Black Wings

Thunder rolled across the dusty desert plains, the occasional lightening dancing across the shadowy clouds lit up the night sky as the pelting rain beat overhead. Tonight's weather seemed to be dampening Raphael's mood. He had been called upon earlier in the afternoon for a delivery, but the mother had died in labor which tarnished his record of being the best doctor heaven could offer. On top of that, the woman had left behind a now orphaned newborn girl that he couldn't simply pass off to one of his lady friends. There was no way he was going to destroy his image as one of the most eligible bachelors in heaven with raising a kid that wasn't his, but those wings would scare off any chance of the kid being adopted.

Angels were born with white feathered wings, and there had been only one exception to this standard. Uriel, one of the elemental archangels, was the only angel who had ever been born with wings that were any other color that white. His black wings had been a social stigma that had attracted the unwanted attention and discrimination of much of the angel community. This had caused Uriel much discomfort around others and led to him developing a cold, unapproachable exterior. Other angels interpreted Uriel's self-imposed seclusion as a kind of penance and which in the end, won him the title as Angel of Repentance and a position in supervising the entrance of newcomers to the underworld.

Uriel would no longer be alone though, Raphael thought. This child had been born with the same curse as Uriel, and would face the same treatment from the other angels. Uriel in a way would be more fortunate than this child, because Uriel had been born as an elemental angel unlike this newborn.

Elemental angels were possessed by an element of nature and were rarities amongst the angels. Currently there were four of such angels in existence. Raphael and Uriel were amongst them. Raphael was the elemental angel of air, and as such he could call upon the power of wind in full force unlike the other angels in heaven that had some control over this element. Outside of wind, Raphael had been blessed with the ability to heal hence his position as a doctor amongst heaven.

Uriel on other hand was the elemental angel of earth and could mold the ground beneath them and create artificial life such as golems. It was because of this that Uriel was given the position of Guardian of the Underworld and oversaw the angels of death. The other two elemental angels were Gabriel of water and Michael of fire.

Gabriel was admired by many within heaven. She was probably the most angelic of the elemental angels in her behavior. She was an empath and could feel the emotions of others around her, and in a sense could see others' pasts and motives. It was this sensitivity that made her one of the most feared by would-be betrayers and those that were weak at the heart. Whereas the fear that the angels had for Michael were well based.

The younger brother of Lucifer had a fiery personality to match his element. He had a short temper and often exploded at others who made the mistake of comparing him to his brother. Michael had been ignored in favor of his older brother and had been dealing with this rejection for years. This rejection though, could not compare to that of the dark-winged Uriel. Even though he was an elemental angel, because he was born with his dark colored wings he had been treated as an ill omen; a plague amongst the angels, thus no one really accepted him other than the other elemental angels.

A good idea then occurred to Raphael; if these two, Uriel and this child, were to share this trait then maybe Uriel would take pity on the girl and raise her. If that were to happen, then he could be free to continue to live his life as a bachelor with added bonus of feeling he had done a good deed.

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The flame danced onto of the candlewick casting shadows over the papyrus rolled out over the desk. Uriel's dark form huddled over the most recent report from the field. His long, dark hair hanging inches away from the paper. Piercing brown eyes flew over the text, hungrily devouring the written word before him. Only here does the sound of dusty, dry rustling of pages invade Uriel's thoughts. Here in his study he could be at peace and by himself. As the Angel of Repentance, Uriel had been entrusted with the task of overseeing the angels of death: Azrael, Azazel, Samael, and Suriel. This task was troublesome at best, and was a constant source of stress. The reports came in daily such is the way when you make death your business. The hermit angel is what the others called him and they would leave him to his devices. The truth is that they didn't care in the least as long as he played his role and did his job. When he was working, he could forget about how empty his home was and he could immerse himself in the pursuit of knowledge. Who needs companions when books won't betray you or talk ill of you. This is how Uriel had come to see things, but deep down he still couldn't help to feel a little lonely.

The silent tapping at the door had caught him off guard. Who would want to see the hermit angel, the chief of death? He grumbled at the thought of having being interrupted from his work. He carefully picked his way around the stacks of books and rolls of papyrus scattered around the room. He pulled the door in a crack and peeked out. The long golden hair glistening in hallway's torch light and the arrogant air the midnight visitor carried lent to the identity of Uriel's unwelcomed guest.

"What do you want Raphael?" he growled.

"Come now! Is that any way to treat an old friend?"

"Hmph. Who says you are a friend."

"I've brought something that may be of interest to you."

He gave a sidelong glance at Raphael and opened the door to let him in. The archangel seemed a little too giddy tonight. Uriel hoped that he hadn't just been coned into listening to another tale of amorous conquest yet again, but the clothed bundle Raphael carried had caught his curiosity.

"So what is this that is supposed to be of interest to me?"

Uriel took his seat behind the desk and glared at his frivolous companion.

"Well, I have come in possession of something earlier today that made me think of you. Why don't you take a look yourself?"

Raphael carefully unwrapped the bundle to reveal a sleeping infant. Uriel sprung up from his seat and started yelling, "What the hell, Raphael! You've come to show me one of your illegitimate children!?! What kind of sick joke is this!"

"Quiet down! You'll wake her! Plus, she isn't mine I promise!"

"What are you doing with a kid! What mother in their right mind would trust you with their child!"

"She's an orphan, Uriel, so calm down. Plus, that's not why I'm here."

At this point Raphael lifted the child up to show him the kid's back.

"This is."

Uriel caught himself as he was about to scold Raphael some more. The pair of ink black wings folded against the infant's back reminded him of the wings of a raven. He silently settled back down into his seat and he struggled to make sense of it all.

"An orphan you said?"

"Yes. Her mother died giving birth to her earlier this evening. I have no idea who the father is or if the mother knew who the father is."

"Why bring that kid here?" Uriel whispered. He looked up to see the troubled expression on the angel's face. Raphael diverted his eyes from Uriel's prying gaze.

"I can't raise her, but I won't be able to find someone to adopt her either."

Raphael closed his eyes and let out a sigh.

"It goes against my morals to kill kids. Perhaps you can…"

Raphael's voice trailed off. Uriel shifted in his seat uneasily and stared into the candlelight. He hated how Raphael could manipulate him so easily, but this time he would give in.

"So you want me to take care of her. Don't you?" Uriel asked. "If that was what you were thinking you should just come out straight and say it."

Raphael looked up at his discontent friend and a sly smile formed on his lips.

"Yes."