Fledge

Fledge - 1

"Rio!" Lewis Jackson called me downstairs. "Lewis wants you and Aidan to take some food round to the new neighbors!"

I locked my phone and slid it into my pocket as I stood up, dropping my duvet cover onto the bed. "Coming!" I yelled back, grabbing some socks from a pile of clothes as I exited. I hopped to Aidan's room, pulling on socks as I went. "Ay-den!" I sang, peering in.

"What?" My foster brother asked, not looking up from his marvel 616.

"Lewis wants us to take some muffins or something to the new neighbors." I explained, peering at the glossy comic book. "Loki looks so stupid in that."

"I know." Aidan stood up. "Lets get it over with, then."

We headed downstairs, and met Lewis in the kitchen, where he gave us a plastic box that held various homemade biscuits. "Here you go then, have fun!" He ushered us out and shut the door behind us.

"Damnit." I said, then took the box from Aidan. "Come on, then!" I marched down the path, him following behind.

I rang the doorbell, and a few moments later, a dark-haired man with light blue eyes met me. "What can I do for you?" He asked, with an american accent.

"I'm Rio O'Hanlon, and this is my foster bro, Aidan Leaver. We live next door," I started. "We got sent over with biscuits and to offer to help you unpack a bit."

"Sure, I guess, come in." He opened the door and we stepped inside. I peered around. It wasn't exactly barren, just stacked with boxes and with very few personal effects. "I'm Charles Shurley, but call me Chuck, everybody does. Gabriel!" He called over his shoulder. "We've got guests, turn off the TV!"

A complaint came from through the doorway. "It's not like I'm useful anyway!" I slid off my shoes, and Aidan copied me.

"Come on through a moment." Chuck led us into a yellow-walled sitting room, where the only furniture was a sofa and a fully-wired television.

"Hey, kids." Gabriel was short, and sitting on the battered sofa he looked even shorter. But I was short too so I couldn't really talk. "I'd stand, but I'd probably hurt myself." He was holding one hand over his chest, as though it hurt, and was leaning on the back of the sofa. I could see the bulk of bandages under his plaid shirt. He looked to be about seventeen, with blonde hair, amber eyes, and a cheerful face. In one hand he held a large bag of chocolate buttons.

"Gabriel's my son." Chuck explained. "He was hurt a while back, so he's not helping much."

"Dad, not my fault!" Gabriel whined. "I've been helping out as much as I can."

I grinned at him. "Let's get started then."

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'Ohana means family'

"The neighbours are nice, aren't they, Dad?" Gabriel asked that night, when they were curled up together on the sofa. "Rio was very sassy though, I could tell."

'Family means no one left behind or forgotten'

"Yes." Chuck agreed, still not appearing anything other than human. Gabriel still couldn't believe that this was his Father, but at the same time, he couldn't not believe it.

The warmth and love and peace that Chuck radiated, Gabriel had only ever encountered in his father before. It couldn't possibly be anyone else, and He was hidden so well that you would never guess it unless He let you. Gabriel could feel the Presence within him, but only because he knew how to look. Raph would've only seen a Prophet.

"What do you think about attending school?" Chuck asked. "It would only be the final year, but I think it would do you some good.
Plus it would be a good way for us to get friends. I de-aged your vessel for appearances sake, but it could have other benefits, like re-socialisation."

"Would I be in a wheelchair?" Gabriel asked, picturing it. "I could kidnap Rio to push me."

"Gabriel," Chuck warned, but he was smiling.

Gabriel turned back to the movie.

"They're a future angel." Chuck added. "They'll be the first human ascension since Joan of Arc."

Gabriel turned to peer at his father. "I thought Florence Nightingale Rose?"

"No, she was actually a fallen the whole time." Chuck said tiredly. He ran a hand through his hair. "Anabiel. Raphael smote her, but I put her back together in a fledgeling and gave her to Joshua. She's free to live in his garden."

"Ah." Gabriel considered Joshua for a moment. The quiet, peaceful angel had appeared in their home a few times, seemingly acting as the go-between between God and Heaven.

Another time he would've griped about job-stealing, but his Grace (and Vessel) had a sizeable hole in the centre, so flying was currently out of the question, as were most of his Archangel tricks. Plus, Joshua'd been doing the job for the past thousand years or so anyway. He could still use his pagan magic, but Loki didn't have a very large following, so there wasn't much to draw from. The Trickster's power source wasn't even accessible currently - It required his Grace.

Joshua did the job with quiet efficiency, and honestly, Gabriel was quite proud of his younger brother.

"What's so special about Rio, then?" Gabriel asked. "I mean, their soul's bright, like really bright, but they're not perfect. They're not a Righteous Woman or anything."

"They have faith. True faith, in everything around her. Optimism in the broadest sense.  They'll fledge when they die, as long as that faith doesn't waver. They're also descended from the firstborn of the firstborn and so on of Seth, so they have a strong bloodline, along with angel blood in there somewhere." Chuck tilted his head. "They're descended from Sammael. Of course they shine brightly."

"Now you mention it..." Gabriel muttered, hand straying to the bandage. "They are kind of like how he was. Like, really similar. "

Chuck nodded. "Angelic DNA often overpowers the human side."

Gabriel sighed and turned back to the movie, tucking his hundreds of wings around them both, carefully avoiding his own chest. "I love you, Dad."

It was so nice for him to relax and let his barriers down, knowing that his Dad wasn't the prophet any more, and that there wasn't an archangel watching his every move.

Gabriel couldn't go home, but his Parent was beside him and that was all that mattered.

"For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also."