Castiel might have said something to defend himself, but Sam got between them. He rushed Raphael, grabbing him by the front of his shirt and bodily dragging the actual Archangel a few steps before pinning him against the wall, narrowed eyes focused on him.
"What the fuck, Raphael?!" The fury was obvious and Bobby felt himself worry. He didn't want either of his boys getting destroyed by an archangel. "You faked it? All of it? This whole damn time?!"
He yelled out the words, before lowering his voice. "I mourned you, you egotistical dickhead."
Raphael knew that Sam was mortal in the end - emotional, vulnerable and soft and he should treat that with the right amount of gentleness. And yet, he supposed he wasn't much in the mood for a lecture today. He raised one hand and sent Sam flying across the room with a mere touch of his palm.
"Oh, really? Calm yourself, Samquatch." He was not going to be attacked by a boy, not in front of his little brother. That was just silly. "Cause I'm not playing if you're gonna be fighting. Let's all just relax."
"Fuck you." Matty said, coming over to help Sam back onto his feet. "I'm so sick of your games."
"And yet, you summoned me." So clearly they weren't entirely sick of them.
"Because we need you! Not because your games are anything other than tired horse shit!" Sam stayed close to Matty, his glare not having lost any of its intensity. "We've been looking for any way to stop the apocalypse! We caged the devil, again. I lost my soul for months. And you were just out there, in Vegas?"
Castiel looked at the two angry brothers and decided that he should probably try and make this a more productive conversation before they got ditched. "Hello, Raphael. It is good to see you, brother."
"Hey, Cas." Raphael didn't know how to respond to what Sam said so he offered Castiel a tired smile and raised his hand. His brother's sweet, earnest nature was endearing. He sighed and then gestured around.
"What do you guys want from me? I did what you wanted. I stood up to Lucifer. And he didn't hesitate to kill me. I can't beat him in a fight. Only Michael can." He wasn't strong enough, brave enough nor did he have the desire. "I ignore you because I knew what you'd say. 'Try again. Fight him.' You want me to take on my brother. I don't want to."
He sighed and then looked down at his sigil. "I can't beat Lucifer and I know you want me to. It's a dead end and I'm sorry but it is what it is. Mikey ran away, Lucy is pissed and that's all she wrote."
"We cast a spell the other day that revealed the presence of two archangels on Earth. One of them is you. Lucifer is in Hell. Gabriel is in Heaven. That only leaves one." Castiel filled Raphael in. The sooner they could explain the situation, the better. The more of a chance they should.
"We summoned you here and I bet you had better things to do," Sam mocked, hoping to be hurtful, "I bet we can drag Michael's angelic ass from wherever he is hiding. We need you to help with that."
He scoffed. "Don't worry, no fighting Lucifer for you. I'm sure I'll have to field that one again."
"You can't find Michael. Drop it." Raphael seemed dead serious when he said that and he address Castiel instead of Sam because he hoped his brother would understand that he meant what he said. "I won't do it. I won't look. I won't find him. Sorry, fellas, it's a dead end."
"No, it isn't. Two Archangels on Earth. You just heard him. You can't be serious. You're going to find Michael." Matty insisted, crossing his arms. "This isn't a game, this is our existences you're dismissing."
"It's a human spell cast by humans to find Archangels. It's not accurate. Gabriel could have been on Earth for a second, I could have doubled myself that exact time. Hell, it's more likely Lucifer broke out for a dance than Michael is here. Trust me!"
"I went to Heaven and I went to Hell. Right as the spell was cast. There was Gabriel and Lucifer is in the cage." Castiel said it seriously. "I checked. I made sure. I went to check again after I checked on Bobby and the demon. They were doing something nasty." He had been informed by now. "But the only two archangels that could have been on Earth, it's you and Michael."
Bobby had been content to watch them quietly. However, they had brought up 'his demon', so he wasn't about to keep his thoughts to himself any longer. "If Aleister says that Michael is around somewhere, he is. Aleister is still King of the Crossroads. Some things he just knows."
"He also lies," Sam suggested. He looked at Raphael, trying to put it all together. "It can't hurt to try, can it? Summoning Michael."
"Why?" Matty didn't get it. He didn't get this stubbornness and resistance. He always said he cared about Sam, in his own way, and yet he was sure not proving it right now.
"Because I don't want to know!" Raphael admitted childishly, knowing it was silly but he couldn't help it. "He left! He left and he said he never would. And I hated him, oh, I fucking hated him but he wouldn't have... and if I look and he's not here then that means what we all suspected is real. You can ask Luci and Gabriel, they all think the same damn thing. That it's over. Mikey's gone."
Gone and maybe gone for good. And if he looked, if the spell was wrong and he looked, and there was no Michael then what? Then he had to accept that. "Dad was always absent, He was a jerk and He didn't really care but Michael cared. Michael was always there. And then one day, he was not." He looked away from Sam because he didn't want to look him in the eyes and feel vulnerable in any way but it was his brothers, his family and he didn't want to be judged for his decisions. "I want to be ignorant."
"Staying away is not always a choice. Or sometimes it's the right choice for the right reason but it still hurts." Maybe that had hit a bit too close to home for Sam. It was to be expected, discussing sibling issues around Matty and Sam. "Maybe something's keeping him away. Maybe he still cares. It could safe the world, Raphael. Please."
Castiel cleared his throat, unsure what to do. "No matter what, we can't do anything tonight. We need to prepare the spell. He looked at Sam and saw his eyes, then reached out to touch Matty's arm in support. Not the younger brother puppy dog eyes. If Raphael could use something like that, maybe summoning Michael would be easy. Always seemed to make Matty want to do whatever necessary to fix things for his little brother.
Raphael looked at Sam. Damn. Stupid puppy dog eyes. He didn't want to but he knew he had no choice but to try and confront the ugly things. And if Michael was dead, he had to deal. Whatever. If it helped Sammy, maybe he owed it to him. "I -- I don't know. It's difficult. You can't really find Michael by mortal means. You can try your spells and detections but ... you'd need his feather to be able to really find him. It's like a calling card. It pulls the owner towards it."
"Yeah, well, we don't have his feathers. We just have our 'human' methods." Matty shrugged, blocking out what he felt about what Sam was saying to just try and not feel anything. He couldn't get emotional right now. "So we got to do this our way an--"
Raphael was gone. And Matty felt his heart sink. "No."
Sam stared at the spot where Raphael had stood and then he simply walked over to the couch to sit down. He rested his head in his hands and tried to process any of this. All of this. The reality that Raphael was alive. That he'd never been dead. That he had been fine ignoring them (him) for years. He looked at the ground because he didn't want to look at Castiel and Matty right now. Fuck them.
Bobby cleared his throat, shrugging his shoulders. "Square One?" Damn.
Suddenly, Sam's face was ticklish and next to him, Raphael was tickling his face with what looked like a golden feather. "For the record, mine are blue. You'll never be able to see it but they're really sexy. Just something to keep in mind." He held the feather up to show his brother Castiel, assuming the other had never seen Michael's wings before. "Golden child, golden wings. It pissed Luci off so much. His were more of an off-white. Eggshell white?"
"You came back." Matty stated, still surprised. Usually when Raphael fucked off, he fucked off and did not come back. And there he was, with Michael's feather.
"Duh." Raphael looked at Sam and smiled. "Big brothers, man. They drive you to the ends of the Earth."
"That is Michael's feather." Castiel stated it like a fact, but on his face it showed a certain reverence. It was a holy artefact after all, from the lost archangel. He wouldn't have thought he'd ever see it. "I don't know if wings are sexy."
Sam didn't know that either, but that Raphael had returned with that one feather made him experience a whole new host of emotions. His heart was really being put through the wringer today. "Thank you." He looked at Raphael and smiled back. Somewhere close-by, Bobby made gagging sounds.
Sam ignored him. "Stay here. Until the summoning."
"Sure, let's all invite themselves and their angels over. Why not?" Bobby huffed, shaking his head. "Aleister will be thrilled."
"I guess I can hang out for a bit." Raphael twirled the feather and then smiled at Sam, feeling bad that he got stuck with the dud of angels. He wasn't really a good guardian but he was trying. "I have all of my brother's feathers. I kept them in case I ever needed to summon them. I've never needed that though until today." And now he was going to confront Michael for the first time in a long time. Yikes.
"Ah, quit your bitchin'. We're the ones who have to sleep on the floor in the living room." And while Matty took the floor, Castiel would sit and watch him while Sam rolled around next to him. "Aleister can just damn well deal." Ugh. Bobby and Aleister.
"Aww, is Aleister your boyfriend?" Raphie asked as he grinned at Bobby. "I do love love. Well done."
"Cool, tiny brother bonding time." Raphael rolled his eyes and then offered Castiel a fake smile. "Sure, let's creepily stare at our favourite brothers all night long."
He winked at Castiel and then held his hands up defensively at Bobby. "I'll be a good boy. I'm an angel, we're always good boys."
"You really aren't. And just because you came through doesn't make you less of a douche." Matty highlighted, not quite ready to forgive just yet.
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"What the fuck, Raphael?!" The fury was obvious and Bobby felt himself worry. He didn't want either of his boys getting destroyed by an archangel. "You faked it? All of it? This whole damn time?!"
He yelled out the words, before lowering his voice. "I mourned you, you egotistical dickhead."
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"Oh, really? Calm yourself, Samquatch." He was not going to be attacked by a boy, not in front of his little brother. That was just silly. "Cause I'm not playing if you're gonna be fighting. Let's all just relax."
"Fuck you." Matty said, coming over to help Sam back onto his feet. "I'm so sick of your games."
"And yet, you summoned me." So clearly they weren't entirely sick of them.
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Castiel looked at the two angry brothers and decided that he should probably try and make this a more productive conversation before they got ditched. "Hello, Raphael. It is good to see you, brother."
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"What do you guys want from me? I did what you wanted. I stood up to Lucifer. And he didn't hesitate to kill me. I can't beat him in a fight. Only Michael can." He wasn't strong enough, brave enough nor did he have the desire. "I ignore you because I knew what you'd say. 'Try again. Fight him.' You want me to take on my brother. I don't want to."
He sighed and then looked down at his sigil. "I can't beat Lucifer and I know you want me to. It's a dead end and I'm sorry but it is what it is. Mikey ran away, Lucy is pissed and that's all she wrote."
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"We summoned you here and I bet you had better things to do," Sam mocked, hoping to be hurtful, "I bet we can drag Michael's angelic ass from wherever he is hiding. We need you to help with that."
He scoffed. "Don't worry, no fighting Lucifer for you. I'm sure I'll have to field that one again."
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"No, it isn't. Two Archangels on Earth. You just heard him. You can't be serious. You're going to find Michael." Matty insisted, crossing his arms. "This isn't a game, this is our existences you're dismissing."
"It's a human spell cast by humans to find Archangels. It's not accurate. Gabriel could have been on Earth for a second, I could have doubled myself that exact time. Hell, it's more likely Lucifer broke out for a dance than Michael is here. Trust me!"
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Bobby had been content to watch them quietly. However, they had brought up 'his demon', so he wasn't about to keep his thoughts to himself any longer. "If Aleister says that Michael is around somewhere, he is. Aleister is still King of the Crossroads. Some things he just knows."
"He also lies," Sam suggested. He looked at Raphael, trying to put it all together. "It can't hurt to try, can it? Summoning Michael."
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"Why?" Matty didn't get it. He didn't get this stubbornness and resistance. He always said he cared about Sam, in his own way, and yet he was sure not proving it right now.
"Because I don't want to know!" Raphael admitted childishly, knowing it was silly but he couldn't help it. "He left! He left and he said he never would. And I hated him, oh, I fucking hated him but he wouldn't have... and if I look and he's not here then that means what we all suspected is real. You can ask Luci and Gabriel, they all think the same damn thing. That it's over. Mikey's gone."
Gone and maybe gone for good. And if he looked, if the spell was wrong and he looked, and there was no Michael then what? Then he had to accept that. "Dad was always absent, He was a jerk and He didn't really care but Michael cared. Michael was always there. And then one day, he was not." He looked away from Sam because he didn't want to look him in the eyes and feel vulnerable in any way but it was his brothers, his family and he didn't want to be judged for his decisions. "I want to be ignorant."
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Castiel cleared his throat, unsure what to do. "No matter what, we can't do anything tonight. We need to prepare the spell. He looked at Sam and saw his eyes, then reached out to touch Matty's arm in support. Not the younger brother puppy dog eyes. If Raphael could use something like that, maybe summoning Michael would be easy. Always seemed to make Matty want to do whatever necessary to fix things for his little brother.
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"Yeah, well, we don't have his feathers. We just have our 'human' methods." Matty shrugged, blocking out what he felt about what Sam was saying to just try and not feel anything. He couldn't get emotional right now. "So we got to do this our way an--"
Raphael was gone. And Matty felt his heart sink. "No."
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Bobby cleared his throat, shrugging his shoulders. "Square One?" Damn.
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"You came back." Matty stated, still surprised. Usually when Raphael fucked off, he fucked off and did not come back. And there he was, with Michael's feather.
"Duh." Raphael looked at Sam and smiled. "Big brothers, man. They drive you to the ends of the Earth."
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Sam didn't know that either, but that Raphael had returned with that one feather made him experience a whole new host of emotions. His heart was really being put through the wringer today. "Thank you." He looked at Raphael and smiled back. Somewhere close-by, Bobby made gagging sounds.
Sam ignored him. "Stay here. Until the summoning."
"Sure, let's all invite themselves and their angels over. Why not?" Bobby huffed, shaking his head. "Aleister will be thrilled."
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"Ah, quit your bitchin'. We're the ones who have to sleep on the floor in the living room." And while Matty took the floor, Castiel would sit and watch him while Sam rolled around next to him. "Aleister can just damn well deal." Ugh. Bobby and Aleister.
"Aww, is Aleister your boyfriend?" Raphie asked as he grinned at Bobby. "I do love love. Well done."
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Bobby looked at Raphael and nodded. "Something like that, sonny. Now, no tricks in here. If you're stayin', you're behavin'."
"We can stand guard over their sleep together, brother," Castiel said to Raphael in earnest, as if that was the best and most logical thing to do.
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He winked at Castiel and then held his hands up defensively at Bobby. "I'll be a good boy. I'm an angel, we're always good boys."
"You really aren't. And just because you came through doesn't make you less of a douche." Matty highlighted, not quite ready to forgive just yet.
"Oh Cas, your bae is so prickly."