Amitiel's Fall
Amitiel then flinched as if she'd been stung. A single, dark brown feather drifted to the ground. Dawn slowly picked it up, examining it in the last of the sunlight. It seemed to be both there and not-there; existing on two planes at once, it was physical but weightless. Despite her careful handling, the plume began to disintegrate. She reached out and put an arm around Amitiel. "Ami? Are you all right?"
The angel began to tremble, ever so slightly. "It's coming, Dawn, I can feel it," she whispered hoarsely. "I'm not ready."
"You know we're here for you." Sarah placed a hand on Ami's shoulder. "You're family."
Ami nodded, then her wings spread out from her body like a sail unfurling, almost bowling over Sarah and Dawn in the process. She sank to her knees and her hands clenched involuntarily into fists, the white knuckles standing out against her tanned skin. More feathers began to fall from her wings, at first individually and then in clusters, each fragmenting into ash as it made contact with the dusty ground. The feather Dawn had collected became white-hot and she dropped it in surprise. It too crumbled into dust and was blown away by the wind. An eerie howl drifted across the landscape, whipped up by the increasing gales.
Dawn reached out to the shivering angel, but drew back when she saw said angel's eyes glowing a pure silvery white. "Ami? Ami. Can you hear me?" Amitiel made no indication of recognition but continued to stare blindly out at the barren landscape. Blood began to drip from her nose and mouth. The tattered remains of her wings flared like molten metal. A sudden sphere of energy rushed from the fallen angel and the sisters were thrown back several yards.
When Dawn finally opened her eyes, Sarah was already struggling to her feet. Coughing, she cried out "Amitiel?" Then she saw the small figure in the dirty trench coat huddled on the ground. "Ami! It's Dawn." She stumbled dazedly to her unresponsive friend and collapsed next to her. Shaking her none too gently, she checked eyes, breathing, pulse, anything that might indicate a sign of life. Finally, the spent brunette wheezed and opened her eyes.
"Dawn?" Without another word she was drawn into a crushing hug from the relieved blonde. She caved in to the embrace and noiseless sobs that wracked her entire body. Dawn ran her hands through Amitiel's hair, trying to comfort her.
"Shh. It's going to be okay." It was probably not going to be okay, at least not for a very long time.
"It hurts."
"I know. I'm sorry," she replied soothingly. "I wish you could take it back."
"No." Surprised, Dawn pulled back to look at her companion. Though pained, her eyes bore an expression of steely defiance. "I rebelled for you. I'm not taking that back." She suddenly slumped backwards, but Sarah and Dawn caught her just before she hit the ground.
Sarah exhaled slowly. "What are we going to do, Dawn?"
"I don't know. It's not exactly like there's an instruction manual for fallen angels." Dawn picked up the exhausted angel -not angel, she reminded herself, human- and headed to the car. "You're driving."
Sarah's eyes were wide. "You're letting me drive?" Dawn tossed her the keys.
"Don't make me rethink my offer." The road was longer than any Dawn could remember. It felt like hundreds of miles until they saw traces of civilization. Dusk was creeping across the sky and stars were laid out like freckles when they finally reached a small town. A shabby diner with a half-burnt out sign advertised fresh pie. "Let's stop here. We all need something to eat." She began to gently shake the listless woman sprawled across her lap.
Amitiel blinked at her sleepily. "Where are we?" With a sudden jolt, she opened her eyes and clutched at her stomach with a small cry of pain.
"Don't worry, we're getting food soon. And I'm not sure where we are. Arizona someplace." Dawn pulled Amitiel gently to her feet. "You might want to wash up in the bathroom though," she added, noting the traces of blood at Ami's nose and mouth.
The obnoxious waitress brought out some burgers and Dawn ate feverishly, conscious of how long it had been since her last meal. Ami returned and huddled between the sisters, shivering, though she felt feverish. Taking a hesitant bite of her burger, she swallowed and exclaimed "I quite like this!"
Sarah smiled at her reaction. "You're going to love dessert." They ate mostly in silence along with the few of the restaurant's other patrons. Amitiel inhaled her food like it was her last, or, perhaps more accurately, first meal on Earth.
"Easy," Dawn nudged her. They paid for the dinner and headed to the only hotel in town. All but one room was filled, so they gathered what was left of their luggage and limped up the creaking stairs. It was dingy and bare, but heated and had actual beds, so none of them were complaining.
"All right, everyone to bed. We're getting up early tomorrow, it's going to be a busy day." Sarah wasn't entirely sure whether it would actually be a busy day but she had learned long ago that it was best not to argue with her sister. She crawled into one of the beds and fell asleep almost immediately. Dawn handed Amitiel a new toothbrush and toothpaste, then closed the door to the shower. The water smelled faintly metallic but she enjoyed its warmth on her skin.
She was just stepping out of the water when she heard a knock on the door.
"… Dawn?"
"Just a sec," she called back, throwing on some clothes and toweling dry her short hair. Ami was sitting uncomfortably on the corner of the unoccupied bed, toothbrush and trench coat in hand. Dawn put a hand lightly on her shoulder, half expecting her to flinch away. "You going to be okay?"
Surprisingly, Ami leaned into her touch. "I'm sure I will just need time to adjust…" Without warning, her face crumpled and tears began streaming down her face.
"Ami… I'm, um…" Dawn faltered. She sat on the bed and put an arm around her friend awkwardly. "It's okay, just let it out…" she attempted. Amitiel wiped her eyes furiously, attempting to control her breathing.
"I'm -hic- sorry…"
"No, no, it's fine, I mean, it's not your fault," Dawn assured her nervously, unsure of what to do. "Do you want, like, a shower, or something?" Ami nodded mutely, so Dawn led her to the bathroom. The brunette stared blankly at the tap.
"I don't know how to…"
"Right." Few things in the world are more awkward than explaining showering to an ex-angel. Dawn reclined on the bed, nearly asleep, waiting for the water and faint singing to stop. Ami stepped out in an old t-shirt of Dawn's, looking particularly defenseless and dispirited. Dawn felt a slight pang for the powerful celestial being she had once been. "So! Teeth brushed then off to bed!" she said, trying to inject some energy into her voice. She was self-conscious as Ami scrutinized her routine, then followed suit.
Turning off the lights, Dawn crawled in bed next to her sister. "'Night, Ami."
From across the room, she heard a faint "'Night" in reply.
A few hours later, Dawn was awakened by a faint noise. She lay awake for another half hour listening to Ami toss and turn before she decided to intervene. "Ami?"
"Dawn?" She was shivering again. Dawn felt her forehead, which was still feverishly hot. "I can't sleep. I don't know how to sleep." She was breathing quickly and shallowly.
After a moment's pause, Dawn lay down in the bed and wrapped an arm around her. "Just take a deep breath, and try to relax." Amitiel curled closer to her and the trembling subsided. "My mom," Dawn swallowed, "my mom taught me a trick to get to sleep when I was little. Close your eyes and think of the happiest thing you can remember." Ami smiled the tiniest bit. "Now imagine you're back there. Try to remember everything about it, how it felt, who was there, why it made you happy."
"That shouldn't be too difficult," she murmured, "as you were in it."
Dawn smiled into the darkness. As they both drifted off to sleep, she decided maybe we can make it a little okay after all.
A/N: I realize that this is probably horribly OOC! Inspired in part by tumblr user eskatoad's genderbent Supernatural drawings. Please review and tell me what you liked or what was absolutely terrible; I love reviews.