suddenly my eyes are open [open]

[trickntreats]

WHO: Gabriel (Sylvester Wilton) and [OPEN]
WHAT: Gabriel got taken in for a memory-modification. Now he's a little bit weirded out.
WHERE: Sleeping quarters, Bakery, Bar, Temple, streets in-between.
WHEN: Tuesday 10 to Saturday 21 April 2012.

This was one Hell of an elaborate prank. Except that Gabriel was starting to doubt that it was a prank, exactly. Dad wouldn't have thrown him into a place where the inhabitants drilled into his skull. Or experimented on him. Or ... did something Gabriel wasn't quite aware of but which must have happened, because going off to the clinic and then waking up in his quarters without knowing the in-between kind of indicated something happened in the in-between. All at once he remembered the 'dancing alien' prank he'd pulled and wondered if this was in any way similar. Maybe Lucifer had done it, except that Gabriel was fairly sure even Lucifer had no idea where archangels went after they died or how to capture them before they went there.

Maybe this was some kind of archangel's afterlife. If so, Gabriel's only hope was that Luci's turned out worse in the end.

With a groan Gabriel rubbed his temples, trying to wish away the ... it wasn't a throb, exactly. More like a hollow ache. He'd tried to snap it away, naturally, but that had only made the headache worse, so he'd stopped.

"Note to self," he told his reflection in the mirror. "This ain't a game anymore, and pushing the line results in ... in ... something. Just because you've already died apparently doesn't mean it can't happen again. I mean, look at the Winchesters."

With that pep-talk, he staggered to his feet and out the door.

The next five days were, in a word, weird. He still had no idea how to bake, but when he walked into the bakery on Tuesday he found himself automatically pulling out the ingredients for icing and had finished making a multi-tier wedding cake before he realised what he was doing. (Of course, then he had get rid of the excess icing. The cake wasn't actually saleable either, but Gabriel figured he deserved a reward for actually doing some baking and not having it completely burn.)

Tuesday night and Wednesday morning he discovered that powerless archangels in human bodies could, indeed, get sick from eating too much sugar. He made it to work--for a little while--he just didn't get much work done. (Instead he spent most of it looking green and slumped on a chair near the cash-register, with neither the appetite for sweets nor the energy to bake.)

On Thursday after work he went to the bar. If he could get sick, maybe he could get drunk too, and then he could get rid of this niggling uneasiness (fear) that Something Was Wrong. He succeeded in getting drunk quite well, and for a happily oblivious night completely forgot what the hell he was meant to be uneasy about, if anything.

He just didn't make it to work on Friday and spent the day in bed, groaning over the hangover, yelling at anyone who made too much noise and then going back to bed to groan some more.

On Saturday he found the Temple, a tiny little hole in the wall whose only two seats were cut into stone and whose altar sported a couple of thick candles. There was another worshipper, but he left when Gabriel told him to skedaddle, and then the archangel had a very unproductive one-sided conversation with the candles. Anyone passing by might have heard the final rather frustrated and faintly echoing refrain of, "Dad, if you can hear me, get me out of here!"

By Sunday morning something had settled in his mind and he finally became aware that he, in fact, had an extra memory that had been hiding by pretending it belonged there. A memory of baking a multi-tier wedding cake, colour-coordinated with the wedding party, with the mother-in-law hovering over his shoulder. The realisation it was there made him shiver.

He imagined it lurking and giggling, and named it Marie.

Comments

[trickntreats]

It was the way that was phrased that made Gabriel's smile became a bit fixed. What he'd prefer to be called. He hadn't stopped to think about that in a while.

Loki wasn't even his name; he'd just borrowed it. Noah was, sort of, in some denominations, but the truth was that Noah had been his own person, not some kind of human form for Gabriel himself. But his name, his real name, had been given to him by Dad. And there were a lot of things twisted in with that that made him love and hate it at once.

What the Hell. He'd come this far, shucked off the whole irresponsible trickster thing ... sort of. With a wry, twisted smile the archangel said, "Gabriel. My name is ... was ... Gabriel."

[whowillsaveyou]

The Doctor offered a smile, and extended a hand. "A pleasure to meet you, Gabriel." It was polite, at least - how glad he was to have made the man's acquaintance remained to be seen, but he certainly didn't dislike the man. Even if he had been going through the Doctor's notes.

"What sort of mischief do you get up to here when not trying to pass as a baker?" he asked. There weren't exactly a lot of options. "You're not much of a reader," he said with a smirk, casting a glance towards his notes. "It lacks the sort of entertainment you desire. Surely there must be something you do to while away the hours."

[trickntreats]

If he hadn't wanted Gabriel to read them, he shouldn't have left them in plain view, obviously. The archangel took his hand and pumped it harder than necessary, his eyebrows lifted with innocence.

"Right here?" he said ... well, mischievously, and then shrugged. "Mostly I watch people. Spread a few rumours. See how people react to a bit of flour above the door. That one's surprisingly difficult to get a rise with around here, though." He grinned. "And, of course, I'm in the best position to get something other than rations."

hope you don't mind backtagging into oblivion >_>

[whowillsaveyou]

The pun had the Doctor's brows quirking with mild amusement, the old man giving a soft chuckle. "It certainly seems you have quite a few talents, hmm?" So far none of them technical, but hey, entertainment was useful, too. And, of course, if Gabriel ever managed to figure out his baking skills, the Doctor would be glad for some tasty treats. "I consider myself something of a jack of trades, dabbling here and there. Not so much in areas for entertainment, but, well, we can't all be comedians, now can we?"

not in the least! :D

[trickntreats]

"What can I say? I'm a man of many, many talents," Gabriel said, spreading his hands and shrugging. Of course, he had a few extras he really wasn't telling this guy about, but he couldn't let on everything, right?

"You're doing fine for a rookie," the archangel told the old man, and plonked himself on the chair, stretching out his legs and making himself comfortable. "Go on, then. Give me a sample of these trades."

yay! :D

[whowillsaveyou]

Multi-talented people were very useful, and if he had many more that the Doctor didn't know of, well. Not that the Doctor only cared about usefulness, but it did open up options when one needed certain... talents. He just had to figure out what Gabriel's other talents were, at some point.

"Oh, you know. This and that. Mathematics, botany, zoology, archaeology, a bit of anthropology..." What could he say? He studied things. A lot. And while that was certainly not the extent of his dabbling, it was what he thought of given his research into this planet. "And I do brew a fine cup of tea, if I do say so myself," he added, a hint of a grin on his face before he took a sip from his cup.

<3

[trickntreats]

"Geek," Gabriel said, amusement written all over his face. "I knew someone like you; went into spasms over all that stuff." Archaeology and anthropology weren't all that interesting when you saw the whole 'past development' of both culture and people as it happened. Same with botany, biology and all those--Gabriel had seen them created.

Math, though. Math wasn't really his thing. The archangel had a healthy ... well, somewhat decent ... respect for mathematicians. There was a language there which Gabriel had never really bothered to try and grasp until after--until much later. And even then, as an archangel he didn't really have a need for it. Now, though ...

"I've only ever been so-so at math," he told the Doctor, quite sincerely this time. Then he rolled his eyes exaggeratedly. "Where do you start with all those numbers?"

[whowillsaveyou]

"Oh, now, I don't get all that excited over it." That was a lie. He loved finding new places to explore and new societies to learn about. Well, new to him, since he traveled through time as well as space, but still.

The Doctor laughed. "Math can be quite useful, but everyone has their strong points, hmm? You may not be good with numbers, but I'm sure you make up for it in other areas." Everyone had something. Even the average, ordinary person. "Your sense of humour, for instance."

[trickntreats]

"I'll trade you jokes for sums I'll be able to understand," Gabriel told him with a smirk, lifting his tea. It wasn't exactly what one imagined when one imagined a semi-hedonistic angel, but hey, he knew how to adapt. He spent time in jolly old England. "I'd offer you buns instead, but you might be taking your life into your hands."

[whowillsaveyou]

He chuckled. "Oh, I'm sure you'll get better at it." He hoped so, anyway. Having a supplier of tasty baked goods on hand would be, well, delicious. "Math, as well, if you're truly interested. I am supposed to be a professor, after all." A professor of science, but math was pretty much required in many scientific fields.

[trickntreats]

"Exactly!" Gabriel snapped his fingers at the man, holding his cup with the other. "Got to get you situated and all that. Start figuring out how to do your professorly duties."

Because there were a lot of differences between being a professor and being a scientist, and, really, even though the man wore the title 'doctor' it wasn't any guarantee of both.

[whowillsaveyou]

With something of a mischievious grin, the Doctor asked, "Does that mean I'll be seeing you at the library?" That was where the students went to study, after all. "Unless, of course, you'd prefer private tutoring. I'm sure we can arrange for that, hmm?" It wasn't like he really used his room for much, anyway, just storing things to read after hours. Acursed curfew.

He rather enjoyed speaking to Gabriel, as well, so in a way looked forward to it, even if he didn't much enjoy being a professor.

[trickntreats]

"Of course not," Gabriel said with mock horror. "It might be infectious. I'll bet we could find a table somewhere else. I know some people at the local bakery, y'see."

He winked and drained most of his cup in one go.

[whowillsaveyou]

A brow rose. The Doctor was growing accustomed to this man's humour, even in the short time he'd known the guy. "Oh, now, surely if it were infectious you'd have caught it simply be being in my company," he said with a smirk. "The bakery will do, I think. It will give me the chance to be present should you manage to concoct any successful desserts, as well."

[trickntreats]

"You didn't warn me you were a carrier," Gabriel said promptly. "Better watch out for a lawsuit, bucko!" He grinned, finished the tea and used his pinky to get the tracing of half-melted sugar at the bottom. (Hey, it was the best part okay!) "Good. That means I'll have a taste-tester to see whether things are actually edible."

[whowillsaveyou]

With a chuckle, the Doctor shook his head. "It's settled, then. I'll give you lessons, which of course will give you a break from attempting to bake, and you'll keep me entertained." Not really much of a trade off, but it would give him an idea of how well he worked as a professor. (Not well.) He lifted his cup in a sort of cheer before sipping at it.

[trickntreats]

"Done." Gabriel licked his fingers clean and set the cup back down on its saucer. "As long as you don't sue me in the event of food poisoning," he added as if in afterthought. "Then again, if I'm gonna sue you for infecting me I guess we're already tit for tat."

[whowillsaveyou]

"If anyone's sueing anyone, we'd have to find a lawyer, hmm? Not sure there's any of them around." The Doctor chuckled. Not much of anyone around who actually seemed to know what they were doing, really, so even if they found one, the chances of them knowing how to be one were pretty slim.

Not that he had any intention of actually hiring one.

He took up Gabriel's cup and brought it back to the kitchenette, setting it down beside the sink. "How's your stomach doing, then?"

[trickntreats]

"I'm sure we could find one who dreamed a few things," Gabriel said innocently. Too bad ol' Sammy-boy wasn't here, even though he'd never actually gotten past law school. Not that Gabriel would have used him for his knowledge of law, of course. More as entertainment.

The archangel patted his stomach. "Much better." In true the sugar probably hadn't done much good for him, but eh. It hadn't been that much, and you couldn't have tea without sugar.

[whowillsaveyou]

"Good, good." The Doctor came back and gave Gabriel a pat on the shoulder as he passed. "Now don't you go eating an entire cake on your own again, hmm? As wonderful as the experience sounds, well, you've experienced the aftermath yourself, so I suppose warnings aren't in order."

[trickntreats]

The motion was such a fatherly one that Gabriel felt a pang. He'd been lucky enough to be one of only four angels who had ever seen their Father close-up--to a relative degree of 'seeing'. And there was nothing that could possibly compare to being in his Father's embrace.

But there was something intimate, something intent, about a physical touch like that. It took a moment for Gabriel dredge up a grin, another to summon the words he would have said if it weren't for his sudden semi-paralysis. And even then they felt bitter in his mouth. "Sure thing, Dad."

[whowillsaveyou]

An amused grin broke out across the Doctor's face. He was certainly old enough (so he thought), but Gabriel was certainly not the sort he'd have imagined as a son. Though there was something that reminded him of his childhood friend...

Shaking that thought off, the Doctor chuckled and turned to his desk, sorting through his notes. "Well, if you're feeling better, perhaps you should be heading back to work before they come searching for you."

[trickntreats]

"Ew." Gabriel made a face and gripped his stomach, quickly recovering his composure and hiding the fault beneath his layers of fun-loving trickster. "Suddenly it hurts again! Sure you can't write me a note?"

[whowillsaveyou]

"I doubt they'd take a note from me as proof enough that you needed to miss a shift," the Doctor answered. "Ah, but working isn't entirely required, is it?" He looked back at Gabriel. "Simply to earn credit towards purchases, wasn't it? I suppose if you don't intend to go on any spending sprees, you should be fine skipping an evening." Or afternoon. Or whatever time of day it was.

[trickntreats]

"Doc, the only things I need come straight from the depot on behalf of the bakery," Gabriel said with a smirk. Which wasn't strictly accurate, but he was getting his extras under the bakery's name. He had no qualms at all about skipping a day, with or without an excuse.