[A/N]:

Dedicated to @glittergold_17 for this beautiful cover. Thank you so much!

Hope you enjoy this chapter.

xx aurora

————

D A R K F A Ç A D E

-----

CASSIEL LAID WITH Lucius about a week later, both males drenched in the warmth of the sun as they inhaled the sweetness of the floral around them. They had been waiting for Gabriel – their friend, not the archangel – and while the latter took his own sweet time before appearing, the other two had decided to take a break from their daily duties to bask in the sweet delight of daytime.

"How are things going with that mysterious angel of yours?" Cassiel asked, eyes closed shut with a serene expression as he sighed loudly.

Lucius turned to face his best friend, eyebrows scrunched in confusion for a split second before registering that Cassiel had been talking about Adelia. Immediately at the thought of her, he unknowingly broke into a brilliant smile, one that rivaled that of the bright sunlight.

"I think she is finally opening up to me, dear friend. She is definitely much more compassionate than when we first met."

"Well, lucky you." Cassiel amused with a grin that stretched over his pink lips, delighted green eyes dazzling when it caught the rays of the sun. He flinched when they did, wincing slightly at the sun's radiance. "I for one presume that you are the only angel in all of Heaven that has the time to commit to his own luxuries."

"Oh, come on now, Cassiel," a new voice stated, followed by the thundering of wings. Lucius could feel the wind pick up with rhythm, the strong beating of Gabriel's wings causing the nearby plants to bend just the slightest until he finally landed on the ground. "You make it seem like the archangels are working us to the bone when in truth, they aren't."

"Yes, I've quite gathered." Lucius smiled in amusement, straightening up his posture all while slinging his arm lazily over his knee while seated. "I figured long ago that Cassiel had the tendency to over-exaggerate simple facts."

"I do not!" Cassiel cried out in protest, jolting up from his laid back position. "I speak of the golden truth!"

"We never said that you were lying, old friend." Gabriel had a chuckle tainting his voice and a light that sparkled in his electric blue irises. "Simply stretching the truth a little too thinly. Be careful! The higher-ups might think that you have been sinning."

This time, it was Cassiel's turn to smile. Slowly, he sank back into the grass, toying with the evergreen strands lazily.

"Oh, now, dear Gabriel, I am not the one who sins. But rather, it is our dear friend, the angel of light that is attempting to bend the will of the almighty one."

"What have you done this time, Lucius?" Gabriel furrowed his eyebrows, taking Cassiel's words into deep consideration as the latter smirked under his breath. Lucius's eyes narrowed at the green-eyed angel's nonchalant backstabbing for he could not believe that his best friend had reduced him to the status of a scapegoat.

"He is in love, my friend!" Cassiel sang, picking a random white-petal daisy from the fields in which they laid upon. "Absolutely smitten by an angel who shall not be named."

At that revelation, Gabriel gasped, eyes widening with shock as his jaw dropped to the ground. "Have you gone mad, Lucius?"

"Madly in love!"

"For Heaven's sake, please keep your mouth tightly shut, Cassiel." Lucius groaned in defeat, slapping his hands over his face as he rubbed his temples. "The both of you ought to learn to listen to the full story before skipping to conclusions."

When he sneaked a peek through his thin fingers, Lucius could only narrow his eyes even further at the sight in which he was greeted by. Cassiel had leaned into Gabriel, whispering words into the latter's ear as his frown grew darker and darker. Much sooner than later, Gabriel already had a face clouded by the storms, a dark ominous gray that made his eyes lit up like lightning that had just slashed through the sky.

"Alright then," Gabriel conceded, swatting Cassiel away as if he were nothing more than an annoying housefly. "Let's hear your side of the story without Cassiel butting in every now and then with his miserably inaccurate comments."

"Well," Lucius started, relieved that his friend had offered him a chance at redemption. "Adelia is nothing more than a—"

"Lucius!"

The angel of light was swiftly cut off by a deep tone, one that was accessorized by alarm and filled with urgency. In perfect synchronization, all three friends whipped their heads into the direction of the new voice, eyebrows raised and lips parted in midsentence. Lucius's blood was drenched with slight annoyance that he had been so rudely cut off but his instincts kicked in, shoving the negative thought away and far beneath the layer of skin that covered his bones.

He recognized the angel that had called him out rather easily. For one thing, Lucius only knew of one angel that seemed to be a child of both the day and the night. With skin an ivory white and hair like a wisp taken from a nameless void, he was a haunting beauty that spoke little to no words. One particular feature that Lucius had always thought was haunting was the angel's cheekbones. They were sharp like blades, prominent and easily the most recognizable feature on his eerily alluring appearance.

Lucius could still remember the first time he had met the four angels that resided in the North Garden of Heaven. At that point of time, he had thought that two particular angels similar. It was only upon closer inspection had he realized that, like each unique individual, they were not quite the same. For one thing, Fabian had eyes that were much narrower. They were almost hooded, accompanied by dark irises that echoed the sound of the night yet his skin was porcelain like the day.

Now, the more that Lucius examined Fabian's unique features, the more he thought he stood out. The latter owned a much different outer appearance as compared to the other angels and yet somehow, he was still just as beautiful, just as magnificent as the rest.

"Lucius," the angel repeated, black and white wings allowing him to flutter above the ground with ease. "You are needed at the North Garden."

"Fabian, how nice of you to visit!" Beside Lucius, Cassiel had already gotten to his feet, greeting the new addition with a dazzling smile. "What brings you here? From what I know, you and your brothers hardly ever leave the North Garden's boundaries."

Fabian's lips were pursed tightly, his thick eyebrows furrowed as he landed on the soft grass in which Lucius sat. "Our dear angel of light had been neglecting his duties. The North Garden is drenched in darkness during certain hours of the day and the flora had been suffering because of it. I have been sent to alert him and hopefully encourage him to rectify this mistake."

With his last sentence, Lucius could feel Fabian's steely glare placed upon his shoulders. It almost made him shiver just the slightest, knowing how another angel could still strike fear into his heart even though they were all friends. In some ways, it was undeniable that there would be others that held more power than he did.

"Why ever are you so formal, Fabian?" Cassiel continued, ignoring his friend's intense glare at instead chose to lightly nudge him. "I thought that you and your brothers knew most about fun in these blessed grounds. Lighten up."

Lucius thought that he might have been hallucinating it but Fabian broke a small smile. The corners of his lips lifted just enough to indicate the joyful expression before it dropped back down, returning him to his usual brooding manner. Nevertheless, it was still a smile. That meant that Fabian was not as scary as he made himself appear to be. There must be something that could break the façade in which he displayed.

"Not until Lucius completes what must be done." Instead, Fabian chose to reply vaguely, gesturing at Lucius to stand up and follow. "Until next time, Cassiel." He paused before turning to Gabriel, nodding his head once in acknowledgment. "Gabriel."

Then, he was off.

"He scares me," Gabriel admitted once Fabian was a safe distance away. Slowly, the angel got to his feet, taking a step beside Lucius and Cassiel.

"He is a good person, Gabriel." Lightly, Cassiel patted Gabriel's shoulder a few times reassuringly. "He is just much quieter than the other angels. People tend to unknowingly exclude him out of events because of that and he had since learned to keep to himself. It is a pity, really. They are unable to see the good soul that resides beneath his skin."

"That must be difficult for him." Gabriel frowned.

"Ah, but there is where you are wrong, just like I am. We are both pitying him when in truth, it does nothing more than undermine the person he is. Acceptance is key, not sympathy."

The three friends were plunged into a comfortable silence, leaving Lucius to ponder over Cassiel's words. Shaking his head to pull himself back into the present, Lucius gently started to beat his wings, flapping them until soon, he had lifted from the ground and was in the air.

"I better be off to see what work must be done at the North Garden," he called out to his friends who were still grounded. "I will see you guys soon."

"Do not take too long, Lucius!" Gabriel replied, cupping his hands around his mouth so as to amplify his voice. "We still need that explanation about this new angel that you've met!"

Instead of replying his words, Lucius raised his fingers to his temple before offering a mock salute, grinning broadly as Gabriel rolled his eyes at him. With one last parting glance at his friends, he turned and took off, soaring high into the sky and within the misty clouds with only sunlight to guide his way.