9/18/24: Started
12/16/24: Completed
YURI
Chapter Summery: Elly reminds Anna of Emory's angelic meeting...
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of Frozen, Tangled or any other Disney characters or locations that appear or are mentioned in this work of fiction, Disney does.
NOTE: Last update of the year ^_^. This part took a bit longer than I expected, since I came up with additional content I wanted to include, especially given the content in this part. I'm satisfied now though. So, enjoy the last update of the year, Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy new year!
- 4:12 P.M. -
- Arendelle Castle, Elsa's Room -
"Welcome back. How'd it go?" asked Elsa, currently sitting at her desk as she turned to face Anna walking into her room.
"Good." answered Anna, walking to and sitting on Elsa's bed. "I actually have all good news. First, no one was mad at Emory for leaving; well, her friends were annoyed for not telling them, but everyone I talked to was just worried about her and hopes she feels better."
"Well, that'll certainly be a weight off Emory's shoulders." replied Elsa. "What about Kyle? You said there's all good news."
"Yep, unfortunately, he's still a jerk, but apparently, it wasn't his intention to rape Emory. 'It just happened'."
"Really?" asked Elsa with a sigh and a disappointed shaking of her head.
"I know, talk about a weak excuse. Even if it 'just happened', rape is where you go, really? Anyway, the positive that came out of it is that he seemed ashamed of what he did, the rape specifically."
"Really? Well, I guess there's some hope for him after all. Are you going to let Emory know?" asked Elsa.
"I don't know..." answered Anna, before lying back on the bed. "If I were in Emory's place, I'm not sure I'd be interested in how the person who tried to rape me is feeling about it after distancing myself from it, especially since it's only been a day."
"Yeah, that's understandable. Maybe you could tell Honeymaren? She could tell Emory when she thinks it's something she's ready to hear."
"Oh, that's a good idea." replied Anna as she sat up with a smile. "She'd know better than us when to tell Emory." she added, before standing. "I'll go find her and let her know. You wouldn't happen to know where she is, would you?"
"Nope, sorry."
"Well, I'll check her room first." stated Anna, as she departed from Elsa's room.
- 4:20 P.M. -
On the way towards Emory and Honeymaren's room, passing through the second floor of the Great Hall, Anna heard Elly's familiar voice call to her from the first floor, before she hurried up the stairs towards her.
"Hey Anna, did you talk to Emory about the thing!?"
"What thing?" asked Anna, prompting Elly to look around briefly before leaning in and whispering...
"About her meeting an angel."
"Angel?" asked Anna, before gasping, "Oh! That's right! You did mention that. No, I haven't. Wow, how did something like that slip my mind, especially when Elsa and I showed her and Honeymaren around in town?"
"Well, if you're not busy, we can go talk to her about it." suggested Elly.
"Sure, I'm looking for Honeymaren first, though; there's something I need to talk to her about."
"Oh, I just met her; she said she wanted to admire the paintings in the Portrait Room."
"Oh, thanks." replied Anna, before she headed down the stairs and Elly joined her.
"Mind if I join you?"
"No, but I'd like you to stay outside while I talk to her." answered Anna.
"Alright, no problem."
- 4:24 P.M. -
Upon reaching the open door to the Portrait Room, Elly waited off to the side while Anna continued in, seeing Honeymaren at the back of the room, looking at a painting. With Anna closing the door, however, caught Honeymaren's attention as she looked back at her.
"Hey Anna." greeted Honeymaren.
"Hey." greeted back Anna with a wave of her hand as she walked towards Honeymaren.
"What did you close the door for?" asked Honeymaren, as Anna came within a yard of her.
"There's something I wanted to talk to you about, and I didn't want anyone possibly hearing it."
"Oh, is it serious?" asked Honeymaren, with a hint of concern.
"No, no, it's all good news." answered Anna with a reassuring smile. "... but it's not something that needs to be known by other people."
"Oh, well, ok then. What is it?"
"I took a trip to the Northuldra camp after Emory expressed concern about what people were thinking about her to see what people were actually thinking." answered Anna.
"Oh, and?"
"It's all good." answered Anna with a smile. "No one thinks less of Emory. They're just worried about her and hope she gets better."
"That's good to hear." replied Honeymaren with a smile and sigh. "Why so secretive about that?"
"Well, there's a second part." stated Anna. "I talked to Kyle."
"Oh..." replied Honeymaren, wide-eyed, before sighing and crossing her arms over her chest.
"I know, I know; Not a name you wanna hear, but I have good news about him."
"What is it?" sighed Honeymaren.
"Well, regarding him ra- uh, forcing himself on Emory, he's apparently ashamed of what he did." stated Anna, prompting Honeymaren to roll her eyes with a sigh.
"It's a start, I guess."
"He also agreed to apologize to Emory when she returns." stated Anna, prompting a wide-eyed look of surprise on Honeymaren's face.
"Really?"
"Yeah, although it did come after I reminded him of Nokk returning."
"Tch, so he just wants to get in good with Emory so Nokk won't kill him."
"Yeah, but he really did seem regretful for what he did. Anyway, I wasn't sure if Emory would be ready to hear that, since it's all still fresh, yanno, and Elsa suggested you would know when to tell Emory."
"Well, thanks for coming to me with this first. Emory will be happy to know that the others back home are just worried about her. I'll hold off on the Kyle stuff."
"Alright, well, my next stop is meeting Emory; Elly's right outside, and she reminded me of something pretty amazing that Emory told her, and I want to talk to Emory about it. You wouldn't happen to know where she is, would you?"
"The last time I saw her, she was in our room. What was the amazing thing?"
"Apparently, Emory met an angel once!" answered Anna excitedly.
"Oh... and that's significant in some way?" asked Honeymaren.
"Absolutely! Angels are servants of God!" replied Anna excitedly. "If Angels are real, God is real- Not that I had doubts, but having real, physical proof that angels are real, just confirms everything! Oh! And Emory could show a memory of the Angel she met! I could actually SEE an angel with my own eyes!"
"Heh, well, sounds like a big deal. Can I join you?" asked Honeymaren.
"Sure! Let's go." replied Anna, before she and Honeymaren left the room and rejoined Elly. "Hey Elly, I just remembered that Emory could show us a memory of her meeting the angel."
"Seriously!?" gasped Emory. "She can do that!? We could see an angel with our own eyes!?"
"Yep!"
- 4:32 P.M. -
The trio happily arrives at Emory's door, and Anna knocks, followed shortly by Emory answering from within.
"Who is it?"
"It's me, Anna." answered Anna. "There's something I wanted to talk to you about; are you busy? Honeymaren and Elly are with me too."
"No, I'm not busy. Just give me a second." answered Emory, prompting a few moments wait before she opened the door to greet the three. "Hey, so what is it you want to talk about?" she added, as she stepped aside to let them in.
"Elly reminded me that you told her you met an angel!" stated Anna excitedly, "Is that really true!?"
"Ah, heh, yeah, it is." answered Emory with a chuckle. "And yeah, I was alive at the time."
"Wow! Well, demons and angels are like counterparts to each other, so if demons were real, angels are too." commented Anna, prompting a smirk from Emory...
"But the demons you know don't give off the 'they're from Hell' vibe huh?" asked Emory.
"Yeah. They're like normal people." replied Anna.
"Elly said something similar." stated Emory, glancing to Elly, who smiled and commented...
"Anna said you could show us a memory of you meeting the angel."
"Oh, that's right, I can." stated Emory.
"Can you do it now?" asked Elly eagerly. "I'd love to see what an angel looks like!"
"Heh, sure." replied Emory, before closing her door and heading to her bed. "We may as well gather at the bed." she added, before the others followed and Anna commented...
"If demons have their own place they live here on earth though, then do angels also have a hidden place? Elly said there's a lot that's not confirmed about them."
"Their abilities aren't confirmed, to my knowledge." answered Emory, sitting on the bed, while Honeymaren sat to her left, Anna to her right, and Elly to Anna's right. "Which, admittedly, is likely sorely lacking. But there are some things aside from their powers that are known. Like regarding where they live. To put it simply, yes, they live in what you would call Heaven, or as they call it, The Silver City, and only they themselves can go there. It's like a much stricter Kaleen in terms of entry."
"Wow..." gasped Anna and Elly, while Honeymaren simply smiled, amused at their reaction while she had little to go on to share their awe.
"Well..." added Anna. "Given what Grandma said, Heaven is real- or rather, the afterlife is real."
"Oh!" gasped Elly. "I wonder if an angel can take a person who hasn't died to heaven. Is it a place we can even go to with our flesh-and-blood bodies?"
"Ohh, that's a good question!" commented Anna, prompting a chuckle from Emory.
"Maybe, maybe not. I don't know anything about that." stated Emory, before placing her right hand to her right temple and extending her upturned left hand out in front of her. "But, let's get to that memory."
Soon, Emory's arms from the elbows down turn transparent, to Elly's awe, as a head-sized orb appears above Emory's left hand, and the trio looked on in awe when they saw Emory's point of view of a beautiful, white-winged, fair-skinned, female figure, with short blonde hair standing proudly in front of her with her hands on her hips, wearing what was clearly not what Anna or Elly would assume would be angelic attire, consisting of what looked like some sort of smooth, jean-like pants and a tank top, which revealed only a modest endowment; unexpectedly casual attire for an angel.
"Wow..." gasped Anna and Elly in unison, wide-eyed, which prompted a chuckle from not just Emory but Honeymaren too as they matched the Emory in the memory's 'wow' as well, before the Memory Emory added...
"You look so pretty."
"Hehe, well, thank you, child." replied the angel, whose voice was chipper and light.
"How old were you in this?" asked Elly.
"I was an adult." answered Emory.
"Oh..." replied Anna. "So she must be hundreds of years old then." she added, and Elly chimed in...
"Like Silvia."
Soon after, the group heard the Memory Emory ask...
"What about your halo? Do you have one?"
"I sure do." answered the angel, before extending her right hand out and summoning a ring of light in her hands, to the once again simultaneous 'wow's' of Anna, Elly, Memory Emory and Honeymaren this time, before the angel leaned close, and the trio saw the angel's bright blue eyes, prompting a nervous chuckle from Elly as she commented...
"It's almost like she's looking at us."
"I know." replied Anna with a nervous smile. "But it's just a memory."
"Heh, yeah." stated Emory. "This happened in the past." she added, before Memory Emory asked...
"Um, what are you looking at me like that for?"
The Angel smiles and comments...
"Just seeing what sort of person you are, and I like what I see. I'm not allowed to wear my halo when I'm not on duty, but I can let you hold it if you want."
"Really!?" gasped Memory Emory. "You're allowed to do that!?"
"As long as you promise not to steal it, sure. You don't want an 'Angel of God' chasing you, do you?" answered the Angel, with finger quotes, which prompted a curious raised brow from Anna, though said nothing, but thought...
'Why'd she say it like that?'
"Heh, no, no. I don't want that." chuckled Memory Emory.
"Then here..." stated the Angel, offering the ring of light, to which Memory Emory takes it.
"Whoa... it's like I'm not even holding anything!"
"Heh, that's good."
"That's so cool!" declared Elly. "I know you said you held it, but I can SEE it! You got to hold a real Angels halo!"
"Heh, yeah, it was pretty awesome." replied Emory, before the group continued to watch the memory and saw Memory Emory's point of view briefly look to her left shoulder when the Angel had placed her hand on it and looked to the Angel's bright blue eyes again, before they all felt an odd sensation run through their bodies, before the Angel smirked and spoke...
"Again? Now there's two more?"
Stunned and bewildered at the possibility, all four were speechless before the angel spoke again.
"Yeah, I'm speaking to the four of you, sitting on that bed. Enjoying the show? Heh, again for the redhead there."
"W-What!?" gasped Emory and Anna, before Emory added... "T-This is a memory. How are you-"
"Yes, this is a memory." stated the angel. "And it's a memory between me and you, so don't share it. This is the second time this has happen."
"The second?" asked Emory and Anna.
"Actually, I know what I can do to stop this from happening again." stated the Angel. "Stay right there. Emory, end this memory."
"O-Ok..." replied Emory, before the orb shrinks into nothing and Emory's arms return to normal, though everyone's eyes were wide in shock, before Elly asked...
"Did that really just happen!?"
"HOW did that happen!?" asked Anna. "That was a memory!"
"I don't know!" quickly replied Emory. "That's never happened to me before! It shouldn't happen; it's a memory! She's an angel, though, maybe time doesn't affect her the same-" she added, before the group saw a glowing portal-like object appear in front of them about a yards away. Its bright light prevented Anna and Elly from seeing into it; however, a very familiar figure emerged from it before it closed.
The Angel in the memory now stood before them, dressed very similarly to the memory version, the only difference was that she wore a shorter top, exposing a little of her belly and had longer blonde hair that was pulled back into a ponytail. Standing in front of them, the angel crossed her arms with a sigh.
"First of all, before you all freak out." stated the angel, to her awe-silenced audience. "I'm not here to smite you, punish you, or anything crazy like that. I just want to figure something out, then I'll be on my way, and you can get on with your lives, ok? So just take a break, breathe..." she explained, uncrossing her arms and lifting her hands with 'breathe' as she took a breath, followed by the four, before the angel lowered her hands as she exhaled, followed by the others. "...And relax. Good, we good? I don't wanna deal with a freak-out right now."
"Y-Yeah..." answered Emory, still in awe.
"Good." stated the angel. "And the other three? If you need a moment to process me being here, take it, but let me know you're good, with words please."
"I'm good." answered Honeymaren.
"Mhm..." replied the angel, before looking to Anna and Elly, who looked at her wide-eyed and their mouths agape. "Now, you two, come on, push past the shock. This is real; I'm actually here in front of you."
A few moments pass before Anna and Elly flinch as if being woken up and shake their heads, blinking quickly before looking at the angel in front of them.
"I-I-I'm good." stuttered Anna.
"M-Me too." added Elly. "No freak out, I promise."
"Good." sighed the angel with a smile. "That's one headache prevented. Now, on to business: How did this end up happening again? The first time was Emory and the redhead, and I wiped the memory of it from your minds, and now, there are two more of you."
"You wiped our memory?" asked Emory.
"Just of you showing your friend the memory of you and me." answered the angel.
"Wait..." stated Elly. "That must've been around the time I first mentioned to Anna that Emory told me about meeting you. Anna said she was going to talk to Emory about it, but when I asked her about it later, she said it slipped her mind and thought it was weird that it did."
"That's right." stated Anna. "Something as amazing as that wouldn't slip my mind. I wanted to talk about something with Honeymaren first and mentioned it to her, and she wanted to join us in seeing the memory."
"I see." replied the angel. "So there was an outside party I was unaware of. Does anyone else not here know about this that could lead to this happening again?" she asked, which Emory, Anna and Honeymaren looked to Elly, who chuckled nervously at the eyes on her.
"No, Anna was the only one I mentioned this to. I figured she would be one of the few people who would believe me."
"Well, that makes fixing this simple." stated the angel. "I'll just wipe this meeting from your minds, except Emory."
"Why!?" gasped Anna and Elly, before Anna added. "If you don't want us telling anyone, we'll keep it a secret!"
"Yeah!" added Elly. "We won't tell anyone if you don't want us to."
"Maybe, but for your own sanity, it's easier if you don't remember meeting me." stated the angel. "It just creates too much stress for you to have that knowledge."
"Then why does Emory get to keep the memory?" asked Elly.
"Because we've already met." answered the angel, looking at Emory. "Plus, she needs to remember this so she can deny further requests. I don't want her sharing the memory. Still, though, I'm interested in your story of how you managed to live for so long. You were human last I saw you."
"Still human." commented Emory with a smile. "I just made the wrong person mad, and they sealed me in an ice castle for thousands of years."
"Ah, that'll do it." commented the angel.
"I was recently freed by Anna and her sister." added Emory, looking to Anna with a smile, who smiled back. "They're the princess and queen, by the way."
"Oh..." replied the angel, before looking at Anna and giving a curtsy. "Your Majesty." she greeted, prompting a nervous look to come to Anna's face.
"U-Uh, should an angel be doing that?" asked Anna.
"Just because I'm an angel doesn't exclude me from a show of respect."
"Oh... I guess not." replied Anna. "Just feels so weird."
"Well, I'll wipe this meeting from your minds, and we can all get on with our day." stated the angel, before stepping towards Anna, her right hand reaching out, before Anna quickly commented...
"Wait! Wait! Wait! If you're gonna make us forget meeting you, can we ask some questions before then?"
"Yeah! Please!?" added Elly.
"Even though you won't remember what I tell you?" asked the angel.
"Yeah." answered Anna and Elly, before Anna added. "For that brief moment we can know some divine truths!"
"Hehe, divine truths?" replied the angel with a chuckle, before shaking her head with a shrug of her shoulders, "Alright. You all get one question each, no restrictions; follow-up questions are allowed as long as they relate to the initial question."
"Really?" asked Elly. "ANY question?"
"ANY question." confirmed the angel. "And if the answer breaks your mind, at least you won't remember it."
"That's a thing?" asked Anna. "Knowledge can do that?"
"Heh, humans have some pretty deeply ingrained preconceived notions. A 'divine being' such as myself shattering those can easily break a human's mind. So think about the question you want to ask, and if you're prepared for the answer not matching or confirming what you assume."
"Wow... ok then." replied Anna, before Elly quickly commented...
"I know what I wanna ask!"
"Alright, lay it on me." stated the angel.
"Can you have sex?" asked Elly, prompting gasps from Honeymaren, Emory, and Anna, who commented...
"Why would you ask an angel that!? You only get one question!"
"You're not curious?" asked Elly.
"I-I-I-" stammers out Anna, red-faced, before...
"Yep." answered the angel, drawing the group's attention to see the angel was unfazed by the question. "I like doing it a lot."
"Really?" asked Anna. "So, sex is still a thing in Heaven?"
"Hehe, of course it is!" chuckled the angel. "It's one of the best things in nature! Masturbation too, of course. As a matter of fact, yesterday, me and two friends of mine had a good 'ol time."
"Two?" asked Elly. "Threesomes are ok in Heaven?"
"Heh, threesome, foursome, fivesome; as long as everyone is consenting to it, it's fine." stated the angel. "Sex isn't the taboo you humans have made it out to be. Unfortunately, you humans have to worry about diseases, though, so that certainly puts a snag in the fun with multiple people- even one person if you're unlucky. Unless you have healing magic, of course, then you can go have sex with whoever you want without a care." she added, which prompted a curious thought from Anna...
'The way she mentioned it... magic isn't sinful?'
"What about two guys or two girls?" asked Elly.
"Perfectly fine." answered the angel with a thumbs up. "Whether you're getting pounded into the wall or tonguing for that honey, consent is what matters. Oh, and listening to your partner, or partners, of course."
"Well, that's great to know!" stated Elly delightfully, before her delight faded a bit, "Too bad I won't remember it."
"That's the agreement." stated the angel. "So, any more questions about sex?"
"I'm good." replied Elly, followed by the others.
"Good, so who's got the next question?" asked the angel, prompting Honeymaren to nervously lift her right hand.
"Um..." started Honeymaren nervously. "This is gonna seem pretty underwhelming after that first question, but, you know our names, but we don't know yours, so what's your name?" asked Honeymaren, prompting smiles from everyone before the angel answered...
"My name is Kyla. (K-la)"
"Hello, Kyla." greeted Honeymaren with a smile, followed by the others.
"Heh, guess it was pretty rude of me to not introduce myself." stated Kyla. "But I wasn't expecting to stick around. Sorry about that."
"Actually..." commented Elly. "We didn't officially introduce ourselves. "I'm Elly. I'm a servant here at the castle and Anna's handmaid."
"I'm Anna." added Anna with a smile. "I'm the princess."
"Honeymaren." stated Honeymaren with a smile and wave of her hand, before Emory finished with...
"You already know me; I'm Emory."
"Well, it's nice to meet you all." stated Kyla. "So, any follow-up questions about me as a person?"
"Hmm..." hummed Honeymaren. "Do you have parents?"
"Yep." answered Kyla, prompting an interested 'ohhh' from Anna and Elly, before Emory asked...
"Are they human or angel?"
"Angel." answered Kyla. "Everyone's an angel." added Kyla, prompting a interested 'ohh' from Anna and Elly again, who asks...
"Are you immortal?"
"Nope." answered Kyla. "Well, technically, yes. I can die, to put it simply."
"Seriously?" asked Elly, while she and Anna were wide-eyed at that piece of information. "Then what happens when you die? Is there another Heaven!?" added Elly, prompting a chuckle from Kyla.
"No, no, as an angel, one of two things happen when I die, depending on where I am at the time, Heaven or Earth." answered Kyla. "On Earth, I'll just get sent back to Heaven. In heaven, 'dying' is more of a choice. From that choice, I'll have two options; I can be reborn here on Earth, with my memory as an angel wiped, and live out a normal human life before returning to the Silver- uh, Heaven, upon my death as a human, and that can be done repeatedly or simply cease to be, which can be considered a true death."
"Wow." commented Anna. "That last one sounds horrible!"
"It's not as bad as it sounds." replied Kyla. "It's for those who feel they have gotten everything the can out of their life. Eternity is a long time when there's no end to it."
"Oh, that makes sense." commented Anna, followed by Elly...
"Yeah, if you can live forever, eventually you'll do everything that's possible, then what?"
"Exactly." stated Kyla. "Things should have an end. Anyway, it's more like using yourself to give a gift to a random human."
"Give yourself as a gift?" asked Elly, followed by Anna...
"What does that mean?"
"Answering that would be veering off the topic of me." answered Kyla with a smile, seeing a little pout come to Anna and Elly's faces. "Heh, anyway; I'll be taking the reborn choice. Who knows, you might meet me as a baby in the future. So, anything else about me you're interested in?"
"Your wings." stated Honeymaren. "We saw them in the memory, but it was a small image." she added, before she, Anna, and Elly gasped in delight when Kyla revealed her wings without comment or fanfare, seemingly the same as their demon friends did.
Kyla's wings had an impressive width, fully extended, almost knocking over things on the nightstand to her right, before folding closed and were a pure white with not a blemish to be seen.
"Whoa!" gasped Elly and Anna, who added, "They're like Silvia's, but yours are feathered and so white!"
Emory then chuckled and commented...
"So, completely different aside from them being wings?"
"You know what I mean." replied Anna, followed by Kyla chuckling as well before asking...
"I'm guessing Silvia is a demon friend of yours?"
"Yeah." answered Anna, before Elly eagerly asked...
"Can I touch your wings!?"
"Sure." answered Kyla, prompting Elly to happily stand and walk up to Kyla's left wing as she extended it and Elly places her hands on the feathers.
"Ohh, they're so soft!"
"Heh, anyone else want in on this?" asked Kyla with a smile, looking to the others, who all three stood to join Elly; Anna to her right and Honeymaren and Emory going to Kyla's right wing.
"I'm actually touching an angel's wings!" commented Anna delightfully as she guided her hand through the large, white feathers, prompting a chuckle from Kyla.
"Humans and your fascination with wings, it still amuses me."
"Well, most of us can't fly." stated Anna.
"Yeah, true." stated Kyla. "Were you also this excited with your demon friend's wings?"
"Yep." answered Anna. "Her's didn't have feathers and were more bat-like. Oh! Are angels and demons enemies?"
"That doesn't relate to me directly, and answering it would count as your question. Do you want to use it for that?"
"Oh, uh, no, I'll forfeit that one." replied Anna with a nervous smile.
"Heh, I will say I have a few demon friends of my own." stated Kyla. "So, take that as you wish."
"Interesting..." commented Anna. "So, you're not enemies if you're friends with them, but it could also be taboo; you're not supposed to be friends, but you like them anyway." added Anna, prompting a chuckle from Kyla.
A moment later, the group was satisfied with touching Kyla's wings and returned to their spots on the bed.
"Alright..." stated Kyla as she retracted her wings. "Any more questions about me before we move on to the last two questions?" she asked, which the others commented they had nothing else. "Good, now, Emory and Anna, which of you two wants to go next?"
"I'll go last." stated Emory.
"Alright then..." Commented Anna. "A question that'll retain my sanity regardless of the answer... Would it be possible to bring a human who hasn't died to Heaven?"
"Yep." answered Kyla.
"R-Really?" gasped Anna. "Just 'yep', no restrictions?"
"Well, there's one..." stated Kyla, before extending her left hand to her side and swiping down with her index finger to create the same glowing portal-like object she appeared out of. "What do you see when you look at this?"
"A glowing white light?" asked Anna.
"And you?" asked Kyla, pointing to Elly.
"The same thing."
Honeymaren, however...
"A room?"
Followed by Emory...
"A blurry room?"
"Huh, interesting..." commented Kyla, while Anna and Elly looked at Emory and Honeymaren with interest, and Anna asked...
"You can see into it!? It's a room!?"
"Yeah..." answered Honeymaren and Emory, with nervous embarrassment that they could see into the portal, before Emory added, "It's really blurry, but yeah. I can piece together that it's a room. I can see what looks like a bed, dresser, and I think... clothing scattered on the floor."
"This is the 'yes, but'." stated Kyla, turning her attention back to Anna and Elly. "Very few humans, mortals, earthly beings, whatever you want to call it, can see the Silver- ugh, Heaven. So, while I could bring you there in your mortal forms, I wouldn't be against it either, your minds as they are now, would not let you see anything besides me and other angels."
"Why not?" asked Anna. "Why can they see part of it, but not Elly and me?"
"There's one major factor that influences it." stated Kyla. "I'm showing you, as you understand it, Heaven. What do you expect to see?"
"I... don't know." answered Anna. "A massive, beautiful, golden city of pure white, high in the clouds, and angels flying through the sky?"
"That is your major hang-up here." stated Kyla. "You already have this glorified idea of what you expect to see, or that it's something you can't possibly comprehend; so, when the reality presented in front of you contradicts that, your mind blocks it from your view."
"So, Heaven isn't what we think it is?" asked Anna, as her mood deflated like a flower wilting, joined by Elly as she added...
"Now that sucks."
Curiously, Honeymaren and Emory were unaffected and looked at the two curiously before Kyla sighed, placing a hand to her forehead.
"Aww, darn it. Hey, hey, come back to me you two!" declared Kyla, walking towards them and snapping her fingers in front of their faces. "Heaven is great; it is a great big city, but you've set your expectations of it so high that nothing short of what you expect it to be would satisfy you."
"I... hear you..." replied Anna lethargically as the light in her eyes began to dull. "But I can't shake this feeling of... I don't know."
"Same here." added Elly.
"Ugh, crap." groans Kyla, before taking the two by the hand. "Stand up, you two." She added, pulling the two up to their feet and guiding them to stand in front of the portal. "What's behind this portal is the bedroom of my home. It's a little messy, but just ignore that. It's a room kinda similar to this one; there's a bed that's not made, a nightstand, a dresser with my clothes, and there's also a person-sized mirror you can't see from this angle, but all things you are familiar with, there's even a few books around, a typical room. I'm sure it's not what you imagined, we don't walk on clouds or anything like that, but this is the reality; it's just a normal room. Do you see it?"
After being described what's on the other side of the light, after a moment of staring into the light, Anna and Elly saw faint, familiar shapes come into view as the light faded. It was like being blinded by the sun and having to squint their eyes; they couldn't see any color beyond white, but they could make out the familiar things Kyla pointed out as the light in their eyes returned and their mood lifted.
"I-I see it." stated Anna.
"Me too." added Elly. "It's blurry, but I make out a few things."
Following this, Kyla let out a relieved sigh.
"Oh man, that was close. Almost lost you two there. Could've just wiped your memory to fix it, though, but I managed to intervene in time."
"Wow..." stated Honeymaren. "So their minds nearly broke because their idea of heaven didn't match with what's in front of them?"
"Yep." answered Kyla, before the portal closed. "Human minds are surprisingly fragile. What breaks one doesn't break another, but what breaks that one doesn't break the other. It's a real toss-up." she added before patting Anna and Elly on the shoulders. "You two good?"
"Yeah." answered the two at once, before Anna added. "That was weird. Felt like I was spiraling down an endless void."
"Same." added Elly. "I heard Kyla's voice and followed it."
"Good." replied Kyla. "Now, if I were to bring you there, you'd need to adjust, but you'd eventually see everything just fine. Along with your friends."
"Why were Emory and Honeymaren unaffected, though?" asked Anna.
"Well..." stated Honeymaren. "Maybe because I don't have any expectations of what 'Heaven' is?"
"Oh, right..." stated Anna. "You don't share the same religious belief that we do." she added, before Kyla sighed and shook her head.
"That pesky little word, filled with so many ideas and rules that gets hammered into you humans from birth."
"Huh?" commented Anna and Elly, prompting a little gasp and cringe from Kyla.
"Oh... I said that out loud, didn't I?"
"Is what we believe a lie!?" gasped Anna.
"That doesn't relate to your question." replied Kyla, prompting a pout from Anna; however, Emory commented...
"It does for mine, which is: Why the secrecy?"
"About?" asked Kyla.
"Everything?" asked Emory hesitantly, prompting a sigh from Kyla and a smirk.
"Going for the all-in-one, huh? Heh, fine, I said no restrictions; rules are rules, but first, do you follow any religions?"
"No." answered Emory.
"Good-" stated Kyla, before Anna interrupted, looking to Emory.
"Wait, you're not religious, Emory?"
"Nope, never have been." answered Emory.
"H-How!? Especially now? There's an angel right in front of us!"
"Okay... and?" replied Emory, curiously. "To me, angels are no different from demons, mermaids, fairies, or any other magical person. They're just another race of people; super rare to meet, but still, just another race. My excitement at meeting her didn't come from a religious bias but from the fact that her kind is super rare, and little is known about them, personally speaking, of course."
Wide-eyed, Anna looks at Kyla, who smiles, before Anna comments...
"She just called angels and demons different races. Is that true!?"
"Ehh..." replied Kyla, waving her hand a little. "Emory's on the right track, but not quite. If I had to say yes or no without explaining, then yes."
"Then explain!"
"I thought your question was if religion is real." stated Kyla.
"It was- I mean, it is! But now there's the angel and demon thing! You're not enemies, but you're probably related in some weird way! Heaven's more normal than I thought! My brain can't handle these possibilities!" declared Anna as she placed her hands to her head in distress.
"Ok, let's sit you down before your mind breaks again." stated Kyla as she stepped towards Anna; however, she saw Elly clearly pass out as she fell back and quickly caught her, falling to the floor herself, but saving Elly from injury. "Oops, looks like we lost one." she added, prompting Anna to snap out of her distress for concern about Elly.
"Is she going to be ok!?" gasped Anna.
"She'll be fine." answered Kyla, standing and picking Elly up, and placing her down on the bed, before placing her right index finger to Elly's forehead, lifting and pulling a wispy string of energy from her, and blowing it out like a candle. "Once I leave, she'll wake up with no memory of this meeting and the information she's heard."
"That's a relief." sighed Anna as she returned to her spot on the bed, looking at Elly.
"Heh, seems you really care about her, to distract you from nearly joining her." commented Kyla.
"She's my friend; of course I'll be worried if she suddenly passes out." stated Anna.
"Well, ready to hear some 'divine truths', as you put it?" asked Kyla, prompting a sigh from Anna.
"As ready as I'll ever be. Let's start with the religion first: Is it all a lie?"
"'Lie' is a pretty strong word." stated Kyla. "I wouldn't consider it a lie, more like a misunderstanding. After all, religions have some very good things going for them; they bring people together under a common goal, an established community, it teaches people to be nice and kind to each other, don't do bad things."
"There's also the bad things religions do or encourage." commented Emory. "Intolerance, deciding what's right and wrong, punishing people for the silliest of things."
"True." replied Kyla, before sighing. "I seriously wonder how things got to those extremes. Banned food, seriously? You can love/have sex with one person but not the other? Come on, we never said any of that."
"If religion is so messed up, then why not fix our misunderstanding?" asked Anna.
"We tried." stated Kyla, "Well, not me specifically, but angels in general when the higher ups found out. Anyway, when we did, your friend there is what happened, and that's a favorable response compared to what can happen when try to talk to a group of people. Those ideals are so deeply ingrained in you that it breaks your mind if we were to try and correct it. Younger people can handle it better, though, but even if you could handle the knowledge, you'd go crazy having that knowledge and not telling anyone. Even if you did, they wouldn't believe you or call you crazy, thus leading to you going crazy, being shunned, or worse, for speaking against what the religion has taught. So, it was decided to not interfere. After all, the basic ideals of religion are great: be nice and don't do bad things. Just use common sense if something's right or wrong, and you're good. Hmm, but common sense varies between people... so... help if you can, and don't hurt people. How abut that?"
"Wow..." commented Anna, looking down to her lap.
"You... ok?" asked Kyla.
"Yeah... yeah..." replied Anna. "This is just a lot to process."
"I'm sure it is." stated Kyla. "You're handling it pretty well. You are young after all." she added, while Honeymaren simply listened and watched with interest, thinking...
'Sounds like some pretty heavy stuff Anna has to accept. Good thing none of us will remember this.'
Kyla then looked to Honeymaren.
"You've been quite. Doing ok?"
"Yeah, I'm perfectly fine." answered Honeymaren. "I live in the forest with my people, the Northuldra, so I wasn't exposed to the religious teachings that Anna was."
"Ah, ok then." replied Kyla, before Anna commented...
"Alright, I'm good. Let's quickly move on to the angel and demon race thing. That'll be a much easier thing to swallow."
"Actually, concerning that... stated Kyla. "It would be easier to lump that explanation into another. Are you curious where magic comes from?"
"Well, me and my sister's magic comes from Emory." stated Anna.
"Mm, nope." stated Kyla, with a smile.
"Nope?" asked Anna, looking to Emory, who shrugged her shoulders.
"That's a surprise to me."
"Oh, I'm gonna blow both of your minds!" stated Kyla delightfully. "In a good way, I hope. Ya see, every mortal on this planet, human AND demon, were created by us-" revealed Kyla, prompting a wide-eyed look of surprised from Anna as she quickly thought...
'Wait, Angels created us, not God?' Anna however, didn't allow her mind to take the tempting bait that Kyla casually dropped in front of her and focused on what Kyla was saying as the angel averted her gaze and continued in a slightly lower, but still audible tone.
"Well, the human race was started by us... we don't hand-make every human. Hehe, that's silly. Humans and demons are also the same in our eyes; there's the fairies too..." she added, trailing off, before gasping and turning her attention back to the three. "A-Anyway, I'm getting off track. Every person on this planet has a connection to us angels."
"Really?" asked all three.
"Yep, because of one thing that links us." stated Kyla as she walked up to Anna, knelt in front of her, and placed a finger to her chest, between her breasts. "A spark of the 'divine' is within you and every other person. That spark is the source of your magic and mine, and is what connects us."
"Really?" asked Anna. "So, everyone can use magic?"
"Everyone has the potential to use magic." answered Kyla. "Some never unlock that potential; others do."
"But, Elsa and me got our magic from Emory." stated Anna.
"Heh, she just made that spark easier to reach for you and your sister." stated Kyla. "Think of it like diving into a deep pool of water for something, but you run out of air before reaching it and have to surface. Emory simply raised that thing higher, allowing you to reach it."
"Wow..." stated Emory with a smile. "So, that's what my deals do. So that's something I can still do?"
"Deals?" questioned Kyla, looking at Emory.
"Yeah, it's how I was able to give Elsa, Anna, and Cassandra, whose not here, their powers. They make an agreement with me, fulfill the agreement, and they get magic."
"Huh..." commented Kyla, curiously.
"What?" asked Emory.
"Could you do that when we first met?" asked Kyla.
"No." answered Emory. "I assume I gained that ability from being trapped in the ice for thousands of years; the castle I was in also seemed magical, so maybe I gained some of its magic."
"Hmm... that's certainly possible considering how long you were trapped." hummed Kyla as she moved in front of Emory and reached out her upturned right hand, and Emory curiously placed her right hand on Kyla's, who closed her eyes. "As you humans age, the spark in you grows in power; thus, your magic also grows. Unfortunately, because of your mortal bodies and short life spans, your magic can't reach its full potential, but those who have extended their lives, voluntarily or not, allow that spark to continue growing in power."
"Wow..." gasped Anna. "Has anyone ever reached their full potential?"
"Not to my knowledge." answered Kyla, before opening her eyes and smiling up at Emory. "And as far as I know, it wouldn't be possible. You're body simply wouldn't be able to handle a... hmm, mature spark; yeah, that works."
"Wow!" stated Anna. "Elsa and I can already do some pretty amazing stuff, and that's not even a fraction of a fraction of our power?"
"Yep." answered Kyla, before directing her next comment to Emory. "You have much more power than you realize."
"R-Really?" asked Emory with a smile.
"Yep, would you like to know?"
"Uh... a hint, maybe?"
"Hmm... you restrain yourself with your 'deals', as you call it." answered Kyla with a smile. "Think bigger, unrestrained from the box you've put yourself in."
"That's... certainly a hint." commented Emory with a confused smile, promoting a chuckle from Kyla, before she released Emory's hand and stood.
"Just think on that and experiment." stated Kyla. "You'll be shocked at what you can do."
"Well, I've been pretty comfortable with what I can already do." stated Emory. "But it's nice to know I have more I can discover."
"You sure do." replied Kyla, before Anna eagerly extended her right hand towards Kyla...
"Do me next!"
Kyla chuckles and takes Anna's hand before a little gasp leaves her.
"Oh, you have a friend."
"Friend?" asked Anna before gasping. "Oh, you mean Felsa?"
"Felsa..." Repeated Kyla with a smile, pausing briefly, before releasing Anna's hand, who looked confused. "I won't butt in on what you two have. It's best to learn together."
"O... kay." replied Anna with confusion, before Kyla looked to Honeymaren and offered her hand.
"O-Oh, no, I don't have magic."
"I could make it easier for you to have it." suggested Kyla.
"Thanks, but no. I'm perfectly happy not having magic."
"Alright then." replied Kyla as she lowered her hand, before Anna commented...
"Wait, on the topic of divine sparks being the source of our magic, what about cases where a magical item gives someone magic? Like before our friend Cassandra had her magic that Emory gave her; she had this magic, moon, rock... Moonstone, that's what it was; it gave her magic, controlling special black rocks. What's the deal with that?"
"In that case, the magic within her was being filtered through the stone." answered Kyla. "Think of a source of light, white light, for example, then you cover it with a thin, colored piece of fabric. The light is now the color of whatever the fabric covering it is. Your spark is pure energy, and before you've tapped into it, it can be influenced by outside forces. Well, even after, it can be influenced, but not as easily. In Emory's case, hers was permanently changed in allowing her to use a different type of magic in addition to her normal magic."
"Oh, well that makes sense." commented Anna, "So things like magic wands can amplify it?"
"Right. Things like that influence your spark in a controlled, voluntary way." answered Kyla, before Emory gasped...
"Hey, wait, I just realized something! Since you're sparing me from having my memory of this wiped, what do I tell the others when they wake up confused? Do you want me to lie to them?"
"Of course not." answered Kyla. "You're free to tell them everything if you can remember it, even this meeting."
"Huh?" replied Emory with confusion. "You're gonna erase the memory of meeting you from their memory, but I'm allowed to tell them it happened anyway? Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose?"
"No, it doesn't." answered Kyla. "They are not allowed to remember meeting me; this whole interaction of me being here, in their mind, but they can be told they met me. It's different."
"And the 'divine truths'?" asked Emory.
"You're free to tell them." answered Kyla. "You saw what happened with me telling them, but that won't happen if you tell them, because you're not a 'divine voice' saying it, and they probably won't believe you. Just don't show them or anyone else a memory of this; that's the one thing I can't allow- well, I could, but it just creates so many problems. Case in point..." explained Kyla, pointing to Anna and Elly. "So don't have this repeat; I'll have to change your memory too if this happens again. Unless you want me to wipe your memory of this too."
"No, no, that's alright." replied Emory, "Just showing a memory of you is off-limits, right?"
"Yep, everything else is fair game." stated Kyla. "And hey, maybe they will believe you, but have a little bit of doubt in the back of their minds that prevents them from breaking." she added, before Emory sighed and looked to Anna...
"What do you think?"
"Well, we already agreed to our memory being wiped." stated Anna. "The magic one is disappointing that I'll forget, so tell me that one when I wake up. The religion and the heaven thing, though, I'm ok with forgetting that. That isn't the kind of truth I'm ready to just walk around having and not being able to tell anyone, and if I did, they'd call me crazy, even Elsa. That would really hurt."
"Understandable..." stated Emory, before looking to Honeymaren. "What about you?"
"I'm fine with whatever you tell me. The two of us are basically immune to everything that was said." answered Honeymaren.
"Alright." stated Emory, before Anna gasped and looked to Kyla.
"Hey, you said we can't have the memory of meeting you, but Emory can tell us we did, so would it be ok to give us some sort of proof that we did?"
"Hmm..." hummed Kyla in thought. "Proof that wouldn't affect anything... Oh!" she added, before revealing her left wing. "How about a feather?"
"Is that really ok!?" gasped Anna.
"Sure." answered Kyla, before she reached her right hand towards her wing and tugged on a couple of feathers, before one released easily, and she held the feather at one end and passed the feather through her other hand's index and middle fingers, before offering it to Anna. "I stripped any 'divine' energy from it, so it's safe for you to have it. It's basically a normal feather now. You may not believe it's a real angel's feather when you wake up, but it is."
"Wow..." replied Anna in awe as she took the feather. "Thanks!"
"No problem." stated Kyla, with a smile, before she repeated plucking her feathers three more times; one from her left wing and two from her right, removing the energy from them, and giving them to Honeymaren, Emory and placing the last one on Elly's chest. "Well, if there's nothing else..." commented Kyla, prompting Anna to quickly recall the bait Kyla had casually dangled in front of her, but Anna was unwilling to question her about it, afraid of the possible answer.
"I'm done with questions." stated Anna. "My brain needs a break."
"Me too." added Honeymaren.
"Same." added Emory.
"Alright-" began Kyla, before Honeymaren gasped...
"Oh, wait! I just thought of something. Earlier, you said everyone is an angel in Heaven, right?"
"Yep." answered Kyla, prompting Anna to add...
"Oh, that's right. I think I know what Honeymaren is gonna ask."
The comment prompted a little chuckle from Honeymaren before she continued...
"If everyone is an angel there, then what happens if a demon goes there? Can they go there?"
"And fairies!" quickly added Anna. "Can fairies go to Heaven?"
"Hehe, I see where this is heading." replied Kyla with a smile. "Firstly, yes, everyone goes to Heaven, and yes, everyone becomes an angel. You leave your mortal form and become an angel. Like I said before, you're all humans to us; there's just different kinds of humans. But don't worry; you won't look the same as everyone else. A demon isn't stuck with white, feathered wings; they can go back to the wings their mortal body had. As a matter of fact, white, feathered wings are just a default. My wings could be black if I wanted them to be, or pink, purple, or red. It's like dyeing your hair."
"Huh..." commented Anna. "I never thought of that. Dyeing your wings a different color. You probably decorate them with jewelry, huh?"
"I don't, but yeah." answered Kyla.
"What about fairies." asked Honeymaren. "I haven't met one yet, but I hear they're small; are they still small in Heaven?"
"Yep, but they can change their size to match others." answered Kyla. "And the other way around for 'normal' sized people. People tend to stick with what they're familiar with, but the option is there."
"So you could make yourself fairy-sized?" asked Anna with a smile.
"Yep." answered Kyla.
"Could you show me- I mean, us?" asked Honeymaren eagerly; however, as Kyla opened her mouth to answer, Honeymaren added, hesitantly, "Wait, would that ruin my first meeting with a real fairy?"
"You won't remember it." commented Kyla.
"Oh, that's right." replied Honeymaren with a smile. "So, would you mind showing us you as a fairy?"
"I don't mind at all." answered Kyla with a smile back, before revealing her wings again, then earning smiles from all three, though Honeymaren in particular when, in the blink of an eye, Kyla shrank to fairy-sized, hovering in the air.
However, Kyla's clothing didn't shrink with her and fell to the floor, prompting an embarrassed gasp from Kyla as she quickly flew down to cover herself.
"I forgot these don't change sizes!" declared Kyla, prompting giggles from the three, before Honeymaren left the bed and lowered herself on her hands and knees, looking at Kyla.
"That's amazing! You look so cute!"
"Well, I'm glad you like it." replied Kyla, with an embarrassed smile. "Unfortunately, without proper clothes, I'll need to change back soon. I prefer my normal size, so most of my clothing doesn't change size. That slipped my mind."
"That's fine." stated Honeymaren. "You're so small. Heh, you remind me of Bruni."
"Whose Bruni?" asked Kyla.
"He's the fire spirit back home." answered Honeymaren. "He's a little blue lizard."
"Oh."
"Can I hold you?" asked Honeymaren, which prompted Kyla to avert her gaze hesitantly.
"Hmm, I'd normally say no, but since you won't remember this, alright, just for a little."
"Ok, so, should I just scoop you up with your clothes?"
"Yeah, you can do that." answered Kyla, before Honeymaren did just that, prompting Kyla to be briefly swallowed into the bundle of clothing before climbing out of, though keeping her front covered with a piece of her clothing while she sat down, as Honeymaren happily admired her.
"Wow, you were our size just moments ago, and now you fit in my hands." commented Honeymaren, before shifting her hands to hold Kyla and her clothes in her left hand as she moved her free hand towards Kyla, though the angel quickly swatted away her hand, with both her hand and wing.
"No pets! I don't do pets." stated Kyla.
"Oh, ok. Sorry." replied Honeymaren, before admiring Kyla for a few seconds more before lowering her back down on the floor. "Thanks for letting me hold you."
"You're welcome." stated Kyla, before standing, using her hands to cover her chest and crotch, before flying out her clothes and with her back to the three. Kyla then returned to her normal size and retracted her wings, which Anna noticed there was no tattoo on her back, like there was for Silvia; her wings seemingly came from nothing, before Kyla reached down and picked up her clothes to put them back on, top first, then her pants, before turning to face them, her face a little red. "Well then, any other last-minute questions?" she asked, prompting the three to hum briefly in thought before Anna spoke up...
"I do; just a quick one, hopefully. Earlier, you said angels can be reborn as humans. Does that mean there could be humans among us now that were angels before?"
"Absolutely." answered Kyla. "In fact, any one of you or all of you could've been angels."
"Seriously!?" asked Anna happily. "Could yo-" she added, before Kyla cut in with a smirk...
"Ah, ah, but don't ask me to check; that's something we're not allowed to reveal. The whole point is to live as humans, not think about your previous life as a possible angel."
"I guess that makes sense." replied Anna with a smile. "What would I even do with that information?"
"Right..." answered Kyla, though averting her gaze and commenting to herself. "Hmm, but I kinda messed up saying you could be, putting the idea in your heads, but it's the confirmation that matters. Oh well, I'll be wiping your memory anyway." she commented, before looking to Anna and Honeymaren. "Well then, if there's nothing else, the two of you lay back and close your eyes." stated Kyla. "I'll do the same thing I did to Elly. Once I leave, you'll wake up with no memory of this meeting."
"Alright." replied Anna, as she lay back on the bed, although Anna quickly sits up with a gasp. "Oh, before you leave, can I hug you?"
"Heh, sure." replied Kyla, extending her arms. "I love hugs."
Anna eagerly stood and hugged Kyla, who was soon joined by Honeymaren standing.
"Heh, group hug?" asked Kyla, "Come on, bring it in." she added, which prompted Emory to also stand, and the three all happily hugged Kyla before returning to the bed and giving their goodbyes as Anna and Honeymaren lay down and close their eyes. "Goodbye to you too." replied Kyla, before stepping towards Anna leaning over her and placing her index finger to Anna's forehead and pulling a similar wispy energy from her head that she did for Elly and blowing it out, and repeating it for Honeymaren. "Alright then. Any final thoughts or quick questions before I go?" asked Kyla to Emory.
"Hmmm..." hummed Emory in thought. "Oh, would I be able to meet you again?"
"Hmm, probably not." answered Kyla. "I don't visit very often for leisure, and when I do, it's very specific places, which isn't here; too many humans."
"Oh, so a place like Kaleen?" asked Emory. "Where there's more of the other kinds of humans that aren't religious, or at least in comparison to a place like this?
"Yeah."
"Well, that's disappointing." sighed Emory, before smiling. "Still, it was nice meeting you again. I got to learn a lot of stuff too."
"Same here." stated Kyla, with a smile. "I won't say it's impossible that we won't meet again in your life, though. We'll meet again in the Silver City eventually, though, that's a certainty. Along with your friends."
"That's nice to know." stated Emory.
"Although..." commented Kyla with a hum. "If you're okay with not me specifically and just interested in an angel you can talk to for whatever reason, I have a friend who likes interacting with humans. I can mention you and see if she'd be interested in hanging out with you and your friends."
"You'd really do that?" asked Emory.
"Sure. We're not forbidden from interacting with humans. We just can't meddle with human affairs much, especially around highly religious groups of humans. Don't want a town of mind-broken, crazed humans running around. Most of us just prefer not to interact with you for various reasons. I'm one of them, simply because of issues that can come up that I don't want to deal with or be responsible for."
"What about the whole mind-breaking thing with your friend, then?" asked Emory.
"That's her issue to deal with if it comes up." replied Kyla. "She won't wipe the meeting from you or your friends minds, though, not without good reason, anyway, so if she does visit, your friends will remember her. I'm just really cautious." she added, before smirking. "She's also quite a talker if you get her going, though. I only blabbered on because your friends agreed to have their memory wiped."
"Well, thanks. I'm sure the others would love to meet your friend and remember her."
"Heh, well then..." commented Kyla before opening the glowing portal back to her home, before Emory gasped...
"Oh wait! I have one more, final question!"
"Alright." replied Kyla with a smile.
"How did you invade my memory and speak to us through it?"
"Ahh, that." stated Kyla, followed by a light chuckle. "Well, to put it simply, what you did is like making another me, and because of our nature, that has weird effects on me. I was minding my own business in my room when I suddenly found myself reliving a memory. I was seeing both my room and the memory. So I traced the memory to its source and saw you all. Basically, we were briefly linked, and I followed it to you. Don't worry, your memory is intact."
"Oh, so I don't have to worry about that happening again, then?" asked Emory with a smile. "It kinda freaked me out."
"Not unless you meet another with a degree of omnipresence." answered Kyla. "Currently, only us angels have that. So, you're safe. Just reserve the memory for your own head; don't display it like you did."
"Alright, thanks." replied Emory. "That's all I have to ask."
"Alright. Seeya when ya die!" she added happily, prompting a chuckle from Emory as she waved goodbye, before Kyla walked through the portal, which closed immediately after she passed through it.
Just moments following the angel's departure, Honeymaren, Anna, and Elly all stirred as they woke up.
"Huh?" commented Anna, as she opened her eyes to see the ceiling and sat up, along with Honeymaren and Elly. "What happened? When did I fall asleep?" she added, before noticing a large white feather held in her right hand. "And where'd this giant feather come from?" she added, before Honeymaren also noticed the same feather in her hand along with Emory and Elly holding one...
"We all have one."
"Weird." stated Elly. "I don't remember carrying a giant feather with me." she added, before Emory chuckled and lay back on the bed with a sigh.
"Oh, do I have a story to tell you guys. What's the last thing you remember?"
"Well..." started Anna. "Elly reminded me of something I wanted to ask you about. She said that you met an angel, and since you can show memories, I was hoping you could show us that meeting. You agreed; we sat on the bed and... now I'm waking up."
"Same." added Elly and Honeymaren.
"Well, what if I told you, not only did I show you the memory, but the angel came to meet us in person?" asked Emory.
"What!?" gasped the three, before Elly added...
"Then why don't we remember?"
"Well, she didn't like me showing the memory of me meeting her, so to prevent it from happening again, she came in person to make you forget seeing her. But you two were so excited to meet her that you asked to have a conversation with her, even if you wouldn't remember it."
"Whoa..." gasped Anna and Elly in awe, before Anna added, "So we actually met a real angel!?"
"Is this what the feather is!?" gasped Elly excitedly.
"Yep." answered Emory. "Anna asked for proof, even if she wouldn't remember. She removed any special magic from it, so it's a normal feather. She said my memory of her is just for me. I'm not allowed to show you the memory. So, you only have my word and the feather to go on to believe me."
"Wow..." commented Anna in awe as she lifted the feather to look at it. "Well, I don't believe you have any reason to lie."
"What did we talk about?" asked Elly. "Did we ask her about Heaven, or God?"
"Oh, what about the alternate realities!?" asked Anna. "Would the other Elsa and Anna go to the same Heaven that we do, or do they have their own? Ohhh, what if there's multiple versions of Heaven!?"
"Heh, we talked about a lot." answered Emory. "The alternate realities didn't come up, though, but some of it, you two couldn't handle and nearly fried your minds; well, Elly did succumb to it."
"Seriously?" asked Anna and Elly, before Anna added, "But you and Honeymaren were fine?"
"What happened to me?" asked Elly.
"Elly just passed out from the 'divine knowledge'." answered Emory. "Anna almost joined her. Honeymaren and I weren't affected, because we don't share the same religious belief that you two do."
"Oh... wait." replied Anna. "Honeymaren makes sense, but you don't share the same belief that there's a God and Heaven and stuff?"
"Nope."
"But we apparently met an angel." stated Anna.
"To me, angels are just a different race of people, like demons."
"Wow... well, I won't try to preach to you and try to convince you otherwise, but what did the angel say to cause our minds to be fried?"
"Actually, before your mind was wiped, you told me not to tell you."
"Really? Why?"
"You said you didn't want the knowledge if you couldn't tell anyone, and even if you did, they wouldn't believe you and call you crazy, even Elsa."
"Seriously?" asked Anna and Elly, before Anna added, "Now I'm even more curious what it is."
"You told me yourself not to tell you." stated Emory, before sitting up and offering her right hand. "If you don't believe me, wanna check yourself?"
"No, no, I believe you, but wow, it must've been something crazy if I told you not to tell me." stated Anna.
"What about me?" asked Elly.
"You were passed out at the time." answered Emory. "But if you really wanna know, I'll tell you in private, since I'll honor what Anna told me in not telling her."
"Oh, well... if it's something that made me pass out just hearing it, then I'll pass." replied Elly, before Honeymaren chimed in, asking...
"Is there anything you can tell us?"
"I can." answered Emory. "Anna actually requested it. The angel, whose name was Kyla, revealed that everyone on the planet has the potential to use magic; most just never unlock that potential. Also, I didn't give you, Elsa or Cassandra, magic; I just made it easier for you to access it."
"Whoa, really!?" gasped Anna and Elly, before Anna added, "Well, that kinda makes sense; with how many people we've already encountered with magic, it seems more common than rare. I mean, there's the Rock Trolls; they can turn themselves into rocks at the very least, and Pabbie can alter memories. Our town just lacks magical people."
"If you can bring out people's magic potential..." stated Elly excitedly, "Then that means I could have magic!?"
"That's what Kyla said." answered Emory with a smile.
"Oh wow... b-but I shouldn't just immediately jump at this." stated Elly. "I should think about this... do I 'really' want magic? Could I control it if I had it? Would I change because of it? What if I'm a danger to other people..."
The others chuckled at Elly's vocal thoughts, before Anna placed a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her spiral of thoughts.
"Hey, there's no rush; Emory's not going anywhere. Just take your time thinking about it."
"Heh, right..." replied Elly. "Besides, I've made it this far without magic. Oh, Emory, did the angel mention how we could unlock our potential ourselves?"
"Unfortunately no." answered Emory. "That didn't come up. Another topic came up, though: a person doesn't have to die to go to Heaven."
"Seriously!?" gasped Anna and Elly.
"Yep, but the only way to get there that way without dying is for an angel to take you there personally."
"Wow." stated Anna and Elly, who added, "Heh, and I'm sure that's not happening without a VERY good reason."
"Kyla was ok with it." replied Emory. "She just said you wouldn't be able to see anything, so there wouldn't really be a point."
"Why not?" asked Anna.
"Uh... that's getting into what you told me not to tell you." answered Emory.
"Seriously?" asked Anna, before chuckling. "What? Is Heaven not what we think it is or something, and our minds can't handle it?"
"Heh, something like that." answered Emory, prompting a wide-eyed look of surprise to come to Anna and Elly's faces.
"Seriously!?" asked the two, which Emory only smiled, before Honeymaren asked...
"So, is there anything else you can tell us without frying our brains; well, Anna and Elly's brains?"
"Well, Kyla allowed us to ask one question each." answered Emory. "Anna asked if someone could go to Heaven without dying; you asked her what her name was; mine was for some 'divine knowledge', which I can't share because of the whole fried brain issue, and Anna asked me not to tell her, but Elly..." explained Emory, before chuckling a little as she reached Elly. "Elly asked her if she could have sex."
"What!?" gasped Elly, red-faced, while Honeymaren and Anna giggled at the reveal.
"Seriously!?" asked Anna, looking to her embarrassed friend, who quickly replied...
"You have to be messing with me! Why would I ask an angel that!?"
"Hehe, yanno, it's funny: Anna had a similar reaction." stated Emory. "But you just said, 'You're not curious?'" she added, prompting Elly to groan and fall back, covering her face with her hands.
"That's so embarrassing!" declared Elly, before Anna asked...
"Well, what was the answer?"
"She can have sex." answered Emory.
"Well, that's oddly comforting." stated Anna with a smile. "I don't know where it came from, but I kinda thought once you go to Heaven, you 'grow out of' sexual desire. But if angels can have sex, I don't need to worry about that when me and Elsa go..." she added, though trailed off as her smile faded, though Emory smiled and commented...
"Same-sex couples are fine."
"R-Really!?" gasped Anna delightfully as she looked at Emory. "The angel said that?" she added, before Elly also sat up with interest.
"Yep." answered Emory. "Although incest didn't come up, she said the only thing that mattered was consent."
"Well, consent is definitely the most important thing." stated Anna, before Elly added...
"But that's also, definitely surprising."
Honeymaren then chimed in with a smile...
"Maybe this Heaven place isn't as strict as you thought."
"Heh, yeah..." chuckled Anna. "Like only needing a 'B', but you're going for the 'A'."
"Yeah..." added Elly. "Why settle for a 'B', though, when you get so much more satisfaction from the 'A'?"
"Hehe, well..." stated Emory. "One final thing I can say is that after Kyla put you all to sleep, I asked if I could meet her again, and while she said it's not likely, she's not the type to randomly hang out with humans; she'll mention it to a friend of hers that likes being around us humans, so there's a possibility in the future you all could meet an angel and remember it."
"Ohh, seriously!?" Asked Anna and Elly, delightfully.
"Yep. She didn't give a time frame though, so it'll be a surprise if it happens." answered Emory.
"Well, I'll look forward to that day." replied Anna, before Elly added...
"I hope you don't forget about me when you meet the angel."
"I hope I don't either." replied Anna.
"Well..." stated Emory. "I have nothing else to say about the meeting."
"Alright then." replied Anna, before standing, followed by Elly. "I'll leave you to whatever it was you were doing before we came, and I'll show Elsa this angel feather." she added delightfully as she lifted the feather."
"Me too." added Elly. "I'll show mine to Izzy."
"Alright." replied Emory, as she gave a wave of the hand. "I'll see you later."
"Seeya." stated Anna and Elly, as they also gave a farewell wave and left the room.
"By the way, Emory..." stated Honeymaren, drawing Emory's gaze. "I have some good news about back home. Anna went to check what the others thought about you."
"R-Really?" asked Emory, nervously. "You said it was good news?" she added, with a little smile.
"Yep, everyone's just worried about you; they don't think less of you."
"Really?" repeated Emory with a big smile, and following Honeymaren's 'yep', Emory leaned back with a satisfied sigh. "Ohhh... that just takes a weight off my shoulders. Thanks for telling me that."
"You're welcome." replied Honeymaren with a smile.
"I'll make sure to thank Anna too, the next time we meet.
- Meanwhile, outside Emory's room -
"We actually met an angel." stated Elly, as she and Anna walked together from Emory and Honeymaren's room as she held the feather out in front of her.
"Yeah... even if we don't remember it, we have these feathers. I wonder how long they'll last."
"Well, normal feathers can last pretty long if you keep them safe and don't mess with them." replied Elly, "My mom had a feather she had since she was a kid and kept it because she liked the pattern it had, but one day, she accidentally snapped it in half moving something, so she ended up throwing it away."
"Wow, but how can I not touch an angel's feather?" asked Anna. "It's so tempting." she added, as she trailed a finger along the edge of the feather.
"Heh, yeah, just putting it somewhere and just looking and not touching? Ugh..."
"Yeah... but it's not like these are common feathers. As far as we know, there's only four of these feathers in the world. We should make sure they last as long as they can." stated Anna.
"You're certainly right about that." commented Elly, before sighing, "Still can't believe I asked an angel if she could have sex. What was I thinking!?"
"Hehe, well, it's a neat piece of information." chuckled Anna. "Sex still exists in Heaven. Makes me wonder what else is there that we humans enjoy. How crazy would it be if Heaven isn't this spotless, pure place we've been told it is? Like, could you still do bad things in Heaven?"
"Why would you want to?" asked Elly.
"You still have free will in Heaven, right?" stated Anna. "If you have free will, then technically, you can still do bad things. Which would mean Heaven has some sort of laws or rules to keep people in check or punish them. Ohh, could you be kicked out of heaven and into Hell?"
"Well, that's what happened to the Devil." commented Elly.
"Ohhh, you're right. Heh, maybe Heaven is more normal than we thought."
"Maybe." replied Elly with a smile.
- 4:46 P.M. -
- Elsa's Room -
"Well, someone's happy." commented Elsa, sitting near her desk as she watched Anna enter her room with a big grin on her face and her hands behind her.
"Oh, do I have something to tell you!" replied Anna delightfully as she walked towards Elsa.
"Heh, I'm guessing you told Emory about the trip yourself, and she took it well?" asked Elsa.
"Oh, no, I told Honeymaren; she'll tell her." answered Anna, before revealing her right hand and the feather, presenting it to Elsa. "Guess what this is!"
"A... feather?" answered Elsa curiously.
"Well, yeah, but guess where I got it from. I bet you can't!"
"And you'd be right." answered Elsa, with a smile. "That's the biggest feather I've seen, and it's so white. My closest guess would be a swan, but I know that's not right. I give up. What is it?"
"Hehehe." giggled Anna delightfully, before happily answering, "It's an angel's feather!"
The answer prompted a confused chuckle from Elsa, before she asked...
"Seriously, what is it?"
"An angel's feather." answered Anna. "I'm not kidding! It's a real angel's feather, apparently." she added, before offering the feather to Elsa, who takes it and gives it a quick once-over.
"It's just an abnormally large feather." stated Elsa.
"Because it's an angel's feather!" insisted Anna. "Ok, after I left, I ran into Elly, and she reminded me that Emory told her she met an angel once." added Anna, which piqued Elsa's interest with a raised brow, before glancing at the feather.
"Really? Emory said she met an angel?"
"Yep, and she said she was alive, so you don't have to ask that." answered Anna. "So, me, Elly, and Honeymaren head to Emory's room to ask her about it, and apparently, she showed us a memory of her meeting the angel, but then the angel came into the room in person, saying she didn't want Emory showing the memory to anyone and would wipe all our memory of meeting her, except Emory, but-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" gasped Elsa. "Wait, you're saying you actually met an angel!?"
"Apparently." stated Anna. "Emory told us before the angel- her name was Kyla, by the way; wiped our memory of meeting her, I convinced her to a chat, and asking questions. The answers must've been intense because Emory told me I told her not to reveal certain things 'cause it fried my brain during the time."
"Fried your brain?" asked Elsa.
"Yeah, Divine Knowledge is too much for our human brains, apparently." replied Anna. "Oh, and apparently, it was my idea to ask the angel for proof, so she gave each of us one of her feathers." she added, prompting Elsa to look at the feather again, with awe.
"Wow... it's still hard for me to believe, but if this really did happen, I'd like to meet the angel too."
"Not gonna happen, unfortunately." stated Anna. "The angel's a pretty private person, apparently. Emory's memory of her is only for her."
"Well, that's disappointing." replied Elsa.
"Tell me about it. I met her, but don't even remember it." stated Anna. "I just have what Emory tells me and the feather. But!" added Anna, with a smile, as she walked to and sat on Elsa's bed. "Emory said the angel said she would mention us to one of her friends that likes being around us humans, so there's a possibility we could meet an angel in the future."
"Really!?" gasped Elsa happily.
"Yep. Aside from a possible future meeting though, there are a couple of things Emory could tell me."
"Like what?" asked Elsa, eagerly.
END
ENDING NOTE: I know, I chickened out with the whole mind wipe thing. but I wasn't totally sure I wanted to commit to the 'divine truths' being retained and the consequences of it. So, I'll leave you the reader a question, Would you like to see more angels appear, particularly, Kyla's friend showing up, or is it too much of a leap and 'peek behind the curtain'? Obviously, the way it ends, I could just ignore the topic and Kyla's friend never appears and Kyla is just a one off, rare meeting. I'm unsure of which way to go. I'm fine with either, but sometimes, just because you have an idea, doesn't mean you have to do it.