Demon

Gabe’s

It is astonishing to behold. Demon has gazed at the Seer throughout her speech, both aghast at her audacity in addressing him directly, then increasingly moved by her words. His emotions roil throughout his being. His hatred for the girl conflicts with his desire to do what is best for Jonathan. His terrifying devil face contorts, his eyes blaze with fire as he looks down upon her, his clawed hands curl into fists.

When she reaches out to embrace his Guarded, I fear that Demon is going to again seize control of Jonathan’s emotions, and cause him to violently reject her advances.

My own beloved braces himself, his arms lifted, ready to intervene if it appears that Natalie may be harmed.

There is a tense moment as Jonathan relaxes into the Seer’s loving embrace.

Then, the unthinkable happens. Angel gracefully falls to the ground, kneeling before Demon. He lifts his face to the monstrous visage. Tears flow down his shining cheeks. He clasps his hands before him in supplication.

“Demon, forgive me. Forgive me for the harm I have caused you, for the ignorance that led me to act thoughtlessly in such a way that you endured great suffering. As is the Seer, I am deeply sorry for the pain you have experienced. Like her, I will attempt to remedy this situation in any way that I can. You need only accept our sincere apologies, and allow us to remain in the presence of your beloved Jonathan.”

I am overcome with awe and emotion at the sight. As the sunset glows orange and golden upon the scene, the shining angel kneels on the ground before the fearsome demon. The white robes of Angel pool around him, the light shines off of him, the tears flow from his eyes. Demon towers over him, his wings unfurling to a terrifying length, his fangs bared, his claws extended, filled with a mix of emotions that threaten to overpower us all.

There is a pause while all remain frozen in this tableau.

Then the Seer has a new flash of inspiration. “Angel,” she cries silently to her Guardian, “give me your energy! Send me your power!”

Her Guardian has never had to direct energy towards her before, as it was never necessary for her to be able to perceive him. It has never occurred to either of them to try this.

He immediately complies, energy floods out of him towards her, linking their minds in a powerful burst. She holds Jonathan even tighter, concentrating as hard as she can, as she feels the power flowing through her. She focuses on his soul, because she knows that it is connected to Demon.

She has found the answer. She cannot touch a Guardian directly. But with the flow of energy from her Guardian, and her arms enveloping Jonathan, the magic of the Seer’s touch overflows the soul of the boy and reaches through the connection to his Guardian.

Demon senses the connection, perceives the energy being provided by Angel and orchestrated by the Seer, and feels the healing touch that had brought him back to his beloved. This time, though, the Seer is no longer ignorant of her actions. She deliberately directs the power towards Demon, seeking to heal him of his pain, calm his troubled thoughts, soothe his memories, relieve his suffering. And this time he actively accepts it, willingly.

As he senses the healing power of the Seer, as he feels himself restored to a state of emotional balance, she lifts her head from Jonathan’s neck to look over his shoulder at Demon.

And she sees him.

Natalie

I asked Jonathan’s permission to do it, and I asked Demon to let me help him. He didn’t stop me. He could have told Angel no. I am using my touch, using Angel’s power, using all the love I have in me to heal them both. Jonathan is hugging me back, and I’m only feeling happiness from him, none of the ugly emotions he was having before. I think that it’s working.

So I look up at where I think Demon is standing. It’s right in front of the setting sun, which is almost all the way down below the horizon. Its rays shine up in lines, lighting up Demon from behind.

And somehow, I can see him. I think it’s because of the energy from Angel, and the fact that I’m hugging him by hugging Jonathan’s soul, and maybe because the sunlight is just right, and I don’t know what else. But I see him. Not as clear to me as Angel is. But there is definitely a huge demon standing on the edge of the canyon.

I hear myself gasp.

Demon looks just like Angel described. Even worse. Angel didn’t say anything about his eyes being on fire. He is huge and red and scary, his wings are up in the air like he’s ready to take off flying, and he is staring at me with the most astonished expression.

I stare back at him, not letting go of Jonathan, knowing that if I did I would lose this connection.

I can see that Demon isn’t angry, he isn’t hating me, he is just completely surprised.

I say it to him silently, so nobody else can hear it. Except the other guardians, I suppose. But I want him to know. And it’s true.

“I love you,” I tell him.

I love him for what he is to Jonathan. I love him for allowing me to be here. I love him for coming back.

I see tears start to slip out of his fiery eyes, and roll down his blood-red cheeks. He stares at me, then glances at Angel kneeling on the ground still, then looks back over at me.

He nods. “Thank you,” I faintly hear him say.

Then it’s over. The sun finishes slipping below the horizon, I feel the power from Angel stop flowing, and Jonathan leans back from me, taking a deep breath. I let him go. I look back up to the edge of the canyon and can’t see anything anymore except the brilliant orange clouds.

Angel stands back up, a beautiful smile beaming on his face.

Jonathan looks amazed, like he can sense that something important just happened. Gabe relaxes his stance, like he realizes that there isn’t any danger any more.

“Are you okay?” I ask Jonathan.

“Yeah,” he says, sounding surprised. “I really am. Like, really, really am. I feel like Demon feels better now?”

I turn to Angel.

“My darling, your solution was perfect. Your touch, using my energy, did indeed reach Demon, did help to make him feel much better. Just as you helped the others, your touch helped him. I believe that your friendship with Jonathan is no longer a threat to you.”

I turn back to Gabe and Jonathan and tell them this with a huge smile on my face. “Thank you,” I think to Demon. “Thank you for allowing this.”

Angel nods, and I know that Demon is okay now.

Gabe is looking back and forth between me and Jonathan. “So,” he says, “anyone want to tell me what just happened? This time?”

I laugh, a little shakily. I feel like I just ran a marathon or something.

“Well,” I tell them, “Demon is feeling better now.”

Jonathan nods. “Yeah, I can tell he is.”

“And,” I add, “I saw him.”

“What?!” they both say at the same time.

“I don’t know how exactly, but just for a minute, I could see him, standing there in front of the sun.”

“Really?” Jonathan says, excited. “So, what’s he look like?”

I laugh again. “Actually, he looks like a demon. A giant scary red demon. He made himself look that way because he knows that’s how you’ve been picturing him.”

Jonathan’s eyes bug out. “Oh my God!” he says. He looks over at Gabe with a huge smile on his face. “Cool!”

Gabe looks at me and laughs. “Told you so!”