Enslaved!Verse Fic/Tracking Post
Title: Auction Block
Rating: PG-13 for disturbing notions? IDEK.
AU: Enslaved
Author's Note: The Enslaved verse in all its terribly heartbreaking awesome was dreamed up by Ithuriel/brings_to_light's mun. I am merely jumping on the bandwagon like a big . . . bandwagon-jumping . . . thing.
Okay that got away from me but WHATEVER. This is my first attempt at examining Guriel as he might be in that 'verse, so away we go.
Some of his siblings claim that the auction house is the hardest part of the whole, ugly experience that is their life on earth; that the scrutiny, the sense of being property, the uncertainty of where they’ll end up next is the worst aspect of slavery.
He thinks they’re insane. True, the conditions are cramped and the uncertainty can be wearying and the chains suck. But the auction houses are one of the only places on Earth where angels are allowed any lasting contact. Being back on the block means there are stolen moments beforehand to talk without human surveillance, a chance to pass along comfort and news - sometimes even to be reunited for an hour or a few hours with siblings who’ve long been lost. It’s a chance not to be alone, for a change, the only chance of that he gets anymore since he left the pits, and in his mind that’s worth the rest of the experience. Nothing they can do to escape being treated like property, but at least for a little while they can be property together.
Of course, his perspective is a little different than that of most of his siblings. Damaged goods wait a lot longer to be sold.
He’s lost track of how many “Masters” he’s had in the past century. Even in the old days his ownership transferred often; fighting angels are valuable property, and valuable property in the hands of gambling men has a tendency to be quickly lost and won. But since he stopped being valuable as a fighter he’s changed hands with an almost dizzying frequency, taken on and discarded by a long succession of people who quickly find he’s not the bargain they think he is. Every time he ends up back at an auction house, he finds himself bumped lower in value, and every time he spends a longer stretch in chains waiting to go back on the block, watching more and more siblings go ahead of him to be sold. Part of him wonders if there’s a limit to how low the price can drop before he’s no longer worth enough to bother, if eventually one of these days they'll just destroy him rather than go to the effort of trying to sell him.
The rest of him thinks that part is an idiot, and roughly reminds it to focus on the small positives. Like a chance to talk with his siblings again. Or - now that every other angelus in the place has either been sold or lined up for auction up front - the chance to spend a few moments talking to his Father without a human being looking on.
He has to focus on the small positives while they last, because they never, ever last.
As proof of which, the lights flick on overhead and a human voice calls him, rough and disinterested. “Three-thirty-seven.” He snorts in derision. The number matches the tag attached to the chains around his wrists, but there’s no other angels left in the room; it’s just the handler’s way of reminding him what he is. Property. An auction lot. A thing.
He climbs to his feet, rolling his shoulders as much as he can with his wrists bound, and stretches his wings as wide as they’ll go. The left flares to its full span, while the right feebly mirrors the motion, making it less than halfway before it catches and stops. He eyes the handler with a stony expression, a look meant to say I know you can hurt me for this and I don’t care.
“Guriel.” He says coldly. “My name is Guriel.”
***
- Guriel was a pit fighter for most of his enslavement. During the course of this part of his life he injured many other angels and killed a total of four: one accidentally, two in evenly matched fights, and one (who was a better fighter than he) in the last fight he ever participated in. After this fight Guriel tried to escape, was recaptured, and had his wing maimed as punishment. [There are other details of the final fight which have had long-reaching emotional implications for Guriel, but he does not share them easily.] Guriel considers these deaths to be murders and holds himself responsible for all of them.
- Since 1837, the year of his last fight, he was passed from owner to owner with each successive sale being for a lower price. He became "damaged goods", not only because of his wing but because of his anger and rebelliousness.
- During the 19th century a variety of different owners tried to have Guriel "repaired" to make him worth more. These attempts were horrifically painful, and Guriel was given no choice in the matter. As such he doesn't trust doctors and is reluctant to talk about the possibility of having his wing repaired.
- Guriel was briefly free (after being set free by House) but was recaptured and sold cross-country before being freed for good by Ben Lockwood.
***
And because We Can Has continuity,
On the auction block once again, Guriel has an encounter with Mikhel.
Mikhel's former owner, House, comes looking for him and sets Guriel free, after which
Guriel runs into Mikhel a second time.
Guriel lurks the alleys of New Jersey for a while, during which time he also runs into Ithuriel, taking vengeance on a slaver. This gives Guriel the bright idea to try and do the same. Because that seems like an excellent pursuit for a crippled angel to undertake, amirite?
[Untitled fic, yet to be written: in which a free Guriel runs drastically afoul of slavers and loses his libery.]
Guriel's latest owners are killed in a wreck, leaving him to their son.
Guriel tries to adjust to freedom, Pack, and the fact that it's October.
Ben's discovery of the history of Pit angels leads to further tentative attempts at relating to each other, including Guriel's first use of his ring during this bout of freedom. This is followed by a reunion with Ananchel, a very beloved sibling.
Guriel can't read English, which leads to frustration in trying to unravel his ownership documents. He and Lockwood are eventually responsible for the deaths of two human Hunters.
Gradually, Lockwood's house attracts Kabniel, one of Guriel's wild baby sisters, and Ananchel is freed and joins the household as well. Cuddy offers to help Guriel in having his wing repaired, a fact he meets with disdain and skepticism.
Mikhel follows Lockwood home, and eventually (semi) joins the household, though he isn't freed. Guriel attempts to relate to him, and seeks his counsel to deal with the guilt of killing the human Hunters. He also meets and offers to help Corvus, particularly after learning that he's met Lockwood.
A game of Truth or Dare. Guriel admits that he wishes there were a cure for his wing.
Lockwood buys a pawnshop ring, which turns out to belong to Guriel's brother Toviel, who was captured at the same time as Guriel. The two reunite and Guriel, after much urging, convinces Toviel to go Home. He doesn't follow, but he does finally ask God for forgiveness for what he sees as the murders of his siblings.
They return home to discover that the father of the Hunters they killed wants revenge, and so they make plans to go after him before he can. These plans are violently disrupted when Mikhel destroys an airliner, and Lockwood realizes he can't deal with "owning" Guriel's elder brother, leading him to pass him on to Hannibal Smith. A fact for which Guriel is deeply, deeply sorry. He comes home to find that Ben called a suicide hotline while he was saying his goodbyes to Mikhel.
Elle Woods gives him an Angel Rights brochure. Skeptical Guriel is skeptical.
Once things settle down slightly, they once again attempt to get to New Jersey, after Guriel checks on Mikhel one more time.
Guriel consults with several doctors about his wing, and the news is tentatively hopeful. Guriel meets with Ithuriel again and catches up. Returning home, he and Zev confront (and kill) a pair of Hunters two blocks from the house.
Guriel is skeptical about Christmas, leading to a fight with a demon, meetings with a pair of humans and a long-lost Brother, and his first Christmas gift from Lockwood. Shortly after that, one of Guriel's brothers assures him that the Underground exists.
Lockwood searches his mother's journal for insight on why his parents bought Guriel. Ambushed in the parking lot, Guriel and Lockwood survive (more or less) and meet Detective Spencer Winslow.
Mikhel makes it snow in L.A.. Guriel reunites with Anathiel, a brother he knew in the Pits long ago, and Zepar is preparing to be caught again. Corvus thinks it was easier being alone -- Guriel disagrees.
Guriel and Ben rescue a brother from Black-Market slavers, then proceed to slaughter all the humans involved with extreme prejudice, freeing a dozen angels (including tziporel).
Guriel briefly sees Mikhel again, and he and Lockwood (and Lockwood's new fire lizard, Raya) buy some things for Guriel's brothers.
In the aftermath of the Black Market attack, the FBI investigates and Guriel smuggles care packages to his brothers.
Guriel, Corvus and Lockwood take off for Germany to try and find the key to the Crow's freedom.
Guriel watches the birds and contemplates the surgery to fix his wing, after which he and Lockwood free his baby sister Chataltuliel and kill her abusive owners. After which, Ben Lockwood researches ways for them to do justice without killing people.
An encounter with a smartmouthed demon leads to a beheading!
Guriel seeks some legal advice from Elle Woods, though he doesn't care for the answers he gets. Troubled and reluctant, he visits a local parish to pray about his current situation, finally deciding to have his wing repaired. Just before they leave for New Jersey, he runs into Human Aden and finds himself oddly sympathetic.
At Princeton-Plainsboro, Lockwood paces the waiting room in preparation, then joins Guriel for the surgery. Everything goes surprisingly well, and after some recuperation time, Pack Bonding, and a close call with the Predator and Guriel's sister Silence, they return to Los Angeles -- but not before Guriel bothers House one more time.
Back home, Guriel and Lockwood find a car to start restoring. Guriel also talks on the phone with Elle Woods, which leads to another reunion with Anathiel, and he (unsuccessfully) seeks help from Raziel in finding a lost brother. He is skeptical when Lockwood tells him about Rick Castle's request to follow them around, but ultimately gives a grudging go-ahead.
Someone has egged Elle's office, and Guriel helps her clean up. He also bumps into Aden outside a coffee shop, and gives an angel owner the side-eye.
Lockwood, Guriel, Zepar, and Elle Bishop have a "playdate" in Griffith Park.
The boys go shopping for supplies for their various new pursuits, and Guriel runs into his sister Meirael while they're out.
Guriel meets up with Corvus, who is back to his old duties. His wings are getting better every day, and he relishes the chance to stretch both of them out in the sun. He and Lockwood take an impromptu trip down to Baja to watch whales, and end up busting a Black Market smuggling ring.
The one-year anniversary of Ben's convoy ambush catches both of them by surprise.
Guriel and Zepar come along for Ben's not-date with Elle Bishop, and Guriel joins Jophiel at a clandestine meetup.
Guriel readjusts to perching with both wings open, and he and Ben go flying at iFly Hollywood. Best. Day. Ever.
And Ben? Doesn't know what a normal day entails.
Guriel pays Anathiel a visit to see how he's been adjusting. After a dream about his brother Yavniel, who was forced to help maim his wing, Guriel and Ben track him down at L.A. General, where he now works and lives.
Ben and Guriel are testing hair dyes for their new non-lethal takedown plans when an escaped brother leads them to an angel brothel, which they destroy with extreme (lethal) prejudice. Fortunately, the police mistake it for insurance fraud.
The Kidnapped!Ben plot:
Ben is snatched while he's out buying milk, leaving Guriel panicked and frantically searching for him. His kidnappers turn out to be working for Bob Bishop's underground angel Pit, where Ben is forced to fight against his will. After a tipoff from Zepar, Guriel grabs his brother Sahaquiel, Elle Woods, and Rick Castle, and they mount a rescue.
In the aftermath of the Pit rescue, Guriel calls to check on Elle Woods, after which she stops by for drinks. Ben "celebrates" Mother's Day, and Elle Bishop drops by for a very awkward visit.
Ben is still having difficulty sleeping indoors, so the two of them see if a park would be a better place.
Guriel is twirling a feather between his fingers, contemplating many things; and with some encouragement from Ben, he flies.
Elle Woods needs to learn to defend herself, and Ben and Guriel case a Black Market operation. Ben recovers from a head injury.
Afterward, Guriel turns blissful circles in the air, and he, Ben, Zepar and Elle Bishop go out on a camping trip in Baja.
The Suit from their last Black Market takedown catches up to them, with painful results -- but Pack never leaves its own behind.
Ben and Guriel Ransom Tziporel's mother from the evangelist who owns her, reuniting her with her son. That leads them to track his father through the Black Market, freeing him as well as several others. They add a Hellhound puppy, Paladin, and one of Guriel's brothers -- Rachmiel -- to the household.
Rachmiel's first day out in public is met with mixed success.
Rating: PG-13 for disturbing notions? IDEK.
AU: Enslaved
Author's Note: The Enslaved verse in all its terribly heartbreaking awesome was dreamed up by Ithuriel/brings_to_light's mun. I am merely jumping on the bandwagon like a big . . . bandwagon-jumping . . . thing.
Okay that got away from me but WHATEVER. This is my first attempt at examining Guriel as he might be in that 'verse, so away we go.
Some of his siblings claim that the auction house is the hardest part of the whole, ugly experience that is their life on earth; that the scrutiny, the sense of being property, the uncertainty of where they’ll end up next is the worst aspect of slavery.
He thinks they’re insane. True, the conditions are cramped and the uncertainty can be wearying and the chains suck. But the auction houses are one of the only places on Earth where angels are allowed any lasting contact. Being back on the block means there are stolen moments beforehand to talk without human surveillance, a chance to pass along comfort and news - sometimes even to be reunited for an hour or a few hours with siblings who’ve long been lost. It’s a chance not to be alone, for a change, the only chance of that he gets anymore since he left the pits, and in his mind that’s worth the rest of the experience. Nothing they can do to escape being treated like property, but at least for a little while they can be property together.
Of course, his perspective is a little different than that of most of his siblings. Damaged goods wait a lot longer to be sold.
He’s lost track of how many “Masters” he’s had in the past century. Even in the old days his ownership transferred often; fighting angels are valuable property, and valuable property in the hands of gambling men has a tendency to be quickly lost and won. But since he stopped being valuable as a fighter he’s changed hands with an almost dizzying frequency, taken on and discarded by a long succession of people who quickly find he’s not the bargain they think he is. Every time he ends up back at an auction house, he finds himself bumped lower in value, and every time he spends a longer stretch in chains waiting to go back on the block, watching more and more siblings go ahead of him to be sold. Part of him wonders if there’s a limit to how low the price can drop before he’s no longer worth enough to bother, if eventually one of these days they'll just destroy him rather than go to the effort of trying to sell him.
The rest of him thinks that part is an idiot, and roughly reminds it to focus on the small positives. Like a chance to talk with his siblings again. Or - now that every other angelus in the place has either been sold or lined up for auction up front - the chance to spend a few moments talking to his Father without a human being looking on.
He has to focus on the small positives while they last, because they never, ever last.
As proof of which, the lights flick on overhead and a human voice calls him, rough and disinterested. “Three-thirty-seven.” He snorts in derision. The number matches the tag attached to the chains around his wrists, but there’s no other angels left in the room; it’s just the handler’s way of reminding him what he is. Property. An auction lot. A thing.
He climbs to his feet, rolling his shoulders as much as he can with his wrists bound, and stretches his wings as wide as they’ll go. The left flares to its full span, while the right feebly mirrors the motion, making it less than halfway before it catches and stops. He eyes the handler with a stony expression, a look meant to say I know you can hurt me for this and I don’t care.
“Guriel.” He says coldly. “My name is Guriel.”
***
- Guriel was a pit fighter for most of his enslavement. During the course of this part of his life he injured many other angels and killed a total of four: one accidentally, two in evenly matched fights, and one (who was a better fighter than he) in the last fight he ever participated in. After this fight Guriel tried to escape, was recaptured, and had his wing maimed as punishment. [There are other details of the final fight which have had long-reaching emotional implications for Guriel, but he does not share them easily.] Guriel considers these deaths to be murders and holds himself responsible for all of them.
- Since 1837, the year of his last fight, he was passed from owner to owner with each successive sale being for a lower price. He became "damaged goods", not only because of his wing but because of his anger and rebelliousness.
- During the 19th century a variety of different owners tried to have Guriel "repaired" to make him worth more. These attempts were horrifically painful, and Guriel was given no choice in the matter. As such he doesn't trust doctors and is reluctant to talk about the possibility of having his wing repaired.
- Guriel was briefly free (after being set free by House) but was recaptured and sold cross-country before being freed for good by Ben Lockwood.
***
And because We Can Has continuity,
On the auction block once again, Guriel has an encounter with Mikhel.
Mikhel's former owner, House, comes looking for him and sets Guriel free, after which
Guriel runs into Mikhel a second time.
Guriel lurks the alleys of New Jersey for a while, during which time he also runs into Ithuriel, taking vengeance on a slaver. This gives Guriel the bright idea to try and do the same. Because that seems like an excellent pursuit for a crippled angel to undertake, amirite?
[Untitled fic, yet to be written: in which a free Guriel runs drastically afoul of slavers and loses his libery.]
Guriel's latest owners are killed in a wreck, leaving him to their son.
Guriel tries to adjust to freedom, Pack, and the fact that it's October.
Ben's discovery of the history of Pit angels leads to further tentative attempts at relating to each other, including Guriel's first use of his ring during this bout of freedom. This is followed by a reunion with Ananchel, a very beloved sibling.
Guriel can't read English, which leads to frustration in trying to unravel his ownership documents. He and Lockwood are eventually responsible for the deaths of two human Hunters.
Gradually, Lockwood's house attracts Kabniel, one of Guriel's wild baby sisters, and Ananchel is freed and joins the household as well. Cuddy offers to help Guriel in having his wing repaired, a fact he meets with disdain and skepticism.
Mikhel follows Lockwood home, and eventually (semi) joins the household, though he isn't freed. Guriel attempts to relate to him, and seeks his counsel to deal with the guilt of killing the human Hunters. He also meets and offers to help Corvus, particularly after learning that he's met Lockwood.
A game of Truth or Dare. Guriel admits that he wishes there were a cure for his wing.
Lockwood buys a pawnshop ring, which turns out to belong to Guriel's brother Toviel, who was captured at the same time as Guriel. The two reunite and Guriel, after much urging, convinces Toviel to go Home. He doesn't follow, but he does finally ask God for forgiveness for what he sees as the murders of his siblings.
They return home to discover that the father of the Hunters they killed wants revenge, and so they make plans to go after him before he can. These plans are violently disrupted when Mikhel destroys an airliner, and Lockwood realizes he can't deal with "owning" Guriel's elder brother, leading him to pass him on to Hannibal Smith. A fact for which Guriel is deeply, deeply sorry. He comes home to find that Ben called a suicide hotline while he was saying his goodbyes to Mikhel.
Elle Woods gives him an Angel Rights brochure. Skeptical Guriel is skeptical.
Once things settle down slightly, they once again attempt to get to New Jersey, after Guriel checks on Mikhel one more time.
Guriel consults with several doctors about his wing, and the news is tentatively hopeful. Guriel meets with Ithuriel again and catches up. Returning home, he and Zev confront (and kill) a pair of Hunters two blocks from the house.
Guriel is skeptical about Christmas, leading to a fight with a demon, meetings with a pair of humans and a long-lost Brother, and his first Christmas gift from Lockwood. Shortly after that, one of Guriel's brothers assures him that the Underground exists.
Lockwood searches his mother's journal for insight on why his parents bought Guriel. Ambushed in the parking lot, Guriel and Lockwood survive (more or less) and meet Detective Spencer Winslow.
Mikhel makes it snow in L.A.. Guriel reunites with Anathiel, a brother he knew in the Pits long ago, and Zepar is preparing to be caught again. Corvus thinks it was easier being alone -- Guriel disagrees.
Guriel and Ben rescue a brother from Black-Market slavers, then proceed to slaughter all the humans involved with extreme prejudice, freeing a dozen angels (including tziporel).
Guriel briefly sees Mikhel again, and he and Lockwood (and Lockwood's new fire lizard, Raya) buy some things for Guriel's brothers.
In the aftermath of the Black Market attack, the FBI investigates and Guriel smuggles care packages to his brothers.
Guriel, Corvus and Lockwood take off for Germany to try and find the key to the Crow's freedom.
Guriel watches the birds and contemplates the surgery to fix his wing, after which he and Lockwood free his baby sister Chataltuliel and kill her abusive owners. After which, Ben Lockwood researches ways for them to do justice without killing people.
An encounter with a smartmouthed demon leads to a beheading!
Guriel seeks some legal advice from Elle Woods, though he doesn't care for the answers he gets. Troubled and reluctant, he visits a local parish to pray about his current situation, finally deciding to have his wing repaired. Just before they leave for New Jersey, he runs into Human Aden and finds himself oddly sympathetic.
At Princeton-Plainsboro, Lockwood paces the waiting room in preparation, then joins Guriel for the surgery. Everything goes surprisingly well, and after some recuperation time, Pack Bonding, and a close call with the Predator and Guriel's sister Silence, they return to Los Angeles -- but not before Guriel bothers House one more time.
Back home, Guriel and Lockwood find a car to start restoring. Guriel also talks on the phone with Elle Woods, which leads to another reunion with Anathiel, and he (unsuccessfully) seeks help from Raziel in finding a lost brother. He is skeptical when Lockwood tells him about Rick Castle's request to follow them around, but ultimately gives a grudging go-ahead.
Someone has egged Elle's office, and Guriel helps her clean up. He also bumps into Aden outside a coffee shop, and gives an angel owner the side-eye.
Lockwood, Guriel, Zepar, and Elle Bishop have a "playdate" in Griffith Park.
The boys go shopping for supplies for their various new pursuits, and Guriel runs into his sister Meirael while they're out.
Guriel meets up with Corvus, who is back to his old duties. His wings are getting better every day, and he relishes the chance to stretch both of them out in the sun. He and Lockwood take an impromptu trip down to Baja to watch whales, and end up busting a Black Market smuggling ring.
The one-year anniversary of Ben's convoy ambush catches both of them by surprise.
Guriel and Zepar come along for Ben's not-date with Elle Bishop, and Guriel joins Jophiel at a clandestine meetup.
Guriel readjusts to perching with both wings open, and he and Ben go flying at iFly Hollywood. Best. Day. Ever.
And Ben? Doesn't know what a normal day entails.
Guriel pays Anathiel a visit to see how he's been adjusting. After a dream about his brother Yavniel, who was forced to help maim his wing, Guriel and Ben track him down at L.A. General, where he now works and lives.
Ben and Guriel are testing hair dyes for their new non-lethal takedown plans when an escaped brother leads them to an angel brothel, which they destroy with extreme (lethal) prejudice. Fortunately, the police mistake it for insurance fraud.
The Kidnapped!Ben plot:
Ben is snatched while he's out buying milk, leaving Guriel panicked and frantically searching for him. His kidnappers turn out to be working for Bob Bishop's underground angel Pit, where Ben is forced to fight against his will. After a tipoff from Zepar, Guriel grabs his brother Sahaquiel, Elle Woods, and Rick Castle, and they mount a rescue.
In the aftermath of the Pit rescue, Guriel calls to check on Elle Woods, after which she stops by for drinks. Ben "celebrates" Mother's Day, and Elle Bishop drops by for a very awkward visit.
Ben is still having difficulty sleeping indoors, so the two of them see if a park would be a better place.
Guriel is twirling a feather between his fingers, contemplating many things; and with some encouragement from Ben, he flies.
Elle Woods needs to learn to defend herself, and Ben and Guriel case a Black Market operation. Ben recovers from a head injury.
Afterward, Guriel turns blissful circles in the air, and he, Ben, Zepar and Elle Bishop go out on a camping trip in Baja.
The Suit from their last Black Market takedown catches up to them, with painful results -- but Pack never leaves its own behind.
Ben and Guriel Ransom Tziporel's mother from the evangelist who owns her, reuniting her with her son. That leads them to track his father through the Black Market, freeing him as well as several others. They add a Hellhound puppy, Paladin, and one of Guriel's brothers -- Rachmiel -- to the household.
Rachmiel's first day out in public is met with mixed success.