A young boy no older than the age of five was sleeping soundly in a heap of covers. His tiny chest rising with every inhale of breath. A morning light now flowed in from the window overhead. It was just around 7:00, and the boy had yet to wake. His expression was soft, as his lips were slightly parted. The sun-kissed skin was enhanced by the rays of light.
The door to his room opened slowly as a man peeked in at the slumbering child. He smiled at the look of peace and contentment the boy's face held. It almost made him feel slightly guilty for having to come wake him up. The door was pushed open and creaked in protest. His footfalls were softened by the carpet as he strode over to the digital clock sitting atop a dresser next to the boy's bed. It glared in bold red numbers, 7:06. He turned his gaze from the clock to stare at his son. The boy was mostly covered up completely by his blankets; only his head could be seen resting against the pillows. Small hands grasped the end of the material so as to keep it over himself. His small shoulders slightly hunched. He looked so very innocent curled up on his bed like that. The man placed a large hand on the boy's shoulder and gave it a gentle shake.
The young child's face scrunched up in what appeared to be dismay at being disturbed from his sleep. Sleep-ridden eyes opened half way and then blinked experimentally. The man chuckled. "It's time for breakfast sleepy head." The boy let out high pitched whine before attempting to pull the covers over his head. A sigh escaped the older man's lips as he sat on the edge of the bed. The child turned over to face the opposite direction at the feel of the sudden weight beside him. The man turned his body slightly while placing his hand back on the boy's small shoulder. "You wanna hear the rest of the story, don't you?" He felt a smile tug at the corner of his lips when the boy abruptly sat upright. The now forgotten covers pooled around his chest. A slight indentation in the pillows was the only sign that the boy had previously been sleeping. The young child's hair was in disarray with strands jutting out in random directions. Although he ignored all of that; his eyes glittering in excitement.
"Will you tell me part of the story before breakfast?" The boy's eyes widened in anticipation of the response to his question. He had to blink when the air around him started to sting his eyes. "If you want, but only one part. Then I'll continue after." The young boy nodded enthusiastically. He pulled himself partly out of his blankets so he could properly sit up before leaning in forward. The man rubbed the child's head receiving a whine of protest. He chuckled before asking. "All right then, what part did I leave off on?" The young boy flailed his arms above his head to smack away the obtrusive hand. His blonde eyebrows knitted together while his lower lip protruded out slightly in a pout. "The part where he's left in the woods!"
The man nodded in recognition. He recoiled his hand from where it was once atop the boy's head, and placed it on his chin in thoughtful contemplation. "Ah yes, so I guess now I should tell you about his soul mate's side of the story." Previous anger gone, the boy grinned in excitement at his father's words. The man removed his hand from his chin, to rest upon his lap. He gave his son another soft smile. "Let's see. The Angels, they lived on an island far above the clouds…"
Sasuke was hovering over the edge of his small island hidden in the sky, and shielded by the clouds. He could see everything, and vaguely wondered how far up in human meters he was. The Angels, as what he was, learned all about humans, and was also educated in human culture. His soft, billowy wings fluttered in the chill breeze. Sasuke learned, that being up in the air at such a high altitude, and being closer to the vast void of space, made everything considerably colder. He also learned that the higher you went up, the colder it became. Sasuke was very proud of his knowledge, for he was one of the very best in all of his classes.
Sasuke didn't mind the cold though, as the Angels lived high up away from any sort of danger for centuries. He absentmindedly plucked a feather from his long, angelic wing, and held it out over the side of the island. Slowly opening his hand and relinquishing his hold on his small treasure, the feather was blown away by the breeze. It twirled in the air several times as it made its slow descent to the world below. Sasuke's eyes trailed after it in mild fascination.
Angels were subjected to long, tireless hours of studying human beings; so moments like these where Sasuke was allowed a brief moment of reprieve, he embraced it with open arms. Sasuke had to retain as much knowledge as he could so as to be better prepared for finding his soul mate. A long, gentle sigh escaped his barely parted, pink lips. Based on what his teachers explained to him about soul mates, and the importance of finding one soon, with the ominous threat of war and all, his supposed soul mate could be anywhere on that planet far below. The gentle breeze played with his dark hair as he had yet to move from his spot at the edge of his world. He would soon have to make his descent to the realm in which the humans resided. Being eighteen, Sasuke was considered old enough to aid in the war, by standards of his race. Although he felt a bit afraid of the time when he would have to make the trip down, he was also filled with anxiety and an eagerness to see things beyond the island he called home. He could remember when his mother told him about the time when she had found her soul mate. Her voice had been filled with such excitement when she talked to him animatedly about her experience. She had told him that she had instantly known that he was the one; just by a simple look.
Sasuke stared forlornly down upon the large expanse of land far below his feet. He longed to experience such a feeling. But Sasuke still couldn't shake the feeling of anxiety that welled up inside him whenever he thought about the humans. He raised his hands to rub the ethereal, ivory skin of his arms. An unexpected chill running up his spine. A faint feeling that a presence was behind him broke him from his trance. He ceased his rubbing, but left his arms crossed as he slowly turned to look over his shoulder.
A soft breeze flowed through the long hair of the angelic man standing behind him. His gentle eyes were watching Sasuke warily from where he stood a mere few feet away from him. His arms lay still by his side as his wings folded up close to the angel's back. Sasuke regarded him with a nod before turning his head back around to stare out into the beyond. He noticed the man had walked up to him silently. Standing by Sasuke's side, he waited several moments before asking Sasuke a question, never removing his eyes from the Earth below. "Are you nervous?" Sasuke began absentmindedly rubbing his arms again. He let out a breath of air before answering the question with a simple, "Hn." The man smiled at this. Sasuke pouted when he noticed the slight upturning of his companion's lips. "Don't be. I'll be going down with you." Sasuke didn't reply, as he settled for continuing his gaze downward. The sun began to release its vibrant hold on the day while deep blues and bright golds mingled with each other to create stunning purples. The sight would have been simply breath taking to any other human from where the two angels stood in the sky. Sasuke wondered what it would be like to stare up at the sunset from a human's position on the Earth. Although, it couldn't possibly be as beautiful. A comfortable silence befell the two silent companions before either of them spoke. "Mother is probably worried about us. Have you eaten at all?" Sasuke blinked slowly at the question that was directed at him. He couldn't recall eating anything this morning, nor in the afternoon. He visibly shrugged. "Not that I can recall, no." He heard himself say. The man beside him turned his ebony gaze in Sasuke's direction.
"You should eat something before our descent." Sasuke willed the anxiety away before casting a glance at the man beside him. Saying he should eat something before the trip down implied they would be heading down some time tonight. The thought didn't sit well with him; still unsure if he was entirely ready to leave the only place he called home. "We're leaving tonight then." It wasn't posed as a question, but more a statement. He caught the man's nod out of the corner of his eye. He didn't speak right away, but Sasuke could tell he had something on his mind.
"Will you not be ready?" Sasuke was a little unnerved at how easily the fellow angel could read his emotions even when unspoken. Although he expected no less from his only older brother, Itachi. Sasuke felt himself nod his head. "I'll be fine, aniki." He felt the eyes of his brother give him a long calculating look before they returned to look into the setting sky. Sasuke lowered his arms to his sides before closing his eyes slowly and inhaling the fresh scent of the evening air. He faintly heard his brother ask him something through his dazed like state. "Are you sure? We could always postpone it until tomorrow. It shouldn't be too much a bother." His eyes opened half way as he regarded the question, and slowly his obsidian gaze traveled its way to the still form of Itachi. His brother stood so still and quiet that it made Sasuke wonder if he had said anything at all. The only inclination he received that Itachi had indeed asked him something, was the obsidian eyes that glanced at him briefly. "Aniki…" Before Sasuke could finish, Itachi had raised his hand to silence him. "Think about yourself right now Sasuke, what would you like to do?"
Sasuke was slightly taken aback by this admission. His eyes had suddenly found his feet utterly fascinating. He turned the idea of waiting another day around in his head before coming to a decision. With determination lighting up his ebony eyes, Sasuke lifted his head in Itachi's direction. "I'm ready." Itachi smiled at this, and Sasuke furrowed his brows. He was trying to be serious here. His brother gave a curt nod. "All right then. We should head back and prepare." The queasiness in Sasuke's stomach didn't subside, but intensified. But now was not the time to become nauseous. Itachi turned to start walking away, while Sasuke followed in step behind him. The pair walked in a comfortable silence. Neither of them felt the need to talk as Itachi led them to a small structure that was placed behind a small fountain. Everything was white, the ground, the small fountain in the center of the whole area, even the small Greek like structure they were nearing. There was no grass, for everything seemed to be made of the same white material. No trees, or any of that sort. Just a slight sheet of snow blanketed parts of the ground and roofs of the old fashioned houses. The scenery was so elegant in appeal, that any mere mortal that might happen upon it would first believe they were in heaven. Which technically, it probably was.
Upon entering the house, the two men saw a woman busying herself in what appeared to be the kitchen. She was humming a tune to herself, unaware of the two angels that had stepped into the house. She finally caught notice of them when Itachi audibly cleared his throat. With a sharp jerk of her head, she stared at them; a smile pulling at the once shocked frown.
They stepped closer as she began stirring something in a pot she had placed over an open flame on what appeared to be an old fashioned, gas stove.
"I was waiting for you two to get back. It's almost time." Itachi nodded before pulling out a chair in the center of the kitchen and sitting down calmly. Sasuke on the other hand, sighed quietly to himself as he made his way over to a chair beside his brother. The woman spared him a glance over her shoulder before turning her attention back to the concoction in the pot.
"Nervous Sasuke?" Her question was met with quiet, incoherent mumbles. She smiled while reaching her hands up to open two cabinets over the stove. She then proceeded to pull out two small bowls. Placing them on the counter carefully, she poured her sons' two bowls of soup. The woman then lifted them with care, so as not to burn herself, and placed them on the table in front of the two.
"It's ok to be nervous at first, everyone is." The boy being addressed seemed to be pouting. His eyebrows furrowed together as he took the offered spoon his mother held out for them both. He placed his elbow on the table and rested his head in his hand. He stuck his spoon a bit forcibly in his bowl and stirred a bit to let the steam out. "I'm fine. You both should stop treating me like I'm a child." His mother raised an eyebrow at this while watching him experimentally lift a spoonful of steaming soup up in the air and grazing it with his tongue, only to recoil it seconds later from the burn. "Well then, maybe you should stop acting like one and eat that soup like the adult you imply you are."
Sasuke felt heat rise to his face as he noticed he was making faces at the scolding soup for burning his poor tongue. He placed the spoon back into the bowl and stirred it some more while blowing cold air in its direction.
The woman, Mikoto, her name was, sat in a chair beside her youngest son. Her eyes were thoughtfully narrowed, as if mulling something over in her mind. Itachi waited patiently for her to state whatever that she was currently thinking, while Sasuke was busy trying to cool down his hot soup, oblivious to his mother's obvious distress.
Her gaze lifted to rest on the angelic features of Sasuke's profile beside her, and only then did he realize the tension in the room. He visibly straightened while removing his elbow from its perch on the table and respectfully placed it in his lap.
"I want you both to be ready." She finally said after what appeared to be a small eternity. Sasuke shifted under her hard gaze.
"This isn't some vacation. You need to be prepared to face demons, not just humans."
Sasuke nodded when he noticed this pep talk was more geared towards him than his brother. Itachi was listening intently all the same, out of respect, or actual interest, Sasuke wasn't sure.
"I want you both to return to me in one piece."
Sasuke started to feel nauseous again. He knew how dangerous demons could be, and thus was reasonably afraid of them from all the stories he had heard from his mother. Sasuke noticed Itachi nodding his head.
"We will mother." She seemed to sigh at the almost automatic response. Sasuke was quick to voice in his agreement. "Yes, we're not the only ones in the first wave, right? We'll be fine!" Sasuke had only wished he knew for sure.
His mother seemed to accept this though, at least somewhat, because she was smiling again. "Itachi, watch out for your brother, hm?" Itachi merely nodded, but Sasuke bristled at the request.
Honestly, did they have to treat him like he couldn't handle himself? He was old enough now to be in this war! Albeit only by a few weeks.
Sasuke chose to ignore the twin looks of amusement directed at him and settled for glowering at his rapidly cooling soup. "Keep staring at it like that, and it might just crack."
Sasuke mumbled incoherently about evil mother hens and annoying older brothers. Mikoto let out a hearty laugh that resonated throughout the room. She placed her hand on his back and rubbed it lovingly.
Itachi just smirked when Sasuke gave him a withering look.
"When will we be leaving anyway?" Sasuke mumbled as he took a bite out of his mostly cool soup. The room was momentarily silent, and Sasuke wondered if he was going to get a response at all when his mother finally spoke.
"Should be in roughly three hours." Sasuke nodded in understanding. He had plenty of time to steel his nerves and get ready.
Sasuke excused himself from the table after eating his fill of his mother's soup. He stepped into living room and stood there. He faintly heard Itachi and his mother conversing silently upon his exit. Most likely discussing about the best way to make sure the time they spent in the human realm went by relatively without incident.
Growing increasingly bored of their conversation, Sasuke made his way down the narrow hallway into a room at the far end. His room was scarcely furnished, but it served its purpose.
He stepped further into it and sank down on his bed. His wings folded neatly behind him.
"Maybe I should change?" He thought idly aloud. Sasuke took a glance down at his attire. The white silk material wrapped around his lithe body snuggly, his unblemished, quite shapely legs were mostly exposed.
To a human, he looked quite feminine, but to him, he looked normal. Every angel looked like him, even the males. He was a prime example after all.
Sasuke shrugged, and decided against changing. After all, the majority of his clothes looked relatively similar.
He thought vaguely of what a human would really look like up close. The images in his text books portrayed them to be muscular, and tough. Sasuke had been positively entranced by them. A curiousness he couldn't shake welled up within him.
Sasuke absentmindedly stared up and out of the single window in his room at the now mostly dark sky.
The child sitting before him looked to be in a trance as he stared up into his father's face waiting for more of the tale to be told. When he received nothing more than an amused arching of eyebrows and a smile, he voiced his opinions of the story so far. "He sounds pretty."
The man nodded to this. "He's beautiful. One of the most beautiful angels to ever live." The fascinated stare he received made him chuckle. The man stood up from his sitting position on the bed. He placed lean arms on his hips and stared down at the young child still sitting fixated in the same spot. The boy had watched his father stand and was about to protest, when a realization dawned on him. He pouted whilst pushing the multiple blankets aside. The man let out another chuckle at the boy's reluctance to get out of his bed in favor of hearing more of the story.
"Don't worry, I'll tell you more right after breakfast." The boy continued to pout, but nodded in understanding. He was starting to feel slightly hungry anyway. The two of them walked out of the room and headed for the kitchen for some much needed breakfast.