Angel's Arrow

Revenge

Amy knelt on the bed beside Kynan. He was sleeping quietly but she was praying for him to wake up. She held the knife she had taken from the Soul Eater in her hands and raised it above her head. She couldn't stop herself. Tears flowed from her eyes as she tried to scream, to yell his name and wake him up. But all that came out were choking sounds. It was a nightmare, it had to be. She wasn't really about to kill Kynan. She could never live without him. And yet she knew that it wasn't a dream. But she still couldn't stop herself. She tried to stop but the dagger was positioned. It was coming down, right into the center of Kynan's chest. She pulled at the last second and the dagger changed course, flying right into her own chest. She collapsed startling Kynan awake. He jumped out of bed ready for an attack that never came. He saw Amy bleeding on the bed and rushed to her. “Amy! No, Amy come on.” Kynan gathered her up in his arms and put his hand around the blade to stop the bleeding. At least she hadn't pulled it out. Her pale face stared at him in horror.

“I couldn't kill you.” She told him. Kynan was confused, it was clear that she had stabbed herself but what he didn't know was why. In an act of true desperation Kynan called out to the one person he swore he would never ask for anything. He called out to his mother. He wasn't expecting Marie to answer him but when a beautiful angel appeared before him he could barely believe it.

“Please help her.” He begged his estranged mother. He hadn't seen Marie in almost two centuries ever since she had sent him off to train without so much as a goodbye.

“Why?” Kynan had always suspected that his mother's heart was as black as her raven hair but he needed her help. No one else would give it. At least with his mother there was a chance. Just a small chance that she didn't wish to see him suffer.

“Because I love her.”

“Would you sacrifice everything for her?”

“Yes.”

“Even your life?”

“I already have.”

“Very well.” Her face was void of any emotion as she knelt beside her son and pulled the dagger from Amy. She hissed in pain and threw it to the other side of the room. Her skin smoked from where the evilness of the dagger had burned her. Marie placed her uninjured hand over the wound and it began to glow. Amy was chalk white and struggling to breath but as Marie worked her spell, Amy's breaths came easier. Colour returned to her cheeks and she was able to open her eyes. Amy's blue eyes swam with confusion as she took in the Angel knelt over her.

“Thank you.” Kynan whispered to his mother then placed a kiss on Amy's forehead. He was so relieved that she was alive, it didn't even matter to him how. “What happens now?”

“Now, my son, you get to live together in peace.” Marie smiled at him for the first time in memory.

“I don't understand. I broke my oath.” Kynan felt Amy's grip on him tighten.

“Not necessarily. You carried out your mission to stop that Soul Eater. The fact that you have fallen in love with another warrior means very little at this time.”

“But I'm a demon.” Amy told her. “Won't that be bad for Kynan?”

“I don't care dear. You may be of demon blood but you are not evil. As long as you fight by Kynan's side I won't let any Angel harm you.”

“Mother?” Marie placed a warm hand on her son's cheek.

“I am so sorry for everything that happened to you. When they took you I was forbidden to have any contact with you. My ideals were considered outdated and had I tried to corrupt you they would have killed you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I'm very old you know. When I was growing up we had a different view on killing demons. We would only kill the evil ones. The ones who threatened human and angel life. But over time that ideal changed and Demons as a whole were declared enemies. I refused to kill demons who didn't deserve it and was punished. The others were concerned that I would share my beliefs with my children and we were watched very closely. I let the politics of heaven dictate my behavior and I've regretted it ever since.”

“But Crystella and Maximus...”

“Don't put too much stock in what your siblings say. Chrystella is vicious and your brother unfortunately follows her lead. I hoped to do better with you. And looking at you now, I'm grateful for how you turned out.”

“You had nothing to do with how I turned out.” Kynan couldn’t help himself. Centuries of ill-will were still stirring under the surface. Just because she had excuses, didn’t magically fix anything for him. Marie was hurt by her son's words, but she also knew she couldn't blame him for them.

“I'm sorry.” She said. Amy saw the confliction on Kynan’s face. She knew that in his mind, his mother had abandoned him.

“It's not her fault Ky. It sounds to me that your mother didn't have a choice. She was only trying to keep you safe.”

“I was devastated the day they took you from me. I only ask that you give me a chance to know you now.” Kynan was hesitant. All his life he had believed the public behavior of his mother to be who she really was. A stone-faced woman who never showed her emotions or shared her wisdom. But now that he thought about it, he remembered the way she would hold his hand as they walked and when she sung to him in a language he didn't know. She hadn't let him play with the other boys in the west woods or caves and she was right to keep him at home. He had later heard that a cave in had killed two of them. Her strict rules had kept him to himself and away from the attentions of other Angels. She never smiled at him or hugged him in public. But she had tucked him in at night and several times he remembered her placing a kiss in his hair.

“I don't know. I'm sorry, I know that you meant well but I just can't. Not yet.” Marie's face fell.

“I understand. But Kynan, I will always answer you when you call.” She placed a hand over Amy's belly and smiled at her sweetly. “Take care daughter.” Marie flashed out of the room leaving Kynan and Amy alone.