Chapter Ten

Hananiah rushed them towards the white tent. "Come, family! Our Messiah has been born!"

They came to a stop at the flap to the tent. A man in expensive robes stood at the flap.

"Prepare for the census," said the man. "Ready your papers. Divide up to be counted—men to one side and women to the other. Show your papers. Let us not have any rowdiness here. Time for the census."

"Sir, we have heard from angels!" said Hananiah. "Our Messiah has been born tonight!" The man appeared to ignore him. "Isn't that right, family? The Messiah has been born!"

The taxman showed them into the tent, where a small room was situated behind the tent flap. A table stood in the middle of the room surrounded by a boy and three men.

"Men to my left and women to my right," said a taxman by the table. "Move quickly."

The women moved over to the left of the table, and the Winchesters followed the men to the right of the table.

"Oh, sirs, we just saw angels!" said Hananiah. "Did we not, family?" The people nodded excitingly. "And they said, that TONIGHT, in Bethlehem, that our Messiah has been born!" He looked at the group. "We DID see angels tonight, family, did we not?" The group nodded emphatically, and Hananiah turned towards the men. "See, I tell the truth! Our Messiah is born tonight here in Bethlehem!"

"Yes, yes," said a second taxman. "Angels? You Jews and your miracles! A baby? Born tonight? That is good news. More babies means…more taxes!"

The first taxman closed the doors. "Enough! Silence!"

"You are here for the census as decreed by Augustus Caesar to all Rome and all lands under Roman rule," said the second taxman. "Quirinius, Governor of Syria, the legatus of the Divine Caesar Augustus and our vassal King Herod, with their great wisdom, have decided that his census is to be taken according to the Jewish tradition. You can only be counted in the town of your forefathers. As the chief publication in Bethlehem, I am in charge of this census."

"What is your name and where are you from?" asked the first taxman.

"We are the family of Hananiah from Nazareth," said Hananiah, "but we are of the house and line of David."

"For the census, I need to know how many men you have over the age of fourteen," said the first taxman. "Raise your hands."

A couple of the men played along and raised their hands.

Hananiah counted them. "We have ten."

"Nineteen," said the first taxman. "Okay."

"Nineteen!" said Hananiah. "But—"

"Silence!" said the first taxman. "How many women are there over the marrying age of twelve? Raise your hands."

Almost all the women raised their hands, and Hananiah counted them.

"We have eight," said Hananiah.

"Eighteen, alright," said the first taxman.

"Eighteen!" said Hananiah. "But we don't—"

"Enough!" said the second taxman. He turned to the other taxmen. "Would you total up the census and from that figure a poll tax?"

"Why must you charge a poll tax?" asked Hananiah. He pointed at a written decree hanging on the wall. "The decree only said census!"

"You will be taxed on what I say you will be taxed on," said the second taxman, slamming a staff against the decree. "When you leave, you will pay tax on whatever you purchase while here in Bethlehem."

"We have no plans to purchase anything," said Hananiah. "We are but a poor family." He looked at the group. "Are we not?"

"Present your papers for the census," said the first taxman. People pulled out their papers and held their papers onto the table as the boy stamped them. "We will total what you owe the Romans and you will pay it after your family gets through."

"Ruth will pay the taxes," said Hananiah, leading the group through the doors into the village. "I cannot believe you are a Jew and working for the Romans."

"I have heard enough from you…and your family," said the second taxman. "Move on through."

"Zacchaeus, be sure to stamp every paper," said the first taxman to the boy at the table.

"Dude, I think this will be the one and only time we pay taxes," Dean muttered to Sam.