A Cursed Day

06. Critical

Samuel's POV

My head has been pounding for the past half an hour while I try and deal with Aurora, someone I haven't seen in a couple of decades. Our history is very complicated so I am not looking forward to explaining it all to Ariel when she asks, because she is bound to ask me about it.

Aurora is mad at me, Ariel doesn't trust me and is looking for the first opening to run, and we have some of the most powerful beings chasing after us while last night I left the life I shouldn't have had after dying. I don't know if there is a word for a situation above this, above complicated but that is where I'm at.

I never expected Ariel to be happy about what I had to do but I also selfishly thought she would stay intimated by Aurora and not ask too many questions until the worst of everything had passed. At least that part was going according to the plan inside my head before Aurora opened her mouth and mentioned the fusing.

It's not something that I wanted to do without her permission, trust me it's something that I want to do with Ariel but not in this way. It was just the quickest way for us to buy some time before the elders found us and the fact that I have no idea what they would have done to me after all these years is indication enough that at least I'm not too crazy for leaving them behind.

"You going to answer me or just stare off into space?" questions Ariel and I have to ignore the way that Aurora is suddenly enjoying this little interaction. I on the other hand am living my worst nightmare. The woman I am in love with having to be saved by the women who saved my life and gave up so much, while I'm stuck in the middle in both of their bad books.

"I fused our souls during that kiss, that way the people who are after us cannot find us straight away because our souls are now different together. They'll figure it out soon enough which is why we need Aurora to figure our what kind of spell has been put on your life and break it." I reply, trying to keep it short and sweet without too many jargons and secrets but by the shocked and glazed look in her eyes I don't think I've done very well on that front.

"I don't even know where to start with all of this." She whispers as she continues to stare at Aurora, who is still floating in the air and showing off just the smallest part of her powers. She wasn't like this when I met her but I know that I wasn't the only one left with scars when they had to pull us apart.

"I am going to explain everything when you're not in danger but please just let Aurora do her thing and give us some answers to start with." I say as I kneel in front of her and try to meet her eyes. If I was still her guardian angel then I would be able to calm her down a little but all I have is my hope that she feels something between us.

But I know it was too much to hope for since she doesn't even glance my way or show any sign of warming up to me. Our situation is so different that she knows nothing about me but I know nearly everything about her so I have to remind myself to be a little bit more patient when it comes to her.

"What do I get out of helping you other than the elders hunting me down again, I only just got them to leave me alone after so many years." Aurora interrupts and I don't know what I was thinking, evidently I wasn't thinking because of course she would want something in return for helping me.

"I wasn't thinking that far if I'm being honest, I felt them coming close so I had to get her out of her apartment." I say and I feel my face getting hotter as both of them turn to stare at me. Probably for the first time I have no idea where I'm going or what I'm going to do next.

"Do you have any idea what they want with her?" asks Aurora and for the first time I can read a bit of curiosity in her eyes.

"I don't have a clue what they want with her or why a certain day of her life has been marked, the times I have tried to stop things from happening or lessen their effect, I have been blocked and my powers didn't work." I explain, for a moment forgetting that Ariel doesn't know anything about any of this. She doesn't know that there has been someone out there looking out for her, wishing I could help ease her pain.

I know her thoughts, I know the low depths of despair she has reached before the day arrives and after it. I have partly felt what she has gone through, she doesn't know it but I have been right there with her for most of her life.

"They're not supposed to block your powers. I mean you're not supposed to use them to change their life but you're also not supposed to just be there and stare at them until they die like some kind of creep." She thinks out loud and I know she is just voicing facts that are familiar to people like us but Ariel's eyes are becoming wider and wider with every single word that comes out between us.

"That was what I was told when I accepted the job, but they seem to want to be changing the rules without telling me first. Way too many things have been happening without the acceptance of the angels." I tell her and her frown becomes even more pronounced as she hears what the situation is like up in heaven.

"Do you know of any other angels that have been abandoning their posts recently? I've felt these weird waves coming from the elders and the angels I've been able to track have looked and felt off." She confides in me and if I was worried before then I am starting to panic a little now.

I have been an angel for nearly half a century now and there has never been anything like this when I have been working. I wouldn't even say that I have been working all this time since every single one of my charges has taken a part of me when they have left the living world.

"I've only been speaking to Gregory but I've mainly been keeping to myself these last couple of years looking after Ariel." I reply and too late realise that I'm speaking about all of this as if Ariel knew that someone was looking after her or that angels and heaven really do exist.

"Gregory is pretty high up in the food chain." She thinks out loud and if I didn't know her then I would be surprised that she knows so much about a world she isn't a part of but this is Aurora and she is one of the most powerful witches to have ever lived.

"He was before he did what I just did and they demoted him to looking after other guardian angels, I don't think he is looking after any humans this time around." I correct her because what happened between Gregory and Andrei is too tragic to even think about and it makes me angry what the elders did to them.

"How the mighty have fallen." She smiles but there is no humour on her lips. I have to fight the urge to send a glare her way since I don't really know why she hates him so much.

"Is anyone going to tell me what the fuck is going on here? There is some kind of curse placed on me?" Ariel shouts all of a sudden, causing a thick silence to fall in the room but she's right. Here we are hashing over things that shouldn't even matter in the moment when the elders are probably tracking us right at this moment and here we are wasting time.

"I'm going to need you to calm down and lay over there, Sam you're going to stay near her because I need you to stay close." Aurora immediately goes into work mode, well it's not really work for her because it's who she is but when she concentrates on something there is no one who can break her out of that trance.

We are now entering into unknown territory even for me because I have seen Aurora perform magic but never something this complicated. I have never asked her to perform something with this much importance.

The last time that I know off that she did use so much magic was when she saved my life. I was passed out so some parts are still muddy to me, I can only go on what they tell me happened.

"I'm not laying down until someone tells me what's going on!" Shouts Ariel as she thinks her digging her heels in would do anything against one of the strongest witches alive right now.

"I know you're scared and I know none of this makes any sense to you but we are pressed for time and the men who are after you are going to do much worse to you than I ever could so please trust me for just a couple of minutes." Aurora tried to comfort Ariel and I'm surprised that it's actually working.

"My day can't get any weirder than this. If you kill me, I'm going to haunt your ass." She mumbles but points to me at the end. Aurora and I both have to hold back our laugher since she doesn't know ghosts are a very normal part of our lives and it's not really a threat.

Any humour left is wipes away when Ariel moves towards the bed Aurora told her to and we all just know that the next couple of hours are going to be critical.