Solace (Asteria Trilogy Book 1)

by Alaina Katherine

  “What do you mean the only option?” There looked to be plenty of different options in the drawer.

  “Well, different events require different attire. Everyone tonight will be in bold, rich colors but only you will be in purple,” she explained. “Now take it off,” she instructed with a wave of her hand.

  I stood there for a moment with my eyes wide. Did she really want to take everything off? Azrael turned from my dresser with the purple cloth in her hands.

  “You can leave on your underwear, but not your bra,” she continued while I continued to stare at her. “Please, you don’t have anything I haven’t seen before,” she added with a role of her eyes.

  I hesitantly did as I was told but kept my arms crossed over my chest. I didn’t have to hold my arms there for long though since that was where Azrael began her wrapping. I watched as she wrapped, tucked and tugged the fabric all around me. It was like watching an artist at work. She hummed quietly while she fluttered all around me, constantly seeing small details she wanted to change.

  When she was done the robe cascaded loosely around my feet, she had somehow managed to make the dress have pleats that started at my waist. The dress only covered a small strip on each shoulder and the material scooped down and hung loosely over my chest. She completed the outfit with gold sandals that had a small heel which prevented the dress from touching the floor.

  “Done!” She smiled at her work. “Now just give me fifteen minutes to get myself ready and we should be right on time for the ceremony.”

  Fascinated, I watched as Azrael transformed herself. I really had no idea how she managed to wrap her red dress herself, but the end result was amazing. She wore her hair slicked back in a high ponytail and had bold red lipstick to match her dress.

  “Oh, I almost forgot,” Azrael said, as she was organizing her things. She bent down and called Storm over to her. Storm’s steps were hesitant, but she stood still as Azrael secured a collar, made of the same flowers that were in my hair, around her neck. “Now you’re ready too!”

  The ceremony was at the courtyard behind the angel’s conference hall where they usually held their important meetings. As soon as Azrael and I turned the corner of the conference hall, Metatron whisked me away, out of sight of the other angels.

  “Don’t want to let them see you before your introduction,” he explained as he dragged me up a few stairs.

  “I think a lot of them have already seen me walking around,” I pointed out. Metatron just ignored me.

  “Wait right here.” He held me by the shoulders as he moved me so that I stood behind a curtain separating me from the angels. “We will give them a few more minutes to arrive. I will go out first, then when you hear your name you shall join me on the stage.”

  Metatron turned and went back down the steps he had just shoved me up. I tapped my foot lightly as I waited for him to return. Glancing up, I noticed movement across from me on the stage. Metatron was ascending the steps on the opposite side of the stage. When he got to the top step he paused and took a deep breath before taking his place in the center of the stage in front of the other angels.

  “Salve,” he said and the murmuring voices died down. His voice was full and strong. It wasn’t surprising that he didn’t even use a microphone. He spoke for a couple of minutes in a language I did not understand. Eventually I did recognize my name and Metatron held a hand out in my direction. I took that as my cue to join him on the stage.

  I took a deep breath, just as Metatron had, before plunging onto the stage. I kept my back straight, my head high, and a smile on my face. I contemplated waving but I wasn’t sure that would be appropriate. I stood next to Metatron with my hands intertwined in front of me. I fought the urge to fiddle with my fingers as Metatron continued to talk.

  Since it would be impossible for me to figure out what he was saying I took the time to take in my surroundings. There were countless angels staring up at me, all with their wings resting against their backs. Not a single one matched another. There were so many colors, textures, and sheens. The one thing that was consistent in every angel was the light in their eyes as they looked up at me. It was intimidating; they held me in their highest regard though I had yet to do anything special and I was afraid I never would.

  I searched for a familiar face in the sea of angels. Right up in the front I found Gabriel, who I was surprised to see, had let his hair out of its usual ponytail. He gave a slight nod of his head when my eyes met his. Instantly my mind cleared and I no longer felt the pressure of the hundreds of eyes that were tuned on me.

  When Metatron finished his speech he held out his arm for me and I looped my own through his. Together we descended down the stairs on the side of the platform and I was glad to see Gabriel waiting there for me. Metatron passed me off to Gabriel and joined his wife.

  “You did great.” Gabriel beamed.

  “Thanks, but I have absolutely no idea what he was saying about me up there. For all I know he could have been defaming my name,” I huffed.

  “Metatron would never do that to Asteria.”

  “Yeah, but I bet he’d do it to me in a heartbeat.”

  “Silly girl, stop your worrying and let me dance with you.”

  Gabriel led me to the center of the courtyard and everyone immediately parted if they were in our path. Now that I was on the ground with everyone I could see that there were younger angels in attendance as well. Most of them clung to the legs of the adult angels as they stole glances at me.

  There was now a small orchestra set up on the stage and as Gabriel pulled me to him the music started. He placed a hand in the center of my back and held my right hand with his other.

  “Gabriel, I don’t know how to dance like this,” I hissed.

  “It’s a good thing that I am a good dancer then. Just match my steps.” He started off slow so that I could watch his footwork. It didn’t take long for me to catch on though and I was beginning to enjoy myself until I realized that we were they only ones dancing. Everyone else just seemed to gather around watching. Flustered, I moved too quickly and stepped on Gabriel’s foot. Though he was un-phased, I muttered a small apology and felt a rush of warmth spreading through my cheeks.

  I notice a red flicker next to me and looked over to find Azrael dancing with her brother. She met my gaze and gave me a quick wink before Raphael twirled her away. Soon others were joining in and the attention was no longer on me.

  Gabriel didn’t exaggerate about being a good dancer. While I had danced with him before, it was nothing like the dancing we were doing now. This was sophisticated and elegant. He glided over the dance floor and took me along with him. I was mesmerized by his fluidity and how he managed to infuse it into me.

  I let out a small giggle as Gabriel spun me out and I clumsily spun back in.

  “I guess I need more practice on that.”

  “Maybe we can fit some dance lessons in between our training sessions.”

  “Sounds good. So I noticed that the boys don’t dress up like the girls do.” I nodded towards Gabriel's dark blue, simply wrapped robe. While the girls had gone all out, fashioning a variety of styles out of their cloth, the boys all wore the same style: long robes with long sleeves.

  “Well, it’s not all that fun for us and besides, what other styles could we possibly wear? It’s not like we have assets to show off.”

  “Oh come on, you all have crazy muscles!” I scoffed.

  “Well, it would not be appropriate to go around topless,” He mumbled. I think the topic made him a little uncomfortable.

  “Well, I’m surprised Azrael lets you all out in public like this,” I joked. As the song changed and picked up tempo Michael came over and stole me away from Gabriel.

  “You look stunning tonight, Goddess.” Michael kissed my hand before drawing me close to dance. I noticed that he, just like Gabriel, had released his hair from its usual ponytail.

  “Thanks,” I muttered and tried to smile. Michael’s attitude was exhaust
ing; I wasn’t sure how Gabriel could live with him.

  “I picked my robe because it reminded me of your eyes.”

  “Oh, look at that.” I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to take that comment. I think he wanted it to be a compliment but it seemed a little creepy to me.

  “It must be tough for you to be away from your family and friends.” His lowered his voice and his smirk was gone from his face.

  “It’s only been a day, but yeah, I think it’s going to take a while to get used to.” I nodded. “My parents pretty much gave me free reign so the independence won’t be a big deal. But I’m used to them being there, you know?”

  “Well, I’m sure we will all try our best to make this feel like home.” The smirk was back. “And if you ever need anything feel free to ask.” Well, at least he wiped off the arrogance for a minute. Apparently a minute was all he was capable of.

  Metatron was next to cut in to dance with me.

  “How has Aether been treating you so far?” he inquired. His dancing was just as graceful as Gabriel’s and Michaels but he held me at a farther distance.

  “It’s good. Everyone’s been really nice.”

  I suddenly missed Michael as a dance partner. Even though his attitude bothered me, at least he made an attempt to talk with me. Metatron and I continued to dance in an awkward silence until an angel whom I had not met before cut in. The next hour or so continued in a similar manor, with unknown angels dancing with me. My feet grew exhausted and my stomach growled.

  I excused myself to find Gabriel. As I navigated through the vast crowd every angel greeted me with a welcome home. I just plastered a smile on my face and nodded vaguely in their direction. It probably wasn’t the most polite thing for me to do but I forgot about manners in my hunger.

  When I finally found Gabriel he was having a conversation with angels that I did not recognize and he had his back to me. I didn’t want to interrupt their conversation but I wanted to get his attention. I went to gently place a hand on Gabriel’s shoulder, letting him know of my presence but his wings were in the way. Instead, I settled on trailing my fingers down a few feathers on his wings.

  Gabriel instantly whirled around and grabbed my hand. I jumped. His eyes were wild with his pupils widening.

  “Sage,” his voice sounded strained. “Excuse me,” he said to the other angels and he let go of my hand. With a hand pressed into the middle of my back, he guided me away.

  “Did I interrupt something important?” I suddenly felt guilty for interrupting.

  “Not at all. You just,” he paused. “You can’t touch people’s wings like that. Please tell me you haven't touched anyone else’s.”

  “No, just yours. What did I do wrong?”

  “Our wings are very personal and sensitive. Touching a wing is a very intimate act.” His voice was low as he explained.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

  “Well, now you do.” he said flatly.

  “So who is allowed to touch an angel’s wings?”

  “Lovers. I only let you touch them that first day since I figured it would help you.”

  “Oh,” I blushed. “I’m really sorry.”

  “It’s fine. We can move on from it now. What did you need me for?” My stomach growled loudly in response, causing Gabriel to laugh. “Of course.”

  Gabriel led me over to a buffet table where I, without shame, piled my plate with decadent looking food. I noticed that Gabriel had not completely filled up his own plate, so I filled it up for him.

  “Where do you put it all?” Gabriel noted with a shake of his head as we sat down at a table. Throughout our meal various angels came over and introduced themselves. Katzfiel, Ausiel, Hagith, Risnuch, Lailah. No way was I going to keep all these names straight.

  “Everyone looks so different,” I commented after meeting so many angels with only a few of them sharing similar features.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, it looks like there are so many nationalities here. You would think everyone would look the same since Asteria create all of them,” I mused.

  “Exactly,” Gabriel responded with a smile. “The point is, it doesn’t matter.”

  Angels suddenly began passing around glasses filled with dark liquid. Gabriel handed one to me and kept one for himself. I took a whiff of the drink and instantly pulled my head back.

  “Its wine,” Gabriel laughed. “Someone must want to give a toast.”

  Suddenly small clinking sounds were filling the courtyard and everyone was turning their attention to one particular table, so I did the same. I wasn’t really surprised to see Michael standing up grinning at me.

  “I would like to make a toast to our beautiful Goddess. Welcome home.” He raised his glass and everyone did the same and sung out “welcome home” before taking a sip. I looked into to sea of unfamiliar faces. It certainly didn’t feel like I was home but I smiled anyways and raised the glass to my lips.

  “Here.” I shoved my glass at Gabriel. The wine was way too sour and after my last incident with alcohol I definitely wasn’t a fan. Gabriel tried to hide his smile as a graciously took the glass from me. I felt a small tap on my shoulder and I turned to see a small boy who looked about seven or eight years old.

  “Hello,” he greeted with a bow.

  “Well, hi there.” I grinned at him. His wide eyes rapidly shifted back and forth between me and Gabriel.

  “May I have this next dance?” He held out his little hand.

  “Of course.” I placed my hand over his and threw Gabriel a bewildered look over my shoulder as I let this little boy lead me to the dance floor. “What’s your name?”

  “Mihr,” he answered, the top of his head barley reaching my chest as we started to dance. He was a much better dancer than I was. “I hope my charge turns out to be the Goddess just like Gabriel’s did.”

  “Are you going to be a protector angel?”

  He nodded his head vigorously. “Just like Gabriel.”

  “Well, then I bet you will make the best protector.”

  “You think?” He beamed up at me.

  “Oh, absolutely.”

  “I like your dog, she’s been playing with me and my friends all night.”

  “Oh yeah? She must like you a lot. I haven’t seen her all night.”

  “Sage, you have the most handsome dancing partner.” Azrael commented as she twirled past us.

  “Are you friends with her?” Mihr gazed up at me.

  “Kind of.”

  “Azrael is super cool!” I guess this kid must have been having the best night of his life, getting to see all these people he admires.

  When the song ended another angel cut in and I was back to spending time on the dance floor. The night was coming to an end and there were less people on the dance floor. Some angels even came to say goodnight to me. At the end of the night it was just me, Gabriel, Azrael and Raphael.

  “Did you hear the news? I’m super cool,” Azrael smugly told Gabriel as she took her brother’s arm before leaving Gabriel and me alone.

  “You and Azrael have a fan club apparently,” I explained when I saw the puzzled look on Gabriel’s face as we began to walk to my house. “Mihr, that little boy I danced with, looks up to both of you.”

  Chapter Seven

  That night I sat up in bed in the darkness. Though my house had been decorated with a lot of items from my room, that didn’t make it feel like home. I tried not to become too uneasy, I didn’t want Gabriel to have to spend another night away from his bed. Since it was clear I wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon, I slipped on some shoes and went for a walk.

  I would have never been comfortable walking along in the dark at home but here in Aether I had nothing to worry about. I hadn’t really learned much of the layout of Aether yet so I pretty much just wandered around aimlessly until I ended up back at where the ceremony had been held.

  The courtyard was still decorated, tables and chairs still lined the grass and the
band’s instruments were still up on the stage. I navigated through the tables until I reached the stage. The instruments were all classical instruments, not the type you would see at a normal party. There was one instrument in particular that caught my attention. The harp. It was made alternately of dark and light wood with an ornate pattern of flowers carved into the top. I gently ran my hand over this design and followed it as it slopped downward and curved back up again. I sat myself on the stool behind it and ran my fingers over a few of the strings. Though I had no idea how to play, I let myself enjoy the angelic sound of the random chords I struck.

  “Here, I can play something,” came Gabriel’s voice.

  “Of course, you’d find me,” I sighed.

  “Were you trying to hide?”

  “No,” I moved from my seat to allow Gabriel to sit there instead. “I just wanted you to be able to spend a night at home.”

  “I won’t be able to do that until you spend a peaceful night at home.”

  “I’m sorry. I wish it was easier for me to adjust to this, but it doesn’t feel like home.”

  “Don’t apologize,” was all he said. He started to play the harp and we both stayed quiet. I watched his hands closely as they seemed to fly over the chords.

  “That was beautiful,” I praised when he had finished playing. “When did you learn to play?”

  “All angels learn in school. I can play most of the instruments on this stage actually.”

  “Show off,” I teased.

  “You don’t know how to play anything?”

  “Not a single instrument.”

  “How can they not make you learn at school?” Gabriel was baffled.

  “A lot of schools have poor funding and the first thing to go is always the arts.” I shrugged.

  “That’s atrocious.” He didn’t explain more.

  “I’m not disagreeing with you, just telling you how it is.” Gabriel began playing another song after I said this but he abruptly stopped about a minute in.

  “You never told me what you wanted to study in college. What all these big plans were that we took you away from?”