Heaven's Light
OOC: Hello there. This is Selene's story. I wanted to elaborate on her story, then get back to work on my other character's. Feel free to comment during the spaces of the chapters and tell me what you think.
BiC: Heaven…how does one go about describing heaven? Even today, I feel sometimes like I can’t. Though I have spent many years there, I still cannot find the words. I suppose it’s best if I simply tell you, rather than spend hours in vain striving to discover descriptive efforts.
Have you ever thought about how strange it is that some memories we cannot recall, yet others we still see every day? Well, my life is just like that. My name is Selene Vlaxen, and this is my story.
*Chapter 1*
“Butterfly kisses”
“Selene? Selene? Where are you?” I heard my mother’s voice. She was the queen of our angelic race, the precipice of possible beauty. To me, it was all a game. I hid, and she had to find me. I peeked through the crack in the cupboard and stifled my childish giggles. She’d never find me, never!
Guess what? She did. My mother knew me too well, and memorized my hiding places even better than I did. “There you are, you little cherub.” She picked me up and hugged me. I was eight years old at this time, still naïve about the angelic world in which I lived. “You thought you could hide from me?” It is said I have her looks, but I’ve never felt I even partially measure up to her. Because she is a female queen of our race, her wings are somewhat larger than a male’s would be. They are a purest white as is possible to imagine.
“I thought so, Mommy.” I replied, blinking innocently up at her.
“Well, you were found out!” She laughs as she tickles me. I squirm as I echo her laugh, but mine is nowhere near as pure. She has a laugh that compares to a chorus of bells, perfectly toned. Mine sounds somewhat like a wind chime, I get that from my father.
“Mommy, can I go out and play?” I ask, wanting to take a walk to ease my mind in the beauty of our world. I knew of nothing else.
“Yes, my sweet love.” She begins to caress my back as she had lately. I did not know why, but my mother said it was because my wings were growing in. Near my spine, I had a red bump on each side, like a late adult in the human world would get their wisdom teeth. Even as a young girl, I was fascinated with mortals. They seemed to live such fascinating lives…I squirmed in my mother’s secure hold, wanting to leave.
“Bye, Mommy…” I chirped, running down the marble staircase. I paid no attention to the servants, for today I was allowed to go outside by myself! What a treasure! I burst out of the door, another perfect day to greet me. The streets reflected the sun’s shine in their brilliant golden rays, paved in that sheen of the pure precious metal. I almost felt like singing; it was the sort of day in which you just randomly begin to dance.
People were busily going about their business, and so I decided to weave along the pathway, a perky smile on my face. Once you received your wings, you were considered a somewhat big kid, but most angels grew theirs around the age of five or six. I still did not have mine, and they were only barely visible under the skin. When you could fly using them, you were a teenager. Most who were my age could hover for a moment, perhaps gain a few feet, but never higher than fifteen. When you were born, you were selected for one of three purposes.
If you were a boy, you were appointed as either a soldier in the army, or a guardian. If you were extremely lucky, you could be selected to stay in heaven, running errands as a messenger angel. These were the choices if you were a boy. Many of the boys wanted to go into the army to fight the demon forces that were always rising against us, but they would not be allowed to until they were at least able to fly, coming of age at fifteen.
In my case, as a girl, you also had three choices. You could not fight in the army, for only males were allowed to do that. Nor could you be a messenger, unless you proved you were fast enough. Most girls were either guardians, or most likely, a submitter. If you became one of these, you basically married and stayed your entire life up here, making more angels. There was also working for the records book, a special tool that recorded everything about every soul below on earth…
That story about people, mortals coming to heaven when they die? It’s true, but not quite completely. There are two sorts of heaven. The first is determined for us alone, no human has ever entered…then there’s another one, where few angels actually are chosen to live. It’s more of a punishment…for those who are sent there. But…perhaps not. I had always wanted to see a human up close.
My path had not been chosen, and I flew past the crowds towards the playground, where most children my age spent time. My heart fell as I realized only the bullies were there. These were boys, who had already grown their wings and only found delight in teasing me with the fact that I had none. I had frozen in place. I was wearing my small white dress, something designated for all young girls.
“Hey, guys! Look what we have here! It’s the little wingless princess!” Well, they were right. “What do you want, anyway?”
“I just wanted to play…will you guys play with me?” I asked, shy and timid. I had a good idea of what they would say, but I didn’t want to put myself out.
“What do you think?” The head one asked, sniffing in my direction. “We don’t play with wingless people. You might as well be a human.” He was a pretty boy angel; his brown hair was a sheen of silk, lovely to any girl…but me. That was a direct insult, but not to me. I had often thought of being a mortal.
“Yeah, my dad says your dad is a terrible king, anyway!” Another boy pointed; a proud swelling in his chest looked as if he had swallowed a balloon. “We don’t play with the likes of you.”
Stupid boys…I held my head low, my feelings were damaged, but I knew what they would say, so it was my own fault. Slowly, I began to back away. Another day of fun for me…alone. Oh well. It wasn’t like it didn’t happen every day anyway.
I slouched, passing by the silvery lake. The water gleamed as clear as glass, and as the sunlight sparkled on the surface, some flowers grew. It almost made me sadder, if that was possible. I didn’t fit in anywhere. The girls my age spent all their time trying to impress the male angels, helping each other fly. It was no use to me…I had no wings.