The sky was pitch black, dark in contrast against the falling snow. The clouds hid both the stars and moon from view, casting the world below into shadows. Beneath the midnight sky lay the slumbering city of Palmacosta.
The houses lined up neatly and orderly in defiance of the wilderness and the ocean that surrounded the city. Smoke rose lazily from chimneys buried among the snow covered rooftops. Icicles dangled from the tips of roofs, ranging in size from tiny little nubs to large ice spears that threatened to fall at any sudden movement.
The streets that ran along the little blocks and clusters of houses were now empty. During the daytime, these paths bustled with life, full of people going about their business without a care in the world. Now, the roads were barren of life. Nearly.
A small girl of about six years shuffled through the deep snow, her large sapphire eyes staring about her in fear. Snow clung to her little blue coat and ice stuck to the white fur at her cuffs. Her boots had gotten snow in them at some point and were slightly damp and extremely uncomfortable.
This was Lenai Hikaru. She had come to Palmacosta with her uncle on an extremely very business trip. He had gone to a meeting with the Governor-General of the city and had sent her off to play with a few other children in the city square. Before leaving her, he had told her to meet him in the lobby of the office building at six o'clock.
The native children scoffed at Lenai, calling her a country bumpkin and ignored her. Lenai had to admit, she was a country bumpkin, but it still wasn't very nice of them to point it out. After a while, she got tired of trying to get them to pay attention to her and wandered off to explore.
She wandered around the city for hours. At first it was all in good fun. She wove her way through the winding roads, exploring every alley she came upon. As the evening wore on, however, she suddenly realized that she was very hungry.
Lenai stopped her meandering in front of a bakery, attracted by the heavenly aromas. She pressed her little button nose against the icy window after scrubbing the frost off with her coat sleeve. Peering inside, she watched the customers as they bought bread, cakes, and other baked goods. After a few minutes one of the bakers noticed her through the glass and brought out to her a hot biscuit and a mug full of hot cocoa. She thanked the kind man, and continued her adventure while munching on her supper.
In the winter, the days are much shorter than those of the summertime. The sun descended, and night fell rather quickly. Little by little, the streets emptied. The people of the city returned to their cozy little homes, completely oblivious of the poor little soul who still had not found her way.
Fear's icy claws slowly closed around Lenai as she realized that she was indeed lost. She frantically ran through the streets, eyes darting here and there as she tried in vain to find her way back to the square.
At last, she stopped, slipping into an alley. She knelt down at the mouth of the alley just in case her uncle happened by this way looking for her. She then curled into a ball to keep herself warm, wishing to herself that she had some more cocoa. She tried not to cry, knowing that if she did, the tears would freeze to her face.
Lenai started to sing softly to herself in an attempt to keep herself calm. By now, the streets were completely empty. The little girl was cold, tired, scared, and terribly alone.
Suddenly there was a sound of rustling wings. She looked up, startled, to see a man in the street. He was tall, with long, silken sky-blue hair that hung in a loose ponytail down his back. His skin was fair and he had pointed ears, like those of elves. He wore a black and white suit, and she noticed, was armed. He had a rapier at his hip and a bow strapped to his back.
It wasn't his looks or clothes that caused the little girl to jump up and run to where he stood to cling to his sleeve. It was his wings. They were absolutely gorgeous. They glittered like the newly fallen snow, but quite unlike the snow they were black. Lenai had no doubts that this was an angel.
She recalled her uncle telling her that he had had dealings with angels on occasion. So if her uncle was special enough to meet with these mystic beings, why shouldn't she? Why else did he show up here in her time of need? The very thought cheered the Lenai right up. Everything would be fine now. Her angel would take her back to her uncle.
The angel looked down when she tugged on his sleeve with a slight look of surprise flitting across his handsome face. His piercing amethyst eyes locked onto her face as he waited with patient expectancy for her to say something.
"Hi," said Lenai, in a high melodious voice. He just stared at her so she continued. "You're an angel, aren't you?"
The angel blinked at the question. "I beg your pardon?" he asked in a voice like velvet thunder. She decided that she liked his voice.
"I'm lost. Isn't that why you're here?" she asked, ignoring his inquirement and cocking her head to one side.
The angel knelt down so that he was at eye level with her. "Well, that all depends on where it is you want to go," he replied, a small smirk appearing on his lips.
"I need to go to the square. My uncle was meeting with Governor-General Dorr. If you can take me to the square, then I can find my way from there."
The angel eyed her as if sizing her up. "Well, in that case, I would be honored to accompany such a fine young lady as yourself to the park," he said in an amused tone. She giggled and released her grip on his sleeve to grasp his hand. He began to walk, only to pause again. "Pardon me, Milady. There is something I must do first," he explained when she turned him a questioning look. His wings began to glow white hot before disappearing altogether.
"Where'd they go?" the girl breathed in astonishment. Her angel grinned down at her.
"Well, you see, I need to…er, blend in. I don't like people gaping at me all that much," he said.
"But they're so pretty!" she protested. She didn't point out that he was rather unique looking anyway. Just like an elf. He just smiled, shaking his head.
He pulled her gently through the snow laden streets of the sleeping city. They talked about all sorts of things. Well, it was more her talking than him. She told him the unabridged story of her life and her dreams for the future (lucky him) and he, during the brief pauses when she stopped for air, made small comments about this and that. She discovered that he wasn't much of a talker and he kept staring oddly at her. After they had been walking for several minutes, her feet decided that they had had enough mistreatment for one day, and the angel had to carry her.
They arrived at the park all too soon for the girl's taste. She pouted as he set her down on the ground. He smiled and ruffled her golden brown hair. "Well, here we are." He couldn't keep the reluctant tone completely out of his voice. She replied with an even bigger pout. He knelt in front of her, staring at her straight in the face. "What is it?"
"I don't wanna go!" she cried.
"Now, darling, you know that you have to. Your uncle is likely to be at his wits end with worry about you."
Lenai nodded indicating that, yes, she did know. She threw her arms around him in a hug, giving him a big wet kiss on the mouth. He gave her a crooked smile that made
her giggle and brushed a snowflake from her hair. "Bye! And thank you!" she shouted before taking off for the Governor-General's house but stopping in her tracks, turning on a dime and running back. She threw herself into the angel's arms. "I forgot to ask for your name!" she exclaimed.
"Azrael. Azrael Vaerdos," the angel whispered into her ear, holding her close. "If ever you need me, just call for me."
She pulled back slightly to look him in the face. "Really? What if you're a long ways away?" she asked skeptically.
"I'll hear you. And I'll come, no matter how far I am from you," he vowed. Sighing deeply, he released her and gave her a gentle push in the direction of where he hoped her uncle was still. "Now go."
Lenai's uncle paced distraughtly around the hall. He stopped abruptly and turned his intense gaze at Dorr. "Why haven't your men found my niece yet?" he demanded angrily.
The Governor-General opened his mouth to say something comforting, but was interrupted by a small knock on the door. He rose swiftly from his chair and opened the door to see a small girl.
"Hi!" she peeped.
"Lenai!" her uncle shouted with relief, running to the door and sweeping her up into his arms. "Where in heaven have you been?"
"Uncle, I got lost! But an angel found me and brought me back!" She didn't notice the color drain from her uncle's face.
"An angel…?"
"Yes! His name's Azrael!"
Azrael Vaerdos watched Lenai's reunion with her uncle through the icy glass of the window, his angelic hearing giving him the power to hear the exchange. His eyes widened a fraction when he saw the uncle's face, but quickly narrowed as he realized that his task had just gotten harder. His eyes roamed to Lenai again, and his expression softened.
He couldn't quite explain how he felt about the little girl. Whether it was her complete innocence to the world and its hardships, or some power of the strange magick he caught emanating from her, he was entranced by her. He would stand by his oath to protect her. His little snowflake.