#aony

Cast from Heaven

To seek pure heart

To find true beauty

In selfless start

But fare thee well

For once love is won

One’s true heartbreak

Cannot be undone.

- An original poem

“This is truly an act of love”

Heaven Bound Part One:

“You can’t do this to me!”

“Joshua, this is not something we enjoy. We have made attempts to be lenient with you, and you have proven time and time again you are unworthy of our patience.”

The high council, made up of the three great archangels, Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, was not a new place for Joshua. He was often at the receiving end of Michael’s anger.

However, it seemed this time neither Gabriel’s compassion nor Rafael’s logic could stop Michael.

Gabriel leaned forward. “Joshua, it may be difficult for you to understand now, but this is not something we are doing to hurt you. This is truly an act of love.”

“We strive to make you stronger,” Raphael added. “To help you grow in areas where you are weak.”

“I am not weak!” Joshua yelled, his voice trembling. He felt small in the hall of angels, with nothing between him and the great leaders but white and golden marble.

Gabriel frowned, his eyes shifting to Michael. “Maybe he is not ready for this. Maybe we should house him with the Keeper of the Children, just until we are sure…”

Michael shook his head. “He will never be truly ready.” His eyes fell on Joshua. “Joshua, for your sins, you have been sentenced to Earth. You may return when you can demonstrate a heart that is pure and free of self. May you fare well and return soon.”

_

Joshua laid on the floor of his tiny studio apartment, staring at the painting of constellations on the ceiling. It had been there when he moved in, and it was the only good thing about what could only be described as shit hole.

It had been six months since the council had cast him out, six months since he had been doomed to this lowly human existence.

He pushed himself off the floor, slipped on a pair of shoes, and stalked out the door. He didn’t bother to lock it. It wasn’t like he had anything of value to steal.

The Basilica of St. Patrick in Manhattan was old. Most of the lights were off when Joshua stepped into the nave, though it was warm and their were candles still burning at the altar. He slowly walked to the apse and kneeled, bowing his head.

“I don’t know what I’m doing.” He whispered into the silence. “I need guidance. I need direction. I need something. . .anything. . .please. . .”

At first, he was sure it was going to be easy. Despite his own personal flaws, charity was easy for angels to spot, and there was certainly no lack of needy people in a city as large as New York. So it had surprised him when he had not been called home after giving his jacket to the homeless child in the street. It had angered him when he had not been called home after breaking up a domestic fight in front of an apartment building a month later. 

Had his brothers gone back on their word? Had they simply forgotten him? He imagined it was possible for Michael, or even Raphael, whose mind was easily enveloped, but his heart ached at the thought of Gabriel betraying him. Gabriel, the messenger, the go-between, the confidant among the angels. He was the most merciful, the most compassionate, the most clear-sighted and level-headed.

We haven’t forgotten.

It was almost like it came from deep in his mind. Joshua wasn’t even sure if it was really Gabriel, or just him trying to reassure himself.

You need more time.

“Excuse me.”

Joshua nearly jumped out of his skin. He spun around, coming face to face with a young woman. She was probably nineteen or twenty, with red curls thrown up into a messy bun and a smattering of freckles across a fair, angular face. Her green eyes were intense, but not angry. Just. . .interested. She wore a black and white long sleeve t-shirt under overalls splattered with paint, and a golden chain with a cross hanging from her slender neck. As she approached, Joshua realized just how tall she was, her eyes nearly level with his.

She was beautiful in every sense of the word, from the way she walked, to her upturned nose, to the long, slim fingers that brushed away a stray curl, to steady, fearless way she looked at him, as if he wasn’t a stranger from the street, but an old friend she hadn’t seen in years.

“I-I’m sorry.” Joshua stuttered. “I didn’t mean- the door was open and the candles were still lit and- I can leave-”

She smiled, one corner of her mouth raising higher than the other. It was charming in an innocent sort of way. “It’s okay. I used to sneak in here, too. I’m the one who left the door unlocked. I’m restoring some of the old murals.” She leaned forward, her eyes narrowing. “I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”

Joshua smiled sheepishly. “I-I usually come when the church is open. . .I’m Joshua.”

She stuck out her hand, which Joshua shook. “Maggie. I’m here most nights. It’s nice to meet you, Joshua.” She turned to start walking away, but turned back. “I’ll. . .keep the door open.”

_

The cold December air felt different as Maggie made her usual walk home. It was still biting, but something made the wind less. . .intrusive.

She smiled to herself as she entered her building, opting to climb the stair instead of taking the elevator. Joshua. It was a simple and fairly popular name, but it stuck like glue to the inside of her mind, and she couldn’t help but roll it around on her tongue as she walked.

Their conversation had lasted barely a minute, and yet the young man in the leather jacket had left quite the impression. His dark, soulful eyes and open expression brought to mind images of angels and mythical heroes. She doubted she would see him again, though. People had broken into churches she had worked in before, and they vanished into the darkness when they were caught.

Maggie sighed as she closed the door to her apartment and let her hair slip from its binding, cascading down her back. She poured herself a glass of wine and stared out her kitchen window and into the twinkling Manhattan night.

Who are you, Joshua? She thought. Where do you come from? What is your story?

______________________________________

Soundtrack

Anger- Sleeping At Last

Life of the Party- All Time Low

Author’s Note: Okay. Chapter three. Christmas. I’m sorry it took me so long to get this one out. It took me a long time to write, and then I hated it and completely started over. This still isn’t the way I wanted it to be originally, but it’s much closer to what I originally pictured. I hope you enjoy

Word Count: 932

Soundtrack:

It’s Christmas So We’ll Stop - Frightened Rabbit

Christmas Lights - Coldplay

Just Like Christmas - Low

Heaven Sent: Part 3

“No, listen!”

“That can’t possibly be true!”

“I swear to God!”

Joshua snorted. “I refuse to believe there’s a crypt under the altar in the church. It’s a sin to lie, Maggie!”

Maggie laughed and wound her arm through his, leaning her head on his shoulder. New York at Christmas time was beautiful, and despite the cold, they were enjoying their walk around Time Square. A giant Christmas tree stood in the center, both decorated and surrounded by thousands and thousands of twinkling lights, and the windows in all the shops were full of toys and expensive jewelry and other tantalizing gifts. Christmas carols played through open doors and couples with their young children moved through the square with joy evident in their faces.

Maggie pulled Joshua over to a cart and bought them both hot chocolate, and Joshua found himself getting lost in her eyes as she grinned at him over the rim of her drink. The end of her nose was a cute shade of pink and the Christmas lights sparkled in her jade colored eyes like stars.

They kept walking arm in arm, chatting about things going on in their lives. Maggie was almost finished with her work in the church, and a little part of Joshua was sad. Their moments in front of the altar were the moments when they were closest, when their real feelings and emotions came forward and they were able to learn about each other.

Maggie glanced up and gasped. “Josh, look! Mistletoe.”

He looked up. Sure enough, mistletoe hung from the awning above them. He smiled slyly at her and wrapped a lazy arm around her shoulder. “I guess that means I have to kiss you.”

“Then do it.”

Joshua blinked. “W-what.”

All of the joking had left her voice, but her eyes still held the same light and joy they always did, and the corner of her mouth was still turned up in that painfully beautiful crooked smile. “Go ahead. Kiss me.”

Joshua grinned, trying to hide his panic. “Isn’t that a little bit cheesy?”

Maggie laughed. “Who cares?”

There wasn’t really any more conversation after that. Joshua took a step forward and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear with a shaky hand. She smelled of roses and chocolate and something that reminded him of Heaven. He pressed his lips gently to hers, a gentle sigh escaping from his mouth.

Heaven was full of wonderful things. Heaven was where wonderful things were born. But nothing was as wonderful as this, as her. She tasted of honey and chocolate, and she seemed to melt in his arms when he wrapped them around her waist to pull her closer. She wound her arms around his neck as he pulled away, resting his forehead against hers.

“Josh.” Maggie said softly. Her eyes seemed to glitter, and she reached up gently to touch his cheek. He leaned into her hand almost instinctively, his eyes closing.

She pulled away from him too soon, grabbing his hand and pulling him off the sidewalk and back into the throng of people. Her fingers were laced through his tightly, and he was sure she didn’t know, but the grip she had on his heart was even tighter.

She guided him to the center of the square and dropped his hand, turning to face him. Her cheeks and eyes were as bright as ever, but there was something else about her now. The look on her face was full of joy and sadness at the same time, as if she had seen something from long ago and was once again longing for it.

“I’ve come here every Christmas since I moved to this city.” Maggie said. It had started to snow, and the snowflakes melting on her cheeks looked like silver tears. “Every year, I come here alone, and every year I wish for the same thing. I wish for someone to look at me the way you’re looking at me right now. I wish for someone to look at me like I matter, like I’m not just another faceless stranger.”

Joshua stared at her, dumbfounded. Even in this crowd, she was the only person he saw. She was the only person he ever saw. He took her hands, his fingers lacing through hers like they were made to be held by each other.

“You have always mattered.” He said in a voice just loud enough for her to hear. “Every moment I’ve had with you has mattered more than the last. Every second has mattered to me, Maggie. Every single one.”

She stared, wide eyed, as he reached under his coat for the rosary around his neck. He hung it around her’s carefully, and she touched the wooden beads and bronze cross with careful fingers.

“It’s to remind you,” Joshua explained, “That I’ll never forget you. You’ll never stop mattering to me. I’ll never not love you.”

And then they were kissing again, this time Maggie’s hands fisted in the soft leather collar of his coat. Joshua’s hold was so tight on her, he was afraid she might break, as if she were one of the delicate china dolls in one of the shop windows. It seemed impossible to be able to want someone, to be able to love someone like this, like they were the only thing holding you together.

But he did. He did love her. He loved her enough that he frowned when she finally pulled away, and he loved her enough to say yes when she asked him to come home with her.

read part one here

Author’s note: This is a short part. I’m trying to get to the Christmas chapter, which is really the next important part. Also, let me know what you guys are thinking, because if you like book one, I have at least three more planned.

Word Count: 774

Soundtrack:

Brother by Kodaline

Imagine by the Beatles

Heaven Sent: Part 2

“You shouldn’t do this to yourself. He’s young, but he’s not helpless.”

Gabriel looked up, startled. Were Raphael’s feet really so silent even on the marble of the hall, or had he really been so wrapped in Joshua’s activities he had not heard his brother’s approach? “It’s been six months, and he’s made no progress.” He sighed angrily and stood. “I told him. I TOLD Michael this wasn’t the way to teach him. He may have final say in council matters, but he cannot see the future. None of us can. It is why we are council in the first place.”

Rafael sat in Gabriel’s abandoned seat. “You favor the boy.” It wasn’t a question.

Gabriel’s smile had no humor in it. “How can I not when he reminds me so much of myself?”

Rafael sighed and glanced into the spherical looking glass. He could see Joshua leaving the church. There was a strange glow about the boy, but he kept it to himself. “At least he hasn’t lost all hope.  It may take him much longer. He wouldn’t be the first to spend a hundred years or more on Earth. Azazel has come a long way since then.”

Azazel, the angel of death and mourning, was brooding and moody, but also gentle at heart, and delicate with the souls he carried, skills he had not learned until he was forced to spend more than a century on Earth.

Gabriel sighed. “You’re right. You’re right! I shouldn’t worry so much. He can manage.”

Raphael smiled to himself as he watched his brother leave the hall. Gabriel would continue to worry, just as sure as rain would fall.

_

Joshua pulled his jacket closer around him. He hated winter, hated it with a deep, burning sensation he hadn’t ever experienced before. The cold made him miserable. It made his bones ache and his skin sting and his nose run and his eyes water.

He hadn’t really planned on going to the church. It was two weeks before Christmas, and the coldest night of the year, but something was pulling him there. He needed. . .well, he wasn’t really sure what he needed. He hadn’t seen Maggie since that first night. If he was honest, he was nervous about seeing her again. Not only was she beautiful, there was the very real possibility of her calling the police, despite her kindness during their first meeting.

The doors were open and the candles were lit, just as they had been on that first night nearly a week ago, but Maggie was not wandering somewhere deep in the back halls of the cathedral. Instead, she was sat in the third row, her arms on the pew in front of her and her chin resting on her fists.

She didn’t even look up as Joshua slid into the seat next to her. “Do you think she told anyone?”

Joshua blinked. “What?”

Maggie sat back and looked at him. Up close, he could see the rings of gold around her pupils and smell the faint rose scent of her shampoo. “Mary. Do you think she told anyone that her kid was going to be the son of God?”

Joshua looked from her to the cross above the alter. He had never been anything other than an angel. He had never questioned The Story, never thought to ask about any of it. Now, after centuries of unshakable faith, this girl, this human girl he barely knew, was asking him questions he didn’t know the answers to. “I mean, probably. She told Joseph.”

“Do you think anyone believed her?”

“I don’t have an answer to that question.”

They sat in silence for a long moment, and for the first time in nearly seven months, Joshua didn’t think of home. He thought of the girl sitting next to him, and the possibilities of knowing her and experiencing the future with her as a friend. As something more.

“Are you seeing you parents for Christmas?”

Joshua shook his head. “No, uh, no. I, um, don’t really get on with my parents that well. Are you? Seeing your parents, I mean.”

She looked down at her hands. “I don’t really know my parents. I grew up in foster care, and it’s just been me for the last few years.” She shrugged and smiled crookedly. Joshua was starting to think it was the only way she could smile. “Maybe since we’re both going to be on our own, we should spend Christmas together.”

The idea was so sudden, Joshua couldn’t help the smile that spread across his own face. “I’d like that. I’d like that a lot.”

I was originally planning on having the new chapter of Heaven Sent out by 10 pm CST, but that's in less than two hours and I still have SO much work I need to do on it. The new plan is to have it out by 12 noon CST tomorrow, but depending how tonight goes, that deadline may get pushed back.