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The Ferryman was notoriously devout for a sinner damned to hell. This must have been well known by heaven by now. They cherished every scrap of mercy they were afforded by their divine will and promised eternal servitude in return.
But despite their devotion to the Lord, their chances at redemption would be forever squandered by their idolatry.
The archangel Gabriel had graced them with his radiance, his heavenly beauty, his righteous glory more times than they deserved and now his holy visage had come to represent the most sickly of sin to them.
They longed for him with love that was itself pure but their body, even devoid of flesh, tormented them with desires too depraved to describe but utterly impossible to suppress.
Weak-willed and regrettably mortal, they gave in to their fantasies. Frequently. With desperation so pathetic they would rather plunge back into the depths of the Ocean Styx than look at themselves afterwards.
But the worst part about their sin was facing the angel afterwards on one of his occasional visits to Wrath.
He was still as beautiful as he had been for centuries, eternally embodying the grace of God. They felt as though staring would burn their deviant eyes as though he was the sun itself.
They cherished every second in his presence but the shame they felt for desecrating his image in their mind made it equally as agonizing.
"Sinner," his voice seemed to fill the entire room "How many souls reside on your vessel at this time?"
They wrung their hands nervously, avoiding his gaze directly "Several hundred at least, my Light. It hasn't been at all like it used to but those that remain on my ship are settled and at peace."
"Very good. You have done well, sinner, and your soul is kind. Your hospitality is smiled upon by heaven and shall not go unrewarded."
The praise ran through them like a river of honey, unfortunately undercut by some unsavory imagery at the mention of a 'reward'.
Despite Gabriel's usual unwavering demeanor, something seemed off with him on this particular visit. He seemed slightly more... slouched. He looked as though he was trying not to curl into himself, which was deeply unusual for an angel with such a bold presence. He seemed generally uncomfortable.
Fear shot down their spine momentarily as they wondered if he somehow knew about their fantasies about him or their forays into befouling their body to his image. They wondered if he would strike them down with all the righteous fury of God himself, make them suffer for sullying something meant to be holy. Their shame grew knowing they would likely find enjoyment in even that.
Thankfully for their mortal soul, whatever discomfort he was experiencing didn't seem to be related to them. It seemed almost as if he was physically in pain, which somehow made even less sense. Angels couldn't get sick could they? Surely they were beyond such human ailments.
"There may be some trouble coming your way in the future, sinner. Of course I will do my duty to end its path of destruction, but I urge you to protect yourself and your passengers." He seems to be growing in discomfort, moving to lean against a desk in their cabin for support, posture slouched and breathing exasperated.
They barely even processed his warning, entirely focused on their angel's wellbeing. They'd kept their distance up until now in order to show some semblance of respect, but they now rushed to help him in whatever way he needed.
"My Ligh-"
They stopped in their tracks just as soon as they were within a few feet of him as they were overtaken by a wall of pungent odor.
Despite no longer having flesh or organs, their senses were still sharp, and the intense, sour scent nearly overwhelmed them. It was familiar, the smell of iron immediately conjuring the image of blood, lots of it from the intensity. But it wasn't quite right. It also smelled sweet, a noxious musk that made their mouth water. It smelled like a rotting animal with flesh of roses and blood of honey. It was putrid yet intoxicating.
They managed to come back to themselves enough to properly look at Gabriel. With the intensity of the smell they would've expected to see him gushing blood like a fountain, but he was perfectly unmarred, staring at them with his head tilted slightly in a questioning manner.
They felt a twisting in their core as they put the circumstances together.
Gabriel... was menstruating.
They felt themselves getting dizzy, their head immediately filling with images of their glorious Gabriel overcome with sickly discomfort, becoming tender and weak, sweetened sanguine leaking through his puffy folds like a glistening sap. They turned away from him, covering their nose through their holy cloth with a skeletal hand as if that would do anything to clear their head.
"Sinner? What is the matter?" He seems utterly confused. How does he not notice?
"Mmah, i-it's nothing m-my Light! Really j-just um ah-" They were looking everywhere in the cabin but at him at this point, their mind assaulting them with the most filthy images of Gabriel, moaning in both pain and pleasure as he plunges a finger into the bleeding orifice, smearing thick blood against his dark skin. Him whining as he chases away the dull agony with each orgasm, the gore that sloughs from his uterine walls mixing with slick.
They let out a quiet whimper at the thought.
"Speak now, mortal. There is nothing that shall remain hidden in the face of God's will." Gabriel commands, growing impatient.
Even despite their immense shame, the Ferryman could not hope to lie to their beloved Gabriel. They deserve whatever amount of fury and violence he levels upon them.
"Yes, m-my Light, of course. I-It's just that I can um... smell. You." They spoke dumbly, barely able to construct a sentence as though they'd become drunk off the fetor of rotting angel blood.
They watched Gabriel slowly come to understand what exactly they meant, his posture straightening and the feathers on his wings puffing out in shock and embarrassment.
"Ah."
He pushed away from the desk, suddenly putting himself across the room. It wasn't enough for them to stop being able to smell him though, now that it had practically branded their brain.
"M-my apologies, sinner, I shouldn't have come like.. this, I-I didn't consider the possibility that you'd be able to-"
"Can I help? At all?" They blurted out, immediately wanting to rip their skin off all over again. They could never deserve to even lay their foul, sinning hands upon Gabriel let alone in such an intimate way. Especially not when the idea made them so excited.
Gabriel stared at them at a loss, clearly still frazzled. He looked like a startled animal, adorably flustered at the prospect of anyone knowing what was happening with his body.
He seemed to reply just as unconsciously "How?"
Gabriel must've been desperate for some relief at that point because he'd cautiously agreed to let the Ferryman try to help him, which they were determined to do. They wanted their angel to be comfortable and cared for, even if being around him made their unholy desires strengthen. Hospitality came before all else. They just needed to focus, they ought to be smited if they dragged such a being down to their despicable level.
They offered to run him a warm bath, something heaven surely had readily available to them but was very much a luxury in hell. Unfortunately they could only heat the stale water by the fireplace, leaving them with a woeful abundance of time alone with their guest.
Gabriel made himself comfortable on their bed, which was far too small to accommodate him in any meaningful way. They could just imagine how his scent was going to leech into the sheets and they wrung their hands through their holy cloth at the thought so hard they could've snapped a phalange.
They stood awkwardly across the room from him by the fireplace, staring at the large pan of water resting just beside the steady fire so they could pretend they were busy with something. Their mind was occupied though, focusing in on every rustling sound, every shaking breath from the being behind them. The blue glow of his wings reflected off the metal of the pan, only reminding them that the object of their centuries long hopeless desire was lying prone in their cabin. And even the smell of the fire wasn't driving away the metallic musk that seems to have permanently nested in their sinuses.
It felt just too unbelievable. They spared a quick glance over to the angel, just to embed the image in their head for the rest of their afterlife, only to snap their head away just as quickly when they realized he was staring directly at them. The blank cross across his helmet told them nothing about what he could be feeling but they almost didn't want to know.
Gabriel made a small noise of amusement at their bashful display.
"You can come closer, sinner. I wish no harm upon you."
He really ought to though.
But they knew better than to refuse such an offer from the archangel. Even while they felt so much shame at what the situation was doing to them, they treasured every moment of his visits. Being worth such a perfect, divine being's time with their work got them through the slog of centuries sailing an endless ocean.
They turn back towards Gabriel, who is lounged upon their bed on his back, hand holding up his head lopsidedly. He appeared unnaturally casual and relaxed for a warrior of heaven, although there was still a tinge of tension under his skin.
They were lucky Gabriel had no way of knowing how their eyes drifted to try and catch a glimpse up his skirt between his slightly opened legs. Just knowing with certainty what he had below it, tantalizingly hidden by the sinfully short fabric, was making them feel crazy.
They cautiously approach his side, the scent of blood filling their nostrils like water as they did, threatening to drown them.
They cleared their throat nonchalantly "Do you need anything, my Light?"
"Mm, would you help me with my chestplate? It's quite uncomfortable at the moment."
They were once again thankful Gabriel couldn't see the way they balked under their cloth.
It took them a second to recover but they weren't about to deny his request. They were shown where the straps holding the piece of armor together were and fumbled with them shakily, focusing too hard on how their digits brushed against his bare skin. Touching him so intimately felt wrong in so many ways but they were rapidly forgetting to care.
Gabriel undid the other side himself and sooner than they had prepared for, his chestplate was off. A vast expanse of ashy black skin and lightly tensed muscle, interrupted by brilliant golden markings on his midriff and under his pectorals. He was too beautiful to bear.
They stared until they had the sense to look away again, silently mouthing a prayer as if they were being tempted by a siren. Their hand still touched his side, mindlessly massaging his tense muscles. He responded to their touch with a muffled groan that pulled them out of whatever trance they'd been in enough to think to stop. They were shaking, heat creeping through their sore bones just thinking of the sounds he made.
There was no way they even looked to have any semblance of modesty, Gabriel must know now what they think of him. He must smite them, punish them for seeing him so vulnerable and daring to lay their deviant hands upon him lustfully. They felt so ashamed they felt they'd deserve it anyway. He was so perfect compared to them, they could only marr his radiance.
"I-I'm sorry G- m-my Light I can't-" They move to turn away from him. They needed to establish distance before they could even hope to regain themselves. God, how could-
A hand grasps their skeletal wrist, gently, but with strength behind it. They look back at the angel, confused and surprised at the sudden touch.
"You can still smell me, can’t you. My blood."
Their breath stuttered. His voice possessed a sudden darkness that it hadn't moments ago, one that was almost frightening to hear coming from him. Surely this was the prelude to their demise, however Gabriel's leaning posture felt impractical as a fighting stance.
They couldn't lie to their angel. Especially not when his blood was all they could smell, could even think about, all but drooling for it.
"Yes.." They hissed breathily. They could hardly bear to disguise the utter hunger from their voice.
Gabriel's reaction came in the form of a shiver and a noise that they could've never imagined in the archangel's voice. Something akin to a quiet whimper.
"Touch me. Please."
They felt lightheaded. Surely none of this could be real. Surely the angel in their bed, whimpering and begging to be touched was not their stoic, proud Gabriel.
But it was. And they were more than happy to welcome the change.
Both of their hands connected with bare skin, flitting from one place to another with no clue what to focus on. One caresses his hip, one reaches to knead and squeeze at his prominent pecs, then runs down his soft stomach along the gold markings. Gabriel seems painfully sensitive to every touch they give him, weak noises escaping his helm with every gentle caress that lands just right.
"Hah.. hnnm"
Arousal fully coursed through them now, too focused on pleasing the being before them to even remember their own shame.
Already leaning over him, they bring their legs up to the bed as well, straddling his thigh.
They mourned the loss of their lips, for they would've laid gentle kisses across every inch of his skin they could reach, love him sweetly like he deserved, like worship.
They compromised to press their head between his shoulder and neck, breathing in the salt of his sweat like it was the sea, listening to how his breathing slowly quickened. They rested a hand against his neck, feeling his pulse flutter against their phalanges as they dragged a hand down his side until it hit his belt.
They lifted their head slightly to look at him, just to make sure he was comfortable and they hadn't horribly misread something. The angel nodded his head rapidly.
Their fingers then passed his belt to press the small section of exposed skin behind his knee, then sliding up to release the armor protecting his thighs. They fumbled with a few of the wretched straps before one of Gabriel's shaking hands reached down to undo the rest, shoving the piece away.
He continued urgently ripping particularly bulky pieces of his armor off until he was left in only his skirt and belt as they explored the soft expanse of his exposed thigh, lightly tracing the gold wrapped around it. They pressed their palm flat against his inner thigh, rubbing the sensitive skin as they neared closer to the edge of his skirt. Their head was spinning between the rapturous sounds escaping Gabriel's throat at the slightest stimulation and just how intense the smell of his shed blood was from so close. They would throw away every century they've spent striving for redemption just to taste his rotted blood on their tongue.
Their hand on his neck slid down to his chest, fondling his breast idly while occasionally pinching at his nipples, delighting in the surprised little yelps it dragged out of him. They tugged slightly at his skirt, reveling in the idea of ripping it off his hips. They had too much respect for him to do such a thing though, even if it wasn't quite looking like it at the moment.
"...Please.." Gabriel whimpered.
Provided with their angel's consent, they slid their hand below the fabric along his inner thigh, slowly even despite their own desperation. However much they wanted this, it was even more thrilling to watch just how much Gabriel did too. Having one of heaven's favorite angels begging under your touch will do terrible things to one’s ego.
The tips of their phalanges brushed lightly against a thin fabric they were half expecting to be soiled with blood with just how strong he smelled of the stuff from here. Even with their face in his neck he still stunk of metal and salt. They pressed in, inhaling once more in a way they prayed was inconspicuous before they sat up to view Gabriel in his entirety. To watch him come apart.
The angel's head was tilted back, panting like he was savoring a limited supply of air, skin shining with a thin layer of sweat he'd worked up. Utterly divine.
They pushed his skirt up with all the reverence of lifting a bride's veil, a phantom throb running through their pelvis at the sight of his little white panties.
Surely heaven would never have allowed such a garment beyond their gates. Something so deceitfully innocent yet lush with innuendo. Deviant angel…
They gently dragged their fingers across the thin fabric. Beneath they felt the bulk of another barrier between them and the thing causing him so much pain. Of course he was wearing a rag. How else would he have kept himself so clean from the presumed rivers of blood he was shedding?
Part of them wished he had forgone any kind of covering. Part of them wanted to see his thighs smeared with crimson, leaking in thick, slow beads from beneath his skirt. Part of them wanted to collect each drop, make him clean themselves.
They wondered if he might let them keep it.
They pressed their palm fully against his crotch, watching him writhe under the pressure.
"Ah-!"
He moved his hips to grind against the heel of their hand and all they could think about was all the blood clots soaked up by his rag squeezing out of it under their touch. The amount they were fixated on this natural process of his body was positively shameful but they just couldn't shake how much it hungered them.
And that it was Gabriel, the light in their darkness, constant and brilliant like a lighthouse delivering them to safety. They loved him for all the compassion and sympathy he has afforded their damned soul. At least here, through sin, they could show him their appreciation.
Stilling Gabriel's hips and ignoring the whimper he let out in response, they hook a finger under the side of his panties to pull them down his legs tantalizingly slow until he shifted to allow them to take them off fully.
Just how quickly the smell of blood increased in intensity left their head spinning. While strong, the scent had still been somewhat muted, but now with nothing between its source and the open air it sharpened in a way that nearly overwhelmed them.
It looked like something exploded in his panties. The rag he'd placed within them was heavy with dark fluid, soaked through to the point it was a miracle none had stained the white of his underwear. However, they were far more focused on the sight hidden beneath.
His cunt drooled a marbled mixture of gore and slick from its puffy lips. Delicate blue down feathers that faintly trailed to his crotch were ruffled and soaked with drying blood. He was gorgeous. Their mouth watered.
They swiped a finger through the mess, watching it come back red and shiny and rubbing their fingers together curiously. Gabriel whimpers and reminds them he's still in need of relief. As much as they would love to take this as slow as possible they valued his comfort far more than their own pleasure.
They moved their hand back to press their thumb firmly over his hooded clit.
"Mgh-!" He gasps and they allow him to buck into their touch with frenzied fervor for all of a few seconds before stilling him with a firm hand. He made another pained sound at being denied but they made up for it by rolling the swollen bud under their touch. His thighs jumped with the stimulation and they could hear him sucking in a shallow breath through his teeth.
"Oh fffu- please, sinner.."
They couldn't be sure what exactly he could be begging for, nor did they think he exactly knew himself beyond the vague desire for more, but they were determined to provide. Keeping pressure on his clit, they moved the knuckle of their index to brush against his entrance, collecting more of his red tinted arousal with just a light touch. They continue to lightly trace his folds with the tip, enthralled with every detail and reaction they can drag out of him with so little.
Eventually though they stop teasing and slowly slip a bony finger inside him, smooth and painlessly lubricated with how much fluid squelched obscenely inside of him. They wish they had a cock for just this moment because they could just imagine how tight and wet he would feel around them, bouncing desperately, moaning for them like a whore…
Gabriel keened as they wiggled it slightly then curled upwards, dragging wonderfully over his tender walls. Their fingers were slender enough they didn't worry too much about inserting another, their middle sliding in alongside the other with ease.
They switched between making a scissoring motion to stretch him out and curling them inside him, trying to find where he was the most sensitive. The poor thing was already just so damn sensitive all over though, gasping and legs jumping with even the slightest movements.
It was becoming hard to move inside him with how tense he felt. They hoped they hadn't been hurting him but they had been being as gentle as they could, acting with reverence to his virginal sex (although they were beginning to suspect he may not actually be a virgin...). They looked up towards the angel, setting their free hand on his hip and rubbing slow circles with their thumb.
"Relax, my Light. Let me take care of you." They requested softly, taking some of their constant pressure on his clit away to pet at his folds coaxingly.
They watched Gabriel nod acknowledgingly as he took a few breaths, his large body relaxing into the mattress. They waited patiently as he got comfortable for his permission to continue, keeping their initial touches slower once they received it. He was far less tight around them, allowing them to actually move their fingers again.
It wasn't long before they hooked their fingers just right against a spot that made Gabriel's back arch off the bed.
"Mmfh!! Oh ffuckk..." His voice warbled through his helmet. They were a bit surprised to hear him to swear but they supposed they should be surprised by anything anymore. It seems their angel got up to a whole lot more than heaven knew when he was in hell, so far out of sight. They could barely bring themselves to care. In their eyes, Gabriel might as well be the will of God. They would dive headfirst even deeper into damnation if it was something he needed. If they could be his.
They retracted their fingers part way, appreciating how the blue of their phalanges came out smeared with red, before pushing back in to nudge at the spot again. A string of moans left Gabriel's mouth that felt blasphemous to even listen to, unabashed and whorish.
They repeated this, gradually getting faster when Gabriel seemed to respond to every rough touch so intensely. They dragged their thumb over his clit again and he grasped the bedsheets like a lifeline.
"Oh Godd, sinner!"
They felt desperation building in their bones. He was laid out so perfectly for them, legs spread wide and crying out for God. They wanted to pin him down, drag screams and moans from him until he could barely speak, dirty his divine soul, stain their sheets with his blood, mark him in some unchangeable way as belonging not to God but to them. They thought unspeakable things about him, about what they'd do with him, about what heaven might think and each one was thrilling. They just wish they could get any relief from it.
They pushed one of his legs up over their shoulder and grinded their pelvis against his thigh to help with some of their arousal. Rewarding his flexibility, they inserted a third finger into him.
"So lovely... You take me perfectly, my Light." They cooed breathlessly, teasing around his g-spot again.
The humid air was heavy with blood, sweat, and sex. Thinking rationally was difficult like this, when the smell of Gabriel's flesh was all around them. They wanted to feast on him like it was communion, drink his blood and sweat and slick like wine. Make those pinned wings flap.
They groaned, taking their fingers out of him and ignoring Gabriel's mournful whine. They fumbled to untuck the front of their holy cloth, which while normally comforting was beginning to feel claustrophobic, from their halo, careless of the blood still on their hands. Cloth untucked but still draped to cover their fleshless face, they bent down on their knees between Gabriel's legs until the ends of their cloth pooled over his womb, leaving them facing his loose, messy cunt with no obstructions.
They'd kept their tongue even during their self mutilation because they felt it was important to be able to speak to the souls aboard their vessel. To ease their confusion and to comfort them as they traversed Wrath's violent sea. Never had they been so grateful for that decision.
Metallic miasma filled the small, humid space. Somehow they felt they could practically taste it as they opened their mouth. They pressed their tongue flat against Gabriel's cunt, moaning at the taste. Sweet iron rot filled their mouth, floral and rancid, overpowering and divine like nothing else they'd ever tasted. They lapped at his entrance like water from an oasis, licking away the filth from his folds eagerly.
Gabriel above them squirmed and whined, bucking his hips into their mouth. They wrapped their arms around his thighs to hold him in place, flicking their tongue lightly at his clit a few times before their hunger got the better of them. They practically buried their face into his cunt, careful not to scrape the delicate flesh with their teeth as they pushed their way past his folds.
Gabriel was far too sensitive like this to ever have a hope of being quiet, cursing, whimpering, gasping, begging, moaning needily with nearly every touch. No heavenly choir could ever compare. They wondered what it would take to make him sing for them.
They tongued at his insides, tasting his tender walls, lapping up every clot like a sickly sweet syrup. Wet, obscene sounds came from under the cloth blocking Gabriel's sight of them and his sex, the cover emboldening them even more. Their thumb reached down to rub at his clit when they retracted their tongue to mutter into his lips.
"Your taste is divine, dear Gabriel. I only wish I could take you properly, how you deserve."
The angel whimpered at their words, unable to form a proper response.
"That's what you need, isn't it my angel? To be held down and fucked?" Their voice was rougher, losing some composure the more they thought about him. Barely coherent, Gabriel simply nodded as if drunk. They gripped his thighs tight as if he might try to flee, sliding his hand down to grab at his ass possessively.
They pushed back into him once more, working to swallow up every drop of angel blood they could reach. Their tongue wasn't monstrously long but it probably wasn't particularly human sized anymore either, allowing them to reach deeper inside him.
They drank from him greedily like a heavenly ambrosia, heavy with metal and musk. It tasted like dead things. A carcass candied with honey. They were sure no dish on God's earth could have ever compared to such rotten ecstasy.
They would have forsaken heaven entirely to stay in that moment for eternity, Gabriel's warbling moans echoing through their cabin, face filthy from gorging themselves on his gore. Truly no afterlife of chastity and light could grant the same pleasure as what they could get up to here in hell's shadows.
They pressed their tongue upwards against his loosened walls, searching for his g-spot again. It didn't take them much longer after the first time, rubbing against it and feeling how Gabriel's loud cursing reverberated through his large frame. His breathing was fast and disjointed, he was likely getting closer.
They focused intensely on the singular spot inside him, face firmly nuzzled into his crotch. His soft blue down feathers tickled their nose. No place was more peaceful. Gabriel's cries grew louder and more desperate to the point they were grateful they weren't on the ferry where anyone else may have heard. They lazily brushed over his clit, not really giving enough pressure to be enough.
"Hoh fucck please please pleasepleaseplease-" Gabriel begged, head thrown back, hands reaching down to grasp at their skull through the cloth. They pulled out to speak again, vibrations going straight into his cunt.
"Do you need something, my Light?" They stared up at him as he whined miserably in a deeply un-Judge of Hell manner, practically crying from his desperation.
"I- guhh I need to cum, pleasee." His words slurred slightly like he wouldn't be able to think anymore otherwise. But who needs that anyway when you can be a dumb cumdrunk angel getting his hole cleaned out for a bit? Surely he deserves it with how hard he works.
"Of course, my angel."
They reached back into him, licking at his g-spot mercilessly, finally delivering that delicious extra pressure to his throbbing clit. Gabriel shouted with the sensation, his thighs squeezing their head unconsciously. Even despite their hold on him, he rutted against their touch, gluttonous for any extra bit of stimulation he could get from their hands and tongue. His hand still remained rested against their skull and so they leaned into it as Gabriel lost himself.
"OhgoddohgodffuuCK-!!!"
He cried into the rickety ceiling as he came apart on their tongue. His thighs clenched down on them like a trap and his walls fluttered delightfully. He sobbed as he came, unable to form words for several long moments of ecstasy. His wings and halo pulsed with flashes of gold as he regained his breath. As soon as his grip on their skull loosened they pulled away carefully to avoid any overstimulation. He was radiant as ever in his post-coital glow, sweat coating his skin and muscles relaxed. They sat up, rubbing soothing circles into their angel's thighs as they waited for him to recover.
They could tell Gabriel was feeling better with how his usual bravado returned to his voice in no time. Still, they prepared his bath diligently, ensuring the water was comfortably warm. They'd helped clean up the excess fluids on his thighs and groin with a cloth but he still probably needed to wash up anyway.
They sat with their back against the old flaking tub, facing away from Gabriel who made soft noises of contentment behind them. They fidgeted with the ends of their cloth which was now stained with slight splotches of blood. Guilt curled in their gut. How could he be so calm? As if he wasn't defiled by a degenerate sinner of hell at his most vulnerable. Their faith in heaven waxed and waned but their loyalty to Gabriel was forever constant. They would never do anything to hurt him. He doesn't seem hurt now, but they just hoped their selfishness wouldn't cost him in the end.
They could hear the water splashing softly behind them as Gabriel shifted. A moment later a warm hand was set gently on their humerus.
"I know that you are worrying, friend. I assure you that you haven't done any harm in.. assisting me. All will be well." Gabriel spoke confidently, his voice soft but ever so slightly scratched. It felt like their own warm bath enveloping them, soothing their sore bones.
"How can that be so, my Light? I've tainted even your divinity with the depth and depravity of my soul, turned an innocent process of humanity into something perverted. Surely heaven would seek punishment for my arrogant degeneracy." They lamented, unable to understand how Gabriel could speak so casually of their unforgivable sin. Truly they deserved worse than damnation, for even in hell they still managed to ruin holy things. What's worse is they couldn't even pretend to regret it. They'd do it all over again if Gabriel only asked.
"Heaven's rule is far less absolute than it seeks to appear. The true will of the Father has been muddled and twisted among its ranks for millennia. As far as I am concerned I am His will, not them. Do not let their lies become the basis of your faith, sinner." Gabriel spoke with the unwavering confidence that he did with all of his religious guidance.
Any revelation or outrage this may have given them regarding heaven's tyranny felt mild. To the Ferryman, Gabriel had always been the will of God. Heaven's will was and will always be second to his.
"But what of you? With their reign so despotic they must seek to discipline their dissenters."
Gabriel groaned exasperatedly, sinking further into the water.
"Those fools may try to make an example of me but I know the truth. I am the messenger of God and I am not afraid to deliver divine justice upon their heretic heads."
They could hear the righteous fury boiling beneath his calm cadence, a dark gravel that made them shiver. They could just imagine Gabriel slaughtering his way through heaven's ivory halls, soaked with gore, sweating, panting…
"Regardless, they do not speak for the Father. Do not feel guilty for violating their word."
They pushed the previous image out of their mind, sighing.
"Heaven matters not to me. Likely never truly has. You have always been the object of my utmost faith, Gabriel. Your will is my scripture. I would suffer eternal damnation if you so desired, for you are my salvation." They confessed to him like one would a terrible secret. They confessed to their idolatry, shame still sitting heavy in their core. They would disregard heaven for him, but they worried that even if his will didn't align with that of the Father's they still wouldn't care. They would still worship him.
They would still love him.
He was quiet for a moment, maybe somewhat flustered by their fervent faith in him alone. He coughed slightly.
"Your faith should remain in the Lord, I am only His messenger, I cannot provide the deliverance you seek." He chided half-heartedly, his hand absentmindedly traveling from their arm to trace around their halo.
They hummed in acknowledgement, turning to face him with their arms and head resting on the rim of the tub. Gabriel looked surprised, wings fluffing up slightly behind him for only a moment. The glow from them and his halo reflected off the water droplets speckled across his skin. Fondness coiled around their heart.
"Maybe not. But even so, I will always be here to worship you."
Gabriel's wings closed closer to him, as if trying to hide his flustered reaction.
They knew he would likely never love them in the same way they did him, but that didn't really matter to them. As long as he was there to light the way in their dark world, to listen to their prayers, to save them from their sorrow, they would love him more than they ever could a God.