Ezekiel watched as London checked the messages on her phone, her brows knit together as she listened a few moments before deleting the messages. They had just come from another week helping mentor a group of Angelic youth. It was rocky going, but by the end of their time together she had changed at least one millennia old opinions about humans and their viability as a free species. Even Jupiter recognized the tactical advantage of humanity, which was a shock.
He fretted silently over his petite lover, his expression mildly attentive as she murmured something, then tapped out a quick message with a tired sigh. They had only just stepped into their shared domicile and the young Angel dropped their packs in a pile beside the entry.
She had never properly processed the deaths of her family, but had been slowly opening up about her thoughts and feelings to him when young Hephaestus had been killed by the wyrm. London said nothing, not a single word to anyone but him until she dealt the killing blow from inside the beast. But he felt the pain of her loss as keenly as she did when it happened. She hadn’t yet grieved for her friend, neither publicly nor privately and he could feel the turmoil she held tightly within herself.
Zeke felt a momentary flush of shame, their bonding glyphs allowed a deeper and more mutual emotional exchange than just her praying to him allowed for. As he understood, time would strengthen the bond between their souls. Not quite to the level of Angelic telepathy, but close. As it was now, he would liken it more akin to an emotional barometer, and London felt things very deeply.
Sometimes it was impossible to ignore the barrage of her emotions, they were nearly overwhelming in intensity and he loved it. Right now she was mildly annoyed, concerned, tired, and some, ah yes, irritated. She feigned that far more then she truly felt it and used it as a shield to keep others at a distance. And underneath it all was an overwhelming depth of sadness, grief, frustration and rage swirling in a soupy maelstrom. The strength of it was almost Angelic in complexity.
His attention focused again on the woman, memorizing her in this moment; her feet naked against the cool stone slabs, still clad in the drab silver grey unitard of the angelic cadet corps, her tunic a rumpled pile atop of mud and dust caked boots.
His hands itched to smooth the soft divot forming between her brows; to replace the growing concern with happiness and with it hear the soft throaty sound of her laughter. Instead, he stood watching, rubbing the tips of his fingers with the pad of his thumb.
She was still so skittish. In many ways their relationship reminded him of stories he had heard of humans taming wild animals, gaining their trust until they became inseparable companions. He hoped for similar results as his eyes tracked her movements whilst she paced a small circle just inside the doorway.
He enjoyed hearing the stories of her childhood in the rare moments she opened up, losing herself in memory, smiles would often play across her lips as she recounted a lifetime of victories and follies; if she ever embellished her tales, it was a subtle thing. She warmed him in ways Lucifer did his best to convey but failed. This feeling was indescribable, even him, his way with words could not express the sheer peace this short lived human washed over the restlessness of his being.
His wings settled behind him, lightly brushing the soft fabric of the large couch that dominated the lounging zone, he glanced a the holo screen for a second, noting the endless waves lapped at black beaches- her favorite screensaver. Glancing back, the angel frowned as London sighed, and grabbed a different pair of boots and began tugging them on. “Gotta go babe, apparently I’ve been playing hooky and should have been to work a few days ago. What are they gonna do, send me back to a place that doesn’t exist?” The sarcastic smirk wavered before falling quickly.
Guilt that was not his own filled his head. It didn’t take telepathy to know she was thinking of John, their eccentric companion who had stayed behind. Ezekiel had meet John and thought he was an energetic being, always yelling and waving his arms dramatically. He had seen him in the dining facility of the Kalturo base, harassing the guards or demanding ridiculous things. Michael had been rather fond of that one, shepherding him from one mishap to the next, leaving in their wake destruction and extremely frustrated leadership. Any other Angel and he would have thought of them as co-conspirators in the shenanigans. “Be careful London. And try not to get injured.”
This brought a soft laugh as she sauntered to where he was leaning and pulled him into a kiss. Wrapping his arms and wings around her small frame, he delighted in the sensation of stroking the satiny skin of her bared back, her lack of wings did have a decided advantage when she was in her cadet unitard. Letting his fingers brush across the slightly raised skin on her shoulder, he traced the rune like script that linked them, her fingers caressing the mirrored script on his chest. Leaning up to press a more chaste kiss to his cheek she grinned and wriggled out of his grasp. “I promise I will do my best to avoid all injury to my person. We just have to find Coda. The rest of the group is probably already stirring up whatever half naked natives are occupying some pervert’s harem fantasy. It’s not likely I’m gonna get shot or anything. Plus there’s a new guy. I’ll hide behind him.”
“You no longer have the shadows to control as you did in the last place. Your powers are still… manifesting here and seem to be of a different sort entirely. Please take care of yourself and the others. Do not to be too reckless, and come home soon? I don’t want to be a “Dog Daddy” just yet.” Her laughter soothed his fears somewhat, lingering in the air as she sauntered back into the hallway to the tele-pad; waterproof sack heavy with her hard earned prize inside. Too soon the soft thump of her boots was a memory.
Oslo, their android cat padded over and wound around his ankles for a moment before hopping up to headbutt his forearm, a low purring sound vibrating through his central speaker. Ezekiel stroked the cat’s back for a few moments before pressing the ‘treat’ button under the its chin. The purr changed tone slightly, indicating a successful treat and the robot hopped down and lay in one of the pools of morning light pouring through the wall of plate glass.
Cats and dogs. Humans as a species were infamous for their overall inherent need to capture and tame all manner of creatures intent on keeping them firmly one rung short of the top of the food chain. It didn’t matter what planet it was. There were humans right now thinking of ways to domesticate the carnivorous plants and animals of several different worlds at any given time. It was a well known joke for the other members of the interstellar sentient community. “Give a human enough time and something that wants to eat them and you will get a very confused predator wearing a head-bow and having its picture taken.”
Soon, soon he would have to teach her to shield her emotions from him as well as she did from others. But for now he simply enjoyed knowing he made her quite happy. “That’s not a bad idea Oslo. I shall also attempt to relax.” A quick shower and order of food to be delivered later, Ezekiel then stretched out in front of the windows, laying on his back, arms and wings outstretched. After a while, Oslo came over and lay on his chest as he napped.