AN:// Hi!!!!! Hope some of you are still reading (especially you Nadine my biggest supporter on here!!) A little delayed because I wrote a chapter of a different story to be submitted for Wattpad's werewolf romance pitch fest, but here's the new chapter finally!  

"Are you sure you're okay to be back at work?"

Bonnie blinked, shaking her head as she pulled her gaze from the white tile above her and over to Isabel, who stood with her arms crossed. For a moment, she thought it might be concern on her features, but as her expression became more scrutinising, she pushed the thought from her mind.

"Yeah, I'm grand. Just got a little distracted," she replied easily, hoping her memory of the demon didn't show. There was a reason she wasn't working nights anymore.

Isabel looked up at the spot on the ceiling, her confusion clear as she stared at the fresh white paint.

"I can see that—that's why I asked." She clicked her tongue. "Clearly the knock to your head caused some damage if that's interesting."

Bonnie wanted to laugh. How had she gone from summoning angels to being back at the bottom of the food chain? Nothing quite like hostility and hospitality to keep you humble.

"Maybe," Bonnie sighed with a shrug of her shoulders. "Guess I better go in the back for a bit where the tiles won't distract me."

Before Isabel could open her pouted lips to disagree, Bonnie turned and strode from the cafe, offering a small smile to customers that she passed along the way.

Isabel could handle three orders—as she constantly reminded her, she was the one in charge. It was time she did some work too.

Bonnie found solace in the stockroom; in amongst the stacked boxes and unrefrigerated condiments that lined the shelves, it was easy for her to feel at ease. After all, this is what she was truly destined for—wasn't it?

It had been two weeks since she'd heard a word from Gremory, and she'd spent every day here, distracting herself.

It shouldn't have surprised her. Even though he swore it wasn't goodbye, she knew it had been. She'd been on borrowed time, given a life for a week in a story so incredible that there was no way she had a place in it. They would leave her behind to age with the ketchup splatters on the furniture, and the oil that clogged up the drains.

Absentmindedly her fingers wove paper straws in and out of eachother, creating knots that bundled her frustration together in irritating wisps of memory before throwing them to the ground.

It depressed her to think how easily she retorted back to this life, albeit the day shift instead of night. Manakel was right in saying that self doubt was the worst weakness.

Had it all been a figment of her imagination? Was she losing her mind piece by piece and trying to fill the gaps with ideas of angels and demons?

She had always had a creative brain, but perhaps Isabel was right and the knock to her head unlodged the part keeping her sane.

Maybe this was how people ended up in psychiatric hospitals—with too many thoughts and not enough ability to act upon them.

With a sigh Bonnie slumped back against the wall, the distant sound of the bell from the front door nothing more than a tickle at the back of her subconscious.

Was she really meant to be okay with this?

"Bonnie!"

Isabel's muffled call brought dread back to her chest, and Bonnie allowed one more second of peace before she opened her eyes and stood up, moving to collect the mounds of straws littering the floor before heading back to her job.

But she stopped as she saw the image she'd created below her.

A triangular point. A long twisted stem. A fan of straws like feathers... no—fletchings.

It was an arrow.

With her heart racing she quickly swiped a hand through it, dispersing the art piece in a blink with the hopes it would do the same in her head too. She'd had the dream every night.

A Guardian Angel.

"Bonnie!"

"I'm coming!" Bonnie snapped back, taken aback by her own tone. She quickly shoved the remains into the plastic bin bag hanging from the hook before scurrying out of there, almost slamming the door behind her.

The uneasy feeling followed to the cafe, and she had to stop herself from checking over her shoulder.

It was only a bundle of straws.

"There you are," Isabel announced loudly, flicking her dark hair over her shoulder. "I was beginning to think you forgot you worked here."

Bonnie bit back the retort that threatened to spring to her tongue and forced a strained smile.

"Nope, just cleaning up the back room," she lied, plucking a hand wipe from the dispenser and dramatically cleaning her hands. "A lot of dust and spiders, you know?"

Isabel's lips curled at her words, and she shivered slightly.

"Okay, well, maybe go back to doing that after," she suggested subtly before flicking a finger to the front door. "But first, your brothers are here to see you."

For a moment, Bonnie was confused. But then her spine straightened, and she swallowed the surge of emotions that had come up through her throat, attempting to remain calm.

Isabel's brows furrowed—she clearly didn't do that good a job.

Gremory and Kimaris stood outside, two figures doused in sunlight. While Kimaris was stoic as usual and barely even looking towards her, Gremory had almost pressed himself against the glass and was waving hectically, ignoring the flickered stares of people sitting below him.

A thousand thoughts flooded: what did they want? Were they there to tell her something or were they there to make sure she told no one what she knew? Kimaris had said she was lucky to be kept alive, had he now convinced Gremory that she needn't be?

"I'll just be outside," Bonnie squeaked, grabbing her fleece that hung on the hook on the wall. "I won't be long."

"You're still on shift!" Isabel reminded, but Bonnie barely heard her. The static in her thoughts overpowering as she pushed open the front door. "Don't take too long!"

Bonnie stiffened as the cold air hit her, and she couldn't help but look around the quiet street, wondering if she had just walked into a trap.

"Bonnie, hi!" Gremory shouted, rushing over and throwing his arms around her as he bounced on his feet. "I've missed you! How are you?"

She wanted nothing more than to return the hug and slip into the same feelings that surrounded her whenever they were together, but it was hard to forget the last two weeks of silence.

"I'm fine, thanks. Nice to see you—finally," she said, rather curtly, and it halted Gremory's joyous reunion idea in a second. He pulled back sheepishly, his steps riddled with awkwardness as he returned to stand beside his partner. "You too, Kimaris."

The daemon scoffed at her words and grumbled something under his breath, his dark eyes hidden behind sunglasses.

A brick wall, as usual.

"Look Bonnie," Gremory began, a softness to his words that stopped her from interrupting immediately. "I'm sorry we've not been in touch. It's been a bit of a whirlwind and we haven't been in Scotland, let alone home. I had every intention of coming back the next day and seeing you, it's just that other things happened that couldn't wait, and they're difficult to explain but I need you to believe me."

Bonnie remained silent, taking up Isobel's favourite pose and folding her arms in defiance. She was no longer just going to 'believe' anything.

"I told you she wouldn't take that," Kimaris sang, his neck tilted to the sky. "Humans lack the simplicity we daemons thrive on, they're fragile by nature."

Rage filled Bonnie as she pinned the sullen man with her gaze, the breath seething from between her teeth as she took in his boastful stance and calm expression.

"Fragile? Simplicity?" She scoffed, mocking his words. "What exactly is simple about summoning angels and legends woven into reality, or aeons and star signs effecting the changing world? Surely you can't mean the simplicity of appeasing fucking daemons and their never-ending spool of arrogant self belief and twisted views of each other that make you question whether they're enemies or friends? And don't make me laugh with fragility! I killed a demon, I survived an attack twice, let alone the summoning of beings that aren't meant to bloody exist! I got left on my own, not knowing whether to believe my mind while trying to live normally but knowing that there's an entire other world out there that could change any moment and I was just meant to be okay with that? Hah! Fragility? What's more fragile than a man banishing someone from their home because they invited a guest that they feel inadequate beside? If there's anyone fragile here, it's you and your damaged gazillion year old ego. Not me, and not humanity."

With her last word, Bonnie's chest heaved, and the red tint from her vision faded. The two men still stood in front of her, but now Gremory's jaw was almost in two, and Kimaris... if anything he looked more at ease.

Where did that come from?

"Do you feel better now?"

Blinking, she realised she did. The feeling that had been growing inside of her—the resentment, the strain, the inability to talk to anyone about it—it had disappeared. Her muscles soaked, her bones strengthened, and her skin grew thicker.

"Yes," she said simply. "Yes, I do."

"Good," Kimaris nodded, moving to sit down at the picnic bench behind him. "Now, can we have an actual discussion?"

Bonnie wanted to be annoyed. She hated that this seemed to have been Kimaris' plan, that he had meant for his antagonising words to rile her to the point of exploding. But the weight that had lifted only made her relax, and she did nothing but follow him in sitting down.

Gremory was still yet to talk, instead looking between the pair, struggling to comprehend what had just happened. After the third twitch of his eyebrow, he shook his head and copied their actions, sliding onto the bench beside Bonnie with a shrug.

"So, where have you guys been?" she asked, her curiosity outweighing her resolve.

"Egypt. We had some sights to visit," Kimaris replied, lifting his sunglasses to his head. He caught Bonnie's eyes scanning over his unchanged skin. "It was a lot of... indoor work. Not a lot of tanning time."

"You guys were grave robbing, weren't you?"

"That's a strong word," Gremory interjected, cutting off Kimaris' nod. "We were merely investigating old tombs and looking for some forgotten artifacts... that may have been in the possession of dead people."

Bonnie sighed, pushing the image of skeletons from her mind. "Did you at least find what you were looking for?" A silent beat passed. "I'll take that as a no then."

"We didn't find what we were looking for, but we got some good leads on where it might be. Plus, Gremory thinks he might have an idea—"

"No, I know I have an idea, thank you very much. And I think you can help, Bonnie."

Bonnie held up her hands, a high laugh escaping her lips as she looked at the blonde who had grabbed onto her leg.

"Hang on, I wasn't allowed to be involved before, but now you think I can help?"

"In my defence—I never wanted to not include you, and I think it's a small miracle that I persuaded a certain individual of that in such a short time, considering how stubborn they are." Gremory gave a pointed look.

She thought about it for a moment.

"That's fair."

"Hey!"

"So, what's your idea?" she asked, ignoring Kimaris' hurt exclamation. Gremory's eyes were full of light as he pulled a picture from his pocket. He uncrumpled it quickly before smoothing it out on the wooden surface.

"This."

Bonnie tried to see what he had found so interesting within the faded lines and blurred sketches of the image he held, but to her they were merely shapes on paper.

"Am I missing it?" she asked, rotating it in her hand. "Do the lines mean something?"

"Turn it once to the right and then imagine the shapes as land and the gaps as water," Gremory instructed eagerly, his chin almost on her shoulder.

Bonnie followed his orders with a squint, and slowly the clues pieced themselves together.

"This is a map, isn't it?" she snorted. "I'd say it's a world map but half of it is missing and the shapes of countries aren't exactly accurate. I mean—"

"Yes well, it is thousands of years old and they didn't exactly have accurate knowledge of the world back then," Gremory defended and Bonnie quickly stopped talking at the clipped edge to his tone. "But look at these."

His finger traced over the lines that spread throughout the shapes, gliding between them as though following a route. One split into many as it reached its destination before doing it again at the next stop, slowly spreading over the sheet.

"Whose movements are these?"

"That's a big question," Kimaris chuckled, making her resist the urge to roll her eyes. "In simple terms—the original gods. This map seems to show the route they took when they walked this earth."

"You're having a laugh, right?" Bonnie chittered. "How could you possibly know that?"

"Because they engraved it on the tomb walls. It's a prophecy," Gremory answered quickly, pointing to one of the larger countries. "See look; it starts at the Indus Valley—where the gods are first recognised—from there it goes to Egypt, across to Greece, through to Italy, then on to Ireland, and finally to Scotland. That's the route the gods took, the places that they stopped in and built lives. See the legs stretching from each place? That's where they dispersed; some going off on their own and others choosing to remain where they were. It's a guide for us to find what we're looking for. Everything we're looking for."

Bonnie looked at Gremory, her brows pulled together as she took in his almost vibrating form. She wondered if he might explode from excitement.

"Remember what Manakel told you—that you had to pull at the string and unravel it to the beginning? I think this is what he meant, to go to the beginning of the gods."

Bonnie looked down at the map again.

"Does this mean you want us to go to... what is that—South Asia?"

Kimaris chuckled at her shock while Gremory scoffed and shook his head, forcefully pointing at another location.

"No, I don't think there's anything there. Power comes from belief or glory, and it was the new gods that changed things, not the old. I think the important landmarks are further in their journey, where they fought and divided and became something new. Manakel made a point of mentioning Ireland to me, and me specifically. I think he was trying to tell me I can find him there—that I can find Amdusias."

Bonnie couldn't help but look over to Kimaris at his words, the uncertainty in her reflected in his frown. Why would Manakel want to help Gremory?

"Okay," Bonnie breathed, holding back her skepticism. "Why would it be Ireland?"

Gremory smiled, grateful that she didn't immediately dismiss the idea like Kimaris had tried to.

"A long time ago there was a war there between opposing sides of the gods. The war lasted years and while it did the leader of one side, the Dagda, conceived a child with the goddess of the river Boyne, who was on the opposing side. To stop her husband from knowing, he made it so the child was born in a day, stopping the sun from moving and tricking him. The site is called Brú na Bóinne, or the Palace of the Boyne, and it has many structures to it, one being called Newgrange—where the Dagda lived for some time. Historians always thought it was a passage tomb or a temple, but it's more than that. It was once a gateway to the Otherworld, a hole in an otherwise strong structure that would allow travel between realms, and I believe that with enough summoning power it can be once again. At least enough to allow Amdusias to be summoned there."

Eyael's voice flitted into Bonnie's mind.

"You forget the magic that certain places hold, how powerful they can be," she whispered, her finger tracing the shape of the land. Both boys stared at her as she looked up at them with a wide grin, her heart beginning to race. "That's what Eyael said to us, right before the summoning ended. He said he couldn't get directly involved with things but what if that was his way of trying to help?"

Kimaris leaned back in his chair, a thoughtful brow raised at her deduction. Her shoulders shook as Gremory squealed in delight, holding on to her.

"You're right! He said that! Why didn't I remember?" he laughed, his smile growing even bigger than her own. "We need to go right away, this could be it!"

"Let's just take a breath," Kimaris interrupted, bringing both their smiles down. "Yes, it all seems to add up but what if it's a trap?"

"How could it be a trap?" Gremory countered, rolling his eyes. "It's just a group of ruins, and Eyael wouldn't do that to us. There's no way he would try to deceive us."

"But Manakel would, especially if it benefitted him or the Angels. We need to think about it."

"We don't have time to think about it, you know that! The days are already short and we need sunlight to summon him. If we wait any longer—"

"A few days won't make a difference—"

"They could make all the difference! I know you don't want to go back there but—"

A knock at the window stopped the tennis match between the two men, and while relieved at the end of her neck strain, Bonnie groaned when she saw Isabel's annoyed expression.

Hurry up, she mouthed, tapping an invisible watch on her wrist while squinting against the sun.

Bonnie held up a finger and nodded her head while throwing her an apologetic smile, motioning towards the two men beside her. Isabel huffed at the reply before storming away again and Bonnie blew out a breath as she turned back to the conversation.

"Look, I know what this means to you," Kimaris continued, although much quieter than before. "And I know how long you've waited for even a sliver of hope, and I'm not trying to ruin that. I'm just worried that we're being manipulated, and the last thing I want is for you to get your hopes up if it goes wrong. Not to mention even if we did go we'd be putting Bonnie in danger if it did, you can't ask that of her. And we can't keep whisking her out of her life, it's not fair."

Gremory's shoulders slumped and his mouth closed as he took in Kimaris' words. By the time he had dropped back into his seat, all signs of excitement were gone and his eyes had turned glassy. The breeze ruffled through his hair but his body stayed unmoving.

"I'm sorry, Grem."

It was the gentlest she had ever heard Kimaris speak; his syllables were laced with rue and his lips sunk in on themselves as he looked at his friend. It pained him to cut off the hope that had arisen in Gremory, that was obvious, but there was something deeper in his gaze, a resentment for himself for a reason that Bonnie didn't know.

She bit her lip. On one hand, she knew Kimaris was right; Gremory was jumping head first because the thought of seeing Amdusias was too tempting to pass up, and someone could definitely take advantage of that. And if that happened then there was no telling what sort of monsters or daemons were waiting for them there. She could end up hurt, or worse dead—would she be fine with that? Was it worth risking her life over?

She looked back at the cafe, the muffled sound of customers crawling through the walls, their tones as enthusiastic as the person taking their order. Was she really giving up that much? If she didn't do this and spent the next fifty years alive, content with her average life, would she actually be happy?

Nothing in life had ever given her the hope that she saw sparkling in Gremory's eyes when he spoke of Amdusias, and she knew she couldn't live with herself if she was the reason that he lost it.

"Bonnie!" Isabel scolded as she threw open the front door, her glare pinned from the moment she stepped into the sun. "You're actually taking the piss—would you get back to work? We're in the middle of the bloody lunch rush and I can't get the mayonnaise open."

Was this what she wanted?

"That's our fault," Kimaris said, lifting a hand in apology. "But we're done now, sorry for keeping her. Let's go, Gremory."

Gremory nodded along silently, and the two of them rose out of their seats, stepping over the bench as Isabel made a noise of annoyance at their explanation. But Bonnie stayed where she was, her brows pulling together as she stared at the image still laying on the table in front of her.

"We'll see you later, Bonnie."

Her mind ticked over their conversation and followed the lines on the map, adrenaline beginning to pump through her. These gods had made a journey across over half of the world, yet somehow they stopped only hours away from her. Somehow it was her that Gremory and Kimaris had saved, it was her that had the power to summon deities.

"Actually, wait," she said, turning to look at Isabel with a nervous smile. "Would it be okay if I took a couple of days off to go on a trip?"

A gasp left Gremory's mouth as Isabel scoffed at the question, pretending to think about it for a moment.

"Would it be okay for you to suddenly disappear on holiday again, right after you've already done that once and left me in the shitter? Hm, let me think—no," she replied with a look of distaste. "Now chop chop, table three put half their food on the floor and my trousers aren't designed for squatting down."

"Why would you wear them to work then?" Bonnie mumbled to herself as she turned back to the pair of men standing a few feet away. She took a breath. "I need you to promise that you will not ditch me again."

"Never," Gremory replied immediately, his spark flickering in its return. "I swear."

"Okay," she nodded, "And I may also going to need you to fund this trip and potentially sell one of your fancy bottles of wine to cover my rent next month because I definitely will not be getting a wage."

And you were a bit of a twat.

Kimaris' jaw ticked as he searched her eyes, remaining silent in his stubbornness until Gremory shoved an elbow into his side.

"Fine, but I have other funds, you're not touching my wine."

Bonnie almost wanted to laugh at his reply, but she rolled her eyes and turned back to face Isabel who, if possible, looked even more pissed off than before.

"Are you looking for a pay cut? Because I can make that happen," she threatened, waving an arm through the doorway. "Let's go, remember you're replaceable."

Someone made a noise akin to a growl behind her, and Bonnie felt a surge of confidence flood through as she laughed lightly.

Here goes nothing.

"Actually Isabel, you can't make that happen because I quit," she replied, bouncing on her heels. "As of right now I no longer work for your father, and therefore—you. So I don't have to do anything you say."

"What?" she snorted, jutting her hip out to one side. "Are you serious? You can't bail in the middle of a shift."

"Watch me." Bonnie shrugged, pulling off the apron that she had tied around her waist. "You said I'm replaceable, so replace me."

An uneasy laugh left the girl before she caught the apron, her sly smile slipping into a mask of horror. "Bonnie, you're rota'd in this whole week. Whose going to work your shifts?"

"I don't know Isabel," she said, rolling up the map before handing it to Gremory, who bit his lip to stop himself from grinning too wide. "I guess you should have thought about that before threatening to fire me. I'll send your dad a text and let him know, don't worry."

Isabel stuttered over her words as Bonnie headed away from the cafe and in the direction her flat, relief lifting from her shoulders as Gremory whistled a hopeful tune.

"Bonnie!" she shouted desperately, making the three of them turn back to look at her. She stood in the middle of the pavement, her hands held up in exasperation, and sounding much younger than her age. "You can't leave me here when we're this busy, I can't cope by myself!"

The birds seemed to sing.

"Oh Isabel, don't say that—you can do it!" Bonnie called back with a chuckle. "Don't you know self doubt is the biggest flaw of them all?"

She didn't even attempt to listen to her response—she was sure she would fill it with expletives and insults, and she'd much rather enjoy the moment of freedom she'd just gifted herself on an ordinary Wednesday. Shielding her eyes, she let the sun wash over her face.

"Taking an angel's advice for your own, are we?" Kimaris asked from beside her, his lips twitching as he stared straight ahead. His shoulder knocked her slightly and Bonnie realised he was holding his dark shades out in his hands.

"I didn't think Manakel would mind," she replied with a shrug, struggling to contain her enjoyment as she slid them onto her face. "After all—he talks so much, I doubt he'd even remember he said it."

Even Kimaris couldn't resist a smile.