Chapter One
"Such a beauty it must have been in the golden days." he murmured
and sat down on the overgrown bench placed on the side of it. Then he frowned,
now a bit irritated.
"Where are you, Gabriel?"
Gabriel himself looked solemnly at the closed iron
gates.
"How the hell had you thought I was to get over those?" he
said out loud to himself, part of him screaming to leave this frightening
place.
"Oh well, here goes..."
With a deep breath he squeezed himself between the bars. He
yelped as he fell to the ground on the other side.
"Now look what you've done, Gabe, you must have cracked a
rib!"
Without warning, a firm hand was placed on his back and dragged
him up on his feet. Gabe fumbled after the talisman around his neck but couldn't
get hold of it. His feet were unsteady and he toppled backwards, falling
into the arms of this unknown person.
"Easy, Gabe!" the voice said and Gabriel relaxed a little,
he knew this voice anywhere. "It's only me."
He let himself be picked up and dusted off, while he leaned
against the iron bars.
"You caught me a little off hand there," he said when he relied
on his voice again. "Please, don't do that any more."
The man laughed and put an arm around Gabriels shoulders to
support him.
"Okay, I won't."
"Why on earth did you want to meet me here, Wrath?"
Wrath raised his eyebrows.
"I felt it a good place to be. I forgot that you don't like
these surroundings, sorry. But doesn't it resemble Schloss Ritter? Just a
little?" he said and threw out his hand to point at the house.
"Not a bit. It's to small," Gabriel grumbled and shook off
Wrath's hand. "I can stand on my own now, thank you."
The man sighed, a little hurt, but let go instantly.
"Was there anything specific? Or did you only want to speak
of old times?" Gabriel spat out the last words.
"What's with you Gabe? You seem so angry." Wrath murmured with
a frown. Then, a little realization dawned on him. "Oh, you've been fighting
with Gracie again, haven't you?"
"Shut up, will you?!" Gabriel snapped and looked furiously
at the man. "Grace is just being such a disaster on humanity! Can you believe
that she is actually painting the walls of my bookstore yellow! She said
it was 'to gothic for her liking'!"
Wrath was silent while Gabriel continued to go on about how
much money Grace spent on buying clothes for him, clothes that he didn't
even touch.
"And she actually though I would..."
"You really love her, don't you." Wrath interrupted his tirade
of words.
Gabriel looked as if fallen from the stars.
"What did you say?"
"You really love her."
"Is this some kind of thing Gracie made you to say while she's
recording it?" he asked suspiciously.
Wrath looked at him with a soft smile and Gabriel sighed a
bit shakily.
"I don't know, I don't know."
He clutched his head in his hands and a dull sound emerged,
Wrath managed to decode it as a sob. He hugged Gabriel hard and the shattenjaeger
returned it, crying loudly into his black leather trenchcoat.
"I'm sorry," Gabriel finally said. "It's not just Gracie,
it's..."
"I know, Gabe, I know. Wolfgang and everything else. I know.
It's hard to see your loved ones die."
Gabriel looked up into his face and Wrath finally saw the endless
pain in his eyes. He couldn't do anything but look away sadly.
"You do?"
"Yes I do, and it is terrible."
Gabriel swallowed and wiped away his tears a little
shamefully.
"Who, who was it that died from you?" he asked silently.
Wrath smiled sadly at the question.
"Every person I had ever loved. They were all killed, sooner
or later."
"But why?"
"Because somebody felt it was necessary to do it. And that
person took them away from me."
The thought was terrifying for Gabriel and without thinking
about it, he clutched the talisman. It spread warmth through his hand, soothing
calm to aid its master. Before he could do anything, Wrath spoke again.
"So take care of them, Gabe, of those you love. Like Gracie."
Gabriels mind flooded with light and the image of Grace made
him smile. The young Japanese woman smiled back. Was it love, or just deep
friendship? As if he had read his mind, the man said;
"That's for you to decide."
And he was alone again. Gabriel looked around for a trace of
his friend, but he had disappeared without a sound. Still holding the talisman
he went for the gates. The medallion around his neck warmed him a little,
but the air was damp and he felt that he really needed something warm to
drink.
Gracie... he thought and his smile reappeared and stuck
to his face the whole way home.