Road Trip (Ketch, Gabriel)
Title: Road Trip Who: Ketch, Gabriel What: What the roadtrip from the Gate of Hell to the Bunker might have looked like. Word Count: 1000 Warnings: None
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Getting Gabriel out of Hell had been comparatively easy compared to getting Gabriel into his car.
âCome on,â Ketch implored. âWe must get going before an alarm can be raised!â
Gabriel looked at the car dubiously before his eyes frantically searched the area around them, as if seeking for any kind of alternative.
âI mean you no harm, Iâm taking you to the Winchester Brothers, I swear it.â
Eyes whipped back around and stared at Ketch, as if reading his soul for intention. Ketch wasnât sure if he could, but in this instance, he was quite glad that he was being sincere. Finally, the archangel nodded.
âThank you, Gabriel,â Ketch replied relieved as the angel finally slid into the passenger seat before Ketch closed the door.
*
Once on the road, the silence in the car was almost insufferable. Heâd read up on Loki once itâd been revealed that the Trickster and the archangel had been one and the same and knew that this broken husk of an angel was nothing like his normal self.
âShall I turn on some music?â he offered, not wanting to startle Gabriel.
A slow nod.
Ketch hit the button and a light Mozart sonata started to play softly through the speakers. To his chagrin the angel started getting frantic, making piteous noises and tugging on his seatbelt.
âIâm sorry, Iâm sorry!â Ketch said as he immediately hit the scan button to find something else to play. He kicked himself for failing to remember that the demon was a fan of classical music. Something about not drowning out the screams of the tortured or other cliched rot.
A Christian rock station came on next and this time it was Ketch making a face. He was no longer a religious man. Realizing that so much of the divine and the infernal was so <i>human</i> took away the mystique and comfort that religion held for many. The song instead only caused him to think of Asmodeusâ taunts, of that the fact that he was almost certainly going to be condemned to Hell. It was a day he intended to put off as far as possible.
They both seemed to relax as a country station came on next.
Ketch hit the button again to keep it playing.
*
He found a rest stop a little more than half way on to their destination. It was poorly tended, some of the overhead lights were out and the landscaping was sadly neglected, and that suited Ketch fine. It meant more respectable types, the types who might spot Gabriel in his current state and reach out to the cops â would be more apt to keep driving instead.
âI need to relieve myself,â Ketch said. âDo you want me to help you clean up?â he asked. âIâve a pair of scissors in my first aid kit if you desire.â
 A fervent shaking of the head.
This wouldnât have been his first choice to clean up at either, so he supposed he couldnât blame the archangel.
âI will be back in three minutes, all right?â Ketch asked. âIf I feel that I cannot return in that time, I will come back and give you a better estimate.â
A slow nod.
âExcellent,â Ketch said.
He felt the eyes watching him as he hurried to take care of himself.
*
Ketch stifled a yawn as they approached the last leg of the trip. Some atrocious black coffee and a hastily consumed breakfast sandwich had helped but overcoming adrenaline crashes could be rough.
He glanced over at Gabriel who had curled up on himself in the seat. His head was resting on his shoulders, his eyes fluttering shut.
âI thought angels didnât sleep,â Ketch said softly, but still somehow pleased that Gabriel seemed to be at some kind of peace.
Gabriel didnât wake until the car came its final stop.
*
Gabriel tilted his head at the structure before him.
âI know, I know,â Ketch said. âItâs decidedly rustic, but it is well warded. You will be safe here,â Ketch said. He left the âAnd hopefully, so will I,â unspoken.
Gabriel eyed him, suspiciously.
Ketch raised his hands as he reached into his coat pocket and retrieved his key.
âSee? Just a key. Did you want to do the honors?â
Gabriel nodded and slowly unfurled his hand.
Ketch laid it there gently.
Gabriel wrapped his fingers around it and studied it, looking for watch, Ketch wasnât sure, but finally took it and used it once Ketch showed him where to find the lock.
The bunker door swung open and Gabriel took a tentative step in, eyes widening as he took it all in. Ketch lead him to the library. It wasnât too dark; the ceilings were as high as you could get outside the foyer and the worst of the hum of the machinery that kept the lights on and the air flowing through the bunker was minimized. Gabriel offered a timid nod of approval as Ketch offered him a chair.
âExcellent,â Ketch says. âYou stay here, I have some things I must do. I will come grab you when theyâre ready.â
A nod, even as he saw fear creeping back into Gabrielâs eyes.
He considered it, and briefly left the library to return a few moments later with a pair of walkie talkies.
âIf you need me, press this button here and make noise and I will return to you, all right?â Ketch demonstrated how they worked. Gabriel jumped at first, but the nodded. âDid you want to try it?â
Gabriel pushed the button and squawked and jumped at the sound of his own noise, but he still seemed more settled, some of that fear leaving his eyes once more.
Ketch nodded, pleased with that reaction. He knelt down and looked the archangel in the eyes. âI will be back for you again, I promise.â
Another slow nod.
âGood man,â he said as he left to ready himself to plead his case with the brothers.
