various spn_bitesized mini-fills

[nonisland]

I thought about posting them separately, but the headers would be longer than the ficlets—these are for the "Niblets" challenges, where fics must be 100 words or less. Here's the AO3 collection thus far, and here's the LJ/DW backup! Links for the mini-headers go to the original prompt.

1. "Dares Not Speak Its Name" || G | original female character, unnamed reverend, Castiel; gen | internalized homophobia; canonical character death; 7.01 spoilers
   
   Laura hasn’t ever told anyone, too afraid even to try to save herself from damnation. She’s sitting in church; she hates herself for being there, on holy ground, the way she is.
   
   “I am utterly indifferent to sexual orientation,” the man in the tan coat says, then, “I’m God.”
   
   He isn’t God, Laura thinks, he can’t be: God’s job is to condemn.
   
   And then Reverend Phil chokes and crumples and dies, and Laura stares after God as He walks out of the church with something almost hopeful bleeding through the terror in her heart.


2. "I Would Give My Life to Be" || T+ | Anna/Ruby
   
   Ruby traces the skin over Anna’s shoulderblades, the places where wings once grew, and feels Anna’s heartbeat through her soft skin and marvels that Anna trusts her here—trusts a demon’s touch at her back. “Why did you fall?” Ruby asks, thinking of the weakness of humans, the small gullibility of their minds.
   
   Anna rolls over and pulls Ruby back down to her, whispers “Because we can see that the world is beautiful” against Ruby’s throat. Her teeth are a lightning-bright edge over Ruby’s pulse.
   
   There are worse answers than this.


3. "Like a Blossom in the Frost" || G | Eve; gen | canonical character deaths
   
   Her eldest children come screaming to her as they die. She cups their broken souls in Her palms (Her hands are tectonic plates, holding the heart of the world together) and breathes forgiveness and peace across them (gently as zephyrs stirring thistledown, though Her sighs are hurricanes), draws them back together and rocks them in Her arms into eternal rest.
   
   Their rest will be eternal.
   
   She is the Mother of All and Her will melts diamonds, shatters mountains. For the children who love Her there is nothing She won’t do.


4. "War Is Kind" || G | Anna & Gabriel; gen | war; themes of grief
   
   Heaven went dim as the Morningstar plummeted toward Earth, broke through, and kept falling. They all knew it would never be as bright again.
   
   Anael had borne her sword in the ranks of Michael’s army: brought it down on old friends, used it to deflect blades raised against her by people she’d trusted.
   
   She didn’t weep. Angels don’t.
   
   But when Gabriel dies, when the effervescent joy of his presence is blotted out, she can’t stop the keening cry that breaks from the core of her Grace.