She was home. Her reason told her it was, but deep down it did not feel like it.

Ayako walked slowly through the small street. Her eyes wandered over every building, every stall. She could see the familiar morning crowd, gathered like every day at the market. Meat, dairy, trinkets, seafood, and clothes sold around; all the sounds and smells were familiar. She could hear the townspeople bargaining, the baker was yelling that he had ready yet another batch of bread. Near the tavern stood a girl selling flowers, while near a stall a kid tried to snatch away an apple, only to be noticed and dragged away by his father.

This village had been her home for a long time now. She felt part of it; even if she did not reside in it, but at the outskirts. She knew this place like her own hand; but she had always been a lone wolf. She only took part when needed; everyone knew her, but she always stood at a side. She was a renowned hunter and healer, but she always managed to be unnoticed if she so wished. She walked carefully between the crowds; the robes she was wearing shadowed her face, and so, everyone assumed she was another farmer or patron. Her steps were decided; she had no time for shopping. Her hands hurt while holding the bag she was carrying. The closer she got to her destination at the end of the long street, the faster her heart went.

She could see it there. There was the building; a tall one, almost as big as the tavern next street. It was the last building at sight, separated of the rest at the end of a round plaza. It was Godric’s apothecary, where the humans who lived near this village went when sick. Not many people were skilled enough to be doctors; much less part of the guild they belonged to. This village was lucky to have both of those things.

A long sigh escaped her; she was now dreadfully aware of one fact, which she had pondered at her cabin. There was an angel in the region. An angel had fallen, one she knew she would not hunt, not even if her profession expected her to. If she did not kill, she wouldn’t hunt for a very long time. When an angel fell, it was for a reason, to end a demon; it would be very strange for another angel to fall at the same place, at the same time. It almost never happened. With Alexis here, she knew she would have to work as a healer, for as long as he stayed around.

Her eyes narrowed, glinting with conflict. She did not enjoy the hunt, but she knew it was necessary. Countless times she had helped the sick with those holy feathers, with the blood of angels. It was a necessary evil, against cold beings.

But he was not cold. She felt strange remembering the others she had hunted.

Her dark thoughts faded. She raised her gaze from the pavement, for she had the thick door of the apothecary in front of her. She slowly gripped the handle, and then began to push. She did not expect to see Godric right away, because they usually stayed in their office; however, it seemed that the apothecary was busier today, something unusual.

As soon as she opened the door, she was greeted by the familiar sound of someone groaning in discomfort, and the hurried steps of the one who had to deal with the sick. Her icy eyes blinked, she saw Cecilia and Godric there, at the side of a small bed near a fireplace; they were holding bandages and alcohol, and seemed to be struggling with a patient. Said man was sitting on said bed; instead of allowing the two healers to do their job, he was speaking loudly and holding his leg away.

“Don’t put alcohol! It’ll sting!”

Ayako leaned her head with an awkward raise of eyebrow at the infantile man. He was not alone; besides him where three other men, who were trying to reason with him. It looked like he had broken his leg and had been carried here, but he was refusing the aid.

“Lane, do us all a favor, and let them bandage you already.”

Lane, as Ayako assumed he was called, quickly barked at his companion. Godric was just staring motionless, bandages at hand, not stopping the men from arguing.

“If you hadn’t let me fall down a slope, I wouldn’t be here!”

“First, it was a bumpy road; with no light. Two, you were the one leading the group. It was your idea to walk in the night.”

“There is no difference in day and night! The daylight was just as gloomy; I just wanted to get things done. You were walking at my side; you could have warned me there was a slope right in front of me!”

Cecilia had enough; she rolled her eyes and gave up waiting for the four to act like adults. Godric made no objections when the girl turned and handed the bottle of alcohol over.

“Call me when I’m needed. I’ll be in the office, doing something more useful than staring.”

Ayako had been watching deadpanned, but as soon as she saw Cecilia walk away with no interest, she knew that somebody more capable had to step in. Godric blinked in wonder when they heard steps behind them; they turned and saw Ayako there, already holding another bottle of alcohol and a towel, making her way to the bed.

“Okay, what do we have here?”

Godric looked at her with surprise, and then commented with interest.

“You are back.”

She rolled her eyes, with her usual snarky grin.

“No, I’m still in the forest, frolicking around and picking flowers. Of course I’m back.” She turned her attention to the men, more serious. “What happened to these four? I only see what seems to be a broken or twisted leg; I don’t understand all the fuss.”

Godric was used to her way of speaking; so they only nodded, pleased that she had come back at last. She listened while her boss tried to explain more or less, calmly.

“It seems this unlucky group… had an accident while they were traveling the roads. A silly misstep.”

Lane stopped barking at his partners to correct Godric, in a meaningless detail he deemed necessary to clarify.

“That couldn’t be called a road. It was a patch of muddy dirt in the middle of nowhere; which led nowhere but to a freaking slope, in pitch darkness! One couldn’t even see the moon out there!”

The man shut up, because Ayako outstretched a hand towards him, with a firm stare. Under her strong glare, he had no other way than to feel compelled to let go of his leg and let it be grabbed by the strangely intimidating healer. Once allowed to get to work, Ayako decided to feed her curiosity, while she soaked a towel with alcohol.

“Haven’t seen you here before; did you get lost? I don’t recall any roads leading to dangerous drops around here.”

Lane hissed a little too dramatically when she pressed the towel on his scratched leg. His partners rolled their eyes and finally commented, more calm now that Lane had been hushed.

“We’re not from around here. We came from the south, from the neighboring town. We wanted to cross this village and keep going, but… things didn’t go as planned.”

“As we left, we took an eastern road. We wanted to get into the eastern region, so we did not try to push our cart along the dense northern forest. We thought we were on the right path to success.”

“Did you say cart?” Ayako raised an eyebrow at them. She glanced back at the door, while she took bandages from Godric’s hand. “I haven’t seen any carts parked out there.”

“That’s because we lost it.” Lane spoke again; he groaned, displeased with the memory and the fact his broken leg was being moved. “We had to leave it behind, there, between thorny trees and uneven hills. When I fell, I had been holding the reigns of our horse. It was startled as I tried to hold on, and began to kick back in fright. With all that, the cart ended up with a broken wheel. We couldn’t continue, or take it back; we don’t know these roads, we didn’t know how long it would take to get past that retched area. We came back here, empty handed; better than walking forward with nothing and with no idea of what lies ahead.”

Ayako finally took a step back, allowing the man to hold his leg again, now bandaged. She mussed to herself, knowing what place they talked of.

“No one knows how to travel safely through that area, to be honest. You were a little stupid to choose that path. No one lives there; no humans travel across it. There is no village to find, not for miles, not until you pass territory that is wandered by demons.”

Before Lane could make the mistake of barking at her, one of the other men was smart enough to speak first, much more calmly.

“We know it was not the smartest of plans, but we had to try. We don’t want to live as farmers our whole lives. These towns live with agriculture, there’s nothing to be known for other than growing crops or baking. We wanted to try to find a merchant or noble who could hire us; somewhere else.”

All of them commented at the same time, knowing one thing.

“We need our cart back. We had everything there.”

Ayako stared at them, thoughtfully. Her mind was busy, so she did not react much when Godric turned to her and let the men be.

“Now that this has been dealt with… I suppose you brought what I asked of you?”

She just nodded sideways, to a table where she dropped her bag.

“Right there, full of herbs. All yours.”

Godric smiled, proud of her work. They inspected the contents slowly, and then looked at her thankfully.

“Thanks, Ayako. It’s good to have you back here; we can always use your help.”

Ayako just nodded again, never looking away from a window. Little did Godric know that she was planning to leave again, very soon.

———–

 

They both took a step back and looked up in silence. They just stared, somewhat proud of themselves. A long contented sigh escaped Uriel, while Alexis crossed his arms with an eyebrow raised.

“I think we did a good job.”

“You think?”

Uriel shrugged with a silent chuckle at Alexis’ snarky remark. The angel snorted as well, and circled the wall of the cabin. He commented while he paced playfully, waving his hands at every detail.

“Not even the worst of storms will shake this thing!” He knocked on the thick wall made of logs, almost daring the weather to get worse. “We sank the wooden base deep in the ground and made the roof as thick as possible.”

Uriel held his chin in thought, and he could not avoid admitting something that would annoy Alexis.

“We did not give it any windows though.”

Alexis blinked and looked deadpanned at the cabin. There was a door, there was a small porch with small stairs, and three spacy rooms; but there were no windows. Quickly enough, he snarled and barked at the taller male.

“Well, it’s not easy for an architect to add that to the drafts, if there’s no glass available in the forest!”

“You’re not an architect.”

“I am a blacksmith! Close enough! Would like to see you measure all these walls, and plan how big each room should be!”

“You just hammered at every piece of wood I brought you…”

Uriel rolled his eyes with a smile, because Alexis huffed and whipped his head to a side with an entitled whisper.

“The work of a genius… so underrated and unappreciated.”

Alexis began to ramble while he stomped up the small porch they made. Uriel was looking at him silently, entertained by his exaggerated mumbles. He was the only one to blink and realize something, while the angel kept pacing.

Uriel slowly turned to look over his shoulder. His eyes had glee seconds ago, but now they filled with anxiousness and uncertainty. Alexis only stopped when he felt tension in the air, a sudden change of mood from Uriel. His amber eyes moved to look back at his demon, and finally saw why he sensed dread around him.

Uriel did not move, he said no word. He hoped her steps would head directly for the angel, but the longer he looked at her, the more he knew she was nearing towards him instead. Ayako was walking calmly, staring right at his violet eyes. She halted slowly in front of him, and that made him face her, reluctantly.

Alexis looked at the two with a faint frown, for she had an unreadable expression. Her eyes were narrowed, fixed on Uriel. He was sure that the demon’s heart skipped a beat when she spoke next, very close to him.

“I have question for you, Uriel.”

Uriel laid a claw on his chest, unconsciously feeling his own quickening heartbeat. It took him a lot to answer her, but he soon did with no doubt in his voice, even if her eyes never left his.

“Ask what you may.”

His heart was pounding. Her eyes held calculation and wonder. He couldn’t read her thoughts. He wondered why she was so direct to him now, why she was not greeting Alexis first, after being away for days. He could see that Alexis was tense, for angels could sense emotions around them.

It was only when she asked softly that they stopped fearing her decisiveness, slightly.

“You live in the eastern woods, don’t you?”

She may have not remembered anything dangerous, and they may be thankful that the question was harmless enough, but they still felt wary. Uriel admitted slowly with a bow of head. That place still haunted them; her thoughtful gaze only told them they would have to acknowledge it.

She took another step; she was not touching him yet. If she had only laid a hand on him, she would have felt his heart stop when she whispered.

“I have a favor to ask.”

————–

“You want me to… lead you?”

Ayako nodded somberly, sitting at the steps of the porch. Uriel was just staring at her, like if she had said the most unbelievable thing ever.

“Humans don’t tend to wander your territory; it’s too remote and labyrinthine for us. I think it’s yours anyway, judging by all that Alexis has told me.”

Uriel gave Alexis a side-glance and a raise of eyebrow, but the angel just shrugged it off, resting with his arms crossed against the wall of the cabin. The demon sighed and tried to reason with Ayako, who was looking up at him with hope and interest.

“It is the place that I call home, indeed; a dark place to live, crooked and corroded. Calling it my territory would be farfetched; I don’t scuffle with other demons for it. I can’t comprehend why these men would want to cross it. It’s risky if you don’t know which paths to take, all are hidden in shadows.”

“That’s why I asked you.”

Ayako stood up and gave the apprehensive demon an intense stare. There was trust in those icy eyes, something he found hard to look at. Even if he avoided eye contact, she kept asking, knowing he had a good heart.

“If someone knows their way there, it’s you, Uriel. I would lead them myself, but I have only ventured there lightly; I have no real knowledge of how to reach the east without altercations. They left a cart there, very valuable, with all the resources they have. How could I lead a cart between sharp trees and narrow paths? How can I know I won’t bring them right into the home of devils? With your help, I can be sure they reach safety. I know I’m asking a lot and that I already owe you one, but I need your help again, please. I could pay you for the trouble, if you want to.”

Uriel saw her hand move, suddenly even if slowly. She was reaching for one of his claws, to hold it and ask more closely. He did not let her. Alexis frowned, he saw it coming; Uriel lowered her hand away from his, ever all gently.

“I appreciate that you trust me, but I don’t think it’s a good idea, Ayako. There’s no need of payment. You’re better off-”

“Uriel, just do it.” Uriel looked sideways with a scowl; he was not surprised to see Alexis there, glaring at him with that usual annoyance of his. The angel was giving him a raise of eyebrow, mocking and taunting him. “You just have to walk through, with some guys following your tail. We both know that it’s not that hard, if one follows certain directions; doesn’t take much brain or effort.”

Uriel glared, not appreciating Alexis’ dismissal. He knew where to attack, and he voiced what he knew would throw Alexis off.

“Easy, you say?” He crossed his arms, and Ayako was surprised to see him manage to unnerve Alexis. “Why don’t you lead them, genius? You remember the way; I made sure to show it clearly to you. Maybe you can even lead them better.”

“What, me?” Alexis stuttered and visibly averted his now nervous glare. “I can’t. I’m n-not getting near some humans.”

“Hmm.” Uriel smiled faintly, not gleefully. He did not enjoy proving his point, or giving Alexis those thoughts. “We share the same concern then. We both don’t think we should approach humans, even if for different reasons.”

Ayako pouted at them both, not getting their apprehension towards her race.

“Hey, what is wrong with us, if it’s alright to ask?” She tapped a foot on the ground, somewhat skeptical of their sudden hesitation. “You’re not going to tell me now that you hate humans, right?”

Alexis muttered under his breath and leaned away against the wall of the cabin, which shadowed his grumpy scowl.

“If I hated you, I would have kicked you out already.”

Uriel raised a nail up and pointed at Alexis with a tired sigh.

“He does not hate humans, and neither do I.” He fumbled with his claws, finding it awkward to clarify. “It’s something… complex. We both would prefer to not be seen.”

Ayako knew. She slowly looked back to Alexis, and her expression twisted, with incredulity and pity at the same time. She spoke, no matter how grim it was.

“It is true you are an angel. But, Alexis, we humans can’t figure it out.”

Alexis’ looked at her; he sent her a glare without moving, and then commented plainly.

“You did.”

He was now touching one of his shoulders with a hand, staring without emotion at her. There was no anger or resent, just plain truth. She knew that those amber eyes showed only the fear of others seeing those scars, the clue of his true self.

“I didn’t figure it out, I was told.” She nodded at Uriel, trying to calm the anxiousness Alexis had. “Hadn’t Uriel appeared that day before my eyes, I would still believe you were a simple hermit. I’m a hunter, familiar with the wings of your kind, yet I had no clue then. What makes you think that simple merchants will think you are heavenly?”

Alexis gave her a funny look, out of his dark thoughts for a moment.

“Did you just call me heavenly?”

She shrugged, and then began to count with her fingers. Alexis stared pokerfaced while she twisted the facts she knew of him.

“Well: fallen from the sky and with no evident concussions, alive even if previously mauled and severed, with blood able to heal any ailment, an outstanding stubbornness to do anything, clueless of the magic that flows deep inside, a sharp eyesight concealed in that silly expression, a complex metabolism able to make you look like a twig, fast reflexes to aid your nervous outbursts, a disbelieving strength-”

Before she could keep going, a claw lied softly on her mouth and silenced her long rant. She blinked up at Uriel, there, smiling and chuckling nervously while he begged her to keep quiet.

“Ayako, I think you shouldn’t give him reasons to begin hating.”

If Alexis didn’t by now, he looked very close to it. One of his is thick eyebrows was twitching, and his fists were clenched, even if he was grinning. With the silence Uriel brought, Alexis decided to take a deep breath and exhale, instead of yelling at her what he thought of her and her loud mouth. With a smile and a cocky lean of head, he calmly shut the conversation; at least on his part.

“Back to the point… Good luck convincing this stubborn demon to do what you need. You’re going to need it, because I’m done talking.”

With a huff and a proud shake of head, Alexis continued to lean there against the wall, this time like if he was alone. Uriel was staring at his angel, so he was surprised to feel an unexpected touch. Before he knew it, Ayako had grabbed the claw he had laid on her mouth, and had lowered it gently. He tensed, because she was not letting go of it. She took her chance to take his hand, and it was obvious she was not letting go until she said all she wanted. They were close now, right where she wanted him to be, but where he did not.

“Why do you feel like you shouldn’t?”

Her question was soft. He was not being forced to answer; he could see it in her expression. If he wanted, he could take his claw out of her hold and stay silent. But he did not. With a sad expression, he smiled down at her. And unreadable feeling was in his eyes, yet only Alexis knew what it was.

“Ayako, he may be able to hide his true self, easily. It is not humans who inflict fear in me; it is me who they should be afraid of.” He grinned sadly, making sure to show his sharp fangs. He tightened his claw around her hand, careful to not cut her with his nails. He leaned, and his horns towered over her. His eyes glinted, even if shadowed by his hair now. His whisper was dark, even if not malevolent. “I’m very surprised you haven’t gone away…”

She showed no fear. She didn’t budge. He was not surprised when she grinned too, with a little defiant stance and giggle.

“Should I? Will you give me any reason?”

He closed his eyes and shook his head, still amazed by her poised and fearless soul.

“I hope not. Maybe you should run, but you wouldn’t.” He stood upright and took a deep breath before he continued. “I would gladly aid you and this group you talk of, Ayako. I really would, and I’m sure you believe my word. The question is: would they follow someone like me?”

She looked down for a second. Just for a second. She snapped her head up, and looked him deep in the eyes.

“I’ll make sure they do. And if they don’t, let it be their loss.”

Uriel gave her a warm smile. He let go of her hand, and then gave her a caring bow of head.

“Very well. My desire to help you is stronger than my restlessness.”

She beamed. She bounced on her feet and clapped her hands in excitement.

“Does that mean you’ll do it?”

He nodded again, this time a little more shy under her joyful stare. It only made her cheer under her breath and get even chirpier.

“Great! Thank you, Uriel! I knew I could count on you!” She began to pace, thinking things through, muttering to herself. “I’ll have to go back, and tell them the good news! But they can’t come here into this forest to meet you… it would be a waste of time and an unnecessary trip!”

Uriel tried to add, knowing they couldn’t just meet them in her village either.

“Any place between here and your home in which we can wait?”

He knew already; there was a place he bowed to never visit again. But he knew he should better not let her know that.

“Actually, yes.” She pointed south, to the cabin where she lived, and where he stole her of what she loved most. “I don’t actually live in that village. I have a cabin in the outskirts. Just follow the river, until you stop being surrounded by trees. Leave the forest, and seek a small hill; don’t go past it. You should come across a small path, and if you follow it, my home.”

“How many days do we have until we must part towards your place?”

Hearing that, Alexis blinked. He lifted his gaze and gave Uriel a dumb faced look.

“Wait, wait, wait…” He raised an eyebrow and pointed a finger, while his surprise turned into suspicion. “Did you just say, we?”

Uriel leaned his head, confused by his angel.

“I don’t understand your question. What is the problem with-”

“I mean…” Alexis finally pushed himself off the wall, and then laughed while he waved a hand in a faked casual motion. “I must have heard wrong, but I thought you just implied that we both would go to this silly trip.”

Uriel’s gaze became more intense. Both stared for a minute, both imagining what the other was thinking. The demon was the one to voice his thoughts more firmly.

“You did not hear anything wrong. You’re coming too.”

Alexis did not move or change of expression, yet his reaction was clear in his now serious eyes. The angel finally growled, visibly upset by the stern look the demon was giving him.

“No. Way. I made clear already that I was not getting near any humans other than her.” He scoffed and swayed his hand at them both, looking away proudly. “You both have fun, I’m glad you reached an agreement; but I will stay. I’ll have a little break, with no distractions brought by maddening women or whinny demons.”

Uriel knew that an argument was about to start. So he chose to not have part in it. Alexis and Ayako watched perplexed as Uriel began to walk away, only saying one last thing.

“We leave in two days, enough time for her to reach her village and prepare the men. Pack whatever you need to bring along, Alexis.”

Alexis was left there, with his mouth open and his arms down in disbelief. Before he could yell at his demon, the human taunted him.

“It seems you won’t be the one to choose when to take a break…”

Alexis growled and puffed his chest. He barked at her, not amused.

“I’m NOT going, Aya.” He stormed into the cabin he built, intending on staying there. “I won’t be in that stupid cabin of yours in three days! So, move along; see you!”

She rolled her eyes, knowing well he would be there.

It was not like she wanted to force him to be near humans… but she knew he could not be left alone. Most demons thought of angels as prey, and their absence would be a golden opportunity; even if there was only a slim chance of it happening. She was sure he would not agree to be left alone with Lykaios; she was certain that he did not trust him yet. Uriel would not accept a no for an answer.

With a sigh, and a grateful look towards Uriel’s general direction… she began to make her way back, thinking already of how she would return the favor.