Long time, no update...but this fic is not forgotten! Rasberry Fog has almost finished it...so I will be posting lots more chaps if I don't forget! Also...the name has been changed to Grace like Rain!
xxXX..Chapter Three..XXxx Faith Is Strength
It was a nice dinner. The only time Leah stopped talking was when she had a mouthful of shrimp. They were all seated in the dining room, one bodyguard at either end of the table, Leah and Artemis sitting across from each other in the middle. "This is very good, Miss Bidikov," Artemis stated, placing another one of the delectable shrimp in his mouth. "Thank you," Aeriel said, pleased. "I picked up the recipe when I was stationed in Alabama for a while. A nice lady named Rhonda wrote it down for me."
Artemis nodded, savoring every bite. Aeriel was a very good cook. "Unfortunately, this is about the only thing I can cook very well. Mother and Father were too busy teaching me how to defend my self to teach me to cook." Whoops. She wasn't that good then.
"Tell me about your training," said Butler, eager to know. Aeriel laughed. Butler noticed she laughed a lot. "I'm not sure if you would actually call it 'training'. I received instruction on martial arts from my father, weapons from my grandfather and a very special mixture of yoga and ballet from my mother."
"Ballet?" asked Artemis. Aeriel nodded. "You know football players take some ballet to help them to be graceful, all that jazz. Well, same in my case. The yoga helps me to be calm, and the ballet helps to strengthen my muscles and gain control of my body."
"Interesting," murmured Butler. Ballet? She sure didn't seem like the type. Ballet and sci-fi. Amazing. "I might could teach you a few moves later. You might need them one day. Leah seems to pick up on them quickly," added Aeriel, talking to both Butler and Artemis. Leah beamed. "I'm quite good. I love to practice with Ari. Except, Ari usually practices alone."
"We've gone over this," said Aeriel, exasperated. "I don't only practice when I 'practice'. I do other things." "Like what?" asked Artemis, intrigued. "Praying. Reading. Thinking. It's really none of your business, if you don't mind."
Artemis backed off. But. Butler didn't. "Praying?" "Yes. I accepted Christ when I was only six. I had to rededicate, though, when I was twenty, because I didn't really understand. But, having God has really helped me. It's given me a sort of strength. Like, I know I can defeat anyone, anything because He's on my side. And, if I can't, oh well. He'll help me through it, and if the price is death… well…" She trailed off, presuming the group knew.
"So, yes, I pray, and do my devotions, and practice hard. It's part of what makes my family's business one of the most successful bodyguard academies in the world. We insist on the members becoming Christians, all though, we don't force them. It is their own decision, but they should know it would help enormously." She looked directly at Butler.
"And, you?" "Me, what?" Butler asked, slightly puzzled. Aeriel hung her head. "I suppose not." "Butler, what?" asked Artemis, insistently. Aeriel looked Butler directly in the eyes. "Are you a Christian?"
Artemis and Butler stared. Leah had her hands folded in her lap, on her napkin, looking down. Aeriel was staring back at them with her gray eyes.
"No," he answered, truthfully. He'd never been exposed to it much, until now. "Me, as well," answered Artemis, looking embarrassed and ashamed for some reason.
"Well," said Aeriel softly. "That's all right then. Just, tell me if you'd like to talk about it sometime." She stood and cleared the dishes. Butler decided to help.
Artemis was in his room, giving his bank account a paranoid check on his laptop. There was a slight knock on the door. Before he gave permission to enter, Leah walked right it. "What're you doing?" she asked, looking at the screen. Artemis slammed the lid shut, hoping he hadn't cracked the crystal. "Nothing that concerns you, little girl. Now, why are you here?"
Leah smiled. "It's time." She grabbed Artemis by the wrist and dragged him off the four poster bed. She was strong for a puny twelve-year-old.
She led him down the stairs, both in their pajamas, in the dark. Leah was carrying a flashlight, and it cast brief bursts of light on different art pieces and furniture.
Out to the front step, and down a path around to the back. She was leading him to a garage of some sort. "It's time for you to see the big project."
Butler was on a mission of his own. Ever since dinner time, he had been so curious about what Aeriel had said. The God thing. He put on his jacket, grabbed a flashlight, and set out of the house, about five minutes before Leah came and dragged Artemis out to the garage. He was looking for Aeriel, but she was no where to be found in the enormous manor. He thought for a moment, and it came to him. The cottage. It would take some time to find it, but, Butler was very good at finding things.
He was running around outside now, looking for the telltale light from the cottage. He was out in the woods, and it was November, in New York. Very cold. He could see his breath in front of him, and hoped he would find the cottage soon, before he got lost out here in the woods. Then, there it was! A gentle, yellow light to his left. He walked slowly to it. It was a small cottage, almost like a shed really. He could see a shadow moving behind the curtain.
He went and knocked on the door. The music abruptly stopped, and he could hear a hurried, startled yelp from Aeriel. She opened the door, holding the gun, still attached to belt, in one hand, and a jacket in the other. She put the jacket on quickly, and said "How did you find me?"
"Guess work," answered Butler. Aeriel eyed him suspiciously. She was dressed in her ballet clothes, black leotard, white tights, and a short, swishy skirt. He also noticed the pointe shoes. She looked a bit uncomfortable. She pulled the denim jacket closer.
"I'm sorry," she said. "This is a really bad time for a visit." Butler nodded. "I just wanted to talk about something."
Aeriel looked up sharply. "Really? You mean, the Christian thing?" Butler nodded, relived he didn't have to explain himself. Aeriel gasped and said "Well, come in, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to keep you out in the cold!"
Butler walked in. The cottage was small, but very cozy. An entire wall was covered with a mirror and a log barre. She had a resin box off to one side, and a CD player. There was couch and a bookcase on one wall, and a lamp near the door. The last wall had some exercise equipment and such.
Aeriel raced into a bathroom. "Let me just change into my jeans, I'll be right out." She closed the door behind her and leaned against it. She caught her breath, and slipped a pair of blue jeans and a sweater over her ballet attire. She left the pointe shoes on.
Butler was still standing by the door. Aeriel smiled. "You can sit down, you know. That is what a couch is for, after all."
He sat. She sat. They just sat there in silence until Butler spoke up. "Just, explain to me how one would go about… becoming a Christian."
Aeriel smiled, leaned back on the couch and told him everything she knew