Feathers and Shadows

Chapter 22

Flying is by far the most exhilarating thing anyone can ever do. We watched Dylan glide through the air, he was graceful like a bird. A well-traveled sailor of the skies, he practically dances on air. It was astounding to watch.
"It's amazing isn't it?" Mizore said.
"Yeah, I've dreamed of flying before, to feel the air flowing against my whole body, to look down and see the ground like its a map. Yeah, amazing doesn't begin to describe it." I replied in hushed awe. She smiled and opened her wings, I watched as they slid out of slits in her jacket. Snow white with streaks of black on the underwing. With parallel streaks of red overwing.
"Beautiful." I whispered when they were fully extended, around 3 meters across. Also she had ten of them.
"Well well!" I said, " looks like we have roalty here!" I laughed at my lame joke, and Mizore blushed and folded them back more.
"Shut up! You have twelve princess!" She shot back with a glint in her eye. I smiled and accepted it, but hesitated to unfurl my own, not wanting them to be the shadowy smoke ones I saw in the mirror.
"Mizore. Go on ahead." I said worried.

"What? Why?" She replied, concern filling her voice.

"Because I don't know if my wings will be the twelve or the two. I don't want to hurt you."

"You won't hurt me." She said back shyly.

"I don't want to take that chance."

"There isn't a chance, I trust you."
"Re please go on ahead, I'll be fine."

"I don't want to leave you alone."

"Just go!" I may have said that more harshly then I intended.
Her eyes filled with shock and tears, then she nodded and shot into the sky like a bullet. 'Holy fuck she's fast!' I though as I brought my eyes back to the ground, and away from her movie actress ass. 'OK!' I mentally shook myself and slowly unfurled my wings. I didn't realize I had my eyes closed until I opened then and was welcomed by the sight of six alternating pairs of wings. I let out an audible sigh of relief and jumped into the air.... 12 meters. It was then I discovered something. I didn't know how to fly. I came crashing into the vengeful earth, wings flapping like beheaded chickens. The cold hard, unforgiving ground gave me the biggest hug it could. One that broke my finger. I gritted my teeth and silently screamed as the bone reset itself and the tissue began to heal. Turns out Mizore didn't leave and was hovering somewhere out of sight. She landed beside me as I pealed myself from the dirt. I grimaced at her.
"Umm, funny thing. I don't exactly know....how to fly...." I said looking everywhere except at her. She giggled and stood up opening each of her wings and motioned for me to stand. With much groaning, I hit harder than I thought, I made it to her side.
"Now," she said "flying is a delicate art. Something to be loved as you're learning as well as feared."
"So like God?" I said. She punched me in the arm.
"Shush! Listen don't talk." She spoke. Exaggerating shutting my mouth I remained silent and indicated her to continue.
"Flying takes a lot of practice so first we're going to start with a small hover, no more than half a meter off the ground ok?" She explained.
"Yes, sexy senpai." I giggled. She gave me a look and I fluttered my wings to warm them up, which caused me to fly forward, into her boobs.
"Ah!" She gasped," hey none of that right now. I'm trying to teach you something very useful here." She smiled so she wasn't scolding me. I stepped back but not before giving them a little nibble. I dodged just in time to avoid a slap and stood tall.
"OK, so first try getting all of your wings to beat in the same rhythm. Something to focus would be a great tool now." She told me as I took a step back and, slowly, started to move my wings. It took a few tries but eventually I was able to get them to beat together, once I accomplished that all i had to do was beat them faster to achieve a hover. It lasted for about a minute before I dropped down.
"Good job!" Mizore exclaimed " it took me hours to just get that down, you did it in a few minutes! You've got a talent for this."
"You think?" I asked starting it again, this time it was a full meter and a half.
"Yes." She said watching me for any flaws. Suddenly I felt like I could take it a step further and started beating my upper wings on a more forward pattern and was rewarded with a slight frontward movement. I beat the lower wings harder to gain more altitude and the upper wings more forward. Soon enough I was fully extended and flying all around her house. I landed back down beside Mizore, stumbling and almost fell again.
"Whoo!" I shouted, "that was really fun!" I looked at her and nearly gagged on spit at her expression. She was open-mouthed and stuttering like she was trying to say something but was too shocked to voice it.
"What?" I asked, thinking I fucked up somehow. "Did I do it wrong?"
"No," she whispered. " no one had ever mastered flying that quickly, ever since Angels and Demons started loving humans, the first child was the only one who ever mastered flying just a quickly as you did. And rumor has it that she was a child not of any demon or angel, but of Reaper. Her name was...Ruby."