falling like the stars, sam winchester [ 3 ]

055. talk

Sam, Miranda, and the kids get back to the bunker, finding Cas sitting at the map table.

"Hey." Sam calls, walking down the stairs.

"Tastes like... molecules." Cas says.

"What? What are you talking about?" Sam asks. They get downstairs and see peanut butter and jelly items in front of Cas, including a sandwich he bit into.

"When I was human, you know, I had to eat constantly. It was kind of annoying." Cas says.

"Yeah, a lot of human things are pretty annoying." Sam says.

"Yeah. Like getting in trouble. And school." Carly says.

"Getting in trouble is not reduced to being human. Just the person or thing's choices." Sam says.

"Yeah. Your choice to get mad." Carly says.

Sam looks at Miranda who is trying not to laugh.

"She... in a way, she isn't wrong." Miranda quietly says.

"Don't encourage her." Sam hisses. Miranda purses her lips, the amusement in her eyes clear to her husband.

"But... I enjoyed the taste of food -- particularly peanut butter with grape jelly, not jam. Jam I found unsettling." Cas says.

"So, what? Now you can't taste PB and J?" Sam asks, sitting on the table next to Cas.

"No, I-I taste every molecule." Cas says as Sam dips his finger into the jelly on the bread and tastes it.

"Not the sum of its parts, huh?" Sam asks.

"It's overwhelming. It's disgusting." Cas says. "I miss you, PB&J." He stands up. "We need to continue your healing. We're almost done." He puts two fingers on Sam's forehead and starts to heal him, but his face grows concerned.

"What?" Sam asks.

"Nothing." Cas lies.

"You're a terrible liar." Sam states, pushing Cas' arm away.

"That is not true. I once deceived and betrayed both you and your family." Cas reminds.

"Okay, that's not the point." Sam says. "Cas, what's wrong?"

"I noticed something. It's, uh... it's resonating inside you." Cas says.

"What?" Sam asks.

"Something angelic." Cas says.

"Okay, uh, what the hell does that mean?" Sam asks.

"Maybe we should call Dean." Cas suggests.

"Fuck Dean." Miranda says.

"No." Sam says after a moment. "He wanted to go, and he's gone. We'll handle this."

+++

"I've found, well, something. It's a detail about when angels leave their vessel... I think. It's, uh, Enochian, which can be a bit flowery." Cas says. ""And the departed shall remain, and the remains shall be departed.""

"Okay, so, when an angel leaves a vessel, they leave behind a piece of themselves. Like, uh... like an angelic fingerprint." Sam says.

"Whatever you want to call it, this piece of the departed contains grace." Cas states.

"Wait, you're saying there's angelic grace inside of me?" Sam asks.

"Yes. But it's fading each time I heal you." Cas says.

"Okay. Is that good or bad?"

"Well it's harmless. But the grace itself... might be helpful." Cas puts his current book down and picks another one up. "According to this, we may be able to use the grace that remains inside you to track Gadreel... if we can extract it."