Feather

by Laurie Lyons

Lucy shoved the closet door closed and it groaned in protest. "Naw," she said. "Let's do it tomorrow."

  "Let's go tonight," he countered. "Then you have a three day weekend to relax before classes start. The bookstore is open until nine."

  "I guess," Lucy said thinking that three days off would be nice, "but you don't have to come with me."

  "Yes I do," Nathaniel said standing up. "Roman wasn't bluffing, he'll try to get to you again and I can't have you alone."

  Lucy nodded ruefully. "Alright," she grabbed her wallet and book list, "let's get it over with."

  They walked out of the dorm and saw that Nathaniel was right. Roman was sitting on a park bench twenty yards away. He was sitting casually but when he saw them his eyes narrowed and he sat forward.

  "Ignore him," Nathaniel said. They walked quickly through the quad to the student's union building.

  "Is he going to do something?" Lucy asked nervously.

  "No," Nathaniel said shaking his head. "Roman has the disadvantage of being visible to humans. He has no interest in causing trouble. The last thing he needs is someone to call the police." He looked back over his shoulder, "No, he'll wait to get you alone somewhere."

  Lucy shuddered, "That sounds bad."

  "Don't worry," he assured her. "You are stuck with me for every spare moment of the day."

  "That sounds better," Lucy said as they walked into the bookstore.

  Shopping at night was a good idea. The bookstore was mostly empty and Lucy didn't have to stand in an hour-long line like she would have to the next day. Half an hour later they walked out with Lucy carrying two huge bags of books. Once they got into the quad Nathaniel motioned to the bags.

  "No one is looking," he said, "hand the bags over, they are heavy."

  "No," said Lucy pulling the bags away, "he's still there and I want your hands free." Nathaniel looked up and sighed seeing Roman hadn't moved. They walked through the quad and to Lucy's dorm doors not making eye contact with the Demon.

  "Hey Lucy, I just talked to my new girl," Roman yelled from the bench, "we have a date for tomorrow night. I'm really pumped!"

  Rage shot through Lucy and she started to turn ready to yell something very unladylike at him. Nathaniel whipped the door open and all but threw Lucy inside and ushered her to the stairs.

  "That…that…" Lucy fumed through clenched teeth struggling to find the perfect expletive to describe the monster outside.

  "Demon?" Nathaniel offered.

  "Exactly, thank you," Lucy said scowling.

  When they got to her room, Lucy dropped the bags and ran for the window hoping to yell something down at Roman.

  "He's gone," she said searching the quad. She turned back and looked beseechingly at Nathaniel, "How can I keep him away from Anastasia?"

  "You can't Lucy," Nathaniel said sadly. "She has to make her own choices."

  "What if he hurts her?" Lucy pleaded. "How would I ever live with myself?"

  "Demon's aren't all bad Lucy," he said. "Most lead relatively normal lives. Think about Mrs. Turner, she's a nice lady when she doesn't have to work. She has lived in your neighborhood for how long now? Decades? And no one knows a thing." He sat down on the couch and Lucy plopped down beside him. "I have made Roman very angry so his most basic evil tendencies are being pushed to the forefront. My connection with Heaven is like sandpaper to him. That, mixed with the pressure he is feeling from Bael, and we have a dangerous combination on our hands. There is little chance that Anastasia could ever make him that angry."

  "You don't know Anastasia," Lucy replied. She took a deep breath, "I guess I will have to sit back and hope for the best."

  "Yes," Nathaniel said agreeing, "and in the meantime, you should get some sleep."

  Although Nathaniel looked as flawless as ever, Lucy was sure he must be tired. "Are you going to stay awake all night watching over me?"

  "If I said yes," he replied with a smile, "would you be angry with me?"

  "Yes."

  Nathaniel stood and stared at her silently apparently deciding to say nothing than lie. Lucy glared at him until he spoke.

  "Lucy, I can't risk him or Bael getting a hold of you," he replied factually.

  Lucy sighed. "Fine," she threw her hands up. "I'm sleeping, you do what you want." She shook her head at his stubbornness, grabbed her shower bag and pajamas and headed to the bathroom. When she returned, Nathaniel had pulled out the bed, changed into pajamas and had stretched out on the bed with the intent of reading. The only problem was that he was totally asleep. Lucy smiled at him her heart filling again with love for him. He was trying just as hard as she was to keep them together.

  Lucy walked over to the bed and climbed in gently so as not to disturb him. She snuggled under the covers only then realizing that she had left the light on. She wished Nathaniel was awake so he could turn it off from bed.

  "I need the light off," she whispered to no one. Maybe it would work, you never know. Nothing happened. She sighed. "Fine," she whispered, "Nathaniel needs the light off." Nothing happened. It seemed like the bulb shone brighter, mocking her. "Aww common!" she whispered, "please?"

  "Lucy," Nathaniel said in a deadpan voice beside her, "Heaven doesn't appreciate laziness." Lucy reached back and slapped his leg in response. He laughed. "You're keeping me hostage from Heaven and here you are making demands upon them? Seriously?"

  She slapped his leg again and laughed. "Shut off the light Nathaniel."

  "Now you're talking." The light went out.

  Chapter Twelve

  Road Trip

  "It is not down in any map; true places never are."

  ~Herman Melville

  Lucy woke up the next morning to bright sunshine streaming through her window. She looked at her clock it was 10 a.m.Now that's how you start a relaxing weekend. She thought to herself. Lucy looked up and Nathaniel was standing in front of her holding two coffees and a bag. He was grinning from ear to ear. He looked extra handsome today in a pair of cargo kakis and a deep grey/green shirt that almost did his eyes justice.

  "Morning," Lucy said hoarsely. "You look awfully spry for someone who didn't sleep." He sat down on the edge of the bed and handed her a coffee. As Lucy sat up to take it he pulled a bagel out of the bag and put it in her other hand.

  "Can you tell me please, from your extensive fantastic memory, what I said the first night we met?" he asked smiling.

  Lucy blinked. She was not fully awake. "Huh?" she said groggily. She took a sip of her coffee hoping it would help. "Which part?" she said drinking more coffee. It was lukewarm. "This coffee isn't hot," she said. "How long were you standing there waiting for me to wake up?"

  Nathaniel shook his head, "Like forty five minutes," he said quickly dismissing the interjection. He was like a kid on Christmas; he was practically bouncing off the walls. "Common Lucy, think." He looked at her like he was asking the million-dollar question. "What was the last thing I said to you that night?"

  "Um," Lucy took a bite of her bagel and more coffee willing her groggy mind to function. She saw him standing in the dorm lobby. "You touched the door handle, I asked 'where are you going now?' you stopped, turned towards me, smiled and said, 'That Lucy, I don't know.'" She nodded at Nathaniel as if that settled the matter and took another bite of her bagel.

  "Was that the last thing I said?" Nathaniel said confused.

  "Yup," Lucy said with her mouth full.

  He shook his head impatiently. "Ok, before that then," he pressed.

  The coffee was doing its job and Lucy's mind was at full capacity. "You said, 'goodnight Lucy," she replied.

  Nathaniel rolled his eyes, "I am glad your memory is so good because apparently mine sucks. Before that."

  Lucy rewound her images and remembered the first time he touched her face. She could almost feel those first warm tingles spreading up to her hairline. They were so familiar now but to remember the first time was wonderful. I should review these memories more often. She thought to herself. It all came back
to her in perfect clarity and she felt goose bumps break out on her arms all again just recalling the details. She closed her eyes and smiled.

  "Lucy! Focus!" Nathaniel's urgent voice cut through her reverie.

  She opened her eyes. "Ok…ok…um," Lucy rewound a second more and nodded, "I asked, 'Where do you live?" and you said, 'I promise to show you one day.'" She looked at him expectantly and immediately knew she got the right answer.

  His face lit up as he said, "Guess what today is?"

  "Someday?" Lucy asked hopefully.

  "Yup," he said with excitement, "eat your bagel and get dressed, it's a long way."

  Lucy was confused and questions flooded her mind, "Wait a minute," she stammered. "Where? What? How are we getting there?"

  Nathaniel looked at her, "Lucy do you trust me?"

  "Yes," Lucy replied without hesitation, "completely."

  "Good," he smiled. "Then trust me. We are going away for the weekend. I have some things I have to show you. Will you come with me?"

  "Of course!" she yelled excited now too. She would find out more about the man she loved. "I have to pack though."

  "Done," he said pointing to two bags on the floor.

  "You had this all planned didn't you?" she asked him. "That's why you wanted me to buy my books yesterday."

  Nathaniel smiled smugly. "Yup," he grinned. "Now let's go! I'll wait outside." He grabbed the bags and walked out the door. Lucy stood for a moment, excited and expectant. She got dressed and neatened her room. She grabbed a novel and a textbook out of her bag of new books. If they were going to be on a bus for a while she might as well get started on her reading.

  Nathaniel was waiting in the hallway. They went downstairs and out the door. Lucy looked suspiciously around for Roman.

  "He's not here," Nathaniel said in reply.

  Lucy nodded, pleased that the trip wouldn't start off on a sour note. She looked up at him, "Where to?" She felt like she was on a treasure hunt.

  "You drive," he said handing her a set of car keys. Lucy stared at the keys in her hand and looked back at Nathaniel. He jerked his head in the direction of the road and parked directly in front of the dorm was a black jeep. Lucy smiled. Nathaniel shrugged, "We need a car for the weekend, let's go." Lucy ran down the stairs and opened the trunk for Nathaniel to load the bags. She closed it and walked to the passenger side. There were a few students about so she pretended to look in the door pocket for something as Nathaniel slipped in. Lucy closed the door and got in the drivers side.

  "Can I ask how far the drive is?" she asked while adjusting the mirrors and pulling on her seatbelt.

  "I've never driven it," Nathaniel replied thoughtfully, "but I would think around three or four hours."

  "Ok," said Lucy while starting the engine, "let's go!"

  Nathaniel gave her directions that led them to the highway and within twenty minutes, they were on the open road. Nathaniel had his window half open and he sat smiling in the passenger seat. His dark curls blowing about his head. They listened to the radio and talked for a bit. After a while they fell into a nice silence and Lucy saw Nathaniel starting to fall asleep. She turned down the music to let him catch up on his rest and she let her mind wander.

  Nathaniel was so excited about this trip. Lucy could understand that he would be excited about finally being able to share something of himself but he seemed more pumped than she had ever seen him. Then a thought struck her, as she glanced over at his gorgeous face. He was a college-aged boy after all. It was not surprising that he would be excited about a weekend away with his girlfriend. Was this the weekend? Lucy had dated in high school but she had never gone all the way. Not that the high school boys hadn't put in a solid effort, they had, Lucy just wanted to save it for someone she really loved. And here he was, the love of her life.

  Lucy was both nervous and excited about this idea. She was nervous because she had never done it before and she had no idea if she was any good at it. Lucy was also nervous because Nathaniel was an Angel and he had to have pretty high expectations. Did they have sex in Heaven? How could she compare to that? Lucy was excited because this was something that she wanted. There was no one else she would feel more comfortable with. She loved Nathaniel with every fiber of her being and she wanted to share this with him. Lucy wanted to give him everything she could before he left so he would know how much she loved him. Lucy was mostly excited because judging from Nathaniel's kisses; this was going to be good.

  "Slow down," Nathaniel instructed cutting into her thoughts. "The turn is coming up soon." Lucy turned onto a smaller single lane highway where they passed acreages and small farms. He directed her again and she turned onto a smaller road. This continued for another hour with Nathaniel directing Lucy onto less and less distinct roadways. She had been tracking their journey with the map of the state in her head and found that they were directly in the middle of nowhere. There was a small mountain range nearby but no towns or civilization for a hundred miles.

  They were on a gravel road in a dense wooded area when Lucy said, "It must be nice to have a connection with Heaven and get everything you need handed to you," Lucy said jealously. "Why is it so far away?"

  "You'll see," he replied. "Trust me."

  He had her turn onto what was once a logging road and the jeep started to bump and kick with the uneven terrain. Conversation was impossible. They drove for another thirty minutes until the road stopped. There was dense wood surrounding them. Lucy stepped out of the jeep and looked at Nathaniel skeptically. She was not anticipating a camp out.

  "We will walk from here, it's not far," he said getting out and retrieving their bags. Lucy was pleased she had worn her sneakers and not sandals on this trip. She wondered if they should lock the jeep and then laughed at her self. There was no one around who could take it and it wasn't theirs anyway. She followed Nathaniel's enthusiastic gait into the woods.

  "So," she asked walking behind him. The bush was too dense for them to walk side by side. "Why haven't I been here before?" She was struggling through the brush where Nathaniel walked with his normal casual gait. Lucy was once more amazed at his strength and grace.

  "You'll see," he said again. "Trust me." They walked for a short while until Nathaniel suddenly stopped. "We're here," he said grinning. "Thank you for coming, I hope you like it."

  We're where? Lucy thought. She could see nothing but more trees and dense bush. Then Nathaniel moved aside and Lucy gasped in surprise. Two huge trees stood about six feet apart with their branches curving and connecting above. In between them was a cobblestone path. It looked like a doorway to a secret garden. Nathaniel put the bags down and reached for her hand. They walked through the doorway.

  On the other side was a huge circular clearing filled with bright white daisies. Lucy looked up and saw a house. Not just any house. One of the most beautiful houses Lucy had ever seen. It wasn't large but it was constructed of huge stones and pine beams. It had an A frame roof with a large square window on the second floor. There was a wrap around deck made of the same natural pine. There were two large windows on either side of the huge pine door. The entire house was covered in thick ivy. It twisted in and out of the pine beams and around the deck. The ivy covered the roof climbing and twisting all around.

  "It's perfect," Lucy said breathlessly. Nathaniel smiled and pulled her forward. They walked up the three deck steps to the door and Nathaniel opened it because there was no lock. They walked in and again Lucy gasped. Where the outside of the house looked like it had been there for a hundred years, the inside looked brand new. They were standing in a large open room with huge brown leather couches, a square coffee table and a massive fireplace made of the same large stones as the outside. It was so big that Lucy was sure she could walk right into it if she wanted to. The entire back wall of the house was made of windows that looked out into the dense forest and the mountains beyond. The kitchen was modern and stylish with a copper hood fan, granite counter tops and shiny stainless steel appliance
s. There were French doors off the kitchen to the deck.

  "Wow," was all Lucy could manage. Nathaniel directed her to the wooden spiral staircase and left to retrieve the bags. The loft was the bedroom. It looked over the main floor and had the huge front window over the bed. The bed was huge and constructed of rough pine beams. The bed linens were light blue and brown. Lucy opened a small door to the side that led to a good-sized bathroom with white tiles, a large standup shower, toilet and sink. The towels on the rack were in the same pale blue and brown from the bedroom.

  Looking up at the ceiling Lucy saw that the ivy had invaded the house. The entire ceiling was covered in twisted dark green leaves. It was beautiful and so perfect for Nathaniel. He climbed the stairs and dropped the bags on the floor.

  "Good?" he said looking at her for approval.

  Lucy leapt into his arms and kissed him. "Great," she said kissing him again. "I can't believe you wished for all this and Heaven just gave it to you."

  "No," Nathaniel corrected smiling, "Heaven gave me a small one room house. I built this one."

  "What?" Lucy said, "You built this?"

  "Yes Lucy," he said looking at her. "I built it for you."

  She thought her heart might just explode with love and gratitude. "Thank you," she said her voice cracking with emotion. "But… how…?"

  "Well," he looked around, "The building materials I got from the woods obviously and Heaven did provide me with the necessary tools and materials that were man made. They gave me the furnishings and household items obviously. But I made the bed."

  She took a moment to stare at the king sized bed. Lucy and Nathaniel had slept beside each other many times but with Lucy's new theories about the purpose of the trip, the bed took on a new significance. She smiled thinking of what was to come. She wasn't nervous – she couldn't wait.

  "This is what you have been doing everyday?" she asked. No one had ever shown so much dedication to her in all her life.

  "I wanted you to have a house Lucy," he said looking into her eyes. "I have no history or memories to share with you. This is how I can show you who I really am. I am a man who would build a house for you."