"Ariel" by Gabriel Madison

One line intro: Angel Santos has just asked the two Archangels in her room, why they are in her room…

Gabriel motioned for me to sit back down. I sat as he moved his long dark hair behind his ears. “We all watched as the
a
ngel Lailah entered the Holy Palace. All of the spirit realms were filled with songs of joy and love. I don’t remember a time before that Heaven itself had been filled with so many angels. They came from all over, Nirvana, Shangri-La, Valhalla and many of the other free spirit realms. Everyone stood in awe as Lailah walked into the Holy Palace. And then…the Palace crumbled into a pile of dust.”

My stomach dropped, my mouth became dry and I balled my hands into fist to keep them from trembling. This couldn’t be happening. Not after everything I’d been through, everything I’d done, everything I wanted to forget. It took all the strength I had, but I took in a deep breath of air while slowly calming myself. “What do you mean crumbled to a pile of dust?”

“He means the Holy Palace is no more.” Michael chimed in. “We searched through the rubble and found the dead body of Lailah. We found no signs of God. It seems he no longer resides in the spirit realms.”

From "Seraphim" by R. Weinstein

“You're not primping yourself for Ian, are you?” Katie asked. Ian and Sera had dated for only a few months before he dumped her for a senior girl.

Serafina pursed her lips. “No.” He's a jerk.

“Sera, get over him. We need to find you someone new.”

“I am over him!” Serafina said.

“How about him?” Katie pointed down the hallway behind Sera.

Serafina looked from Katie to the mirror where she could see over her shoulder that a new student had arrived. He had light brown hair, deep, brown eyes, he was tall, thin, and had well defined muscles. Wow, this guy's pretty cute, Serafina thought.

This new student looked like he didn't know anyone. He had stopped at the first set of lockers and was scanning the locker numbers in search of his own. The captain of the football team, Keith, and his friends crowded around him and shook his hand.

“I'm Michael,” he said.

“Sera, helloooo! Serafina!” Katie grabbed Sera's arm.

“Oh, what?”

“You were ogling him,” Katie said.

“Oh, I was? Sorry.”

“Come on, we're going to be late for homeroom.”

From "No Wings Attached" by Stella Deleuze

He was about to reply, but she cut him short:

'I'm not negotiating. You failed with that desperate woman who needed a bit of luck. And what did you do? Delivered what? You can't drive a tank in London! No wonder she freaked out.' I open my mouth to reply, but she holds a hand up.

'They wanted to bring her into a clinic, a person with no mental problems. Yes, she wanted a tank, but one to keep fish, not a military vehicle!' Christine shakes her head, although her red lips pull into a tiny smile. I grin, pretending to look at the painting behind her.

'What were you thinking?' I can sense even she has trouble staying serious. 'I had to send one of my best helpers to save the woman's luck. Get this case right and we'll see how we go from there. This woman, Celia, needs the basics first! The bosses expect you to succeed. See this as a chance to make up for the last time.' I choke down my answer. I'd just misunderstood the wish. A tank's a tank, isn't it?