Rose Garden: Chapter 23
A Tale from Long Ago
The great pure white castle stood
tall, surrounded by a lush rose garden. Finally, Kyle had returned to Heaven.
Overjoyed, he flitted through the flowerbeds, laughter bubbling up from him, a
soft chuckle that seemed to awaken the roses themselves, their petals trembling
gently as if to welcome him back.
As he soared among the blossoms, a
dark shape crouched low near the base of the roses caught his eye and his heart
froze. Black: the color of demons. No one bearing the mark of darkness could
enter Heaven without Lady Agatha’s blessing. He couldn’t just ignore it.
Cautiously, Kyle approached the
shadow from a distance. Amidst the vibrant green leaves and thorny stems lay a
man, face down, his long black hair splayed across the earth. Suddenly, the man
stirred, rising with a swift movement that made Kyle stumble backward with a
terrified cry.
It was none other than Warren, the
demon who had torn one of Kyle’s wings away. He’d come all the way here,
chasing him even into Heaven’s realm.
Startled, Kyle turned to flee only
to find Lady Agatha herself standing nearby, flanked by other high-ranking
angels.
“What’s the matter, Kyle?” Lady
Agatha asked gently.
“A-ah… there’s a demon…” Kyle
stammered, pointing at Warren.
“A demon? Where?” The angels around
them burst out laughing.
“What are you saying? He’s an angel,
isn’t he?” someone scoffed.
“He passed the angel ascension exam,”
Lady Agatha’s voice was kind as she addressed Kyle. But Kyle knew the truth, no
one had passed that exam; no one had become an angel.
“Instead, Kyle,” Agatha continued,
“it has been decided that you are to be demoted.”
The world around him darkened. The
pristine castle, the roses, Lady Agatha, all vanished from his sight. Stripped
of his rank, Kyle pressed his hands to his head, letting out a scream that tore
through the silence like silk being shredded, and then he fell, sinking into a
deep, dark abyss.
◇:-:◆:-:◇
“Kyle… Kyle…”
A voice calling his name, soft light
piercing the darkness. Drawn by the sound, Kyle opened his eyes to find dark
eyes gazing down at him. Fingers gently brushed the golden strands falling
across his forehead.
“You’re all right. You were
thrashing in your sleep.”
A demon’s voice. This was no longer
Heaven, but a glass greenhouse built by the demon. Outside, snow and wind
raged, casting a dim shadow over the day. The fireplace crackled, the fire
popping and snapping.
“Did you have a nightmare?”
Kyle trembled as he nodded, and
Warren pulled him into a strong embrace. Kyle never thought there could be a
nightmare worse than the grim reality of being trapped with a demon, but now he
knew.
“Poor thing,” Warren murmured. “If I
could enter your mind, I’d chase away every bad dream.”
Held in the demon’s arms, Kyle
stared into the glowing embers of the fire. The air was thick with the sweet
scent of roses arranged close together. The warmth from the demon’s body and
the quilt wrapped around him comforted him despite his captivity.
Though trapped by a demon, Kyle
found this better than the despair from his dream, better even to be held here
than to face that dark nightmare again. Even if it was in a demon’s embrace.
“That rose is like you,” Warren
said, pointing to a nearby pot. Among the brilliant blooms, a pure white rose
stood out, its petals immaculate as fresh snow.
“Pure and innocent… and noble. It
suits you well.”
As Kyle gazed at the white rose, he
felt the demon’s lips brush his back. Almost there. Just a little more, and the
hidden wings on his back would grow strong enough to let him fly... to finally
return to Heaven.
A wave of anxiety swept through him.
It was a trick of the mind, an illusion born from fear. Demons could never pass
through the gates of Heaven, nor could they become angels. Even if his wings
were torn away, even if he was held by a demon, he was still an angel at
heart...
Though the warmth of the demon’s
arms stirred a faint revulsion within him, Kyle held his gaze on the white
rose, steady and unyielding.
THE END
Comments
Post a Comment