✓ wings -narry au-

2

Don't mind me, I was just thinking of you. I feel alive inside, oh finally, I feel alive inside.

the treehouse

Soon was four years later.

Harry promised to come back to Niall soon and Niall thought he'd forgotten all about him until the night he climbed the ladder of his treehouse with tears on his (ten year old) cheeks. His eyes were bloodshot but anyone could still have seen the pure blue of them. Anyone would compare the color to the deepest of oceans, only there were specks of yellow caught in his irises that only Harry immediately noticed.

Niall wiped at his face as his feet stopped inside the wooden shelter. He stopped walking upon seeing a small shadow in the corner of the room, crossing his arms and stubbornly scowling. He didn't know who the kid was but he wasn't welcomed and it was raining and he was upset and his dog died and he didn't know who the kid was. He didn't know until he stepped from the shadows and Niall mumbled, "you again," with his lips pulled into a frown.

Harry looked the other boy over and gently pushed his soaked hair away from his face.

He dropped to the floor with his legs sprawled out. Niall rose an eyebrow at him. "What?"

"Lie with me," he smiled a little, waving a hand. Niall shrugged and walked over, trying to get to the floor as gently as Harry did, and failing.

"It rains when God cries," Niall whispered, looking over at his friend and pausing to breathe. "That's what my mom tells me, anyway."

"Not the truth," is the response, just as quiet as Niall had spoken. He played with his friend's wings and Harry glanced at him with a lopsided smile.

"Really?" If it were anyone else, Niall's follow up question would have been, How do you know?, but he knew Harry knew a lot about things and he trusted him enough to not jump down his throat.

"Clouds just can't carry all the water in the sky."

"That's cool," he said.

"So cool."

"Your wings are cool too. My friend gets to wear them every Halloween because she's a girl. Dad won't let me wear them."

"Wanna try mine on?"

He smiled widely and nodded. Spurred on by his friend's excitement, Harry quickly shrugged off his wings carefully and held them out to him. Niall hooked his arms under the loops and though Harry always moved so gently and with ease, Niall nearly fell back. They were too heavy for his back and he brought one finger to a feather just for it to fall loose and into the palm of his hand.

He turned to Harry, ready to apologize (because he most definitely didn't mean to ruin his toy that was obviously his favorite), but Harry was staring at the sky outside.

The sky had darkened and the rain was coming down hard. Thunder sounded and Niall put the fallen feather in his pocket before shrugging off the wings and looking at Harry who looked frightened. "Afraid of thunder?"

"Afraid of its maker," Harry muttered. Niall walked closer to look at him and saw that his eyes were a brighter green than before.

"What's that mean?"

Lightning split the sky in half and Harry turned to him. "I have to go. That all right with you? I'll be back as soon as I can, I promise."

"You said that last time."

"I do not break my word, Niall. I do not disrespect my friends like that."

The phrasing made Niall feel a bit older than he really was. Harry spoke like an adult with every word he said. "I believe you then," he said quietly.

Harry shrugged his wings on and looked up at the wild sky above them through the window opening. "Stay in here until the rain clears up, yeah? Lightning too, don't go out when there's lightning."

"Stay then."

"You," he pointed at his chest. "I'll be fine. I'm talking to you."