andboots, folding them neatly before laying them aside. It was exhilarating to be able to shed layers in the middle of winter, but she resisted the urge to flop in the grass like Koji did. It would have been undignified.
A sudden
crack
and
clang
sounded overhead, making Prissie jump. She quickly searched for the source of the sound. “It is easier to watch if you lie down,” Koji said, beckoning for her to join him.
In the past, even when other angels were here, this place had been hushed and serene. Today was the first time that something else was going on. Sitting down and smoothing her skirt over her legs, Prissie asked, “Are they fighting?”
“Young Marcus often takes his lessons here,” Harken explained.
Looking up into the seemingly endless swirl of light overhead, she watched in awe as two angels wheeled. Jedrick’s wings flashed with emerald hues as he dipped and whirled with amazing agility. Marcus circled above him and dropped toward his sparring partner. Swords glinted, and another metallic crash rang out.
Prissie leaned back on her elbows, intrigued by the display. After a while, she noticed a pattern to the aerial dance, for the golden-winged angel seemed to be making mistakes. Then she realized that Jedrick was demonstrating, and Marcus was mimicking. This was a Protector’s lesson on how to fight midair.
She was impressed in spite of herself. Marcus acted as if it was nothing to swoop and pivot high above the ground. Offhandedly wondering if she’d still be afraid of heights if she could fly, Prissie asked, “Do you ever wish you had wings?”
“No. I am content as I am,” Koji replied.
“Lots of people wish they could fly like a bird,” she remarked. “Or that they had super powers or magical abilities.”
“I wish to please God,” the young Observer answered seriously. “For that, I have only to do what I have been made to do. Besides, if I wanted to fly, I could simply ask Harken.”
“I’ve been known to give rides to young friends,” acknowledged the Messenger, who’d joined them on the grass.
“It must be nice in a way, not having any choice,” Prissie mused aloud.
“In what sense?” inquired Harken.
“Well, Koji is an Observer, so as long as he’s observing, he’s doing what he should. You’re a Messenger, so you deliver messages … right?”
“Regularly,” he agreed with a warm smile.
“It’s different for me,” she complained. “People are really relieved that Neil’s figured out what he wants to be when he grows up. Since I’m next in line, they’re starting to ask me if
I’ve
thought about the future.”
“And you can’t answer them?”
“No,” she sighed, her eyes fixed on the sky. “I don’t like to think about growing up and moving away. Everything will change.”
“That’s a ways off,” the shopkeeper soothed.
“Tad, Neil, Ransom, April … even Jude knows exactly what he wants to do when he grows up,” she argued.
“Circumstances led to Neil’s decision, and Jude’s plans are natural enough,” Harken said. “It may be that your circumstances will lead you toward the future God has in store.”
“What kind of circumstances?” Prissie asked suspiciously.
“Usual ones. Unusual ones. Who can say?”
“We are circumstances,” Koji declared.
Prissie’s expression softened. “Unusual ones.”
“The things you experience today help shape your understanding of tomorrow,” Harken added.
“Head’s up, kiddo!”
She glanced skyward only to duck with a squeak of alarm as Marcus zoomed in low over their heads. The young Protector’s blade was sheathed, so it wasn’t as if he was attacking, but Prissie still glared for all she was worth as he landed a short distance away. He tossed a casual wave their way, but a sharp call from overhead brought his attention back to his mentor. In a flash, he drew his sword and raised it to meet Jedrick’s heavy blow.
“Footwork,” the Flight captain chided.
With a short nod,
A sudden
crack
and
clang
sounded overhead, making Prissie jump. She quickly searched for the source of the sound. “It is easier to watch if you lie down,” Koji said, beckoning for her to join him.
In the past, even when other angels were here, this place had been hushed and serene. Today was the first time that something else was going on. Sitting down and smoothing her skirt over her legs, Prissie asked, “Are they fighting?”
“Young Marcus often takes his lessons here,” Harken explained.
Looking up into the seemingly endless swirl of light overhead, she watched in awe as two angels wheeled. Jedrick’s wings flashed with emerald hues as he dipped and whirled with amazing agility. Marcus circled above him and dropped toward his sparring partner. Swords glinted, and another metallic crash rang out.
Prissie leaned back on her elbows, intrigued by the display. After a while, she noticed a pattern to the aerial dance, for the golden-winged angel seemed to be making mistakes. Then she realized that Jedrick was demonstrating, and Marcus was mimicking. This was a Protector’s lesson on how to fight midair.
She was impressed in spite of herself. Marcus acted as if it was nothing to swoop and pivot high above the ground. Offhandedly wondering if she’d still be afraid of heights if she could fly, Prissie asked, “Do you ever wish you had wings?”
“No. I am content as I am,” Koji replied.
“Lots of people wish they could fly like a bird,” she remarked. “Or that they had super powers or magical abilities.”
“I wish to please God,” the young Observer answered seriously. “For that, I have only to do what I have been made to do. Besides, if I wanted to fly, I could simply ask Harken.”
“I’ve been known to give rides to young friends,” acknowledged the Messenger, who’d joined them on the grass.
“It must be nice in a way, not having any choice,” Prissie mused aloud.
“In what sense?” inquired Harken.
“Well, Koji is an Observer, so as long as he’s observing, he’s doing what he should. You’re a Messenger, so you deliver messages … right?”
“Regularly,” he agreed with a warm smile.
“It’s different for me,” she complained. “People are really relieved that Neil’s figured out what he wants to be when he grows up. Since I’m next in line, they’re starting to ask me if
I’ve
thought about the future.”
“And you can’t answer them?”
“No,” she sighed, her eyes fixed on the sky. “I don’t like to think about growing up and moving away. Everything will change.”
“That’s a ways off,” the shopkeeper soothed.
“Tad, Neil, Ransom, April … even Jude knows exactly what he wants to do when he grows up,” she argued.
“Circumstances led to Neil’s decision, and Jude’s plans are natural enough,” Harken said. “It may be that your circumstances will lead you toward the future God has in store.”
“What kind of circumstances?” Prissie asked suspiciously.
“Usual ones. Unusual ones. Who can say?”
“We are circumstances,” Koji declared.
Prissie’s expression softened. “Unusual ones.”
“The things you experience today help shape your understanding of tomorrow,” Harken added.
“Head’s up, kiddo!”
She glanced skyward only to duck with a squeak of alarm as Marcus zoomed in low over their heads. The young Protector’s blade was sheathed, so it wasn’t as if he was attacking, but Prissie still glared for all she was worth as he landed a short distance away. He tossed a casual wave their way, but a sharp call from overhead brought his attention back to his mentor. In a flash, he drew his sword and raised it to meet Jedrick’s heavy blow.
“Footwork,” the Flight captain chided.
With a short nod,
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