Edge of Thorns - Pt 29

Part 29
I should probably skip the obvious one for now, though I am curious...

"What are you going to say to Micah?"

The angel stopped humming, stopped walking, and turned to Nathan with a tilt of his head. "Why? Isn't it obvious?" He crossed his arms and closed his eyes. "I don't approve of their relationship, more specifically how Micah treats Alton. I intend to encourage Alton to leave him, and I want Micah to let him go." He opened his eyes, sighing as he smiled sadly. "I know neither of them will listen though."

Nathan shook his head. "I still don't understand," he said. "Aren't Michael and Lucifer supposed to be bitter enemies? I mean, I can understand why they fight; that much makes perfect sense. But how...?"

"... Did bitter enemies become intimate lovers?" Gabriel finished for him, then laughed. "Because they aren't just enemies, Nathan. They counter each other, but they also compliment each other." When all he got was another baffled stare, he explained. "Michael was the first of us, and he was made to protect God's other creations, especially man. But there was nothing for him to protect man from in those early days, since there was no evil to speak of. So, God created Lumiel to be Michael's opposite."

"So... God created evil." The writer thought about this. "And Alton really is that evil. Does that mean that I'm actually helping the bad guy, even though he's the nicer of the two options I had available at them time? Holy shit, what does that mean for Avery?"

Gabriel winced at this assessment, but then giggled and began walking again, rolling his eyes. "No, Nathan. God did not create evil. God created two opposite entities, and let mankind decide which was good and which was evil. Michael is physically the strongest of all of us, while Lumiel the weakest. On the other hand, Michael is brutally honest, but Lumiel has tact, diplomacy, and the ability to lie. Michael is overtly forceful, Lumiel subtle and sly. Michael has a short fuse, Lumiel has patience. Michael is God's right hand, Lumiel is God's left. Do you understand?"

Nathan fell into step beside him, taking all this in, and slowly started to nod. "Basically, he presented mankind with two opposing sets of beliefs, and without telling they had to choose, let them choose."

"Basically."

"And they choose Michael as the epitome of good?"

"He had the advantage of being around longer," Gabriel said. "And even if you have good intentions, most people don't like being lied to. Look at how Genesis turned out when it was written: man was not happy about being deceived."

Nathan rubbed his temples, letting out a sigh. "I think my brain just exploded."

The angel giggled again, wrapping his arm around his shoulder for a quick hug. "It can be hard to comprehend something that seems to go against common knowledge. I wouldn't worry about it too much: it doesn't have any bearing on current events, outside of explaining their personalities."

"How do polar opposite end up together anyway?" Nathan asked before giving Gabriel a narrow glare. "Don't you dare say opposites attract."

"Honestly, I don't know," he admitted with a shrugged. "You'd have to ask one of them."

By the time they rounded the corner, the sun was out and the only remnants of the rain were scattered puddles on the ground. As they got closer to the apartment, they could see Avery sitting on the steps, soaking wet, his head bowed as if he were asleep. Nathan looked at Gabriel to ask what he thought of this, but the angel had gone back to humming to himself and hadn't noticed. When they reached the teen, he nudged his foot lightly. "Hey, Avery?"

"Hm?" He wasn't asleep, but clearly distracted. "What?" he asked, not even looking up them.

"Why are you sitting on the steps? The rain ruined your plans, huh."

"No. I got one lawn done before it started. Forgot my key though. Been stuck out here for hours."

Gabriel, suddenly paying attention, raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "The complex door should be unlocked. Couldn't you have sat on the steps inside?"

Avery shrugged. "Forgot."

Nathan turned to the angel, but he stepped back, nodding solemnly towards the teen. "You can handle this," he said quietly. "But know that he's hiding something."

"How do you know?" Nathan glanced back at Avery, watching him run his fingers casually through his curls, shaking off some of the water. He answered his own question: his demeanor was off. Taking a deep breath, he walked over to the steps and sat down beside him. "Avery..."

"I went to the library after the rain started," he cut in, his tone unnaturally monotone. "Did a little research."

"Research?"

Avery nodded, bowing his head. "Yeah, I was curious."

"Curious about what?"

He frowned, but reached into his pocket and pulled out a leaf. A solid gold leaf. "About how much this would be worth."

Nathan's eyes widened in horror and he immediately reached to take the leaf away, but Avery pulled back. The writer frowned. "We talked about this. You're not supposed to be trying to sell anything you..."

"It weighs almost three and a half grams," Avery went on. "Checked it on a scale in a kitchen store along the way. Based on the current gold market, that makes it worth about a hundred fifty bucks by weight alone. Decided it couldn't hurt to try and pawn it..."

This is not good. Not good at all...