Pearlescent Feather

Chapter 1 - Realm Watching Devision

A light shower of rain pattered onto the window as a short brunette with merigold eyes poured boiling water into a teacup, the splashing sound mimicking those outside. He placed a small teaspoon down on the countertop, and walked to the front room whilst it brewed.

Stood by the window, he placed his hands on the radiator, warming them through a thin towel he'd hung up earlier in the day. The man stared outside, his street sparse due to the weather. He was about to go add milk to his cup when he noticed a man walking past. He thought nothing of him, and turned around, only to stop when he heard a knock at his door.

"Oh, for god's sake..." He sighed, opening the front room door so that he could get to the front house one. He placed the key in the lock, turned it, and pulled down the handle, being greeted immediately be the face of the man he'd seen a second ago.

"Hugo Davies?" The man inquired, and Hugo took a moment to reply. The man was handsome as anything. Tall, fair-skinned, long blonde hair tied in a rushed bun, an obvious diagnosis of heterochromatia in his eyes, skin tight turtle neck with a white leather jacket and matching white jeans. He looked like something out of a novel.

"...yes?" Hugo managed to say at last, looking past the man to see if he was with anyone suspicious.

"Great." The man said, holding out his hand. "My name's Gareth Hound, and I'm here from R.W.D."

At this, the brunette snapped out of his trance and frowned. "I'm not one for jokesters and cold-callers. R.W.D doesn't exist, it's an old folkstale. I've had your kind coming to my door with scams before."

The other man kept his hand outstretched, and nodded. "I understand that. People use our Devision as means for cheats, as they would with banking companies or IT Support. But I assure you, I am no scam artist." He smiled slightly, narrowing his eyes. "We've come to ask for your help. Our executives have been led to believe that you recently discovered some abnormal behaviour in wave fields somewhere close to your home here in Lincoln. Is that true?"

"How did you-"

"We know all about your research into the abnormal and supernatural sides of life. We at R.W.D have a current case that we believe may be linked to your most recent observation, and that you may be able to assist us."

Hugo leaned against the doorframe, frowning again. "How am I supposed to believe you? What sort of case? And how am I supposed to help?"

"I would explain," the blonde said, "but I fear my lips may freeze in this cold weather." He pulled his turtle neck higher over his throat, shivering.

"Okay, fine, come in." Hugo said, standing back from the open door. "But I want some kind of explanation."

Mr Hound nodded in thanks and agreement, and stepped tenderly inside, not before shaking the water off of his black boots outside. He immediately felt himself warm, and smiled.

"Thankyou, Mr Davies. Now, shall I explain?"

Ten minutes later, the two were sat on chairs opposite one another around a coffee table, and Hugo was staring blankly at his tea-cup.

"Say again?" He said, looking up at the visitor.

"Like I said, I work for R.W.D. As you may assume by the fact that we exist, so do Angels, Demons, Ghosts, the whatnot. About three years ago, an Angel named Gladio snapped for an unknown reason and murdered three different Angels. He then threw himself down to Earth, possibly out of guilt, possibly to hide.

"Anyway, when an Angel falls to Earth, they become mortal-like, whilst still retaining their ability to use Angel Sorcery, but lose any memories of Heaven. Essentially, the sub-devision I'm a part of was tasked with finding who Gladio is now that he's on Earth, and taking him back up. Only, it's been three years, and we still have no leads."