AN:// New chapter new year!!! <3 

Bonnie settled herself onto the wooden floor of the living room, spreading the objects out in front of her.

It wasn't so early that she was struggling to keep her eyes open, but enough that outside the only sound was the occasional hiss of a bus stopping to pick people up for their morning shift.

She'd set an alarm to give herself the most time that she could, and having gone in search of the boys, only to find a set of keys lying on the table for her in their absence, she'd quickly started her plan. There wasn't a moment to waste.

Following the instructions from the book she had found, she'd made her way around the residence, eyes peeled for anything that could aid her.

Some were easy to spot; a silver necklace in one drawer, a magnifying glass in the kitchen, and a blue birthday candle in amongst cutlery and lighters.

Others were not, but she improvised as best as she could.

"This will work, won't it?" she asked herself as she held up the bottle of body spray, squinting at the ingredients. "Nothing says it has to be exact."

According to John Dee and his writings, Manakel's plant of choice was lavender, something commonly used but not so easy to find on a quiet morning in Glasgow, especially with the ever looming fear of people returning.

However, Bonnie had ventured into Gremory's room, and luckily he seemed to have a taste for natural body sprays which she found lined up in his bathroom cupboard. In amongst them was one called 'Lavender Dreams'—and if that wasn't a sign, then she didn't know what could be.

Taking the lid off the bottle, she sprayed a generous helping onto a tissue, trying to soak it as much as possible.

"Pungent!" Bonnie coughed, putting the item down before her lungs complained anymore. "Definitely smells like lavender."

Next, she made a small mound out of Blu-tak and pushed the birthday candle she had found into it, hoping that it would make it stay upright. Sure, it wasn't as grand as the one Gremory had used to summon Eyael, but it would do the job. Or so she hoped.

Once she had successfully created her small, makeshift pyre, she turned back to the book with a flat stone in her hand. At first she'd considered using a cork coaster that was roughly the same size instead—the cold weather didn't appeal to her so early in the morning. But after reading the paragraph on why the weight of the stone was important and how it grounded the daemon to the earth, she'd realised she would need to venture outside to find one. The thing was, as soon as she had opened the front door, she spotted a perfect one in the hall—as if by fate.

Carefully, she drew the sigil onto it, watching to make sure that the lines were correct and she wouldn't call on someone she hadn't meant to.

"This is a real homemade summoning," she whispered, grimacing a little as she held it out in front of her, but shrugged her shoulders when it didn't look too bad from afar. "And now I just need air."

The towering glass windows on the side of the room glimmered. Wrapping the blanket from the couch over her, she pulled on the metal latch of the pane and a huge gust of wind swept past, making her hair brush off her shoulders.

This might be the only time she was grateful for the cold winds of Scotland. There was plenty of that element to go around.

Shivering, she sat back down and pulled the blanket tighter, scanning over the pages to see the next steps.

"Make circle... burn plant... place stone... yada yada," she mumbled, moving the pieces around. "And then... we say the fun words. Got it."

She lit the candle carefully; her back straightening as she moved the flame to the tissue wrapped tightly around the end of a skewer, her neck craning to see the book as she cleared her throat. She had to stay calm, peaceful. She couldn't break the lull of ease that allowed Manakel to find her.

Or so the book said, anyway.

"Here goes nothing."

The tissue lit immediately, the flames licking around the saturated material and Bonnie quickly recited the words, closing her eyes and hoping her memory was good enough.

"Manakel, O'Angel of dreams and speaker of prophecies

He who unravels thoughts and instils self.

Let my dreams become your easel

and my mind your brush to paint.

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

A chance to bask in your glory

And learn from thee."

With the last words the flame burst into a bright blue light and Bonnie dropped the stick onto the floor, praying that it fell within the loop of the necklace like it was supposed to.

The wind whistled through the room, dancing across her cheeks with a peppered touch that prickled gently. She kept her eyes shut, focusing on her breathing remaining steady as she tried to listen for a sign of the incantation working.

At first she felt nothing, just a deep hum that vibrated gently over her skin. But then it was as though all other sound was sucked from the room, a heaviness filling the air that stopped so much as a breath.

A calmness settled on her.

"You may open your eyes, summoner."

The voice crackled, not as smooth as Eyael's but not frightening like Bifron's. It was weightless, as though being whispered across stretches of land.

Slowly, Bonnie opened her eyes, blinking to readjust them to the light, and slightly apprehensive of what she would see.

The tall figured glimmered, the edges of its body swaying with the breeze. Draped in a blue cloak; the seams shining of gold that danced around its wrists and ankles, pillowing out as though... floating. Blue jewels glittered along its knuckles and made the light dance in reflection. Dazzling.

But a large hood fell to hide its face, almost to its chin.

Bonnie looked to the angels sandal clad feet. They were inches from the ground.

"You're Manakel?" She asked, carefully getting up while doing everything to not let panic seep in. This wasn't like the other angels, he didn't seem... human?

"I am." The words felt like they were inside Bonnie's head. "And who are you?"

"I'm Bonnie," she replied rather pathetically, sucking air through her teeth. "Bonnie Lawrence."

"Are you sure?"

The question made her frown, stumbling over her confident persona.

"Uh—Yes?"

"You don't sound sure. It's unsurprising, most struggle to know who they truly are."

"No, I know who I am," His arrogant tone reminded her of someone. "I'm Bonnie Lawrence."

A light chuckle.

"Well, then—Bonnie Lawrence—what is it you wish to know?"

What did she want to know?

"I've been having these dreams... and I was hoping you might make me understand them."

A beat of silence.

"And?" Manakel pushed, noticing the hesitation in her voice.

She swallowed her fear.

"And I wanted to know more about the Sacred Whores of Babalon. Eyael said that you could help."

"You've spoken to my brother?" Another sprinkle of laughter. "In that case, I mustn't disappoint."

In one swift motion the cloak encapsulating Manakel peeled off and disintegrated into the light, the shimmering dust of where it once was settling to reveal the person beneath. His auburn hair waved around his face in equal lengths, his fringe sitting low over his eyes, copying his down titled posture. Around his neck sat a gold pendant, with two chains twisted together and snaking almost down to his pelvis. On it hung a long piece of gold with what looked like some sort of crystal at the end, behind it a flat circle of reflective material, and above, a small gold bell.

Although the object was beautiful, it didn't take Bonnie's attention for long. Instead, her eyes drew themselves to the two huge, white wings that had unrolled from under the material that had shrouded them.

The tips almost touched the ceiling, and Bonnie had to stop herself from reaching out.

They didn't look like feathers, not completely anyway. The edges were sharp, and if she didn't know any better, she could swear they had metal tips on the end. But maybe that was just a trick of the light.

Did all angels have wings like these?

Did daemons?

"Magnificent, aren't they?" Manakel's proud tone broke her entrancement. "And yes, we all have wings in one of our forms. Although, I cannot say they are as grand as my own. Not even my counterparts."

Bonnie's eyes widened.

How did he—

"I may not look, but I can see all."

Now, with his chin pointed towards her, and his grin shaped like a crescent moon, Bonnie saw what his words meant;

A discoloured bandage, which disappeared behind his long hair, was wrapped so tightly around his head that she could make out the bridge of his nose, but there was no sign that eyes were there anymore, or perhaps there never had been.

"How interesting, you do not appear afraid."

The figure leaned towards her, his brow crinkled.

"That's because I'm not," Bonnie replied, trying to imagine eyes for where she should stare. "I've seen much worse."

She thought of black tar dripping above them.

"Yes, I can see that," Manakel mused, and Bonnie wondered if it was possible for someone to sneer with half their face covered. "Perhaps you're not as simple as the others you live among."

Rude.

"Is this why you wish to know about the Sacred Whores? Do you believe someone destined you to be more than a mortal doomed to a forgetful existence?"

"I..."

The angels smile twitched and Bonnie stopped in her reply. Is that what she believed?

Could anybody truly believe that about themselves?

No—she didn't think so.

But that didn't mean that wasn't what her heart hoped for.

"I just want to know," she whispered, almost embarrassed by the desperation in which her words shook. "I'm tired of not knowing."

The figure rose to full height once more, his smile softer and without the sharp corners that put her on edge.

"Finally, some truth from you," he said, reaching out a hand to her. She took it hesitantly, surprised by the coolness of it as he guided her into her seated position on the couch. "This is what will let you grow, you should not shy from it. None of us can escape our truth."

Bonnie almost wanted to roll her eyes, she could see where he and Kimaris mirrored each other—both obsessed with thinking they know best.

"Your dreams are only those parts of you which are often ignored, the subconscious trying to break through to your actions," he continued, interrupting her thoughts of people who did not deserve her mind right now. "For me to see, you must give yourself over. Your defences cannot be up, otherwise your vision will remain as blurred as your thoughts."

"So, you want me to relax?" Bonnie guessed, not missing the withering look he gave in response. "Okay, I'll shut up."

"That would be best," Manakel replied flatly. "The more at peace you are, the easier my flight is. My wings are only so powerful, the mind can eject much more than thought when it wants to."

Gremory wasn't kidding when he said he spoke in riddles.

Ignoring the urge to ask what he meant, Bonnie stayed silent, watching as he walked a few paces before reaching to his chest and lifting the pendant hanging from it. As he touched it, his wings rippled.

"May the winds of change guide me."

His whisper floated around them as though the air had taken it, and the breeze seemed to catch his body, lifting it in its grasp.

"I ask for your undivided attention and obedience, Bonnie," he began, turning to face her as he gently touched the swinging piece. "You must unburden yourself."

Bonnie watched as the crystal swung from side to side, perfectly even and steady. The arc it made caught her eyes and refused to let them go, even as Manakel's hand lifted and lightly tapped the bell above it. The tinkling sound only seemed to deafen the outside world.

"Follow the sway of time," he murmured, "Forget your breath, your voice, your thoughts. Surrender your mind to the divine."

If the pendant hadn't been so captivating, she may have wanted to laugh at his words, but her tongue no longer worked, and her lungs only knew how to breathe in and out, slowly.

The bell chimed again.

"Listen to the balance of the cosmos, the ringing of truth. See the other side in its equality. Find the equilibrium of your soul."

It was as though slowly the world around her faded; with every swing of the pendulum colours dwindled, shapes disappeared. She knew she was sitting in the livingroom and that Manakel was in front of her, but it was like he was convincing her of something else. Light whitened everything.

With each return surrender knocked at her walls, begging to be let in. To give in.

The bell chimed again.

"Let go."

Manakel's whisper was heard not with her ears but with her mind, and with his order the last conscious pieces of her released their grip.

She felt herself fall backwards, sinking into the cushions she sat upon, her body squeezed and kneaded into a shape of the angels desire. She was suffocating through the weight, and time stopped as she fell from earth.

And then she gasped, and the world changed.

She was in her dream. The white clouds around her sparkling as they had before, the light behind them unknown but showing her the way.

Something brushed her arm. The sound of wings. But the smoke covered all.

Then the bell dinged.

Some of the mist dissipated, Bonnie's head felt clearer. A soft pad of feet landing.

"Ah, your mind is truly a bare easel Bonnie Lawrence."

Manakel stood behind her, surveying the blank space as though he could see what was underneath. He reached a hand out, skimming it over the soft pillow of smoke.

"I have never seen such a mind—so impressionable to ideas and mouldable to ideals. Interesting."

"What does that mean? That I'm sensitive or impressionable?" Bonnie asked, surprised that her voice echoed around them.

"It could be, if you only think of yourself as that," Manakel replied, his fingers still splaying. "Or you could see the endless possibilities that nothing provides. There are no limits to a blank canvas."

The bell rang again, and the high vibration of something approached.

While she intended to watch it slip out of reach as she had done many times before, Manakel did not. His outstretched hand snapped up with the speed of a viper and clung on to it, yanking it from the air above them.

She had missed it with a blink, but here was Manakel without eyes yet able to get it first time.

He truly could see.

Bonnie was suddenly aware of how little she had comprehended the skill of angels. The parts of them that seemed weakest were merely disguises for their true power.

"How intriguing."

The object twirling in Manakel's fingers was vibrating, straining to be released. It buzzed with energy that made it glow, the noise as high as that of a dogs whistle.

As Manakel brought his other hand to it, gripping tightly with both at each end, the object stopped being a blur and Bonnie saw what it was.

An arrow.

It glowed with an otherworldly light and Bonnie tried not to notice the way Manakel's palms were smoking while touching it.

He didn't look in pain.

"Do you know what it means?" she asked, stepping closer as the angel turned it in his hands, straining against the power of it.

"It would appear that you have Guardian Angel, only the protection of one could create such a thing."

The matter-of-fact tone that he responded with did not match the words he was saying. Surely, he had to realise how much of a revelation this was, at least to Bonnie anyway.

Although, she imagined he was quite used to talk of Guardian Angels when he himself was in fact an angel. Maybe this was their version of talking about celebrities.

"And this arrow clearly wants to guide you somewhere. Better keep up."

Bonnie looked up at Manakel just in time to see him give her a quick grin before he released the arrow, letting it shoot from his hand.

In an instant, and without a breath, Manakel followed it, his wings cutting through the smoke like a hot knife in butter.

Bonnie only paused for a second before running in the direction he had gone, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Manakel, I don't have wings!" she called in disbelief as she ran through the smog, trying to spot any sign of his figure. She could only see a thin trail of light where he had pushed through and prayed that it wouldn't disappear quicker than she could run.

Although she was not, in any shape or form, a runner, it surprised Bonnie that the movements felt easy, and her lungs weren't calling out for aide at the excursion.

This was most definitely a perk of this dream world they were in.

Feeling more confident, she ran faster, pushing her limbs to the very edge of their ability as she weaved in and out of the clouds, following the breadcrumbs that scattered for her.

She didn't notice how fast she was going until suddenly there was no ground thumping under her, and her body fell.

The smile slipped from her lips as a scream replaced it and she tumbled down, soaring through the empty air with her hands clawing at nothingness.

The light faded from view, slowly pulling her into darkness, and as the last trickle of light vanished her back hit the ground with a thump.

Had it been real, she was sure she would be dead. But she merely felt a little winded, although whether that was down to the impact or the exhilarating journey she didn't know.

As she blinked, a shadow fell over her vision, it's amused smirk shrouded by the wings on either side of him.

"You could have caught me," she muttered to Manakel as he watched her climb to her feet. "The wings are just for decoration?"

She brushed her hands on her trousers and looked out at the vast sea of nothing that stretched before them.

"I think I preferred the light."

"Sometimes we must hit rock bottom to truly see what is above us."

Ready to turn to him with judging eyes, Bonnie stopped as she caught sight of what he was referring to.

Above them colours swirled, dipping and growing with every changing hue, tumbling together in a frenzy of light and glitter. The constellations sparkled in their design and she was breathless just following the intricate patterns. She had seen nothing like it. Amongst them weaved the arrow, its trail lighting up the different stars and joining them together as though following a paint by number. Once they connected it would move to the next and the constellation it left behind would come alive, as though spirits dancing across a darkened stage.

Bonnie watched the image it traced, almost giggling as it created the shape of a ram, then a fish, then a scorpion....

Her eyes darted as more came, one by one showing themselves, and when the arrow stopped moving, there were twelve.

"These are the star signs," she whispered, not knowing if she was talking to herself or Manakel. "That's the twins for Gemini, the fish for Pisces..."

The arrow flew through the image of the archer, its trajectory making it appear as though it had been shot from his bow before it continued through the chest of the ram.

"Sagittarius." Bonnie turned to Manakel, her eyes wide with excitement. "Sagittarius. That's the archer, the bow. My guardian angel, it has something to do with Sagittarius doesn't it?"

She didn't wait for a response before walking forward, turning underneath to reach a hand up and trace the stars, her smile growing.

"Kimaris said that there were protectors of star signs. I'm not a Sagittarius but maybe the signs guardian chose me, maybe they're trying to tell me something."

"Perhaps."

Manakel's voice was clipped, unlike the arrogant way he had spoken before. Now it was heavy, precise. As though straining against an urge.

Bonnie turned to look at him, and by his tight lips she could tell that something had bothered him. Maybe he couldn't figure something out, or wasn't allowed to explain it to her. Eyael had mentioned the lack of power they had to change things. She'd imagine it would be frustrating for someone like Manakel to have to hold in his words.

Before she could ask, movement behind him caught her attention. She leaned, peering around his large body to figure out what it was. It looked like a person, but their back was to them and darkness was no help in illuminating features. They stood a distance away, surrounded by the same fog that had perpetrated her dreams before, and they looked to be running their hand over the grass at their feet.

"Who is that?" Bonnie asked aloud and Manakel looked down at her in confusion, his jaw hardening before turning sharply in the direction that she was staring. His ears twitched as the figure moved towards them.

A sound like a sharp intake of breath came from Manakel's mouth right as Bonnie's eyes adjusted and she caught the brown tint of familiar hair.

Bonnie.

Without a word Manakel grabbed onto her arm and in one quick motion he rang the bell on his neck and pulled her into his side, pushing off the ground with both feet. It took the air from Bonnie's lungs as they flew into the sky, through the displays of stars and into the blinding light.

Bonnie jumped up from the coach with a gasp, her eyes wide and frantically looking for evidence of where she was. She relaxed a little when she felt solid ground beneath her feet.

With wide eyes, she surveyed the room, looking for the wings of the angel that had just catapulted them from her mind. If she wasn't mistaken, she had a slight headache, actually.

Manakel stood by the window, his figure far more looming than it had been as he stared at her, watching the way she moved.

His wings twitched, and she felt the pulsating power from them send a shiver down her spine.

"I think it's time we spoke about the Sacred Whores of Babalon," he stated with a tone that made her want to sit down again. "And the Scarlet Woman."