sixwordstories | (no subject)

*She blinks then stares. And then she slowly, carefully takes the key out of the ignition.*

Okay...

[Those are some mighty impressive wings you're sporting there, Cas. Don't mind while Maleficent looks them over, the corner of her mouth drawing into a smirk.] On whose authority? Yours?

[Surely not.]

*arms crossed*

Make me.

*sticks her tongue out.*

Castiel tilts his head curiously

You would not like how I did that child.

Uh-huh.

I don't think you will.

[Cas normally would have used the shadows to represent his wings as is tradition but he had a feeling that would not have been enough here. His expression does not change thought.]

Yes, do you doubt I could stop you?

Anika I am Castiel and I have need of your help.

the impressive black wings fold into Cas' coat and he smiles

Forgive me for startling you but I needed to get your attention.

And why not? Do you not think I could?

She thinks, then nods slowly and sits back in the driver's seat with her gloved hands carefully on the steering wheel, in sight.

Well you certainly have my attention now, Mister Castiel.
Castiel? Why does that ring a bell?

We are going to forgo the question of how you know my name for a moment, alright? But I do want to come back to it later, if there's time.

What kind of help do you need?

I doubt it, certainly. [Whatever he is, whatever dominion he thinks he holds over her, Maleficent won't be subdued by it. She's so much stronger than he knows.] You would, after all, be the first. Not to try, of course. Many have tried.

You could. But you won't because if you do I'm going to tell on you to my mom and then she'll yell at you and you'll feel all horrible and you won't get to have any cookies. And uncle Aidan made some walnut and peanut butter cookies this morning and they're the best.

You want have to want uncle Aidan's cookies.

Everyone wants uncle Aidan's cookies. Except soulless abominations from the nether realms that prey on children and want to steal them away and make them fat and eat them.

And you're not a soulless abomination from the nether realms that prey on children and want to steal them away and make them fat and eat them.

Are you?

[Five year old logic. She has it.]

[Derek gives those wings a good look over. The sudden appearance had startled him and made his suspicion rise. The man smells human but the wings looks authentic. He hadn't met an real angel before though. Feeling cautious he switches over to his werewolf sight which definitely reveal the Grace around the man. So he drops his arm to his side and takes a step back from the door he had been inspecting earlier.]

What'd you want?

[Cas chuckles the sound carrying weight and power with it. It is a rare thing when he gets to exercise his power like this. Dare he admit he's having fun.]

I plan to start what I finish.

I need to know the future of my most important charges. They are...experiencing difficulties.

[She'll just stare back blankly for a minute. She's not fazed in the slightest, her own wings are far more impressive. Although the display did get her attention so I suppose mission accomplished? She's also convinced he doesn't have the power to hold her, few do. But, it's curious. Why would an angel be stopping the only phoenix in town? Ok, she'll bite.]

What do you want with me?

Well that's simple then. Oh wait - what?

I think you have the wrong person. Pre-cog isn't my mmm, my gift. I can't read the future. And I have to physically touch someone to get a connection to them.

This is going to sound weird, but ah, have I touched your people before?

It is possible. Have you met Sam and Dean Winchester before?

[The wings vanish and for a second Castiel looks weary. He doesn't really have the Grace to do a big display like that but he needed her to stop.]

Simply to talk.

Don't get out of the car, don't get out of the car she tells herself. So of course she gets out of the car. The small gold fish symbol on the delicate chain around her neck glimmers by streetlight as she slowly approaches the winged man who knows her name.

I may have? I spent years at Cedars-Sinia Med Ctr, I was an EMT in Los Angeles for a while. I went to school at UCLA, and UMASS in Boston; where would I have come in contact with these Winchesters? Oh this is going to sound so horrible she thinks. And I've come in contact with hundreds of people over my life. Do you have something more to go on than a name?

Edited 2014-11-01 05:23 (UTC)

Sam and Dean are hard to miss. Sam is the taller one and Dean has interesting language. They are hunters.

She is cycling through her connecting threads, the wide ones of loved ones, and the thinner ones; those of acquaintances and friends. From there she's starting to reach for the hair-stand like threads, those connections made in coffee shops and on airplanes. So many people over the past year, the past several. A few shine brighter as she concentrates - possibilities?

I can't recall a Dean, or a Sam. The closest I can feel is - oh, twin brothers who hunted ghosts in one of the LA hospitals, and oh! There were a couple guys a few years back. A blonde and a brunette. The brunette bumped into me while I was carrying paperwork down the hall, and they both helped me pick it all back up. But they weren't brothers. They were FBI agents, looking into one of the patients at the hospital.

I saw them a couple times in the hallways, and then they were gone again.

Sam and Dean are brothers yes but not twins and they have been FBI agents and Game Wardens among other things. They have tended toward darkness in recent years and I am concerned.

All right. Give me a second to try and remember, ok? It's been a couple years.

Closing her eyes she feels for those threads of connection again, the ones buried under the weight of other years, other touches. Several heartbeats later her eyes snap open and she gasps

Dead, but not dead? I don't understand! The connection should have been severed at death. But it isn't, it's dragging, attached to something else maybe? It's dragging and - and it's cold. So cold. The other is, is, bound to the first. Close then far, weaving. Searching. I can't... she shudders, opens her eyes looking stricken.

Sam and Dean have come back from death several times each. They are also soul mates which has created issues in the past. One cannot live without the other.

[Cas sounds deeply sad about this for reasons that are his own.]

I fear for their mental state if this continues.

What can you do? What can anyone do?

[she's still shaken by what she'd felt when she reached out to touch that psychic thread connecting them. And there is no doubt in her mind now, that it is Sam and Dean who's threads she had been seeing and feeling.]

Fair enough I suppose. Well, you certainly have my attention.

That is what I was hoping you could tell me. One brother carries the Mark of Cain and most humans know how that story ends.

I don't know what I can do to help. I'm a doctor not a theologian. Wait, where had she heard a line similar to that before?

I know the Bible, and I read it even if I don't get to church every Sunday. The mark of Cain is a warning, but that was only after Cain killed... you said his brother is still alive?

Cas nods. "It was a close thing Dean did try to kill him, but I managed to get there in time to stop him. With the Mark still in place though I am not sure if the demon cure will stick."

Then technically he should not have gotten the mark, or is my knowledge wrong?

Wait, demon cure? And now she has to ask, because it's burning her up inside

Your wings, Castiel. I hope this isn't too impersonal, but are you really - I mean, is it a mutation or, or...

Cas smiles. "It is not a mutation I am indeed an Angel of the Lord. A weakened one to be sure but still an angel. As for the Mark, Dean is of Cain's bloodline and taking the it from Cain was the only way to defeat a fellow Knight of Hell."

[And her night has literally just been made. Maybe her week. Heck, maybe the entire month. An actual, honest to - well - God, Angel!]

Weak or not, you are still an, still a. Wow. I'm [Deep breaths Anika, come on]

That would make sense, because Cain was left to wander, darn it now I'm going to go back and read Exodus again.

I don't know what I can do. I can feel the present, but I can't tell the future? But [And suddenly she feels shy] I can pray for them. It's not much, I realize that. I don't know how else to help though.

Castiel's eyes soften and he smiles again. "Prayer always helps no matter how much faith in the process humans lose or gain. And Dean and Sam need prayer and hope more than anyone else on Earth."

Then of course I will pray for both of the Winchester brothers, Castiel. And if they need someone, wow that sounds stupid.

What I mean to say is; I'm not bad at stitching up wounds and not informing the authorities about it. Lets say I have a bit of experience with that sort of thing.

No it is not stupid they will be honored by your prayers I am sure. The Winchesters do not believe they are worthy of such a thing.

[Cas smiles.]

Thank you for your offer of healing as well. We have few allies these days and always need more.

I am looking for help with an issue. My Grace is failing and people are not ready for me to die. But I need another option then stealing Grace from my brothers and sisters.

I feel as though you could help me.

Yes well [she shrugs, gives him a half-smile] You know where to find me if you need me, alright?

[Eliza frowns as she thinks over what he says. She strongly suspects this particular angel is the same as one others she's met briefly had spoken about, and it's certainly true that they had spoken fondly of him. That makes her more receptive to finding a way to help him than she might be.]

Well.... I've given others new Life before. Grace is something different but... Yes, I can probably find a way. It may take some time for me to figure out exactly how to modify the ritual. But... maybe this could help in the mean time...

[A small burst of fire from her back, then her own brilliant orange wings are there. She reaches back to find a loose feather. Her eyes flicker as she pulls it free, ensuring her power stays in it. She is a being of purity and Life, after all. Perhaps that power can help him, at least until she figures out how to take that purity and Life and turn it into Grace. It will be a fun challenge, the first true challenge she's had in centuries. She's actually fairly excited about the idea. She holds out the feather to him.]

For now, this small gift. The power in it is yours to do with what you want. Perhaps it can at least sustain what Grace you have, until I find a way to help you gain more.

[Cas bows his head in thanks and takes the feather.]

You honor me with this gift thank you. I hope it will help.

[Eliza smiles brightly and gives a small curtsy.]

As do I. I'll be seeing if I can find a more reliable solution as well.

Yes I do....I promise not to scare you again the next time we meet.

I am grateful for any help at all. I have been told I can be stubborn when it comes to my needs.

She tried to downplay it with a shrug. "It, it was startling I must admit."

The doctor began to laugh, she couldn't help it. "But as long as you're not here to tell me that I'm pregnant, or that I really messed up along the way and did something really bad? I'm good, really."

Anika added "Besides, I like the wings. They're" They were a reaffirmation of her faith, of her belief in the good in mankind, of her love of god.

"They're really beautiful" Was all she could think to say out loud.

I've been accused of the same often enough.

It's a result of living here on Earth for so long.....I'm afraid human feels are getting to me.

Castiel ducks his head and smiles. "Thank you," he says sounding like a sheepish child, "you honor me with your words."

[She shrugs, not used to talking to angels.]

"It's true though." She turns to get back into her car, but pauses at the door.

"I'll pray for you too, you know. You should know that. I believe, Castiel. And I'll pray."

"Thank you. May my Father bless you and keep you safe."