We walked a million hills - Chapter 28
Title: Trinity Verse II. - We walked a million hills (28/28)
Author:
scyllaya
Rating: PG
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Dean/Castiel/Gabriel,
Warning(s): none
Spoiler(s): AU (characters up to S5)
Word Count: ~ 4 700 (this chapter)
Summary: Dean, Castiel and Gabriel live the life they wanted to have. Their biggest problem should be synchronizing their crazy schedules, unfortunately life is never that simple.
Disclaimer: Nearly all names and characters in this story belong to CW/WB and Kripke. I’m making no profit whatsoever. It’s just for fun! Most places and establishments in the story are real, but I’ve never visited any of them, so I have no true knowledge about them. People (OCs) in the story are not real! Any resemblance to real life is just a coincidence.
AN: Second story of Trinity verse. Title from: Nirvana - The Man Who Sold The World
Unbeta-ed. Trinity Verse I: Broke our mirrors
Trinity II - Chapter One
<< Previous Chapter |
Chapter XXVIII
Gabriel let out a long whistle that made both Dean and Castiel turn around and look at him.
‘I very much approve of the uniforms,’ he said, staring at the two younger men, letting his eyes wander up and down on their bodies from the doorway.
Both of them were wearing their dress blues. Although he managed to win the battle on the white gloves, because he sure as hell didn’t want to put them on, it was the only part of the formal uniform he didn’t like. Cas scowled at him for a moment before letting it go. He didn’t have to wear gloves for his uniform after all, so he had no idea how freakin’ ridiculous it was to keep them on for long. Dean still considered himself lucky, because he did like the uniform way better than any kind of a suit, so he was glad that Katrina told them that they should wear these instead of civil clothes.
Gabriel himself was wearing a dark, modern cut suit with golden cuffs, a black shirt and a dark gold tie that made his eyes stand out so vividly that it looked like they glowed. He also had that little gold lapel pin, the coin with a cross on it - St. Anthony’s logo - on his suit jacket. Yeah, maybe he had no uniform to wear, but he looked absolutely stunning.
Dean grinned at Gabriel’s words and the look on his face. There was also a small smile on Castiel’s lips too because of the compliment. Dean stepped slightly behind Cas and draped an arm around his hips just to make the view better.
‘Like it?’ he asked suggestively. Gabriel’s face was answer enough, so Dean grinned at him. Castiel shoved him away gently, straightening out his jacket again.
‘No messing up our clothes,’ he warned.
‘Spoilsport,’ Dean pouted at him.
‘No worries, Dean-o,’ Gabriel said. ‘I’m gonna mess up your uniform just fine, after we get home,’ he smirked and Dean felt a pleasant tingle running down his spine in reaction.
‘I like that plan,’ he said with a smile.
‘Did you pick up the presents?’ Castiel asked looking back at Gabriel.
‘Yes, of course I picked up the presents,’ Gabriel replied. ‘So, are you two gonna keep fussing with your clothes like a pair of girls or can we finally get going? We got a whole bunch of things to do before the party.’
‘We’re taking the Impala,’ Dean said, letting the girl comment go… for now.
‘You don’t plan on drinking then?’ Cas asked, raising an eyebrow.
‘Of course I plan on drinking,’ Dean answered. ‘Gabriel can drive back home.’
‘Oh-holy full metal jacket, is it my birthday? It’s been a few years since I have been given this great honor.’
‘Shut up,’ Dean told him, but he had to focus too hard not to smile, so it didn’t came out even a little bit angrily.
‘Dean, did you pick up the champagne I ordered?’
‘Yes, Cas I got the champagne,’ Dean answered. ‘Relax already.’
‘Can we just go now?’ Gabriel asked, and Dean knew, he would not be afraid to start whining if it would make them get going. There was a hint of it in his tone already.
‘Yes, we can go. You’re so impatient,’ Castiel grumbled.
‘And you fixed your insignia five times in the past two minutes,’ Gabriel replied.
‘Ass,’ Cas murmured, but finally moved away from the mirror. Dean just chuckled as he followed while Gabriel dramatically thanked the Heavens that they were finally moving out of the bedroom. Cas scowled at him and pinched his ass hard in revenge when he moved past him.
They barely got out of the car when the front door slammed open and Sam appeared in it. He practically leaped off the two small steps, crossed the front garden in a blink with long hurried steps just to cover his brother in a bear hug to end all bear hugs. Dean managed to keep his balance, just barely, and wrapped his arms around his little brother in return with a laugh.
‘I thought you won’t make it here this early,’ Dean said when they finally let go of each other, ending the hug with some manly pats on the shoulder. They were both grinning very hard, but that was understandable. The last time Sam was home from Stanford was Spring Break.
‘Managed to catch an earlier plane, almost lost my luggage, but I made it,’ Sam replied and finally raised his head to look behind Dean at Gabriel and Castiel.
‘Hey guys!’ he greeted cheerfully. He stepped away from Dean to hug Cas first.
‘It’s very good to see you, Sam,’ Cas answered, returning the hug warmly. Then Sam wrapped his long arms around Gabriel too.
‘Holy crap kid, you got even bigger,’ Gabriel said and it made Sam laugh as he let go of the shorter man.
‘I’m not growing anymore, Gabriel,’ he said.
‘Not taller, bigger. You put on some extra muscles there, aren’t you supposed to be a nerd or something?’
‘Funny,’ Sam made a face. ‘Maybe, it’s just you getting smaller.’
‘Watch it,’ Gabriel warned pointing a finger at his face. ‘I swear, what the hell are you eating at college? At least Jesse had the decency to stay at my height.’
‘He is not exactly happy about that,’ Castiel remarked and they all chuckles.
‘Overgrown smartasses,’ Gabriel scowled. ‘In the house, all of you move, pronto.’
Dean and Sam laughed without hiding it as they started walking back into the house, Castiel managed to hide his chuckles more or less. Gabriel just rolled his eyes and let out an exaggerated sigh as he shepherded them inside.
It was hard to get Katrina not do anything. She was used to be the hostess, hell, she loved being a hostess. As all the guests and family members - including a bunch of cousins and uncles and who-knows-what relatives all the way from Russia - were arriving, it was getting harder and harder to make sure she was not running around checking whether things were in order. James did a fairly good job at keeping his wife by his side, but once in a while he got pulled away by a relative or old friend for a chat and Katrina was back in the house or the kitchen where the caterers were preparing after unloading from their van. Drinks were being cooled, welcome drinks were poured out and appetizers were prepared.
This time around it was Gabriel who found her first.
‘Katrina, you should be out chatting with your guests,’ he greeted.
‘Oh, shoo! I’m just checking on things,’ she replied.
‘There’s no need for that, we got everything under control. And these guys know how to do things,’ he said gesturing at the waiters and waitresses in the kitchen.
‘I’m not used to things being taken out of my hands,’ she said with a huff.
‘You will have to bear it this one time,’ Gabriel chuckled. ‘And you have a perfectly fine husband standing all alone outside without his wife, and that is just not acceptable.’ Katrina laughed.
‘Oh, he has a lot of experience with my family at this point. He will stand his ground even without support.’
‘Still, you should be out having fun.’
‘I can’t let you boys deal with everything.’
‘Yes, you can, and us boys will be very happy if we don’t have to hunt you down every hour to make sure you’re having fun,’ Gabriel said as he took her hand and started pulling her out of the kitchen towards the backyard.
The fence between the Winchester house and the Turner house was taken out, making one garden out of the two to give space to the large tent that was set up. Wooden floor was put down on the inside, lights and flowers decorating the white material and the wooden columns, all tables were set with candles lit on them. Guests were slowly filling up the place too. Even the band was in place now, playing music, quietly for now.
Katrina sighed, but gave up on arguing.
‘Fine, how do I look?’ she asked by the door with a smile as she smoothed out her evening gown and Gabriel smiled in return.
‘You are by far the most beautiful lady, in every possible way,’ he said.
‘Ah, you charmer, come here’ she laughed and pulled him in for a hug.
‘And you’re the most wonderful mother I could have ever wished for too,’ he added quietly. ‘If you don’t mind me calling you that.’ Katrina pulled back to look at him, putting a hand on his cheek and smiled.
‘Never, dear,’ she embraced him again. ‘I love you, solnyshko. Thank you.’
They stayed like that for a few moments before Katrina pulled away with a laugh.
‘Oh, you’re almost making me weep like a little girl,’ she said, blinking a few times and wiping her eyes carefully not to smear her make-up.
‘Come on then, James is waiting. This is your anniversary, stop coming back to the kitchen, you understand me?’ Katrina laughed again and hooked her arm through Gabriel’s to get back out. She didn’t set a foot in the kitchen again during the evening either.
Castiel warned them that there would be long speeches, lot of toasts, lot of music and singing and dancing, because Katrina’s side of the family was simply like that. Dean lost count of all the faces. There were a lot of people in uniforms too, as both the Turner and the Dunayevskaya family had a long tradition of being in the army. Admittedly, it was one of the most amusing things Dean had ever witnessed when James’ Dad, Frank and Katrina’s Father, Wasilij started exchanging Cold War stories with Jesse being their translator. Dean found it bizarre that they were laughing so much.
He also had way too much attention from some unidentified female relatives, not as much as Castiel though. Apparently quite a lot of second cousins - or more like their mothers - were set on scoring him since he was un-married and “single”. He should’ve just lied about having a girlfriend, but it was not like Cas to get anyone involved in something like this. He said, everyone who was important already knew the truth, and it would be pointless to get things more complicated. He was annoyed though, Dean could see it in his forced smiles and the angry sparks in his blue eyes.
During Katrina’s and James’ first dance Dean when looked over at his Dad, and he thought of his Mom. Because it was there on his face, that no matter how many years passed, he still missed her. He did invite Kate Milligan thought, the secretary at the Sherriff’s office. Dean did not ask about her, she seemed nice and his Dad’s face was just that bit lighter when she smiled, so it was fine, whatever there was between them.
After a few dances Katrina appeared from the crowd, smiling brightly, grabbing Gabriel’s hand and dragging him to the dance floor despite his initial protest of not knowing how to dance to this sort of music. Dean laughed, but Katrina looked back at him and Sam and told them that she will be back for them too. Dean watched with a smile on his face how Gabriel first struggled a little, but then Katrina basically took over leading and taught him how to dance to whatever music that was playing.
‘You know, I’m sure now. I want this,’ Sam said next to him.
‘What? Dancing to weird Russian music, you’ll have your chance,’ Dean answered.
‘No, you jerk,’ Sam told him. ‘I want someone who will look this happy, like Katrina is now, even after thirty years of marriage,’ he said, and then added. ‘Someone who looks at me like you were looking at Gabriel just now.’
‘What? I wasn’t looking in any way,’ Dean objected. Sam made a face without dignifying that with an answer. ‘Fine,’ Dean settled on saying, a bit embarrassed that he was staring at Gabriel this obviously, but he couldn’t help it.
‘Look, I know I told you I was fine with everything when you told me, but I should’ve said more,’ Sam started.
‘No, Sammy, really.’
‘Just shut up and listen,’ Sam cut him off. ‘I’m way more than just “fine” with it, okay? I should’ve already told you that. I mean, Cas and Gabe are like brothers to me too, y’know? And you’re all happy and that makes me happy for you. Honestly. I couldn’t wish anything better for you, for either of you. Sorry I was a little brief with my answer before.’
Dean had a high variety of things he could’ve replied with to this, but he didn’t want to make a joke when his brother had that caring, honest, supportive face of his on.
‘Thanks, Sammy,’ he said finally.
‘And, umm, I don’t wanna sound like an ignorant ass or something, but I have no clue how to ask this. Uhh… so Gabriel’s okay now, right? Like fully.’
‘Yes, he’s fine. I mean, sometimes it’s still hard to follow what’s going around in his head, but he’s being honest and y’know, we’re all fine with each other again.’ he trailed off. Talking about this was not his forte, but this was Sam, so it was a little easier. Sam just nodded, maybe not knowing what to say to that, or maybe he just didn’t want to force Dean to talk about such things more.
‘I need a drink.’
Both Sam and Dean turned and looked at Cas as he stopped next to them.
‘That bad?’ Dean asked.
‘Well, most of my relatives seem to accept “I live for my duty” as a valid life choice, but unfortunately not all of them. I swear, I’ve been asked when I will have a wife and children at least a dozen times in the past hour.’ Dean chuckled at that, Sam seemed a little sympathetic, but only a little, if the smile on his face was anything to go buy.
Cas grabbed a drink from a passing waiter and took a large gulp.
‘Really, it can’t be that bad,’ Dean said.
‘One of my second cousins was practically flaunting her… wobbly parts at me,’ Castiel said with a very uncomfortable face.
‘You mean her boobs?’ Dean asked with an amused smile.
‘Yes,’ Cas said with a borderline distasteful face and drowned the rest of his drink.
‘Wow, you really are gay to the core,’ Dean laughed.
‘Shh,’ Cas hushed him as he frowned and quickly looked around whether anyone heard it. ‘Don’t make fun of me.’ He warned.
Sometimes Dean just couldn’t help it. Cas was so blatantly terrified if a woman made a move on him that it was beyond amusing. Dean and Gabriel both had girlfriends at some point in their lives, but Castiel was never interested, and that was putting it mildly. Dean didn’t push it though, no matter how fun it would’ve been, because he planned to get laid again in this lifetime.
‘So, what are our final experiences?’ Dean asked as he leaned back on the passenger’s side of the front seat. He would tick in the ‘success’ box to be honest. The guests were having fun, they were having fun, the food was delicious, the photos will look awesome and there were only tiny glitches during the night, and those could be looked over. Most importantly, Katrina and James looked as happy as they were a newly-wed couple.
‘Single women are scary,’ Cas said from the backseat and both Dean and Gabriel laughed at his sullen tone.
‘You’re just too handsome,’ Gabriel told him glancing up in the rearview mirror.
‘I also think that it’s time for all of us to admit that Katrina is ruling this family, I can’t believe I freakin’ danced… a helluva lot too,’ Dean added.
‘It wasn’t so bad,’ Gabriel told him.
‘I don’t like dancing,’ Dean answered. ‘I can’t believe I managed to not get completely drunk,’ he added.
‘I drank more,’ Castiel replied.
‘Yeah, but you’re a freak who only gets drunk after a few bottles, not a few shots.’ Cas chuckled in a very pleased way at that.
‘And it also turns out that I’m clearly not as forgotten as I would like to be,’ Gabriel said.
‘Meaning?’ Dean turned to him.
‘Some of the local guests were looking at me funny after I introduced myself, s’like high school all over again.’
‘Sorry about that,’ Castiel spoke up. ‘Hope nothing bad happened.’
‘Nah, I’m good at ignoring people,’ Gabriel replied easily while shrugging, then he took a left turn.
‘Where are we going?’ Dean asked with a frown, because this was not the way to Denver.
‘Just a little detour,’ Gabriel replied. Cas sat up straight in the backseat. His uniform jacket was undone and his hair looked chaotic at this point. It suited him well. Dean also loosened his tie and had his jacket undone, only Gabriel looked almost like he did at the start of the evening. It was a mystery how he managed to do that. It was probably the lack of alcohol. Dean had the urge to run his fingers through his hair to mess it all up, or pull his tie loose and suck a hickey on his neck. To make him look less sharp, more debauched. Yeah, okay booze made him horny, no surprise there.
He looked out at the darkened streets, wondering where Gabriel was going, but his question was soon answered.
‘Rock Park?’ Cas asked as he looked around. ‘It’s been ages since we’ve been here.’
‘Yep,’ Gabriel agreed and drove until he could park down the Impala at the spot his Dodge parked for many-many years, whenever they came here.
‘What are we doing here?’ asked Dean.
‘What? I can’t be a little nostalgic?’ asked Gabriel in return as he killed the engine. ‘Everyone was either nostalgic or emotional tonight. You don’t want me getting emotional.’
He said this in a light tone and had a smile on his face too, so Dean smiled in return. Gabriel opened the door and got out so after a moment Cas and Dean followed. The night air was cool, but not cold, it was actually pleasant to be out in the quiet, dim darkness and breathe in some fresh air after all the noise and the crowd. It was very late; Dean actually had no idea how late.
He walked to the front of the car to sit on the still warm hood and look up at the night-sky. It’s really been ages since they’ve been here. Castiel joined him on the hood a moment later, sitting down close enough that their shoulders were touching. Gabriel stood a step away from the car, with his back to them for now and he seemed to be looking out at the rock.
‘I still think it looks like a cake and not a castle,’ he said and both Dean and Cas smiled at the declaration.
‘This is nice,’ Castiel said. ‘This was a good idea.’
‘Gabe, come here too,’ Dean said, raising his arm in a welcoming gesture. Gabriel turned back and took a step closer.
‘Um, so listen guys…’
‘Okay, I knew there had to be a reason,’ Castiel said right away. ‘I hope this time around you plan on telling us something good here. I have way too many unpleasant memories of this park already.’
‘Not just unpleasant ones,’ Dean said. ‘Sure a few were shitty, but not all.’ This was the place Gabriel told them that he was leaving, this was the place where him and Cas seemed to break apart, but those were not the only memories from this place. Many nights came to mind, when they walked across the park to pick up Gabriel when he texted them and asked to be helped back. Many days spent sitting around Gabriel’s car, just talking and laughing endlessly. Nostalgic, yeah that was about right.
‘Good, I hope,’ Gabriel answered.
‘Okay, so what is it?’ Dean asked. Gabriel sighed and ran his hand through his hair.
‘Something totally ridiculous, but… I’m going through with it.’
‘Now, I’m intrigued,’ Castiel stated.
‘So… we don’t have an anniversary, cause it’s silly, and we don’t need it, and I still agree with that.’
To be honest, none of them was able to remember the exact date all three of them got together. It was around one and a half or two and a half weeks after Gabriel came back from Europe, they didn’t know, it was actually amusing. Besides, Dean and Castiel have been together longer, so that would’ve been an entirely different date, which they also couldn’t remember of course. Why was there a need for a special date to spend time together, when they were spending most of their days together already? Hell, they wouldn’t do anything special besides what they did on most Sundays and their birthdays, so what was the point?
‘Okay, so… I just had this stupid idea, and damn Chuck insisted that I go through with it, and I really hate him for it right now.’
‘Dude, what?’ Dean asked.
‘So I uh… sorta got us a present,’ he said.
‘Oh? What kind?’ Castiel asked. ‘I like presents,’ he added with a smile. Gabriel huffed out a small laugh in reaction, some of the tension already slipping out of his shoulders.
‘It’s ridiculously girly,’ Gabriel said with another sigh. He looked undoubtedly like he was feeling like that too and Dean started to be very curious and very amused at the same time.
‘Gabe, come on. It can’t be that bad. Nothing can be more girly than shopping for curtains with Cas, and we both suffered through that one.’
Gabriel laughed and while it hurt like a bitch where Castiel pinched his arm, it was totally worth it.
‘Yeah, not that girly,’ Gabriel said and reached to the inner pocket of his suit. Now that was interesting. He had a small leather holder in his hand; it looked like one of those thin cigarette cases. ‘So, we all know we won’t ever be “officially” together. I mean, not like couples, or anything like it, and that’s fine, well, it is what it is, there’s no changing it, but… I just wanted, I don’t even know… something. Tell me if you hate it, no hard feelings.’
He held out the case and Dean took it, he was faster in reaching for it than Cas. He managed to open it for the second try and both him and Cas fell silent for a moment.
‘I know, it’s stupid,’ Gabriel said after a second of silence.
‘You got us matching rings,’ Castiel said, looking up at him. Dean kept his gaze down on the case, whit the three identical rings inside; they were cool looking rings to be honest, they were black with two silver cable inlays running around in the middle of them.
‘It’s just… you know… present,’ Gabriel shrugged. Dean now saw why Chuck might’ve insisted that Gabriel go through with this idea of his.
‘I told you I like presents,’ Cas said.
‘C’mon be honest,’ Gabriel huffed.
‘I think they’re awesome,’ Dean said and reached to the box to get one out. They were slightly different in size, but he was pretty sure that his was the biggest.
‘No, no… hold it,’ Castiel grabbed his hand. ‘Which one is Dean’s?’ he asked looking at Gabriel.
‘The one on the left,’ Gabriel answered, still looking at them carefully. Castiel picked up that one and looked at him expectantly. Dean chuckled and rolled his eyes a little but didn’t argue and let Cas grab his left hand.
‘You’re not supposed to put a ring like this on by yourself,’ Castiel remarked at he slid it in place. ‘There,’ he looked up with a satisfied look on his face and leaned in for a kiss. It was a sweet press of lips at first, their mouths just touching and moving, sliding together for a long moments while they stayed as close within each others space as possible, breathing in the same air, feeling the warmth of the other. Dean smiled at him before looking over at Gabriel. He looked a lot less worried now and that was always nice to see.
‘My turn,’ Dean declared and gestured Gabriel to come closer. ‘Come here.’ He pulled him closer as soon as he could until Gabriel was standing between his legs. ‘Which one is yours?’ he asked in a quiet voice, not looking away from Gabriel’s face.
‘The middle one,’ Gabriel answered in the same tone. Dean picked that one up and slid it on his finger, the second it was in its place they were kissing. A harder, more fiery kiss and Dean chased the taste of Gabriel’s lips, before he pulled away, sliding his hands down on Gabriel’s side to rest his palms on his hips. It was good to see the smile playing on Gabriel’s lips from this close.
Gabriel turned to move closer to Castiel then, picking up the last ring.
‘Castiel,’ he said and slid the ring to its place after taking hold of Cas’ hand.
‘This is a great present, Gabriel,’ Castiel told him, entwining their fingers. They leaned closer and kissed, deep and unhurried, a lazy drag of lips, exploring each others’ mouths, while their hands stayed linked together.
‘Okay, I totally overstressed this one,’ Gabriel huffed out a laugh when he pulled away from the kiss.
‘It’s part of your charm,’ Castiel told him with a hint of a smile. It earned him a half-hearted snort from Gabriel. Dean smirked.
‘I think, it’s absolutely--’
‘I’m warning you,’ Gabriel looked at him, because he recognized his tone. Dean always said something along the lines of cute or adorable in such situations.
‘Incredible, that you care so much about even the smallest things, just to make sure we’re happy.’
The building indignation vanished from Gabriel’s face and got replaced by something much gentler, happier, a little embarrassed too maybe.
‘It was nothing,’ he said.
‘No. You gave us, everything,’ Castiel said and he didn’t mean just the rings. Dean knew that with absolute certainty and from the look on his face, Gabriel knew it too. Cas tilted his head to capture Gabriel’s gaze. ‘Us,’ he said, moving his head gesturing at the three of them. He looked down at the ring. ‘So thank you… for dragging me out of that sand box.’
Gabriel smiled, letting out a breath.
‘And you know, thanks for kidnapping me from my backyard too,’ Dean told him with a grin. Gabriel laughed quietly then stayed silent for a moment, the smile not faltering from his face, but obviously thinking about what to say.
‘My pleasure,’ he settled on finally. And Dean thought that right now things were damn near perfect. He was not stupid to think that they were actually perfect, but who gave a damn? Cas was right, they had everything, what they needed, what counted, what actually mattered. They had this, each other, screw everything else.
‘Okay, time go home guys,’ Gabriel spoke. ‘I think, I promised some messed up uniforms,’ he added with a smirk a beat later.
Yeah, life was pretty damn good.
= THE END =
~ ~
<< MASTERPOST >>
~
= Trinity Extras =
_____________________________________________________________________________
AN: Thank you for following this story. It has been a long journey, my longest fic, my longest verse and it has been an absolute joy to write it. Thank you for reading. I thank everyone who helped me, encouraged me when I had trouble getting forward with a chapter.
Thank you all who have commented on any of the chapters and let me know what you thought about the story and by that helping me to write more and move forward with it.
I'd like to thank kraehi for her artwork for both Trinity I and II too.
Please check out the 'Trinity Extras' post... I hope that will be fun :)
Leave a comment and tell me what you thought of this chapter, this verse.
Hope to have you back on my journal again in the future for other stories.
Hit the music here and imagine the credits rolling. Cheers guys ;)
Apollo 440 - Cant Stop The Rock
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Author:
scyllaya
Rating: PG
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Dean/Castiel/Gabriel,
Warning(s): none
Spoiler(s): AU (characters up to S5)
Word Count: ~ 4 700 (this chapter)
Summary: Dean, Castiel and Gabriel live the life they wanted to have. Their biggest problem should be synchronizing their crazy schedules, unfortunately life is never that simple.
Disclaimer: Nearly all names and characters in this story belong to CW/WB and Kripke. I’m making no profit whatsoever. It’s just for fun! Most places and establishments in the story are real, but I’ve never visited any of them, so I have no true knowledge about them. People (OCs) in the story are not real! Any resemblance to real life is just a coincidence.
AN: Second story of Trinity verse. Title from: Nirvana - The Man Who Sold The World
Unbeta-ed. Trinity Verse I: Broke our mirrors
Trinity II - Chapter One
<< Previous Chapter |
Chapter XXVIII
Gabriel let out a long whistle that made both Dean and Castiel turn around and look at him.
‘I very much approve of the uniforms,’ he said, staring at the two younger men, letting his eyes wander up and down on their bodies from the doorway.
Both of them were wearing their dress blues. Although he managed to win the battle on the white gloves, because he sure as hell didn’t want to put them on, it was the only part of the formal uniform he didn’t like. Cas scowled at him for a moment before letting it go. He didn’t have to wear gloves for his uniform after all, so he had no idea how freakin’ ridiculous it was to keep them on for long. Dean still considered himself lucky, because he did like the uniform way better than any kind of a suit, so he was glad that Katrina told them that they should wear these instead of civil clothes.
Gabriel himself was wearing a dark, modern cut suit with golden cuffs, a black shirt and a dark gold tie that made his eyes stand out so vividly that it looked like they glowed. He also had that little gold lapel pin, the coin with a cross on it - St. Anthony’s logo - on his suit jacket. Yeah, maybe he had no uniform to wear, but he looked absolutely stunning.
Dean grinned at Gabriel’s words and the look on his face. There was also a small smile on Castiel’s lips too because of the compliment. Dean stepped slightly behind Cas and draped an arm around his hips just to make the view better.
‘Like it?’ he asked suggestively. Gabriel’s face was answer enough, so Dean grinned at him. Castiel shoved him away gently, straightening out his jacket again.
‘No messing up our clothes,’ he warned.
‘Spoilsport,’ Dean pouted at him.
‘No worries, Dean-o,’ Gabriel said. ‘I’m gonna mess up your uniform just fine, after we get home,’ he smirked and Dean felt a pleasant tingle running down his spine in reaction.
‘I like that plan,’ he said with a smile.
‘Did you pick up the presents?’ Castiel asked looking back at Gabriel.
‘Yes, of course I picked up the presents,’ Gabriel replied. ‘So, are you two gonna keep fussing with your clothes like a pair of girls or can we finally get going? We got a whole bunch of things to do before the party.’
‘We’re taking the Impala,’ Dean said, letting the girl comment go… for now.
‘You don’t plan on drinking then?’ Cas asked, raising an eyebrow.
‘Of course I plan on drinking,’ Dean answered. ‘Gabriel can drive back home.’
‘Oh-holy full metal jacket, is it my birthday? It’s been a few years since I have been given this great honor.’
‘Shut up,’ Dean told him, but he had to focus too hard not to smile, so it didn’t came out even a little bit angrily.
‘Dean, did you pick up the champagne I ordered?’
‘Yes, Cas I got the champagne,’ Dean answered. ‘Relax already.’
‘Can we just go now?’ Gabriel asked, and Dean knew, he would not be afraid to start whining if it would make them get going. There was a hint of it in his tone already.
‘Yes, we can go. You’re so impatient,’ Castiel grumbled.
‘And you fixed your insignia five times in the past two minutes,’ Gabriel replied.
‘Ass,’ Cas murmured, but finally moved away from the mirror. Dean just chuckled as he followed while Gabriel dramatically thanked the Heavens that they were finally moving out of the bedroom. Cas scowled at him and pinched his ass hard in revenge when he moved past him.
They barely got out of the car when the front door slammed open and Sam appeared in it. He practically leaped off the two small steps, crossed the front garden in a blink with long hurried steps just to cover his brother in a bear hug to end all bear hugs. Dean managed to keep his balance, just barely, and wrapped his arms around his little brother in return with a laugh.
‘I thought you won’t make it here this early,’ Dean said when they finally let go of each other, ending the hug with some manly pats on the shoulder. They were both grinning very hard, but that was understandable. The last time Sam was home from Stanford was Spring Break.
‘Managed to catch an earlier plane, almost lost my luggage, but I made it,’ Sam replied and finally raised his head to look behind Dean at Gabriel and Castiel.
‘Hey guys!’ he greeted cheerfully. He stepped away from Dean to hug Cas first.
‘It’s very good to see you, Sam,’ Cas answered, returning the hug warmly. Then Sam wrapped his long arms around Gabriel too.
‘Holy crap kid, you got even bigger,’ Gabriel said and it made Sam laugh as he let go of the shorter man.
‘I’m not growing anymore, Gabriel,’ he said.
‘Not taller, bigger. You put on some extra muscles there, aren’t you supposed to be a nerd or something?’
‘Funny,’ Sam made a face. ‘Maybe, it’s just you getting smaller.’
‘Watch it,’ Gabriel warned pointing a finger at his face. ‘I swear, what the hell are you eating at college? At least Jesse had the decency to stay at my height.’
‘He is not exactly happy about that,’ Castiel remarked and they all chuckles.
‘Overgrown smartasses,’ Gabriel scowled. ‘In the house, all of you move, pronto.’
Dean and Sam laughed without hiding it as they started walking back into the house, Castiel managed to hide his chuckles more or less. Gabriel just rolled his eyes and let out an exaggerated sigh as he shepherded them inside.
It was hard to get Katrina not do anything. She was used to be the hostess, hell, she loved being a hostess. As all the guests and family members - including a bunch of cousins and uncles and who-knows-what relatives all the way from Russia - were arriving, it was getting harder and harder to make sure she was not running around checking whether things were in order. James did a fairly good job at keeping his wife by his side, but once in a while he got pulled away by a relative or old friend for a chat and Katrina was back in the house or the kitchen where the caterers were preparing after unloading from their van. Drinks were being cooled, welcome drinks were poured out and appetizers were prepared.
This time around it was Gabriel who found her first.
‘Katrina, you should be out chatting with your guests,’ he greeted.
‘Oh, shoo! I’m just checking on things,’ she replied.
‘There’s no need for that, we got everything under control. And these guys know how to do things,’ he said gesturing at the waiters and waitresses in the kitchen.
‘I’m not used to things being taken out of my hands,’ she said with a huff.
‘You will have to bear it this one time,’ Gabriel chuckled. ‘And you have a perfectly fine husband standing all alone outside without his wife, and that is just not acceptable.’ Katrina laughed.
‘Oh, he has a lot of experience with my family at this point. He will stand his ground even without support.’
‘Still, you should be out having fun.’
‘I can’t let you boys deal with everything.’
‘Yes, you can, and us boys will be very happy if we don’t have to hunt you down every hour to make sure you’re having fun,’ Gabriel said as he took her hand and started pulling her out of the kitchen towards the backyard.
The fence between the Winchester house and the Turner house was taken out, making one garden out of the two to give space to the large tent that was set up. Wooden floor was put down on the inside, lights and flowers decorating the white material and the wooden columns, all tables were set with candles lit on them. Guests were slowly filling up the place too. Even the band was in place now, playing music, quietly for now.
Katrina sighed, but gave up on arguing.
‘Fine, how do I look?’ she asked by the door with a smile as she smoothed out her evening gown and Gabriel smiled in return.
‘You are by far the most beautiful lady, in every possible way,’ he said.
‘Ah, you charmer, come here’ she laughed and pulled him in for a hug.
‘And you’re the most wonderful mother I could have ever wished for too,’ he added quietly. ‘If you don’t mind me calling you that.’ Katrina pulled back to look at him, putting a hand on his cheek and smiled.
‘Never, dear,’ she embraced him again. ‘I love you, solnyshko. Thank you.’
They stayed like that for a few moments before Katrina pulled away with a laugh.
‘Oh, you’re almost making me weep like a little girl,’ she said, blinking a few times and wiping her eyes carefully not to smear her make-up.
‘Come on then, James is waiting. This is your anniversary, stop coming back to the kitchen, you understand me?’ Katrina laughed again and hooked her arm through Gabriel’s to get back out. She didn’t set a foot in the kitchen again during the evening either.
Castiel warned them that there would be long speeches, lot of toasts, lot of music and singing and dancing, because Katrina’s side of the family was simply like that. Dean lost count of all the faces. There were a lot of people in uniforms too, as both the Turner and the Dunayevskaya family had a long tradition of being in the army. Admittedly, it was one of the most amusing things Dean had ever witnessed when James’ Dad, Frank and Katrina’s Father, Wasilij started exchanging Cold War stories with Jesse being their translator. Dean found it bizarre that they were laughing so much.
He also had way too much attention from some unidentified female relatives, not as much as Castiel though. Apparently quite a lot of second cousins - or more like their mothers - were set on scoring him since he was un-married and “single”. He should’ve just lied about having a girlfriend, but it was not like Cas to get anyone involved in something like this. He said, everyone who was important already knew the truth, and it would be pointless to get things more complicated. He was annoyed though, Dean could see it in his forced smiles and the angry sparks in his blue eyes.
During Katrina’s and James’ first dance Dean when looked over at his Dad, and he thought of his Mom. Because it was there on his face, that no matter how many years passed, he still missed her. He did invite Kate Milligan thought, the secretary at the Sherriff’s office. Dean did not ask about her, she seemed nice and his Dad’s face was just that bit lighter when she smiled, so it was fine, whatever there was between them.
After a few dances Katrina appeared from the crowd, smiling brightly, grabbing Gabriel’s hand and dragging him to the dance floor despite his initial protest of not knowing how to dance to this sort of music. Dean laughed, but Katrina looked back at him and Sam and told them that she will be back for them too. Dean watched with a smile on his face how Gabriel first struggled a little, but then Katrina basically took over leading and taught him how to dance to whatever music that was playing.
‘You know, I’m sure now. I want this,’ Sam said next to him.
‘What? Dancing to weird Russian music, you’ll have your chance,’ Dean answered.
‘No, you jerk,’ Sam told him. ‘I want someone who will look this happy, like Katrina is now, even after thirty years of marriage,’ he said, and then added. ‘Someone who looks at me like you were looking at Gabriel just now.’
‘What? I wasn’t looking in any way,’ Dean objected. Sam made a face without dignifying that with an answer. ‘Fine,’ Dean settled on saying, a bit embarrassed that he was staring at Gabriel this obviously, but he couldn’t help it.
‘Look, I know I told you I was fine with everything when you told me, but I should’ve said more,’ Sam started.
‘No, Sammy, really.’
‘Just shut up and listen,’ Sam cut him off. ‘I’m way more than just “fine” with it, okay? I should’ve already told you that. I mean, Cas and Gabe are like brothers to me too, y’know? And you’re all happy and that makes me happy for you. Honestly. I couldn’t wish anything better for you, for either of you. Sorry I was a little brief with my answer before.’
Dean had a high variety of things he could’ve replied with to this, but he didn’t want to make a joke when his brother had that caring, honest, supportive face of his on.
‘Thanks, Sammy,’ he said finally.
‘And, umm, I don’t wanna sound like an ignorant ass or something, but I have no clue how to ask this. Uhh… so Gabriel’s okay now, right? Like fully.’
‘Yes, he’s fine. I mean, sometimes it’s still hard to follow what’s going around in his head, but he’s being honest and y’know, we’re all fine with each other again.’ he trailed off. Talking about this was not his forte, but this was Sam, so it was a little easier. Sam just nodded, maybe not knowing what to say to that, or maybe he just didn’t want to force Dean to talk about such things more.
‘I need a drink.’
Both Sam and Dean turned and looked at Cas as he stopped next to them.
‘That bad?’ Dean asked.
‘Well, most of my relatives seem to accept “I live for my duty” as a valid life choice, but unfortunately not all of them. I swear, I’ve been asked when I will have a wife and children at least a dozen times in the past hour.’ Dean chuckled at that, Sam seemed a little sympathetic, but only a little, if the smile on his face was anything to go buy.
Cas grabbed a drink from a passing waiter and took a large gulp.
‘Really, it can’t be that bad,’ Dean said.
‘One of my second cousins was practically flaunting her… wobbly parts at me,’ Castiel said with a very uncomfortable face.
‘You mean her boobs?’ Dean asked with an amused smile.
‘Yes,’ Cas said with a borderline distasteful face and drowned the rest of his drink.
‘Wow, you really are gay to the core,’ Dean laughed.
‘Shh,’ Cas hushed him as he frowned and quickly looked around whether anyone heard it. ‘Don’t make fun of me.’ He warned.
Sometimes Dean just couldn’t help it. Cas was so blatantly terrified if a woman made a move on him that it was beyond amusing. Dean and Gabriel both had girlfriends at some point in their lives, but Castiel was never interested, and that was putting it mildly. Dean didn’t push it though, no matter how fun it would’ve been, because he planned to get laid again in this lifetime.
‘So, what are our final experiences?’ Dean asked as he leaned back on the passenger’s side of the front seat. He would tick in the ‘success’ box to be honest. The guests were having fun, they were having fun, the food was delicious, the photos will look awesome and there were only tiny glitches during the night, and those could be looked over. Most importantly, Katrina and James looked as happy as they were a newly-wed couple.
‘Single women are scary,’ Cas said from the backseat and both Dean and Gabriel laughed at his sullen tone.
‘You’re just too handsome,’ Gabriel told him glancing up in the rearview mirror.
‘I also think that it’s time for all of us to admit that Katrina is ruling this family, I can’t believe I freakin’ danced… a helluva lot too,’ Dean added.
‘It wasn’t so bad,’ Gabriel told him.
‘I don’t like dancing,’ Dean answered. ‘I can’t believe I managed to not get completely drunk,’ he added.
‘I drank more,’ Castiel replied.
‘Yeah, but you’re a freak who only gets drunk after a few bottles, not a few shots.’ Cas chuckled in a very pleased way at that.
‘And it also turns out that I’m clearly not as forgotten as I would like to be,’ Gabriel said.
‘Meaning?’ Dean turned to him.
‘Some of the local guests were looking at me funny after I introduced myself, s’like high school all over again.’
‘Sorry about that,’ Castiel spoke up. ‘Hope nothing bad happened.’
‘Nah, I’m good at ignoring people,’ Gabriel replied easily while shrugging, then he took a left turn.
‘Where are we going?’ Dean asked with a frown, because this was not the way to Denver.
‘Just a little detour,’ Gabriel replied. Cas sat up straight in the backseat. His uniform jacket was undone and his hair looked chaotic at this point. It suited him well. Dean also loosened his tie and had his jacket undone, only Gabriel looked almost like he did at the start of the evening. It was a mystery how he managed to do that. It was probably the lack of alcohol. Dean had the urge to run his fingers through his hair to mess it all up, or pull his tie loose and suck a hickey on his neck. To make him look less sharp, more debauched. Yeah, okay booze made him horny, no surprise there.
He looked out at the darkened streets, wondering where Gabriel was going, but his question was soon answered.
‘Rock Park?’ Cas asked as he looked around. ‘It’s been ages since we’ve been here.’
‘Yep,’ Gabriel agreed and drove until he could park down the Impala at the spot his Dodge parked for many-many years, whenever they came here.
‘What are we doing here?’ asked Dean.
‘What? I can’t be a little nostalgic?’ asked Gabriel in return as he killed the engine. ‘Everyone was either nostalgic or emotional tonight. You don’t want me getting emotional.’
He said this in a light tone and had a smile on his face too, so Dean smiled in return. Gabriel opened the door and got out so after a moment Cas and Dean followed. The night air was cool, but not cold, it was actually pleasant to be out in the quiet, dim darkness and breathe in some fresh air after all the noise and the crowd. It was very late; Dean actually had no idea how late.
He walked to the front of the car to sit on the still warm hood and look up at the night-sky. It’s really been ages since they’ve been here. Castiel joined him on the hood a moment later, sitting down close enough that their shoulders were touching. Gabriel stood a step away from the car, with his back to them for now and he seemed to be looking out at the rock.
‘I still think it looks like a cake and not a castle,’ he said and both Dean and Cas smiled at the declaration.
‘This is nice,’ Castiel said. ‘This was a good idea.’
‘Gabe, come here too,’ Dean said, raising his arm in a welcoming gesture. Gabriel turned back and took a step closer.
‘Um, so listen guys…’
‘Okay, I knew there had to be a reason,’ Castiel said right away. ‘I hope this time around you plan on telling us something good here. I have way too many unpleasant memories of this park already.’
‘Not just unpleasant ones,’ Dean said. ‘Sure a few were shitty, but not all.’ This was the place Gabriel told them that he was leaving, this was the place where him and Cas seemed to break apart, but those were not the only memories from this place. Many nights came to mind, when they walked across the park to pick up Gabriel when he texted them and asked to be helped back. Many days spent sitting around Gabriel’s car, just talking and laughing endlessly. Nostalgic, yeah that was about right.
‘Good, I hope,’ Gabriel answered.
‘Okay, so what is it?’ Dean asked. Gabriel sighed and ran his hand through his hair.
‘Something totally ridiculous, but… I’m going through with it.’
‘Now, I’m intrigued,’ Castiel stated.
‘So… we don’t have an anniversary, cause it’s silly, and we don’t need it, and I still agree with that.’
To be honest, none of them was able to remember the exact date all three of them got together. It was around one and a half or two and a half weeks after Gabriel came back from Europe, they didn’t know, it was actually amusing. Besides, Dean and Castiel have been together longer, so that would’ve been an entirely different date, which they also couldn’t remember of course. Why was there a need for a special date to spend time together, when they were spending most of their days together already? Hell, they wouldn’t do anything special besides what they did on most Sundays and their birthdays, so what was the point?
‘Okay, so… I just had this stupid idea, and damn Chuck insisted that I go through with it, and I really hate him for it right now.’
‘Dude, what?’ Dean asked.
‘So I uh… sorta got us a present,’ he said.
‘Oh? What kind?’ Castiel asked. ‘I like presents,’ he added with a smile. Gabriel huffed out a small laugh in reaction, some of the tension already slipping out of his shoulders.
‘It’s ridiculously girly,’ Gabriel said with another sigh. He looked undoubtedly like he was feeling like that too and Dean started to be very curious and very amused at the same time.
‘Gabe, come on. It can’t be that bad. Nothing can be more girly than shopping for curtains with Cas, and we both suffered through that one.’
Gabriel laughed and while it hurt like a bitch where Castiel pinched his arm, it was totally worth it.
‘Yeah, not that girly,’ Gabriel said and reached to the inner pocket of his suit. Now that was interesting. He had a small leather holder in his hand; it looked like one of those thin cigarette cases. ‘So, we all know we won’t ever be “officially” together. I mean, not like couples, or anything like it, and that’s fine, well, it is what it is, there’s no changing it, but… I just wanted, I don’t even know… something. Tell me if you hate it, no hard feelings.’
He held out the case and Dean took it, he was faster in reaching for it than Cas. He managed to open it for the second try and both him and Cas fell silent for a moment.
‘I know, it’s stupid,’ Gabriel said after a second of silence.
‘You got us matching rings,’ Castiel said, looking up at him. Dean kept his gaze down on the case, whit the three identical rings inside; they were cool looking rings to be honest, they were black with two silver cable inlays running around in the middle of them.
‘It’s just… you know… present,’ Gabriel shrugged. Dean now saw why Chuck might’ve insisted that Gabriel go through with this idea of his.
‘I told you I like presents,’ Cas said.
‘C’mon be honest,’ Gabriel huffed.
‘I think they’re awesome,’ Dean said and reached to the box to get one out. They were slightly different in size, but he was pretty sure that his was the biggest.
‘No, no… hold it,’ Castiel grabbed his hand. ‘Which one is Dean’s?’ he asked looking at Gabriel.
‘The one on the left,’ Gabriel answered, still looking at them carefully. Castiel picked up that one and looked at him expectantly. Dean chuckled and rolled his eyes a little but didn’t argue and let Cas grab his left hand.
‘You’re not supposed to put a ring like this on by yourself,’ Castiel remarked at he slid it in place. ‘There,’ he looked up with a satisfied look on his face and leaned in for a kiss. It was a sweet press of lips at first, their mouths just touching and moving, sliding together for a long moments while they stayed as close within each others space as possible, breathing in the same air, feeling the warmth of the other. Dean smiled at him before looking over at Gabriel. He looked a lot less worried now and that was always nice to see.
‘My turn,’ Dean declared and gestured Gabriel to come closer. ‘Come here.’ He pulled him closer as soon as he could until Gabriel was standing between his legs. ‘Which one is yours?’ he asked in a quiet voice, not looking away from Gabriel’s face.
‘The middle one,’ Gabriel answered in the same tone. Dean picked that one up and slid it on his finger, the second it was in its place they were kissing. A harder, more fiery kiss and Dean chased the taste of Gabriel’s lips, before he pulled away, sliding his hands down on Gabriel’s side to rest his palms on his hips. It was good to see the smile playing on Gabriel’s lips from this close.
Gabriel turned to move closer to Castiel then, picking up the last ring.
‘Castiel,’ he said and slid the ring to its place after taking hold of Cas’ hand.
‘This is a great present, Gabriel,’ Castiel told him, entwining their fingers. They leaned closer and kissed, deep and unhurried, a lazy drag of lips, exploring each others’ mouths, while their hands stayed linked together.
‘Okay, I totally overstressed this one,’ Gabriel huffed out a laugh when he pulled away from the kiss.
‘It’s part of your charm,’ Castiel told him with a hint of a smile. It earned him a half-hearted snort from Gabriel. Dean smirked.
‘I think, it’s absolutely--’
‘I’m warning you,’ Gabriel looked at him, because he recognized his tone. Dean always said something along the lines of cute or adorable in such situations.
‘Incredible, that you care so much about even the smallest things, just to make sure we’re happy.’
The building indignation vanished from Gabriel’s face and got replaced by something much gentler, happier, a little embarrassed too maybe.
‘It was nothing,’ he said.
‘No. You gave us, everything,’ Castiel said and he didn’t mean just the rings. Dean knew that with absolute certainty and from the look on his face, Gabriel knew it too. Cas tilted his head to capture Gabriel’s gaze. ‘Us,’ he said, moving his head gesturing at the three of them. He looked down at the ring. ‘So thank you… for dragging me out of that sand box.’
Gabriel smiled, letting out a breath.
‘And you know, thanks for kidnapping me from my backyard too,’ Dean told him with a grin. Gabriel laughed quietly then stayed silent for a moment, the smile not faltering from his face, but obviously thinking about what to say.
‘My pleasure,’ he settled on finally. And Dean thought that right now things were damn near perfect. He was not stupid to think that they were actually perfect, but who gave a damn? Cas was right, they had everything, what they needed, what counted, what actually mattered. They had this, each other, screw everything else.
‘Okay, time go home guys,’ Gabriel spoke. ‘I think, I promised some messed up uniforms,’ he added with a smirk a beat later.
Yeah, life was pretty damn good.
= THE END =
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<< MASTERPOST >>
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= Trinity Extras =
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AN: Thank you for following this story. It has been a long journey, my longest fic, my longest verse and it has been an absolute joy to write it. Thank you for reading. I thank everyone who helped me, encouraged me when I had trouble getting forward with a chapter.
Thank you all who have commented on any of the chapters and let me know what you thought about the story and by that helping me to write more and move forward with it.
I'd like to thank kraehi for her artwork for both Trinity I and II too.
Please check out the 'Trinity Extras' post... I hope that will be fun :)
Leave a comment and tell me what you thought of this chapter, this verse.
Hope to have you back on my journal again in the future for other stories.
Hit the music here and imagine the credits rolling. Cheers guys ;)
Apollo 440 - Cant Stop The Rock
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