Two small violet glows glinted in the shadows. A claw shook and moved subtly. Slow but heavy breaths echoed in the stony room. A big figure was leaning onto the steps of a fireplace, trying to not crumble down.

Uriel’s fangs showed each time he breathed through his mouth; his vision was foggy. He was propped against the steps; one of his hands held them, while the other brushed his chest. His heartbeat was fast and uneven, like his thoughts.

God, I went too far this time…

The demon’s tail tried to move up, to help him balance himself, in order to stand. But no matter how many times he tried to get up, he always sat back down, utterly exhausted.

He had woken up just an hour ago. He had no clue of how much time he had been asleep. But he knew something. He had gone too far, he had haunted that armor for too long. He drained himself and refused to let go. He had been able to stand it, because he only limited himself to watch the clearing, not move. He only moved and used more energy when it was needed. It was bearable… until the storm hit. He ran to aid his angel. He was always weary and ready, for anything. He used all his strength to push that heavy log away. His mind and body struggled to keep themselves bound to the armor, so far away. The spell made him feel like his soul was torn and ripped. He had to let go, he did not hold on for long. It had been too painful to keep being there. It was added to the unending pulse of his heart, to the spell he suffered since the angel fell. He surrendered to the exhaustion.

It had hurt. But he did not regret it. He fainted, but before his vision turned foggy and the armor crumbled… he saw his eyes. Then it all went black.

He helped him. His angel would have not managed to save that animal without his interference. He did not want any gratefulness though; he still did not deserve it. But he saw it, in his eyes. And somehow, it loosened the ache he felt.

Uriel stopped trying to stand up, and resigned to sit on the steps of his room. He focused on his breathing and tried to calm down. He would not go far if he kept on trying to get up blindly. He wouldn’t be able to haunt that armor again, not until he cleared his mind of worrisome thoughts and exhaustion. He wouldn’t be able to see if he was needed if he kept on struggling.

Has the storm faded? Is the area still struck by lightning? Is he safe?

He had to be. He had been fainted for a long time, but he still felt the spell, the reminder of his bond.

But is he alright?

He only had one way to know it, by controlling that armor. But to do that, he had to wait. And god, did it pain him to wait. He wanted to plunge his mind into the coldness of that inanimate body again, he wished to make his eyes glint with his will, and feel his soul flow with the spell, which could allow him to be there without really being.

He just wanted to see him. So he waited patiently for his breaths to be steadier, instead of raspy and labored. He waited for his heartbeat to slow down, for his body to relax, and for his scars to stop aching. He buried his face onto his claw, and brushed his eyes to stay awake.

He was a demon; he did not need to rest like a human. Though, he would be lying if he said he would not like some sleep. He would rest later, once he was sure everything was fine. He could rest slightly once he controlled that thing, he could save energy if he did not move much. He had no time for sleep now.

With that reassurance, he waited. Until he stopped feeling pained and tired. He took a deep breath, and reached in mind for the place he wished to be.

His spells were powerful. But painful as well.

————————————————————————–

His thoughts were calm. It was a quiet evening.

Alexis was smiling faintly, while he let himself float in the lake. His fingers brushed the water as he lied back onto the flow. He did not struggle against the small current, he let it caress him. Abiel was sitting peacefully, watching him drift from the shore.

He had not thought of it before. Not since he almost drowned. His wings had pulled him down, and had almost made him perish underwater. He had pondered trying this since he came back, but he had not dared. He still believed that he had not changed; something quite stupid. He kept thinking he was bound to the limits of his former self.

I am not the same.

He let out a small and sad snort, but he kept smiling. There was a saying: “When god closes a door, he leaves another open.”

For me though? It was more like if god had slammed the door on my face, and then shoved me head first through an iron gate.

He opened his eyes again and looked up at the blue sky, which was concealed by the green branches of the trees, all looming around the lake. He raised a hand over his face and stared at it; he let the droplets of water fall onto his cheeks and eyelids.

He knew how to swim. His wings did not keep him from doing that if his feet reached the bottom.

But can I let myself sink?

His mind pounded with the memory of his wings dangling like ropes, tying him down deep, and keeping him from reaching the air he needed to live. He remembered how they suffocated him.

He remembered. But he knew he was not the same anymore. His figure leaned slowly; he took a deep breath…

Two violet glows glinted in the shadows, while a black heavy armor wandered into the scene. Uriel halted the steps of the marionette when he saw the lake, as clear as its blue water. His angel seemed to fly in it; his amber eyes were full of wonder, with no hesitation or doubt. Abiel let out a startled growl when the armor stepped behind him, but the demon paid no mind to his puffed fur. He was too entranced to care. He could not look away from Alexis; he could not stop watching him swim, not even as he sat the armor on a nearby log.

Alexis was swimming near the surface. He was drifting in circles, slowly, to make sure this was a wise idea. He gave two kicks to swim up, after having sunk a little… and then reached upwards with a hand. He easily reached the air; his fingers sensed the cold he always felt when he came out of water.

He smiled with true enjoyment since he lost everything. He barely found any resistance from the water when he kicked and moved his arms to sink himself more. He did not bother to search for shells. If he did not have to hold his breath, he would have laughed.

This brought him memories. But it was different at the same time. He had enough with this.

Abiel gave a strong poke to one of the armor’s legs, while he glared up at it. He did not expect those violet glows to move and fix down on him, sideways. Uriel stopped looking at Alexis for a moment, to lean and look at the rabbit instead, which let out a small weary growl. Abiel could not see any emotion on that helmet, and could not know that Uriel was only looking at him with curiosity. The demon wanted to calm the animal; he would have lowered a gauntlet for him to sniff at. However, Uriel did nothing but look back at the water, when a splash echoed.

Alexis broke the surface and gasped loudly to take air. Uriel did not know what to feel when he heard his laughter. He saw his angel let himself fall backwards and float above again; he stopped swimming, to drift instead.

Alexis grinned and laid his hands onto his face. His shoulders trembled, overwhelmed by his state of mind. He felt emotions that he could not pinpoint. But he would be lying, if he said that he had not loved to try this.

He floated there for a full minute, with his hands onto his eyes, letting everything sink in. He only reacted when he heard a small growl. He raised an eyebrow and leaned his head to a side, to glance at the shore. His eyes widened for a second, because they saw that an armor was sitting on a log, not too far. He realized that there were violet glows in its helmet, and that they were fixed, right at him.

Alexis yelped and let himself sink; he hid as much as he could in the water without dipping his eyes, with an obvious blush on his face. Uriel would have rolled his eyes if he could… because he saw how the blond rushed to swim to shore, underwater, to not let himself be seen. It was not like he was not wearing anything, he had been swimming with his pants. Still, a hand splashed out of the water and patted the shore nervously to grab the shirt that lied nearby.

Uriel looked at Abiel while Alexis pushed himself out of the water and put his shirt on. Alexis hurried to dress, no matter if Uriel had seen his chest plenty of times when he was wounded. What made him this nervous was showing his scars; he hated that anyone saw them. He was fast to cover himself with his cape as well, even if his shirt covered his shoulders enough.

Once Alexis relaxed and pushed his unease aside, he huffed and tried to blow away his long black hairs out of his face. He resigned to slick all his hair back with a hand, to be able to see, still soaked. He had not brought any cloth to dry with, because the idea of swimming had come while he fished. It was an impulse.

His amber eyes moved, and finally met those violet glints. The angel stood by the shore, unsure, while the demon kept himself sat on the log near the trees, with no emotion to be seen. Everything was silent, until one of them decided to make the first move.

Alexis smiled slightly and calmly. He took a first step away from the lake, towards his pet and the armor. He spoke with a sarcastic tone.

“Now you won’t have to bother sinking that rusty thing into the lake.”

His voice did not have a single trace of malice.

Uriel gave a measured nod, and watched his angel approach slowly. Alexis did not flinch when his demon grabbed the spear he always carried. The words were scribbled slowly and clumsily, but were thankfully read.

“I didn’t know you could swim.”

Alexis had neared all the way. He pulled at his blond hair to get rid of the water, with a thoughtful look on his face. He ended up shrugging slightly to answer Uriel, with a frown.

“Neither did I.”

Again, a painful silence fell.

Alexis sighed and surrendered on trying to keep his hair how he liked. It had grown since he lost his wings, and he had been too sullen to bother to cut it; with the weight of the water, it hanged down more than usual, less spiky at its ends. He could probably tie it in a ponytail if he wanted to. Seeing that it would be a while until he managed to comb it, he decided to just sit on the log at the armor’s side. He did not miss how it flinched subtly, or how its glints flickered, like if it was startled.

The demon seemed to realize that he was close, too close. He was always told to leave, so he did not waste time to try to stand and do so, because he assumed that Alexis wanted to sit here and rest after swimming. He had no right to question him about it; he would not argue that he had been the one to approach. He did lean to stand, but before he could do so fully, his angel raised a hand up. Alexis was giving him a subtle glance, which asked him to not leave, hinted that it was alright to stay.

The armor stared at him nervously, debating carefully what to do. Uriel did not understand fully, and he did not like either that a rabbit with wooden paws munched his feet.

The angel relaxed when the demon did. The armor sat again, but with certain apprehension.

Alexis remained silent, but lowered a hand. He picked up Abiel in his arms, to prevent him from biting Uriel, even if he did not feel the bites while controlling the armor. He caressed the long pointy ears of the rabbit, and spoke with a serious tone.

“Don’t, Abby.”

Uriel was surprised when Abiel stopped growling and glaring at him, to look up at Alexis instead. He saw how he leaned his snout, like if he was asking the angel why. The rabbit almost purred when Alexis began to caress his bristly black fur; he let him rest and hang on to his shoulder. How the animal stayed there so comfortably and calmly, the demon did not know.

Once Abiel was quiet, Alexis held his hands together and stared at the ground. He whispered after a while, with a discreet tone.

“I was beginning to think you would not wake up…” The armor shrugged a little and averted its gaze. “I guess I owe you an apology.”

Alexis was not daring to look up, and he did not pay mind to the confused glance he received. Uriel knew he had to be speaking to him, even if he found his words senseless. His real eyes narrowed, because he saw how Abiel brushed himself against Alexis, how he yawned and curled with trust.

Alexis was grateful to him, but he did not want that thankfulness. He shook the helmet of the armor, hurt that he was acknowledging him. He did not want to see or hear it, but his angel kept speaking.

“Had you not been around… I guess that…”

Uriel panicked; he began to move a gauntlet to grab his spear again. He hoped to be fast enough to write; before Alexis could say anything he did not need to say.

Alexis had been thinking, and had reached a conclusion. He could not blame Uriel for anything. All this time, he had only tried to help him. Even if he was wrong sometimes, he had tried. He did save him from that bat, he did try to help him when he was bleeding, and he persisted to try to take him back home…

Uriel was not quick enough with the spear; the angel’s thoughts were always fast and sudden. He spoke before he could stop him.

“Uriel, I-”

Both jolted, because a sudden noise echoed behind them, through the vegetation. Alexis did not get a chance to say anything. The noise resembled steps, too strong to be an animal.

Alexis gasped silently; because the armor leaned on the log, spear in hand, crouched and ready to plunge against anything that dared approach. The violet glints in the helmet were blazing, because the demon felt his blood boil, with the mere thought of something dangerous nearing his angel.

Neither was ready to see what stepped out from the shadows. Uriel’s sight had always been better, more feral and inhuman. He was the one who saw before anyone else. Alexis flinched when the armor shook fiercely. The spear suddenly fell from its gauntlet, onto the ground. After a few jolts, its figure lost its stance, and fell limp onto the log. Those violet glints faded, so much that he could swear that Uriel left.

The armor did not move again… as a figure stepped into the clearing of the lake.

Alexis trembled as much as Uriel did. His eyes widened; he felt fear in its most primal form, again. He felt despair and dread, as he wished that he could banish like Uriel did.

He wished he could at least run… flee; he wanted to disappear. For the love of god, how he needed to.

But he could not. Blue surrounded him everywhere. There was a huge lake behind him… and a hunter with icy eyes in front of him, who was blocking his way back to his nest.

Her eyes were fixed, on him.