Heart of Ashes

Karma

"It's okay, Rae. The guy is your friend, right? You don't make friends with bad people, we both know that. Besides, if he was gonna try and pull anything, he had plenty of chance to while he was here," I said, my hands resting on their shoulders as I looked up into their ebony and amber eyes. "All he did was stay for the fitting, look at some of the fabrics I had, give a quick nod or shake of his head, and leave. It's okay, Rae. I'm okay."

"Are you sure he didn't try anything? Didn't say anything?" Rae asked, their hands reaching up to grab my own and lower them down between us.

"Well, he talked a little bit while he was here, but nothing inappropriate. Just his name and that I reminded him of someone he used to know once," I said, tilting my head as I gently pulled my hands from Rae's grasp, moving to gather up the fallen items on the floor. "Oh, and that he liked the stars. He liked the painting that Bez gave me before he moved away. You remember Bez, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, the man is obsessed with stars and planets. Of course, he liked Bez's painting. And yes, I remember Bez. The kid has some talent when it comes to slapping colors onto a canvas. Now if only he could put that kinda skill into his actual job, not that I blame him for running off instead of playing guard dog," they muttered, a frown appearing on their face as they watched me kneeling down to grab the skirt and necklace from the floor. "I'm sorry, sweetie. You shouldn't be the one picking that stuff up."

"It's okay, Rae. You were just shocked, that's all," I said, running my hands gently over the fabric, and sighing in relief when I found the skirt only slightly mussed. "Oh... Oh Rae, I'm sorry. You'll have to wait before you can wear the necklace."

I looked down sadly at the crack that ran through the piece of jade, curling my fingers over the edges of the green gem. It was only barely held together and would be far too likely to break completely if something wasn't done. That and there was the belief that jade must be handled in certain ways if it broke or you risked bad karma.

"I'll see if I can find something else for you Rae. That or if I can find a way to make this piece still work somehow. There are a couple of sites I can check online to see what they would recommend. But at least you should have good karma after this, right? Nothing like a clean slate to work with!" Putting a smile on my face, I handed the skirt back to them and moved into the crafting room.

"What do you mean, (y/n)? I just broke jade! I know how expensive that stuff is! How can that be good karma?" They said, the frustration in their voice easy to hear.

"Didn't you know? It's believed that if you break jade, it will take away your bad karma. At least, that's what I heard! Besides, it's not like that piece cost me as much as it should have. I found it at a secondhand shop. I don't think the owner had any idea what it actually was since it was in a jar with a bunch of 'pretty rocks'. So don't worry so much," I said as I sat the necklace down gently on a piece of cloth that was still not put away yet.

I'd seen a few pictures once of someone who had repaired their jade with gold. I'm sure if I practiced a bit, I could do something similar and see if Rae liked how it looked.

"Whatever the cost of the repair, add it to what I owe you. You shouldn't have to pay for my mistakes, especially when this is something that is supposed to be making you money, not costing you," Rae said in a soft voice, their eyes focused on the ground.

Walking up to them as they stood in the doorway, I used my fingers to push their head up and meet my eyes.

"Rae, do you think I've never broken something before? It happens. Don't worry so much. Besides, I might be able to fix this. I've seen a few pictures of broken jade before and sometimes the repairs actually look better than the solid piece did! You'll see, this will turn out just fine," I said, hoping I sounded more confident than I felt.

~~~~~~~~

Less than an hour later, Rae was standing before a familiar desk, their hands having only recently slammed down on the surface as they had been shouting at the far too calm looking Entity seated behind it.

"And now she's going to be spending even more money trying to repair the jade that I broke! And all because you couldn't keep your promise to stay away from her! What happened to the man I knew? The one who never went back on his word? You promised me you would leave her alone, Ashe! She doesn't need you creeping around her like this!" The Fallen yelled at Ashe, their eyes narrowed as they waited for a response they were sure they wouldn't like.

"I never promised such a thing. I only told you that I would not seek her out. But I also said that if I run into her by chance, then I would not give up the opportunity to see what she could do. I was looking for you, in fact, when I saw her. If you hadn't been hanging upon her every word, her every movement, then she would still likely be not but a stranger to me," the man's voice echoed through the room, his dark gaze not leaving the person before him as he spoke.

"What are you planning, Ashe? What do you want with her?" The once Angel of Death said, their voice suddenly weary sounding as their shoulders slumped in exhaustion.

"The warmth. I want to feel the warmth again. She overflows with it to the point that it fills even me with a temporary warmth and chases away the cold of my existence for a time," Ashe whispered softly, his eyes closing as he leaned forward and rested his arms upon the desk, his head propped up against his hands. "I visited Kohmus. He still sleeps deeply, deeper than even my brother dares to venture most of the time. He barely hangs on to what is left of him, but still, he holds on to what life is left within him. For her, he refuses to let go and slip into true death. I could barely sense him, but I could still feel his warmth. If I were to compare the two, Kohmus would be like the sun shining in the sky, bright and warm, steady and dependable. But (y/n)... She is like... (Y/n) is like nothing I have ever witnessed before. She is warm one moment and burning hot the next, yet I do not feel pain from the fire she holds within her."

The Entity pulled back from the desk, standing up and beginning to pace about the room, his eyes darting to the various sketches he had hung upon the walls. The Fallen Angel had grown still upon the words that were spoken, knowing how long it had been since Death had spoken of Kohmus.

"I can't stop thinking about her, Azrael. I... need her."