Duty

Name, location. Name, location. Name, location.

It became an exciting cycle every day of my life. No longer did the days drag on. No, now I was almost confused as to what day it was. The only indication I had of the day was Valentine's Day in Rome. It was a beautiful celebration, but I could not stop to enjoy it for long. I was called off to another person.

I visited places I never knew existed. I saw the world; saw people that were nothing like me – in lifestyle, in shape, in color, in size. It was amazing! And what was my job? To shoot them. With an arrow. I do not know how I knew to do that, but it worked. And the effects were aweing! The target would stop whatever they were doing and watch as someone went by. Every time, it was like I could feel their heart flutter. I saw the warmth on their cheeks and the stunned expression they wore. Sometimes I shot one person, sometimes I shot both. Either way, I never ran out of arrows.

The strange part of it was the fumes that I saw emanate from their body. It was pink and carried a lovely, sweet smell. It only came from the person I shot. I did not know what it was, but I planned to ask MiM about it when I found the chance.

I came to Rome every so often, but never close to Aelia and Domitus. Despite how busy I was, flying from one side of the earth to the other, I missed them. After a while, I really wanted a break. Just some time to relax and reflect what had happened and how one announcement changed my life forever.

It was that holiday: Saint Valentine's Day. The second I heard that, everything changed. I had found my purpose! It was more amazing than I could have imagined. Making people fall in love…How beautiful! How poetic! Nothing in my life had prepared me for such a responsibility.

One day, as I came to a stop in a grassy plain, I spotted my target. She had pure black hair and skin the color of copper. At the moment she was harvesting a yellow plant that sprouted tall from the ground. I wanted to know more about her; her people were so fascinating. I had never seen someone that looked like her in Italy. They seemed to be more popular on this side of the world, across the vast ocean.

I took position and slipped an arrow from the quiver. Strange, long boats paddled through the great lake. Men looking proud and very important rode in them. A light horn was sounded and everyone in the village turned their attention to the lake. A friend grabbed the girl's wrist and the two young girls ran to greet these warrior-like men.

I followed her quickly, waiting for the right moment. A handsome, muscular man stepped out of the boat and their eyes met. Just then, his name popped into my head, too. I thought to myself about how odd the names were on this side of the ocean and loaded an arrow. Quickly, I shot each of them. Their bodies absorbed the arrows and I watched the magic happen. She smiled shyly and he smiled right back. The pink fumes rose from their shoulders, though only I could see it. I went over to them and swirled my hand through the thin gas. It sparkled at my touch and I giggled in delight.

Then it was on to my next target. I started off in a run so I could fly off, but something caught my eye for the first time in a long time. I was so taken aback I froze in my tracks, eyes wide. The leaves on the trees, they were orange and yellow and red. Ignoring the names that flooded my head, I looked around at my surroundings. What happened to the snow? When did it stop snowing? How long was I gone? It was not even that long ago that it was Saint Valentine's Day.

Trembling, I jumped out of the way of a woman that would have gone right through me, but instead a child running the opposite way phased through my legs. I inhaled sharply, backing away rapidly. Couching briefly, I launched myself into the sky and took off flying. Zipping through the clouds. Blocking out the names listed in my head. All the way to Rome, Italy. Home.

…I landed hard on the ground of the backyard, close to a pumpkin patch. It was nighttime in this part of the world. Fallen leaves crunched under my sandaled feet as I ran to the door. It was locked and I could not get in. Backing up a few spaces, I noticed the window on the second floor was open. Shaking my head to hopefully quiet the names and locations, I flew to the open window and into the room. What I saw crushed me.

It was Domitus and Aelia's room. Aelia sat on her bed, eyeing the window that had "mysteriously" opened further. And in the corner of the room was a cradle. Inside laid a sleeping, beautiful boy about two or three. I went over to the cradle and knelt beside him, swallowing hard and trying to slow my breathing.

Aelia had had her child. And I missed it. I was not there to see him. How could I lose track of time so easily? Just then, the door burst open, startling both me and Aelia. A young girl came in squealing, running from Domitus, both of whom looked so different than before. Domitus had a full-grown beard, white hair prominent amongst the dark. Aeliana jumped into her mother's arms, trying to stifle her laughter. She had grown so much.

Aelia hushed her daughter and lightly pushed her husband away. It was only now that I was staring at her so close to the candlelight that I noticed the bags under her eyes.

"Mommy, Daddy is trying to get me!" Aeliana giggled.

"I was so close, too," Domitus said dejectedly, then grinned and plopped beside his wife. "How long has Paulus been asleep?" he asked, looking through me at Paulus.

"Not very long," Aelia replied, "and if you wake him, I will kill all of you." The couple kissed and Domitus ruffled Aeliana's hair. Where Cupid and Agrippa were, I did not know. All I knew was that I could not handle the clenching in my chest. Taking one last look at Paulus, I jumped out the window and soared up to the roof. MiM sat in the sky. I could feel his smile and he welcomed me back.

"It is…nice to be back," I said weakly, rubbing my arm. "I cannot believe it, MiM. How long have I been away from them?" He informed me that it had been two years since the day I left Domitus and Agrippa at the cathedral. I winced. "That is far too long," I whispered. "There must be an easier way, MiM. I do not want to leave Aelia again."

To my dismay, the Man in the Moon said that I must.

"No," I snapped, starting to pace on the roof.

He said that it was my sworn duty to bring love to the world.

"People fell in love before I was reborn. There will still be love if I do not perform my duties," I tried to reason.

But he said that it does not work out that way all the time. I would have to make people fall in love because it was what I was born to do. People need to fall in love at the right time and only I can do that. I change lives!

I opened my mouth to argue, but he cut me off. He called me selfish. He said that he chose me for a reason – to be the keeper of Saint Valentine's Day, to wield the arrows that have the power to change people's lives forever. To be Cupid, who brought love to the world. He asked me if he was wrong that he chose me.

I frowned, looking down. I had come to a stop from my pacing, taking in MiM's words carefully. The Man in the Moon did not make mistakes. He knew me too well. How could I abandon the world for my own needs? I did not want to admit that, but I had to. All I asked was to be with Aelia and Domitus, to be with them until their lives were over. Was that so much to ask?

I sighed deeply, running my dainty fingers through my pink hair. "I apologize, MiM," I said, looking up at the round object in the black sky. "I will do what I was destined to do."

There was laughter in his voice as he thanked me, saying how he knew he could count on me. But before I went, he asked me to tell him about my adventures. When he asked that, the voices halted momentarily, granting me time to talk to my friend. Immediately excitement bubbled up inside me and I broke out into a smile.

"I cannot believe it, MiM!" I exclaimed. "The earth is round!" I laughed and enjoyed the time to reflect with the Man in the Moon. Finally, a break.