by Jane Lebak
Raphael's eyes searched out Gabriel's, but the Cherub avoided his Seraph's gaze. "I'll be here and there," he said, "Azariah."
- + -
When Tobias left Nineveh accompanied by the angel, the dog trotted behind."He's not usually this friendly," said the young man. "I guess he can tell you're my kinsman."
"You'd be surprised at what dogs can figure out." Raphael reached a hand to the dog, which bounded around him, barking. "They're fairly intelligent, but not smart enough to sin."
Tobias thought. "Then dogs are the best animals?"
"I wouldn't say that," said Raphael. "If I had to pick a kind of animal to be, I'd want to be a bird. I love flight. I mean the concept of flying." He laughed out loud. It would be a fine thing to reveal his identity right at the start. "How would you like to fly to Rages instead of walking there?"
Tobias considered. "Birds work too hard. Dogs have it easy, though. Yeah, they work, but we feed them. Cats have it best, though: every time I see a cat, it's pondering some innate mystery."
Where have I heard things like that before? thought Raphael to God. The boy sounds like a Cherub. To Tobias, he said, "Probably thinking about food."
"They're deeper than that. They play." Tobias nodded as if the question were already settled in his mind. "I never see birds play."
Raphael shrugged. "Swallows play. They'll pluck a feather from themselves, carry it up very high, drop it, and chase it back and forth as it falls."
"Training themselves to catch insects," said Tobias.
"Insects don't fly the way feathers fall."
Raphael realized, I'm sounding like Gabriel! and then, I wish he weren't disappointed in me, Father.
They kept up their conversation until they reached the Tigris. There they broke for the night, Raphael making their camp while Tobias waded into the river to wash up.
Gabriel? he called. When he didn't get a response, he called again, this time reaching inside through their bond. And instead of an answer, nothing.
Gabriel?
"Azariah!"
That was Tobias. Raphael bolted to the river.
Just off shore, Tobias thrashed, screaming, a fish clamped to his leg. Silver and longer than his arms, the fish whipped like a flag in a high wind. Tobias slipped on the moss-covered rocks, then shrieked as the fish started dragging him to deeper water.
Raphael rushed to the water's edge. "Grab the fish by its gills! Don't let it get away!"
Tobias kept screaming for help. Raphael shouted again, "The gills! Grab its gills!"
Tobias finally seized the gills, and the fish opened its mouth. He yanked his leg free.
"Don't let go!" Raphael shouted. "Haul it to shore!"
His fingers still wrapped around the snapping head, Tobias wrestled the thrashing weight inch by inch onto the rocks, then staggered onto the pebbles.
Away from the river, the fish flailed until it died.
Tobias stared at it as it twitched. His heart leaked terror, and his breath was heaving. He didn't say anything, and when he'd been quiet too long, Raphael put a hand on Tobias's shoulder. Only then did the boy lunge for Raphael. He held Tobias close.
"I didn't know what to do." Tobias kept his hands locked about Raphael's waist as though he would be swept away into the river. "I'm so glad you're here. I was so scared."
"You're okay. Take a deep breath." Raphael tried to look him over. "Let's get a look at your leg."
With Tobias seated on a rock, Raphael examined the bite, swabbed off the wound, and stopped the bleeding. One of the plants on the shore was just right to prevent infection, so he bound it to the cut with a strip of cloth. By the time he finished, Tobias had his breath back, but he was still shaking. And strangely, so was Raphael. It was odd, but he kept re-visiting the images of that fish, the struggle, the shouting.
Raphael forced himself to let off a long breath. "Okay." He was safe. He had to remind himself, they were both safe. "Next, you caught the fish, so you get the prize. You need to cut open the fish and take out its gall, heart and liver. They're good for medicine."
Tobias looked at the thing. "Really?"
Raphael handed him a bronze knife.
"You know..." Tobias looked up. "Since I went through all the trouble of catching the fish, I'll give you the honor of cleaning it."
Raphael frowned. "I believe the fish caught you."
Tobias tried to hand back the knife. "I'd never have caught it without your help."
"I'll cook it." Raphael walked back to the camp. "You gut it."
- + -
After Tobias had fallen asleep, Raphael returned to his angelic form and played with the dog.
Tobias's guardian, Ezdrael, sat with one hand on Tobias's shoulder. "Thank you so much for your help with the fish. You handled it really well. You could have grabbed the fish, gutted it, and told him to hold the medicinal parts, but instead you let Tobias do it himself."
"Well for that matter," said Raphael, "I could have cured Tobit in a flash of light, flashed them to Rages for the money, and then transported everyone to Ecbatana and exorcised Sarah."
That would have taken care of one part of the assignment. But testing Tobit—that hadn't gone very well. The man was rooted in his despair and concerned more about the money than about his son. Gabriel had been indisputably right that Tobit should have questioned him before trusting Tobias to his care, and instead, there hadn't been anything at all. Just money.
Ezdrael laughed. "I'd love to see the look on their faces if you showed off a bit! But this way, at every step, Tobias has a choice to obey or not, so he reaffirms his alignment to God through obedience."
Raphael traced on the ground with a stick. "Obedience. Kind of important in all this."
"Oh, please." Ezdrael huffed. "Gabriel's just being obnoxious."
Raphael looked up. "I don't think he's being obnoxious."
The guardian shook his head. "It's typical Cherub behavior, the kind I'm trying every day to make sure Tobias doesn't get stuck in. I'm surprised Gabriel's got any friends left at all."
"What?" Raphael's wings flared, and at his side, the dog growled. "You're not being fair."
"Fair? I'm not playing by the rules?" The angel rolled his eyes. "But Gabriel sure is. He's got all these rules memorized and holds us to standard. Does it look like it might look to someone that you might be getting close to breaking a rule? Well, out you go."
Raphael wrapped his arms around himself. "It's not like that. Cherubim don't realize."
"What exactly don't the members of the smartest choir realize?" Ezdrael's feathers spread. "Oh, right, feelings. Feelings aren't easily defined, so they don't touch them. Meanwhile Gabriel walks around convinced he's God's gift to knowledge."
Raphael forced a smile. "He is God's gift to knowledge."
Ezdrael said, "A fact he's keenly aware of."
"Stop it!" Flames erupted around Raphael's eyes. "For pity's sake, he's my Cherub!"
God, help us. Raphael clenched his fists and hunched over himself. I need you to please step in here.
Ezdrael looked at the ground. "I'm sorry. Forgive me for being uncharitable."
Father?
God said to both of them: I love him.
Ezdrael said, "That wasn't in question. Gabriel's the one not acting loving toward Raphael. He needs to change what he's doing."
A chill settled over Raphael. "That's not true. He's fine just the way he is. I don't want him to change."
From God: Leave him to me. If you must say something, pray for him. And then a moment later, Raphael felt himself becoming solid, his wings dispersing and his body heavy, his eyes closing.
Raphael murmured, "What should I do about Gabriel?"
Ezdrael said, "You should just let it ride. Gabriel's smart. He'll realize he's wrong."
Should I? Raphael prayed.
He's your Cherub, God said. Right now, Tobias needs you. And you need to sleep.
Raphael didn't refuse the offer.
- + -<
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The next night when they made camp, Raphael and Tobias prayed together. Despite his airy prediction about "two days" of traveling, they hadn't gotten near to Rages yet, and they'd been going downhill all the way, but Tobias didn't seem to mind.
They ate figs as Raphael directed Tobias's attention to the sunset, where light filtered down in bright columns as if through windows in the sky. "I have a friend who never fails to point those out to me. He says it's 'proof once again that air is a colloidal suspension.'"
Tobias said, "What on earth does that mean?"
Raphael laughed. "I don't know, but I'd hate to tell him after all this time."
Tobias cracked up. "Well, if you're not admitting your ignorance, maybe now would be a bad time to ask what medicinal value there can be in a fish's heart, liver and gall?"
Raphael swallowed a bit of fig. "If you burn the heart and liver so the smoke surrounds a man or woman obsessed by a demon, the obsession will end and no demons will return."
Tobias nodded. "That could be useful."
"As for the gall, if you rub it into the eyes of a person with cataracts and blow into his eyes, his sight will be restored."
"My father!" Tobias exclaimed.
"Exactly," said Raphael.
Tobias lay back resting his head on his hands. The sky had gone purple and orange. "What do you suppose Heaven's like? I mean, is it worth it?"
Raphael laughed. "Everyone says it is."
Tobias turned his head to look at Raphael. "What do they say?"
Raphael groped for words. "It's hard to tell you. There's a Vision, a Vision so special it overflows into all your other senses. God fills you with love, and you bubble inside, always just on the edge of something wonderful but never quite overwhelmed. It changes everything about life, just knowing how much you're loved."
"That's incredible." Tobias whistled, still staring at the stars. "I kind of hoped we'd know everything once we got to Heaven."
Raphael muttered, "I know some who think they do."
Tobias laughed out loud. "No need to go to Heaven to meet those kind of people. But I hope so. I hope God has a huge library with lots of scrolls. Maybe he'll tell us what's a colloidal suspension."
When he lay down to sleep, Raphael realized he hadn't spoken to or heard from Gabriel all day. He doubled up in his bed-roll and shivered.
Gabriel? he sent. I want to talk to you.
Nothing.
Raphael opened his senses to all creation, extending until he could feel Gabriel's spirit. Not here, on the plane of Creation, but back in Heaven. He sent him an invitation, a curling thread of fire, a tease and a promise. They could sit up and talk all night and watch the stars and play with the silly dog, and it would be fine. Raphael had missed him, but they'd be together now.
Gabriel didn't come. He didn't refuse, but he also didn't arrive. And the longer the silence stretched, the more lonely Raphael felt.
God, help me, he prayed.
Be patient, Rapha'li.
Little by little Raphael loosened the knot of his body enough to lie flat. He breathed deeply, and when he opened his eyes he found it was morning.
Getting started felt extremely difficult, but Raphael managed to rise. He made breakfast for himself and Tobias and began a conversation while they ate.
"When we reach Ecbatana tonight, we can stay with Raguel, a relative of yours."
Tobias's head jerked up.
"Of ours," Raphael amended. "I was thinking, you know, Raguel's daughter Sarah is still unmarried. Since you're Sarah's relative, you have a right to marry her, and then you'd inherit her father's estate. Sarah's sensible, courageous, beautiful."
Tobias put down his breakfast. "No. Before you say anything else, no."
Raphael said, "This is a great idea. Tonight I'll ask her father to let you have her as your bride."
"No."
Raphael gestured to Tobias to keep eating. "When we return from Rages, we'll hold the wedding feast for her."
Tobias rolled his eyes. "You're making one very big assumption aren't you?"
This resolution to his assignment had occurred to Raphael on the first day: Sarah needed a husband, and Tobit had a marriageable son. "I'm not assuming anything. Raguel can't keep her from you because that would be a capital crime, and he'll know that. Then when we return from Rages, we'll just take her back with us to your house."
"I don't think you're listening to me. No."
Raphael paused. "Whatever for? Sarah's a wonderful woman."
Tobias had forgotten his breakfast again. "This 'wonderful woman' has already been married seven times, and each of her husbands died in the bridal chamber on the night of the wedding. They dropped dead. People say a demon killed them."
Raphael seemed puzzled. "If it were a demon, wouldn't it hurt her?"
Tobias spoke with a campfire hush. "He loves her, so he doesn't harm her. But he murders any man who comes close."
"I suppose that would put a damper on the wedding night," Raphael admitted.
"You're a relative of hers too," Tobias said. "If you're so enamored of the wonders of Sarah, you marry her."
If he'd been here, Gabriel would have laughed at him and said something about the kid being perceptive. "You're a closer relation."
Tobias looked earnest. "I wouldn't stop you."
"You're being impertinent."
"I'm my father's only child. If I die, I'll bring my parents down to their graves in grief." Tobias folded his arms. "They have no one else to bury them!"
"Oh, please. Your father buried the dead." Raphael set down his own breakfast. "If God let that happen, those dead would rise from their graves to bury your parents themselves!"
Tobias laughed, and Raphael knew he'd broken through.
"Besides, remember your father's orders. He commanded you to marry a woman from your own family."
Tobias muttered, "I'd rather live to regret disobeying."
"Listen to me." Raphael leaned forward, his soul sparkling with fire the way it did when he empowered Gabriel. "Don't give even another thought to the demon, but marry Sarah! Haven't you been paying attention? When you go into the bridal chamber, you can put the fish's liver and heart on the embers for the incense. As soon as the demon smells it, he'll leave."
Tobias frowned. "As though there aren't worse smells in Hell."
"Then, before—" Raphael started snickering. "Yes, there are worse smells in Hell, but just trust me on this one."
"I don't see how a bad smell—"
"You don't give a guy a break, do you?" Cherubim: always demanding the exact mechanics of how everything worked. "Take it on faith. I haven't led you wrong so far." Tobias nodded, and Raphael continued. "Before you go to bed, both of you should pray. Beg God to show you mercy and grant her deliverance. But don't be afraid: God set her apart for you before the world existed. You'll save her, and she'll go with you. And I suppose you'll have children."
"You suppose I'll have children?" Tobias arched his brows. "You're so certain about everything else."
Raphael laughed out loud, and then so did Tobias. "Tonight," Raphael said. "You'll see her tonight, but first, let me tell you a bit about her."
- + -
When the pair reached Ecbatana, Raphael led the way directly to Raguel's house. At the gate, the man looked up and exclaimed, "Greetings to you, brothers! Good health to you!"
Gabriel said I couldn't resist inserting my name, Raphael thought to God, but it looks like neither can you.
Raguel's wife Edna came to the gates. "You look just like our kinsman Tobit."
Tobias said, "We're exiles from Naphtali at Nineveh."
Edna looked startled. "Do you know Tobit?"
"Indeed we do!" answered Raphael.
"Is he well?" Edna said.
"Alive and well," said Raphael.
Tobias was about to explode. "He's my father!"
A reunion followed, and the family exchanged hugs and tears. Raphael was asked for his name and family ag
ain, and he winced. Gabriel hadn't shown himself for days now. They hadn't been apart that long since they'd bonded.
Raphael and Tobias got bedrooms in the house and water to wash their feet. Raphael changed clothing and then sat on the bed.
Michael's voice: "You look tired."
Not needing to travel through the intervening space to get from one point to another, angels have never developed the habit of knocking on doors. Raphael wasn't used to being surprised, but he only shrugged. "We walked all day, and tonight's going to be a long one. Will you pray with me?"
Their hearts mingled along with their intentions as they prayed. Michael frowned as he highlighted the demons around the house: several in key spots, but always around Sarah was Asmodeus, one of Satan's most powerful Seraphim and obsessed with the woman's every movement. I want him out of here, Michael prayed.
Raphael joined his prayer to Michael's: Will I be able to do it? Asmodeus is stronger than I am. I need your help.
From God: reassurance, the thought of Tobias's prayers and Tobias's pure heart, and then something more, the thought of God's strength.
"Gebher'el," whispered Raphael, the more formal version of Gabriel's name, meaning Strength of God. "Where is he?"
Patience, Rapha'li.
Patience. Because walking for days when you usually teleported didn't require patience. Raphael chuckled, and God warmed his heart. Then the servants called, and they went downstairs for dinner.
Across the room, Asmodeus glared at Raphael, the human disguise not fooling him for a moment, and then he focused on Tobias with a hatred even more intense.
Raphael steeled himself. "And there," he whispered, "is Sarah."
The boy halted in his tracks. "That's her?"
She stood alongside her mother, eyes downcast, hands clasped behind her back. She'd bound her black hair at the base of her neck, but when she looked up, a few strands escaped to fall across her face.
"Who do you think you are, Eros?" Michael murmured.
"Let's go talk to her," Raphael said, "shall we?"
They approached Sarah and Edna, who led them to the courtyard. Edna gave the usual, "Are you comfortable?" and when the conversation grew awkward, Raphael said, "We've had quite an adventure so far."
He started off with the fish, and the first time he left off a key detail, Tobias immediately corrected him (ah, Cherubim) and then continued (again, Cherubim). As Tobias kept talking, Sarah started looking up, watching him, focusing on how scary it must have been and how brave he was to travel so far from home. "My father thinks he's going to die," Tobias said, "so he wants me to retrieve the money he loaned our relative Gabelus," to which Sarah said, "But what good is the money if your father's dead? It must have been so hard to leave him. And I can't imagine how hard it was to send you."
