AZRIEL

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

Outside in the human world, the light had already started to fade and the sky was thick with shades of navy and black and grey as I opened the front door of the house to find the two fallen angels sat on our porch - playing what looked like an oh-so-serious game of cards. From where the cards came from, I had no idea.

"What are you guys doing?" I hissed in a whisper at them, causing them to both turn to look at me from their seats. "If someone sees you two-"

"Relax, lady," Azriel raised a hand to silence me, shifting his attention back to his cards. "They can't see us. Now, are you ready to leave?"

"I think Az is ready to go. He's sick of the defeat," Julian smirked as he threw a card onto the wooden porch between them. An ace. Azriel's head threw back in frustration as he let out a groan, his counterpart gathering his winning cards with a gleeful grin.

It was just way too hard for me to believe these idiots ran a whole district.

With the mere bite of my cheek, I took a deep breath as I said, "I want you guys to meet my sister." Both the angels paused, and again turned to look at me as though I had announced I wanted to run through the streets naked. I frowned at their reactions. "What? "

"And why would we meet your sister?" Azriel asked with a skeptical brow raised.

"Just - I want her to feel at ease that I'm not living with some pyscho monsters. I don't even think she believes what I've told her so far. Just ten minutes, please." I pleaded, not enjoying even a second of it. "Just ten minutes and then we can leave."

Julian remained silent and looked towards Azriel, who was still looking at me with a skeptical expression. After a couple moments of me staring back with hopeful eyes, he sighed and rose to stand. "Fine."

After seeing them both stood by the door, ready to enter, I must have forgotten how tall they both were - and adding the length of their wings they were huge. I pulled the door open as wide as I could to let them in, and then shut it quickly against the bitter cold. 

Julian let out a low whistle as he surveyed the entrance hall - not grand, but appeared regal and beautiful when adorned with all the Christmas decorations. "I thought your human village was in poverty. This doesn't seem like the poverty I was imagining."

I acknowledged his remark with a nod, but didn't comment. Nor did Azriel, although inwardly I was ever-so-grateful to him for what he had done. He had taken such good care of my family, and I was content that my father had passed in riches - rather than the rags we were once used to. 

"What's these for?" Julian reached his hand out to touch a wreath which had been pinned to the wall, but Azriel smacked his hand back like a father teaching his son not to touch. I held back a smile at the sight.

"They're holly wreaths. In the human world, there's an event called Christmas where we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. The wreaths represent the wreath Christ wore when he was sacrificed on the cross." I explained to Julian. Azriel studied me from the side, and I could see him watching me from my peripheral vision - as though he could see the weight that had pressed into my chest since arriving here.

When I finished explaining, he stepped forward and motioned at me to lead the way. "Alright, you babblers. Let's meet your sister so we can leave."

**********

Elena had been waiting in the front room - the largest room of the house, coaxing a new fire as the previous one had died down. I entered, the two Velastillian males a step behind me and it was not towards me that my sister looked when she turned around - but at them.