Immaculate

Phoenix

Bit of a time jump, but it would have been incredibly slow and most probably repetatively boring if I had gone through Wednesday and Thursday.

Sorry if it jars a bit.

Part Sixty-One

Sang's POV

Friday's weather matched my mood. Heavy rain fell from lead coloured skies, and while it dampened everyone's spirits, I can't say that I was too disappointed with having to call off Kota's last chance to have us marching to the top of the hill and back down again, with no chance of seeing "The Grand Old Duke of York" either. But it was also our last day together before we had to leave here and go back.

Instead of hiking we all lounged around the lodge. Mr Blackbourne and Dr Green were engaged in a chess match that had started shortly after breakfast and was still going strong after lunch. With the same amount of pieces taken on both sides, I expected them to call stalemate.

Nathan, Luke, Silas and North were taking it in turns on the xbox. Kota was deep in his book and showing no signs of surfacing any time soon.

I had started reading, but Gabriel had produced a bag of nail polishes and he was currently painting my toes, while I painted Kota's. I'm not hundred percent sure that Kota knows I'm even doing it as all I got when I asked was a grunt. He was barefoot anyway and I chose his favourite hunter green colour, so I don't think he'd be too unhappy.

I swiped the polish over the last of his toes and twisted on my butt to see where Gabriel was hunched over my toes. As usual it was a work of art and not just painted nails. I was quite happy watching him as he finished the last stroke and then blew on them to dry them. I looked over the pale pink bases with tiny birds swooping across my toes until a larger bird rested on my big toes. The tiny birds were like little V's flitting across, but the bigger bird was a tiny bluebird with green eyes and a gold beak.

"Meanie," I whispered. "They are beautiful. You are so clever!"

He looked up at me and smiled slyly at me.

"Trouble, do you trust me?" he asked and I nodded.

He put all the polishes back into the bag and then stood up, reaching for my hand. I took it and he pulled me to my feet, he picked up the bag and drew me towards the stairs and started to go up. I looked backed, Silas and the others were glued to the screens and didn't see us go, neither did Kota who just turned a page. I looked over at Mr Blackbourne, he hadn't lifted his head but his eyes were watching me. I hesitated but he merely looked back down at the board and moved a piece. He didn't look up again.

"Come on, Trouble," Gabriel tugged on my hand and I followed him into the room he was sharing with Victor. He shut the door and turned to me, leaning back against it.

"I want to draw on you," he said with no preamble and I blinked at him.

"I've got henna and I would like to draw a design on your back, your skin is perfect, it's like the perfect canvas."

"Henna?" I asked and frowned. "Does it come off?"

"10 to 14 days, but you can keep it covered, I won't take it on places that anyone other than us can see it. Here, this is what I would like to draw."

He rummaged through the bag and brought out a small square of paper, but on it was the most exquisite drawing of a phoenix I have ever seen, it was rising from the ashes, fire coming from its wings.

"It's beautiful, where will you put it?" I asked, the thought of that being on my skin, put there by him, made me want him to do it.

"Your back, you'd need to take off your bra and lie on the bed," he said, making no move to come towards. "It's your choice, Trouble, if you say no, no problem."