Love of a Raven

Chapter 15: Goodbye For Now

My spat with Damian left a bitter taste in my heart, but I chose to ignore it as I head into bed and immediately find myself falling asleep. It's funny how sleep works. One minute, I'm closing my eyes and feeling my body shut down for the night. The next, I'm waking up to my old home in England. The sky covered in grey clouds as it always is while the prominent smell of incoming rain fills my lungs as though I can't catch enough of its scent. The only thing that could make this better is having a warm cup of tea with some scones to fully enjoy this outing.

"This is what you dream about, Garrick? Your old home?" A familiar voice speaks from behind me. I didn't have to turn around to know that the owner of the voice pertains to my guardian angel.

"Sometimes. Most of the time, I dream of random things that I can't remember in the slightest. Except for this one. I have always remembered sitting out in my backyard with a cup of tea and watch the rain fall." I answer calmly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Azrael's body settling down next to me. His body was a few inches away from mine, but I didn't mind in the slightest. I know Azrael wouldn't hurt me since it's his job to watch over me and because of the calming effect the weather has on me. As far as I know, Azrael has never given me a reason to bring my guard up around him. I'm actually quite sad to realize how little interaction we have over the past few months.

Ever since he first appeared to me, he's only shown up twice and that was because he thought I was in danger. Then, when he appeared to save me from Damian, I yelled at him for interfering with my decisions. I never apologized to him for that. I'm amazed he's still here as my guardian angel. If I were in his place, I would have left. But, he didn't.

"Did you noticed that of all the times we met, this is only the fifth time we are seeing each other? The first time, I ran away. The second, you put me to sleep. The third, you were trying to save me from Damian. And the fourth was an hour ago when you rescued me from those hunters." I declare, interrupting the comfortable silence we had, and turn to face him.

Azrael had his arms hugging his legs close to his chest at the same time his eyes were gazing at the field in front of him. He still hasn't changed since the first time I met him. He remains in the same body of a young boy, much like my own, but he seems to be older than me. Not to mention he looks extremely tired. I might be the cause of that since he stated earlier that I have caused him a lot of trouble as of late.

"The last two visits were part of my job as your guardian. I'm not supposed to be interacting with you." Azrael states bluntly. Ouch. Well, that bloody hurt.

"Yet, here you are inside of my head." I remark, a frown beginning to form.

"Because you asked me to. If I could, I wouldn't have kept this much distance between us." Azrael replies and slightly directs his attention to me.

"I see. . . Er, you mentioned earlier that the other angels might not allow you to visit me. . ." I recall. I wonder what this will mean for us? Are the angels going to assign me a different guardian angel to watch over me?

"They're not going to do that, Garrick. I'm still your guardian angel, so you have to fear." Azrael answers my unspoken question.

"That's great to know, but please stop listening to my mind." I respond while I lean back until I felt the grass on my back.

"I'll try not to the next time. . ." Azrael murmurs, resting his head against his arms.

Something is wrong. I may have not been around Azrael for as long as I have with Damian, whom I can recognize his habits, but Azrael's never acted this quiet around me before. Still, worried about the angel next me, I prop myself back into a sitting position and ask, "What is it?"