The Price of Freedom

Snippet of Future 1

This was a one-shot originally, but I have too much to say. A couple chapters then probably.

*

Gabriel Samuel Winchester, son of a lycan and an angel, had amazing power that made heaven afraid and hell angry. He could kill anything just by touching it, something that he had to learn to control as a child. When he was six, his powers began to reveal themselves. At the worst possible time.

When he was four, Farrah became pregnant again. She gave birth to a little girl, whom she named Mary Deanna, to Dean's delight and Gabriel's horror. 

They had seen very little of his power except for once. He put his hand on his mother's stomach to feel his sister kick, and Farrah fell to the ground. Castiel caught her and healed her; she had fallen because her life force had gotten weak. 

Horrified, Gabriel clutched his hand to his chest and started to cry. He was smart; he knew what he'd done. And the look on his father's face had terrified him. It was confusion, anger, and hurt. "I didn't mean to!" the little boy cried. His grandpa kneeled and held him to his chest, but Gabriel yanked himself away. "Don't touch me!"

"Hey," said Sam, who was now kneeling on his other side. "Gabe, your mom is okay. Look, she's awake." Without letting Sam touch him, Gabriel turned around and saw Farrah opening her eyes as Castiel held her to his chest. 

"How do you feel?" he asked her, his voice gruff from confusion and fear.

"I'm fine. I'm okay. How's Mary?"

He put his hand on her stomach and closed his eyes for a few seconds, then laughed. "She kicked; she's perfectly fine."

Farrah sighed in relief. "Good. That's good. What happened? Gabriel, why are you crying?" She sat up and reached out to him, but he stepped away from her. "Honey?"

"No! Don't touch me! I hurt you! I hurt her!" He ran away, down to his room, where he locked the door with telekinesis. Farrah looked at her husband. 

"Castiel?" 

"I'll check on him. You rest." He helped her stand before walking down the hall. 

The next few years after that saw Gabriel working day in and day out to control himself. He wouldn't hold his sister until his mother blocked his magic from working right after she was born. He became protective over her, and practiced so that he could hold her and hug her. His life revolved around her. 

The older Winchesters were getting to a point that not many hunters do. The point of age slowing their reflexes. The point of staying back with grandkids while their parents left on hunts. It was a rare pleasure.

By the time Mary was ten and was learning about her own magic, which tended toward making things grow rather than killing them, Gabriel had complete control, meaning that he would hold her hand everywhere they went, rub the top of her head to mess with her, and carry her to bed when she fell asleep on the couch. Dean saw a lot of himself in his grandson, but also a lot of Castiel. The selflessness, care for his younger sibling, almost permanent frown like he was always focusing - it was all reminiscent of them when they were younger.

The kids had gone hunting sometimes, but Farrah was too scared of putting them in danger, so she made them stay back more often, to Gabriel's dismay. 

It was during one of these times, when Gabriel was eighteen and Mary was fourteen, that Farrah and Castiel left for a complex case involving the Spanish Men of Letters, who were getting irritatingly involved in America's business. They'd stirred up the princes of hell who were left and made them angry; Farrah and Castiel were gone to now kill a prince of hell.

Gabriel was sitting in the library reading about a breed of Venezuelan skin walker when Dean walked in. "Whatcha reading?" He sighed as he plopped down into a seat heavily.

"Skin walker," Gabriel said vaguely. "How're Mom and Dad?"

"Ah, you know them. I won't know anything until they get back."

"If they get back," he muttered under his breath. Dean's hearing was good due to Castiel keeping the two brothers healthy, so he caught it and sighed.

"Gabe, you and I both know that there's almost nothing that can kill Farrah."

"What about Dad though? He's an angel; these princes of hell, they kill angels in their sleep. Just as easily as I could kill anything." He put the book down and stood up. "I told Mary I'd teach her how to drive today."

Dean stood back up. "Gabe, hey. Wait. Look at me." Reluctantly, Gabriel turned around and sighed. "Farrah isn't going to let anything happen to Cas; she'll go to purgatory and pull him out if that's what it takes. They're both coming back."

"Easy for you to say. You always came back. I'm a kid, and I could snap my fingers right now and kill every living thing in a twenty mile radius. What do you think a prince of hell, thousands of millennia old, could do to them?" He shook his head and looked down when his phone rang. "Hey, Dad," he sighed.

Dean saw the look on his face change to terror. "What? How? Dad!"

"Gabe," Dean said. He held up his hand and turned away from Dean.

"Where are you? I'm on my way. No, I'm not bringing her! Dad!" He was quiet for a few seconds. "Fine," he huffed. "But Grandpa and Uncle Sam are coming too. Okay. Four hours. See you then." He hung up. "Grandpa, get Sam. I'll get Mary. Meet me at the Impala in five minutes."

"Whoa, kid. What's going on?" Dean grabbed his arm as he started to run out. 

"I'll tell you in the car. Right now, we have to go." He looked almost hysterical as he ran out shouting for his sister. Dean frowned, then yelled for Sam.

They were gone in fifteen minutes, weapons, clothes, and all.

Mary had a hardened look in her eye as they pulled out; she and her brother could communicate through telepathy, so as they'd packed he had told her everything. "He's supposed to protect her," she hissed.

"Why do you think he called?" Gabriel retorted. "To give us a heads up?"

Sam looked back at them. "What's going on? Where are we even going?"

"Four hours east. Just head to the interstate and I'll tell you later. What's important now is that Mom has been kidnapped and Dad has no idea where she is or even could be. He doesn't know who took her or when she was taken. And he wanted Mary to come along. Wouldn't let me leave her behind."

"Good," Mary muttered.

"You could end up like Mom. You get that, right? That there's a reason Mom was kidnapped and not Dad, even though she's more powerful than him. You might be kidnapped too."

She glared at her brother. "I'd like to see them try." Angelic light flashed behind her eyes, while demonic power flashed behind his. They normally did this right before they started to fight, so Sam came between them.

"Hey, no fighting. This car is almost a hundred years old, and so are we. Cool it."

Gabriel scoffed. "Like you can't handle it. Anyway, we aren't upset with each other this time. As long as she stays out of the way and doesn't get kidnapped."

"Just don't kill me on accident trying to keep me out of it."

Gabriel's jaw set and he looked out the window. The sight of her dropping, her life force leaving her body because of him, was something he'd had nightmares about. Her reminding him made him see those scenes again. Her empty eyes, her open mouth, the screaming that she never got to do to even beg. 

Mary touched his arm, and he flinched. "Don't do that."

"Sorry, Gabe. I'm going to lay my head on your shoulder now." 

He nodded, and she did. He just needed a bit of warning first. He didn't like surprises, especially not in touching. But when he was warned and could prepare, he loved to be close to her. She put her head on his shoulder and they held hands. Sam glanced back, then looked at Dean and nudged him so he would glance back. Familial comfort. He pitied the person who ever tried to pull them apart.