Where Angels Long to Tread

Prologue
A blue and silver blue plummets to the earth. The blur crashes to the snow-covered ground below, barely making a sound. Slowly, she gets up and brushes the snowflakes off herself. She glances around. No one saw that? She smirks a little bit to herself.

Suddenly, she remembers why she’s here. With a small feeling of betrayal, she looks to the sky. “If you’re trying to send a message, you may have to work a little harder,” she calls out, a note of sarcasm in her voice. No response. Not that she expected one, anyway.

With a small shrug, she walks away from the crash site, leaving no visible footprints behind.

Chapter One
Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Phineas rises from his bed, ecstatic. Up until this morning, he had been counting down the days until Christmas. Not anymore, though; today is Christmas Eve. Unless he suddenly forgets how to count to one, he doesn’t need to keep track; he just needs to make sure everything’s perfect.

He still wonders how, though. Candace has only asked one thing of him for Christmas: no crazy inventions. While this discouraged him and Ferb when they first heard it, they have fruitlessly been attempting to think of a way to make this the best Christmas ever without ruining Candace’s Christmas.

Maybe he can do something special. But what? There’s not much he can do without his tool box.

“Phineas!” His mother’s call snaps Phineas out of his reverie. He is shocked, suddenly. He is no longer in his bedroom; now he is in the kitchen eating a bowl of cereal. He must have been so enriched in thought, he never even realized he came all the way downstairs.

Phineas looks at his mom. “Yeah?” he asks.

“Just so you know, I’m taking Ferb, Candace, and Jessie out to finish their Christmas shopping.” She hurries behind him and grabs her coat. “I don’t know why they waited until today to tell me they weren’t done, I’m just glad you are.” She pauses. “You are done, right?”

Phineas gives his mom a smile. “Yeah, of course I am.”

“Great. Your father will be here with you, but he’ll probably spend most of his time clearing up the rooftop for Santa.” She checks her watch. “Oh, shoot. I gotta go. See you later, Phineas.”

“Bye, Mom!” Linda hustles out the door and within seconds, Phineas hears the sound of the car starting and pulling away.

Phineas sighs. Now he practically gets the whole house to himself on Christmas Eve. Any other day, this would be perfect to whip up some sort of surprise invention. But today after Candace literally got on her knees and begged him? No way.

He turns back to his cereal but lets out a gasp when he sees a strange teenage girl standing in his kitchen, looking in his refrigerator. “You wouldn’t happen to have any fish sticks, would you?”

Chapter Two
“I’m sorry,” Phineas says, shaking. “Wh-what--?”

“No fish sticks, then.” The girl keeps rummaging through his refrigerator. Her voice is like bells and twinged with a British accent. “How ‘bout custard? It’s like pudding only it’s more liquidy.”

“What are you--?”

“Ah, here it is.” She pulls out a container of vanilla custard and gets a spoon from the drawers, beginning to eat it. Phineas takes in her appearance. She’s certainly one of the tallest girls he has ever seen, probably pushing six feet tall. Her perfectly straight hair falls to her waist and is so pale blond, it almost looks silver. Her eyes are pale blue with a noticeable silver sheen and she’s wearing a thin blue tank top, jeans, and furry boots; certainly not what most girls would wear in this weather.

“Look, I’m sorry,” Phineas says. He approaches her. “But, you can’t be in here.”

“Why not?”

Phineas gives her an incredulous look. “Why not? This is my house! How did you even get it?”

“So, you’re saying you want me to leave.”

Phineas nods numbly.

The girl shrugs. “All right.” She leaves the kitchen and heads out the front door, into the biting cold. Phineas shakes his head and turns back--

Only to see the girl has returned and is sitting on his countertop.

“What?” Phineas exclaims. “I thought you just--”

“Sorry, sorry, I’m going.” She sounds exasperated now. “I forgot my custard. Although, I guess it’s not mine, is it? Sorry ‘bout that.”

“How did you--?”

“What? Phineas, don’t tell me this is the first time you’ve seen someone travel at unimaginable speeds.”

“How did you know my name?”

She shrugs and gives a little half smile. “It’s kind of my job.”

Hesitantly, I slide back into my chair. “You… You don’t have to go.”

That seems to perk her up. “Thanks, Phin.”

“But you know my name and I don’t know yours.”

“Are you sure about that?” She gives Phineas a quizzical look, as if she knows something he doesn’t.

Phineas shakes his head. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I don’t know.”

She throws her head back in laughter. “Okay, I’m Gabrielle.”

“Okay. Gabrielle, who exactly are you? I mean, what are you doing in my house?”

Gabrielle purses her lips, considering her answer. “Well, I’m Gabrielle, first rank--no, I’m probably not first rank anymore… Second? No, that wouldn’t make any sense. Third? Fourth? Eh, ranks aren’t important. Point is, my name is Gabrielle and I was sent from above to help you, Phineas Flynn.”

“Above? I don’t understand.”

“Nah, why would you? I’m being uber confusing. I’ve always had that problem.”

“Gabrielle…” Phineas searches for words. Is this girl mentally stable? “Maybe you should just… slow down and start from the beginning.”

“The beginning beginning? Or the beginning of today? Because, trust me, that version is much shorter.”

Phineas shrugs. “Just tell me why exactly you’re here.”

Gabrielle sighs. “Okay, you know that one movie with the guy whose guardian angel comes to visit him and tells him all about his life and now everyone in the world is convinced guardian angels only come to visit during Christmas?”

Phineas nods.

“Well, this is nothing like that. First off, there are no guardian angels, there are just angels that grow an attachment to one of their humans and just stalks them. I do not consort with those angels. Secondly, angels come whenever they’re needed, and the fact that I am here on Christmas kind of ticks me off because I do not want to perpetuate that stereotype any more!”

Phineas blinks, trying to make sense of what Gabrielle is saying. “Wait. Are you saying you’re a… You’re an angel?”

Gabrielle wiggles her eyebrows. “Very accurate deduction, Sherlock.”

Phineas almost laughs. “You’re an angel?” he repeats.

“Oi, don’t say it like that!” Gabrielle almost yells, sounding mock offended. “Okay, maybe I’m not your ‘typical’ angel. But I’m telling you, I’m the real deal. I guess you would call me a ‘wayward angel’ or a ‘fallen angel’. Actually, those are pretty accurate. ‘Cause, I was pretty messed up when I was up there.” She jabs her finger up towards the ceiling. “And, well…” She whistles while wiggling her finger down a couple feet, then mimicking an explosion. “Yeah, kinda fell a little bit.”

Phineas frowns, concerned. “What happened?”

Gabrielle waves her hand to dismiss the thought. “Pssh, nothin’ really. Made a little mistake. Whatever. Although…” She reaches into her pocket and pulls out a bent circular object, giving off a blinding glow. She lets out a small pout. “I kind of dented my halo.”

Phineas reaches forward to grab it. As soon as his flesh makes contact with the halo, his hand singes. He pulls his hand back quickly, wincing.

Gabrielle chuckles as she puts the halo back in her pocket. “What did you expect? Seraphic metal is pretty hot.”

“It doesn’t affect you?”

Gabrielle smiles. “Well, I am, too.”

“Seraphic?”

Gabrielle shakes her head. “Pretty hot.”

Phineas smiles in spite of himself.

Chapter Three
Phineas hands Gabrielle a mug of hot chocolate. She takes the mug eagerly and slurps down the frothy liquid. “So…” Phineas starts, picking at the whipped cream covering his hot chocolate. “Why are you here?”

“Well, you’re one of mine--”

“One of your what?”

Gabrielle smirks. “One of my children.” Phineas gives her an incredulous look. “I don’t know how it works,” Gabrielle continues, “but whenever a child is born, an angel is assigned to watch over them. Most angels have quite a few children at the same time. And that child belongs to the angel until he or she dies.”

Phineas shakes his head. He still doesn’t understand why Gabrielle is here.

She goes on. “Sometime in each child’s life, their angel makes an effort to come and see them; to make a difference in their life. It happens at many different times, sometimes birth, sometimes on their deathbed, sometimes some random Tuesday. But, here’s the thing.” Gabrielle exhales, seemingly worried about what comes next. “Depending on the person, not all children see their angels. I mean, they can. We remove our glamour--”

“Glamour?” Phineas asks.

“Kind of like an invisibility cloak. Only those who we want to see us can. Anyway, we remove our glamour for our children to be able to see us. But not all of them do. I don’t know why--something about ‘pureness of heart’--but… for the past couple hundred years, all my children haven’t seen me. Save for Charles Dickens and Elvis Presley.”

“You knew Charles Dickens and Elvis Presley?” Phineas exclaims.

“Knew ‘em? Ol’ Charlie's A Christmas Carol was inspired by me!” Gabrielle laughs. “But that’s besides the point.” She gets errily solemn and Phineas feels chills go down his spine. “I knew… I knew the only way I could redeem myself was if I made a difference in a child’s life. And I knew that you could be that one special child. You saw me. You didn’t overreact. You are very pure of heart, my dear child. I know you can help me. And I can help you.”

Phineas frowns. “What is it you need me to do?”

“I want to show you the world. I know you’ve seen it, but you haven’t lived it. There are seven billion people on this planet. And I can’t… I can’t stand to see them suffer.” Her voice cracks. “You know that old saying? ‘Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings’?”

Phineas nods.

Gabrielle shakes her head. “That’s not exactly true. It’s nice and it’s cheery, but it’s a fairy tale. The truth is more along the lines of… every time a child cries, a part of an angel dies.”

Phineas doesn’t respond. He feels a tight clench in his stomach. How horrible, he thinks, to have to live and see everyone, to know these people almost so personally that you literally feel their pain.

He places his mug on the coffee table and hugs Gabrielle fiercely. She seems shocked by the embrace, but after a moment she hugs him back. Phineas strokes her back and he feels two bumps under her shirt. He pulls back.

“So, if you’re an angel,” he starts, “you have wings, then?”

Gabrielle smirks. “I was wondering when you would ask.”

“Can I see them?”

Gabrielle nods. She closes her eyes and bows her head. As Phineas watches, large shimmering white wings come from her back. Gabrielle opens her eyes and looks back at him, outstretching her wings as far as they will go. Phineas is amazed; she must have a wingspan of ten feet.

“You like ‘em?” Gabrielle asks.

“They’re beautiful…” Phineas reaches out his hand, as if to touch them, but then shies away.

Gabrielle gives him a half smile. “Go ahead.” Phineas reaches toward the wings and places his hand on the right one. The shining feathers are soft and plush, almost like marshmallows or how he would imagine clouds to feel. He slowly pulls his hand away, feeling oddly euphoric after that one, simple touch of an angel.

“Okay,” Phineas says, still dazed from his glimpse of angelic bliss. He looks at Gabrielle, her wings still outstretched. “I’m ready to see the world.”

Chapter Four
Gabrielle grabs Phineas’ hand forcefully. Her touch is like snow; soft, malleable, yet not cold--strangely warming, actually. A heavenly glow surrounds the two and Phineas’ insides tingle with the angelic power before him. He keeps his breathing steady as he closes his eyes, ready to be whisked away to wherever.

“You can open your eyes, now,” Gabrielle says. Phineas’ eyes shoot open. He is standing on hard, dry ground. It is bright, the sun casting harsh reflections against the sandy earth beneath his feet.

“Where are we?” Phineas asks.

“Africa.” Phineas starts walking to look around, but Gabrielle’s tight grip doesn’t falter. “Phineas, as long as you’re touching me, my glamour affects you--no one can see us. But if you let go of my hand, everyone will be able to see you. Understand?”

Numbly, he nods. He’s not sure why he’s here. It isn’t until he notices two boys hunched over the ground that he gets an idea.

Before him are the two boys. They are skinny and shriveled; you can almost see a perfect outline of their skeleton. The smaller one is grazing the bare ground with his finger. The bigger one nudges him and says something in an unrecognizable language.

“What’s happening?” Phineas asks. He turns and looks at Gabrielle. The pained look on her face is unlike anything Phineas has ever seen before. Deep, genuine sorrow.

“This happens all the time, you know,” she says. “These boys… They’re hungry. Starving, actually. And very, very dehydrated. Their--their father’s dead and their mother is dying of pneumonia.”

“Well…” Phineas fumbles for words. “We have to do something!” He tugs on Gabrielle, but her grip is iron. “You told me you can’t just watch the people of the world suffer. What are you doing?”

Silvery tears run out of Gabrielle’s crystal eyes. “I can’t,” she breathes. “They’re not mine. I’m not supposed to interfere with any children’s lives that aren’t mine. Don’t you think if I could help them I would?”

“This can’t be happening.” Phineas sniffs and the backs of his eyeballs burn. “I want to go. Take me somewhere; anywhere but here.”

Phineas closes his eyes as the familiar tingling sensation comes over him. After a beat, he reopens his eyes. He’s standing in the snow on Maple Drive; he’s back in Danville. And his home is just a few blocks away.

“Wait,” Gabrielle says, interrupting his train of thought. “First, I’m not taking you home. You need to see something.”

Phineas looks up and sees a teenage girl in tattered clothing kneeling in the snow. Her brown hair hands in greasy sticks over her face. He’s not entirely sure what she’s doing. Then, someone passes and drops something to the ground by her feet. Eagerly, she picks up a can and dumps its contents into her hands.

She’s a beggar. She’s a teenager--no older than fifteen--and she’s begging on the streets for money.

“Can you help this one?” Phineas can barely hear his own voice.

“Yes.” Gabrielle begins walking towards the girl but then stops suddenly. She conjures up a thermos out of thin air. She hands it to Phineas. “Tomato soup. Why don’t you do it?” Gabrielle drops Phineas’ hand and suddenly she’s become corporeal. Phineas starts running toward the girl. She looks up at him. He recognizes her face, vaguely, but she doesn’t recognize him.

“Spare change?” she asks weakly. She lets out a rough fit of coughing. When she’s finished, Phineas places the thermos in front of her.

“I think you’d like this better.” The girl opens the thermos and her eyes widen in shock. She downs most of the thermos and looks back at Phineas.

“Th-thank you,” she gasps. “I--”

“It was the least I could do.” Behind him, Gabrielle grabs Phineas’ hands and the two of them return to his house and his time.

Chapter Five
“I think I get it,” Phineas says, pacing. “Christmas is about helping others. Right?”

“Well, not technically.” Gabrielle stands up and folds her wings back in. “But if that’s the cliche ending you want to go for, go ahead.”

“Then what was the point of showing me all that suffering?”

Gabrielle places her hands on Phineas’ shoulders and looks him dead in the eye. “The world doesn’t revolve around you and what you do. Your time on earth is limited. You can spend your days making yourself happy, or you can spend your days saving a life.” She drops her hands. She starts off toward the backdoor.

“Wait!” Gabrielle turns back. “If you don’t mind my asking…” Gabrielle raises an eyebrow. “Why--why did you fall? What was the ‘little mistake’?”

She sighs, clearly uncomfortable. “People die. We all know this. I went down to earth to help one of my children. But"--Gabrielle exhales and runs a hand through her hair--"she died. And I did nothing to help her. If anything, I caused it.”

Phineas gasps. That’s not what he was expecting.

“Phineas, don’t give me that. I know what I did was wrong. And I paid for it. I know you’re going to help a lot of people, but you can’t help everyone. Don’t be shocked when people die. Instead, be surprised. Be surprised that you, of all people, are still alive. That’s what I’ve been doing. Every day since…” Gabrielle shakes her head. “Ya know that story about the brightest star in the sky? The one that shone on the first Christmas?”

Phineas nods.

“I wasn’t always all that bad. Believe it or not, I made that star.” Phineas blinks and Gabrielle is gone.

--

Christmas Eve night. Phineas rushes outside in his pajamas. He scans the night sky and finds it immediately; the brightest star in the sky. “I won’t let you down,” he whispers. “And I promise you, I will help you get back to heaven. You deserve it, Gabrielle.”

The wind whistles a soft melody against his back as he re-enters his house.

Epilogue
Gabrielle takes a place among the clouds, glancing around at the throng of angels surrounding her. One of them--Michael--notices her immediately. “Well, well, well,” he says. “Shocked to see you here.”

“And why would that be shocking?” Gabrielle asks, cocking her head.

“I was under the impression you got booted out of here.” He glances over his shoulder. “You shouldn’t be here. You know the rules.”

“Phineas Flynn.”

Michael furrows his eyebrows. “What?”

Gabrielle’s mouth twitches. “Phineas Flynn. Danville. USA. Heard of him?” Michael doesn’t respond, but Gabrielle knows his answer. “He’s one of mine. Did you hear what happened to him tonight?” She crosses her arms. “Believe it or not, that was because of me.”

Michael scowls. “Okay. Whatever. You earned your spot back.” He places his hands on his hips and glares at her. “Don’t think that makes up for what you did.”

Gabrielle’s smirk dissipates. She drops her arms. “I never thought it for a second. I know--I know nothing will ever change what I did.”

With a final frown, Michael leaves Gabrielle. She slumps onto a could and gazes over earth. It’s her own fault; she knows it. She will never forgive herself for letting that child go. She will never forgive herself for letting that child die. She didn’t help. That’s the one difference between her and every other angel that’s had a child die on their watch; she didn’t help.

That one child’s life is a burden to her forever. Gabrielle’s own carelessness over that child’s life is what made her fall. But the public humiliation from her angelic peers is nothing compared to the onerous guilt she has to live with for an eternity. No matter what, she vows, she will never forget her name. She will never forget the name of the child she lost and didn’t try to save.

Bobbi Johnson.