9265/Healing Words

Healing Words
Date of Scene:	23 December 2021
Location:	Cael's Apartment
Synopsis:	The Archangel Raphael visits Cael Becker in hopes of repairing some of the wrongs done to her while Micahel was in possession of Chas Chandler.
Cast of Characters:	Cael Becker, Chas Chandler, Michael Demiurgos
Tinyplot:	Path of Glory

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Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael has her up days - and she has her down days. Today? Things are just //okay//. She tries to portray herself as determined, and unbreakable - but more than a few cracks have shown in that facade of late.
    She'd tried to join the others for the scrying after Sara had told her about it - she'd made it as far as the door before she'd started hyperventilating, and ended up sinking to the floor - the nearly 100 pound puppy that now serves as her companion crawling into her lap. She'd abandoned the idea, and instead had turned her attention to easier, and less traumatizing work.
    She was currently sitting on the couch at the living room, reading transcripts of wire taps from some of the organized crime jobs she's still supposed to be working on, and occasionally listening to the tapes themselves as she makes notes. It's so much easier now that everything is digital - how did they do things back in the day? A cup of coffee sits close to hand, and Bear is flumped on the couch beside her, his massive head resting on her leg.
    He's a good boy.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    While Michael made his moves in the most bravado way he could. Others of his kind went for a more subtler approach. The man appraching Cael's door is conventionally attractive with a boy-next-door sort of look to him. He wears stylish clothes that seem made for him and him alone.

    He stops at a picture frame in the hall leading to the door to the woman's shared apartment and checks his reflection with a soft smile before moving to the door and knocking gently. First impressions were important after all, and his kind had already been marred by the actions of one larger than he.

Cael Becker has posed:
    The knock at the door has the pup lifting his head - the floopy ears of the great pyranees lifting quizzically. Cael gives the pup a brief scritch before she starts for the door. She hesitates - taking a moment to check video feed on the new door camera they'd installed (she couldn't recall if it was Stark-tech, or Reed-tech, and honestly didn't it really matter which?) The man on the otherside of the door seems... normal. Unassuming, but well dressed, and utterly unfamiliar. Strange.
    Opening the door, she studies him with waryness seeping into her expression.
    "Can I help you?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    The man runs a hand through his hair and smiles at Cael's greeting. "Actually. I think that's my line. May I come in?" he says. "There are some... matters that need to be addressed. And you are the first of those matters. He offers the woman his hand. "My name is Raphael. I am the Archangel of Healing and Love in all its forms."

Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael's breath catches in her throat, and the look on her features can only be described as sheer panic as the color drains from her features. Her hand tightens on the door handle, as instinct tells her to slam the door, lock it, and look for a weapon.
    And another corner of her mind whispers: 'Why? Do you think a door will stop him?'
    "A-angels aren't exactly welcome around here right now," she answers lamely, her eyes so fixed on his face, it's questionable if the offered hand has even registered. "What do you want?"
    Beside her, Bear whines, the massive dog nudging Cael with his head to try to offer his support.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "Ultimately, to apologize" Raphael says. "I mean you no harm. My nature does not allow me to harm mortals directly. In point of fact that is why I was sent to you. I literally cannot do you harm." He smiles that same soft smile.

    He gives a glance up and down the hall. There are no prying eyes so he continues at the door. "What my brother did to you was uncalled for and ultimately unecessary. And was in no way, you fault. I *need* you to know that. His vivid violet eyes bore into her, but he avoids locking eyes with her. Whether that is for her sake or his is unknown. His eyes shift to the flash of the massive beast behind her and his eyes light up. "Oh my God, your dog is adorable!"

Cael Becker has posed:
    "I think Michael would argue he meant me no harm, either," Cael says a bit cooly - her hand still locked tightly on the door knob.
    Of course, it's only now, with Bear whining and pushing at her, that she remembers - hadn't she wanted to talk to the other angels? Hadn't she wanted 'Luci' to contact them on her behalf. She closes her eyes, taking a deep, but uneven breath, before she steps out of the doorway. "Come in," she invites, without any warmth. Her voice sounds leaden, and flat, as she lowers one of her hands to rest on Bear's back.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    That is... probably true" Raphael says. At her invitation he nods. "Thank you. Truly." He enters and drops to a knee, extending a hand to allow the large animal to get a sense of him.

    His very presence is one of calm contentness and is very unlike Michael's. Michael's presence was an in your face sort of thing. Massive, impossing and unable to be ingored. Raphael, by contrast, is a subtle thing. There is calm and warmth and comfort, but it's around him as opposed to attacking his subject and forcing them to feel it.

    As the dog sniffs at him he looks up at Cael, "You have questions... a lot of them I imagine" he gives her a friendly, if neutral smile. "I am here to answer them. Or to acquiese to requests made that I am able to fulfil. Know that I cannot countermand my brother. He is the greatest of us in terms of favoritism and might. But, there are some things that I can do."

Cael Becker has posed:
    Bear is less concerned with with Raphael, then he is with doing the very important work of getting Cael to sit down - so he can crawl into her lap. That is, after all, what he has been trained to do. Cael closes the door before she allows the dog to push her towards the couch, where she sinks back into place in the spot she'd vacated not long before. Bear immediately jumps up beside her, crawling forward until his paws are draped over her lap. "Good dog," she says a bit distractedly, rubbing at his ears as she tries to gather her wits.
    "So you do know... what he's been doing. What he intends. There's nothing you can do to stop him?" she asks. Her heart was still thudding in her chest, and her voice sounded strange to her - thready, and strained. That shouldn't really be a surprise, though.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Raphael's express is sad as he nods. "I do. And I know that I have already been drafted to at least oversee one of the batallions of his army." The disgust in his voice is evident. "I do not like war. I do not like directing harm at others. Not when talking is easier and often results in less...injury."

    He hands his head. "But at the greatest among us, I cannot change his nature anymore than he can change mine. He has made his mind to go to war and all of Heaven will follow his command in that. Myself included.

    "What I can do is offer insight and solace for those who have been harmed through his actions. In that I can pacify some of the harm he has put upon you" Raphael says, his expression pleading and hopeful for the woman before him.

Cael Becker has posed:
    They know. They know, and they intend to do nothing to stop it. That knowledge tears at her, unleashing a visceral ache in her chest that causes her to turn towards the dog, wrapping her arms around Bear's neck and burying her face against him. She'd been so powerless against Michael both time she'd faced him - and they would be fighting against him, and all of the armies of heaven. Did they have any hope of winning?
    And Jon...
    "Can you do anything for Sims?" she asks. "Protect him? Unmake the deal somehow?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Raphael gives Cael a soft, sad smile. "You were so wounded and you move to interpose on the behalf of others... humans will never cease to amaze me." He sighs. "I cannot take Jonathan from his deal. It is made and it is on him to see it through. His choices. Taking him out of it would be no better than what Michael did to you." He pauses. "However, I can assure you that his life is not in jeopardy. At least, not from that. Choices past that point," he shrugs, "Are his and thus will happen when they happen."

    He moves around and gestures to a chair. "May I sit?" he asks. At her nod he takes a seat. "Let me be frank with you. Just because you cannot see what we are doing, does not mean that we are not doing anything to ensure your continued survival." He leans forward. "There is more to this entire ordeal than meets the eye. Destruction is not inevitable. Mortals and near-mortals *can* succeed. It just... requires more than violence." He presses his mouth into a fine line and then says, "Jonathan is on a the right path. His ideas about Love and Compassion are a step in the right direction."

Cael Becker has posed:
    He can't stop the war, he can't save Sims... What //can// these other angels do? Tears streak silently down her cheeks, as Cael continues to hold tightly to dog in her lap, who bears it all with calm, patient love.
    "Violence is all I know," she answers, her voice flat. "It's been with me all my life."
    Seemingly unwilling to let things lie she persists, "Isn't there anything you can do to limit his pain? Can you numb him so he doesn't feel? Can you block the memories, or dim them? //Something//."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "May I ask why you want so badly to refuse him his own will?" Raphael asks his expression puzzled. "As one who suffered such things by the hands of Michael, that you would turn around and insist that I do the same to Jonathan is baffling to me." He shakes his head. "He knew the risks, he *directed* the bargain, and he *wishes* to be the arbiter of this pain for the sake of many. You are not unintelligent, you can see the parallels with the Nazarene."

    He shakes his head again. "And yet, when I say that his death is not even in the possibilites from his encounter, still you ask me to manipulate him in a way that is anathema to me." He fixes her with a violet eyed gaze once more, though the focus is on her nose, not her eyes. "You wish to know what I can do to ease his suffering? His pain?" the Archangel asks. "I can tell you what will help him. *You.*"

    He gestures to one side idly. "What he will need before and after are friends. Companions. People who will share in his joy. Share in his pain. Share in his *life* that will continue after. You push him away to save yourself the pain of losing him. And yet, with evidence and truth presented at you that he will not die... you still push him away. Because of what? Fear that he lies to protect you? Fear that *I* lie? Something that would utterly destroy me where I sit? Why not help him yourself instead of looking to others take away his agency?"

Cael Becker has posed:
    "That's not what I'm doing!" Cael insists forcefully. "That's not- that's not what I'm trying to do." She keeps her face turned towards Bear, not looking at Raphael - she hasn't looked at him in some time. The sick twist she feels in her stomach at the simple suggestion that //she// should be the one to help him registers as a physical pain. "I just... don't want him to hurt like I do. I don't want anyone to hurt like this. There has to be some way... I just can't find it. I don't know how to."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "And I am telling you he will not" the Archangel Raphael says emphatically. "Jonathan is experiencing pain unlike anything Michael can inflict on him at this very moment. Pain that has absolutely nothing to do with angels and the destruction of Creation." He takes a breath and decides to reveal something that he is allowed. "Last night he lost his daughter to villains that hide from the Light. Villains that seek to destroy him and everything he stands for. Villains who will kill his child to raise a false god for their own use and their own ends."

    He looks at Cael. Watching her closely. Weighing her pain. Wanting nothing more than to reach out and erase *her* memory of it. But to do so would be a violation worse than anything Michael did. "Jonathan suffers now. Alone. In agony. Because he will not speak of it to his husband. And he cannot speak of it to his friends because they refuse to be around him out of fear of something that will not come to pass."

    He moves from the chair and sits before her on his knees. "What was done to you was terrible. But it is over. The most astounding skill humanity has is its resilience. You will recover because there are people who wish to help you recover. Can you not do the same for him instead of paralyzing yourself with invalid fears?"

Cael Becker has posed:
    "He- what?" Raphael's words shock her out of her misery - out of that trapped, cyclical thinking that rails against the hell she's felt trapped on, and that has continued to close in on her.
    But this didn't fit in with the narrative her mind has constructed.
    "His daughter?" she asks in confusion. "The girl on his phone? She's- who has her?"
    If she's still alive, if she can be saved... that at least is something she //can// do. Cael stares at Raphael, as Bear starts lapping at the tears on her cheek, causing her to push the massive dog's head away from her with a quiet, "Hey. That's gross, Bear."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "No. Not the one he lost called Lyra. Biologically that was Martin's daughter" Raphael explains. "This child is named Anges. She is biologically his and he only just discovered her connection to him. And on the advent of that... now she is gone and he has lost his way." There is genuine sadness in the voice of the angel.

    "What can Michael do to him when faced with that agony? What pain is there that mankind can suffer beyond watching and knowing their offspring will die too soon?" He arches a brow. "Do you still wish to isolate him? To leave him with this pain because of things that shall not come to pass? Or will you rise and reaffirm your love, as a friend, for him? Let him know that you will be there. To share this burden. To aid him in his time of need."

    More of the angel's violet eyes burn with intensity and he puts forth another truth--albeit only a possibility. "The choice you make here will greatly affect the perpetuity of Creation."

Cael Becker has posed:
    "I'm a mess. I'm not a good friend for anyone, right now," Cael counters - but the ache in her chest has //shifted// somehow. She certainly wouldn't be able to put it into words.
    Maybe it's just relieve at having something else to do. Something that, perhaps, doesn't feel so helpless a cause. "Can we save the girl? Who has her? Where is she?"

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Some of the relief in Cael is mirrored ini the Archangel. "Cael, you are not helpless. You are not useless. You are not inadequate in any way" he says to her. "In point of fact, your survival proves that very thing about you one hundred fold."

    He inhales and slowly lets it out. "Do not let your strength dimish your faith in what is truly important. Your faith in *others.* In those you call *friends.*" He pushes himself to his feet. Find Jonathan. Reconcile. He will accept your friendship once more... for it him, it never departed. And do what you can *together.* For that is where you will truly thrive."

Cael Becker has posed:
    "But I see him," Cael protests quietly. "Every time I look at Jon, I think about-"
    Don't let it back in, Cael. Don't let it back in. Instead, she hastily asks, "Can you tell us nothing to help us find the girl? Not even a hint? She's still alive, isn't she?"
    Bear still presses down on her lap - keeping her locked into place, his face pressed in against her chest as he still tries to help and comfort his person.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    "She lives and Jonathan must find her" Raphael says. "Help him and you help her." He frowns at Cael and his hand twitches. He frowns at her for a moment. "Please let me help you. It will only be temporary, but it *will* help."

    "I have learned that in dealing with humans, you often ask what you need most for yourself for others." He raises his hand, and a dull pink glow surrounds his fingers. "If that is the case, let me help you as you want him helped so that you can in turn help him. It would be a simple matter... and it would not harm you." He is almost pleading in his insistence, as if her pain is hurting him by being in its presence. "There is no price. You have already paid it."

Cael Becker has posed:
    There's uncertainty in Cael's features as she watches Raphael. Is it some sort of trick? Getting her to let her guard down? Getting her to let them in?
    ...would angels have need of such tactics, given the power they possessed?
    A small part of her wonders - is there any point in continuing to fight against the angels, when she's so powerless against them?
    Hesitantly, fearfully, she gives a jerky nod of her head, watching the glow that comes from his hand with something akin to mistrust.

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Raphael raises his hand slowly towards Cael's head. He doesn't touch her though. The pink glow grows and intensifies washing the left side of her face in rosy hue. There is a sense of pressue but it's not uncomfortable. More akin to a weighted blanket than anything painful.

    "Be at Peace with what has been done and learn what you need to endure and continue" he murmurs to her as the glow hits its peak and then he steps back lowering his hand.

    "As I said, it will be temporary. Two weeks by your calendar." He sighs. "After the Epiphany, if you have not managed to contain it and move on... it will return just as strong as it is now. Please, for your sake and those of others, do what you do best. *Endure.* *Survive.*"

Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael lets out a gasp, and takes a shuddering breath as the worst of the pain that's been paralyzing her, and the growing helplessness and despair, ease to a dull but manageable roar. After a few steadying breaths she offers quietly, "I hope that I can." But she just isn't as confident in herself as she once was.
    "Thank you," she adds, as her grip on Bear relaxes, and she begins to pet the dog in a calmer, more controlled manner.
    After another breath she asks, "The judgement he gave me... It was wrong, wasn't? I mean- I was dragged to church enough times to know that... you only need to repent to be forgiven, and I've spent my adult life trying to make up for my mistakes, and trying to save others from that life..."

Chas Chandler has posed:
    Raphael smiles softly. "That, I am afraid, is something I cannot answer. Not in full." He pauses. "I can say that he was wrong, yes. His view was corrupted by the input of a very terrified and self-loathing man." He frowns. "But, as for the rest, I can only tell you that there are many paths to redemption. The example you gave is but one."

    "You are a good person, he says, "and you have more strength in you than some kings I have encountered. Use that strength. Rely on it. And learn to rely on others, as well. They already do the same for you."

    "Goodbye, Cael" he emphasizes the name she chose for herself rather than the one she was forced to wear under Michael's control. "And good luck. In the coming days, I believe we all will need it."

    There is a burst of pink light and the angel is no longer in the room, all that is left is a myriad of colored rose petals where he once stood.

Cael Becker has posed:
    Cael closes her eyes, and days where she is - running her fingers through Bear's fur and simply breathing. "What the //fuck//, Bear," she murmurs, getting a quiet whine and small bark in return.
    She pulls away from the dog with a final pat, murmuring a quiet 'Good boy' to the dog before she types out a simple text.
    'Can you come over?'