Angel

[heinzs]

Angel

I had gone for my usual evening walk. The full Passover moon made it unnecessary to carry a lantern against the dark.

She was sitting at the side of the road. Her small body wracked with sobs. At first I couldn't discern the reason for her deep grief - then I put my hand on her shoulder. What I though part of her strange garb moved beneath my hand and I realized it was a wing!

She startled at my touch, and looked shyly up at me through eyes shimmering with tears.

"Don't be afraid," I said, "I'd like to help you, if I can."

She smiled a small smile and I knew she was not afraid.

Slowly she stood - at full height she only reached up to my breast. Her wings unwrapped gently from around her, and I could plainly see that one hung limply - broken.
Her body was covered in soft down - like a leotard - but I could tell it was part of her and not clothing. She winced again as the broken wing moved, and the tears began to flow once more.

Through all this she had made not a sound other than the sobs of pain. She shivered, and I gently wrapped her in my cloak, avoiding the injured wing as best I could. Inadvertently I jostled it, and she cried out in a voice like an injured hare, then she swooned into my supporting arms. I carried her home and laid her remarkably light form gently upon my bed.

While she was unconscious I examined the wing and determined that it was a simple break - easy to set. Fortunately I was well stocked in first-aid equipment - I am a volunteer firefighter for my town. I was able to set and splint the break without damaging more than a few of the gorgeous feathers. I covered her for warmth and sat with her while she slept off the effects of shock and pain.

I must have dozed off for a while, for when I woke she was "perched" on the bed, preening and examining my splint. Setting the bone must have helped alleviate the pain, for she only winced once or twice as she poked at my handiwork. She noticed that I was awake, and gently reached out her small hand to stroke my cheek - a gesture of trust! I reached up and touched her hand, and she did not flinch, but allowed my fingers to caress hers.

"I've never met an angel before," I said. "How did you come to be injured this way?"

She looked at me understandingly. She moved her hand through the air, like a bird in flight. she did the same with her other hand, brought the two together in a collision above her head, and flopped one down to rest inverted on the bed at her side.

"You collided with something while flying?" I asked, incredulous.

She frowned and nodded affirmation.

"Another angel? An aeroplane? What?"

Her demeanor darkened, and she raised a finger to her lips. Furtively she glanced around, then put both index fingers to the top of her head like horns.

I was dumbstruck with amazement.My little angel had collided with,of all things under Heaven or on Earth, a demon imp! I could scarce believe this - but then, until now, I hadn't given much credence to the existence of angels, either. If angels existed, why not demons? The irony of this situation did not escape me, and I grinned. Again she frowned, and made as if to swat me for my impertinence, but instead she smiled and stroked my cheek once more.

I had no idea what to feed my "guest". I laid out every kind of foodstuff I could lay my hands on so she could choose. She picked everything up and sniffed at it, as if it were all too disgusting. At last she settled on some peaches and a few strawberries, which she dipped with apparent relish into a jar of honey. The honey dribbled across the table, and she eagerly lapped it up with a remarkably long, pointy blue tongue! Over the next few days she consumed more peaches and berries and six jars of orange-blossom honey.

I checked her wing daily, and found it remarkable how quickly she was healing. By the third day she would perch on the bed and spread her wings wide open - like a vulture drying in the sun. When she flapped them all the papers from my desk went flying, as well as the bedside lamp! I persuaded her not to do this too often. By the end of the week it became obvious that she felt confined and ready to resume her freedom.

In the evening we went outside, and she eagerly flapped her wings in broad, strong strokes. She gave not a sign of pain, indicating that she was fully healed! I had to rely on her own judgment and knowledge of herself. Suddenly she leaped straight up into the air and gracefully flew in circles around my head. This went on for about half an hour, all the while she giggled and laughed like a small child with a new toy.

My attention was suddenly diverted by the sound of a car approaching at high speed. To my dismay it came careening around the corner, brakes squealing. It swerved suddenly without apparent reason and crashed headlong into the bole of a tree not a dozen feet from where I stood.

I rushed over and pulled the car door open to check on the driver. He was badly injured but still moving. I pulled him from the vehicle and laid him down upon the grass.

Silently my little angel alit beside me. I looked at her in amazement. Where she had been light in coloration, she was now almost black. Her eyes darkened and the pupils became vertical slits like those of a cat. She stood erect, and seemed to grow as I watched, transfixed.

Suddenly she darted forward - her long blue tongue extended like a snake's and pierced the crash victim's chest. A sudden glow of golden light escaped from the entry point and drifted rapidly skyward. The angel drew back, and once more became the tiny being I had been nursing back to health.

She looked at me with the gentle eyes to which I had become accustomed. The revelation was almost too much for me to bear.

"You are the angel of death, aren't you?" I asked.

She lowered her eyes slightly and nodded. She seemed to sense my rising fear and reached out to touch me. I instinctively recoiled and I could see the disappointment in her gentle face. She pointed at the poor fellow from the car and opened both hands upwards to heaven as if to show me that was where his soul had gone this night.

"It was not me you have come for?" I asked, with a tremor in my voice.

She looked straight at me and shook her head. She pointed at me and spread her arms wide.

"I have a long time yet to live?"

She nodded in assent and smiled. Her demeanor was so enchanting I could not help but be reassured.

"Will I know when it is my time?" I asked.

She looked at me gently, then pointed at herself. She reached out both her hands to take mine in their strong, warm grip. I looked at my reflection in her eyes and knew she would be the one to come for me, and everything would be just fine!

"Thank you," I said, but she hushed me with her fingers to my lips.

She spread her wings wide and engulfed me in their protective embrace. The feeling of euphoria was overwhelming, and I fainted dead away.

I know not how long I was unconscious, but I awoke in my own bed. I looked around, but I was quite alone. I had this fleeting thought that it had all been a strange dream, but there, on the table for me to find, was a single, beautiful feather that shimmered and glowed in the moonlight - a gift I would cherish for all my days.

3/28/2002

[ButtercupFullOfTears]

ahh Heinzs! I loved this one, a nice constrast to Digging Bones, but the twist in this was acceptional....thanks for this story....it was great

[heinzs]

Thank you, Buttercup... I'm glad you like my little Angel story! This is probably a one-shot.

[Moongem]

Oh my god, that was great! I sense this and Bones could be longer and "read" in a published short-stories book. Maybe the demon imp could have a bigger role...an angel-of-death wannabe...love the way you can get a mind working on "what could be"!

[heinzs]

Thanks, Moongem! I never know what inspires these pieces, or when to expect them to come to me. So I, too, shall have to wait for the next installment.

[heinzs]

[img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img]

[Nefertari]

This was really cool you do such a good job. Like I have said before you are so clever!! [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[heinzs]

Thank you, nefertari... I'm pleased that you think so!

[ehli'schild]

i really liked it too. even through the angel didn't speak, she was/had really (a) character. to do that takes really good crafting. [img]images/smiles/icon_cool.gif[/img]

[heinzs]

Thanks, ec... I made her mute on purpose. Glad you liked it!

[heinzs]

[the quiet poet]

What a wonderful piece of writing Heinzs. Glad to see it bumped.

[Destinys_Realm_NSEW]

this was a very good story. I loved it.

[jeannerené]

Heinz,

Totally enjoyable.......

jeanne

[heinzs]

Thanks for finding this in the back pages, Destiny.

Thanks Jeanne!

H.