The Caveat

2. Guardian Angel

Lucius let out a deep sigh as he stared up at the ceiling. He lay on his bed, still dressed in the suit he had been wearing for the past couple of days. He was depressed. Forlorn. In mourning.

Despite numerous warnings from everyone around him, he had personally got involved with his sister's doppelganger, Melissa. Originally, it had been purely to ensure that she lived as long as possible in order to prevent his sister from returning. However, the more time he spent with Melissa, the more he got to like her, she reminded him of what Diana used to be like, back when they had both been human; before everything went wrong. Lucius enjoyed, and even looked forward to spending time with Melissa and considered himself an important part of her life, as she became a big part of his.

The friendship between the two was, of course, frowned upon by the angels Lucius called his friends. Not only was Melissa a human, she was to be the vessel for his demon sister. It didn't stop him from seeing her, from loving her. Melissa replaced Diana as his sister, and Lucius found he would do anything to keep Melissa alive. He'd do anything to prevent Diana from coming back.

Lucius' interference in Melissa's life would prove to be fatal. If the soul of the vessel found its way to heaven, then Diana would not be able to use it, as became evident when demons killed the vessel born before Melissa. Because the vessel was a child she went to heaven, and Diana was unable to use the vessel to come back. Close proximity between angel and human on Earth is unhealthy for the mind, and as much as Lucius tried to save Melissa's damned soul, she ultimately took her own life, something he had not been prepared for.

He had known that Melissa was depressed, he didn't realise the extent to which his presence was causing her mind to attack itself. The demons had killed his vessel, and he had killed Melissa.

Lucius peeled himself from the bed and faced his haggard reflection. Bags formed under his bloodshot eyes, stubble collected on his chin, and his clothes were creased despite him having not moved for several days.

It usually took a couple of days for the host to take control of the body, and Melissa had been dead almost a week, so it was only logical to assume his sister was back roaming the Earth.

There was a knock on his door and Lucius closed his eyes to sigh. Whoever it was, he wasn't interested in talking, it even crossed his mind that it might be his deranged sister, but he knew she wouldn't waste time on him until she'd regained all her strength. The person knocked again, and Lucius let out an audible groan before he stormed over to the door and threw it open. The door opened to reveal a young woman, in her late teens at least. She had the body of a model, toned and tall, her eyes shone when she saw Lucius and she gave him a mischievous grin. He could tell she was an angel, but that was about it.

"Lucius Elderwood," She announced and reached out a hand for him to shake. Lucius narrowed his eyes at the hand, only a select few angels knew his full name, so for her to know his name was suspicious indeed. He eventually accepted her hand and upon the contact of skin the sudden jolt of familiarity pulsed through his body. He knew exactly who this angel was, and she was one of his greatest friends.

"You!" He exclaimed and scooped her into a hug. Only the names of the archangels and select few others were translated into human tongue, so most angels when taking human form go by the name of their first or favourite vessel. This angel had never been to Earth before.

"Rosie," She announced once he put her down. Her smile dropped when she noticed the sadness in his eyes. "Oh no, what happened?" Lucius looked down to the floor for a second as the penny dropped. "Oh, right."

"I'm glad you're here, I needed some good news today," Lucius confessed and Rosie beamed.

"Well, I had a number of reasons to visit this time. I will admit I was worried about the timing but I trust Him," Rosie smiled, referring to god. Lucius returned her smile but it didn't quite reach his eyes. She noticed his change in mood and knew why, "I was hoping your sister wasn't as bad as they say, but after what happened to Gloria, I'm not so sure-" Lucius' head snapped up at the mention of his girlfriend.