Lily slowly stepped into her large private bathroom, took her clothes off, hung them on the wall, and descended in a relaxing hot tub. The hot air and boiling water soothed her mind and for a moment she found peace within, leaning against the edge of the tub, inhaling purified air. However, her mind soon still got occupied by her earlier concerns of that black apparition. Maybe, after all, it was just a grim reaper, as Loriel said? Maybe out of fear she couldn't see it clearly? Maybe she saw an angel-like silhouette only because she wanted to see an angel? She sighed - there were too many possibilities. One would never know for sure... Besides, she had never had an angel. If it had never appeared to defend her before, why would it appear now? It really didn't make any sense. She cast her eyes down - no, it was all probably just her imagination, her eager wish to have an angel. She didn't have any. She must get used to it... But then she frowned, a tear appearing in her eye - she promised herself she would not give up so easily this time!
No, I must still try to invoke it! Maybe it was an angel?
She puckered and prepared her hands to draw the sign she saw Evy draw earlier to call upon her guardian angel, Loriel. She shouted:
"My guardian angel, I invoke you!"
She drew the exact same sign Evy did - swung her right hand first from the top to the bottom, and then from the right to the left, forming a cross in the air.
Nothing happened.
"No, I won't give up so easily! I know it was an angel, but it was probably black because it got too weak having me as a hostess. I'm too soft, and furthermore, as I thought I had no angel, I'm untrained. It's not strange my angel would be weak... My guardian angel, I invoke you!" she drew the same sign, but now more furiously.
Nothing happened this time either. She sighed, a deep scowl covering her face:
"There must be some trick to this! If I cannot invoke him this way_ Wait, maybe it's not black because I am weak or it is weak, but simply because it's different! Maybe, to invoke it, I need to draw a different sign? Maybe... if black is the opposite colour to white, I should draw the opposite sign to a cross to make a black-winged angel appear?"
This thought actually made sense. She nodded to herself, determined to give it a try.
"My guardian angel, I invoke you!" she cried, and now drew not a cross, but an 'X' with her right hand, assuming it would be a perfect sign opposite to a cross - it was a bent cross, after all.
Nothing happened again.
"Ugh! Why can't I do this?" Evil thoughts embraced her: Maybe it was no angel after all? She frowned and quickly discarded this thought: What am I thinking? It must just be a different sign... How could I think an 'X' is opposite to a cross? It is a cross too, but just different-shaped. I need to draw a real opposite sign. Maybe, if I draw the horizontal line at the bottom and not above? She nodded to herself, and shouted more furiously: "My guardian angel, I invoke you!"
She drew the cross again, but now, instead of drawing the horizontal line before her shoulders, she drew it more below. Nothing happened nevertheless.
No, no use. But, maybe... Okay, this is the last try. If this doesn't work, I give up...
She clenched her fists as if gathering all of her remaining hopes and energy, and shouted:
"My guardian angel! I invoke you!" she drew the sign once more, but this time, she did it the completely opposite way - used her left hand, drew the vertical line from up to down, but as for the horizontal line, she drew it from the left to the right. She waited eagerly for the black matter to appear. Please... Please...
Minutes passed. Nothing appeared.
It was not an angel... I shouldn't even have hoped for it from the beginning! Tears gathered in her eyes. Her heart felt too heavy losing its last hopes. She whimpered and dived into the hot tub even more, now only her nose and eyes left on the surface. I'm a failure...
"Um, you called upon me?"
She started, raised her head from the water, looked aside, and screamed in fear - there was a tall boy in her bathroom!
YOU ARE READING
The Guardian Angel (The Guardians of Nine Heavens #1)
FantasyLily is the only person in Golden City who has no guardian angel, thus cannot be protected from any accidental harm. As a result, no one wants to be near her or have her as a friend, because it might cause bad accidents around. However, Lily still...
