© Jojo B 2018

All rights including those in copyright in the content of this story are owned by Jojo B. It's Illegal to steal and/or copy.

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Flaws and Feathers

Chapter 4

"Okay so, let's start with...how many friends do you have? What are their names? And what do they look like?"

The three of us were back in the cabin again. Gwen, Raphael and I had sat ourselves on the sofas in the living room this time. Raphael looked at Gwen blankly, as if he wasn't sure where to start. He had put the mysterious looking feather in the room that he was sleeping in. Well, the room Gwen and I shared.

I had so many questions regarding the circumstances in which Raphael 'fell from the sky', and the origin of the feather. It was clear though, that it would take time explaining, and Raphael was in a hurry to find his friends. We had made a deal with him, so Gwen and I had to help him find them before we could really delve into the deep questions.

"Raphael?" Gwen called his name softly in concern.

He blinked his grey eyes and focused on her again, "Three. I have three friends."

"And their names?" I asked him.

"Cassiel, Micah and Nathaniel," Raphael told us.

I raised my brows at the peculiar sounding names. Raphael was already a name I considered quite rare in the UK, but Cass...Cassiel? And Micah? Nathaniel sounded like a posh name, and for some reason, I couldn't imagine Raphael with a posh friend. I imagined his friends were similar to him, unusual and intriguing.

"Do any of them have any distinguishing features?" Gwen asked a good question.

Raphael shook his head, not even pausing to think about it.

"We should turn the news on, in case something can lead us to them," he suggested as he glanced at the TV.

A deep crease formed between my dark brows, "Why would your friends be on the news? You're not suggesting they've committed any crimes, are you?"

Raphael shrugged a shoulder, "No, but stressful situations can lead to bad decisions."

Gwen and I shared a look. It seemed like we really had our work cut out for us. I couldn't begin to think of what Raphael meant, it could have been anything.

"The news doesn't come on until evening. What kind of trouble are they in?" Gwen looked at Raphael with a soft expression.

He shoved a hand into his thick black hair in what looked like distress, "It is hard to explain. We just...we need to go out and find them."

"So are they around this area, you think?" I arched a brow at him. "Because we can only travel so far."

"They should be nearby," Raphael nodded. "In the same town."

"Well, let's go," I slapped my hands down on my knees and stood up. "We can park in the town centre and look around."

"Sounds like a plan," Gwen murmured. "If they aren't hanging around near town, then maybe someone would have seen or heard of them."

"Yes," Raphael murmured in agreement as he rubbed his eyes almost tiredly.

Not wasting much time, we walked through the woods and managed to sneak Raphael through the house, without running into Mum or Joe, if they were even still home. Climbing into Gwen's car that was parked out front in the driveway, I took my usual spot in the passenger seat, whilst Raphael got into the back. I didn't yet have my licence, but I was planning on doing the tests in the summer holidays, which seemed ages away.

Gwen's car was a blue Toyota Yaris, second hand, of course. She had gotten it last year, after turning seventeen. She was definitely a much more vigilant person than I was, so I was the first to jump into her car with her to go for a ride after she passed her test. I knew for a fact that when my time came, none of my family members would be as confident to join me for a drive.

We were soon heading into town, taking the fairly quiet roads that would lead to the busier ones. Looking in the rear view mirror, it was strange to see Raphael sitting in the back seats and not Joe. In fact, it was weird seeing any other boy, that wasn't our younger brother, but I had a feeling we would get used to it.

No one really spoke, all of us thinking about different things. Or maybe the same thing. About how we were going to find these friends of Raphael and what they were like. We soon got to the outskirts of the town centre, the roads remained very quiet. I supposed it was still quite early on a Sunday morning, meaning most people were probably in bed. As we drove along, my eyes absentmindedly trailed the figure of a man walking up ahead. He was coming in from the right, heading towards the road, and looking like he was going to cross it, though there was no crossing.

Gwen too saw him approaching from a distance, and she slowed down a little, anticipating the chance that he didn't stop. She had the right of way as there was no pedestrian crossing, but at the pace the man was walking it would seem as if he wasn't paying attention, or that he didn't care.

In the back of my mind, I figured he would stand by the roadside and wait for Gwen to pass before crossing, but he didn't. Just as we got close to him, the man stepped out into the road in front of us, not looking left nor right. Gwen slammed on the brakes, the car coming to a sharp stop as we heard a thump from his body hitting the car hood.

My sister let out a shriek and I gasped, my eyes wide and my body rigid in shock. My heart was hammering loudly in my ribcage, and I didn't realise how long I was holding my breath until my lungs started to ache. I breathed out as I looked over at Gwen. She was adjusting her glasses back on her face with shaky hands. There was a stunned silence between us, neither of us knowing what to do or say. There was no movement from outside, and I felt sick to my stomach when I thought of the worst that could have just happened.

Flicking my eyes to the rear view mirror, I noticed Raphael looked less afraid and more serious than we did. He was the first to open the door and get out of the car, quickly followed by me, and then Gwen.

The three of us hurried round to the front of the car. I was half expecting to see a pool of blood, but I breathed out a sigh of relief when there wasn't one. The man was just picking himself back up as we rounded on him, and I raised my brows when I saw his striking features. Despite the rough looking clothes he wore, his appearance was well kept and sharp. A clear cut jawline, and practically perfect cheekbones. His eyes were a stunning blue, and his hair golden blond. He looked young, our age or a little older.

Gwen was already stammering over her apologies, even though it was the guy's fault for walking into the road without looking.

"I'm so sorry. Do you need an ambulance, aren't you in pain?" my sister looked at him with a face of confusion and concern.

The blond male looked down at her impassively. He was rather tall, though not as tall as Raphael was. He couldn't really be one of Raphael's friends, could he?

"I am fine," he answered her in a smooth voice.

Yep, he definitely was.

"Cassiel," Raphael said his name, a smile starting to spread on his face.

"Raph," Cassiel breathed, his face brightening considerably.

Raphael stepped towards him and the two embraced, making me blink in disbelief. So we really just did hit one of Raphael's missing friends with the car? Wow.

The two males soon pulled apart, and I could see by their expressions that there was so much they wanted to say. Raphael murmured some quiet words to Cassiel. It sounded like he was asking him a question, and Cassiel shook his head. Raphael nodded, clapping a hand on Cassiel's shoulder as if in comfort. I couldn't tell.

"So...aren't you going to ask who we are, and what we're doing hanging around with your friend?" I looked to Cassiel with an arch of a brow, instead of just introducing myself like a normal person might.

The male turned his attention to me, and I just couldn't get over how intense his gaze was. He made me want to check if my hair was okay and not a mess. I didn't, of course, I just kept my hands in my pockets.

Cassiel opened his mouth to speak, "I already know - "

Raphael cut him off with a sharp nudge to the side, but my face had already turned into one of deep surprise. Gwen looked exactly the same. This had been highly unexpected.

"How do you know us?" I blurted, looking between the two males.

"That was not what I was going to say," Cassiel mumbled, rubbing the back of his blond haired head.

"Bullshit," I called with a roll of my eyes. "What were you going to say then?"

Gwen looked at me with raised brows, no longer worried about the situation, seeing that Cassiel was somehow okay. She seemed rather amused actually, and just as curious as I was.

"I was going to say..." Cassiel spoke slowly. "I already know that Raphael was with you, because Raphael texted me beforehand."

"Raphael doesn't have a phone," Gwen said to him.

Cassiel looked to Raphael, who didn't say anything to back him up.

"He used one of your phones," Cassiel said instead, turning back to look at us.

"Where's your phone?" I scoffed, having the feeling that he didn't even have one.

He patted the pockets of his jeans and shrugged, "I must have dropped it."

"Well it's easy to prove, me and Vienna can just go through our sent messages," Gwen pulled out her phone.

"No, I mean -"

"Enough, Cass," Raphael shook his head at his friend. "He does not know who you are. He just likes to act as if he does."

I didn't really buy it, but it would do for now, I guessed.

"I'm Vienna, if you didn't already know," I introduced myself. "Vienna Reyes."

"I'm Gwen," my sister smiled.

Cassiel nodded, not giving a last name.

"What were you doing around here anyway, Cass?" I used the nickname Raphael had just used, smirking as I met his eyes boldly.

Cassiel looked back at me, less impressed, though I thought his eyes did sparkle for a moment, which was very unusual.

"Do not call me that," he sent me a dry look.

"We have to get out of the road," Gwen said, as a car passed us on the opposite side of the road.

I had forgotten where we were, caught up in the excitement of the days events. Two mysterious guys who seemed to have secrets worth knowing about.

"Yeah, let's go and find a proper place to sit and talk," I said as I walked back to the passengers side of the car.

Both Raphael and Cassiel got into the back, and as Gwen started driving again, I heard the two conversing lowly. I picked up the names Micah and Nathaniel, but not much else.

We arrived in the town centre minutes later, and Gwen parked the car where there was free parking on Sundays. The four of us got out and ambled down the street. My eyes were fixed on the various shops and cafes that we could go to. One in particular caught my eye.

"I heard this cafe was good," I pointed to it as I came to a stop outside the door.

"Heard from who?" my sister asked a good question. She knew I didn't have friends.

I sent her a look that said, 'don't embarrass me in front of our potential new friends' and Gwen rolled her eyes, smiling to herself.

"Let's go and have some breakfast," I pushed the door open, walking into the warmth.

The smell of bacon hit me in a wave of heat, and it made my mouth water. Looking around, most of the tables were empty. I chose a table near the window, but away from the cold that drifted in through the door. Gwen sat next to me, and the boys sat opposite us. I plucked the menus from the stand in the middle of the table, and handed them out. It didn't take me long to choose the classic English breakfast of hash browns, eggs, bacon, sausage, beans and mushrooms. Looking directly across the table, my eyes fell on Cassiel, who was studying the menu with a crease in his brows as if he couldn't decide what he wanted.

"Would you like any suggestions?" I asked him, tapping the corner of his menu.

He lifted his gaze to meet mine, his face so serious.

"No, thanks," he replied curtly.

I raised my brows at his response, "I was just trying to be helpful."

"I do not want to eat anything," he murmured back, his gaze still on the menu though. "I am not hungry."

"You should not have said that," Raphael said quietly with a smirk. "You could have ordered something and given it to me."

I saw a smile on Cassiel's face as he lifted his gaze to look at his friend. Already, I could see that the two were close. I wondered what kind of trouble Cassiel had been in, for Raphael to be so worried about him.

"That would be funny, except it would be on us. I didn't see a wallet on you, Raphael," I sent him a look.

"It was a joke, Vienna," Gwen murmured, nudging my side.

"I don't think he was joking," I replied, my eyes on Raphael, who looked back at me wordlessly.

"He was not," Cassiel clarified for us, making Gwen chuckle.

The waitress came to our table shortly afterwards to take our orders, and all of us except Cassiel, ordered English breakfasts. I didn't know what Cassiel had eaten, because frankly he looked like he had no money himself. His clothes were worn, as if second hand, and even though he himself looked clean and healthy, I doubted he had a place to call home. That was probably the reason he and Raphael had been looking for each other.

"So how long have you two been friends?" Gwen asked after our orders had been taken.

Cassiel and Raphael glanced at one another, both sporting an almost secretive smile on their faces.

"Feels like forever," Raphael answered.

"Is that some sort of inside joke?" I grinned, wanting them to let me in on it.

"No," Raphael replied. "It is no joke."

"We have been friends for as long as I can remember," Cassiel spoke.

"That's nice," I said.

Minutes later, and our food was placed down in front of us. I swear my stomach growled just from the delicious smell. I picked up my knife and fork, and started to dig in. Part of me felt bad eating in front of Cassiel who hadn't even wanted a drink, but he seemed content enough fiddling with the salt and pepper shakers.

"Have you any idea of where Nathaniel and Micah are?" Cassiel asked Raphael.

Raphael was busy wolfing his meal down, only pausing to snatch the pepper from Cassiel's hand, and dash it over his food, before giving it back to his friend.

"Not yet," he replied after swallowing his mouthful.

"We can look for them afterwards," Gwen suggested as she cut a slice of sausage.

She was allergic to sesame seeds, so was always careful when it came to bakery and pastries. Pancakes were a weekly thing, but breakfasts like these were a rare treat.

"Do you think we should split up to look for them?" I asked as I waved my fork around. "It will probably increase our chances of finding them today."

"We could," Cassiel replied.

I knew Raphael would prefer to group with Gwen, rather than me, so that would mean Cassiel and I would pair up.

"So you and me, and Gwen and Raphael?" I questioned, before shovelling in a mouthful of scrambled egg.

Cassiel looked reluctant, "I was going to go with Raphael."

"Gwen and I don't know what your friends look like," I pointed out. "But fine, if you don't want to pair up with me. It's probably a good thing that I don't end up with someone who doesn't even know how to cross a road."

Gwen almost choked on her meal from the insult I threw and Raphael looked at me in what actually seemed like amusement. I risked a glance in Cassiel's direction through my lashes, smiling innocently.

He simply rolled his dark blue eyes at me, "My mind was on other things."

"Are you actually okay?" Gwen asked him after sipping on her orange juice. "It seemed painful."

"It did not hurt," Cassiel sent her a small half smile.

"I see," I murmured, remembering the way Raphael had dented my aluminium baseball bat with his bare hands, by accident.

We soon finished our food, and Gwen and I split the bill. Heading out of the cafe, the four of us stood on the street.

"We meet back here in an hour?" I suggested, looking at the time on my phone.

Gwen nodded after sending Raphael a questionable glance. Seeing them standing next to each other really made the height difference stand out. My sister was 5 feet 4 inches tall, and Raphael was definitely over 6 feet.

I looked up to Cassiel, who stood with his hands deep in his pockets.

"Let's go buddy," I send him a cheesy grin.

Cassiel tried to hold a straight face as he looked down at me, but I saw a small sign of a smile on his lips. Though it wasn't as bright as the glimmer in his blue eyes.

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Oooh what did you think of Cassiel being back in the gang?

J

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