Lady Taevyn: Of course I'm evil. (chuckles) I have assassin squirrels watching you as you read this…be afraid…
Lethia: Make Erik admit he's jealous? True, I'm the all-powerful authoress, but do you think Erik would ever admit jealousy?
MJ MOD: Lenore played that game with Hiroshi cuz she didn't much choice really. And she shouldn't give him any answers about Second Life, I agree. But Lenore isn't exactly viewing it from our perspective, seeing as how she's in the story and we're outside. Lucinda wanted to shave the cat cuz I've decided that's going to be a thing with small children and cats in this story. (Not that I foresee any more episodes with small children and cats, but you never know…)
Artzee: I quite agree that it was disturbing of Jack to try taking advantage of a girl he watched grow up. (follows Artzee's example and whacks Jack with a rolled up newspaper)
Iluvmyphantom: I'm glad Hiroshi cracks you up. And as to it being fun to see Erik admit jealousy…that confession remains to be seen. Erik's not one to admit something like that easily.
Shariena: I'm glad there's someone else out there who would've thrown the ring at Erik and stormed off angrily when he couldn't say he was jealous. And though I'm sure we'd all like to see Erik and Lenore doing something "intimate" wink wink, that's not happening in this chapter. Maybe next chapter, we'll see.
I'm sure you all know the spiel by now, I don't own Phantom, fic takes place about twenty years into the present, blah blah blah, REVIEW…
Satan flipped through the channels, bored to death. True, he'd gotten some good answers to his questions, and he'd rewarded Hiroshi with sinful activities in the bedroom, but there was nothing to do while he waited for another chance to have Hiroshi sneak back down and ask Lenore more questions. He was considering going out to tempt a few mortals when the door swung open and Lenore stormed into the room angrily.
I'll have to thank Serendipity for this. "Lenore, how nice to"- he started to say. She ignored him entirely, stomping into the second bedroom that he'd taken for himself, slamming the door behind her. She then released a shrill angry scream. This was followed by a severe string of profanities and the sound of several of his gothic decorations being thrown about and broken.
"What's all that racket?" Hiroshi griped, coming out of his bedroom.
"Cousin Lenore seems to be a bit upset over something, Uncle," Satan chuckled.
Hiroshi sighed and went over to the second bedroom, opening the door. "Kitten, what's"-
"GET OUT! I HATE MEN!" Lenore yelled, throwing Satan's favorite vase at Hiroshi, who didn't duck in time and took it straight to the face.
"That was only worth about a billion dollars," Satan said morosely as Hiroshi shut the door before anything else could be launched at him.
A knock sounded on the door, and Hiroshi went over to answer it, dusting off bits of porcelain. He looked through the peephole first, and began to laugh hysterically when he saw who it was.
"Erik's come to fetch his kitten," Hiroshi explained between fits of laughter.
"Oh, what a shame no one's here," Satan smiled as Hiroshi made sure the lock was secure. Moments later, the door was assaulted by Erik's fist as he shouted for Hiroshi to "open the fucking door or suffer the worst beating of his life".
Lenore came storming out of the room with another vase in hand, this one full of black roses. Shoving Hiroshi aside, she unlocked the door, wrenched it open and threw the vase at Erik. "I THOUGHT YOU WERE LEAVING ME HERE! CAN'T ADMIT YOU'RE BLOODY JEALOUS!" she shouted, slamming the door in his face.
"And that vase was only about a few hundred million," Satan remarked. She seemed to be destroying everything that was expensive or one of his favorites.
As an afterthought, Lenore yanked the door back open and threw Hiroshi out into the hall with Erik, slamming the door and locking it. "AND STAY OUT!"
Satan chuckled gleefully at this spectacular opportunity. It seemed Serendipity was working overtime today. "So it's just the two of us now," he said, finally catching Lenore's attention.
"Oh, fuck off!" she snarled. "Get out, now! Or I'll find another vase," she threatened.
"But I can't. If I leave, one of those two will push their way in," Satan pointed out.
"Then jump out the window. Use floo powder and exit by the fireplace. Open a Gateway and Travel somewhere else. I don't care how you do it, so long as you leave," Lenore snapped.
Satan considered staying put, despite her anger (which he might be able to use in his favor), but he wasn't sure he wanted to deal with Michael today. It was a hard decision to make. "I think you need a shot of vodka," Satan commented. "Would you like to go to Russia?"
"No!" she snapped. Then a devious gleam appeared in her eyes. "Send those two idiots in the hall to Russia. The northern parts where it's insanely cold."
"What do I get out of it?" Satan inquired, examining his fingernails.
"You get spared a vase in your face," she responded.
"I'm afraid that's very little incentive."
Lenore headed for the kitchenette, then returned moments later, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and producing a large sharp knife. "Does this help?" she snarled, pressing the knife against his side and breaking the skin to make a drop of black blood ooze out.
"Immensely," Satan remarked. No one had dared to make him bleed since Michael cast him out of Heaven. He snapped his fingers, using his demonic powers with a smirk. This pet was an interesting one. "They're gone now."
Shuffling to the door and dragging him along without relieving the pressure of the blade on his skin, she peered through the peephole and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that the hall was empty. Then she unlocked the door, flung it open, and shoved him out into the hallway.
"Ungrateful little wench," Satan snarled, snapping his fingers with the intent of popping back into the room. It failed, so he tried again, but found himself left in the hallway outside the door. "Damn you, Michael."
Lenore smiled proudly; she'd gotten rid of two immortals and the devil in less than ten minutes. The TV channel suddenly flickered, and then Michael appeared on the screen.
"Spectacular job, pumpkin," he complimented her, climbing out of the TV. "God's very proud of you."
Lenore blushed; it was nice to think that God approved and was pleased with what she'd done. "Thank you," she whispered, sitting down on the couch.
"There's no need to thank me; you're the one who got rid of them." Michael sat beside her, looking horribly out of place in his red tunic with a sword on his hip. "Would you care for a drink to celebrate?"
"Isn't alcohol bad?" Lenore said tentatively. "I thought God didn't want people to drink it."
"Nonsense, there's nothing wrong with drinking alcohol. It's drinking just for the purpose of getting drunk that God's against. But a glass of wine every evening or a brandy now and then is fine. Jesus wouldn't have turned water into wine if God didn't accept alcohol," Michael informed her. Michael's hands suddenly held two goblets and he offered her one.
Feeling it would be impolite and an insult to God to refuse, she took the cup from him. "What is it?"
"Gin and tonic," Michael said, taking a sip.
"Oh…great," Lenore replied unenthusiastically, taking a sip. She nearly spat the stuff back out. It was dreadful. How can he drink this? Don't angels have taste buds?
"Now, we're thinking of relocating you, to make it harder for Lucifer to find you," Michael told her. "Is there any place in particular you'd like to go?"
"Um, I don't know," she stammered. Erik was going to get back to France, and she wanted him to be able to find her so he could apologize and admit he was jealous. But he would be furious with her for having him sent to Russia like that.
"Where are we?" Hiroshi pondered aloud while shivering and trying to keep himself warm.
"Somewhere near Archangel, Russia, if I'm not mistaken," Erik snarled. "Your beloved master must have wanted to have Lenore all to himself."
"But why do we have to be in those frozen wasteland?" Hiroshi complained.
"Ask Satan," Erik snapped. The temperature was actually above freezing, so there was no reason for Hiroshi to complain as bitterly as he had.
"Well as soon as we get to Archangel, I'll get us on a plane back to Paris," Hiroshi claimed. "Now which direction do we go?"
"South," Erik said as he began walking.
"Why south? What if Archangel is east or west?"
"South, because if we miss Archangel, at least the temperature will get warmer as we go."
"He's gonna be so mad at me," Lenore repeated for the twentieth time.
"Don't fret over it," the archangel lounging in a chair said. His brown hair was spiked, and his brown eyes studied the plants decorating the room. "He can't find you so long as I'm with you."
"And that's the worst of it. He'll hunt the globe for me," Lenore told Uriel for the twentieth time.
"Well, we've got loads of time, that'll take years," Uriel said brightly.
"So I'm supposed to spend these years doing what? Pretending to be your wife and devoting myself to God?"
"Well, we are here under the guise of newlyweds," Uriel reminded her. 'Here' was Kauai, in a Nihi Kai Villa. "And you don't have to devote yourself to God. But it would be a particularly nice gesture, since He's going to such pains to keep you safe from Satan."
"Uriel…the Angel of Repentance, right?" Lenore said. She was drawing that from Wolfe's theology knowledge.
"Yes, and the Angel of Music, Angel of Poetry, and Angel of Prophecy," he informed her. "I'll sing for you, or write you poetry to the pass the time, if you wish."
"No singing, I've got my own Angel of Music," she replied.
The rest of the afternoon was spent in her listening to Uriel spout poetry as it came into his mind. He certainly had a nice voice, and it surely wasn't objectionable. After a light dinner, they went walking through the tropical gardens down to the beach. Uriel pointed out every plant he saw, telling her what it was and it's purpose. He also did this with any animal they saw.
"You really like nature, don't you?" Lenore commented as they strolled arm in arm.
"One of my duties is to assist in the communication with nature," Uriel explained. "Throughout nature, there's only one animal that intrigues me."
"And what animal is that?"
"Man. I can't seem to figure out man's purpose," Uriel almost pouted. "I know it's not for me to know, that's God's department, but still…" They stopped on the beach, sitting down to watch the sunset. Uriel sat behind her with his arms around her to keep her from getting cold. "It's the little things like this that make you realize what a masterpiece God created," Uriel sighed. "That's a thing of beauty that will last till the end of time."
"It is nice," Lenore agreed, snuggling into his embrace as she was feeling a bit chilly with the breeze coming off the sea.
"You wish you were sharing this with him, don't you?" Uriel whispered.
"Yes," she admitted.
"It's not fair for you. He pulled you into this whole divine mess," Uriel muttered. "If he'd just left you alone…"
"I'd be sitting in Heaven right now," she finished the sentence for him. "Cuz I wouldn't have been given Second Life."
"Yes, that's true," Uriel granted. "And then I wouldn't be able to tell you about plants and animals, or recite poetry for you, or share this beautiful sunset with you."
"Yeah," Lenore murmured, feeling sleepy.
Uriel carried her back to the Villa they shared and gently laid her in the bed. Passing a hand over her body, her clothes changed from a large baggy shirt and long flowing skirt to a white nightgown. He pulled the blankets up to her shoulders and placed a kiss on her forehead before going out to the living room to see if he couldn't get some prophecies delivered and songs and poems written.
That mortal has a beautiful soul, Uriel thought hours later, taking a break from his duties. If it's properly directed to the Light, she'll be one of God's most powerful instruments in history. I can't let Satan or his little Circle find her. They'll cover her in darkness and use her potential to devastate the world. I wonder…has Second Life made her soul so powerful? Taking the strength she possessed before death and adding new life to it could make an extreme difference. Perhaps we should investigate this business of Second Life…
Erik crumpled the parchment in his fist. Two days spent in returning to Paris to find Lenore missing. Releasing his death grip on the paper, he slowly smoothed it out and read it again, trying to see if there was any hint or clue he might have missed.
Erik,
I'm going away for awhile. Kinda like a vacation. Michael said I can't tell you where I'm going, sorry. I'll try to write and have Michael deliver the letters. I don't know when I'll be back.
Love, Lenore.
"Where is she?" Erik hissed.
"I don't know," Satan snapped.
"You're the devil, for Christ's sake, you're supposed to be able to find anyone you want!" Erik snarled.
"She must have an archangel watching over her personally. If he gets more than a hundred feet away from her, I'll sense her, but it seems they're being extremely careful," Satan replied. "And I don't do anything for Christ's sake. Never did like the boy."
Erik grabbed Satan by the throat and began choking the bastard. He didn't want to hear that she couldn't be found. That was bullshit in Erik's opinion.
"Erik, you're not helping the situation," Hiroshi said softly. "We have to stop to think. Where would Lenore go?"
Erik kept his grip on the Prince of Darkness' throat while thinking about any place Lenore may have indicated a desire to visit. If only he'd thought of discussing the honeymoon with her. But he'd already planned to take her down the Rhine, so he'd never mentioned it.
"She doesn't like the cold," Erik finally said. The only thought that kept coming back to him was that she wouldn't want to go any place like Antarctica or Russia.
"Then we should start searching around the Equator," Hiroshi reasoned. "Oh, for the love of Hell, put Master down."
"Why? It's not like I'm killing him," Erik replied. "So where do we begin searching around the equator? Africa?"
"No, she hates the outdoors. She refuses to sleep where bugs can eat her alive, or there might be a plethora of dangerous snakes and spiders," Hiroshi dismissed Africa. "I know she was thinking about writing in book in Italy, so I suppose I'll start there. You should try vacation areas around America. Jamaica, Florida, California, Hawaii…that sort of place."
"You take the east coast, I'll take the west," Erik ordered Satan, making sure to get a nod before he released the devil.
Lenore sighed. They'd been in Kauai for a month now. Every day went the same. Watching TV or listening to poetry, then a walk on the beach at sunset. She'd written Erik, and asked Michael to deliver the letters, but she never got any replies.
"Hey, Uriel, why don't we go to the luau tonight?" Lenore suggested, looking out the window at the beautiful gardens.
"Sure, that sounds like fun," Uriel agreed.
Every Saturday night, the Nihi Kai resort held a luau for the tourists, but they'd never attended before. But Lenore wanted to break up the monotonous life she was caught in at the moment.
A few hours later, she was dressed in a blue Hawaiian print dress and walking to the luau with Uriel on her arm. (He never let her get more than fifty feet away from him.) She managed to talk Uriel into dancing with her, despite his claims that he was absolutely horrendous, he wasn't the Angel of Rhythm or Dance, and so if he stepped on her toes she'd have to bear with it.
Mostly they played love ballads from the mainland, when they weren't playing Hawaiian music. It made for a lot of close dancing with Uriel, but Lenore didn't mind all that much. He was rather attractive and they'd been living together for a month, so she wasn't shy about being close to him.
When Faith Hill's "Breathe" came on, Uriel stepped closer as they slid into the rhythm of the song. Lenore began to sing along softly, but other couples around them heard and slowly conversation began to die down so that her voice carried throughout the room.
Caught up in the touch,
A slow and steady rush.
Baby, isn't that the way that love's supposed to be?
I can feel you breathe. Just breathe.
I can feel the magic floating in the air.
Being with you gets me that way.
Just as the song ended, Lenore stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips to Uriel's. She'd been wondering for quite some time what it would be like to kiss an archangel.
Erik heard her voice, that voice he had trained to perfection, floating over the heads of the tourists. Perhaps she'd taken a position as a singer here in this resort. He made his way forward, trying to locate her. Just as the song ended, he saw her.
Lenore was standing on her tiptoes, kissing the man she had been dancing with. He had spiky brown hair and chocolate brown eyes; a very attractive looking man. Then Erik caught sight of the two golden bands on Lenore's left ring finger.
She couldn't have married the archangel…but whoever said that man was an archangel? What if the archangel's watching over her from somewhere close by and she's fallen in love with that man and married him? But in the course of a month? Unless…they could have erased her memory, or made her think she loved this man enough to marry him before I could find her.
Erik was about to turn and leave to go brood over things somewhere when the kiss was ended and the man caught sight of him. Eyes widening slightly before narrowing, the man started leading Lenore towards one of the exits. So it is the archangel. How interesting.
Following them as quickly as he could, Erik had almost caught up with them when they got outside. The archangel managed to keep enough distance between them that Erik couldn't grab Lenore's arm. They were in a deserted grove when Erik had had enough of the chase.
"Lenore!" he called sharply, making sure to get her attention.
The archangel threw her forward a few feet and whirled to face Erik, standing between them.
"Uriel, what are you doing?" she inquired.
"I've been told by Michael to keep you safe from the Condemned Circle, and he happens to be a member of that group," Uriel replied.
"Was it in the job description to fall in love with her?" Erik snapped.
"My relations with the woman are none of your business, Keeran," Uriel hissed. (Of course he'd know Erik by the name given to Erik by the Circle.) It seemed Uriel was truly angered by Erik's words, for his wings sprouted from his back, stretching out to their full span. "You are on dangerous ground, immortal."
"It is you who is in the precarious position, Uriel," Erik snarled. "The woman is mine, and I do not suffer fools who dare to touch what is mine."
"Mortals belong to no one but themselves," Uriel argued. "This girl deserves a chance to live her life in the light, not shut away in darkness with a creature such as you."
"I thought the decision was hers to make," Erik responded. "Or has God revoked humans' free will?"
"God will not see Lenore used to devastate the world for your master," Uriel spat.
"I have no master other than myself," Erik coldly informed the archangel.
"Guys, this might not be the best place to go all good-archangel-battling-evil-immortal," Lenore tried to point out. "I mean, far be it from me to stop this little argument, but maybe we should have it in private."
"Who cares where this little tête-à-tête takes place?" Satan's dark voice said as he appeared about twenty feet behind Lenore.
"I believe I told you to leave the girl alone, Lucifer," Michael snapped, appearing between Lenore and Satan.
"I'm gonna die," Lenore mumbled.
"Nonsense. If you were going to die, Sariel would be here," Uriel informed Lenore.
"Yes, Sariel always shows up when I murder nice little Christians," Hiroshi said, appearing to the left of Lenore.
"You shouldn't be destroying mortals, haven't you latched on to that idea yet?" another archangel inquired as he suddenly poofed into the human realm in between Lenore and Hiroshi.
"Oh Remiel, you just don't understand," Hiroshi sighed. "Please don't stand in my way of reaching my adopted daughter, I rather wouldn't like having to hurt you."
"You're certainly confident for being outnumbered," a woman's voice chuckled as she came into being on Lenore's other side, leaving Lenore trapped in a circle of Archangels. "Oh, rats, not again! I hate it when He makes me a woman."
"I don't mean to interrupt or anything, but you four are smothering me with those feathery wings of yours," Lenore complained. All four archangels had their wings out, and, being closed in a tight circle around Lenore, their wings were in constant contact with various parts of her. "Especially you, Gabriel." Gabriel had one hundred and forty pairs of wings, and Erik failed to logically understand how Gabriel managed to have an inch of skin not sprouting a wing.
"Lenore," Erik said, "I trust you know where your heart truly lies."
"It lies in my body, and is beating rather fast because I'm feeling somewhat intimidated by the awesome holiness of four archangels who are suffocating me with their wings," Lenore replied. "Oh, you probably didn't mean it that way, did you?"
Lenore had no idea what to do. Here she was, in the company of four archangels, two condemned immortals, and Beelzebub. How could she choose one side over the other? To go with Erik would be like turning her back on God. But to go with the archangels would be turning her back on Erik.
"Lenore, you don't want to side with archangels," Hiroshi scoffed. "They don't care about how the decision will affect you. All they care about is how your decision affects God."
"You don't want to side with the demons," Remiel countered. "All they care about is how they can use you for their dark purposes."
"Gee, this is really helping," Lenore muttered under her breath.
"Mon amour, you shouldn't listen to either of them. I know you, as no one else ever can. I have never lied to you, or given you reason to doubt me. I would never let you fall into darkness, nor will I keep you from light," Erik's mellifluous voice purred, sounding in her ears. She knew that he was using his extraordinary Ventriloquism skills to ascertain that no one else heard him. "Chérie, you may be deceived if you trust too much, but you will live in torment if you don't trust enough." He extended his hand to her, unfurling those long, elegant fingers so sensually that Lenore was flooded with hot desire instantly.
"Shameless tempter," Gabriel accused Erik. "Don't listen to him, girl, he's toying with your affections."
"Do not speak of what you do not know," Erik hissed at the archangel.
"I know that God will not see her bound in darkness with your kind," Gabriel snarled.
"The decision is Lenore's to make, not God's," Erik shot back.
"Don't tell me God's finally decided to strip humans of Free Will and govern their actions," Hiroshi added.
"Of course not," Gabriel huffed. "But He does guide the mortals that need it."
"If that's what you like to call it," Satan chuckled. "Yes, He 'guides' them in the direction he wants them to go, no matter what they may want for themselves."
"I'm sensing a lot of hostility here," Lenore commented. "Maybe we should talk about this over tea and scones." Not that anyone would listen to her; they all seemed to be ignoring her.
"Forgive me for being late. I was preoccupied with other matters," a male voice claimed. The man attached to it, who had just appeared opposite Gabriel, had flowing silver locks and deep violet eyes.
"Raghnall. I should've known," Gabriel murmured.
"Next time, drop whatever you happen to be studying and respond to my summons. I'm not a patient master, surely you remember that, Raghnall," Satan said sharply.
"Rather hard to forget. I seem to remember a particularly vicious beating the last time I asked you to wait a moment while I finished torturing that lawyer before getting you a cup of coffee," Raghnall responded.
"I love how I'm ignored," Lenore remarked.
"Oh, how rude of me," Raghnall observed. "Good evening, fair lady Lenore. My name is Raghnall, if it pleases you. You may think of me as the opposite of Gabriel; Satan's left hand man, and the Demon of Despair."
"That's…nice, I guess. I didn't know demons had particular functions like that," she responded, making a mental note of that for a book on theology that Wolfe had planned to write.
"I regret that we did not meet under more joyful and carefree circumstances," Raghnall proclaimed. "You are quite a fascinating subject, you know. I would very much like to study you some day, if you have the time."
"No, I won't have time. Ever. I really don't appreciate being thought of as a subject for study."
"I am afraid that cannot be helped. You are like a beautiful butterfly that I would very much like to have the opportunity to observe."
"Must you waste our time with your pointless drivel?" Gabriel sighed.
"I see no reason for you to complain; you have all the time in the world. Lenore is the only one who does not have unlimited time, and yet I hear no complaints from her," Raghnall replied.
"Mostly because no one bothers to listen," Lenore muttered.
"So, is it to be battle between us, or are we just going to stand around talking?" Raghnall inquired.
The archangels drew fiery swords of God's wrath as one. "Don't I get any say in this?" Lenore snapped. The only response was the appearance of swords in the hands of the archangels' opposition. These swords seemed to radiate darkness, and Lenore didn't like the look of those swords at all. Erik, don't use that sword, it scares me…
"Won't you all just stop this? I hardly think I'm worth all this trouble," Lenore tried reasoning with them.
In a fluid, rapid movement, the archangels leapt forward, mercilessly attacking their opponents. Lenore screamed with fright and dropped to the ground, covering her head. There was no telling what would in a battle, and she didn't even want to contemplate what would happen to her if one of the swords touched her.
Strong arms encircled her waist and began pulling her up. "Let me go!" she screeched, frantically squirming in her captor's grip. It didn't matter who it was right now, just so long as she managed to get back to the ground. Ten to one her captor wouldn't mind using her for a shield, and there was no way she was letting herself get close to those swords if she could help it.
"Please stop squirming, I don't wish to drop you," a gentle man's voice pleaded with her. "The fall would kill you, child."
Lenore only just now registered the fact that they were a good hundred or more feet in the air, which caused her to produce a rather shrill scream as she scrambled to hang onto the man holding her.
"Who are you?" Lenore asked when she was sure she had a firm grip on the rather feminine looking angel who held her above the fray. His black hair was left loose, hanging to his shoulders. Red eyes watched the battle unfold, wincing when an archangel took a hit.
"I am Raphael," the man replied. "I hope you don't mind that I'm keeping you out of that mess."
"Um, no, that's cool. Just kinda freaked me out, being grabbed all the sudden," Lenore explained, watching from above. Satan had sprouted black wings, trying to chase after her, but Michael had followed and they waged an aerial battle above the rest of the fray.
Hiroshi and Remiel seemed to be bantering almost good-naturedly as they traded blows, and Lenore found that too weird to watch. She focused on Gabriel and Raghnall, and noticed that Raghnall was pushing his luck with naughty touches whenever he could sneak them in. Shaking her head, she turned her attentions to where they should have been in the first place; Erik.
Lenore couldn't help but get the feeling that Erik was somewhat outclassed by Uriel. Erik was spectacular, there was no doubt about his skill, but Uriel seemed to be half a step ahead of Erik, and there were many cases where Erik only managed to dodge at the last second.
"Can't you stop this?" Lenore asked Raphael.
"I'm afraid not. Lucifer and his gang of miscreants have been dying to have another crack at Michael and the others. And the other archangels have been longing for a battle reminiscent of the old days."
"Couldn't they do this in some place a bit more deserted? What if someone sees?" Lenore pointed out.
"Who's going to believe someone claiming to have seen a battle between Heaven and Hell?" Raphael retorted. "Would you like to get away from this for a bit?"
"Exactly what are you proposing?" Lenore inquired worriedly.
"I was hoping that I could spend a moment to visit the Bristol Cathedral. I haven't been there in ages, it would be nice to have a look at it. But I can't leave you here, unprotected. So unless you agree to go with me, I can't go," Raphael explained.
"Oh, um, I guess we can do that…" Lenore agreed.
"Splendid," Raphael said excitedly as his wings enveloped her. A bright light wrapped around them and she had to close her eyes.
When she opened her eyes, she was surprised to see the light of dawn filtering into the cathedral through windows. Lenore's next observation was her dress. It was of a very ancient style, and she didn't even want to begin to try discerning how many layers of undergarments she was wearing. "What's this?" she asked the archangel, who wore a monk's habit.
"You wouldn't have fit in, in that modern dress," Raphael said casually.
"What are you talking about? What have you done?"
"We're in Bristol Cathedral, in the year 1157," Raphael told her.
"1157? What am I then, a nun?" she hissed, prepared to strangle the archangel if he'd made her nun.
"Of course not. You'd have to take vows for that. You're a noble woman who has come to the cathedral to pray that God show you your path. You happen to be torn between deciding to marry a beastly man or devote your life to God and become a nun."
"I don't want to be a nun!"
"Look, that's just the story you're hiding behind; many noble women used the Church to keep themselves safe from marriages until they felt ready to accept their husbands. And the story isn't far off the truth, now is it? " Raphael sighed.
"Alright, you've seen the cathedral, now let's go back," Lenore politely demanded.
"Nonsense, I've only seen this section of it. I'll be busy with a monk's duties today, so you'll have to occupy yourself, I'm afraid."
"What do I do all day while you be a monk?"
"Well…you could always pray," Raphael said.
"You didn't mention being here all day when you asked!" Lenore hissed.
"You never asked how long I intended to stay before agreeing," Raphael pointed out. "Look, spending a day in prayer won't kill you. And who knows? Maybe God will speak to you and guide you down the path you are meant to travel. You certainly have nothing to lose."
"Archangels and the demons of Hell are all mad," Lenore muttered. "I'm definitely mentioning that in my book."
"Spend the day contemplating theology then, if you like," Raphael shrugged. "I must be going. I will meet you here when the evening bells are rung."
"Like I have any idea when that is," Lenore mumbled as he walked off and left her alone in the cathedral. A young apprentice monk came running through on his way to some chore, but she stopped him and asked him to take her to the best location in the cathedral for praying for God's divine wisdom.
They reached the area the young man claimed was best, and he scurried off as she knelt and did the whole Catholic cross thing before praying. "Dear God…you suck," she began. "I don't want to be here in 1157, spending all day on my knees asking you what you want me to do. I want to do what I want to do. But apparently my plan isn't good enough for you. No, you don't want me to marry the man – immortal, demon, whatever – that I love. You'd prefer me to devote my life to you and take the vow of chastity. No offense, but I rather like sex. And the vow of silence thing…not happening. Anyway, here am I, doing what I don't want to do but what you want me to do, asking you what path you think I should travel down. We'll see if it meets my approval."
Hours passed without a word. "God, I'm getting a bit bored here," Lenore complained. "I mean, if you don't tell me what you want, I can't possibly make a choice you'll like."
"He wants you to stop being so commanding and disrespectful," a voice snapped behind her.
Preparing to explain herself to some monk or nobleman, Lenore was entirely unprepared to find an angel with thirty six pairs of wings behind her. She jumped a mile and quickly retreated a few paces further into the room away from the angel. "Who the"- her voice cut out on her profane word, and she stared in shock.
"You shouldn't say that in a church, little girl," the angel scolded as his wings folded into his back and disappeared from view. "Until you're prepared to speak like a civilized being, you'll have to suffer not having a voice."
Lenore wasn't in the mood to be played with and stomped forward, pulling back a fist to punch him in the face. She was shocked when she found herself less than four feet tall with the body of a five year old. Needless to say, her punch was pathetically weak and she sat down on the floor in a huff.
The angel shook his head and pulled her back to her feet, taking her hand and leading her out into the cathedral gardens. "I am Metatron, child. I speak for God, as God can't actually speak to you himself. It violates the whole Free Will idea. Hearing God's voice would frighten you into a lifetime of belief and devotion." He stopped beneath a tree, sitting down on the grass and pulling her into his lap. "Now, as for your rather insolent inquiries about God's plan for you…
"Most mortals who obtain Second Life are given the same path from their First Life, but this is where it becomes a problem for you. Your first path was calculated with the factor of your death occurring in that accident you had at eighteen. You weren't supposed to survive it, but Satan stepped in. We're not entirely sure as to why he did that, to be honest with you.
"So your path was terminated when the accident occurred, with the assumption that you would die. Thus, you lived the last few years of your First Life without any plan whatsoever, leaving everything to chance. Having no path when you died, your Second Life is also devoid of any path. Which is one of the reasons there is such fuss being created over you. You have two roads before you, and you are not predestined to be on one or the other. It is entirely your choice. God cannot tell you which one you are meant to take.
"You have been gifted with an ability to touch men's souls in song, which your immortal honed to perfection. Naturally, God wishes you to turn down the path of Light, and use this gift to honor Him and show others the path that you travel on. You can choose to stay with your immortal, but the speculation of that path is not pleasant. You will be chained in darkness, and Satan will eventually find a way to use your gift to persuade men to sell their souls to Hell.
"So as you can see, there's really no answer either side can give you. The choice rests upon you, and you will bear the weight of this decision for eternity. If you choose to serve God, you will spend eternity in Heaven, but if you choose the path in darkness, you'll find yourself bound to Hell for all of time," Metatron told her.
Her voice was returned to her; she didn't know how she knew, she just did. "Why didn't I get a new path when I didn't die in the accident?" Lenore asked.
"A hastily made path leads to ruin and destruction," Metatron said. "We create every mortal's path over the course of one hundred years, finishing with it the moment they are conceived. As you can see, it is not a process that is done in quick span of time."
"Well, what about Second Life? Surely that infant had a plan before I took its place," Lenore reasoned.
"No matter what the plan was, your plan would take over, as you take the body. In this case, your lack of a plan took precedence."
"It's not fair," she sighed.
"Nothing's ever fair," Metatron laughed. "You'd have to be in Eden to have everything be fair."
"So what you're telling me is that I have to choose between Heaven and the man I love," Lenore established.
"That's putting it simply, but yes," Metatron agreed.
Erik didn't like this sword, this weapon of Darkness. He knew that if Lenore was touched by one, she would be turned into a demon. He didn't really want to wield it against Uriel, either. He had no qualms with the archangels (except for a slight anger towards Uriel for having touched Lenore) and didn't really care about this ridiculous war.
This was why he wasn't putting much effort into fighting Uriel, only enough to keep himself from being touched with that fiery sword, which was actually capable of killing immortals. If only these Swords of Darkness could kill angels, the playing field would be even.
When Erik was momentarily distracted by a bright flash of white, Uriel thrust his sword towards Erik's heart to take advantage of the opportunity. The blade stopped just short of its target, Uriel's eyes widening with pain. As the archangel slumped to the ground, Raghnall yanked his sword out of the archangel's back.
"Watch yourself more carefully, Keeran," Raghnall instructed while his other arm deftly parried Gabriel's blows. Damn him for having two swords, makes it easier for him.
Noting that the flash had heralded Raphael's abduction of Lenore, Erik snarled viciously. Fuck the damage these swords could cause. Grabbing one of Uriel's wings, he yanked it up violently and sliced through it. Uriel screamed in pain, hurriedly scrambling away from Erik on his hands and knees. If I can just get that other wing severed, he'll be mortal, and then I can turn this bastard into a demon and be done with this.
"Well done," Raghnall commented, still fighting Gabriel.
"I'm so proud of you," Hiroshi added, pausing his banter with Remiel for a moment to praise Erik on his accomplishment.
"I still have one more wing to go," Erik replied cruelly. He knew that no immortal had ever severed an archangel's wing; hell, not even Satan had ever accomplished that. Just managing to cut off one wing was enough to win him Satan's favor and every demon's praise, but that all meant nothing to him. This fight was personal.
"Stop!" Raphael's voice cried out over the battle. It seemed the kidnapper had returned. "The battle is done," he declared. "The Metatron has spoken with her, and God decrees we remove our protection of the girl."
The archangels who were involved in the fight bowed their heads in acquiescence and disappeared, leaving only Raphael standing in the middle of Hell's warriors. His wings, which had been wrapped around his body, unfurled as he vanished, revealing Lenore, her eyes closed. She began to topple and Erik rushed forward, catching her before she hit the ground.
"My wing!" Uriel sobbed as he struggled against the chains the authoress had borrowed from Satan.
"Shush, I'll make it all better in a few minutes," the authoress promised, giving Uriel a naughty wink. "So, as you can see, the people who review get a shout out at the beginning. You all know you want a shout out, so review."
"Fair Lady Authoress, would you be so kind as to tell me your real name?" Raghnall asked, ignoring his bonds.
"Hmm, maybe if my readers want to know," the authoress said thoughtfully.
"Oh beloved readers, would you please convince her to reveal her real name?" Raghnall pleaded.
There were a few muffled noises from the muzzled Hiroshi. Erik was worriedly watching over the unconscious Lenore, ignoring the authoress completely.
"I'm gonna need some shackles for that bad Phantom of mine, can't have him doting over the heroine. Doesn't he realize that he's mine?" the authoress mumbled. "I rule his fate in this fic, you'd think he'd have the sense to at least deceive me into believing he loves me more than Lenore."
"My wing!" Uriel repeated.
"Alright, I'm coming, my yummy Uriel," the authoress proclaimed, leaping up to 'tend' to her captive archangel.