Gabriel sees Uriel post-Fall

[cattygabriel]

Gone was the angel who walked barefoot around the Manor library in jeans and T-shirts with a smile for his cats and anyone walking in; the being pacing Lucifer's foyer now was every inch a cold, furious Archangel.

In the Manor chapel, Gabriel had paused long enough to send notes to Michael and Raphael explaining what had happened - they might have sensed it, have already known, but Uriel was their brother too and Gabriel should at least let them know - and another to Mary Hodges, saying he'd be away for a while due to a family emergency and requesting that she keep an eye on the cats. Outside, the rain turned to unseasonable hail.

Gabriel had called his sword and horn to him and hung them on the belt of now ornate robes, his wings unfurling behind him, lit by the glow of his own aura; he normally disliked reminding people of his rank, but his younger brother was in Hell and he wanted to remind any demon trying to stop him that he was not in the mood to be stopped and cross-examined.

And it had not worked. All Gabriel wanted was to find Uriel and Belial, but he had been met by enough politeness and red tape and bureaucracy to put Heaven to shame. Asmodeus had met him at the gates, oozing civility, and agreed to grant him safe passage to at least see his brother, and as they entered each successive circle there had been new border checks and forms and repeated questions and attempts to get him to disarm. By the time Asmodeus had finally shown him into what seemed like Lucifer's foyer and left, the Messenger's already stretched patience had been hanging by a frayed thread.

He strode up and down, wondering desperately where and how Uriel was while trying to avoid any thoughts about Uriel's Fall itself, or any possible changes in his brother. He had failed Uriel, should have been more vigilant, should have made sure Belial stayed away from him, should have tried harder to intercede with their Father on his behalf, and his face was stony as he imagined everything he could have done to keep Belial away.

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[cattygabriel]

Gabriel glanced at the chairs, which did indeed look cosy and inviting, and at the expression on Uriel's face. Then he judged the distance to the door.

"What safe subject could we talk about, Lucifer? As you said, it has been far too long."

[lux_invictus]

Lucifer was seeing to it that Uriel wouldn't be saying much, and the fallen angel only leaned back further into the Morningstar's calming touch as he fixed Gabriel with a hopeful gaze.

For his part, Lucifer only raised an eyebrow. "I don't know, Gabriel. Books? Cats? The airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?" he replied with just the right amount of both sarcasm and levity.

[cattygabriel]

Startled, Gabriel laughed despite himself. "What do you mean? An African or European swallow?"

Well, that had been... unexpected, to say the least. Although the sight of Uriel so pliant in Lucifer's arms was still disconcerting, not least because of the memories it brought back of Gabriel himself relaxing as Lucifer groomed his wings.

Gabriel would just have to remember their last conversation, and remind himself that Lucifer had his own agenda.

[lux_invictus]

"European. Do not think you can have me tossed off a cliff so easily, my dear." Lucifer motioned to the chairs once again. "Are you sure you won't grace us with your company for a while?"

[emberlight]

"Please, Gabriel?" Uriel added as he extended his hand toward his brother. He may not have understood most of the conversation between Lucifer and Gabriel - what did swallows have to do with anything, anyway? - but he knew he wanted his brother to stay, even if only for a short while.

[cattygabriel]

As nice as Lucifer was being and as much as he normally valued politeness, Gabriel knew he should leave, or at least stay for the briefest time possible and then leave. But Uriel's plea, his expression, meant that leaving instantly was now out of the question. Besides, despite Uriel's assurance to the contrary Gabriel still felt as if he had failed in protecting his brother and making sure he knew he was wanted. He could endure a little discomfort for Uriel's sake.

He reached out to clasp Uriel's hand before pulling his own back, remembering that it would hurt him. "I will stay, but briefly."

He moved towards the chairs, seating himself in the one nearest the door.

[emberlight]

Uriel looked absolutely heartbroken when Gabriel pulled away. As much as the pain of being touched by his brother's Grace had startled him earlier, he had none the less hoped Gabriel would take his hand. He turned to Lucifer for support, received it in the form of a light hand carding through his feathers before gently pushing him toward the remaining chairs.

He eyed them for a moment, but Lucifer's chairs were not as susceptible as Belial's sheets had been to his whims and they remained sturdy, high-backed chairs no matter how hard he wished for a comfortable couch to recline on. Sighing to himself, he let his wings and aura fade. After a moment of concentration, a hanger in Belial's wardrobe was left rocking gently and Uriel was once again wrapped in the Crown's short, blue robe.

Though he wanted to be close to Gabriel, he still did not know what to make of his brother pulling away. What was more, Lucifer had been the one to ask him to stay. After a moment's indecision, Uriel took the far chair and carefully seated himself, leaving the chair between them for Lucifer.

[lux_invictus]

Lucifer paused for a moment, using Uriel's hesitation to quickly read the note from Belial that had materialized on the bookshelf by his side. Smiling to himself, he tucked it away and followed in Uriel's wake. The fact that the newly-Fallen angel had chosen not to sit next to his brother did not escape him and no doubt Gabriel would be hurt by the gesture.

Looking to smooth figurative ruffled feathers and take advantage of Belial's work, he conjured up a tray of cupcakes* and hot tea and set it on a table between the two angels. "A peace-offering?" He offered, taking the single white-iced cupcake along with a cup of tea for himself.


* yes, those cupcakes

[cattygabriel]

At the sight of Uriel's heartbroken expression Gabriel's own expression mirrored it, especially when Uriel took the furthest chair. It seemed as though he could not do anything right when it came to his brother, no matter how hard he tried.

He was momentarily relieved when Uriel clothed himself - he had been trying extremely hard to not notice his brother's nudity or think of whom what Uriel had likely been doing - but then he actually saw the robe and really, it was no better. Averting his eyes, he folded his wings away and dimmed his Grace a little, hoping that it would cause less pain for Uriel this way but unwilling to hide it completely, and very briefly entertained the idea of chopping Belial's head off.

Clearly, agreeing to stay for a while had been a mistake. Still, he shifted awkwardly in his chair and took a cupcake that had blue sprinkles on its frosting, picking a couple off for lack of something to do with his hands and nibbling on them. For some reason he was reminded of the myth of Persephone and the literary tradition of a taboo against eating food in other realms, but dismissed it. Lucifer was no Hades, and eating something in other realms had never had an effect on him before. He was a little surprised, though; if forced to think of something the ruler of Hell would offer his guests to eat, cupcakes would not have been his first thought. "Thank you, Lucifer."

He cast about for something to say, and finally settled on, "How have you been?"

[emberlight]

Uriel considered the cupcakes, remembering those he had found outside his room before he had... When he... He glanced over at Gabriel and was glad to see his brother's attention was focused on the cupcake rather than on himself.

Looking back at the past few days, he did not regret acquiescing to Belial's demands, but in retrospect it seemed an odd thing to do. Nor had Belial ever been quite so direct with him before, though the Crown had admitted to desiring him for quite some time. Had the cupcakes had something to do with it? Would Lucifer know?

He hesitated for a moment before taking one, but both Lucifer and Gabriel had taken one and neither showed any adverse effects. Trusting in Lucifer to keep him safe, Uriel reached for a bright yellow cupcake, hoping it would lighten his mood. He could always broach the subject of his Fall with Lucifer later, when Gabriel was no longer around.

[lux_invictus]

If Lucifer had a choice, he would have served a proper English tea, but there was precious little time to act on the opportunity he had been given and he wasn't about to tamper with the cupcakes and risk damaging whatever magic they contained.

"Well enough, given the circumstances. Reigning in Hell does have a way of keeping one busy. And you?" Lucifer watched Gabriel closely as he spoke, waiting to see if the blue-sprinkled cupcake would have a similar effect on him as Belial had theorized it had on Uriel.

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel bit into the cupcake, pleasantly surprised by how good it was; the frosting was rich and creamy and not too sweet, and the cake was moist and delicious. He thought he could even taste blueberry liqueur.

Chewing and swallowing, he turned to reply to Lucifer. "Well enough. I had my usual duties in Heaven, but recently I spent some time at Tadfield Manor as their librarian." He glanced at Uriel as he spoke, wondering if inviting his brother had even been the right thing to do; he had missed Uriel and could not regret the time spent with him at the Manor, but if he had not invited Uriel there the other angel might not have met Belial. Might not have Fallen.

[emberlight]

Uriel looked up from the cupcake he had been picking apart. "Oh. I- Um, how do I put this? There might be some books- okay, a few... or maybe a lot of books. In my room. That I should have returned..." he trailed off sheepishly.

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel could not help but smile at his brother's sheepishness. "I will return them for you." His smile turned a little sad. "Will you be bringing your plants here?"

[emberlight]

Remembering the meal he had made for Belial and the vegetables he had already harvested, Uriel answered promptly, "I already have." It wasn't what he had quite intended to say - he had wanted to ask if coming back to the manor was out of the question - but the truth spilled out before he could even think twice about it.

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel's expression was now entirely sad, but he only nodded and sat back, taking another bite of cupcake. He didn't know what he could say to Uriel now, or what he could say at all.

[lux_invictus]

Lucifer glanced sharply at Uriel; that was far more bluntness than he had expected from the relatively guileless angel. Perhaps he should have taken more care with the selection of cupcakes.

Well, what was done was done and could not be undone. He was relatively certain he knew the effects of the cupcake Uriel had chosen and would be cautious with any conversation directed at the angel.

Once again turning his attention to Gabriel, he put forth his kindest, most conciliatory demeanor. "Is something wrong, Gabriel?"

[cattygabriel]

"Did you want an honest answer?" Gabriel replied. "Because if so, then where would I begin? With the fact that I no longer know what to say to the brother I love? Or the fact that we are all here because Uriel Fell? Should I list everything I could have done to keep him safe, every way I failed him? Or my other failings over the millennia? Or should I go further back to your own Fall?"

Despite his words, his tone was fairly calm and even.

[lux_invictus]

Setting aside his cupcake for a moment, Lucifer poured a half-cup of tea and added in a generous measure of sugar and cream before handing the cup to Gabriel. "Start wherever you like. I can and will answer every question you ask."

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel accepted the cup, taking a sip; its milky warmth was comforting. "Thank you. But questions are dangerous. You both know that."

[lux_invictus]

Lucifer glanced over at Uriel pointedly before turning back to Gabriel. He reached for his own cup, taking a sip of unadulterated rich, black tea. "The only dangerous questions are the ones that go unanswered."

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel set his own cupcake too in favour of cradling his cup, enjoying the heat. "That is easier for you to say. Any stray thought questioning Him or His Plan is dangerous for me."

[lux_invictus]

Lucifer smiled over the rim of his cup, the steam curling up around his face. "Of course. Because He is not in favor of answering questions. Better they go unasked, unthought, than be voiced and give way to unpleasantries."

[cattygabriel]

Gabriel looked up at him. "Yes. I cannot deal with that loss again, Lucifer. I cannot even fathom losing it wholly and Falling."

[lux_invictus]

"I am Fallen, Gabriel, yet I cannot fathom it myself. To be cast out because I dared question Him, because I loved Him too much."