Wings

Prologue.

I'm behind you.

I'm as dark as the night and as quiet as the moon. If I keep to the shadows long enough, you won't know I'm here until it's too late. I can make the blood flow at my mercy. I can make hearts stop beating, when I command it.

My darling king, you will never know how much damage I can cause. I will be your queen, if you ask it of me. I will do everything in my power to protect you from the shadows. But, please forgive me for what I might do. Even I do not know if I am able to stop the darkness from embracing you in her deathly grip.

Under the light of the fading moon, in the glowering shadows of the darkness, there are the people who move silently, like the grave. We are the folk who thrive on your joy and leave you feeling empty, dark and alone.

Chapter 1: Feathers

The Faerie Law
Clause 1: The Faerie Law must be followed by all means. The secret of a Faerie must not be told to anyone who is not of Faerie blood. Under no circumstance should we give the Night Angels a reason to commence war upon us.

Three weeks before the change, I was lying on my bed in my pyjamas, half dreaming, half writing a story and willing it to happen. In the story I was alone, but could feel a burning love for someone that I had only gotten to know over time. Shane was my best friend. He was smart, funny and had a sense of danger and excitement that radiated off him. His smile was framed by two, beautiful, soft lips and perfect olive skin. Some days he seemed to notice me as more than his friend. Some days, when I watched him playing his guitar or practising on his punch bag, I would admire him secretly and gaze into his eyes with a sense of longing at the back of my head. There were times when I sometimes thought that we were more than just friends; the way that we sometimes ended up gazing into each others eyes with sparks of electricity practically flying off us, the way that we knew so much about each other, and the way that we were similar yet completely opposite to each other…

A sudden crash caught my attention and broke me out of my dream and came back into reality. I dashed over to my window and was caught off guard to find the outline of Shane, his blonde hair catching the moonlight.

"What are you doing here?" I whispered out of the window.

"I came to see you" said the voice that I had just been dreaming about. It sounded even more enticing than it had just then. I could feel my cheeks burn in the darkness that surrounded us.

"You gonna let me in or do I have to hang from your window all night?" Shane said. I could just picture his perfect, cheeky smile as he said this. I moved out of his way while I watched him use his strong arms to pull himself through my window. Oh my god… this cannot be happening! I said to myself. My room was only small so I walked back to my bed and flicked my lamp on. Shane walked over more quietly to where my hand was on the lamp and turned it off again.

"No point in waking the rents… they'd only flip knowing I was here. I shan't stay long though. I have something important to tell you…" his hand lingered on mine until I let go of the lamp. He sounded amazingly serious. The tone in his voice gave away that he was hiding something, something that wasn't good, and something that was going to hurt. I turned to face him and fell into a silent fit of giggles. His eyes, which were covered by the darkness, gazed into mine with so much confusion that I couldn't stop my hushed laughter from slipping out between my lips. I reached up to remove the ivy that was sticking out from all angles in his hair. A smile flicked across his face and within seconds he was pulling it out of his clothes. I brushed off some debris from his arm when I noticed that a small patch or dark red liquid was staining his shirt.
"You're hurt!" I lifted up his sleeve to see a thin line, about finger in length, weeping blood over his forearm. I went over to my desk and pulled some tissues out of the drawer.

"Oh it's nothing. Don't fuss. It's just a little scratch… see…" he whispered taking the tissues out of my hand. When he had finished mopping himself the cut had vanished and all that was left was a thin pink line. He walked more quietly than a mouse and sat down on my bed. If it was anyone but him I would have felt slightly more embarrassed that I was just standing there in my pink pyjamas. He sighed and put his hands in his head. I went and sat by his side patiently until he decided to tell me what was wrong. He looked like he was in pain. Like something was eating him from the inside. I gently placed a hand over one of his and pulled it to my lips and softly placed a kiss on it. With that he opened his eyes and turned to face be. The once perfect, bright blue eyes that were full of excitement were now a flat single toned dull and pale green with no life or meaning behind them. I leaned forwards to get a better look through the darkness. Shane placed a hand on my cheek; to hold me there. To keep me back.

"Your eyes -"I started to question them, but instead was knocked backwards as his lips pressed against mine. The breath flew out of me and I was forced to lie on my back. His hands found mine and then pinned them above my head while our lips danced together in the darkness. After a minute, or so, I freed myself from his grasp and sat up and stared at him. Shane turned himself so that he was lying face down on my pillows.

"What was that all about?! Shane? Am I supposed to be this confused? You better start explaining yourself". I said all of this with as much anger as I could muster in muted whispers.

"I…I think… there's something wrong with me. I… My body…My head… it all aches… I feel light headed… I want to…fly... no…I hear voices… it's too silly… just forget that…"

He continued this muttering, getting quicker and quieter with each bizarre comment, until he was barely audible. He rolled over onto his other side so that his body was facing me.

" I think it's happening. I think… I'm changing… its horrid… I found the single white feather on my pillow…it's a sign…" he took a deep breath and stared me straight in the eyes.

"I think I'm a night angel. You know what that means right?" he explained as he moved so that he was sitting up in front of me. He looked concerned, worried and very miserable all at once.

"…a what? A night angel? Should I know what that is?" all of this rushed out of my mouth. There were so many questions; What was a night angel? Did it matter to me? Was he dying? Was he dead?! Angels are dead aren't they?or are they? The questions just kept piling up.

" Oh it doesn't matter. All you need to know is that I'm leaving and won't be back for some time. I will come back for you I promise…" and with those last words he got off the bed taking a heavy ring off his finger, kissed me gently on the forehead while pressing the ring into my palm and climbed back out of the window.