Present
Eons later, after Lucifer's fall, Heaven has changed and rebuilt into a utopia and paradise. Many mortal souls have died and entered heaven, so they must make it big enough to fit enough angels, from the greatest saints who understand God to people who have done good deeds and are rewarded. The Elders and the Seraphims made it possible as their higher-ups hoped.
In Heaven City, angels focus on their daily routines: selling, working on their jobs, and shopping. Some even make merry by hanging out with their friends and lost loved ones—all without a care in the world—perhaps not caring because, in Heaven, nothing can go wrong or worse; it is a perfect paradise.
A human angel strolled down the street, snapping his finger rhythmically. He waved at the other angels, who all waved back. He nodded his head while wearing a grin.
"It might seem crazy what I'm about to say. " He started singing, twisting his hips. " Sunshine, she's here; you can take a break."
A wolf angel slid on the street and started dancing along. "I'm a hot air balloon that could go to space. " He sings, too, joining in. " With the air, like I don't care, baby, by the way."
Suddenly, all the angels sing. "Because I'm happy."
"Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof." A female human angel sings while shopping, carrying three shopping bags.
"Because I'm happy." The angels sing.
"Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth." The human angel sings while grabbing the female angel, and the two dance.
"Because I'm happy." The angels all sing in unions.
A fox angel sang as she watered her flowers near a flower shop. "Clap along if you know what happiness is to you."
"Because I'm happy." The angel up in the air sings with the ones on the ground.
The wolf angel got between the two dancing angels and sang, "Clap along if you feel like that's what you wanna do." He then got grabbed and spun away. He spun past an angel walking down the sidewalk.
That angel is Shilo Winterstone, yet she has changed. Her gorgeous, long golden hair is cut into a pixie cut with long bangs swapped on her right side. She wore a blouse with a blue bow tie, a light blue vest with blue stripes, jeans, and light blue high-heeled shoes. A dark blue choker holding a light blue crystal is wrapped around her neck. Over the centuries, she started to rebuild her life and moved on from Lucifer now that she is dating Michael, her boyfriend.
While she is strolling past the angels, the angel continues their musical duties.
"Here comes bad news, talking this and that. " At the pawn shop, a cat angel sings while dusting her shop. " Yeah, well, gimme all you got, and don't hold back."
The wolf angel enters, almost knocking the items off their shelves. "Yeah, well, I should probably warn you; I'll be just fine. " The cat angel stopped and grabbed the items fast before they broke. She glared at the wolf, who smiled nervously. " Yeah, no offense to you; don't waste your time. " He runs out of the shop. " Here's why."
"Because I'm happy." All the angels sing with their hands clapped together.
A spider angel in pink sings as she carries flowers in her arms. "Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof."
"Because I'm happy." Everyone sang as they danced in the streets.
"Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth." The fox angel waved at the spider with a smile as she sang.
"Because I'm happy." All sing while dancing in unison.
"Clap along if you know what happiness is to you." A buff angel sings while lifting a giant pillar.
"Because I'm happy." All sing in a big musical moment.
The wolf angel flies over the buff angel. "Clap along if you feel like that's what you want to do."
While all of Heaven is singing, Shilo enters a coffee shop and approaches the bartender. With one look, the bartender started working.
"Bring me down; can't nothing bring me down. " The angels sing as all join together and gather like a choir. " My level's too high to bring me. Can't nothing bring me down."
An owl angel sings while acting like a conductor leading the choirs. "I said."
"Bring me down. Can't nothing bring me down. " The choirs sing in unions with hands clapped together. " My level's too high to bring me down. Can't nothing bring me down."
"I said." The human angel uses his wings to fly up.
"Because I'm happy." The angels sing.
The female angel flies in the sky. "Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof."
"Because I'm happy." The angels above sing.
"Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth." He took the female angel and danced in the sky.
"Because I'm happy." Everyone begins to fly up to join in.
"Clap along if you know what happiness is to you." The fox angel climbs on top of her roof.
"Because I'm happy." All joined hands and flew together.
"Clap along if you feel like that's what you want to do." The wolf angel joins in with the others.
"Because I'm happy." They separated into two groups as the one danced on roofs.
"Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof." The buff angel dances on top of the pillars.
"Because I'm happy." And while the others dance in the skies.
"Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth." The pink spider angel tosses her flowers up in the sky.
"Because I'm happy." The first group leaped off the roofs using their wings.
"Clap along if you know what happiness is to you." The female angel was dancing on her own.
"Because I'm happy." The second group danced in a vast circle.
The wolf angel danced with the spider angel. "Clap along if you feel like that's what you want to do."
Back with Shilo, she was leaning against the countertop, waiting for her order to be ready. She was tapping her heels along with the musical moment outside the shop.
While outside, all the angels sing in a choir form again. "Bring me down. Can't nothing bring me down. " They all sing. " My level's too high to bring me down. Can't nothing bring me down."
Then, a bird angel joined in with the others. "I said."
"Because I'm happy." All from below joined in, even those who are working.
"Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof." The owl angel sings in church form.
"Because I'm happy." The angels then pair up with a partner to dance with.
"Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth." The fox angel flies up with flowers in its arms.
"Because I'm happy." Everyone was dancing with their parents.
"Clap along if you know what happiness is to you." A moth angel sings while dancing with her partner.
"Because I'm happy." Then they danced on tops of rooftops.
"Clap along if you feel like that's what you want to do." The wolf angel sings as he grabs the fox angel and swings her.
"Because I'm happy." Soon, pretty much all in Heaven started joining in.
The moth angel flies down, hovering over the rest on the streets. "Clap along if you feel like a room without a roof."
"Because I'm happy." Those on the streets dance in a parade style.
"Clap along if you feel like happiness is the truth." The buff angel sings while shaking his shoulders.
"Because I'm happy." The angels in the sky dance the can-can.
"Clap along if you know what happiness is to you." A pale human angel sings while dancing with her partner.
"Because I'm happy." All of heaven sings in union.
The wolf angel landed on the street. "Clap along if you feel like that's what you want to do."
"One Frappuccino for Ms. Winterstone." The bartender announced as he placed a tall cup of Frappuccino on the countertop, ending the musical number.
Shilo takes the cup. "Thank you." She thanked him with a warm smile. She reached inside her jeans pocket and placed a five-dollar tip inside a tip jar, which put a smile on the bartender.
She took a sip of her drink, which only caused her to yell in pain, and touched her lips.
"Is there something wrong?" The bartender asked.
Shilo winces. Her lips feel so hot—too hot. "I think you forgot the ice." She told him.
The bartender gasped; he had forgotten to get it cold. Shilo can't eat hot food or beverages like the other angels can due to being a winter virtue. "I am so sorry, ma'am." He apologized.
She smiled at him. "It's alright. I got this." She placed her hands together around her cup, focusing on it. The cup was then covered in frost, cooling the Frappuccino. After that, she took another sip. She hummed and nodded at the right temperature. "There we go. Much better, no need to panic over." She assured the bartender.
He let out a sigh of relief. "Thank the Lord." He smiled at her, pleased she didn't get mad over it. "Have a wonderful day at your job, Ms. Winterstone."
She smiled back. "Thanks, you too." She responded. She recognized what she said. "I mean, at your job here." She nervously meant. "Take care!" She makes her way to the door, leaving the coffee shop.
Shilo headed down the end of the sidewalk, drinking her cold coffee as she went. When Shilo left, the angels in heaven were back to normal. She pays no mind to them, only focusing on her way ahead.
She stopped at the end of the sidewalk as the pedestrian signal turned red. Shilo waited as she drank her coffee till it was empty. She tosses the empty cup into a trash bin.
Above it, Shilo saw a poster of an angel coming down to Earth with the caption, 'Work God's miracles.' She let out a sad sigh at this. She can picture herself in that angelic position, going down to Earth with a smile on her lips. The signal light turned green and caught her attention. She rushed across the street, almost tripping herself.
Shilo spread her wings open, flapping them as she flew up and started flying to a building that let out a bell ring.
She walked down the hallway, dusting her vest and blouse to remove any dust she had caught on her way. She sighed softly and stopped by a door decorated with books and snowflakes.
When she opened the door, the sound of children talking was the first thing she heard. She steps inside, facing a group of young angels sitting on their desks in a neat row. She let out a soft smile, seeing them all here and having their full attention on her.
"Good morning, little angels." She greeted them, standing in front of a chalkboard.
"Good morning, Ms. Winterstone." The children greeted back in unions.
Shilo giggled, hearing their enthusiasm. "My, it fills my heart to see you all paying attention and coming in with happy smiles," she said in a friendly voice. "Do you know what today is?" She asked them.
"No?" They all shook their heads.
"Why, it's Friday!" she exclaimed. And I know you all are excited for a little break this weekend." She watched them nod their heads. She nodded back. "I knew it. But it's time to take a little history trip on our topic today." She picked up a chalk and wrote on the board, with a caption on the top reading 'The History of Heaven.' She wrote a caption, 'The Life of Jesus.'
She faced them. "We are going on a time travel trip to the day Jesus was born as the Son of God," she explained. Can anyone tell me where he was born?" She asked them, seeing them raise their hands. "Lily?" She pointed at a little angel with white hair.
"In Bethlehem," Lily answered.
"Very good." Shilo nodded. "Yes, but he, along with his mother, Mary, and father, Joseph, all left to live in Egypt to protect him from the cruel king." She lectured to the whole class. "God gifted him with beautiful abilities from his own to remind them that their sins can be forgiven. Isn't that wonderful?"
"Yes, Ms. Winterstone!" They agreed with their voice at the same time.
Shilo smiled, only looking a little sad. "And others are told they have God's gift as well. From parting a huge wave of water to having visions of the future in dreams." She continued her lectures. "Cause God gives you a purpose for his people." She set the chalk down slowly as she farrowed her eyes down. Then, quickly, she perks up with a huge smile. "Now, who knows where Jesus's home in Egypt is?"
All raise this hand, all saying'me' in unions. Shilo smiles softly and calmly, seeing the joy of learning in their eyes. But in Shilo's eyes, they show a different emotion than the little angels, who all wore a smile.
"Marcus?" She pointed at a young fox angel with bright orange fur.
"Is it Matareyah?" He answered with a questionable tone.
"Correct!" Shilo happily clapped. You get a star!" She reached inside her desk and pulled out a sticker with golden stars. She pulled out a star, heading to Marcus, and placed it on his desk.
"Yay!!" Marcus cheered at his answer and his reward.
Shilo returns to her position on the board. "But he and his family return to the county when word comes out about the king's death, and years later, his family grew large till he works as a carpenter to support them." She told them, her hands behind her back. "Back when he doesn't know his true destiny. So he spends the rest of his years living as a normal mortal man, where he learns from his own experiences and sees what the world throws at him."
Before she could continue, the bell rang to mark the end of class time. The students all groaned at this.
"Oh. I'm afraid that's the end of our journey." Shilo stated. "Have a wonderful weekend, for our next time travel adventure is in the land of Egypt and a young Hebrew prince."
The angels cheered. They grabbed their backpacks and left the classroom for their next class lesson. Once they were all gone, Shilo took the paper sheets left on their desk and placed them on her desk to review them.
She sat in her chair by her desk, reviewing her paperwork and sighing. "Another day, the same lesson every year," she whispered. After eons of learning to control her powers and experiencing eons in Heaven, Sera put her in charge of teaching Heavenborns about their histories, significant people who have done good things for God, and the lessons that were known. She doesn't mind teaching them; she enjoys sharing knowledge. And seeing the look of joy was rewarding enough.
She exited her seat, grabbed a binder from her desk, and left her classroom.
Shilo entered a break room for teachers only and sat down near a table. She placed her binder down and opened it, revealing written notes about the Great Depression and historical people during that time. She took the pencil in the middle and began writing some extra notes. During this, a hand was placed behind her.
"Well, if it isn't Ms. Michael's troubled lover," a voice behind her said, a voice Shilo recognized. "What did you write about this time? An essay about novels? Those silly mindless shows?"
Shilo groaned, placed her pencil down, and turned around. She was faced with an angel with two light purple wings, long dark purple hair, and purple-blue eyes. Her halo is pale blue, and she is dressed in a business outfit with a blouse, jacket, skirt, and high heels. The angel stared down at her with hands on hips and a taunting expression.
"Whatever I write down has nothing to do with my job, Trixie," Shilo informed her. "It's just something to help pass the time here. And you know getting on other people's business is wrong." She added.
"Last I hear, you once went on other people's business." Trixie pointed out.
She rolled her eyes. "That was over a million years ago; I've changed." She corrected her. "I learned from my mistakes and have a better life now." She closed her binder.
"Better life?" Trixie testified, almost taunting her. "You got lucky because of Michael and the archangel." She mentioned the archangels Shilo was always with.
Shilo pushed her bangs out of her eyes, raising an eyebrow. Her arms were crossed, not giving her the results she wanted. "You do know envy is a sin here, Trixie Moonlight." She exhaled.
Trixie looks taken aback by her remarks. "Evny!!?" She shouted. She glared down at her. "Of you!? I-"
"Enough." A familiar voice interrupted.
The two turned to the entrance and saw Uriel standing with his hands behind him. His outfit had changed over the years. He traded his robe for an orange and gold suit. Seeing Uriel, Trixie composed herself.
"Archangel Uriel!" Trixie nervously shuddered. "Please forgive me!!"
"Go," Uriel ordered her.
"O-O-O, of course!!" Trixie nodded. "I'm so sorry!!" She quickly leaves, leaving Shilo and Uriel alone.
Once they are sure they are entirely alone, Shilo faces Uriel, confused as to why Uriel decided to come here in the middle of her job. "Uriel? What brings you here?" She asked him.
"What? Can't I come here and see how my favorite angel is doing at her job?" Uriel shrugged with a smirk.
"I suppose so," Shilo shrugged. Sometimes, essential angels only come here to talk to the students on request. "Are you sure there is nothing I should know about?" she questioned him.
"I'm not a massager. That's Gabriel's job." Uriel responded. He let out a smile. "Anyway, how have you been?"
"Fine," Shilo answered. "The kids are doing well, and all have good grades, too."
Uriel nodded in approval. "Good, good." He replied. "You are doing your part very well."
Shilo nodded back. "Yeah, as always." She looked away, frowning.
Uriel spotted the frown on her face, sensing something was happening in her mind. "Something wrong, Shilo?" He asked in concern.
Shilo blinked. "Oh!" She acknowledged. "No." She lied.
Uriel raises an eyebrow, not buying her word. "You know lying is a sin," he tells her, arms crossed, waiting for the truth.
Seeing that she wouldn't get away from an archangel of wisdom like him, she groaned. "Uriel, I am a virtue angel." She explained. "While the other virtues visit Earth to create miracles, I never get to do my miracles there." She finished with a sigh, looking away.
After she finished, Uriel started to understand. Like every virtue in heaven, she was created to make miracles. She was gifted with winter powers to create a snowstorm and leave frosts. But Shilo is still a curious soul that Heaven needs to avoid to keep her curiosity away and tie her up. So he has to lie to her.
Uriel reaches his hand out and brushes her long bangs off her eyes, a method he uses to get her attention. As soon as he felt her eyes on him, it was time. "I know how, despite your desire to go down there, but as a virtue of perseverance; you are needed here in Heaven." He told her. "I'm only saying this as a friend." He added, caressing her cheek.
Shilo frowns, believing his lies. "Right," she nodded.
Uriel nodded, happy with her ignorance. Heaven is safe as long as she does what she is told without question. He stepped back from her. "Well, I must go," he disclaimed. The others are helping with a meeting today."
"right.." Shilo nodded sadly. "See you, Uriel."
"Take care." Uriel makes his way out of the break room, leaving Shilo alone.
Once she was alone, Shilo slowly focused on her binder. She turned the page, revealing many notes she had written about Earth's history, from the beginning of humanity's development to the present day. All of these notes were from the angels who were on Earth and shared their stories with her, and to her, it was like they had evolved better than the two humans she grew to despise so much. Humanity has changed over eons.
She closed the binder, sighing sadly. "Luci..." she whispered. If only he could see what she saw. She grabbed the binder and left the break room to return to work. Knowing a trail of frost behind her, it senses her sadness.
In the hallway, she held her binder close to her, keeping her gaze down. The last thing she wanted was to show the angels her desperation, to see her desires, and to tell the archangels about it. Then she bumped and almost stumbled back.
"Sorry about that." She apologized. Till she checks what she bumps into, or rather who. "Emily?" She gasped.
Before her is a young seraphim angel; Emily smiled when she saw her. "Ms.Winterstone!!"
Shilo let out a smile, laughing in surprise. Emily had been her student a long time ago and her favorite. She hugged her, and Emily hugged her back. "Oh! I never thought you would come here!!" She happily exclaimed. She let her go.
"I got asked to come and speak to the heaven-born students on how heaven court works," Emily explained. "And since I was here, I thought I'd come to visit my favorite teacher." She added.
Shilo nodded, smiling. "Of course. You were my top student in your time."
Emily couldn't help but keep that smile on her face. "Thank you, Ms. Winterstone." She thanked her. "How was your class?" She asked her.
Shilo huffed out. "New students are enjoying my history lessons, and all are participating very well." She answered. "My next class should be in another minute."
"Then I mustn't keep you waiting." Emily chuckled. But it slowly died down and turned into a concerning frown. As if she can tell something is off. "Ms. Winterstone? Is something wrong?"
Shilo blinked, not expecting that question from her. "No." She shook her head. "What do you mean?" She questioned her.
"I sense a strong aura of sadness in you," Emily replied. "What's wrong?"
Shilo feared it would happen. Emily tends to pick up aura sense from other angels if they are sad or stressed, and she has sensed her aura. "It's nothing. I'm alright." She assured her. She doesn't want Emily to be so worried about her, not when she has a role to play as the Joy Bringer of Heaven.
"Are you sure?" Emily kept asking her. "Maybe I can get Michael to-"
"I said I'm alright!!!" Shilo shouted at Emily. Under Shilo's heels, the floor was covered in frost due to her anger and what looked to be anxiety. Her wings were spread out as she was panting heavily.
Seeing this, Shilo gasped, realizing what she had done. She took deep breaths, calming herself. As if sensing her calmness, the frost slowly melted away and faded, too. Once she was sure she was alright, she faced Emily. "Sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you." She apologized heartily.
Emily held her breath, frozen in place. She had never seen Shilo so upset, angry, and concerned. When Emily sensed Shilo's aura getting calm, she let out the breath she was holding out. "I care about you; you were my closest friend," she told her. I just want to help you be happy."
"I'll be fine. Just focus on you and look after yourself." Shilo told her. The bell rang, marking the time classes will begin again. "I must go. Have a good day, Emily." She added.
"You too." Emily nodded.
Shilo left Emily and returned to her classroom, where she knew there would be students waiting for her. It has been this way for centuries and will always be this way for another.
Emily watched her leave. She knew she sensed something troubling in her former teacher and that this was not something to get over.
'Happy' by Pharrell Williams.