For a long time Gabriel remained silent, digesting that. In reality his mind was a turmoil with a thousand questions. Why would their Master need more than one version of themselves? Was Gabriel--were all his brothers--not enough? Had they failed in some way? The distress at the thought had started to show on his face before he checked himself, exhaling softly, lifting a hand to rub his forehead.
Stop this. He loves you. You know that. Focus.
What he needed were basic facts. How had Lucifer managed to breach that kind of barrier, to kidnap people from other worlds? Not as an important a question as it seemed, Gabriel decided after a moment. Here and now, what was important was Castiel. Either this was Castiel or it wasn’t; if it wasn’t, then he was an imposter trying to lead him astray. But there was no way for Gabriel to know, even if Castiel did, and the true thing to consider was whether Gabriel was willing to take the chance that Castiel wasn’t Castiel.
Which, Gabriel knew nearly as soon as the question was asked, he wasn’t. It didn’t matter if Castiel was the brother from his universe or not; he was still potentially Castiel, and that was enough.
“Alright,” he said at last, returning his gaze to his possibly-brother. “I--can accept that, I suppose.” Now that he wasn’t so preoccupied he saw the veneer of sweat on the other man’s face, the way he held himself, and mentally reprimanded himself for a fool. The Archangel dropped his guard and stepped forward quickly, putting a gentle hand on Castiel’s shoulder. “How are you feeling?” he asked with obvious concern. “Can I get you anything while we wait for the others you’ve asked for aid?”
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Stop this. He loves you. You know that. Focus.
What he needed were basic facts. How had Lucifer managed to breach that kind of barrier, to kidnap people from other worlds? Not as an important a question as it seemed, Gabriel decided after a moment. Here and now, what was important was Castiel. Either this was Castiel or it wasn’t; if it wasn’t, then he was an imposter trying to lead him astray. But there was no way for Gabriel to know, even if Castiel did, and the true thing to consider was whether Gabriel was willing to take the chance that Castiel wasn’t Castiel.
Which, Gabriel knew nearly as soon as the question was asked, he wasn’t. It didn’t matter if Castiel was the brother from his universe or not; he was still potentially Castiel, and that was enough.
“Alright,” he said at last, returning his gaze to his possibly-brother. “I--can accept that, I suppose.” Now that he wasn’t so preoccupied he saw the veneer of sweat on the other man’s face, the way he held himself, and mentally reprimanded himself for a fool. The Archangel dropped his guard and stepped forward quickly, putting a gentle hand on Castiel’s shoulder. “How are you feeling?” he asked with obvious concern. “Can I get you anything while we wait for the others you’ve asked for aid?”