SWNOVELS Chapter 17: Trust
Castiel’s POV
He was at the bar before the sun rose. The weapons box traded, the stock refreshed and the tables wiped before anyone else in the sleepy city had awakened, no doubt. He enjoyed the distraction of the bar and Angel while chaos was building just outside of the city.
The all day meeting yesterday was frustrating. Enforcers stationed at other neutral spots said war was coming. Lycans were turning every human they could, and killing every lone creature that didn’t howl at the moon. They were building their numbers and spreading their territory fast. There was a boycott on all businesses and safe zones. It seemed everyone except Castiel wanted to step in before they enacted whatever plan they were forming, but that would be almost a Cardinal sin. He had confirmed it last night with his researcher Alanna:
‘Wrath, or hatred if you will, is an acid within the soul that eats away at the heart until there is almost nothing left. If left unchecked, wrath eventually produces the most evil fruits: desire for another’s harm or downfall, all-consuming hatred, violence, and many others. The neutral act of anger becomes the sin of wrath when it is directed against an innocent person, when it is unduly strong or long-lasting, or when it desires excessive punishment.’
His angels attacking before any action was punishing the innocent. He had watched Taala fall to wrath all those years ago, and vowed to never lose another angel to it. He advised the Enforcers to seek out more Peacekeepers and secretly station more bodies around the Packs in readiness. He asked for trust in them and God while he formulated a campaign of peace.
He ran fingers through his hair as he stared at the door. He really needed to see Angel to calm his nerves and clear his head of these thoughts. Stalling for time, he dropped a jukebox token in and chose ‘Welcome to the Black Parade” by My Chemical Romance. He sung along quietly to the intro:
‘Will you defeat them?
Your demons, and all the non-believers,
The plans that they have made?’
The door behind him open and closed and a yawning Angel waved. He was at her side in seconds and cupped her face roughly with both hands, claiming her lips as soon as they closed from the yawn. She returned his passioned kiss and slid arms along his bare biceps, tracing the defined muscle lines. He exhaled a shaky breath against her lips as he withdrew his. “Sorry love, I just needed that.” He dropped his hands to his sides slowly and looked her over. Her beautiful eyes were indeed sleepy, and her cheeks were now hot pink from the kiss. “Rough night?”
She nodded first, and then shook her head to change her answer. “Strange dreams and then a conversation about nekos just kept me up half the night. I’ll wake up shortly.” She frowned and smoothed her hair, perhaps suddenly aware of how she might look from lack of sleep. Still beautiful, he thought. He leaned and kissed the top of her now flat hair, then kissed her cheek where it was still blushed.
Voices outside made him pull away and get two steps distance between them before Eva and Ellie’s chatty bunch entered, all actively talking over each other. One of the vamp ladies hooked a pale arm with Angel’s, still stood by the door, and practically dragged her with them to a table. Castiel laughed at Angel’s dramatic ‘help me!’ face and leaned on the bar with an elbow, head in hand. She was truly amazing and one Hell of a distraction.
—-
Angel’s POV
The day flew by. It wasn’t busy, but a constant flow kept her moving all day. The latest gossip was the lack of a Pack presence everywhere. No purchases at Syndicate Supplies. No attempted break-ins at the Hospital. No dark shadows asking horrible favours from the demons. Their lack of activity for a week may individually be nothing, but collectively there was definitely something going on. Castiel joined her side for many of these conversations, casually bumping her playfully when he thought no one could see.
Angel hadn’t noticed Taala’s entrance and jumped out of her skin when she turned and full-force walked into his robe. “Oh my God, s-sorry sir!” She stammered, stepping back. Taala smiled amused from high above her and silently pointed to the couch, taking giant steps to reach it. Trying to calm a racing heartbeat but looking forward to the conversation, she walked to the bar to get Taala’s payment. Castiel glared at her as she poured, grabbed and made to leave, but she whispered to him an excited “Lesson Two!” He just shook his head to himself, not trying to hide his glare at the demon.
Settled with his drink and an ankle casually rested on his opposite knee, he nodded once to Angel who got curled into what was becoming her spot. “Would you like to know about favours and quotas my dear?” Angel nodded.
Taala spoke for an hour and seemed to relish in Angel’s close attention.
She learned that each house of sin had a yearly number of sinful acts a demon must either instigate or witness. Gluttony had the highest target, as hosting one buffet party where attendees ate and drank to excess easily counted one mark per head against that quota. Pride had the lowest quantity as the hardest to achieve. The sins committed were meant to be small and one act alone would not doom that soul to Hell.
Favours were given at will with no targets, and could be large or small asks. An equal exchange must be made, which the demon was at liberty to decide. The favour must benefit one of the Mistresses, and Taala explained that Angel’s favour of demon education was to go to Miss Raven as greed of knowledge. Large favours that the demon was not able to complete naturally, such as healing someone on the brink of death, required involvement from a Mistress and almost always the trading of a mortal soul.
Taala spoke long after his drink was finished, but Angel was still sad to see him rise to leave. “Do you have any last question, my dear?”
“Yes, um. Do favours work the same in reverse? Can you ask someone to do a favour for you?”
Taala smiled and pocketed the jerky bag. She wondered what that full smile would have looked like on the face of an angel. “They do and I can. But Angel..” He raised an eyebrow at her and lowered his already deep voice. “..Would you trust a favour chosen by the Devil?”
He didn’t wait for her answer as he ducked out the door.