"Want to tell me what you're laughing at?"

"Just you. I don't know what you thought would happen. Did you think you'd go out in a blaze of glory? That you'd just escape like that?"

"You know it's not supposed to be this way. It didn't have to be. You chose this, Luci."

Gabriel let out a scream, deep and guttural.

"And you chose this."

Gabriel's pained gasp filled the room.

"And thank you for bringing me this lovely, lovely gift, my brother. A perfect little tool."

"You can stop."

"I could."

Gabriel let out another scream, a deep, ripping sound right up from the belly wound.

"But then this is so much fun."

"Barrel of laughs."

"Hm. Funny. Keep that sense of humor. You're going to need it."

"The apocalypse, Luci, focus."

"I am focused."

"You don't have to end it."

"My, you are focused. That focus-" Gabrial's breathless scream followed as the blade pressed slowly into his flesh. "is goo. It makes the pain bearable, trust me." Gabriel hissed. "Shh, shh."

"So, now what?"

"Now? Now I give you your punishment."

"For standing up to you? Just kill me and get it done."

"No, no, no my brother. You may not have fought me, but you did abandon me. You ran away. You're a bad son too, aren't you? Like me? But you escaped father's punishment. Now we can't have that."

"Feeling jealous?"

"Good, I told you to keep that humor. It'll help."

Gabriel started to scream and he didn't stop. Six golden wings burst into visibility. Lucifer continued to press the knife into Gabriel's stomach. He reached down and picked up the chains with the Enochian bonding symbols etched into them. Gabriel was already wrapped in them. He dropped the knife and while Gabriel panted in an attempt to bring himself back together, Lucifer bound up Gabriel's wings.

"And now, your punishment."

"W-what?"

"Your grace, brother. I'm going to take it."

"Kill me."

"Oh no. And no, you won't be human, not like your dear Anna. No, no, you'll live. But not much else."

Lucifer turned away, walking back to the table with his little instruments of torture that the demons had supplied. Lucifer had only used Gabriel's own blade up until that point. He picked up a leather ball gag from amongst the instruments.

"Open up, Gabriel."

Gabriel kept his lips tightly shut.

"Come on, open it. Pretend it's one of those sweets you like so much."

Gabriel glared and pulled his lips in under his teeth, clamping down harder.

"Don't make me make you. I don't want to hurt you more than I have to."

Gabriel glared harder.

"I'm sorry. I did try to warn you."

Gabriel screamed when Lucifer stuck the blade into his thigh. Lucifer left it there when he pushed the ball gag into Gabriel's mouth and buckled it securely. He pulled the knife out and Gabriel started to wheeze like he couldn't get the air he needed, though angels didn't need air.

"I'm so sorry. I told you I didn't want to hurt you more than is necessary. You were one of my favorite brothers, Gabriel. I don't want to kill you. I've been alone for a very, very long time. While you've been up here, playing your tricks, becoming a hedonist. No. I have no interest in being alone, but you cannot be part of my paradise, not yet, not as you are now."

Gabriel was still breathing hard through his nose. He looked Lucifer in the eyes, and Lucifer smiled.

"No, this won't be easy, but I'll tell you what I'm going to do, the reason for this." Lucifer tapped the gag with the tip of the blade. "I'm going to cut out your grace, most of it. There will be just enough to keep you alive, but you can't hide what you are, and you won't be able to do any of your tricks. You'll just live, being unable to stop anything. You can hide. I don't mind. You can do whatever you want when I let you go. After I've defeated Michael, I'll come and find you and give your grace back. Don't worry, this won't be nearly as bad as what I've suffered, you know that."

Gabriel breathed hard in and out through his nose. There was clear fear in his eyes. He struggled against his bonds as he hadn't before.

"Don't struggle, you'll only hurt yourself."

Gabriel gasped in pain whenever his wings were pulled on by the chains. Still he struggled. His struggles were futile. The chains bound him too tight.

"Do try and hold still."

Lucifer brought the blade to Gabriel's chest. He pushed the tip in carefully, making a vertical cut similar to one for an autopsy. The horizontal cuts at the top and bottom of the vertical cut followed. Gabriel's stomach and chest already convulsed with deep, rapid breathing.

"Don't be afraid, this is only to prepare you."

Lucifer tucked the blade under his arms and pulled aside the skin and muscle of Gabriel's vessel until the ribcage was exposed. He turned the blade around, slamming the hilt into Gabriel's sternum, cracking it open. Even past the gag, Gabriel's sound of pain spilled out. Lucifer set the blade down on the ground for a moment. He needed both hands to grab Gabriel's ribcage and pull it apart. Gabriel howled. Not even the gag could stop the sound.

"See, this is why you needed that. I told you, no more pain than necessary. I can't have you biting your tongue."

Lucifer bent down and picked up the blade. He quietly touched the tip to Gabriel's beating heart, murmuring words in Enochian. The heart turned a very brilliant white until a fist sized ball of grace appeared outside of the heart.

"Such a sentimental place to keep your Grace, brother."

Lucifer turned to the table, getting a jar and opening it. He used the blade to quickly cut the ball of light in half. The light grew bright and dimmed rapidly in distress. The lights in the building exploded. The sprinklers set off. The electricity in the entire surrounding area grew bright and dimmed in succession with unstable grace. Lucifer scooped half of the grace out and put it in the jar, twisting the lid shut.

"I can't have you healing yourself improperly."

Lucifer set aside the knife on the table, next to the jar. He wouldn't need it for this part. He walked back to Gabriel. Gabriel trembled from head to toe, sobbing behind the gag. He would have felt like every single part of him had been cut in two, and that half of his very essence, his being, who he was stolen. And he would be cold, very cold. He would be feeling colder soon, Lucifer knew this.

"Shh, shh."

He wiped away Gabriel's tears and let his brother cry on his shoulder. He stroked Gabriel's hair gently.

"It will be better, it will be so much better once I have won. You will understand why I have to do this soon. I so hate hurting you. I hate it so much, but you're not worthy, not yet."

He reached out, grabbing onto one of Gabriel's wings. The look in Gabriel's eyes was clearly pleading. Lucifer snapped the bone. Gabriel would have passed out if Lucifer would have allowed him.

"No, stay with me. You have to be punished, remember?"

He grabbed the wing in another place, snapping it a second time. He grabbed the second wing, snapping it in three places, pulling the bones apart now. Gabriel was past being able to make sound. His just cried, watching his brother with fear in his eyes. He shuddered at every touch now.

"You'll heal, I promise you you're heal on your own. You may want to splint these, but the will heal, and properly. I'll leave you enough grace to heal, though it will be slow. It is a punishment, after all."

Lucifer ran his fingers through the sensitive feathers before he grabbed on tight and snapped. The third wing received four breaks before he tugged on the end of the wing to pull the bones apart. Gabriel would be tasting his own blood now with how tightly he bit down on the gag, and how loud he screamed. He'd shredded his own throat.

"Just a little more and I'll be done with this part."

Lucifer moved of the other side. He stroked the wings which shook from fear and cold. The air Gabriel blew out of his nose was visible as it the room temperature was freezing. Lucifer gripped the top wing and snapped. He kept bending as Gabriel howled, pulling the bones apart. He bent and pulled for all five breaks.

"Almost done, almost done."

The fifth wing received the same bending after the breaks, all six of them. Lucifer stroked the hurt appendage afterward. Gabriel dry heaved at the touch.

"Shh… shhh, almost done, I swear. Just the last to go."

The last wing received six breaks. Lucifer bent the new breaks down and then back up at each break. The breaks were completely on even.

"There. Now, just to finish this part."

Lucifer went and picked up the blade again, ignoring the odd angle at which Gabriel's wings now hung.

"The last part, and then it will be over, the pain will be over. I'll just have to clean you up."

Gabriel shook all over when Lucifer placed the knife to what was left of his grace. The light had reformed into a smaller ball. Lucifer expertly cut a tiny little ball from the grace.

"Last part."

Lucifer dropped the blade and grabbed the small piece of grace and the large. He pulled the pieces separate and took the large part in his hand. He walked to the table and unscrewed the lid, slipping the grace in with its other half. The two parts formed back together.

"There, now we're done."

Gabriel hung limply. Lucifer picked up thick black thread and a curved needle. He threaded the needle.

"Ugly isn't it? The demons came up with it. It will keep you together but it won't heal it all the way. I have to be able to get back in to give you your grace. This will be less painful. And only I can remove it."

He began to stitch the muscle and flesh back together. Lucifer worked quickly, making sure the stitches were tight.

"Poor Gabriel, you look like you're dead."

Gabriel hadn't moved since the last break. He just hung there. He looked so pale and bloody. The only sign that he was awake was the very visible trembling.

"It's cold isn't it, being thrown from God?"

Lucifer unlocked the chains. He carefully unwound them, catching Gabriel as he slumped down. Lucifer sat, holding Gabriel in his lap. Gabriel wrapped his arms around Lucifer's waist and sobbed into Lucifer's shirt. Lucifer stroked Gabriel's head and rubbed his shoulders, avoiding the tortured wings. Gabriel trembled all over, clinging tight to Lucifer. They both knew that angels felt very warm, because God's light was warmth. Even Lucifer still felt very warm, especially now that he was out of the cage. Gabriel was freezing cold without his grace, but pressed against Lucifer's immense heat he began to sweat.

"It's okay. It's over now, it's over Gabriel. And soon it will all be over and then your grace will be returned to you. And then we'll live here, in this beautiful garden. I know you love this world like I do Gabriel. If you're very good I may even keep a few humans around for you. Or how about that little pagan woman. You'd like that wouldn't you?"

Gabriel's shoulders continued to shake as he cried. He gripped tighter to Lucifer whenever he shifted, keeping him in place.

"I won't leave you, not yet. But you have to deal with this on your own, because I had to as well. You will heal, you will be okay. And once this is over you'll be able to stay in my paradise. It'll be perfect, I promise you it will be perfect."

"Go away."

Gabriel's voice was hoarse, a whisper, almost just air. He gripped tighter to Lucifer. Lucifer chuckled and stroked Gabriel's hair.

"It'll be okay Gabriel. It will be, I swear."

Gabriel's tears started to settle, but his grip didn't lessen. Lucifer hummed hymns. Gabriel closed his eyes, but he couldn't sleep. He just stayed still.

"Tell you what, Gabriel. I cannot accompany you, but I can send you someplace, any place you want. Just name it."

"Where you got me."

Gabriel whispered but he didn't hesitate.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes"

Lucifer bent down, kissing his brother's ear. Gabriel closed his eyes.

"Okay. I'll see you again soon Gabriel."

When Gabriel opened his eyes again he was alone in the hotel.

Gabriel slept in the wreckage because he couldn't move. He'd tried when Lucifer first sent him back, but the pain was too much. He slept instead. Or more honestly he passed out when he tried to move and woke up about fourteen hours later.

The pain he woke in was excruciating, but he was very aware of the terrible angle his wings would heal at if he didn't move soon. Dragging himself across the floor until he found a telephone was nearly impossible. Gabriel wasn't really sure how he did it, but he found the phone.

One of the good things about being an Angel was that you tended to be able to remember anything you wanted to remember(and conversely, the worst thing was that you remembered a lot of things you wished to forget). This included the cell phone numbers of certain hunters who certainly owed Gabriel a favor after this.

"Hello," Sam answered.

"Hey Kiddo," Gabriel said. He knew exactly how he sounded. It was why Sam hesitated so much, he was sure.

"Gabriel?"

"Yep, in the flesh, still, shockingly."

"Are you okay?"

Gabriel hesitated. "No. I'm not. I need your help." He started cough. He cursed his luck. His throat was so raw. He was lucky that he'd even been able to get out words at all.

"Gabriel? Gabriel? Are you okay? Where are you?"

"Where you left me."

"Okay, we'll be there soon."

Gabriel hung up before Sam could say anything more. He thought weakly that they were good boys. He felt maybe a little bad for killing Dean so often. Then he slipped back to sleep.

"Sam?" Dean asked, looking over at his brother. It had only been a few days since the incident at the hotel. They hadn't even found any of the other horsemen yet.

"Dean, you need to turn around right now. We have to go back to the hotel."

"That was Gabriel, he's still alive?" Dean couldn't believe he was alive at all.

"Dean, we owe him. He's given us away to end this."

"Not that we've ended it yet, Sammy."

"Dean, you didn't hear him. We have to go back."

"Fine," Dean said. They weren't that far away, and it's not like they had a lead on Death or Pestilence yet anyway. He turned the car around on the deserted road and started heading back the way he'd just come.

Gabriel didn't see anyone for two days. He didn't know exactly how long Lucifer had him. He wasn't even exactly sure of how long it would take the Winchesters to find him. He only knew the days because of the different light he'd see through the cracks in the door to the conference room. Mostly he slept. He couldn't even really move, and his body wasn't healing at all that he could tell.

He was about to go back to sleep when he heard noises. His heart slammed into his ribcage on the thought that it might be a demon or another pagan. He couldn't hide what he was and while Lucifer may kill them for it later, they could do whatever they wanted to Gabriel and he wouldn't be able to stop them.

"Gabriel?" He heard. His mind wasn't quiet working.

"Gabriel?" well, that one was Dean, so the other was Sam.

But it wasn't like he could really move. He made a sound. It didn't sound human or angel, but it was the sound he could make. And Father, did it hurt to do that.

"Gabriel?" he heard again. He couldn't make it again.

"Dammit, where is he?" he heard Dean. "Are we going to have to search every room?"

"Maybe Dean, but let's try the larger rooms."

"As long as he's not in the freezer." Gabriel smiled at that. Stupid kids with their stupid sense of humor.

"Gabriel?" the voices got closer and so did the footsteps.

"Gabriel!" That was definitely close by, especially since Gabriel heard the door opened.

Large lands lay on his shoulders, turning his head a bit. Gabriel began opening his eyes when suddenly that large hands brushed against one of his wings. Gabriel let out a breathless scream and jerked away. His wings didn't hurt near as much as getting his grace removed, but they were so sensitive. There was a reason angels hid them.

"Gabriel?" Sam asked.

"Don't touch the wings," Gabriel whispered.

"What happened?"

Gabriel looked at Sam. Was he really that stupid. "Lucifer." Gabriel put as much emphasis in his voice he could, which wasn't much.

"Man, are you okay?" Dean asked.

"Idjit," Gabriel muttered, shutting his eyes. Really? He'd called these yahoos.

"Okay," Sam said. His large hand came to rest on Gabriel's head. Gabriel had to wince, thinking of Lucifer's touch. It had felt so soothing compared to his pain, of course he'd clung to it. Now Gabriel still felt shame for it. He knew he couldn't have done anything else but what he'd done. That didn't make it any easier.

"Man are you shivering?" Dean asked. Gabriel was, had been since his grace had been removed.

"Cold," Gabriel said.

"Okay, okay. Look, we're going to get you into the car and take you to Bobby's. We're not that far away," Sam said. It wasn't like they could take him to the hospital with his wings out anyway.

"Just hurry up."

Sam had to gather Gabriel into his arms. The wings made it particularly hard because that was because they connected where Sam would normally get a hold. Whenever Sam so much as brushed against them Gabriel would let out some kind of sound of terrible pain. They also made him impossible to carry him bridal style, which would have been best for Gabriel's injuries. The Winchesters made a particularly pained sound themselves when they saw the black thread and the wound it kept closed.

Finally the two brother were able to load Gabriel on Sam's back. Sam cupped Gabriel's knees and Gabriel just tried to keep his elbows bent so he wouldn't fall of. If he fell on his wings… well, he didn't even want to think about it.

He didn't fall of, thankfully, but once they got him outside the car presented a new problem. It was his wings again. He had to lie on his stomach, which hurt far less than his back and he was really too weak to sit up yet. It turned out that the really couldn't lie him on his front, though. They finally just settled with laying him on his side facing the back of the seat. Gabriel's less injured wings were easier to control and faced toward the floor.

"Buckle me in, Sammy," Gabriel said. Sam basically got him tied into the seat around the middle. It was very uncomfortable. Gabriel could deal with very uncomfortable. He couldn't deal with the pain of slipping off and landing on his wings.

Gabriel lay there for a while. He was still exhausted so he didn't even think about why the car wasn't moving and why he didn't hear the Winchesters

"Here, man," Dean said. He'd opened the other side of the door near Gabriel's head. Dean cradled his head, tipping it up so that he could pour water into Gabriel's mouth without choking or drowning him. Gabriel had known just how amazing water really was. He'd seen it be invented. He'd thought he'd known how amazing it was. He didn't until Dean forced a couple of sips of Dasani down his throat.

"Easy, easy," Dean said. He was patient, pouring water into Gabriel's mouth a few sips at a time. He'd control the flow so Gabriel could swallow it down without choking, or vomiting it back up from drinking too much. When Gabriel's abused throat did start chocking it back up Dean had stroked Gabriel's throat to help he water go down.

It hurt, it really hurt, but Gabriel couldn't remember anything tasting so sweet or feeling so good. And he couldn't remember anyone ever having been so kind to him. He was actually glad that once Dean finished helping him drink that Dean simply shut the door and got into the driver's seat. Gabriel didn't have to react and he was happy for that.

He noticed that the brothers were silent and he noticed that the only sound in the car was the sound of the engine and the road beneath the wheels. He didn't know if the silence was for his benefit. It wouldn't have mattered. He would have passed back out anyway.

A/N: So, this is based on A Brother's Mercy by remanth. I read the first chapter of that last night, but it didn't quiet give me what I wanted, though I like the premise. So this is the non-sabriel version of that story I suppose.

I wrote most of this in a notebook while in Creative writing class. My roommate (who was sitting next to me in class said she was sure I was writing fanfiction and not notes. And she was right. :D

Also, this somehow was less uncomfortable when I was writing it in class… does that make any sense at all? I don't write about Angels, okay! It gives me the creeps, like really. I generally think of Supernatural as sub-angel so that I can watch it. But it's a little hard to think of Lucifer as a sub-angel. It just makes it creepy for me.

Torture? Why yes, I apparently do write it. This should be all of it for the rest of this story. How long will this story be? No idea.

Anyway, so what ya think?