VIGNETTE - ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST

"I'm telling you, Ro," Barnabas insisted. "That punk-ass kid is gonna shut down the entire business, unless we do something about him."

"What's Todd done now?" the red-haired witch said, sighing.

"What's this about Todd?" Abigail asked, bringing the coffee into the office. She set the tray down on the sideboard, looking anxiously at Rowena. Todd was Abby's responsibility. Rowena had sent her out to some of the clubs to see some potential new talent to sign, and Todd had gotten Abigail's attention. His voice wasn't the best she'd ever heard, but these days, that wasn't really a problem. It was image and sex appeal that they were packaging. There were ways to enhance vocals in the studio, and any sound mixer worth their salt could hide a multitude of sins. But Abby had been struck by the way young girls reacted to Todd. It was the boyish, yet bad-boy, dynamic that the young singer was projecting that Abby thought could be marketable. So she had given Todd Rowena's card, and he had been signed to the label shortly afterwards.

The problem was that Todd was a problem child. He was wildly popular with teenage girls, but he had only a modicum of talent, and a huge sense of entitlement. The more money Todd made, the worse he had behaved. Rowena had hired Barnabas as a "spiritual advisor" to young Todd. The reality was that the man was no more than a glorified minder, who young Todd had learned how to elude.

Rowena was frowning. She had a couple of Affidavits on her desk right now. Young girls who were alleging that they had been sexually assaulted by young Todd after his show. Only two girls so far, but rumour had it that they were the tip of the proverbial iceberg.

Abigail was dismayed. She felt responsible, because she had convinced Rowena to sign Todd in the first place. Rowena was aware of this fact, and so was Barnabas. Mentorship was one thing, but Rowena and Todd's minder had an entirely different sort of arrangement, involving black magic, and a whole lot of sex.

"Bring young Todd in here, Abby," Rowena instructed her assistant now. "Let's see what he has to say for himself."

So Abigail went back out to the reception area, and a moment later, Todd came rushing in. "What?" he said to them. "What's so important that you had to call me to come in here? I'm a busy man, you know."

Rowena regarded him balefully. "I know what you were 'busy' doing. And you're hardly a man. You're a boy, and a disobedient one, at that."

"You can't talk to me like that," Todd sneered. "You need me. I've sold millions of CDs for your company."

The witch lifted an eyebrow. "So have singing dogs, and opera singers. Even the bloody Pope made a record. And they didn't have to use Autotune to sweeten his voice, either! And I'll bet you he didn't rape young women in-between takes." She picked the Affidavits up off her desk. "What do you have to say about these allegations?"

Todd laughed derisively. "Whatever," he said, shrugging. "They just want money. Why don't you just throw a few bucks at them? Maybe give them an autographed poster, or something."

Abigail was disgusted by what she was hearing. "Did you, or did you not, rape those women?"

"Hey, they wanted it," Todd said insolently. "Now they're screaming rape, but at the time, they were screaming my name."

"Wrong answer," Rowena said calmly. She opened up her desk drawer. "Abby, would you come here for a moment, dearie?"

Abigail sighed. She was pretty sure she knew what was coming. But Todd was her responsibility, wasn't he? Still, she hesitated. If she did this, there would be no turning back.

"Do you want to be a doormat all your life?" Rowena asked her assistant calmly.

No. No, she didn't, Abigail thought. She went around the desk and took the hex bag that Rowena handed to her. "Hold him still," Abby said to Barnabas. The man grabbed Todd. The young singer was livid. "Get your hands off me, man!" he shouted.

But Rowena's office was protected by ancient spells, and there was no one to hear him, anyway. Abby shoved the hex bag down Todd's throat, and he made a high-pitched, whining sound in his throat.

"That's the best note you've ever sung," Abigail quipped, and both Rowena and Barnabas laughed. That had actually been a pretty good one.

Seconds later, Todd was dead, and Abigail had crossed over to the dark side.

VIGNETTE - YOU SHOOK ME ALL NIGHT LONG

Tommy was trying on different pairs of glasses at the optical store, looking at himself in the mirror with every set of new frames he tried on. Some of them made him look professorial, and some just made him look nerdy. According to social media, nerdy was the new sexy, but Tommy didn't necessarily buy that. But he needed a new prescription, and now that he had received a big, fat advance cheque from the publisher for his latest book, the author was going on a bit of a shopping spree.

He finally made his choice, but when he told the girl which frames he had picked out, she told him that they were custom. What did that mean? Tommy'd wanted to know. Four to six weeks to get his new glasses, she'd advised. He sighed. This was one of those places that advertised one-hour service. Their ads had said nothing about custom frames. Tommy guessed that was his own fault. Champagne tastes, et cetera. But, hey, he was enjoying the fruits of his literary successes. Or, some crap like that. Quite honestly, he would write for free, if he had to.

The clerk watched him leave the store. What a good-looking man, she thought. No wedding ring, either. Maybe she would try to engage him in a little conversation when he returned for his glasses. He was obviously doing all right financially; those had been some higher-end frames he had chosen.

Tommy walked out to the parking lot and got into his car. Since he'd thought he would be leaving the mall with new glasses, he didn't have his old ones with him. Now he realized that had been a stupid move on his part. But he lived only a few blocks away, so if he proceeded cautiously, he should be fine. He wasn't blind as a bat, or anything. He just wasn't a teenager, any more.

So he eased out of the parking space, looked both ways, and ran right into the back of a bright orange car. What the hell? Where had THAT come from?

Luckily, he hadn't been going fast. Still, Tommy knew that there was no way he wasn't liable. He got out of his car and walked up to the driver's side of the car he'd hit.

An attractive dark-haired woman was getting out, and as Tommy approached her, he could see that she had a bemused look on her face.

"Well, that has to be the slowest, gentlest fender-bender I've ever had," Valerie said, good-naturedly enough. "And to think, I picked orange because I thought it would be easier to see."

Tommy gave her a half-shrug. "Are you a fan of irony?" Now that he was closer to the car, he realized that the thing was sparkling, shiny new. Aw, geez. He squinted at the rear bumper. Did he see a scratch there?

"Are you still under warranty?" he asked her optimistically.

"Uh...this car's five years old," she advised him dryly.

"Get outta here," Tommy said, astonished. "My dining room table is dirtier than this car."

Valerie laughed. "What can I say? I like to keep a clean vehicle."

"I guess I'd better give you my information, then," Tommy said, sighing. Cars were starting to honk now, because the two of them were in the middle of the aisle. "Keep your pants on!" Tommy exclaimed, shaking his head. "People need to chill."

"I agree," Valerie said, smiling. "I'll tell you what; how about if we go around the corner to the coffee place? You can buy me a latte, and we'll assess the damage."

Tommy agreed, and they got back in their cars. They met for coffee, which turned into dinner. Then one thing led to another, and then another, and one week and a few dates later, the two of them ended up in bed together.

This had been Tommy's do-over. God completely agreed that his death had been unfair, and He also knew that deep down, Tommy had always wondered what a successful encounter with a woman would feel like. He had never told Barry that, because he hadn't wanted to hurt his husband's feelings. So, God had given Tommy a double do-over, in a way. And Valerie, as well. She had never had an abusive husband in this reality. She had done very well for herself, living the life of a modern single woman. Following a brief and mutually satisfying relationship, Tommy and Valerie would move on from each other, but very amicably.

God was very proud of Himself for the way things were turning out. Well, for the most part, anyway. But now, it was time to check in on Castiel again.

VIGNETTE - CAPTIVATED BY YOU

"OK; that does it," Gabriel said to Castiel. He snapped his fingers, and the quill pen Castiel had been writing with disappeared from his Brother's hand. Castiel made an impatient noise, reaching for another. But then Gabriel made that one disappear too, and then the file that Castiel had been working on was gone.

He glared at the Archangel. "Why are you here? What do you want from me?"

"I want you to live a little, Cas. I want you to take a vacation," Gabe responded.

Castiel was puzzled. "A vacation? What is that?"

Gabriel let out a frustrated breath. Dad, give him strength. "A break, then."

"I have too much to do," Castiel said. Incredibly, he reached for yet another quill pen and another file.

Gabriel waved his arms, and everything disappeared. All the pens, all the files, even Castiel's phone. All of it. "I can do this all night, Cas," the Archangel said happily.

Castiel sighed. "What will it take for you to leave me alone?"

"One hour," Gabe said quickly, smelling victory. "Come with me to Happy Hour. We'll have a couple of drinks, and we'll talk to a couple of females. One hour. Come on, Cas. We're eternal beings. What's one hour? Nothing. Nada."

"And then you will leave me alone?" Castiel said wearily.

"Yeah," Gabriel said, crossing his fingers behind his back. Who knew? He might not even be lying.

"All right," Castiel said in a long-suffering voice, and Gabriel grinned. "Is that what you're wearing?" the Archangel asked his Brother.

Castiel looked down at himself. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?" he asked his Brother.

"You look like an old fuddy-duddy," Gabriel replied. "Here. Allow me." He snapped his fingers again, and Cas was dressed in an emerald-green shirt, black jeans, and a black blazer. Then, for the final touches, Gabe wiggled his fingers, growing a bit of stubble on Castiel's chin and tousling his hair. "There," the Archangel said. "Perfect."

But Castiel was running a hand over his face now. "Shouldn't I be clean-shaven?" he said doubtfully. The other hand was in his hair. "Or at least arrange my hair?"

Gabe was grinning once again. "No, and no," he told his Brother. "In my experience, women frequently prefer the opposite."

Now Castiel was eyeing him suspiciously. "I'm not going there to meet women," he said bluntly. "I'm going so that you'll leave me alone, as you promised."

"OK, Cas. Whatever you say," Gabriel replied. "Ready to roll?"

Castiel looked at him as if he were about to ask why they would roll anywhere, but then he surprised his Brother. "Just a moment." He opened one of the lower drawers in the oak desk. Since it didn't seem as if God would be back anytime soon, Castiel had brought some personal things of his to the Office. Incredibly, he took out a bottle of cologne, applying some to his chin. Then he returned the bottle to the drawer as Gabe affected an innocent expression. Yeah, right. If Castiel wasn't going with the intention of meeting women, why would it matter if he smelled nice? Gotcha, Gabriel thought. This might just work out, after all.

The men were at the bar working on their third drink when Gabriel spotted the two women sitting on high stools at the other end of the bar. The hour was half over, and Castiel hadn't talked to one woman yet. Of course, they were mainly travelling in packs, like they usually did. If that sort of behaviour intimidated someone like Gabriel sometimes, with his extensive experience concerning the opposite sex, he could just imagine how it would daunt someone like Castiel.

"Look," Gabe said, tapping his Brother on the arm and nodding towards the women he'd spotted. "One for me, and one for you. Come on. Let's go."

"I'm not going over there," Castiel said stubbornly. He wasn't even looking where Gabriel was indicating. "There is no point in my meeting a human woman. You know that, Gabriel."

Gabe let out a frustrated breath. If there was a more stubborn individual in all of Creation, the Archangel had yet to meet them. But, he knew that Cas was full of it. He'd been concerned about his appearance, and he had put on cologne. Oh, he wanted to meet a female, all right; he just wouldn't let himself admit it.

"I'll tell you what," Gabriel said to his Brother. "I know you don't have any experience with this sort of thing. I'll go over there, and break the ice." He pointed a finger at Castiel. "Don't go anywhere," Gabe said sternly. "Your hour's not up, yet."

He walked away as Castiel sighed. He had been thinking about going to the mens' room and popping back up to Heaven. But if Castiel didn't honour his end of the bargain, he knew that Gabriel would never stop pestering him. So, he endured.

Gabriel snapped his fingers on the way over there, and two drinks that were identical to the ones that the women were drinking appeared in his hands. The bar was crowded. No one would notice. He brought them to where the women sat, placing them on the bar.

"Hi, I'm Gabriel," he told them. "These are from me and my buddy over there. Would you like to join us for some conversation?"

Aurielle looked him up and down. "We're not drinking those," she said bluntly.

"Why on earth not?" Gabriel asked her, puzzled.

Gail's friend rolled her eyes. When God had accelerated Gail's growth, he had done the same with her best friend. With the exception of Liz, Gail had been mainly friendless growing up, and God didn't want history to repeat itself. So Aurielle was in her 20s now, too.

"Why do you think?" she said to Gabriel. "A strange man brings us drinks, and we're just supposed to drink them? How gullible do you think we are?"

"Hey, I'm not THAT strange," Gabriel said charmingly. "Now, my friend, on the other hand..." He was a bit taken aback now. That had been yet another aspect of the modern woman he'd found difficult to get used to. They were so mistrustful; suspicious of everyone, and everything. Surely they had cause to be, in certain circumstances. But Gabriel meant them no harm. He loved women. A lot.

Gail was smiling. She knew that Aurielle was being sensible, but she kind of liked this guy. There was just something about him that was different from the other men who had approached them tonight. Actually, the women hadn't even intended to come to this place at all. They had been driving around aimlessly, trying to decide what to do. Dinner? A movie? Then Gail had seen this place, and she'd suggested they stop in for a drink, and maybe a bite to eat. She knew it was wrong to drink and drive, but if Aurielle had one drink and some food, surely she would be all right to drive, afterwards. Then they could sit and talk for a bit. Maybe check their phones, to see what was playing at the Cineplex later.

Aurielle had shrugged. Why not? She'd pulled into the parking lot in front of The Rogue Angel, laughing at the weird name. That was why Gail had noticed it. It was like England. Frank had told her about it when he had e-mailed his sister from Europe. They had all these really odd names for bars over there, or pubs, as they were called. The Yule Love It, which was a Christmas-themed place. The Byte To Eat, which was a computer place. The Razzle-Dazzle, which didn't seem to have a theme, but it did have a little bit too much glitter for Frank and Matty's taste. So Gail had had this information in the back of her mind when she'd suggested going into The Rogue Angel, on the spur of the moment. And the name was, of course, what had attracted Gabriel to it in the first place.

Gabriel was encouraged by Gail's smile. She was a little shorter than he usually liked them, and she was a brunette. As opposed to Aurielle, who had light-coloured hair and was taller, with long legs. Gabriel had a type. But if the taller one was going to be a stick-in-the-mud, maybe she was more Castiel's type, anyway.

"I'll tell you what," Gabriel offered now. "I made a mistake with the drinks, I guess. But how about if Castiel and I get us a table, and we can just talk for a while? If you ladies want another drink, we'll have one of the servers bring them. What do you say?"

Gail's head snapped up. Castiel?! He had to be kidding her with this. She looked over to the man Gabriel was indicating, and her jaw dropped. He was exactly the way she'd always imagined him to be. Tall, dark-haired, drop-dead gorgeous. She couldn't see what colour his eyes were at this distance, but they had to be blue. They just had to be.

"Can you excuse us for a minute?" Aurielle said to Gabriel.

He looked at her uncertainly. "Uh, sure. I'll go get Cas, and we'll get a table," he said to the women. Once you had a fish on the line, you didn't let go of your pole. So to speak.

As Gabriel moved away, Aurielle looked at her friend. "You're not seriously going to tell me you're considering this," she said to Gail.

"His name is Castiel!" Gail exclaimed, grabbing Aurielle's arm. "Look at him! I have to at least meet him. Don't worry, Aurielle. There's no way a guy who looks like THAT is going to be interested in me. You, maybe. But I just have to talk to him. I'm meeting him, Aurielle," she added insistently.

Aurielle rolled her eyes. Gail was her best friend, but man, she was stubborn, sometimes. Still, it was weird that the guy's name was Castiel, and that he looked exactly like the character who was the hero in Gail's story. If she didn't know better, Aurielle would swear that those men had found out about that, somehow. But she knew that was impossible. Aurielle was the only one Gail had shared her story with. It wasn't even finished, yet.

"We're getting a table, and we're going to socialize with two very nice young ladies," Gabriel told Castiel. "Let's go."

Castiel sighed. "I told you, I don't - " He looked over to where Gabe was motioning, and the words dried up in his throat.

Gabriel grinned. He recognized that look. Another fish on the line. He didn't even care which one of them Cas liked. Gabe could afford to be magnanimous.

Gail had seen an open table, and she was moving towards it now, carrying the drinks that Gabriel had brought them. Aurielle thought that she was naive, but Gail didn't believe those guys meant them any harm. They were in a public place, after all. But there was no way that she was missing out on an opportunity to meet Castiel. Maybe there was a reason she'd had the impulse to come in here, in the first place.

Castiel was watching Gail now, and he was puzzled at his own reaction to her. She was a short, dark-haired woman with big eyes, clad in jeans and a simple V-neck top. Gabriel had cautioned his Brother to expect that. Human women generally wore pants, these days. So the way she was dressed wasn't what mesmerized Castiel so much. He honestly didn't know what it was about her that fascinated him so.

But now, he noticed with some alarm that she had just about reached the table. Castiel sprang into action. He rushed over there and pulled out the chair for her, as a bemused Gabriel trailed behind.

Gail was astonished. This guy couldn't be real. Maybe she should pinch herself, to make sure she wasn't having one of her dreams. As she sank down slowly into the chair he'd offered her, Gail felt like she was floating on a cloud. He was even better-looking up close, and he smelled amazing.

As soon as she was seated, Castiel promptly forgot his gentlemanly upbringing. He sat down quickly in the chair next to Gail, not taking his eyes off of her. He wanted to be close to her, and he didn't want to give Gabriel the chance to move in on her.

Gabriel had to hurry forward now, to pull out Aurielle's chair for her, so Cas didn't make him look bad. It was obvious that his Brother had made his choice. But Gabe was going to have to tell Castiel to look a little less intense. He was staring at the poor girl like he was starving, and she was a seven-course meal.

The four of them introduced themselves, and Aurielle asked the men, "What do you do?"

"Do?" Castiel echoed, puzzled.

"She means for a living, Cas," Gabriel said. "What are our jobs?"

Oh. Cas was nonplussed for a moment. He and Gabriel hadn't discussed what they were supposed to say in this situation. Luckily, Gabriel had an answer all ready to go. "We work for a big corporation," the Archangel said glibly. "I'm an area sales rep, and Cas is the acting CEO."

"Is your name really Castiel?" Gail asked him.

"Yes, of course it is," Cas replied. "But Gabriel sometimes calls me Cas. I don't know why."

"Because 'Castiel' sounds stuffy, that's why," Gabe said, signaling to the server for another round of drinks.

"I don't think it does," Gail said, looking shyly at Castiel. "I think it sounds noble."

Cas was startled. "You do?"

"Yes," she insisted. "Like a Knight of the Round Table, or something." She was blushing, now. Castiel was staring at her, and since he was sitting so close, she could see that his eyes were a dazzling blue. Oh, God. She was going to slide right off her chair, in a minute.

"Gail's a writer," Aurielle piped up now, and her friend gave her a look.

"Really?" Gabriel said affably. "What are you writing about?"

Don't say it, don't say it, Gail thought, but Aurielle smiled. "Camelot, and the Knights of the Round Table," she told the men.

Oh, geez. Now Castiel was looking at her even more intensely, if such a thing was possible. "Oh, well, then, you're in luck," Gabe said, his lips twitching. "Castiel can help you with some research, if you want. He's a bit of a history buff."

Cas froze. Suddenly, he could picture himself and Gail, sitting at a small table, talking about a book she was writing. Then, suddenly, the scene shifted. She was in his lap, and they were kissing. His hands were under her clothing, and he was touching her bare skin. She was so soft.

No. This was wrong. "I have to get back to the office," Castiel stammered.

Gail was dismayed. Oh, crap. She should have kicked Aurielle under the table. Castiel probably thought she was a weirdo now, and he was using work as an excuse to leave.

But Castiel didn't want to leave; not really. He just felt like he should, because he was having some very ungentlemanly thoughts about Gail. But if he were to leave now, he was afraid he might never see her again. He looked at Gabriel for assistance, but as he was doing that, Gail said, "Excuse me. I have to go to the washroom." She stood abruptly, and Castiel stood just as quickly. Oh, come on, Gail thought. He wasn't playing fair. No guy was that much of a gentleman. She glanced at Aurielle. Her girlfriend had an inquiring look on her face, which was Female Speak for: Do you want me to come with you? Gail shook her head almost imperceptibly. "I'll be right back," she announced, and she scurried away from the table.

Castiel sat down again. Gabriel and the woman - what was her name again? - Aurielle, that was it. Gabriel and Aurielle were talking now, but Cas couldn't hear a word they were saying. The blood was pounding in his ears now. He had scared her. He had scared Gail off by looking at her so intently. He had hurt her feelings by saying that he should get back to the Office. Why had he said that? He never wanted to leave her side.

He jumped up from his chair. "I'm going to wash my hands."

Gabriel grinned after Castiel's receding form. The guy had it bad. He was gonna owe Gabe big-time for this. Actually, all of Heaven was. If Cas was in love, he would probably lighten up on everyone. Gabe turned to Aurielle. "What are you doing later tonight?" he asked her.

Gail came out of the ladies' room, nearly bumping into Castiel, who had been standing there, waiting for her. She looked up at him, not knowing what to say. Why was he here? Was he looking for the mens' room?

"I'm sorry," Cas said to her. "I don't know how to talk to women." He smiled thinly. "I'm afraid I don't really know how to talk to anyone, any more. I just came here to apologize to you, and to say that I hope I didn't upset you."

"No, you didn't upset me," she told him. "I thought that maybe I did something to upset YOU, because you said that you wanted to leave."

"I didn't mean it," he said quickly. "I just felt...I feel..." Castiel was tongue-tied. How DID he feel? The fact that he felt anything at all was so remarkable to him that he had no idea how to proceed. What was happening to him? Gail was a human woman. He should not be here with her. What good could come of this? He had been taught to believe that any sort of a romantic relationship with a human was a Sin.

"I love you," Cas blurted out. Then he cursed himself. Surely she would -

"I love you too, Castiel," Gail told him. Were they crazy? Of course they were. Did they mean it? Yes. Every word. Every syllable.

She loved him? She loved him! Cas put his arms around Gail's waist and bent down to kiss her. He had never kissed a woman before, and for a split second, he'd wondered if it was going to be awkward, or if he would do it wrong. But she put her arms around his neck and let him kiss her, and then she made a small sound, almost like a sigh. Her lips were soft and warm, and Cas pulled her closer to him as the kiss deepened. Then Gail's mouth parted, and Castiel touched her lips with his tongue. Her tongue met his, and his body pressed hers gently up against the wall.

Oh, this was so wrong. Castiel was leading himself into temptation, and he was leading Gail into temptation, as well. She hadn't initiated the physical contact; he had. But, they loved each other. He didn't know why, and he didn't know how. He only knew that he loved this woman with all his heart, and she loved him, too. God help them.

Gail's heart was beating a mile a minute. She had never kissed a man before, let alone like this. Their tongues were together, and she could feel the hardness of his body against hers. This man was a stranger to her. Wasn't he? But, she loved him. Ever since Gail had seen the name "Castiel", she had loved him. This was scary. This was wonderful.

Castiel broke the kiss reluctantly, moving his lower body away from hers. He feared he was becoming too aggressive. He needed time to think. What was he going to do? Now that he had held Gail in his arms, it was unthinkable that he should be without her again. But she was a human, and he had spent his entire existence telling his fellow Angels that humans were inferior, and that they were to have nothing to do with them. Could he just turn his back on his entire belief system?

"I'm sorry. I have to go," Cas said in a trembling voice. He let go of her, rushed into the mens' room, and winked himself back to Heaven.

VIGNETTE - DON'T YOU WANT ME?

Gabriel and Aurielle had never gotten together that night, because both she and Gail had given him the cold shoulder after Castiel's disappearing act that night. When Gabe realized his Brother wasn't coming back, he'd popped up to Heaven to read Cas the Riot Act. Gail hadn't said exactly what had happened between the two of them, at least not in Gabe's presence. But the girl was devastated, and Aurielle had told Gabriel to get lost.

He found a quiet and somber Cas sitting in the dark, in the small suite he kept in the Executive Wing. Castiel didn't need much in the way of living quarters, as he worked nearly all of the time. In fact, Gabe had gone to the High Office first, expecting to find Castiel there.

The Archangel had come in hot, preparing to give Cas a lecture. But seeing his Brother sitting there sadly in the dark gave him pause. Still, he had to know: "What's up, Castiel? Why'd you leave like that?"

"What did she say?" Castiel said miserably.

"What the hell do you think she said, Cas? She was pretty upset," Gabe told him, frowning.

Cas said nothing. He felt terrible. But Gabriel just stood there, staring at him. Finally, Castiel spoke again. "I'm having a crisis of conscience, Gabriel," he said softly. "My feelings for her are wrong."

"No, they're not," Gabe insisted. "It's your head that's wrong. It's the old ways that are wrong."

Another silence, and then Castiel turned his head to look at the wall. "Leave me," he said.

Gabriel threw his hands up in frustration. "Fine. If you want to be an ass, be an ass. I'm done." Then he winked out.

Gail pestered Aurielle to take her back to the Rogue Angel every day for two weeks after that night, but neither Gabriel nor Castiel ever returned. Well, not to the womens' knowledge, anyway. Gabriel had the ability to make himself invisible to humans, so he went there every day for a week, watching the women, hoping Castiel would relent and show up. Every time a man approached the women, Gail would look up, with hope in her eyes. Then she would look down at her drink or at Aurielle when she realized the man wasn't Castiel.

After a week of that same sight, night after night, Gabe couldn't stand it anymore. Then, after another week, neither could Aurielle. She told Gail she should just forget about Castiel. The guy was a jerk, and it hurt her to see how unhappy Gail was.

For her part, Gail couldn't understand what had gone wrong. How could he have told her that he loved her and then kissed her like that if he didn't mean it? How could he? What the hell kind of a person DID that? So she'd had a good cry, and then she'd had another one, and then she had thrown her burgeoning story about Castiel in the time of King Arthur in the trash.

Gabriel had needed a new watering hole, so he'd started to frequent a place called Lyman's, at the other end of town. There, he made the acquaintance of a young, cute cocktail waitress named Becky. Gabe flirted outrageously with Becky, and she flirted back, but Becky's heart belonged to the man who stopped by once or twice a week to unwind after his last class of the day. She knew he was married, and had kids. But she couldn't help it. Sam Winchester was just so dreamy.

Barry frequented that bar too, mainly because he lived in the area, and he didn't have anything else to do at night. Barry was another one of God's children who was lonely and restless. But unlike Gabriel, Barry was looking for a man. He had absolutely no experience with things like that, though. He was a grown man, but he had never had the chance to act on his feelings. He had no idea where the "gay community" they always talked about was supposed to be, and he'd never actually met another gay person, either male or female. At least, no one who had ever admitted to it, anyway.

But one night, Tommy walked into Lyman's, and Barry's whole life changed. The two men had happened to be sitting at the bar together, and they'd struck up a conversation about politics. Tommy'd had some very specific ideas about the way the current government was running things, and Barry agreed with him, for the most part. Plus, he just liked listening to his new friend talk. Tommy was informed, intelligent, and had a dry sense of humour. He was also good-looking, and when he put on his glasses to read the bar menu or to look at something on the TV, he gave off a sort of a sexy professor vibe. The only problem was, Barry had no idea how to find out if he was barking up the wrong tree. So to speak. He envied straight people in that regard. All they had to do was suggest dinner and a movie, and in most cases, the date was implied. But this was different. Barry could ask the same thing of Tommy, and the man would probably just think that it was two single buddies, going out for a night because they were friends. And there was nothing wrong with that, not at all. But how did you convey that you might possibly have an interest in taking things further?

God wasn't too worried about Barry and Tommy. As the old saying went, love would find a way. The Almighty Father was stepping back a bit now, becoming a little less proactive. He had set certain people up in certain circumstances, allowing them to drift into the orbit of others. He had never been opposed to the concept of Free Will, not unless it opposed His objectives. The purpose of these do-overs was to give those who were deserving of it a second chance at happiness. For some of them, Sam and Dean for example, that translated into a whole new and different way of life. For others, like Gabriel, it represented a re-set of sorts. Familiar ground. Same with Jody, although time would tell if the re-set was an improvement, or a regression.

None of what was happening now surprised God, but He had received one hell of a jolt when He'd taken His eyes off of Castiel for one moment, and the next, his Son had been sitting in a bar next to Gail. Almighty Being or not, that was one plot twist that God had not foreseen. Although, truth be told, shouldn't He have? He had aged Gail into a woman, sent Gabriel to Earth into the same city where they all lived, and then stood by as the Archangel exhorted Castiel to attend Happy Hour with him. Was it possible that, on some level, God had wanted the couple to reunite? But, if the answer was yes, then the follow-up question had to be: why? Considering the type of individual that Castiel was now, and the fact that Gail was human, were they even a good match any more? Or had there been a more sinister implication? Had God allowed Castiel that one fleeting glimpse of what could have been, had he only toed the Father's line, thereby making Castiel's suffering immeasurably worse? If so, what kind of individual did that make God? And, what of Gail? Had her offences really been that bad? She had almost completely regressed now, into the reclusive person she'd been as a child, in her former existence. She still lived with her parents, and she spent practically every waking moment in her room or on the porch, reading quietly. She had no job, nor did she have any interest in higher education. It was nearly summer now, so Jim and Christina had decided to give her a few more months, and see if she could shake herself out of the doldrums. Frank was due to return from Europe in August, so that would probably help. Gail had always looked up to her big brother. Maybe he could get through to her in a way that her parents could not.

God hoped so, too; his Daughter had also defied him in the past, but she'd hardly made a career out of it, and her offenses had been far less egregious than Castiel's. Was the Father really going to continue to hold against Gail the fact that she had tried to save Abel's life, after Cain had stabbed him? And that she had admonished Cain afterwards, telling him that he could be a better person, if he so chose? Gail had been speaking with the naivete of one who had not yet been indoctrinated into Heaven's hierarchy, and God believed her motives had been pure. Still, God had harboured a latent resentment towards Castiel's one true mate after that incident, a resentment that He hadn't even been aware was present. He had chuckled about it at the time, but upon reflection, He had become angrier and angrier at her actions. How dare she? How dare this little snip of a girl presume to insert herself into what had been Before? Especially considering Gail's own background. With her lineage, Gail should have been standing beside Cain, exhorting him to cut deeper. God had been feeling magnanimous at the time, wanting to reward his Son for doing everything the correct way. The Father would frankly have preferred that Castiel fall in love with a good and pure Angel, like Aurielle, or Laurel. But love was a capricious emotion sometimes, and it refused to be manipulated, or manufactured. As it had turned out, Castiel had fallen in love with Gail once again, and the Father had allowed their relationship, because it seemed to make his Son so happy.

But this new version of Castiel was far from happy, and Gail was clinically depressed. Others were happy, while others were just going through the motions. What would happen once everyone began to exercise their precious Free Will? God would be very interested to find out.

It was time to check in on one of His other Sons, one at the opposite end of the spectrum.