Behind These Wings

Deception

The soft caress of the grass welcomed Izzy as she laid upon the earth, feeling the rain from earlier in the day seeping into her clothes. She soaked up the sparse rays of sun in the hope that they could give her some energy to finish the day.

Strictly speaking she shouldn't be out here but the woodland had called to her tense mind and so, in an effort to diminish the voices in her head, she had relented and strolled through the trees until she had found a sanctuary.

Now as the soft whistle of bird song hung in the air, carried by the gentle wind that swept politely through the trees causing their leaves to shiver slightly, she knew that it had been the right choice.

Spring was rapidly approaching and the air still held a chill to it but Izzy was unaware, she was usually cold nowadays anyway.

She relished in the quiet. The peace.

She held onto every second as she knew that soon enough she would have to return to the Palace and its hectic atmosphere.

The shouting was constant.

Orders flying around, no one obeying only panic being replaced with more panic as everyone attempted to get everything done at once.

The refugees were tired, many injured, and the continuous cries of children could be heard, echoing around the stone interior.

The sounds still rang in Izzy's ears as she desperately tried to focus on relaxing. Her back muscles praised her brain as they relaxed into the uneven ground; the relief immense after being on her feet for over a day. The demands were endless on such occasions and, as Archangelios, she was required to know all of the answers. The public expected her to be the vision of calm, bringing order to chaos wherever she went. They expected her to be the voice of reason and to keep going regardless.

However, she could not.

With her body starting to fail her, Izzy felt the effects of her malnutrition now more than ever, she could feel her protruding shoulder blades digging into the ground and she could almost hear the screaming of her stomach as it protested at not being satisfied.

It was times like this that Izzy almost considered giving up.

Almost.

Curling her fingers into the ground beneath her Isabelle attempted to take her frustration out on a few lowly pieces of grass but alas, just like her, they snapped under the slightest pressure. Golden tears splashed onto the earth as her love stained heart began to weep for the hardship it faced.

Why her?

Why did her life have to be so difficult?

Why could she not cope?

Everyone else seemed to live their lives just fine, growing up, finding a nice husband and having children but not Izzy. No, Izzy could never do anything the 'right' way.

Lost in her continual despair Izzy was caught unaware by the approaching figure and so it was only when a sadistic chuckle registered in her brain that she noticed she was no longer alone. Whipping up from the ground she swung her head around in a desperate attempt to view the person who was intruding on her personal time but the night had begun to draw its curtains closed and her eyesight simply wasn't good enough to see through the deep depths of the forestry.

"Isabelle."

Every hair on Isabelle's body stood on end at the spine-chilling utterance that swept across the meadow she was in the centre of, bringing only misery in its wake.