Back in the Kingdom, surrounded by perfection and white, Michael stood in the Kingdom's library, looking for his Brother, Raphael. When Raphael was not directly serving the Ruler, he was found in the library, trying to expand his knowledge on as many subjects as possible. Raphael was always on a quest to know more; other than the Ruler Himself, Raphael was the next wisest creature in the Creation. He was also the Seraphim Brother that Michael was closest to, both in age and friendship. Michael trusted all his brothers, but with Raphael's wisdoms, Michael trusted him the most.
The library of the Kingdom was a dream to any soul that loved books. The first floor was expansive, row upon row of shelves, inviting readers to delve into their vast sea of knowledge. The second, third, and fourth floors were rings, leaving a large central area open, in which a large statue of the Ruler reached toward the ceiling. The books occasionally took Michael's interest, but if he wanted to know something, he typically asked his Brother, Raphael.
After searching the first floor to no avail, Michael ascended the spiral staircase leading to the second floor. He searched everywhere, knowing that Raphael often tucked himself into unusual places to read. It did not help that Raphael resembled many of the statues that were scattered amongst the library. Michael passed by Raphael the first time, not seeing his Brother among the stack of books on the floor. Raphael, deep in his book, did not notice the large Seraphim walk past him.
Michael heard Raphael cough from the dust among the books, and backed up.He noticed the other Seraphim sitting on the floor, partially obscured by a pile of books. He sat on the floor across from his Brother, and greeted him. "Good afternoon, Raphael."
Raphael looked up from a thick book. His vivid green eyes met Michael's ice-blue ones, and Raphael smiled. His youngest Brother Michael was in the library, meaning he had questions about something again. "Hello. What is it today, Brother?" asked Raphael. The younger Seraphim flicked his wings, and he cast his eyes downward. Maybe asking his Brother wasn't such a good idea. He should just forget the woman he saw today. He wasn't allowed to interact with humans, why bother asking Raphael if angels and humans could ever be together?
"I... was....I went to the Mortal Plane today...", began Michael. "I thought-"
"What did you do, Michael?" interrupted his Brother, anxiety in his voice. "You know the Ruler only allows us to visit the Mortal Plane as long as we are not seen, and we do not interfere. His wrath will be terrible. Michael, please. What did you do?"
"Nothing! I haven't done anything!" Michael put his hands in front of him. "I just watched. I wasn't seen!"
"Good. We can relax. The Ruler does not care about us taking a break outside of the Kingdom so long as we follow His rules. What did you come to tell me?"
"Nothing. I just wanted to tell you there... was a nice forest. I thought you would like it, it was... peaceful for reading in", Michael lied, scratching the back of his neck aimlessly. He had always been a terrible liar; all Seraphim are terrible liars.
Puzzled, Raphael lowered his eyes back to his book. "You'll uh, I guess you'll have to show me sometime."
Michael walked out of the library, leaving his Brother to his books. He decided he had caught Raphael at a bad time, and he would ask his Brother about the things on his mind another day. He watched a lower-ranking messenger angel, Uriel, hurry past, and Michael continued toward the Gardens.
Absent-mindedly, Michael walked through the immaculate Gardens, his body in the Kingdom, but his mind with the young woman in the forest. He wished he could meet her. He thought her way with nature was beautiful. Michael continued to walk, his thoughts with Ravenna. He passed several lower-ranking angels who were tending to the garden, all who stopped to bow toward the high-ranking Seraphim. He finally came to the center of the Gardens, to the large white marble fountain. The Prayer Fountain was a place where the Ruler used to come to listen to the prayers of the humans, a place where the prayers of the humans could still be heard, but the Ruler had long abandoned the Fountain.
Distracted, Michael sat by the Prayer Fountain. He never liked sitting here, he could hear the prayers of the humans that the Ruler paid no heed to. He didn't know why he chose to sit on this white marble fountain today, listening to the pleas and hopes of the humans. A small voice that had a hint of familiarity to Michael made a prayer. The Ruler would never pay attention to it, but Michael heard it.
"Please, Ruler, don't let me end up with Mr Jones out of necessity. Please send someone who would understand my devotion to my healing. Please. I cannot trust someone like Peter Jones."
His ice blue eyes turned down. He wanted to give the woman everything she dreamed of, but he was forbidden to reveal his existence to her, let alone answer the prayer that the Ruler would ignore. Michael leaned forward, and put his head in his hands. He wrapped his wings forward around himself, shutting himself out from his world.