Feather

by Laurie Lyons

  "I didn't think it could be that easy." Lucy smiled and yawned in response. "You are exhausted, close your eyes," he said. She obeyed and immediately felt herself sinking into sleep, "Sweet dreams my Lucy."

  "Don't count on it," she murmured into his chest.

  "Hmm?" it sounded like Nathaniel was falling asleep too.

  "I don't dream."

  "Really?"

  "Nope," she said shifting against him to get closer to his warmth.

  "Interesting," he muttered and she could feel his body relaxing into sleep. The lights went out by themselves.

  "Did you do that?" Lucy asked.

  "Yes," he kissed her head again, "I'll do anything for you Lucy." She allowed the darkness to take her and Lucy slept deeply and soundly, safe in Nathaniel's arms.

  Chapter Eight

  Demons

  "Something wicked this way comes."

  ~William Shakespeare

  Time passed quickly for Lucy and Nathaniel and they slipped into an easy routine. They would wake up and Lucy would go to classes and Nathaniel would go out. Lucy asked him several times where he went but she received increasingly vague answers and finally gave up. They would meet up for dinner or later in the evening if Lucy had other plans. There were a few more parties that Lucy had to go solo to because they were far too crowded for Nathaniel to attend. Anastasia's new guy Roman was at them all. He and Lucy got along well and Lucy was pleased there were no hard feelings.

  Her feelings towards Nathaniel intensified every day. She was surprised to find herself craving his presence so badly that it physically hurt some days. Every morning that Lucy woke up she looked to the ceiling and whispered.

  "Thank you for Nathaniel. I am very sorry that you can never have him back. He is mine forever."

  Nathaniel was more extraordinary than Lucy had originally thought. He was physically far stronger than a normal man, one day picking up the back wheel of a car to experiment at Lucy's insistence. He could run like the wind and jump about fifteen feet in the air from standing. Nathaniel knew a great deal of history as well. He knew small details that couldn't be in any book. He told Lucy that Queen Elizabeth I had a pear shaped birthmark on her left forearm. He didn't know if he had this information from meeting her in person or if he obtained it from meeting her in Heaven. He was well versed in science and biology, knowing facts and figures about Earth or the human body that even Lucy was unaware of. Nathaniel could also find things. He could find almost anything like Lucy's keys or a book in the library without consulting the catalogue. He could tell Lucy where anyone was at a specific moment in time like Anastasia or Dr. Hannon and of course he could find Lucy at the drop of a hat if she called him.

  It was a bright morning in early May when everything changed. Lucy was supposed to meet Dr. Hannon for a quick discussion about the upcoming conference and would be late due to a group meeting. She called his office from her dorm room in the morning.

  Lucy frowned at the phone.

  "What's wrong?" Nathaniel asked.

  "He's not answering," Lucy said, "that's odd."

  "Maybe he's with a student," Nathaniel offered.

  Lucy shook her head and reviewed her memory, "Nope, never once have I called this man and he didn't answer his phone." She tried to dismiss the strong tightness that had started to settle in her stomach. "You know, I am just going to run by his office on my way to class. I am sure it's nothing but he might need me or something."

  "Do you want me to come with you?" he asked.

  "Naw," Lucy answered, "I'm sure it's fine."

  Nathaniel kissed her lightly on the forehead as she shrugged on her coat and headed out the door. Lucy cut through the quad and increased her speed slightly as she approached the psychology building. Something wasn't right, something wasn't right at all. That tightness in her stomach increased and by the time she reached the stairs she was sprinting. She thought that maybe she should have Nathaniel come with her but for what reason? She felt like something bad had happened but she had no way of knowing if she was right or if she was just panicking for no reason.

  Out of breath and sweating, Lucy ran down the hall of the psychology second floor and burst into Dr. Hannon's office. At first, all appeared fine and she laughed at her own dramatics. Dr. Hannon's office was exactly as it had been the last time Lucy was here. She scanned the room, referencing her memories to any anomalies in the space and nothing was obviously wrong. Taking one step into the room gave her more of a view and what she saw made her scream in terror.

  Dr. Hannon lay on his side, behind his desk. Although, Lucy would not have known it was him if he had not worn that same sweater in September when he and his partner Brian took Lucy out to dinner. His face was a mashed and bloody mess. His eyes were engorged and bleeding from the corners. His cheeks were double the size and ripped to shreds, the skin hanging in lumps off his face. Much of the damage had happened to the back of his head. Blood matted in clumps through his hair and large hills were beginning to form on his skull. His lips were swollen to be a thick line and a steady stream of blood and saliva was streaming into a pool below his head.

  Lucy ran to him and fell on her knees at his side. Her hands fluttered in the air, terrified to touch his broken frame. Relief flooded through her as Dr. Hannon moaned. He was alive.

  "It's ok Doc," Lucy tried to sound calm. "It's going to be ok. I'm here now."

  "No no no," he mumbled, it sounded like he was underwater. "No Lucy no."

  "Shh shh shh," Lucy consoled, tears popped to her eyes, "I am going to call an ambulance and everything is going to be ok."

  "No Lucy, Go" it sounded like 'Oh-see Ohh -ho." Lucy shook her head. Go? Go where? He mumbled something else that Lucy couldn't understand. He was so agitated though that it must be important. Maybe he had something that he wanted Lucy to pass on to Brian or something special he wanted to say to her.

  "What doc?" Lucy said softly while leaning in closer. "What are you trying to tell me?"

  He surprised her by reaching up quickly and grabbing a handful of her red curls in his bloody fingers. He pulled and Lucy fell forward until her face was an inch from his. His eyes opened a millimeter and breathing deeply, he yelled as clearly as he could, "IT'S STILL HERE!"

  Fear clutched deep into her heart. Someone had done this to Dr. Hannon and they were still in the room. Even worse, Lucy felt that Dr. Hannon, even in this state, would not use the word IT if he didn't feel that was the right word. Something, that wasn't human, was in the room with them and it was capable of great destruction. Having used all the energy that he possibly could, Dr. Hannon released Lucy's hair and fell back onto his oriental rug. Lucy mind worked in overdrive. She would have to leave Dr. Hannon here in order to save both of them. This could possibly risk his life further for the animal to finish what it started. It was a risk she would have to take. She would have to run for the door and hope she made it; the chances were slim that she would. She tensed her legs in anticipation of bolting for the door but it was for nothing.

  It wasn't a hand that pressed into the back of her neck, it felt too large, too powerful and Dr. Hannon was right, it wasn't human. Lucy was immobilized with terror- her neck and shoulders tensed and the muscles went rigid. At first there was no sound save the wet aspirations of Dr. Hannon's now unconscious form and Lucy's own dry, short pants of breath. A growling started from the creature behind her and Lucy swallowed the bile that rose in her throat. It wasn't the growl of an animal, or even a man, it was the rumble of a monster. Lucy closed her eyes as she could feel its breath push against her hair, sending tendrils of curls fluttering against her cheek.

  She realized with terror that it was sniffing her.

  The growling increased in tone and volume - it didn't like what it smelt and Lucy could feel the pressure on her neck tighten further. Claws now dug into her flesh and she whimpered in agony. She kept her eyes shut tight as the pressure twisted her neck, forcing her to turn her head. She was now facing whatever had her but still
did not have the capability to open her eyes. The hot breath hovered over a spot on her forehead and the growling deepened to a snarl. Tears pours out the corners of Lucy's closed eyes as she prepared herself to be torn to pieces. But nothing happened. The creature seemed to be waiting for something. Something that wasn't happening. It stopped snarling. Lucy didn't know if this was a good or a bad thing.

  Suddenly, it threw Lucy to the ground beside Dr. Hannon. She kept her eyes closed as she heard it spring back. Whatever it was, it was agile and it was enormous. Then, it was gone. It didn't go out the door, or the window. The monster had simply vanished.

  "Why didn't you call me?" Nathaniel almost yelled as he paced at the end of Lucy's hospital bed. He had been there for fifteen minutes and had asked that question ten times. Lucy had waited a long time before getting up off the rug to reach for Dr. Hannon's phone. She, to her own horror, laid there crying for more than half an hour. Everything was a blur after she called 911 and it had felt like moments between then and now when it had in fact been hours. The claw gouges on her neck had needed ten stitches and other than whiplash, Lucy was otherwise in good shape. She chose not to answer the question again but countered with her own repetitive query,

  "Can you go check on him please?"

  Nathaniel shook his head. "I just did and they are still reconstructing his face. There weren't any internal injuries or they would have started there." Nathaniel was able to sneak into Dr. Hannon's operating room and give Lucy far more updates than anyone else could.

  "But how do you know that?" Lucy challenged for the tenth time herself, "how do you know it's all facial injuries. He could need a new spleen or something. "

  "I think they would have started with that." he explained calmly.

  Lucy shook her head, and lay back on the pillows, completely exhausted. She had told the police everything she knew. They were thrilled that the girl with the photographic memory had been inches away from the assailant. They were equally unhappy that she had not opened her eyes an inch. They had no theories as to who had done this and despite Lucy's explanations and pleadings; they did not believe her that the perpetrator was most certainly NOT human. There had been no evidence of an animal in or out of the office and certainly no witnesses of a creature of the size and strength that Lucy described running amok through the campus on a bright sunny morning.

  They were silent for a while. Only the empty ticking of the clock cut through the quiet. Nathaniel wandered over and looked out the window into the night.

  "What was it?" Lucy pondered almost more to herself.

  "I think it was a Demon," he whispered back.

  Lucy sat up. "A Demon?" she asked. "There is such a thing on Earth? Aren't they all in Hell?"

  Nathaniel turned to her, "There is such a thing on Earth ." He walked over and sat on the edge of her bed. He reached out and took her hand. "Lucy," he explained, "the world runs on a very specific and delicate balance of right and wrong. I have explained to you how Angels work in this world. Our understanding is that there is something on the other end of that. An opposing force if you will."

  "And it's Demons?" Lucy asked.

  "I remember hearing about them, vaguely really, when I was in Heaven. They are what make up the other Guild." He shrugged and looked back out the window. "I don't even know what they are really."

  "What do you mean, 'you don't know what they are,'" Lucy bristled. "How is it possible that and ANGEL could not know what a DEMON looks like?"

  "They can take different forms," Nathaniel squinted as he looked out the window, as if he was trying to remember something.

  "What different forms?" Lucy prodded. "What kind of forms? Like an animal? It certainly seemed that this thing was an animal."

  Nathaniel only shook his head.

  "What?" Lucy demanded. She sat up in bed and shook his arm. "Hello, Earth to Angel boy – some help here. Why would a Demon attack Dr. Hannon? Me?"

  He snapped his head around to look at her, "Lucy," he said shortly, "I don't think you understand how it is. We don't, ever, talk about Demons, we don't actually talk about humans all that much, let's be honest here, we don't really talk all that much up in Heaven. The last thing we discuss is the guys in the place that we didn't go to. Everyone thinks that people in Heaven are so obsessed with the nether world. Let me make it very clear to you that such a thing is very trivial to us…very. So I have no idea what a Demon looks like or what their motivation is for anything at all!"

  "Well then we are in a great deal of trouble," Lucy shot back.

  Nathaniel replied in the same short tone. "I know that!" His voice softened immediately. "Trust me Lucy, I am as frustrated as you are here. I would love to know WHAT attacked you today so I could go and take care of it. But I don't so let's just wait."

  "I love being bait… Dr. Hannon too," Lucy challenged, "I am sure he LOVES being beaten within an inch of his life because you don't know what the bad guy looks like."

  There was silence and Lucy immediately felt horrible for what she just said. It wasn't Nathaniel's fault, he was obviously exasperated by not knowing all the answers and Lucy wasn't making it any better, she was making it worse. She started to open her mouth to apologize but Nathaniel cut her off.

  "I will go check on Dr. Hannon," he said quietly and before she could protest, he disappeared.

  Lucy flopped back on the pillows and sighed.

  She had fallen asleep by the time Nathaniel returned and woke the next morning with the nurse prodding her to eat a tray of what looked like drywall paste and 'get some energy back'. Nathaniel was sitting at the window still looking at the sky. As the nurse left, Lucy put the lid back on the plate and pushed the tray away.

  "You know," Lucy said softly, "you can keep looking out there but it is not going to tell you why your new human girlfriend is a little bit nuts."

  He turned and smiled at her and Lucy's heart melted.

  "Dr. Hannon got out of surgery and is sleeping well. He should recover quickly and have minimal scaring. AND She's not a little bit nuts," Nathaniel jested while walking toward her, "she's full on insane," he said with a grin as he leaned forward and kissed her full on the lips.

  "I'm sorry I was a jerk last night," Lucy started but Nathaniel cut her off.

  "Nothing to be sorry about." He said, "I agree you need answers and I am very frustrated that I cannot give them to you but all I can say is that my instincts will know a Demon when I see one."

  Lucy sighed, "You think so?"

  He shrugged lightly, "We are mortal enemies after all." He sighed.

  Lucy shuddered.

  Lucy was released that day and after a visit to a sleeping Dr. Hannon and a worn, haggard, grateful Brian, Lucy took a cab back home with Nathaniel in tow. She had been excused from classes that week but had every intention of going tomorrow. School was calming to Lucy, not stressful. But for now, she took a long hot shower, cleaned the many "GET WELL" cards off her door and crawled into bed. She slept for sixteen hours. Nathaniel sat on the roof and waited.

  Dr. Hannon was released from the hospital a week later and told Lucy he hoped to be back at work soon. As Brian put it, "He was shaken but not stirred and wouldn't let anyone stop him from living his life." His lack of worry over the incident might have had something to do with the fact that he couldn't remember anything. Dr. Hannon found it to be frustrating that he, an expert on the human mind, had amnesia. Lucy felt it was a blessing.

  Lucy tried to go back to her normal routine but it was impossible. Nathaniel hovered everywhere and insisted on sleeping on the roof where he could keep a better look out. Lucy was tense and nervous and lived her life in a constant state of worry. Time did pass though, and before she knew it, it was two weeks before finals. She buckled down and began to study non-stop in an effort to maintain her perfect GPA.

  Contrary to what they originally thought, Nathaniel proved to be an excellent study partner. He was a fast reader, an excellent researcher and a fabulous editor. They worked casu
ally in Lucy's dorm room so they could speak freely and Lucy loved spending time with him. She could get a great deal of work done and have Nathaniel close to her.

  Lucy aced all her exams giving her one less thing to worry about. As she left her last test, she was was elated but clearly not every student felt as confident about his or her performance and she received many sour looks. Her first two semesters of college were done and she had achieved perfect scores. Despite the recent trauma, Lucy was thrilled. Nathaniel had promised to meet her in the lobby of the building and she scanned the room excitedly looking for him. She spotted him standing beside a large cement pillar in the corner. He was so gorgeous and he still took her breath away. She reached the pillar and stopped short feeling the now familiar disappointment that she couldn't throw herself into his arms in public. She wished now that they had met at her dorm room for some privacy.

  Nathaniel reached out his hand and led Lucy behind the pillar. There was a small nook back there and Lucy realized that they couldn't be seen by anyone. Without a word, Nathaniel grabbed her face and kissed her deeply. Lucy felt her legs turn to water and she grabbed the front of his shirt for support. His mouth moved hungrily over hers and she responded greedily, wanting him, needing and craving him more and more. Nathaniel ran his hands roughly down Lucy's neck and back. She moaned softly. He forced himself against her pushing her into the wall. She pulled tighter on his shirt pulling him as close to her body as she could. After several minutes Nathaniel pulled back and rested his head on the wall over Lucy's shoulder breathing heavily. Lucy leaned back into the wall gasping for air because the room was spinning.

  "I," he said panting, "have been wanting to do that for two weeks. I didn't want to distract you from studying." He smiled at her. "Congratulations my wonderful Lucy, you are done."

  She looked up at him, still dizzy. "After that kiss I most certainly am done." She started to laugh and he joined her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and sighed.