Full Summary: Spencer Carlin is struggling to cope and find meaning in the aftermath of her parents' and older brother Glen's brutal murder. Even though she still has her other brother Clay to lean on for support, her will to live has faded drastically and she only sees one way out to end the pain. In comes Ashley Davies, a guardian angel of Spirit, who'll have to watch over Spencer in the shadows. However, when her invisible attempts to save Spencer go unnoticed, Ashley has no choice but to reveal herself—which sets off a reaction of feelings neither one of them expected would happen, let alone should. On top of that, Spencer has a sudden desire to track down her family's killer in search of answers, further complicating matters.

Author's Note: Hey everyone, I know there's a chance no one will come across this fanfiction because this fandom is pretty much dead but I recently re-watched all three seasons of SoN and felt inspired to write my first fiction on my new account (I've had different user accounts since 2005). So, I hope you enjoy what I've written, and please leave any feedback you might have. I appreciate any constructive criticism to help improve my writing.

Disclaimer: I don't own South of Nowhere or the characters. Only the plot.


Chapter One: The Pact

Ashley's POV

Assignment #2480 – Guardian Angel
Ashley Davies (Senior) – Angel Valkyrie University

To: Spencer Carlin
Known Reason: After the death of her parents and older brother Glen Carlin, she's attempted suicide multiple times.
Side note: Clay Carlin, Spencer's adopted brother, is still alive.
Location: 635 Mendon Road, Cumberland, RI 02971

Guidelines (unless necessary/given permission applied to 1–4 only):

1. Please refrain from revealing yourself to your assigned human.
2. When you are out in public, please don't use your abilities.
3. Don't attempt to possess and control your human's body, or any other living being, when in spirit form.
4. Don't attempt to read the mind of your human or any other living being in either human or spirit form.
5. During the times you may have to travel in human form, don't let human emotions cloud your judgment or make you become emotionally attached to your human host in any way, shape, or form.
6. If, for any reason, you become emotionally attached to your human, you must inform your Mentor or the Higher Ups as soon as possible.
7. After you are done monitoring your human for the evening, be sure to make a full written report of everything said and done, then please drop it off to your Mentor to go over it with you.

Please carefully read and sign the document indicating your acceptance of the terms of this assignment contract; then return it to your Mentor as soon as possible.

What a way to start the school year. Right out the pearly white gates, I was given one of the most challenging mortal cases—cases only reserved for Saviors, which I won't become until after graduation. I couldn't even begin to wrap my head around it, let alone why my mentor Mike would expect me to take it. For comparison, I tried to recall some of the cases I had to do during my sophomore and junior year (since freshman year was all about learning the basics on becoming a guardian angel), and this was absolutely unheard of. Frankly, I'm worried about what this means for the rest of the year.

When I had walked into Mike's office after my last class, he made a note on the small whiteboard on his door saying he'd be back and to take a look at the paper on his desk. I realized now I should have waited for his return. Now I'm sitting on the chair by his desk, going over what I read—but also wondering at the same time if this is Mike's way of saying he just doesn't like me, since a case like this—especially if I failed—would guarantee me having to redo my senior year before I could even dream of being a full-fledged Savior.

"So, what do you think?"

I jumped, looking up to see Mike standing directly in front of me. Damn him and his ninja-like silence. I composed myself, being sure to clear the lump trying to form in the back of my throat before saying, as nonchalantly as possible, "Um, about the assignment?"

"Yes, about the assignment, Ashley," he replied, crouching down, so we're eye-level now. "Can you do it?"

The more pressing question was: am I ready to take on this case? For as long as I can remember, I knew I wanted to become a guardian angel. So much so that I made sure my parents enrolled me into Guardian Angel Academy—instead of the more traditional Guardian Angel High—after I finished middle school. Taking on this case could give me the validation I needed to prove I was making the right decision for a career, but I still had to know something before I gave a definite answer:

"Why me?"

Mike smiled, standing up and walking briskly to his desk. He sat down in his chair with a thump, picking up the contract to give it a once-over. When he finished, he handed it to me, and met my eyes with an earnest look: "I'm recommending you for this opportunity because I believe in you and I know you're up for the challenge… Yes, Saviors are usually reversed for these cases, but believe it or not, it was a Savior who handed it off to me—and I think you're the right person for the job. So wh—"

"Wait, what?" I interrupted, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion. "You're telling me it wasn't the Higher Ups?"

"Well, yes and no"—he conjured a cup of piping hot coffee in his hand and took multiple small sips, savoring the rich flavor— "a Higher Up handed it off to the Saviors and gave the approval to have them send it to the Mentors, if we wanted it of course, which we did."

Mike resumed sipping his coffee, now, leaning back in his chair to get more comfortable, while he let me process… and I'm one hundred percent convinced I've landed in the Twilight Zone—so I do the only reasonable thing I could think of… Stand up to pace in a circle.

"You want to know their reasoning for passing off this particular suicide mortal case to a senior college student," said Mike, not skipping a beat. "Before I answer that, though, I should be clear on something… this isn't the only suicidal mortal case they're assigning. They're giving us any and all existing ones as well as ones that come into existence. You won't be the only one, Ashley."

I'm pretty goddamn sure my mouth had fallen open in complete and utter shock, and I probably needed to clean out my ears because I couldn't be positive I heard him correctly. I never would have imagined this being a possibility; it's so unlike the Higher Ups to make changes, especially on a scale that—depending on how you looked at things—had more of a risk backfiring catastrophically and the potential to carry dire consequences. Either way, it wasn't my problem at the end of the day.

"So, uh, what's the reason?" I asked gently, forcing myself to look down at my feet.

Mike cleared his throat. "Right. Sorry." He threw his currently empty coffee cup in the trash bin beside his table before conjuring up a fresh one. He took greedy gulps, then opened his mouth. "As I was saying… The Higher Ups are actually doing it for two reasons. One, they believe this is good training and gives you all insight into how best to handle these assignments. Two, due to the brutal conditions the mortal world is going through with climate change, wars, oppression, etc., suicides are unfortunately becoming more common and Saviors are having a difficult time keeping up with it all"—he gestured to me with his free hand while taking the second to drink more coffee—"and that's where you and your classmates come in."

Jesus, Mike really loved coffee. The whole time I've been here, one hand has had a cup in it without much pause. Covering my mouth, I let out a soundless chuckle, but hopefully gave off a look of apprehension for the overall situation. Aside from Mike's coffee addiction, I realized it made a whole lot more sense why he asked if I could take this case. And it definitely knocked me down a couple of pegs, because I was selfish enough to think I was somehow special. But seeing the bigger picture for what it really was, and you can bet I'm going to stand by it.

"Ashley, I hope you understand where I'm coming from a bit better now. And I also want you to know that you still have the choice of saying no, if that's what you decide. I can always hand this over to someone else, but if I'm being honest, I'd still really like you to take it on," Mike continued, proceeding cautiously when he noticed I hadn't said anything in response yet.

I take a deep breath and let it out, slowly, trying to calm myself. I'm acutely aware of the low thumping my heart makes, of how the blood pulsing through my veins sent shivers up my spine, and caused goosebumps to run up my arms. The room seemed brighter, sharper—as though the sun had managed to break in, blinding every square inch it could reach. Now I found myself next to Mike, with the contract on the desk and my index finger resting on the dotted line. When did I move? I don't remember that happening. From the corner of my eye I see a small, genuine smile come across Mike's face. And, deep down, regardless of how terrified I was, taking on this assignment would give me a jump start on my career, like Mike said. Maybe I'd even get to graduate early if all goes well. One can hope, right?

"I'll do it," I finally answered, but silently mumbled to myself, "here goes nothing."

A low light slowly illuminated from the tip of my index finger, and I watched as my full name goes over the blank space in a bright golden hue. Once done, the contract vanished into thin air as if it never existed, returning back to the Higher Ups. And just like that, my fate was sealed. For now. I melodramatically sat down on the hard, metal chair, leaning my head all the way back to look up at the white, fluorescent ceiling. The quiet is deafening and oddly uncomfortable to me for some unknown reason, so I sat up straight and glanced over at Mike, who's absentmindedly fiddling with his empty coffee cup.

"So," I said, enunciating each word as I clinked my tongue against my teeth, "when do I leave?"

"In two days," Mike responded. "I figured that would give you enough time to prepare if you need to."

"That sounds like a fair deal," I replied, nodding my head in agreement. Then I stood up and extended my hand to Mike, which he took and gave a firm shake. "You're going to do great, Ashley," he said with a genuine smile. I smiled back while taking the three steps to his office door. Upon opening it, I turned around to face Mike, who was back to leaning in his chair. I raised my hand in a small wave and said, "Thanks. I'll see you later," before stepping into the hallway. The door clicked closed behind me, and a sense of relief washed heavily over me with only one thought in mind:

Spencer Carlin, I won't let you down.


Author's Note: So, believe it or not, it took me a couple of weeks to get this first chapter written. I edited it and rewrote it a million times, but I'm finally happy with the result. I hope you liked it! Let me know what you think. Until next time!