Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Tsurugi: Tsubasa no Gedatsu ❯ The Innocence of a Child ( Chapter 2 )

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Tsurugi: Tsubasa no Gedatsu

Chapter 2: The Innocence of a Child

By: Melissa Norvell

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Tsurugi walked through the street and attempted to avoid the many cold shoulders that he received along the way. No one was truly paying any attention to him whatsoever. He felt as if he were just a single speck on such a large plain. He felt small; insignificant, as if he were a faceless person who had been stripped of their identity and forced into uniformity.

The blonde man looked up towards the sky to see a dense layer of thick, grey clouds that almost looked like smog. Their ominous colors reflected in his heavenly blue eyes. 'The skies are grey,' he thought for a moment and then looked to his hand where the crumpled flower laid. He fell silent at the sight of the weakened blossom. As he was gazing at the flower in deep contemplation, a single crystalline drop of rain hit it and seemed to shatter as it hit the petals of pastille blue.

A gentle rain began to fall.

The angel's arm fell to his side, only a light grip was on the flower and it soon went floating to the ground and landed beside of his feet where rain water drenched it. It had been laid back on its place of origin- the cold, unfeeling ground. It too, soon became a faceless and meaningless object.

As he realized that he had dropped it only minutes after doing so, the angel bent down to pick it back up. "Oh no…" he whispered, as he knelt to pick it up the bud was nowhere to be seen. He looked up and his eyes met with petals of a familiar shade of blue. It was the flower. It was being held up to him by a small hand.

"Huh?" Tsurugi said, barely above a whisper in both surprise and acknowledgement. A young girl stood before him. She wore a red dress and had short, black hair that was pulled up in a pony tail on the side of her head and looked to be no more than about six or seven in age. Her features were so innocent and seemed untainted by the world. She giggled at him happily.

"Oh, hello there," the angel greeted her with a kind smile. There was nothing more surreal and peaceful then the sight of a blissful child.

"Hello," the girl replied happily as she handed him the flower. "I saw you drop this. Here you go!"

"Oh, thank you," Tsurugi gently took the flower.

"You're welcome, Mister Angel."

"Mr.…Angel?" The blonde asked, almost in disbelief. Until now, she had been the first person to address him as such a name. Heavenly blue eyes stared at the child in contemplation. 'I'm an angel after all…but how does this tiny child know that?'

"Yes, you're an angel. I can tell because of your wings," the girl replied happily and pointed to his massive white wings. To her, they were as clear as day. They were beautiful and just has she had dreamed. The white wings of an angel that held a striking purity and beauty that no earthly wonder could posses and shone with radiance in the dim lighting of the overcast.

"Wings?" Tsurugi questioned, still a little confused by it all. All of the humans before this girl had not seen his wings or simply ran through them as if they did not exist and yet, this small child was able to see them plain as day. "You mean you can see them?"

"Yes, you look cold and lonely all by yourself," the innocent one held his hand. "Here, come with me." She told him as she tugged on his hand.

"Huh? Um…All right," he agreed and smiled kindly at the child as the two of them walked. He let her lead him to wherever she wanted to take him. They walked through the rain as it was falling down gently. Tsurugi's wings had been soaked from being out in the weather and his clothes and appendages felt like a burden.

They soon come to a quaint looking building that was a dull grey in color. The inside was dark and held only a few lights within it. There were a couple of people inside, shopping and a single clerk behind the desk. The two of them stood in the door way and looked out as they watched the rain fall from the heaven's above.

"It's so pretty. I love the rain."

"I do as well," Tsurugi agreed, "even if it isn't good for my wings."

The child glanced to his drenched wings. The feathers drooped and they nearly touched the ground because they were so bogged down with water. She noticed that one of them had been wounded. The crimson substance had ran down his once-white feathers and stained them with small pink trails that lead down to the ground where angel blood mixed with rainwater and dissipated as more water was introduced to it.

"Oh, you're hurt!" The girl looked surprised and even a little saddened by this. "Your wing is broken." Her small hand reached out and lightly touched the angel's wounded wing.

"Yes, it needs to be fixed."

"Will no one help you?"

"I've tried to ask around but no one really cares to try and help me. They can't see my wings. People even walk right through them," his phrase carried into the store as the clerk stared at the two of them standing in the doorway. The clerk decided to listen in further on their conversation and the very subjects that they brought up seemed to be sheer lunacy. What was this about wings and heaven?

A look of disgust crossed his face at the very thought of teaching a child such things. 'What strange people…No doubt that crazy person is filling that child's head full of delusions. I feel sorry for her.'

"How sad," the girl's features were distressed, "I thought everyone could see angels."

"I guess not."

"Maybe they stopped seeing your wings because they stopped believing in angels."

"Huh?" The angel cocked his head in question. 'Stopped believing? Does this mean…' He wondered as he looked out over the cityscape before him, watching the people pass by, going about their daily routine. 'That is a town where most people don't believe in angels? If I am an angel, it would make sense to why they couldn't see my wings.' After his thought, vibrant recollections of the human who ran through his wing flooded his senses. 'At first, I thought that I might be going delusional but I guess that I'm not after all. This little girl can see my wings, so perhaps there are other who can as well…but…' He cast a downtrodden look to the ground. 'How can I tell who can and who can't?'

"My mother said that people who don't believe in angels can't see them. She said that angels walk on earth all of the time and we never know," the girl told him. "That's why we should be kind to everyone we meet. They might be an angel in disguise and if we're lucky, we might be able to see their wings." The raven-haired child beamed.

"Speaking of your mother, where is she?" Tsurugi asked.

"She's around the market place across the street. She said that as long as I stayed in sight that I could play with the kids around here. When it started raining all of the kids left so I was walking around with my umbrella so I didn't get sick and then I found you."

"Aren't you worried about getting lost?"

"Nope, my mom says when your around an angel you're well-protected."

"Angels protect people?" Tsurugi asked. It would seem like a stupid question for an angel to ask, especially one that was in their 100's like he was. Falling out of the sky had given him such amnesia that he had to relearn everything and didn't think a second time about taking it back for fear of it sounding stupid.

"Yes, there are guardian angels that come down from heaven especially for you. Everyone has one until they stop believing. The angel protects them and guides them down the right path so they can go to heaven."

"Heaven?" Tsurugi asked, his voice distant as subliminal messages ran through his head. All of a sudden, there were images of angels, clouds and heaven itself. He could feel a sharp pain course through his head as he put a hand atop of his forehead and nearly clenched it in pain. 'My head hurts…What? Who? I don't understand. What's going on? What are these images?'

"Yes, heaven is where God and angels live," the child blinked in bewilderment and turned her gaze to the angel. "Did you not come from heaven?" She wondered where else angels could possibly come from.

"I do not know where I came from."

"Do you know your name?"

"No…"

The girl looked sad for a few moments. Her face was looking to the ground and all fell silent for a few moments. All that could be heard was the sound of the gentle rain outside. She gazed at him with a hopeful expression.

"I hope you can find out."

Tsurugi looked at her, a little flattered by her kind and uplifting words.

"I believe in you!" The girl exclaimed.

"Thank you," Tsurugi smiled gently at the girl. 'Perhaps there is hope, even if it's through the eyes of an innocent child. As long as someone believes in me, I can, in turn believe in myself.' As his thoughts ended, his smile was illuminated with the brilliant rays of the sun. It's warm orange glow covered his features and caused them to shine like a bright gem stone.

The small girl looked up towards the sky. "Look Mr. Angel, the rain has stopped."

"So it has," Tsurugi looked up at the sun, which was partially hidden by dark purple clouds that were now scattered throughout the sky of orange.

"Ayumi!" An older feminine voice called out. This voice caught the angel's sharp ears and caused him to look towards the direction of the projected voice.

"Mom!" The small child, now addressed as Ayumi's face lit up with excitement as she shot out from the doorway and stood on the sidewalk, waving to the older woman who walked towards them.

She had long, brown wavy hair and dazzling green eyes. The woman dressed in earthy browns and khaki's and her outfit consisted of a long, brown coat, khaki pants and black dress shoes. This individual was a very young and lively woman who only looked in her mid twenties. She strolled up the side-walk upon noticing her daughter waving at her.

"Ayumi! There you are!" She cried out happily as she stopped in front of them. Ayumi ran to her, happy to see that her mother was back with her. Her mother picked her up and held her daughter close. She then looked to her in question.

"What were you doing here?"

"Mr. Angels and I were staying out of the rain."

"Mr…Angel?" The brown haired woman questioned upon meeting the gaze of Tsurugi. Their eyes locked in a brief moment. The woman's green eyes filled with a surge of emotion. It was a mix of many different types- joy, sorrow and a surreal sensation surrounded her. There wasn't a doubt in her mind that she had, in fact, seen a real angel.

Such a divine being nearly brought tears to her eyes. He stood before her, a radiant and regal being that still held a mass amount of purity. He was everything she had imaged he would be and so much more. She had always dreamed of getting an opportunity of seeing one up close without dying.

'Could it be?'

The woman stood in awe before the miracle that god had blessed her with.

"Yes, we were standing in the doorway of that shop," Tsurugi pointed towards the ashy shop.

"Thank you so much for taking care of Ayumi while I was out," she could barely utter the words. She was still stunned by his presence.

"You're welcome; she was no trouble at all. I'm glad that I could be useful to someone."

"Mr. Angel, will I ever see you around again?" Ayumi asked, a slight worry crossed her features. She didn't want this to be the last time she saw him. The thought of this being their last meeting made her feel sorrow for the uncertainty the two of them face with parting.

"I'm not sure. There is a possibility that we might. Just don't give up hope."

"No way! You either!" Ayumi said aloud with great determination for someone so small. He admired that about her. She never gave up and was very strong-willed. This will help her out in the future.

"Of course not, especially that nice speech you have me," Tsurugi smiled as the child giggled in delight.

"Well, I really must get going. Maybe one day, you and I will meet again too," her mother gave an emotional smile to the angel.

"That would be nice."

"I look forward to it," her mother replied, the peaceful smile still plastered on her face. "Mr. Angel…"

"Goodbye, Mr. Angel. Please be careful. The world is full of bad people," Ayumi yelled to him as they began to walk down the street. Tsurugi stood behind and watched the two disappear into the crowd. Ayumi looked over her mother's shoulder and watched as the angelic form became more and more distant. He was fading slowly and a part of her longed to stay back and spend time with him.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. We just need to keep having faith in him. Just remember to pray for him every night. Remember, even angels need prayer."

"Yes, I'll definitely pray for you!" Ayumi shouted to him.

"Good-bye and thank you for being so kind. I wish good fortune upon your souls. I too, will pray for you in turn," Tsurugi waved to them from his position in front of the door.

The girl watched him until she couldn't see his form anymore.

"Mom, could you really see his wings?" Ayumi asked when they were a considerable distance away.

"Of course dear, couldn't you?"

"Uh-huh!" Ayumi nodded. "Do you think his wing will get better?" She questioned, concern crossed her features as she looked into her mother's warm eyes.

"Of course, don't you know that angels heal themselves naturally? His wing should be like new before the end of the week," she smiled a soothing smile. She had heard this from her own mother, who had claimed to see and speak with her guardian angel.

"Really? Wow!” Ayumi looked back towards the little market where the angel blended into the masses and his form could no longer be seen. For a fleeting moment she looked to be in mourning but then noticed how beautiful the clouds were and looked upon them with wide, inquisitive eyes.

As they were walking, the wavy-haired woman looked up to the burnt orange skies and smiled. Her mind was filled with wonder and whimsy. This was so surreal, almost like a dream that she could not believe was taking place.

This was a dream that she never wanted to wake from.

'In all of my days, I never once thought I'd have an opportunity to meet an angel down here. It seems there really are angels who walk among us. That makes me happy.'

"There really is some hope in this world after all," she said to herself in a calm and pleasant tone.

"Uh-huh!" Ayumi agreed.

The gentle blue eyes of Tsurugi watched them as they walked away. This was a truly happy encounter. "Such a cheerful pair, I wish them the best and I hope to meet Ayumi again someday. I'm sure she'll be an outstanding young lady," he told the crumpled flower in his hand. 'Perhaps there is a reason to live on this cold mortal plan. Now my heart is filled with hope and it took the innocence of a child to make me believe that perhaps there really is hope in the world and it lies in everyone who believes…'

TO BE CONTINUED