by A.J. Aaron
“The best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it.”
Harry S. Truman
22
Dressed for a celebration, we entered the patio through the French doors in the center of the wall. I had just stepped onto the flagstone when a hawk screeched overhead. The patio had more square footage than my whole house had before. Leyna’s eyes were wide as she took it all in for the first time.
Woods surrounded the yard after a short expanse of lawn. The sky was Disney blue with white puffy clouds and a light sweet September breeze. Three deer were meandering through the woods, unbothered by a group of turkeys that scratched in the leaves.
We seated ourselves on heavily padded wicker furniture, around a large coffee table. Leyna pulled me next to her on the sofa. Fortunately, I was her familiar anchor right now. Gabriel, Raphael, and Aysel sat in large wicker seats across from us. Alexander brought out a pitcher of drinks and tall thin glasses with mint sprigs in them.
“I thought mojitos would be good. It will be a while before dinner, since I am preparing it from scratch.”
“Thanks, You’ll have to teach me where all the stuff is in this house so I can do this myself, and you can do what you do,” I said as he poured the drinks.
“My lord, this is what I do. Don’t you ever think of taking away my pleasure.” He smiled. “Lady Leyna,” he said as he handed her a drink. “Divine guests, Gabriel and Raphael.” He handed them drinks and went inside.
Leyna slugged hers down and smiled nervously. “So, there really is an Alexander. I thought you were just some schmuck.”
“Thanks a lot.” I clinked her glass with mine and took a sip. “Do you feel okay?”
“Okay?” She moved her shoulders and craned her neck. “Hmm, I feel incredible. I don’t know what you did to me, but this is the best I ever felt. So, you actually fell in love with me in Prague?” Leyna was starting to relax.
“I think I met the real you there. I mean the caring, considerate and most beautiful one. You took such good care of Sahasha. Do you still want to ruin every man you meet?”
“Nope, I can’t imagine how I ever wanted to do that before. It was entertainment, I guess.”
“Nothing to do with getting even with your dad for what he did to you?”
“Yeah, my dad was a real piece of work, but that’s life. Suck it up and move on.”
“Leyna, you’re nothing like you were. You have a chance now.”
Raphael, Aysel, and Gabriel smiled and raised their glasses. Gabby hailed a toast. “To the new Leyna, expertly healed by Lord Sevilen. To Lady Leyna for showing her true self to Sahasha. To our new god and soon to be goddess!”
“To Leyna,” I said. Leyna blushed and smiled at me. I couldn’t resist kissing her deeply on the lips. When we stopped, the group made such a clatter of applause and howls, I choked up a bit.
Gabby, the messenger, said what everyone wanted to. “It’s about time! Hurray!”
Since it wasn’t too often I had a chance to talk with a couple of archangels, I thought I should take advantage of this.
“So tell me, Gabriel and Raphael. How is it you two are here and able to enjoy this time with us? I mean, what happens to all the other stuff you should be taking care of right now?”
Gabriel motioned with his glass, sweeping it before him. “Yes, there is a constant stream of tasks requiring our attention as you will soon learn once you take on your roles. It will be very similar to our lives, except you will be much more powerful than any one of us.”
Gabriel nodded, swallowing the last of his mojito. “Alexander always did make the best drinks. But, to your question, Lord Sevilen, when you’re mowing the grass, waxing your car, driving a known route or basically working on some task that requires little thought, do you not solve problems and think through issues you may have in some other area, besides what you’re currently engaged in?”
“Of course the mind wanders. Sometimes I’ve come up with the best solutions while doing something else.”
“Yes, you solve problems and take care of things. We do the same except, as you will soon learn, it is much more than handling one thing at a time. We can be in different places at the same time, and at the same time be working on other things as you would when waxing your car.
“So take that concept and multiply it by the number of stars in your known universe, then take it to the profundity of the unimaginable and you will begin to have some clue as to how it works.”
“Multi-tasking. Okay, so right now you and Raphael are doing other things besides drinking mojitos with us?”
Gabriel nodded.
Raphael chimed in, “Good description, Gabby. Yes.” Raphael’s green eyes looked at me intently. “You’ll see all of this fall into place for you. Don’t worry, it becomes quite second nature. Still, sometimes, direct contact is the best method, which is why we’re here today. Our focus is you and Leyna. This was too important to handle from afar.”
“If we’re so important, where are Michael and Auriel?”
“They didn’t have to come because you only needed our expertise. They’re taking a bit of a holiday down in the Cayman Islands.” Raphael paused slightly then added, “They said hello, though, and they’re asking me to congratulate you both. Michael said to tell you he was the hawk when you walked onto the patio. He was concerned for you both and does care for you.”
“The hawk. We can be animals, too? How can you be humans?”
Raphael said, “Same as you, though it’s a little different for us. When you haven’t been in human form for a while, it’s a bit disturbing. Sight and sound is somewhat diminished, but the tactile sensations, taste, and smell in this body form is astounding. It can overwhelm if you’re not careful.”
Leyna started asking questions as Alexander brought out another pitcher and refilled the glasses.
“How do you deal with the different languages? Do you know them all?”
Gabriel said, “They come automatically. The knowledge wasn’t gained by us studying each individually. When we speak or listen to a different language, the knowledge comes to us from our direct connection to the source of all knowledge; the Akashic records flow freely to us. You will have the same experience.”
Leyna continued to engage them—a good sign. “How about weather and lightning? Can you start fires with thought? Can you levitate things?”
Gabriel said, “Of course, mostly for theatrical effects and for entrances and the like, such as when we met you in Deer Lake. There isn’t much use for it, though. We don’t need to defend ourselves and we won’t use it to cause harm.” Gabriel looked at the pitcher on the table and it rose, moved to fill Aysel’s glass and reset itself on the table.
“Thank you, Gabriel,” Aysel chirped.
Leyna looked at Aysel, tilted her head, and asked, “Do you have all these abilities, just as we will have?”
“Of course. I can’t say I ever used them all, though. Let’s see if I can get a crack of thunder.” Aysel looked into the sky and a second later there was a loud, echoing, crack of thunder. “See, Leyna, if you can imagine it, you can do it. That’s how simple it all is. It’s as fluid and flowing from us as it will be for you.”
I tried to levitate the pitcher myself and ended up spilling it, but I did get it in the air.
We sat and talked about different options for taking Leyna through her training. She could do it the old-fashioned way—practiced ritual, learning from books, having a mentor such as Aysel, or the more efficient way—a full download for the remaining gates she needed. Similar to what Aysel did for me for the last gate.
After much discussion, Raphael said, “With Leyna healed there isn’t as much urgency to her training. She can learn in whatever manner is comfortable to her. Why risk the possibility of her getting lost in the gate like Sevilen almost did? Even though Sevi had the knowledge, he still wasn’t sure how to bring about the healing, and probably wouldn’t have if
he hadn’t been supported. That’s why it’s good to have a mentor.
“I’d also suggest going back in time to see the old Leyna and Sevilen to gain knowledge of your histories. Be in the moment. Let things fall as they will and enjoy being together and getting to know each other again”
“Excellent advice, Raphael. Thank you.”