He looks really depressed, said Elizabeth's voice. Like he could hurl himself off a bridge at any second.
You can't just say that about someone, retorted Gabrielle, eyes going wide. She twiddled with a piece of her hair, wrapping a strand around her finger and running her thumb through it. The soft sound that came from it was nice, considering the other sounds coming from the gym weren't as pleasant.
It was raining cats and dogs outside, so the entire gym class was inside. Their sneakers screeched against the ground like a fork on a chalkboard except louder and much more rapidly. They were playing rugby - the most aggressive sport Gabrielle could think of. She got knocked to the ground pretty quickly and the coach had been very nice and said she didn't have to play anymore.
Ben, though, was on the side-lines because someone had shoved him to the ground and "accidentally" shoved their foot into his face. His nose had bled and he'd refused Gabrielle's help, so now he just had blood smeared on his face and shirt. And he gazed at his palms as if they held the saddest story in the world on them.
She'd decided to just compare him to an emo puppy at this point. His eyes were big and blue and they glinted with unformed tears, reminding her of a dog and maybe that wasn't a good thing, but it was mostly his hair. It was clear that he never brushed it, as it was a big mess that hung around his head like a cloud. A rain cloud, probably.
Not to say she was attracted to dogs, of course. She didn't know how she felt about him anymore.
And it didn't necessarily matter, anyway, because the most important thing was keeping him alive.
The coach's whistle snapped her from her thoughts, and she whipped her head around to find the players running back into the dressing rooms to get changed. Detangling her hands from her hair, she got up and headed there as well.
It was raining, so she didn't wear a sundress, like she would've wanted. Rather, she wore a yellow rain jacket over a blue sweater and blue jeans. The blue sweater was very cozy and comforting and it reminded her of Canada. Though she decided she didn't want to be reminded of Canada and instead thought of the sweater only as a hug. A nice, warm hug that could last for hours. Days, even.
Canada carried only bad memories. Her parents, her sister, her dog. Things that made Gabrielle really just want to kick the mud about.
It wasn't like her parents had abused her or anything. They hadn't done drugs, drank too much. They didn't even look at her wrong or sourly. Until the day her sister came home one day with a boy and the next day she was dead with drugs practically seeping out of her skin. Then her mother couldn't get her eyes off of her and her father didn't look at her again.
It hadn't been particularly awful, but then they divorced, too, when her father stopped looking at anyone at all. Her mother won custody and decided to run with her campaign based entirely on her dead daughter.
Soon it was all anyone talked about.
Elizabeth had been like some glorious scap-goat, literally coming from the heavens to take her somewhere better with better people and better weather and better everything.
Ben had just been an added bonus. A filler for the void that bottomed out her chest when her sister had died, something she could smile about.
And then not even a week of her being there, he'd almost died. Twice.
She couldn't help but feel a little responsible.
Are you done with your story? asked Elizabeth. Ben is probably leaving right now.
So? replied Gabrielle, leaving the changing rooms. She caught sight of Ben shouldering his bag and heading for the door to the gym. He looks like he wants to be left alone...
He's bleeding and he's sad. Just talk to him.
Gabrielle bit her lip, pondering. Why do you care?
I'm an angel. Why wouldn't I?
I just... it didn't seem like you cared all that much, sorry. I shouldn't have assumed.
My goal here is just to get everyone alive, Elizabeth replied reluctantly. And Ben, right now, controls the weather with his emotions. If Ben isn't happy, everyone might die.
Gabrielle let out a slow breath through her nose, clutching her bag straps tighter. Right. Of course.
"Ben!" she called, watching the taller boy walk towards the gym doors. He was now dressed in a nice button-up with fake paint splatters. And although he never smiled, his blue eyes looked gentle yet sad as he turned to watch her jog towards him. "How, um... what are you up to?"
"Bleeding," he said flatly, shifting.
Swallowing nervously, Gabrielle continued, "I mean, um... after... after this class?"
It had been easy to pass all of her classes with flying colors once her sister passed. Studying had been the only thing she could really rely on, something she could do that would most certainly benefit her later. Things like crying and sulking hadn't been quite as productive.
Now she had a free period and perhaps she could save everyone's life by hanging out with Ben during it.
"Another class," he said.
"Oh," she said slowly. Her eyes glanced around the gym until she smiled crookedly. "Well, the weather's... very nice today, certainly... it certainly has me in a... c-cloudy mood."
He raised an eyebrow and her smile faltered. "That's the wrong word, isn't it?" she whispered.
"It's bubbly," he corrected. Slowly, her looked out the window to find how heavy it was raining. Then he looked back at her and shrugged. "I know when you're lying, anyway."
"Oh," she said again. Her eyes darted around again before she looked up at him again. "Do I have a tell?"
He opened his mouth to say something before he only shrugged. "Your smile," he eventually muttered. Gesturing lazily to her mouth, he gave a lifeless grin of his own. "It's crooked when you lie."
"Is it," she whispered. Then she clicked her tongue and nodded. "Well, I was wanting to hang out, so perhaps after your class, we could-"
"It looks like someone else wants to talk to you," he interrupted, eyes cast to someone behind her.
Please don't be Charlie. Please don't be Charlie. Please don't-
It was Charlie.
He was walking across the gym with Ewan and they were talking as if Charlie hadn't tried to kill Ben less than a week ago.
"Ben!" called Ewan.
And this time, when Gabrielle turned, she saw a hint of a smile on Ben's lips as the two crashed in a clumsy, quick embrace so as not to draw alarm.
"What the Hell happened to you?" seethed Ewan. He reached up and wiped some blood from Ben's nose. "I'm gone for one class period and you get all beat up, and-"
"I'm fine," Ben whispered. He had his own tell, though. Gabrielle could see him run his index finger along his jaw quickly, followed by a tough swallow.
That was his tell. And she got to watch Ewan notice, too, and the concerned look in his eyes turned to defensiveness. Ben cleared his throat awkwardly before he could say anything, though, and he led Ewan out of the gym, putting his arm up as a hardly helpful umbrella.
Stop pinning after him, groaned Elizabeth. He's gay.
Gabrielle made a face. I think he's... he's bi, I think. Panic rose in her throat. Is he just gay? I kissed him... oh, no...
"I'll never get used to it, either," said a voice to her left.
Startled, she let out a strangled gasp and clenched her fists before finding Charlie. He looked bored and upset, face twisted into some sort of irritated discomfort.
"Excuse me?" she asked.
His black eyes drifted to her. "Stirling... Ewan. Caring for Ben. You look sick, I just... I assumed that's what was going on."
"Oh," she said softly. "Right." Then she gave him a crooked smile, flipping her rain jacket hood up. "Well, I've got class, so-"
"Let me walk you," he offered. "I... I was wondering if I could talk to you and Elizabeth anyway, if that's alright."
No. I won't talk to him.
Gabrielle cleared her throat awkwardly, shifting her grip on her bag and looking up at Charlie. "She's busy," she said matter-of-factly, keeping her mouth straight. "Very... very busy. Doing angel things."
Charlie chuckled. His eyes looked softly down at her as he asked, "I've been possessed, too, Gabby. I know what it's like to have someone up there. They don't get busy."
Shit, seethed Elizabeth. Just tell him I don't want to talk to him.
"She..." Gabrielle felt very bad being so blatant, but she straightened her shoulders and said, as firmly as she could, "She would rather not talk to you right now because she is slightly busy thinking about things."
"Thinking about things?" he asked. "Really?"
"I..." Gabrielle looked to the side. "Well, she... I'm sure she is..."
"Why won't she talk to me?" Charlie asked. "I didn't do anything to hurt her."
"You tried to kill all of your classmates and tried to make Ben take over the world!" yelled Elizabeth, absolutely fuming. "Why in all of Heaven would I want to talk to you?"
Gabrielle slammed a hand over her mouth, eyes going wide. That wasn't supposed to happen. She was still getting used to her mouth moving when she didn't want it to. Licking her lips awkwardly, she glanced around the gym to find confused students stopped in their tracks to look them over.
Blush covered Gabrielle's cheeks as she turned back to Charlie. "Sorry."
"How about we go somewhere else?" he offered. "I..." A reluctant sigh came from him and he ran a hand through his hair. "I want to change, alright? I went to Hell, and... I didn't really like it."
"I'm surprised," snapped Elizabeth.
He gave a crooked smile of his own. "It isn't really my crowd. So... I'd... it'd be nice if you could... you know... teach me how to be good."
Her heart melted at the sound of Charlie's decision.
We have to help him, pleaded Gabrielle. He deserves it.
And how lovely that it was so conveniently timed that she was possessed by an angel at the exact time he wanted to change.
Probably because we were the ones partly responsible for sending him to Hell?
She sighed through her nose in distaste. "We'd love to," Gabrielle said. "Let's just - let's go somewhere else."
'Somewhere else' was under the bleachers. Rain seeped through the seats but they managed to sit in spots that remained dry. The sound of the rain was calming and Gabrielle found herself feeling quite drowsy.
Charlie leaned against a pole. "Alright, so-"
"Rule number one," said Elizabeth, "don't get possessed by a demon."
The boy squirmed. "That wasn't really... my choice."
"No, but you could have prevented it. Overseers can only possess mortals that are vulnerable in their Sin. And since you're apparently very pissed off a lot, he took advantage of that. So stop being angry." Elizabeth - or, Gabrielle - gestured at him in irritation.
It was very strange the first week or two. Having her arms move whenever they wanted, having her lips move of their own accord, saying things she wouldn't want to say. But eventually she grew used to the fact that she was, in fact, possessed and couldn't do anything about it.
"But you seem angry," Charlie said.
Elizabeth shrugged, crossing her arms. "I'm already in Heaven. It doesn't really matter how I act now."
He tilted his chin up. "How'd you get there, anyway? Were you better in your past life or something?"
"I-" She huffed, looking to the side. Then she looked back at him and raised an eyebrow. "You really want to know?"
"Do you have a sob story?"
"Do you want to hear a sob story?"
"I want to not go to Hell, Elizabeth," Charlie said flatly. "So if it helps me not go there, yeah, I'd love to hear a sob story."
She let out a slow sigh. "I'll make it brief. I started off-"
"Wait," Charlie interrupted, holding up a hand. "You can astral project, right? Like... put yourself out of her?"
Gabrielle made a face at the sound of it, but Elizabeth said, "Yes?"
"What if - can you... is there a chance you could do that now?"
"Why?"
"You're... well, you're talking very... differently from Gabrielle and it's... I'm just confused. You know, what's her, what isn't, what... I don't know, I just think this experience might be easier if-"
"Fine," Elizabeth snapped. "Fine... But I don't think you'll like what you see."
Charlie shrugged, looking down at his shoes and kicking absently at the ground. "I'm getting better at being open-minded, so-"
A weight lifted off Gabrielle's chest and she gasped, finding the Enchantment gone. And finally, she was alone in her head. She looked up curiously to find the angel beside her.
She hadn't been what Gabrielle had expected, she heard Charlie grunt in shock. A slow sigh escaped her lips as she just looked Elizabeth over.
Her skin was wrinkled and discolored, her wings were only bones with traces of flesh and feathers. But she was beautiful, nonetheless. Her eyes were a bright blue that seemed to radiate purity and high, sharp cheekbones that made her look like a queen.
But she had no hair, no area in which her skin was perfect, and her legs were blackened.
"The humans did this," Elizabeth began. She wore a white dress that swayed around as she sat on the ground. "They have no empathy. I used to think they were all heartless, but that was... before humans knew what Heaven or Hell was."
"What happened to you?" breathed Charlie.
Gabrielle sat down as well. Her legs felt like jelly and her mind felt foggy, but she was getting used to being the only one in her head again. She never realized how strong Elizabeth was until she didn't have her.
The first time Elizabeth left her, she'd slept the second she was gone, not waking up until she'd been possessed again. But now she felt like she had to listen, so she stayed awake and watched the angel talk.
"God made me after he made the humans. They were going to Heaven and no one... they didn't know where they were, didn't know what to do, how they got there. They just knew they'd been good in life and were all dead. There were too many humans for Him to handle, so... he made angels himself. Angels who knew what to do. Me.
"He sent me to the Surface first. So that I could preach about Him, help the humans be good, help them have a better life once they were dead. It was my only job. I did it for... countless centuries. It wasn't so much a job to me as a... a way of life. I just wanted to help everyone. That's all I'd ever wanted to do."
She grit her teeth, which were still intact and beautifully white. Pain glinted in her eyes as she glanced to the side, clenching her fists. "I wanted to save them. Because I knew I could..." She sniffed, clearing her throat and straightening her shoulders. "I knew I could help them all. But... humans turn on each other, for some reason. They decide they aren't equals, decide they aren't... worth as much as each other. I watched men accuse women of being witches. Not angels, not demons... witches.
"And they eventually decided I, too, was a witch. And they took me to the stake. And I... I thought maybe, just maybe they'll remember... everything I've done for them. They'll remember that I was the one - the only one that had been there for each and every one of them all the time. Whenever they needed it. Maybe they'd remember I loved them. Regardless."
She sniffed again, running a hand under her nose and rolling her eyes. "They didn't. They burned me. And right as I felt every fiber of my being die, right as I felt my life leaving... God pulled me back to Heaven."
Charlie cleared his throat. "Wouldn't you have just gone to Heaven anyway? If you'd died? Not to say being burned at the stake wasn't awful, but I just thought-"
"God and Devil-made beings are quite literally made of nothing. We don't have a soul. We have a body, a personality, and a job. When we die, there's nothing left to salvage. If I'd died on the stake, I would have been gone forever."
Silence resounded from between the three of them and the only thing that anyone could hear was pelting rain that just barely touched Gabrielle's feet. She watched as a tiny puddle emerged at her heels from where she'd dug into the ground.
"So why did God send you here?" Charlie asked. "Why... why you, when he knew you'd seen the worst of it? Does he not care about how you feel, or-"
"He wanted me to give humanity a second chance." She swallowed weakly, looking down at her burned hands. "I am, and... it still sucks just as much as it did in the 1690's."
Charlie and Gabrielle gave each other a nervous look before Charlie continued, "So Gabrielle... why did you possess Gabrielle?"
She sighed, looking a bit irritated by all the questioning. "We were paired, it wasn't... it wasn't specific or anything." She cleared her throat. "Anyway. This whole thing was about you, right? You wanting to be better or whatever."
The boy looked at her silently before nodding slowly. He crossed his arms, standing up straight. "I had him in my head for barely a day and I hated every second of it. Not because he was hurting everyone or because he was a demon, but because... because-"
"He knew everything you wanted," Gabrielle finished. She raised an eyebrow nervously, blushing as both Charlie and Elizabeth looked at her. "He knew everything you wanted because he fed off of it and gave you power, is that... true?"
"Yeah," Charlie mumbled.
Gabrielle clenched her jaw. "I want to help." She stood up, feeling the ground sway beneath her. "Pleeease..."
In a second, she felt a surge of power, and once again she wasn't the only one in her head. She wasn't the only one reading her thoughts and knowing how she felt.
Gabrielle blinked a few times, trying to get used to it yet again, and she watched in the corner of her version as Charlie turned around.
"Ben blinded me," he said eventually. "And I punched him."
"Yes," Gabrielle said, wondering how this was helping his case.
"I punched you, too. A few times."
She shifted her weight. "Yes."
He turned around to face her. "And you still want to help me stay out of Hell. Even though I stabbed Ben and even though-"
"Yes," Gabrielle interrupted, "I do."
"Why?"
"You..." She could barely think of an answer. It took her a second to gather her thoughts, and when she did, all she could say was, "I think you're worth it. Everyone's... everyone's worth it."
And Charlie grinned at her.