Bonnie had spent many nights dreaming of what it would feel like to stand in this very spot. She'd tried to imagine what the feel of the spraying water would do to her skin, or how the lush trees would smell as they swayed. Even the dirt beneath her feet had a feeling—rough but abundant, helping life to grow. And now she was there, staring up at the cascading water with all words gone and all assumptions flying away like the leaves falling around her.

They'd followed the path down from the street, smiling politely at people passing and stopping to pet a dog or two. She hadn't quite been prepared for how steep the steps to descend were, but she'd stayed upright and not fallen, much to Gremory's disappointment. Not that it would have hurt much if she did, after all the jacket she was wearing would have cushioned her completely.

At one point, Kimaris had stopped following the trial. After checking in case anyone had been watching, he'd ducked under the old wooden fence and made his way through some bushes, careful to not get caught in the nettles below. They'd been quick to follow, and soon they were cautiously making their way down their own path, watching for any surprising twists or unsafe drops.

When they'd emerged from the greenery, picking twigs from their hair, the top of the fall was high above them, and the pool of water only a few metres away. It was an even better view than the postcard.

It wasn't the most magnificent waterfall—no; it didn't have the size of Niagara, or the height of Victoria. In reality, it was small and quite unassuming, and to many might not have been worth the steep walk down to the viewpoints. But to Bonnie, it was more.

It was a moment. Endless thoughts and wants swirling into a sight that she had given up on seeing with her own eyes. Perhaps it was her own mind making it as glorious as she thought, but it didn't matter. She never thought she would come, because she would never be brave enough to venture North on her own, yet here she was. And she had company too, just not the one she'd always assumed.

"Bonnie, you okay?"

Bonnie pulled herself from the spell she was under. Gremory knelt on the ground, setting up objects in a circular shape, and Kimaris had been searching for a flat stone, which he now held in his hand as he checked on her, concern wrinkling his nose.

"Yeah," she answered a little too quickly, turning away from the view. "Just admiring."

"It used to be a lot bigger." He looked up the length of the structure, contemplating. "They changed the water flow when they built an aluminium plant at the end of the nineteenth century. They tried to restore some of it, but it's never been the same."

"Really?" Bonnie asked, turning back to look. "That must have been incredible."

"It was." There was the ghost of a smile on his lips. "The water nymphs loved it here, they used to say the water was the sweetest they'd ever swam in. But none of them come anymore, too many tourists and prodding fingers."

"Water nymphs?" Bonnie could feel her expression, as though straining against the new information. "You just casually throw in water nymphs?"

How many more creatures were out there?

"Are you two going to help at all, or am I just the servant here?" Gremory's unamused voice stopped their conversation, and Bonnie was a little relieved that she didn't have to widen the world anymore at the minute.

"Sorry," they both mumbled as they walked over to him, crowding around the structure he had created. He watched, unimpressed with them, but impressed with his work.

"What do you think?"

Sat in the dirt below was a collection of items, arranged in a way that made Bonnie think she was about to be given instruction. A roll of bronze wire sat beside a green candle, a bowl, a box of matches and the bundle of plants from before.

"Is that rosemary?" She asked, sniffing it.

"Yup," Kimaris replied, chuckling when she twitched her nose. "Eyael thought he was pretty clever telling everyone to put it on chicken, he really upped the demand."

Bonnie paused but then shook her head. "Yeah you know what, I really don't need to know."

Gremory pushed past the chuckling Kimaris and brought her the bowl, careful not to touch the rosemary in her hands.

"So, you need to put water in this—from the flowing bit to make sure it's fresh."

"Okay," she said slowly, following his directions. "Are you guys going to explain how everything works?"

"Of course," Gremory replied happily, raising his voice to be heard over the running water as Bonnie carefully stepped over soggy ground. "Each daemon has things associated with them—in all honesty most were just our favourite things, but some are rooted in our birth or our lineage so to speak. You need five things—an element to power them, a colour to entice them, a plant to appease them, a metal to bind them, and an item to view them, that would be the glass ball. So, first is the element—for Eyael it's water. That's why we're currently hanging out here."

Bonnie grunted as just lifted the bowl back into her, incredibly grateful for the waterproof material that made her coat. Otherwise, she might have been more than a little damp.

"That, and the sound of the running water will help you focus. It blocks out sound pretty well," Kimaris added as she returned to them.

"I just usually use brown noise," Bonnie mumbled, placing the bowl down in the centre. "Less wet."

"Next," Gremory said loudly, with a pointed look thrown her way. "Is the plant—we use rosemary for him. Eyael swears it's because his mother ate it all the time, but I still think he just liked the woman who grew it."

"His mother?"

"Not now," he chastised, turning her back to the items. "We only have a window of time and it's really not long enough to go down that road. Now sprinkle it into the water, but keep a few pieces out."

She shook her head, and dropped some in, trying not to turn her nose up at the smell. When she'd finished, she subtly wiped her hands on the grass, but didn't miss Kimaris' smirk.

"Next—we've got bronze for the metal. I need you to make a circle with it big enough to go around the area I've mapped out and make sure it's closed, we don't want him free to roam." He points to the faint line he's drawn in the dirt. "Luckily it's not an earth element needed, or I'd have ruined it already."

"Why is it not earth?"

"Because it isn't. Honestly Bonnie, if you keep asking questions then we're going to be here for hours, can you just save it for after?"

Consider me quiet, she thought, careful to do the loop right. I've never seen Gremory so serious.

"Perfect!" He complimented, taking the rest of the wire from her hands. "And now the hard part."

"There's a hard part?" she joked, looking at Kimaris who was bending down beside her.

"Yeah—we need you to draw this." He held up an intricate drawing on a piece of paper. "On this."

The flat stone he had been searching for earlier was in his hand, and Bonnie looked between the two of them to check if he was joking.

"Seriously," he confirmed, seeing the look in her eyes. "I tried to find you a good stone I swear."

Bonnie scoffed, taking the paper and stone from him and laying them next to each other. Yet again, the jacket provided space between her and the moist ground, and if she hadn't been so concerned with the task at hand, she would have pointed it out to Gremory promptly.

"What am I drawing here?" she asked, picking up the sharpie she'd seen earlier. "Some sort of old language or something?"

"It's called a sigil," Kimaris explained, watching over her shoulder as she shakily tried to copy his lines. "It's unique to the deity you're trying to summon. There's been thousands of them in history, but only some recorded. A man called John Dee made a book on them called the Enochian Tables—"

"Let's not distract Bonnie!"

Kimaris shot Gremory a look of contempt as he leaned back from them and crossed his arms, clearly unimpressed with being told off. As much as he was right and she needed to focus, she was also longing to hear the rest of what he had to say. She followed the lines closely, making sure the dots and arches were in the correct place, spacing them all correctly. The array of curves and lines had no pattern at first glance, but as she joined edges of them, they resembled hieroglyphics... if you squinted.

When she'd finished, she held it out in front of her to examine, inspecting the slightly jagged corners and wonky parallels shamefully.

"I can find another stone?"

Gremory and Bonnie's heads both whipped to Kimaris, who quickly held his hands up in apology. "Sorry, just an offer."

"It'll be fine, Bonnie," Gremory reassured, putting an arm around her as he led her back to the circle. "The important thing is that you have faith in it, everything else is just a leg up."

"How reassuring," she smiled weakly, staring at the frankly amateur attempt she'd done. "Just have faith in myself."

Not like that was something she struggled to do or anything.

"Now, drop the stone into the bowl of water, but make sure the sigil stays facing up. Then place the glass ball so it floats on top of it and you can see your drawing through it."

She carefully did it, grateful when it went successfully, but wincing when the glass only emphasised the broken lines of her work. Kimaris snorted, and it took everything in her to not turn around and stick her tongue out at him.

"Now what?" she asked, frustration tinging her words. "Do I light the fallen leaves of the trees and pray to the spirits to bring him here?"

Gremory blinked twice before frowning and picking up the green candle and matches that lay at her feet.

"No. But you do light this candle." She took it from him, biting her lip. "And then you light the rosemary with it... and then you call on him... I can see how humorous it is that you were sort of close."

Bonnie shook her head, almost chewing off the inside of her mouth to stop herself from laughing. Meanwhile, Kimaris chuckles melted over her and warmed her chest against the cold as he turned away from them, unable to control it. Gremory's face was quite funny after all.

"Can we take this seriously?" he asked, one brow arched as he shoved the items into her hands, standing up in a huff. "Really, do you guys not want this to work?"

The way he stood was like a stroppy teen, and if it hadn't been for the ice cold glare he was giving them, she definitely would have had the opposite reaction to his request.

"I'm sorry, I do," Bonnie quickly assured, her giggles dying instantaneously. "It's just nervous laughter, I promise. I really am going to try to do this."

Gremory studied her for a moment, his eyes narrowing at her open expression before he sighed and relaxed a little. "Good, I just wanted to check. Now light it."

Her hand shook as she struck the match and held it to wick. The feeling of ease she'd had before was slowly disappearing, and a steel pole of panic was making her bones rigid. Even her coat did nothing against it. She was attempting to perform magic. She was terrified.

"Now carefully down," he guided, making sure to not touch her. "And light the left over rosemary with it, and when you're ready, drop it into the bowl."

Bonnie looked at him horrified as he rustled for something in his pocket, pulling out a crumpled piece of paper which had thick black words on it. "What do you mean 'when I'm ready'? That's all you're going to give me?"

"It'll be fine!" he declared, stepping back from her as he left the paper in the spot he had just been. "Just light it, say the words on the paper, and drop it in. That's all you have to do. Oh! And believe in it obviously."

"Obviously," she replied sarcastically before peering at the note. "I seriously say this?"

"Every cliche word," Kimaris confirmed, giving her a look of pity before too heading backwards towards the trees. "People over embellish it, but really it's not that complicated. They liked to keep it simple so humans would manage."

"Oh yes, that old chestnut," she whispered, reading over the words again. "Do you really think—"

"Yes, Bonnie! I do!" Gremory called, frustration shaking branches as he moved even further into the woods. "Now please could you do it. We've only got thirty minutes until this is impossible and I'd rather not go through all of this again tomorrow."

She opened her mouth to ask more questions, incredibly intent on knowing the ins and outs of exactly what she was about to do. But, realising that doing it again tomorrow also meant that she had to walk down those stairs again, she quickly lit the rosemary, holding it in front of her.

"I really hope this works because I feel stupid," she whispered before clearing her throat. Her eyes swept over the lines, and she had to take a breath to not point out how silly some words were. But she could do this. She had to do this.

"EYAEL, O' ANGEL OF CHANGE AND PROTECTOR OF PISCES.

HE WHO SEES ALL, ABOVE ALL ELSE.

BRING FORTH YOUR WISDOM AND BLESS THY EYES.

PROCURE YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND GIVE TO ME.

THROUGH ALL SIX REALMS I BEG YOUR EARS TO HEAR.

AND YOUR WINGS TO GRANT MY WISH.

FOR I HAVE OFFERED YOU,

NOW OFFER ME

THE CHANCE TO BASK IN YOUR GLORY

AND LEARN FROM THEE."

As she spoke the last word, Bonnie dropped the burning plant, holding her breath as it submerged into the water. She'd expected it to immediately douse the flames that had almost burnt her fingertips, but instead the small broken pieces in the water became engulfed in the flame, and the surface of the water glowed amber.

It didn't matter how many items they procured or words she spoke—if she didn't have the power to do this then nothing would make it possible, and Gremory would be so disappointed. Maybe they wouldn't have a use for her anymore, and they'd send her home on her lonesome. She was only human after all, and it was clear they were keeping her around for a reason. If she couldn't do it, there was no need to let her stay.

The flames cut out, and she waited, looking around for a sign of an angel appearing.

Perhaps it would be an apparition, floating down from the sky. She peered up above her, squinting against the sun as it lowered itself, casting an orange hue along the water. Nothing happened.

"Guys?" she asked, carefully leaning forward to peer into the bowl of water. "What was it meant to do?"

She winced through the cloud of smoke that rose from the burned items, trying to see if anything had happened inside and trying not to cough. It was as if the scent of the trees around her had doubled, the fresh scent choking her senses. When it cleared enough, she could see the reflection of her stone at the bottom of the water, but barely. It could have been the foggy reflection in the glass, but she could have sworn that her pen lines had disappeared and the stone was now unmarked.

"You seem confused, child."

A blood curling scream left Bonnie's chest as she fell forward, barely missing the bowl and lit candle as she scrambled on the grass, her heart pounding in her ears. The voice had come from so close behind her that for a moment she had thought it was in her head. But when she saw the shadow on the grass, shock coursed through her.

The person wasn't huge, or dominating or glowing with wings spurting from his back. No, he had kind features, a height smaller than Bonnie's and if anything... he reminded Bonnie of a monk. His tanned skin stretched across his head, and bathed in a robe, she could only see parts of the tattoos engrained in his skin, but they looked to be on every inch of him. The only thing that threw her was that his eyes were glowing a white light.

"H—Hi," Bonnie stuttered, unable to tear her gaze from him as he bent down and offered a hand to her. "Are you Eyael?"

"I am," he smiled, patiently waiting for her to accept his help. "And what is your name, child?"

"Bonnie," she replied, eyeing his palm. "Bonnie Lawrence."

"Ah, Bonnie. How beautiful." His grin widened. "It seems you're cautious of me. Fear not. I mean you no harm."

She tried to find the lie in his words. Perhaps his warm smile and offering hand were nothing more than a ruse. But she decided to trust him. Not just him, but in the men who had told her to summon him. Surely they wouldn't have done so if he would turn on them the minute he got here.

Although, they were yet to make themselves heard or come out from their hiding place.

Carefully, she took his hand, allowing him to pull her to her feet with a grace that made her feel weightless. The air around him moved like it did on a hot day, blurring the edges of his figure and reflecting the light.

He felt different from Poyel. Her head wanted to her to look for the signs of anger, of greed or hatred. But she could not. She could only feel fondness and could only see the good that surrounded him. Perhaps the boys had been right, maybe he truly was as generous and caring as they'd hoped.

"You have some power in you," he commented, eyes casting over the setup at their feet. "And some knowledge too—it's rare that people know my favourite colour is green and include it."

Confused for a moment, Bonnie followed his eyes to the still lit candle.

"Oh, right!" She had just thought that the candle was the only one they had in the store, she did not know the colour was important. What could she say that would explain that? Gremory and Kimaris hadn't really told her what to do after this part—was she meant to reveal they were here? Or was she supposed to pretend like she had done this by herself?

A gentle hand pressed onto her shoulder.

"Fret not. I am well aware of my old friends hiding in the foliage behind me," he said lowly, his words lined with humour. He did not move his eyes from her but tilted his chin towards them, his voice rising. "Perhaps you think I have lost my senses in the many years we haven't seen each other my brothers, but you forget I see all."

There was a sound of shuffling, and then the two of them emerged from their hiding spots, a bashful grin on Gremory's face, and an unenthused one on Kimaris'.

"How could we ever forget," the latter mumbled, surveying the angel. "I see you're still sticking with your old form, how authentic of you. Very vintage."

"And you," Eyael pointed out, turning to look at the two of them. "Although the hair is different, I seem to remember it much longer previously. You hid behind it often. Influenced by the humans, were we?"

Trying not to grin at picturing Kimaris with long, flowing hair, Bonnie watched as Gremory made his way to them, far more enthusiastically but with a hint of reservation in his voice.

"It's good to see you Eyael," he greeted, holding an arm out him. "It's been too long."

Eyael only hesitated for a second before grabbing Gremory's arm at the elbow, and pulling him into him. Gremory copied the action and their two foreheads joined for a second, both grinning at the other as they squeezed. It was an odd action, but they did it so fluently that Bonnie knew they had done it many times before.

"That it has been," Eyael replied, pulling back to survey Gremory properly, an affection curve to his lips. "You look well. This form suites you brother, I am so pleased."

A glow like Bonnie had never seen before overtook Gremory's face, relief seeming to unfurl him. She did not miss the way it even melted Kimaris' cold stare a fraction, but the wall quickly went back up as Eyael copied the action to him.

"And it is good to see you too, Cimeries."

Kimaris shook his head a fraction and then rolled his eyes. "I still dislike that name."

Seeming to give up on the hardened appearance he had been holding on to. He took the angel's arm, although he did not bend to touch their heads together. A flicker of disappointment crossed Eyael's eyes when he moved away.

"And you still do not trust it seems." Eyael looked over to Bonnie. "Although I am surprised to see you have found a human you can stand long enough to make a successful summoning, that must have been hard for you. I'm proud."

Kimaris' arrogant edges dropped as his eyes flickered to her, straightening his spine with purpose. She tried not to look at him while the other two men did not hide their amusement. She found her shoes incredibly interesting at the moment.

"As much as this is entertaining," Gremory interjected as Kimaris moved to say something. "We have little time, and there are some things we need to talk to you about."

The fun expression died from Eyael's face as he nodded his head, walking back from the pair and to the waters' edge. He peered in, watching his own reflection.

"Indeed," he spoke, but now his voice was lower, more precise. Grave. "There is much we need to discuss, more than you know."

Bonnie looked to the boys with wide eyes, and their own mirrored hers, with confusion sparking.

Kimaris gritted his teeth and stepped forward, the wind billowing around him, but he stood still, too still. The expression he'd had on his face earlier came back; the troubled look that brought his brows together when they'd sat on the bench, the pensive strain pulling his skin.

"It's happening isn't it?" he asked, unblinking. His voice made even Gremory still.

"Yes," Eyael stated, turning to look at them, something harrowing in his eyes. "The Age of Aquarius is coming."

.

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AN:// Hello lovelies! Apologies for the late upload, I started a new job this week and had some flat things to sort out after moving so time just flew away from me. 

I hope you're all well! 

There will be another upload tomorrow as to stick to the Monday/Friday upload schedule so I hope you'll keep an eye out for that! 

I really hope you're enjoying the story, more and more things are coming and I'm super excited to be into the meat of it! I also really love hearing your thoughts/theories/suggestions so please let me know! 

I also hope you're liking the music I'm attaching to chapters, it's fun to do something new on a story! 

All my love 

Ellis x