The Seven Archangels

12 - I'll never have to wash clothes again - Percy

I was hesitated a moment before twisting the knob. I wasn't exactly sure if the door would even open. Would Aurelius just throw me out if it didn't, just say it was all a misunderstanding? I swallowed my fears and twisted the knob. It turned and the door opened with an audible click. I looked inside and my eyes fell to the floor.

Well, not literally, but you got the point. The room was everything I could've dreamt of. It was ocean blue, the same color as my cloak in the dream, but it had also some sea green accents here and there. About accents, I have to ask Aurelius why he didn't have that accent anymore. I know he's in a new body and learned to speak in a different environment but he did speak cryptically and with that old vibe to it when he gave me that warning in the dream.

Blame the ADHD.

The room had all of those electronics you'd like though I doubt I'd ever actually use them. I wasn't one for modern technology. There was an L -shaped desk in the corner and a chair with those small wheels under it, an office chair. There was also a bed, obviously, with a blue comforter on top of it.

A couple of weapons were hanging from the wall near the doorframe. It was like they were put there to be able to get hold of quickly if needed. There was also a closet with a wave pattern painted on to it. I wanted to know what kind of clothes an angel would wear, so I opened it.

The insides consisted primarily from normal clothes, mainly blue, and a couple of cloaks, also blue. There was also a basket that said "To wash, throw here". I took off my shirt and curiously threw it in the basket. The moment it touched the basket, it vanished.

I blinked a couple of times before the shirt appeared, neatly folded and clean, in the rack for shirts. Nice. It seems like I don't have to learn to wash my clothes. It's not like it would be a problem since I'm a son of Poseidon and everything related to water comes easily to me, including washing clothes, but it's still nice to know you don't have to do such things.

Talking about washing, there was a door to my private toilet and shower next to the closet. This place was pretty well equipped, if you ask me.

I looked around and found my backpack sitting next to my bed. I remembered the letter and decided to read it now that I have time. I made sure my door was not open so Aurelius couldn't spy on me, not that I accused him of that. I remembered enough to know he was very honest and trustworthy person who would never spy on any of us. What he did before I knew who I am wasn't exactly spying, he was just making sure I was okay.

I unfolded the paper and stared at it for a moment. It was completely empty. I turned the paper in my hands multiple times but to no avail, it was completely empty. Disappointed, I folded the paper and put it on my desk. I knew it was getting late and I didn't want to bother Aurelius anymore today. I decided to hit the hay.

Waking up the next morning to the sound of waves crashing softly to the store was one of the most pleasant feelings I've ever had. A little later I found out it was actually an alarm clock, enchanted to wake you the best way possible. There definitely are some perks to being an archangel.

I took a quick shower and put on some of the new clothes I took from the closet. I have to admit they were quite stylish even though they were really simple.

As I started to walk towards my door I got the sudden urge to turn back. I tried to fight it but I couldn't so I decided to follow the feeling. I turned around, closed my eyes and started walking to the direction the urge was taking me. Soon my left foot hit the leg of my table. I opened my eyes and saw the letter I found in the bag.

I took it in my hands and the feeling disappeared completely. Confused, I opened the letter but it was still empty. I put the paper back on the table but the moment I let go of it, my hand decided to act against my own will and took it back.

I exited my room, still holding the paper in my hands. I knocked on Aurelius' door but got no response. I decided to walk downstairs and look for him there. I found him sitting in the kitchen, drinking tea.

"Hey Aurelius, what is this paper thing and why can't I let go of it?" I asked. Aurelius stood up from where he was sitting and looked at the paper. He scrunched his eyebrows and said, "Where did you get that?" Suddenly I got the feeling like I should protect this paper and not tell him but this was Aurelius we were talking about, of course I could trust him.

"I found it in the backpack Artemis gave me," I said. Aurelius held out his hand and I gave him the paper. This time I didn't get the urge to take it back. Aurelius opened it and his eyes widened. His eyes started glistening like he was crying.

"Uhmm... Al? What is it?" I asked. Aurelius made no movement to show he had heard me. He held his hand on top of the paper and his hand glowed for a second. He gave the paper back to me and slowly sat down back to his seat. "What did you just do?" I asked, curious to know.

Aurelius gave a sad sigh and said, "I took a picture of it. And it's a contact-paper. No, really. It's a paper that we used to communicate with each other when we were far apart. We had only three of them. You wrote the recipient's name on the paper and the message you had for them. Only the recipient and the sender could see the message. To others it would only seem empty."

"Did you have an unread mail?" I asked. I know, it was a little insensible thing to ask since he was crying a little while ago but I was curious. Aurelius nodded and said, "Yes, I did. It was from Sierra, from the day she died. I didn't get the chance to read it since the first paper went missing when Gabriel died. The second one was with Azrael and he lost it when we found Sierra's body.

The last one, which was with Sierra, was stolen from her when the ancestors killed her. I don't know which one this one is but somehow Artemis had gotten a hold of it, probably from the same place she got this tent too."

I really wanted to ask what it read but that would've been really inconsiderate, even for me. "Keep the paper. It should get warm and glow when you receive a message, if you do that is. I'm pretty sure the others are somewhere out there," Aurelius said.

"How can you be so sure?" I asked. Aurelius looked at me and said, "Because the chances of the two of us living in the same time period are practically nonexistent. I'm exactly 358 days older than you. I think there was a reason for this and therefore it could be that the others are somewhere out there too, having no idea who they really are."

Aurelius sighed once more before continuing a little more enthusiastically, "Wanna spar? It's been a while since I've had a worthy opponent. I suggest you get your old sword from upstairs. While Riptide is nice to have, it won't be nearly as good as your original sword."

I nodded and ran upstairs to get my gear.