Wings that Guard Me

Chapter 22 Raphael

After the first day of school I've already established two things; Seraph is possibly an angel undercover, and I'm going to prove it by making her life horrible. These are the two things that, for me, makes life interesting for me and give me pride in my job. Basically I know I'm going to enjoy this.

It's Friday now and Tony is having a back to school pool party. I can't exactly go in a swimsuit because of my scars and marks, that would raise many troubling questions that I can't answer. Especially my brand. As a "high ranking" member of Lucifer's "minions" I was branded at my entry into the "army." I roll my eyes at the terms. I don't recognize any rank that others try to call me by, I refuse. And every member of the Righteous Realm or of Hell knows about the war. Our war. The endless war. The war against the two realms. The war of "good versus evil." If you ask my people about the war the answer will be the same, exactly the same. They will say that we hold the high ground but there is no victory when there are still souls outside our grasp. If you ask the Righteous they will be less monotone when they shamefully admit that we have the upper hand, we have more souls, we have more soldiers, as of this exact moment we are winning. Me personally? I think it's all a rouse. That's why I refuse to be titled as a pawn in the whole thing.

Anyway I'm on my way to Tony's now. The party started like half an hour ago. I don't care, this way the mingling has already started so the chances of being crowded are much less. I've been to a few of these types of things before so I'm not really surprised by what I see when I make it to the party. I also know that I most likely won't be the only late arrival, I'd heard some of the kids talking about it during the week and explain why they won't be on time.

The party seems to be in full swing when I arrive. Just as I expected everyone is so distracted by what they are currently doing that they don't notice my late arrival. I stay in the background and that's when I notice her. Like me she arrived late. She walks in a little after me and looks around, taking in the scene before her. It's subtle, but I can see in her expression that this is all new to her. I also notice almost immediately that she is also not dressed for a pool party. Instead she is wearing jean shorts and a baby blue tank top. When she turns I notice the unusually high back of the shirt and that triggers a curiousness in me.

I quietly make my way over to her and strike up a conversation once I'm next to her. "Well look at this, little miss perfect late to the party. You don't seem to be dressed for a pool party, what're you hiding Angel?"
She turns to me abruptly and looks at me. I try hard not to smirk. "The rope I'm going strangle you with," she mutters under her breath. Now I actually do smirk. "I don't need you help for that sweetheart."
She suddenly tenses and turns to look at me in pure shock. "That's not something to joke about." Her voice is hoarse and desperate, almost pleading. I roll my eyes at her comment and shrug. "Neither is what you said. So I guess that makes us even."

I notice she's about to respond when someone bumps into her and she stumbles into the pool, caught off guard. I don't know what I expected but what I was surprised me. She seemed to realize she was going to land in the pool and held her breath, turning her body in mid air so when she landed she wouldn't hurt herself. No human would have that ability in the mere seconds before landing. She surfaces gracefully. The thin fabric of her tank top clinging to her body and nearly see through.

My keen sight picks up on something on her back. True, it's very hard to see through her shirt, but I see it. There's gold marks covering most of her back. I only get to see it for a second before she's immediately swarmed by people. One of the guys, who is already in the pool, swims over to her and picks her up. She seems genuinely surprised for an instant before relaxing into the situation.

I ignore the little pool of drama and ponder on what the marks on her back can possibly be. And they cover her entire back. Can it possibly be? I've heard so many stories but never actually seen it myself. Apparently if a Righteous angel goes under cover as a human then their wings shrink into their backs and leave more than the scars. From what I've heard there are marks left on their backs, an impression of their wings. This impression covers their entire back. Usually the impression is white or nearly invisible. Hers is gold. Supposedly the marks are color coordinated with rank. If hers are gold then she shouldn't be a guardian, no she should be higher ranked than that. I guess my suspicions were more than true. But maybe they need to be adjusted a little. And if I'm right then this is going to be the best job I've ever had yet.