Anthony stayed in jail for quite some time, up until the month of his death in fact. He was my animal in a zoo, and one I could forget about too. I left him there because I didn't need him, and I didn't need to worry.

It was the month of his passing, however, and that meant back to business. Manaphel wouldn't let me forget it. It seemed like every day up until the final month she was knocking on my door reminding me. Of course Ariel was around too. For being one of my own kind, they seemed to have backwards intentions. An archangel siding with a demon, almost as if they were working together just to bother me. How odd.

The first day of the month I decided to go with her to visit him while in church. That cruel place tried to make the inmates holy, but nothing could save my Anthony.

It was cloudy outside. The kind of weather where you expect it to rain any second. I wanted nothing more to hurry up and get inside. I rushed up to the church.

"Oridon! Hold on!" Manaphel called out. She sat underneath the marble sign.

I turned back to look at her. "Don't tell me you can't come inside."

She pulled her knees to her chest and sighed, "Fine, I can come inside, but I am a demon after all and I'll corrupt things with my presence. Also there's a barrier I can't get through, so if you get that down-"

I turned away from her. I paced towards the church. The mighty oak doors were open, and waiting for Lucifer's prey. It was a place I was just as well welcomed to. I slipped inside, unnoticed by the clergy. Anthony was the only one in the sanctuary. Like a sinner begging for God's attention, he was sitting in the front row. His head was tilted down and a Bible was on his lap.

"Please, please just let me be free please," I heard him mutter, "Anything. I don't need love. I don't need to be forgiven. I don't need to be welcomed with open arms. Just let me have my peace. Let me have peace."

I stumbled to the front and sat next to him. He kept mumbling, "Please let me be free," over and over again. I listened to him until more prisoners began to fill the pews. Some angels stood around too. They gave me funny looks. I felt funny around them. They all probably wondered what I was about to do, and I wondered what was about to happen.

"Anthony, who are you praying to?"

He looked up at me. "You're here," he whispered, "You came."

This was the first time in almost a decade I was able to see his face this close. He had a scruffy beard and sun spots all over his forehead. His skin looked like he had been submerged in water for too long. And his eyes. His beautiful green eyes were flooded with tears.

"You're here," he whispered as he grabbed my hand. He smiled a little too. "I knew you'd come someday."

I immediately tugged my hand away and stuffed it in my pocket. "Anthony, have you learned?"

"I think so."

"Then tell me what you've learned."

He put his head on the edge of the pew. "I need you. I need you Ollie."

I looked down at him. "My name is Oridon."

"Oridon, I need you. Save me. I'll be good, I promise."

I brushed his hair back away from his face and wiped his eyes. "There's not much left to save. Sit up, now. We'll see if you can be saved."

The preacher stepped up to the podium. For what seemed like days he spoke of the supposed word of God. Like humans could ever understand what The Big Man means. Even as a holy being I struggled to understand. The only thing that was clear was nothing was meant to be understood in it's entirety, otherwise there's no more surprises. What's existence without an unexpected twist?

After the sermon we sat there till the pews emptied. We were alone in the room again.

"I'm going to have to go soon," Anthony mumbled. He rose to his feet and followed the line of inmates out. Right as he was at the door I called out to him. He stopped and turned to me.

I froze.

The only thing that I could force from my lips was, "I'll be by later."

He nodded once at me then continued on.

And I just stood there.

What was I going to say?

I had something I needed to say. I ran out of the church, but he was already gone. However, Manaphel was waiting there for me. She was still sitting by that marble sign. I went to her and sat down next to her.

"How'd it go?"

"He's suffered enough. Manaphel, he looks awful. A man in his middle thirties shouldn't look like that, even if he is dying. We have to get him out."

She pointed her finger at the road. "He went that way with the group. He's going back to jail. You wanted him to suffer, so you got what you wanted. That's just what happens. I got my moment to speak with him too," she groaned. She then stood up and started to head down the road.

Perhaps to her further annoyance I put my hands on her shoulders. "Daft demon I don't want him to suffer anymore! He's learned his lesson after all!"

She glanced back at me and sighed, "Okay, angel. I don't know what to do. Do you love him or not?"

"He's my human," I responded. I then started to walk towards her. Only for my ears to hear, I mumbled, "Of course I love him."

She stopped walking to wait for me. I caught up as soon as I could. Off we went to see him. It started to rain on the way there, but I didn't mind much. I just wanted to see him.

I pressed my face to the fence when I got there. My heart was beating faster than ever before. He was so close. I just had to find him and call his name. Then maybe he'd have his peace.

I kept glancing at all the working men. Not a single one of them was my Anthony.

"Where is he?"

Manaphel pointed to the middle of the work yard. There he was being whipped. His back was in shreds. Blood trickled like waterfalls to the ground. His life was spilling from his veins. It was a death sentence. No heart could tolerate such pain.

"Man shall not lie with-"

There was another crack of the whip.

Not my Anthony. Not my Anthony, no.

"Man as he shalt-"

He cried out like a dying animal when the whip hit his back again. It was the harshest crack.

"With woman."

The one at the tolerable end of the whip shouted, "Again!" as he kicked Anthony in the side.

I put my hands to my chest. "Stop them Manaphel."

"Why? He can take it. You wanted him to suffer, and he's suffering. This happens every Sunday. How else was he supposed to learn to be good?"

I would have pushed her if people weren't around. Yes, I was plenty aware of my wrath, and that it was rude to push a lady. Still, this was Manaphel, and she was a demon that was getting on my nerves.

"Please, his suffering deserves to end."

She chuckled a little and patted my back.

"Oh angel, it's only getting started. You're going to suffer too," she hummed before snapping her fingers. With that the whipping was over, and Manaphel was walking away.

"I want him free too!"

She turned back to look at me. "Oridon, you can only ask so much of me before I start acting up. That's no simple task. You may have to figure that out by yourself."

She then left with a cloud of dust floating behind her.

I was on my own. I was alone.

I paced around the property for hours, trying to figure out what to do. Trees weren't much of an inspiration. It was also a waste of time to talk to trees. Trees never talk back and they're too ridged to offer any good advice. The ground was useless too. Humans were made from dust, and while this was a human problem, I needed a more than human answer.

There was a divine flash across the sky. It struck me then. I didn't need human help for human answers, I needed something divine. I needed Ariel. They never stayed in one place for long, considering that they liked to stay busy. That was probably a good thing. I don't know how often I could have stood the dastardly duo they made up with Manaphel.

Then again, Manaphel was the only being on Earth who would be able to give me an accurate answer as to where they were at any given moment. Visiting Manaphel was my best option. I went from the jail to her house. Upon arrival I was greeted by Jasper. He was sitting on the roof.

"Hey angel," he purred at me, "I'm up here."

I looked up at him. "Is Manaphel home?"

He cupped his cheeks with his hands and leaned forward. He stared at me for a while before responding, "Don't know. Go inside and see for yourself."

I crossed my arms. Damn, he was frustrating. I couldn't help myself; I shouted, "Tell me because I'm waiting my time if not! You're of devilish nature! You should know!"

He then went into his feline form and laid back down.

I really was wasting my time with him. I decided to go inside anyways. Evanora yelped as I opened the door.

"Is Manaphel-"

She stared at me with as much malice as two eyes could hold. After a few moments of silence she growled, "Could you knock before you come in?"

"Oh... Yes, I'm sorry. You know just your cat gets on my nerves and I've had a rough day."

She put her forefinger to her mouth and sucked on it for a moment. There was a doll on her lap. It looked to be witchcraft. Normal dolls weren't stuffed with spices and such.

"Who is that?" I asked. It did look similar to Anthony, but I couldn't figure out why she'd want one of him. He was suffering already, and approaching his death bed too. Maybe it was for Manaphel to take to Hell.

She removed her finger from her mouth and sighed, "It's Anthony."

Of course it was.

I took my seat in front of her. She went back to sewing the doll.

"What's Manaphel planning?"

She pulled the thread till it was taught, then made another stitch. She kept repeating the process as she hummed, "No idea."

"Manaphel's having you make that, no?"

She shook her head a few times and bit her lip. "No. I'm having myself make it. She doesn't even know I'm making it."

"Oh," I sighed. No answers there.

She glanced up at me. "Do you like the scent of cinnamon?"

I glanced around at the jars of spices. "Sure. It's not a bad smell."

She looked back down. "Good, good."

I tried to glance at the doll. Every angle I tried to glance from seemed obvious.

"Why are you so worried?" she asked with the most caring and tender voice I had ever heard. It caught my breath for a moment. It was too sweet to be corrupt. But just as well, it could have been something too good to be true.

She glanced up at me. "Hm? Angel?"

I sat down in my chair properly and asked, "What would you need that for?"

She looked down once more. "It's for you. I thought you'd like to have something to remember him by. You give me the impression that you're the sentimental type. And don't worry, it's harmless."

"I- that's very thoughtful of you."

She pulled the thread tight enough for it to snap. Then she made a knot in the end of the string by rolling the end between her forefinger and thumb, and pushing it down till it was a jumbled pile of tiny loops. She then made another fine stich.

"I know Manaphel has been reminding you about what's coming. I figured you're sick of all of us, and after Anthony dies you'll just be gone except if Ariel says anything about you. I know I'm human, and it's probably just a human thing, but I'm going to miss knowing you're not too far and not too lonely. Do angels like you get lonely?"

Oh of course I got lonely. All the weight of the days and nights without Anthony entered my head like water going through a broken dam. Nights alone in sheets felt like being wrapped in funeral sheets for the dead, but I was awake. I was trapped in my own coffin. I was buried alive. During the mornings I watched the sun rise alone, knowing it would see the both of us. Anthony would be alone in his cage, and I'd be alone in my coffin.

Oh Anthony alone. How could I be selfish enough to leave him alone to suffer?

I told him I'd never hurt him. I couldn't help but remember the train ride too. He was scared of dying then. I told him everything would be alright.

I lied.

And he was almost on his death bed.

All alone.

My Anthony was all alone.

I didn't dare look Evanora in the eye. I sniffled a little before responding, "Us angels... Aren't supposed to even know what it's like to feel lonely. We're not supposed to miss people. We have to feel nothing but care, or that just defeats the purpose of the job. And I suppose if anyone does feel anything, they're just supposed to get over it."

My nose started to run, so I wiped it with the end of my sleeve. I wasn't about to let myself cry.

Evanora handed me a cloth napkin and asked, "So what about you? Are you going to get over it?"

I closed my eyes. "I should. Pain heals with time, and I have all the time in the world."

"So have you got over Anthony trying to get with someone else? Manaphel is always talking about it. She still thinks it upsets you and that you still love him, even if you don't admit that," Evanora said. She then pulled the thread till it broke. After brushing it over a few times, she passed the doll to me.

It was my Anthony. Of course I loved him.

"She can't hold me accountable for anything I don't do or say. Those are the rules of sin."

"So you do?"

"I can't say. It confuses me even," I mumbled as I looked down at the doll. It had red apple cheeks like Anthony did at one time. It's eyes were a little too bright for such sad times. It was cute though. Even better, it wasn't Hell bound, and it would never have to leave. It was mine, and mine forever.

Manaphel came busting through the door soon after. "Nora! I'm going to do something bad!" she called out. She then looked over to the both of us. Her face fell from being tense to being flat.

"What are you doing here?" she bluntly asked me.

I looked down at my Anthony doll and responded. "Looking for you actually. Now what's that bad thing."

She walked over to me and grabbed the doll. I couldn't help but whine a little. She turned the doll over in her hands, examining it. After she was finished with it she gave it back.

"I can't say."

"Fine. Another question then. Where's Ariel?"

She crossed her arms. "What do you want with Ariel?"

"I want to free Anthony. If it's for the good, and if they are truly holy, then they'll help."

She patted my shoulder a few times. "Go home, angel. You're going to want to go home for tonight."

"No! I'm not going home. Not till I can have Anthony safe," I growled. I then tugged away from her shoulder. Who was she to think she'd just be able to walk in and comfort me. Not after what she was like previously in the day.

She closed her eyes and sighed, "I want you out of my house. Oridon, usually you're welcome anytime, but not today. I'm about to do something I could potentially get in big trouble with. Ariel too, and you know Ariel has consequences."

"Why would Ariel be doing something bad?"

"Free will, angel. What I'm doing is as holy as it is hellish, I can guarantee."

I clung my doll close to my chest before standing up. I glared at her. My eyes never left her as I walked to the door. Before I left I said, "Thank you, Evanora."

Then I left. I hated listening to Manaphel, but I went home. It wasn't a bad trip home. The feeling of returning to my coffin once again was dreadful. It would just be more hours spent at home without Anthony. More hours spent in a noiseless little room with a little doll that was more or less a stand in for what I missed most already. It made me wonder how Anthony felt in prison. So many people must have left him tired from all the noise. I couldn't imagine the suffering, and I couldn't imagine what was worse -the suffering from silence or the suffering from all the noise. Could we not just have our happy peace together? Was that too much to ask?

I was almost ready to plead guilty to no crime I committed, just so I could be with him. It was tempting to walk out of the apartment and just give everything up. The coffin door was ready for me to go live again with my Anthony. Then the knob turned, and in walked Jasper.

"What are you doing here?" I asked. I crossed my arms over my chest. Why'd he have to show up unannounced? It was like he never heard of knocking on the door. He just busted in too. Without warning he grabbed the collar of my shirt. How dare he touch me. Then he looked me dead in the eyes. I shook with fear as I stared into his feline eyes.

"Oridon, I've got something to tell you. Do you want me to ruin the surprise?"

I tugged away, but he wouldn't let me go.

"Tell me! Do you want to know? It's something Manaphel and Ariel don't want you knowing, but I don't like surprises so maybe you don't either. It's a good surprise though. It's one you'll like."

I huffed, "You're such a cat. You're very finicky. Give me time to think."

He let go of my shirt and sat down on the floor. "We don't have time," he said, "In fact the plan is in place now."

"Well, fine. Tell me. Tell me the plan."