It is a peaceful place, overlooking a small pond. The cherry trees are continually in bloom, while hummingbirds and honeybees fly among the vivid flowers. At the top of the hill, surrounded in green grass, there are two large stones. The grotto has been studied by the world's premier scientists for decades, but none can explain the eternal springtime, or the mysterious element found only in the two stones. A research team had tried removing the stones to study in the lab, but they were found wandering 200 miles away, memories lost; the stones returned to their spots inexplicably. Pilgrimages are made by peoples of all religions, coming to see this small pocket of peace in a world alight with turmoil. In the early 2040s, a young girl was cured of her paralysis, many parents have brought their crippled and ill children here since. A baby with an inoperable tumor cured, a comatose preteen who walked away himself Muscular dystrophy, depression, blindness, the cures were endless.
The people named it Angel's Grotto.
As medicine advanced, and humanity branched out among the stars, Angel's Grotto was mostly forgotten. There were immunizations for almost everything now, technologies that allowed antibodies to be fabricated as easily as sending a sample to a lab.
The angel still loved it here.
As visitors were few and far between now, he allowed himself to be visible, walking among the fragrant cherry trees, and relaxing near the rocks.
On this particular Thursday morning, the angel sat in a tree by the pond, watching a young boy skip stones. He climbed from the tree and approached the child.
"Hello," said the boy, holding out a smooth rock to the angel. He had of course been warned not to talk to strangers, but this man seemed as if he was part of the landscape. "Do you want to skip with me?"
"I'd love to," replied the angel. He whirled it across the pond, and it bounced eight times before sinking.
"Wow, mister. You're good."
"Why have you come here, young Joseph?"
"How d'you know my name?"
"I know everything."
"Then you know why I'm here," the boy said precociously.
"Your sister is ill, and your family doesn't have enough money to pay for antibodies."
"I come here to think."
"Bring her to me."
"Why would I do that?" The boy skipped the last stone he had gathered, and he sat down in the grass. The angel laid down his trenchcoat and sat beside the boy.
"Can I tell you a story?"
"Yes. My parents don't have time for stories since Penny got sick."
"See those rocks up there? Those are graves. 200 years ago, I laid to rest two brothers, Sam and Dean, the bravest men I'd ever met..."
