tell the world i'm coming home (for castiel)

[godhasheard]

Once Loki has left, Sam turns to Castiel and sweeps the angel into a hug. "You're alive," he says, holding his friend tightly, "I killed you, snapped my fingers and you exploded but you're here, you're alive." He pulls back, holding Castiel at arms length, and says "Jesus, Cas, I'm so sorry I let him kill you, I couldn't stop him."

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[istillservegod]

Castiel is surprised by the embrace, and he stands awkwardly for a moment, but after a second he lifts his arms and returns it, holding Sam tightly until the other man pulls back. "It is not your fault," he says. "I don't blame you, Sam. It was Lucifer, not you, and you fought him off in the end. You did something nobody else even thought possible. Nothing that happened that day was your fault."

"How are you here, Sam? You weren't in the Cage when I went to try to free you. How did you get out?"

[godhasheard]

"I was never in the Cage," Sam says, stepping back to sit on the edge of the bed furthest from the door. "I fell through, and Lucifer was torn out of me - wait, you were gonna try to get me out?" Sam feels something warm bloom in his chest and he's sure he's got a ridiculous fond look on his face as he says "Thanks, Cas."

He clears his throat quickly. "Anyways, I fell through the Cage and into this seemingly endless void. I floated along for a while, I'm not sure how long, and then Loki literally crashed into me and helped get me out. We had a bit of an adventure," he says, gesturing to his wrist.

[istillservegod]

Castiel looks at Sam steadily. "Of course I tried to free you," he says. "You are my friend, and you did nothing to deserve being at Lucifer's mercy for eternity. I would not let you stay there."

His eyes zero in on Sam's wrist as soon as the other man gestures to it, and he notes the homemade cast as he reaches for it. "What caused this?" he asks as he gently lays a hand over the injury, letting his Grace flow into Sam and healing both the broken wrist and the shallow cut across his side.

[godhasheard]

"Whoa, that feels awesome, thanks," Sam says as he feels the Grace flow through him, knitting the bones and healing the shallow line across his side. "I fought a dvergar, which Loki said was a dwarf but turned out to be more like a really buff person. Beat it all by myself," he can't resist adding, still kind of riding high on the remnants of Grace he can feel. "Loki took us to Svartalfheim before he could get us here."

[istillservegod]

Castiel has to think for a moment before he can place the less-familiar words Sam is using. "This Loki is someone who can walk the paths of Yggdrasil?" he asks when he remembers. "What is his home realm?"

Loki looks much like a human, so Castiel is inclined to think him from Asgard, but Heaven has not paid much attention to activity in the rest of Yggdrasil for a long time.

[godhasheard]

"Yeah. He's from Asgard, I think, but something bad happened and the made some bad choices and that's how he ended up in the void. Sounds like he thinks that nobody will want him back, so he's not going home, which I think is a mistake. I'm kind of hoping he'll stick around with me for a while and maybe I can get him to change his mind, but who knows," Sam says with a shrug.

"What happened to you, Cas? How are you alive?"

[istillservegod]

"I am not sure," Cas says. "I think it was my father. I am connected to Heaven and my siblings once more, and I am more powerful than I was even before I began to fall."

Castiel is not surprised that Sam has just been returned to Earth and has already found someone to help, but he is surprised that Dean has let Sam leave his side now that he has returned. "Dean has not asked you to stay with him now that you are free of Hell?"

[godhasheard]

Sam looks away, guilt flashing across his face. "Dean doesn't know I'm back." He's sure Castiel won't understand, so he hurries to explain himself. "This is his chance at a normal life, Cas. It's everything he's ever wanted, and I'm not going to ruin that for him. If I go to him, something terrible will follow me the same way it always does and destroy the life he could be building with Lisa and Ben. I can't do that to him. Dean can be happy with them, without me coming around to muck things up like I always do."

Sam clears his throat. "Anyways, I had a dream-vision last night, and it showed you talking to Crowley about an alliance. And then you fighting some black guy that I'm going to assume is Raphael. What's happening?"

[istillservegod]

Castiel does not understand Sam's ability to see only the worst in himself, and it frustrates him that Sam thinks Dean is better of without him, but he doesn't know what to do to convince Sam otherwise. He decides to come back to the topic, even as Sam changes it to something he doesn't particularly want to discuss himself. He decides to focus on a different part of Sam's words.

"You had a vision? How have your powers returned? Lucifer's Grace should have started burning the blood out of you once you were his vessel, it didn't need the blood to fortify your body after the immediate transfer."

[godhasheard]

"Loki and I have a theory that I was born with my abilities, and Azazel and Ruby both manipulated it through the demon blood, suppressing my powers and bending them to their own will when it suited their needs. After Azazel knocked down his original set of subconscious blocks, my will just flowed into the molds that were left behind whenever it wasn't being manipulated. When I was Lucifer's vessel and the blood was burned out of my all the channels Azazel and Ruby used were destroyed too, so now my power is coming out on its own.

So far I'm telepathic, telekinetic, precognitive, and have some kind of enhanced sight. I can tell when Loki is using his magic, and I can see when objects have some kind of spell on them. I can see an outline of your wings right now, actually, like a weird shimmery outline behind you." Sam sketches a vague outline of wings behind Castiel's shoulders.

[istillservegod]

Castiel listens to Sam intently, and finds that it makes a strange kind of sense. There are natural psychics, and because of Azazel's interference it was never determined whether any of the children he infected were or weren't. It makes sense that Sam, always the strongest, would be a natural psychic before the demon blood had any chance to take hold.

"You can see my wings?" He asks, intrigued. "It makes sense that you would have the ability to see an angels true form now that you are a vessel, but the wings should not appear to you right now."

Castiel considers for a moment, then decides to take the chance before asking in his true voice "Do you understand this as well?"

[godhasheard]

"Whoa, why did your voice get all weird all of a sudden?" Sam asks, wincing and covering his ears. "I mean, I could understand what you said, mostly, but it was a little on the shrill side." His eyes widen. "Was that your true voice? Does that mean I can hear angels trying to talk to each other now?"

[istillservegod]

"That was my true voice," Castiel says. "I don't think it extends to the point that you could hear other angels talking to each other the way Anna was hearing them before her Grace was returned to her, but you can hear an angels true voice when it is in your general vicinity without destroying you eardrums."

[godhasheard]

"Wow, that's kind of cool," Sam says, looking slightly awed, then he stops short and fixes Cas with a stern look. "Wait. You can't distract me from this for long, Cas, don't think I forgot about what I asked you in the first place. Why did I have a vision of you talking to Crowley? Although you did call him an ass, so points for that." He can't help the little bit of pride he shows when he grins at his friend.