocoa on my hand,” he said, squeezing the words out between the press of their lips as the beverage dripped off his fingers and onto the floor.
Gasping softly, she let him go, and stepped back to look at his hand holding the mug. “I’m sorry! Here, let me take it.” She carefully took the warm drink from his hand and held it between hers. She shivered a little at the sudden warmth. “Did it burn you?”
“Barely felt it,” he said, dropping a quick kiss to her cheek then snapping his fingers to clean up the mess, “Don’t worry about it, Cupcake. Just come in and get comfy.” He lead the way over to the couch where a box lay wrapped and adorned with ribbons.
Anna quickly pulled and wiggled her feet out of her boots before following Gabe to the couch. Spying the box, her looked to Gabe and raised an eyebrow at him. “Is this a present for me?” she asked.
“It is,” he admitted as he sat down, tugging his robe closed so he wouldn’t end up flashing her, “And I know we said no gifts but this is practical for this weekend.”
Studying him with scrunched eyes, she set the mug down and picked up the gift so she could sit down. “What is it?” she asked, giving the box a little shake.
Gabriel shook his head, refusing to spill the beans on the contents of box. “Open and all will be revealed,” he said as he snapped up a cup of eggnog for himself.
“Fine,” she whined playfully as she tugged off the ribbon. Once it was out of the way, she ripped off the paper, revealing the plain white box underneath. “Curiouser and curiouser.” Grasping the lid, she gave it a few jiggles until it came off. Anna set the lid to the side and pushed back the tissue paper. “Is this what I think it is?” she asked, looking to him with a small smile.
“Happy belated Christmas, Anna,” Gabriel said warmly.
Anna’s smile grew and she pulled the soft red material from the box, shaking it out a little so it would hang loose. “A Mrs. Claus robe. Thank you. This really will come in handy this weekend,” she leaned over and kissed Gabe’s cheek, “I can’t believe that you found a place that it was still snowing this time of year.” She refolded the robe to place back in the box, but more red fabric caught her eye.
Raising an eyebrow at Gabe, she set the robe aside, and pulled a silky piece of red fabric out of the box. Holding it up, she smirked at Gabe. “If I wear this, am I on the Naughty or Nice list?”
“Oh, the Nice list,” Gabriel said with a waggle of his eyebrows.
“Will what I do in it land me on the Naughty list?” she teased with a wink, replacing the items back in the box.
“That’s all on you, Anastasia,” Gabriel drawled, “If you want to change, the bedroom is in the back, down the hall.”
Anna looked at Gabe, barely licking over her bottom lip. “Okay, Gabriel,” she drawled back to him, “I’ll be right back.” She rose from the couch and started toward the back, wiggling her tush as she stepped past him.
As soon as she was out of the room, he shut his eyes and took a deep breath. If he listened closely enough, he could hear the baying of the Hellhounds hundreds of miles away, hunting their prey. He wanted to shield her from all of the mess his family was creating, even if he welcomed it, an end to their constant bickering just like it was planned. So lost in his thoughts he didn’t hear Anna coming back until she was close enough to touch him.
Anna hummed a festive tune as she returned to the living room. She had decided to go ahead and change into the nighty, and cover up with the robe. The soft fur tickled her thighs lightly, adding to her brightened mood. “Well, how does it look?” she asked, standing in front of him.
Lifting his head, he looked startled from his thoughts for a moment before smiling, “Beautiful. Is it warm enough?”
“It actually is. I just need like a blanket for the rest of my legs, and I’ll be all toasty like a marshmallow,” she answered, returning to her seat next to him. She picked up her mug of hot cocoa and took a drink, now that it was more lukewarm than hot.
Pulling the blanket off the back of the couch, he draped it over their laps and pressed a kiss against her temple, “There. Safe and snug,” he said quietly.
Anna snuggled up to Gabe’s side and rested her head against his shoulder. “You didn’t have to make up our trip from Christmas. I was okay with waiting until this year to do something,” she said as she sought out his hand under the blanket, “But I love that you did this for me. Thank you.”
“I’d do anything for you, cupcake. You know that,” he said, lifting their joined hands and kissing her knuckles. “Just name it and if it doesn’t reorder the universe then it’s yours.”
.oOo.
They’d spent a lovely evening eating and sipping hot chocolate until a stray drop of the the beverage on a lip led to soft kisses. Those kisses grew until there was a whirlwind of touches, sighs and sounds. Gabriel had to admit, after they were both spent, that having sex in front of the fire on a blankets was a bit cliche but he couldn’t think of any place he’d rather be. At least here in his arms, Anna was safe from Lilith and her infernal hounds.
Curled around Anna with her head pillowed on his chest, he gently ran his fingers over her spine, deep in thought and wondering how he would tell her that her friend was gone. It was half past midnight and Dean’s soul would be firmly in the clutches of the damned.
Anna had tried to stay awake, but the day had caught up to her. She’d fallen asleep minutes after the two of them wound up in each other’s arms, the warmth of Gabe and the fire sinking all the way down to her bones.
Her dreams were peaceful images of Gabe and her lounging on a beach in Greece, until they weren’t. She looked up when she heard a familiar voice crying out for help, large sunhat swirling almost comically as she looked for the source. She swore that it had sounded like Dean, but Dean shouting when Sam had gotten hurt. She was about to lay back down when a bloody image flashed next to her. Gasping, she jumped and sat up, pulling off her sunglasses to look again, but all she found was sand. She glanced back to Gabe, but he was gone, and she turned back to look for him, she wasn’t on the beach anymore. She was standing in a dark, putrid dungeon watching someone carving into a man on a slab. Inching closer, the man screamed again, and she gasped seeing it was Dean. The man behind the knife reached into a opening and ripped out what looked like a rib. Anna screamed.
In the cabin, Anna’s nightmare had caused her to whimper in her sleep, until like a switch she was screaming and struggling in Gabe’s arms.
“Anna!...Anastasia!” Gabriel all but shouted her name as he tried to keep a hold of her. He’d felt her sleeping mind shift darker toward a nightmare and had tried to soothe it away. But it had been stronger, sharper, and something he couldn’t penetrate. At least not without burning out her mind, so he was reduced to holding her gently and trying to coax her out of her state with words alone. Until she started shrieking.
Anna’s eyes flew open, but they were wild and unfocused. She ripped herself out of Gabe’s hold and scrambled to the couch, pressing herself as far into the corner as she could. She was still trapped in her nightmare. She stayed pinned against the corner of the dark room, horrified as Dean was tortured in front of her. When he was just a shell, she gasped as a sickening feeling washed over her room, and in a blink Dean was whole and breathing again. The barred door opened and invisible being began to tear at Dean’s body.
Both in dream and in the living, she let out a wail, and buried her head into her arms and knees. She slowly rocked, begging softly to wake up.
Gabriel watched with eyes wide as she cowered on the sofa. He could tell that she was awake but whatever was happening she was still witnessing. Reaching out for her with his grace he caught a glimpse of what she was seeing and knew in that moment she wasn’t having a nightmare. It was a vision.
Without another thought, he crawled up beside her and summoned his angel blade. “It’s okay, Anna. I’m here,” He said quietly as he cut open his finger enough for his vessel to bleed. Pulling back her hair, he started to draw a sigil on her neck in his own blood with quick precise movements and Enochian falling from his lips. If he couldn’t bring her out of the vision, he could block them. At least for a short time.
Anna gasped deeply, her hand snapping out to snap around Gabe’s arm, fingers digging in. She twisted to the side, her grip shaking as if the vision was trying to overcome the spell, but within seconds her whole body when lax, and she sagged forward. She was eerily quiet, save for her panting breaths, while she worked out if she was still dreaming, or if she was awake.
“It’s over, Anna,” Gabriel said calmly and gathered her up into his arms, “You’re safe and sound. Right here. I gotcha… I gotcha.”
Anna exhaled shakily before the tears started flowing. She clung to Gabe for dear life and buried her face into his chest. The nightmare had felt so real that it was like she was actually there. Dean’s screams still echoed in her ears and the smell of blood hung in her nose. “Soo..much...blood,” she muttered through her tears, “So..much..”
Gabriel pressed his cheek against the top of her head and squeezed his eyes shut as he gently rocked her. If what he saw was a fraction of what she experienced, he failed his purpose of keeping her from anything to do with this mess. “I know, Anna,” he sighed, “I didn’t know you were sensitive or that they’d exploit it. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
Anna focused on Gabe to try to keep her grounded, her sobs now quieted to little gasps. She hadn’t really thought about what he was saying while trying to calm down, but now that her mind had cleared up enough to think, his words confused her. Pulling back to look at him, she looked between his eyes, wheels turning slowly. “What do you mean?” she rasped, “Why are you apologizing?”
Any other time he could have attempted to stand defiant and unwilling to reveal what had happened, even under her piercing gaze. That was before he’d watched her experience Hell and he was powerless to prevent it. He was once a General that commanded thousands of the Host who helped defeat Leviathan, but now a slip of a girl who’d given him love was able to bring him to heel with a look.
“This trip really was supposed to make up for Christmas. Just us and nothing to bother us,” He started quietly, taking her hand in his, “and if it kept you from their plans then it was a bonus.”
Anna sniffled and gently pulled out of his arms. She grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around her torso, suddenly aware of her nakedness. “Are you trying to tell me that...what I saw was real?” she asked in a quiet voice.
Gabriel was eerily quiet and nodded his head. “You’re not a prophet but you saw the pit like no living being has ever seen it.”
Anna ignored the news that prophets were a thing, and focused on the fact that she had dreamt Hell in real time. Was it a dream? A vision? She didn’t know. All she knew is that what she’d seen was terrifying, and hoped that it never happened again.
Pulling the blanket closer, she clutched the soft fabric in her fist. The images flashed across her mind. Meeting Gabe’s eye again, she took a shaky breath. “So Dean…”
“It couldn’t be stopped. He made a deal with a demon in exchange for Sam’s life,” Gabriel answered, squeezing her hand gently.
Anna shook her head and pulled away. “No, there must have been a mistake. I would have known about it. They would have told me. We would have been doing researched for the past 10 years on how to get him out of the deal. To save him. We would have done it already. I would have asked-” She cut herself off when her voice cracked.
Gabriel sank to the carpet when she pulled her hand away from him. This was the moment he’d been avoiding and he wished her own family would have had the balls to do this instead of leaving it in his hands. He was supposed to be a joy to her but now that was probably ruined forever. “A year, Anna. He only had a year,” Gabriel said, “I saw the deal written on his soul and there would have never been a way to break it. Not without killing Sam too.”
Anna stared at Gabriel and her face turned down into a frown. “You knew about it then...You’ve known for a whole year about this, and you didn’t even say anything to me!” she accused, “You don’t know that there couldn’t have been a way! I might have found a way to save him. To save both of them. But it’s too late! It’s too late because now Dean’s dead, and he’s in Hell being ripped apart, and there’s noth..nothing I can do to help.” Her eyes filled to the brim with hot, angry tears.
“One lone human against Heaven and Hell wouldn’t have made a difference.” Gabriel eased up onto the couch beside her. Looking deep into her eyes and he knew then she needed to know what had happened and what was to come, otherwise she’d just find out through these visions, “This whole thing was meant to happen since before any of you were born and they will make sure it comes to pass. Dean and Sam will be the means to bring about the end of the world. My brother Michael possessing Dean and Lucifer possessing Sam.”
Anna shook her head and turned away from him, not wanting to believe anything that he was saying. “Don’t...Gabriel, just stop...it’s..it’s not true,” she tried to convince herself, “That’s not going to happen to them. It can’t.”
“It can. It will.” he insist, “If Dean breaks the first seal it will be. And he will break that seal.” Gabriel dropped his forehead against her shoulder as his hands rested on her waist, voice dropping down to a whisper, “I tried, Anastasia. I tried to keep you safe from it. I love you and my family is so cruel. That’s why I didn’t tell you. Because how do I tell the woman that’s meant more to me than any other that my brothers are going to kill everything?”
“Don’t,” Anna hissed as stood and stepped away from him, stumbling a little over the tail of the blanket that was still stuck up on the couch. “Don’t you use your love for me as an excuse for..for lying to me.” This was all too much to have thrown at her at once. Her brain was overloaded and wanting to reject all of this new information. “If I mean so much to you, then you’d have told me all of this already. If your brothers are going to kill everything, aren’t I included in that everything? Or was your plan just to save me, and let everyone else I care about die?”
Gabriel snapped his fingers and dressing himself in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, his voice rising slightly in frustration, “Do you really think I planned all this out to get in your pants? That I wanted to love you?” he pushed himself off the couch and started pacing around, “I was perfectly happy being alone and in hiding. Then you had to summon me and be all adorable and sassy. But you don’t tell a little girl barely out of her Daddy’s arms that her world is going to go up in flames. Then you grew up and were happy and if I wanted make sure you were happy, then fine. I’m guilty. I didn’t tell you all my dirty secrets.” Gabriel shoved his hand through his hair, “I was praying to Father that it would never come to this. Not really. That He’d stop it and then you and I could… Now I don’t know what to do but hold on to what I have and hide again if I have to.”
Anna moved across the small space between them, and raised her hand, bringing it down across his face. She stayed stone faced through the pain that ran up into her wrist. She glared at him for a long moment before turning on her heel and stormed off to the bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Safe now that she was alone, she let the rest of her walls crumble, and she curled up under the covers, letting the tears and sobs flow freely. Feelings she hadn’t felt since prom night started to resurface, and she clutched her pillow closer.
He hadn’t expected her to hit him. It hurt his pride more than anything and left him stunned as he watched her retreat to the bedroom. Not until the door slamming against the frame did he break out of his stupor and look around. The cheerful fire and decorations seemed like a mockery now. He didn’t even bother to snap to make the tinsel and tree vanish like they’d never been there.
Standing in front of the bay window as the final blizzard of the year raged in the mountains around them, tears started to roll down his cheeks. There were three times in all of history that Gabriel had ever felt this low. The first he couldn’t even remember, not fully. He’d been too young. The second was the day that Lucifer was cast into the Pit and never to return. The third was today. He was sure that after today Anna would send him away and choose to face the Apocalypse or worse, try to stop it. Either way he’d lose her.
Anna’s eyes soon ran dry, and she was left with nothing but sound of the storm outside, and her own soft hiccups to block out her thoughts. They weren’t loud enough. Their argument replayed over in her mind, right up to when she’d slapped him, and stormed off. She was sure that this was the end for them. She’d finally regain her strength and she would go out to him, and he’d tell her that their relationship was just too much work, and he’d snap his fingers so she was back home.
It wasn’t until the clock on the mantle started to chime it’s announcement of the ungodly hour of the morning and the first rays of dawn started to appear that Gabriel wiped his cheeks dry. If she was going to leave him it’d be best for both of them if it was done quickly. Turning, he headed to the bedroom and decided against barging into the room, instead he knocked gently.
She was so tired, the events of the night weighing heavy on her eyelids, but every time she closed her eye, all she could see was Dean being tortured and she was awake again. The knock on the door shocked her out of her current state of half-slumber, and she sat up slowly. This was it. He was going to come in and tell her to leave and never call for him again. “Hold on,” she called out, voice rough. She quickly dressed in the pajamas she’d brought with her and returned to the bed. “Come in.”
Gabriel eased into the room and shut the door behind him. Walking across the room to the bed, he stood at the foot with his hands stuffed in his pockets, “I’ve been doing some thinking and after everything that’s happened I’ll understand if you want to go home. I’ll miss you and I won’t stop caring about you but if you want me to stay away, I’ll respect your choice. It’s the least I can do.”
Anna watched him enter room, but turned her eyes to her lap as he spoke, not wanting to look at him when he told her to get out. But that didn’t quite happen. Finally turning her gaze up to meet his, she looked between his eyes, as if trying to find the answer to her unspoken question in them. “Do you want me to go home?” she asked.
“No,” he answered simply before sitting on the edge of the bed, “I think that’s how I got us in this mess. I didn’t want to let you go, but I won’t stop you if it’s what you really want.”
She didn’t move from her spot when he sat down, but they were now close. Knee to thigh close. “I don’t want to,” she said, then confirmed, “I don’t want to leave you.”
Gabriel turned his head and studied her for a moment, looking for some indication that she didn’t mean what she said. “Say it again?” he asked softly.
Anna reached out and placed her hand on his knee. “I don’t want to leave you, Gabriel,” she repeated, “I love you too much to ever want to leave.” She raised her hand and gently brushed her fingers over the cheek that she’d struck. You’d never know she’d done it if it wasn’t for the small scratch across his cheekbone. “I’m sorry for hitting you. I shouldn’t have ever done it.”
“I’ve been slapped before. Maybe for more fun reasons, but… “ Gabriel said with a wane smile, “At least you didn’t stab me.”
“I still shouldn’t have done it. I even scratched you,” she protested, starting to look a little distraught.
Gabriel lifted his hand to touch his cheek. Pulling his finger away he saw a few flakes of dried blood. He hadn’t even noticed it’d happened otherwise he would have healed it by now. Looking up he saw her looking miserable for such a small injury. Leaning forward and kissing the end of her nose, he pulled her into his lap as the scratch healed itself.
Anna let her hands rest against his shoulders and examined the spot where the scratch had been. She brushed away the leftover small flakes of dried blood before leaning in and kissing the spot. She placed a few more kissed on his cheek before wrapping her arms around his neck and resting her forehead against his shoulder. “I’m sorry that I got so upset…”
“You saw Hell itself and then I laid a bunch on you,” Gabriel whispered to her and kissed her temple.
Anna pulled back to look at him, she spoke, “I do have something I want to say, but I don’t want you to interrupt me.”
“Okay,” he said slowly.
She pulled his hands so they rested in front of her, and held them in hers. “Gabriel, no matter what happens between us, I want you to know that I’ll always love you, and that I’ll never leave you unless you wish it. I think that maybe we should consider discussing some of our darker secrets so that arguments like the one we had won’t happen again.” She brought his hands up to place kisses on his knuckles.
Gabriel took a deep breath and nodded, “I’ll agree to that but my stories might take a long time to tell.”
Anna gave his hands a reassuring squeeze. “I still want to hear about them. To know more about you,” she smiled softly up at him.
“Alright,” Gabriel agreed, “But you need to get some sleep first. It’s been a really long night.”
At the mention of sleep, her smile wavered. “I'm fine. I took a couple short naps earlier,” she fibbed.
Knowing her well enough to tell when she was covering up, Gabriel brushed the hair from her face as he asked, “Having flashbacks?”
She looked down to the collar of his shirt and nodded, then shrugged. “I can't stop seeing it,” she admitted, “And I'm afraid of what else I'm going to see when I do fall asleep. He…” Anna clenched her jaw and shook her head a little. “I can't fall asleep anyway. I keep waking myself up.”
“Lay down with me anyway,” Gabriel said as he pulled off his t-shirt, “Resting is better than nothing.”
Anna nodded and moved off of his lap. She scooted to the middle of the bed and slipped under the blanket. She'd suddenly gotten a chill, and she blamed the storm outside. Shuffling down, she settled into the pillows and waited for him to join her.
He turned off the bedside lamp and crawled into the bed. Gathering her up into his arms, he made sure that they were both well covered before using his grace to block out the the memory of her vision and hopefully stop her from receiving any new images. Once they were settled, he confessed one of the thoughts he’d had while staring at the snow, “I’ll take you and your father to Asgard if need be. You’ll be safe. And then you and me could… we could be together.”
Being back in his arms this way was a better comfort than just the blanket could provide. She could already feel her eyes growing heavy from her exhaustion. When she closed her eyes, there were no horrid images, just sweet darkness.
Hearing him speak, she forced herself to stay awake long enough to hear what he had to say. Taking his hand and twining their fingers together between them, she squeezed his fingers. “Will we get to meet Thor and Odin?” the barest of teasing smiles on her lips.
“Yes, but they don’t look anything like they do in the movies,” Gabriel snorted, “I’m the cutest out of the lot of them.”
She hummed her amusement. “I don't doubt that for a second,” she said, her speech starting to trail off at the end, “Are there any single older women up there?”
“A few, but if you’re asking for yourself, the Valkyrie will love you but they’ll have to fight me for a night with you,” Gabriel teased, “I don’t share easily.”
Anna smiled and tapped his fingers. “While that seems like an interesting time, I meant for my dad.”
“Valkyries would eat him up. Then again, he might like it.” Gabriel pressed a kiss to the back of her head, “Try to sleep, Anastasia. We can fix your Dad up later.”
Anna chuckled and large yawn caught her off guard. “Okay. Sounds good to me,” she agreed. Closing her eyes once again she whispered, “Night Gabby.”
Even though she couldn’t see them, Gabriel draped his wings over her and held on tight, determined to protect her even from the nightmares in her head, “Sleep well, Cupcake. I’ll be right here when you wake up.”
Anna finally allowed herself to get some sleep, knowing she was safe in Gabe's arms. Her darkness shifted into a peaceful dream about the two of them on a road trip through purple fields of lavender.