"Kratel?" The voice that spoke outside the door was familiar, too familiar. Arella looked to the door, but did not answer being called out. Of course, she did not register that she was the one being called out to.
"Kratel?" The voice called out again, followed by a second rap at the door.
The voice that carried through to the room was deep, yet calm, filled with the sort of concern Arella was not used to hearing from anyone apart from her brother.
Arella’s breath caught in her throat, and her body went rigid.
The mont the na left the lips of the person outside, mories, Kratel’s mories, thundered through her mind. She could recall the face that went with that voice, the presence that person had, the loyalty that they had, and how they had died... all of those things had happened beside Kratel, the owner of the body she was inhabiting.
Haniel.
Her pulse pounded, and a nauseating feeling rose up her throat. Disbelief crashed over her like a tidal wave, threatening to pull her under once more. These emotions were hers, and at the sa ti, they were not.
Despite Arella not answering, the door creaked open, and in stepped the angel himself. Arella turned her head left and right, looking for sowhere she could hide. However, the room, though ostanteous, was mostly empty.
The angel that walked in was tall, as tall as Kratel. His eyes were golden as well, and the halo that sat on the top of his head matched the one that Arella had seen in the reflection in the mirror just then. His eyes found Arella, no... found Kratel, and though Arella could not see his eyes behind the halo, she could tell that he was looking at her. Arella’s stomach twisted as Adriel’s expression softened with an emotion that made Arella even more nauseous.
"You are awake." He said, stepping closer. He was wearing an armor that glinted under the golden sunlight that filtered in from the balcony. "Why did you not answer when I called out to you?" His eyebrow raised slightly, and Arella took in a deep breath.
What was she supposed to say? Was she supposed to speak as informally as he was?
Instead, her body remained rigid, unwilling to move. She was unable to tear her gaze away from Haniel. His hair was golden, just like hers, and was neatly braided over his shoulder. It was so long that it fell just above his knees. His back was straight, and his wings stretched proudly from his back.
How was this happening?
What was happening?
Arella breathed, but in her mind the only thing that she could see was the war-worn soldier who the last mory she had of him was when he was covered in blood, wielding a blade that cut through both enemies and the kin who had betrayed them. His wings were both intact, and his halo glowed with a familiar golden glow.
Arella was sure that she did not have any feelings for this angel she had never seen before, but the relief she felt after simply seeing his face was unmistakable.
Her lips parted, but no sound ca. Even if she had wanted to speak, what could she possibly say? That she was not the one Haniel saw before him? That she was Arella, and that she had seen his life flash before her eyes as he fell to the ground dead? That the Celestial spire... this place... this world... was nothing but a mory that had long since turned to dust?
Luckily, the angel brought conversation, "Why are you on the floor?" He asked. "Are you quite alright?"
It was then that Arella realized that she was still on the floor, having lost the strength in her legs just a few monts before.
Arella wanted to scream in the negative, say that she wanted to go ho, that she needed to go back and protect the people she cared for.
She swallowed the scread that clawed at her throat. She had to stay calm. She was Arella of the house of Camael. She had to think. She could not afford to panic. Not now.
She forced herself to breathe, deep breaths, one after another.
Then, she looked up and gave Haniel a smile, "I seem to have lost the sensation in my legs for a mont, so I was taking a breather." She nearly recoiled at the sound of her own voice. It sounded foreign, and sounded nothing like her. It was deeper, and obviously more masculine.
A voice that did not belong to her.
Her body still trembled with lingering shock, but Haniel did not seem to notice her distress... or if he did, he did not address it. Instead, his gaze flickered over her, assessing her. "You do not seem to be well today," he said as he took small steps to Arella. Arella flinched as the angel stretched out his hand.
However, when she realized that she was simply being helped up, she laughed nervously, and took his hand. "You should rest for a while today. The last battle took a strain on your soul. Your eyes have also gotten worse. Pushing yourself so soon will only worsen your condition."
The last battle?
Arella’s fingers curled against her sides as she stood up straight. She tried to filter through the maze that was Kratel’s mories, trying to decipher what Haniel was telling her.
However, she could not figure out what he was referring to, so she, instead, gave him a smile, the sa smile that Jim usually called a ’dumb blonde’ smile.
Perhaps if she acted oblivious, he would not figure out that she was not Kratel. She forced herself to stay still. She could not afford to be seen as weak, not when she did not know what was happening. Not when she had no answers and no understanding of how she had co to be here.
"I am fine, really." She flashed him that smile.
It was easier this ti. Lying was easier when she forced the initial shock of being in an unfamiliar place down.
Haniel studied her for a long mont, then gave her a smile that could only be described as an angel smile. His lips pulled up at the sides, and the edges of his eyes closed shut slightly, giving him a very benevolent look. He tilted his head slightly, his golden braid shifting over his shoulder as he observed her closely.
Then, with an amused chuckle, he crossed his arms over his chest, "That smile of yours," he said, shaking his head, "It is as infuriating as ever. You always think that you can fool with that expression yet you use it every ti you want to avoid answering sothing directly."
Arella felt her stomach tighten.
She had hoped he would simply accept her words, and leave her to think, but Haniel was perceptive -- too perceptive.
She forced a laugh, reaching up to rub the back of her neck, a nervous habit that she did not even realize she had until she felt the rough and unfamiliar skin of Kratel’s hands. "Is it really that obvious?" She said, hoping to steer the conversation away from anything that required too much knowledge of this world.
Haniel smirked, shaking his head, "I an, I have known you longer than anyone else. I know things about you that not even you know." He took a step closer, "Co, sit. You do not look too well."
Before Arella could react, Haniel had already taken her arm, guiding her towards the balcony. The touch was firm, yet gentle, and for a brief mont, Arella was caught of guard by the warmth of it. Did angels here touch each other with such familiarlity so often?
It was strange.
However, she let it be, seeing as she still had yet to sort through the mories of the angel whose body she was inhabiting.
"I am sure you are starved. I shall send for sothing light for you to eat. What would you like?"
Arella allowed him to lead her to a seat, and plopped herself on it, taking a look at the view outside. The celestial spire.
Even with the incomplete and scrambled mories, her heart felt warm at being in the golden spire. These emotions, once again, were not her own. She did not understand why she was here, and why she had been brought here. But if there was a reason why she was not back ho, she would figure it out.
She was her mother’s daughter after all.
Updat𝓮d from freew𝒆bnovel(.)com
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