So, if you aren't familiar with the sound or history of Swing or Jazz, you should look at these links that I so kindly found for you:
1) A simple Swing song that you may have heard as a kid, from the movie Aristocats, is 'Ev'rybody Wants to be a Cat'
2) Another song, which is slightly more of a Neo-swing, but still just as high energy is "Hey Pachuco" by Royal Crown Revue
3) There's dancing, and then there's these guys! Dancing to Swing is an erratic (harder than it looks), high energy, fun activity, and here's a video of just a little of what it would look like:
watch?v=49ocW71YPfs
They're excellent performers! (I lack the arm strength to do any of this) Look more into their history if you're interested!
I just thought I should share these, in case you couldn't picture this chapter in your mind!
Chapter Twenty-Four
Past
As I approached the place written on the paper, I could hear loud music playing from the basement. Swing and Jazz. I checked the address again; apparently this was an old speakeasy. I rolled my eyes as I remembered Rixon's excuse to worm out of coming. Something about "having some research to do". I'd surprised if he picked up a book; he just can't dance. I sensed out for fallen angels; there were about five. The guard standing outside was one as well. I approached him, and he stiffened.
"And what business do you have here?" he growled, not forthcoming at all. My face remained impassive.
"A child named Ella invited me. She said to come this Saturday. Find her and she can prove it for me."
Scowling at me, he beckoned for another guard to come forward and told him to verify my story. Minutes later, Ella, in a pretty blue dress, came out to see me.
"Patch, you came!" She grabbed my hand and began to pull me inside. "I've told everybody about you, and I just know that you'll be welcome!" I was uncomfortable; if the guard's reaction said anything, I didn't know just how 'welcome' I would be.
The speakeasy was an exciting place. The room seemed to span underneath the ground, maybe two tenement buildings long, making it much larger than originally thought. It was lit by gas lights, giving it a warm glow. There were lots of small tables around the room, with lots of people sitting around them, chatting. It wasn't a glittering affair, seeing as the depression was in full force, yet it had its own sort of impressiveness to it. Everyone seemed to be dressed at their best. A band played in the front, and many people were dancing to the music. A small bar lay on the other end of the room.
"This is where everyone comes on Saturday nights to enjoy themselves! It's not expensive either; Pops is so nice that he makes it where everyone can at least afford a drink! And the music? Welcome to the best band in New York!" Ella proclaimed happily. Eyes were following us as she pulled me through the room.
"Aren't you a little young to be spending time in a bar?" I asked her. She shook her head.
"I don't drink anything. The adults like to keep an eye on me, because I used to sneak in here at night to hear the music. They seem to think I'll go get into some sort of trouble if they don't legally let me stay." A hand came out and pinched her cheek.
"We know you'll go get into some trouble." A woman stood up. Her red dress was form fitting, her beige face beautiful with red lipstick, and her stature made me wonder if she had some Nephilim blood. "Is this the friend that you've told us about?" Ella nodded eagerly. Her friend turned to me, smiling. When she stood, a certain radius around her grew quiet.
"My name is Eleanor. Ella is my namesake, although she prefers to go by her nickname these days. Thank you for saving her life the other night. She tends to go her own way, and with the way times are, she could have been hurt very badly." I nodded my head in a small bow, accepting her thanks. Suddenly I was being smiled at from all around, and the whispers turned into what I'd done. It was slightly embarrassing; no one had ever treated me with such genuine happiness.
Ella tugged on my shirtsleeve. "Do you see the band? One day, I'm going to be a beautiful singer and stand right up there!" she said, pointing. I stopped her before she could continue.
"Ella, who is the person that you wanted me to meet?" I was still on edge. Being surrounded by unknown fallen only made me feel agitated. My tone pushed her; she nodded and walked towards the back of the room. Two guards stood in front of the door. Ella smiled uneasily, and asked them to tell whoever was inside that she had a guest.
"Come in." A voice answered. Shrugging, Ella pushed open the door and led me in. The office was small, and lit by one small lamp. The music was muted. A man sat behind a desk. He had ebony skin, and was dressed impeccably in a white suit. He was two inches shorter than me, and of medium build. Something about him seemed serene, yet unapproachable. He looked at Ella and smiled.
"Well, Miss Songbird, have you brought your friend? How nice." His voice was deep, resonating in the room. Ella smiled, but seemed fidgety. It seemed that she was actually trying to behave.
"Yes, sir. This is Patch. He's really nice!" Her face inclined toward the door as the song changed.
"Your song is playing outside; you can go ahead." Smiling, she reached for the door.
"Thanks, Pops!" She closed the door behind her. I turned, defensive, towards the fallen angel in front of me. He stood, and held his hand out.
"So, Patch. I should introduce myself. My name is Robert. Thank you for helping Ella. The policemen are a consistent problem around here, and so is Ella's penchant for going where the wind takes her."
I shook his hand, and looked back at the door. "Is Ella Nephilim? Is she secretly your child?"
He laughed, shaking his head. "No. I take care of everyone in this neighborhood, and anyone else who comes to me for help. I found Ella on her own as a baby, wandering in the streets abandoned. I believe that she has diluted Nephilim blood, maybe through one of her parents, as she caught on to my ability to mindspeak very quickly. I keep her nearby, as such. She believes that she's completely independent, but they all know if something happens to bring her to me. They're all my children, but Ella is one of my favorites."
So, he had a God complex going on. This was getting stranger by the minute.
"That officer, I was going to deal with him eventually, but it seems like you've handled him for me."
"I didn't kill him. Didn't want to upset Ella." I responded. He waved his hand.
"No worries. Like you said, it would have frightened Ella. Besides, he deserves worse, and worse takes time."
I stared at him, perplexed.
"How would you like to join me, Patch?" he asked suddenly. My eyebrows rose, and a little arrogance came out in my tone when I answered.
"I have connections with almost all of the fallen angels in this city. You think I should work for you? Let me clarify for you: I work for no one but myself." Robert smiled, despite my harshness.
"Maybe, but that's just what I need. A pair of ears in higher places. I've already made connections with those same fallen angels, but I'm just a small school of fish among a large pond. Besides, I've heard of what you can do. I'll be honest, having you on my side would present me with an edge that at the moment I do not possess. Besides, Ella's taken quite the shining to you."
I thought about his words, and about his establishment.
"Why do you do it? Why do you help everyone out there?" It genuinely confused me. He was fallen; no longer bound to protect humanity by Heaven. Yet he still did it, and seemingly for nothing. All I'd known as a fallen was rejection, pain, and suffering. He seemed to understand me.
"I fell only recently. Just a century ago. I'd fallen in love with the woman that I was supposed to protect. Naobi was the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. She captivated me with her long curls, and toffee colored skin, and delightful singing voice. She was intelligent, peaceful…it was soothing simply to be around her."
I laughed bitterly. Beautiful? Soothing? Captivating? Words I'd never waste on a woman. "A human woman? No wonder. So far they've been nothing but trouble."
"I wanted to become human for her."
"And here you seemed so reasonable. Foolish decision. It's impossible."
Robert smirked. "I sense you are older than I, and yet you are so closed-minded. It is written of a way to become human."
I jerked forward. "What?"
"I never got the chance to become human for her. One day, my vigilance slipped, and she drowned before I could reach her. Because they couldn't prove my love for Naobi, they couldn't send me to Hell. They settled with stripping me of my title and wings, then banished me back to Earth. I was angry, bitter. However, I thought of Naobi and what she would have wanted." His eyes seemed to stare into the past.
"There's a way to become human?" I demanded. His eyes cut to me, shutting me down. He wasn't finished with his story.
"I was a Guardian Angel before I fell. I could say that it is in my nature to protect those around me. I want to disprove Heaven's little theory. They seem to believe that because they strip our wings, we will become the evil and despised things that they want to suffer for the rest of eternity. They want us to hunger for nothing but the body of a Nephilim and the ability to feel. Well I will not behave that way. I will not prove them correct."
My eyes were wide as I took in his logic. It made sense; his serenity was perfected. Once Heaven rejected us, we were supposed to turn on everything and come despicable. It made us the bad guys; gave them a reason to be rid of us. His theory was dead continued, folding his arms.
"I want to prove that I can still care, regardless of what life has thrown at me. I still have all of the traits that I had before I fell. Just because they don't want me anymore, it doesn't mean that I've become worthless. I can be ordained to protect not by Heaven, but by the humans around me. And so, I continued my good work down here, amongst those who need me." He turned to me. "I see that I've finally captured your interest. Becoming human. The Book of Enoch tells of a way to become human. It's just a shame that I have yet to acquire one. I'm working on it."
He waited silently as I ruminated over the bait that he held out over my head.
"Does my way of life make sense to you?" he asked me. I nodded. I'd never thought about trying to be the Jev that I was before I fell. I didn't want to. I was so angry that it never occurred to me that in my rebellion, I was doing exactly what Heaven expected of me. Even when I wasn't in Heaven, they still thought they were running my life! None of the other fallen that I'd met seemed to think about it either, especially the ones from the Irish commune. They accepted the role that they'd been given wholeheartedly. They didn't seem to realize that they were falling right into another mold. Robert had simply come up with another way to defy them. He maintained his status as a Guardian. It was impressive, really.
"Well, I'm certainly not interested in being a Guardian, but about your offer. I'll think on it." I said. Robert smiled widely, his white teeth showing.
"Sure." He stood, coming to grasp my shoulders. "Go enjoy the music. I'm sure Ella misses your presence. Dance. Drink. By the morning, I'll know if you've accepted my offer if the policeman that attempted to molest Ella is dead. Make it interesting."
I smirked. "What was all that about being a Guardian?"
He returned my look full force. "Will a mother bear not kill for her children? I will do what is necessary. Go."
Waving his hand, I was dismissed. I saw Ella sitting outside of the door. She jumped up.
"Come on! The only reason I'm allowed to be up right now is because you're here! So look lively! You can even hear me sing!"
Throughout the night, I learned many things. First, I learned that I loved jazz and Swing. Ella even convinced me that one day I could play piano for her. Watching her, and everyone else, dance was an exciting experience. Second, I learned that I hadn't been around such joyful, loose people since the night that I originally saw the tavern in the Loire Valley. No one knew of my past, and in fact welcomed me. It was an interesting feeling. Finally, I learned that I could, in fact, become human.
Human. It kept coming back to me all night. A dream that I'd given up on ages ago, suddenly possible. How I was supposed to do it, I didn't know. Getting the Book of Enoch was impossible without travelling to Heaven. Whatever Robert's philosophy was, and no matter how perfect he was at it, he was still no closer than becoming human than I was. But he'd still known of the possibility, and I was tempted. Maybe I could stick around…no harm in having another ally…
Rixon looked on in the early morning as I strung up the bleeding, mutilated officer's body up over the station. I'd made sure to cut off a certain part before slitting his throat, and I made sure that everyone was aware of it.
He laughed and crossed his arms as I wiped the dust off of my pants. "Enlighten me. Was this personal, or a job?"
I smiled back. "Both."
I named Ella/Eleanor after my grandma. She was familiar with this style of dance and music (I called and asked, but really, who can imagine Grandma out there jammin?) My next chapter's on its way soon; I'm typing as we speak! Read and review!