October 18th, 2013

There was a knock on the door.

Bodil looked up from the TV screen and rolled off the couch in a flail of limbs and wings. He ran over to the door, grabbing his jacket from the coat hanger on the wall and quickly folding his inky wings under it. Clearing his throat and smoothing out any wrinkles, he turned the knob and opened the door.

Sky met him with a slight smirk, walking right in. Another person, one that wore strange grey and purple clothing, followed him. Bodil stood back, closing the door behind them. "Yeah, yeah. Welcome in, Sky. Make yourself at home," he grumbled. He wasn't in the best of moods. Sky had said he would "be right over". Apparently, when Sky said something like that, he meant a full day before he would come over.

"Thanks, Bo...dil..." Bodil watched Sky wander around his flat, jaw falling down to the floor. Sky's friend was slightly more composed, but both of them still gaped at what Bodil was living in. Finally, Sky turned to the angel. "Is this seriously your house?"

Bodil nodded once, going over to the TV and switching it off. "Yeah, it is."

"Dude, this is..." He didn't finished his sentence, so his friend filled in for him. "Whoa." The sorcerer glanced over at Bodil. "I'm Seto, by the way. Sky dragged me over here."

"Bodil," he replied, then turned away from the television and walked over to the bar. He cleared his throat. "Water or juice? I don't have anything else right now. I need to go shopping."

Sky wanted a water, but Seto passed for any refreshments. They each sat down on a stool, still admiring the house.

"So, you guys have heard of the Antony Hills case, right?"

Sky nodded. "Yeah. Didn't they give him up for dead or something?"

Bodil's eyes narrowed, and he visibly bristled. "Never say that again, Sky. He is not dead. They just abandoned the poor boy."

It was then that the phone rang. The angel sighed and excused himself, jogging over to his phone that was sitting on the counter. "Hello?"

"Bodil?"

It was Baki. A scowl drew over Bodil's face, and his grip on the phone tightened. "What do you want, Baki? I'm busy."

"I... I need to tell you something. It's urgent-about Antony and- and me..."

The Fallen grew still. He glanced over his shoulder at his guests, who were watching him curiously. He turned back around to hide his frown. "What is it?" After a moment of pause from the other angel, he growled. "Well?"

"I... I've Fallen, Bodil. I need you to come get me. Please? I-I know where Antony is. I just need your help in getting him."

The breath left Bodil. Baki had fallen? What for? Was he framed, too? A small worm of compassion wound its way into his stomach, settling there like a rock. "What-"

"Martin, please. I really need your help."

He frowned again, but didn't bother to correct the angel. The desperation in his ex-friend's voice seemed real enough. He hadn't ever heard the other angel sound like that before. The last time he had heard that desperation was when one of Baki's humans had gotten hit by a bus because the angel was too late in getting there. So whatever Baki needed him for must have been urgent. He sighed and thought for a moment, then turned to Sky. "Do you have a ride? I need to go pick up a friend."

"Thank you," he could hear Baki whisper on the other end. "Thank you, Bodil. I owe you one."

His eyes narrowed behind his glasses. "You owe me more than one, Baki. Remember that."

He pressed the end call button, then turned to his two friends. "Do either of you have a car?"

...

After a bit of fuss about who would drive, the three of them decided that since it was Sky's car, Sky would drive. Bodil found that he should have let Seto drive. The Butter God was... not a very orderly driver. He would yell at the people ahead of them that were going under thirty miles an hour, curse at the red lights that they always seemed to be stopped at, and had to stop at the nearest restaurant for a burger. But, in the end, Bodil was glad for the ride. He hadn't bought a car yet.

Seto was sitting in front of him and from what the angel could tell, he was absolutely terrified. He was clenching the dashboard handle in a death grip, knuckles turning white. One knee was drawn to his chest, and a hand was covering his mouth. Bodil hid a smirk, nudging the sorcerers arm. "Car sick?"

All he got was a nod.

"Don't worry," Sky said, "We'll be there soon." He paused then added, "Where exactly are we going again?"

Bodil sighed and shook his head. "The wharf. We need to pick up a friend."

"Oh. Well, in that case." Sky didn't continue. Instead, he jerked the wheel to the left. he jammed the brakes down, grinning. The jeep slid for a moment, making an extremely sharp U-turn. Smoke filled the air as Sky picked up the speed again, zooming down the empty street. Bodil thought he heard Seto make a squeaking noise. "Slow down, Sky! I'm pretty sure that isn't legal!" The sorcerer cried out, light brown eyes wide.

"Sure it is!" Sky shot back at the sorcerer, who was now curled up in a fetal position. "There wasn't a sign saying I couldn't make a U-turn there."

"B-b-but still!" Seto sputtered, tugging the seat belt tighter across his chest.

Finally, Bodil caught sight of the ocean. It was grey in the morning light, glinting against the steel of the boats' hulls that sailed calmly through the water. Warehouses were lined to the left of he rocky beach, docks to the right. Any other space was filled with trucks and crates of fish and other items. Sky parked the jeep in a parking lot, tires crunching over the gravel. Sky flashed a toothy grin at Seto, who looked like he was going to be sick. "See? We're all alive. Right, Bodil?"

Bodil was already getting out of the car. He paused. "Hm? Oh, yeah. Thanks for the ride, Sky. Can you guys stay here while I go get my friend?"

Sky nodded and reached towards the radio. he waved the other hand in a dismissive gesture. "Yeah, sure. If you aren't back in thirty minutes, we're gonna come look for you."

Seto was staring at Bodil with hope dwindling in his eyes. The angel could tell that he really didn't want to stay in the car one moment more. Bodil sighed and turned away, not able to watch as Seto's hopeful gaze turned into a sharp glare. "You don't need to come look for me, Sky. I'll be back soon."

He shut the car door and started walking, snickering when he heard Seto mumble something about how Sky shouldn't have a licence.

...

"Baki?" Bodil called out, stepping over a piece of driftwood. The wind met him in reply, biting his cheek with a cold nip. The Fallen shivered and stuck his fingers under his arms, trying to warm them up. He wished he was somewhere else other than the chilly wharf. The ocean breezes were cold, fluttering his tie violently. He had to fold his glasses up into his jacket pocket so they wouldn't fall off. Bodil couldn't imagine flying in this wind-much less falling.

He sighed and called out the name of the snowman again. This time there was a response. "B-Bodil?"

The Bulgarian glanced over at a pile of crates, then walked closer. Baki lay curled up next one of the bigger boxes, one black wing curled around his body. In his hands was an ancient flip phone. Bodil noticed that the other angel's fingers were red, and his lips blue. "Baki?What happened to you?" he asked, even as he went forward, unfurling his wings and wrapping one around the other.

"I-I-I fell into the water..." Baki stuttered, shivering. Now that Bodil was closer, he could see how he was soaked down to the bone. The once brilliant red scarf that hung around his neck was a dark, deep maroon. Bodil sighed and sat down next to the snowman, one wing draped over his shoulders. 'You really know how to get into bad situations," he remarked.

"I d-d-don't want to h-hear it, B-Bodil," Baki muttered, rubbing his arms with cold hands in an attempt to get warm.

Even though Baki looked like a snowman, he was flesh and blood like everyone else. He was one of those special angels that were able to contort their real appearance and make it into something else. When they were little, Baki had chosen to look like a snowman because 'it was cool'. It had stuck, and almost everyone had forgotten what the angel actually looked like.

Bodil sighed, leaning back against the crate and watching the grey sky. He fell silent for a moment. Then, "So you've Fallen."

He could feel Baki nod, drawing his knees up to his chest. "Y-yeah... Listen, Bodil. I'm sorry. I really am."

Bodil fought to contain his anger. After two years, Baki was sorry? After Falling, he finally saw that he had wronged Bodil? Seriously? "Baki-"

"No, Bodil. Really. I... it was my fault, two years ago. I was the one that forced you to come to the lake with me and your kid. I was the one that had gotten too wound up and pushed you in. I was the one that didn't stop her when she jumped in after-"

"Stop."

Baki fell silent at the Bulgarian's cold tone. He looked down. He really did feel sorry. He had some slight hope that he and Bodil could forgive each other. But, he didn't know if the other angel wanted to forgive him. He wanted to be friends again. 'Bodil, I really am sorry. I... can we call a truce?"

Bodil thought for a moment, then gave Baki a sideways glance. He sighed. "Alright... Truce. But we aren't friends."

Baki nodded and fell silent, looking out over the water. Then he glanced back at Bodil. "You'll probably get really pissed at what I'm about to say, but I'm going to anyway because you'll understand."

Bodil gave him a short glare, but it lightened when he saw remorse in the snowman's eyes.

"I... I let Antony get kidnapped."

Bodil stood, curling his wings to his back and walking a few paces away. He trembled, fists clenching. "You... what?"

Without waiting for an answer, he whirled and glared at Baki. "You let him get kidnapped? How could you, Baki? You're a guardian angel, for Notch's sake!"

"No I'm not."

Baki's quiet whisper stopped Bodil in his rage. The Bulgarian sighed and turned away from the snowman. He took a deep breath and counted down from ten. "Then... Why, Baki?"

"They found out about me."

He turned back to the other angel, eyes wide. "They what?"

"The humans. They saw me one night when I was visiting Antony. I-I was flying, and they saw me. One night later, Antony was kidnapped. Two letters were left. One for the family, one for me. Mine was on the roof. It said that if I came after them, they would reveal me. They had pictures and everything, Bodil... I didn't know what to do." He sighed, curling one wing tighter around him. "So, I found Antony a few days after I found the letter. They tried to shoot ... They seemed scared of me, but then one came forward. He had Antony with a knife pressed against his throat and I had no choice but to leave-"

Bodil sighed and knelt down next to his childhood friend, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Baki. Baki, hey. Listen. I'm sorry. I understand now. Alright? I'm-I'm not mad." Was he? "But I need to know why you're a Fallen."

The snowman blinked black eyes at him, then looked down and to the right. "Simon found out. He told a Minister."

Bodil swallowed and stood again. This time he extended a hand out to the other angel. 'I'll talk with him later. Come on, we have a ride waiting."

Baki allowed a small smile and took the helping hand. He winced when he stood, reaching one arm over his shoulder and rubbing a limp wing. Bodil noticed this. "What happened?"

"I hit a plane on the way down."

Bodil snorted and turned Baki around to examine the shiny black feathers that stuck out from the rest of the his body. He remembered when they had been a brilliant white. He hummed, then shrugged off his jacket. "Here, you're going to need this."

Baki took it without much complaint, folding his wings up under it. Bodil helped him with the damaged one. Eventually, they got it so that Baki looked like a normal person. "Come on," Bodil said, "let's go home."

Hmm. I'm not sure how I feel about this chapter. It seems that Bodil is slightly reluctant to forgive Baki, but he can't help but help the newly Fallen angel.

Well, tell me what you think. I've been working on this chapter all throughout Saturday. I wanted to stop a few five-hundred words before it actually ended, but my fingers kept typing. So here it is! I hope you peopleses enjoyed, reviews and comments are welcome! I'll see you guys next week for the next chapter.