Living in paradise

Taking flight

Michael and Lucifer have been at odds recently. It was nothing any other angel could put their finger on, the two seemed to be avoiding each other and when they did meet up, their interactions were sarcastic and slightly hostile. Lucifer was pretty annoyed that they've given up earth to the man creatures. It used to be the perfect sandbox for the fledglings to learn but now, none were allowed to visit. Gabriel kept out of whatever conflict those two were having and so did Raphael. Balthazar was finally moulting his baby feathers. It was a long process and his nest was starting to look like a grey and white fluff ball with the amount of loose feathers trapped in the cloud. Anna was a little farther along in her moulting, the weight of her downy feathers had decreased a lot and her adult flight feathers were coming in. She was super excited, taking test flaps of her new rosy wings. The pigment of her wings were starting to darken into a scarlet at the ends of her flight feathers and as her wingspan grew to twice the size of her baby wings, she couldn't help but show off. Hannah was fascinated by them,

"Pretty" She'd reach out to stroke the soft feathers. Hannah was close to four years old now, Cas was nearly five. By this point, many of the fledglings were starting to... well... fledge. The fields were becoming painted with loose feathers of every colour. Cas could identify each angel by the feathers they left behind. Gabriel found his fun teasing the older fledglings, his usual pranking was put on hold until this conflict between his two older brothers was resolved,

"Come on, it's fine" He said, encouraging Anna out onto the ledge,

"Come on Anna!" Hannah and Cas cheered her on as she cautiously took another step out, swallowing her fear,

"You'll catch me though right?" She asked Gabriel apprehensively,

"Relax" Gabriel ruffled her hair, "I won't let you fall. Besides, Raphael is down there to make sure" He looked down to see the other archangel whose face was full of concentration, ready to grab her if she fell. Anna was still holding tightly to Gabriel's arm as she took another step towards the edge. She took a deep breath to try and calm her beating heart,

"Anna!" Samandriel called up to his sister excited. He was sitting on the grass next to Cas, wiggling on the spot in anticipation. Anna gave a weak smile, finally loosening her grip on Gabriel and spreading her wings. With one more test flap, she leaned forward over the side before jerking back,

"No I can't" She said quickly,

"Come on Anna" Balthazar called from the ground, "We're all routing for you here. You don't want to let us down do you?" Gabriel rolled his eyes, a cheeky smile rolling across his face too before Anna was pushed forward. She gave a surprised yelp as she fell, closing her eyes and flinching as she neared the ground,

"Open your wings Anna" Gabriel called. As Anna's wings opened, her descent slowed and as she angled them upwards, she took off into the sky,

"Whoo!!!" Her younger brothers and sister were cheering from the ground as she raised higher. She smiled and gave a large flap of her wings, raising her an extra couple of feet. Gabriel smiled then looked at the other fledglings with him,

"Who's next?" He smirked. Anna couldn't believe the feeling. She loved every minute of it. Her wings instinctively moved to keep her airborne as she closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the wind through her hair. When she opened her eyes a blur flew by her, as she followed it with her eyes, she realised her sister Hester had joined her. Hester was blonde with bright white wings that shone in the sun. As she flew gracefully in the air, the sun reflected off her wings in brilliant hues. The pair chased each other in the sky, having the time of their lives as a brother of theirs joined them. Ezekiel was a little wobbly in the air, almost clumsy. He was only a little farther along than Balthazar but both Hester and Anna took a hand each to steady him, the trio were joyously flying around as more and more brothers and sisters joined them. Castiel sat on the ground with Hannah and Samandriel. Hannah was in awe at all the outstretched wings, in various reds, blues, browns and whites. She wanted nothing more than to join them. Castiel also watched in awe but for a different reason. The fledged looked so carefree in the air. With this feeling, their grace started to mature. He could see it changing within each of them. The once dormant power within them was coming through, each like a beautiful blossoming soul. Anna's shone bright with happiness,

"Pretty" He said,

"Yeah" Hannah agreed. Samandriel was watching them all too, wishing he could be up there with them. Balthazar's wings twitched with anticipation. It wouldn't be long until he'd be up there with them. Uriel was also an onlooker but for once, he wasn't grumpy or sarcastic. He sat beside his younger brothers, even cradling Samandriel, too excited to be dull. His chocolate brown wings were curling around anyone close to him, he was so happy in that moment. The moment was ruined by shouting. Mostly, shouts in heaven were always directed towards Gabriel, accompanied by his laughter and running away but this was different. This was hostile, pure rageful. It scared all the fledglings, even the ones in the air. Some froze. Gabriel took off and caught one as they started to fall. Others flew off to hide from the terror or help others land. Castiel's smile disappeared. The beautiful grace that shone through each angel, had retreated. Hiding in fear. They all scattered. Hannah was also shocked at how quickly everyone changed, from complete bliss to fear. She clung to the closest fledgling for comfort. Samandriel too got scared and snuggled closer to Uriel. Uriel looked to Balthazar, both completely confused on what just happened. The shouting continued in the distance. Raphael also flew into action, making sure all the fledglings were safely on the ground before cautiously going to check out the disturbance. Gabriel stayed with the petrified fledglings. Never has any angel they know ever had so much hate. The shouting seemed to shake everything up. Hannah clung to Castiel, scared. She didn't understand what was happening. Neither did Castiel. He sought safety back at the nursery, leading his little sister to what he thought was a safe zone. It wasn't a good move. It turns out, the shouting was coming from there. Michael and Lucifer were fighting. Hannah clung to Castiel more, so much so, it would leave a bruise. She looked up to him with fear in her eyes. Castiel didn't like it either, he wanted to go and stop them but he was also afraid to get in the middle of it. They stood there, unnoticed until other fledglings, also seeking refuge in the nursery came along. Balthazar came over with Uriel and Samandriel. Balthazar led Castiel and Hannah away while Uriel was still holding Samandriel, trying to comfort the whimpering fledgling. The only other place they could think of to hide was the garden. The group rushed away from the disturbance and to the heart of heaven, the garden. It was such a beautiful place. It was far enough away that they could barely hear the shouting and the tranquillity helped ease their worries. As they entered, an elder angel approached them. Joshua.

"Hey" He said kneeling down to their level, "What's the matter?" He could tell immediately something troubled the fledglings when they arrived. They aren't normally allowed in there without an adult angel. It was clear on their faces that they were distressed,

"M-Mikey and Luci are fighting" Castiel mumbled,

"It's scary" Hannah buried her face in Castiel's arm. It broke the elder's heart. Michael and Lucifer are some of the most caring angels in heaven. They loved and cared for the fledglings so for them to start seeming scary to them means it must be serious,

"Come on in" Joshua invited the fledglings into the garden. As they hid out there, it became apparent that they weren't the only ones who thought to come here. Many other fledglings sought refuge. Anna included. She came over to the group, wrapping her large wingspan around them. Hannah especially curled close to her. Meanwhile the other two archangels were trying to round all the fledglings up. It didn't help that Michael and Lucifer were still shouting at each other. Gabriel finally worked up the courage to approach them, still cautious,

"Brothers" He said calmly. His low voice was just barely heard by Michael under all the shouting. He turned to see the youngest archangel who seemed a little scared to approach them. Gabriel's wings were drooping and he wasn't giving eye contact. He looked like he was a fledgling all over again and it snapped both brothers out of their rage. Michael approached Gabriel, pulling him into a hug,

"I'm sorry Gabriel" He whispered.