Underground Angels

Chapter Seventeen | I Cross the Veil

“Yeah, sort of. Except this isn’t a camp, it’s a festival. See you soon.”

Bounding up the ramp onto the stage, Gabriel accepted a hug from an extraordinarily tall girl with a clip board. She handed Gabriel a large horn made of bronze, and as he blew it the crowd settled down.

“Welcome everyone!” she cried as the last whispers died out “It’s good to see we’ve all be reunited for the winter festival, and that we have the delight of having one of our Chosen ones reunited with our unique family. Gabriel, it’s good to have you back.”

Waving from her side, Gabriel smiled “Glad I could make it Jen, wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“It wouldn’t have been the same,” she said “Right guys?”

“RIGHT!” the crowd shouted.

For a second Noel could have sworn something that could have been grief passed of Gabriel's face, but he seemed to shrug it off. “Let’s eat!” he cried, and the crowd roared. Following the mob, Noel tried to catch a glimpse of Gabriel – but he had disappeared, and so she allowed herself to be swallowed by the crowd.

~*~*~*~

            One thing the Greeks sure did know how to do was eat. Lamb and souvlaki and grilled fish and feta were piled high on a dozen or so tables, and music was played by a couple satyrs. Sat with a couple girls in traditional Greek dress, Noel felt very out of place in her oversized parka, jeans and Christmas sweater.

“I’m Anna,” said a girl sitting beside Noel, sticking out her hand in greeting. She had her hair up in a very complicated braided bun, and make up that looked distinctly Cleopatra like. Noel was pretty sure Cleopatra was Egyptian, but who knew – everyone seemed to be Greek from what Constantine had told her.

“Noel.” She supplied, shaking her hand.

“You’re friends with Gabriel, right?” she asked, blinking her heavy lashes slowly.

“Uh, yeah. He’s my neighbour.”

“What are you even doing here?” asked another, also looking very Hera-Cleopatra mixed.

Fighting off hiccups, Noel shifted in her seat “Oh, I’ve got a lot of different blood in me. To strengthen the line of-”

“Yeah whatever, but why did he bring you?” asked Cleopatra Number Two.

“I don’t actually know?”

The girls at the table laughed. “Well you know he’s a chosen child, right?” another remarked, cutting a piece of fish into very tiny pieces.

Noel hated these kinds of situations. “I don’t know what that is.”

Anna sighed, like teachers did when you fell asleep in class and missed the whole lesson, leaving you unable to participate fully. Noel felt humiliated – obviously Constantine’s coaching hadn’t done her much good in the rather short run.

“Since he’s a child of the Pantodýnamos he is chosen, therefore he has a Niasyn.”

Another girl sighed, but this one sounded more like a love sick Corrie than a disappointed teacher. “I hope he finds her soon.”

Hitting her over the head in annoyance, Anna continued “Oh forget it Yvonne, he’ll probably never find her – Chosen ones rarely do.”

“What’s a Santa Amos and a-a –”

“Pantodýnamos.” Said Anna “The All Powerful; Zeus, Poseidon, Hades. A child of the chosen are destined to find their Niasyn, and by choosing them as a companion has chosen that person as a life partner as well. In Greek it’s called αιώνια συντροφιά, or aió̱nia syntrofiá.”

Noel tried to keep up with the Greek words pouring from the girl’s mouth, but didn’t gather the meaning of it all – who cared about all these things if they rarely happened?

“Uh, okay?”

“It means everlasting companionship,” Explained Yvonne “But we call it Niasyn for short.”

“They are destined to find each other since birth,” the girls all turned, and Noel was relieved to see Constantine “But those are just faerie tales.”

“So were Greek gods,” Noel said uneasily “But those turned out to be true.”

Constantine smiled mysteriously “All is a mystery until revealed Noel – that’s how this life works.”

Hiccupping, Noel scrambled off the bench “I’m not sure if I’m fit for a life if mystery.”

Laughing, Constantine led her away from the feast “I’m afraid it’s a little too late for that.”

A/N: Yeah yeah, I suck. I know. It took me FOREVER to write this, cause I had a bit of a dry/sickness season. I'm dead inside; it's disgusting. I need a purge or something. Someone pump me full of sea salt or some other cleansing crap, because I feel gross.

QUESTION: Thoughts on the festival and the new faerie tales that have been revealed to Noel? Is she fit for this life of mystery, or is Constantine right - is it too late?

I want it to be summer, or March break. Or Christmas break again. I'm tired. Sorry this took forever.

Rose<3

IMPORTANT P.S

Contest. I'd really like a new cover, or at least a PICTURE you think would be good. I can't find anything decent. So not really a contest, but a challenge? I dunno. Winner gets a bystander named after them or something. Who knows, maybe you'll get an unexpected arrow to the chest or something. I'm not feeling well, okay? Sorry. Tata, good eveing, all that.