Michael slept deeply, the nightmares kept at bay by a petite woman who held him through the night. His head nestled on her chest, his hand resting on her narrow waist. Both Ravenna and Michael slept peacefully until late in the morning, each having forgotten how much better they rested with the other present. Although his large, soft wings could no longer envelop her with his care, she still slept soundly knowing he was there, and more importantly, he was safe.
The Seraphim began to slowly blink awake, carefully rolling to his side so as to not disturb the young woman who had cared for him throughout the night. He sat up, slowly placing his feet on the ground, squeezing his eyes shut as his stitched thigh flared from the movement. –I can't wait until that heals, I don't like having my legs restricted. I can accept my back taking longer, but the legs are annoying.–
Turning around, Michael watched as Ravenna rolled over in her sleep, free from the weight of his head on her chest. Her small frame stretched across the bed, and he smiled. –How can someone so small take up so much space?– He decided to let her rest, knowing he disturbed her with his nightmares the night before.
Michael made his way to the kitchen, and looked at the kettle. The angel then remembered his last attempts in the kitchen, and afraid that Ravenna would ban him from this room, he continued on, leaving the kettle behind. He noticed the thick wooden door to the home, and his curiosity got the better of him. He hoped that Ravenna did not have many people that lived around her, as he was still in his night wear.
He stepped out of the home, the morning sun casting its warmth on his face. Breathing in the sweet serenity of the peaceful daylight, Michael realized this is what he had been missing in the Kingdom: true peace and happiness. He was glad that Ravenna seemed to have nobody that lived near her; there were no homes in sight, and he had nobody to judge him for being outdoors in his night trousers and bandaged torso.
Feeling brave, Michael decided to stretch his legs, taking a walk around the small cottage he now called home. –Home.– The Kingdom had always been his home, but it had never truly felt like a home to him in the centuries he had lived there. The Kingdom had always felt hollow, with nothing that he truly desired in its realm. But his short time in the Mortal Plane with Ravenna, living a simple existence with her among the humans; that was something he was happy to call home.
His long fingers trailed along the creeping vines that rose from the gardens along the walls of the stone walls of the cottage. He tread along the gardens that surrounded the home, taking in the beauty of the flowers and plants that had been so lovingly placed around the home. A rose bush caught his attention, and a smile crept across his face; he always loved seeing roses after he had found them while travelling with Ravenna; the personification of a rose and thorn herself. He carefully took one of the roses, wanting to bring it in for the slumbering rose that had guarded him throughout the night.
Michael began to feel the fatigue from his short walk set in, and he turned to make his way back inside, twirling the rose between his long fingers as he shuffled. He hoped to settle back in with Ravenna, embrace her soft and sleeping body. Before he had encountered Ravenna, he had never thought he would want to spend his days simply lying next to someone, relishing in their presence.
He pushed the door open, and saw the woman he loved preparing a simple breakfast for the two of them, her plain nightdress framing her figure in such a simple but flattering way. He looked at the rose in his grasp, and at the woman in the kitchen, and cursed the rose for looking so subdued next to Ravenna.
"Good morning, Michael! What have you got there?"
"I just…I brought this for you. But it looks so plain next to you, now that I see you together."
Ravenna's freckles disappeared under her blush. She loved the way Michael could weave together his words to compliment even the simplest things about her. The note Gabriel had left for her was true. He really did love her. His words, his actions. The way he calmed from his nightmares with her simply being there with him. The longer Michael was around, the less she could imagine her life without him.
"You're too sweet. Let me get some water so it can stay on the table." She had no vases since her home had burned, but a tall glass did the trick. "How are your wounds feeling today?"
"I'm slowly starting to feel better. I'm just glad I have an excellent healer to take care of me. I cannot imagine Lucifer trying to take care of his Fall on his own."
The reminder of Lucifer's scars turned Ravenna's stomach, and she paled momentarily. Michael looked concerned at her sudden change in demeanor. "Are you okay, my dear?"
"Ye-yes. Yes. Sorry. I just thought about the way Lucifer's back looked, the way his scars felt…"
"You've seen them? Is that…am I…?" Michael's questions trailed off as his hands absently landed on the linen bandages that wrapped his torso.
"He didn't have anyone to care for him, but I am doing everything in my abilities to make sure you don't look like him. He was alone, and he had no one. If nothing else, we will always have each other."
Hearing Ravenna's conviction, Michael embraced her, feeling her cheek press against his chest as his arms enveloped her.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
After a simple breakfast of oatmeal with ginger tea, Ravenna had Michael move to the infirmary room while she boiled water to prepare to care for his wounds. He sat on the edge of the bed, glaring at the piece of willow bark she had left in his palm. The bark had done nothing to him in particular, but he still hated it. He leaned forward, ignoring the twinge of pain in his back, and made sure Ravenna was still in the kitchen. Seeing that the woman was still busy preparing the water and medicines, the Seraphim slipped the willow bark in his pillowcase. –I know she only gives this to me to manage my pain, but it's just so terrible…–
Ravenna soon brought the freshly-boiled water into the infirmary room, as well as some fresh linen bandages. Seeing the shifty guilt in the angel's eyes, she raised an eyebrow. "I brought you this leaf to get rid of your willow bark, Michael."
His ice-blue eyes refused to meet her gaze.
"Michael? Where's your bark?"
The Seraphim turned pink, and stuck his lower lip out at the young woman, hoping she would be amused by his face.
"You didn't eat it, did you?"
Michael dug the bark out from the pillowcase and obediently chewed on the bitter willow, his eyebrows drawn low and his lip still stuck out.
"You're ridiculous. It's bad, but it's not that bad. You Fell from the Kingdom, and you're making a fuss about a piece of bark." Amusement was clear in her voice, but carried an undertone of disbelief. She handed him the leaf to rid himself of the willow bark in his mouth, and he quickly rinsed his mouth out with the cold ginger tea leftover from breakfast.
Ravenna unpinned the bandages that wrapped the angel's torso, and unwrapped the linens. The bruising still mapped his body, and the wounds from where his wings were violently stolen from him still gaped wide at places; at the thickest parts of the lacerations by his shoulder blades . They had healed over nearly completely at the thinnest areas, which relieved the healer. The bruising had turned from a deep black and purple to a lightened green and yellow, showing that he was indeed healing.
"How does it look?"
"Healing is never pretty, but you're coming along well." She traced her fingers alongside the wounds as she spoke. "From here to here, your back is still torn open and inflamed, but from here to here, you're healed over quite well. And from here to here, you've already healed and started to scar. I thought your recovery would take much longer, your progress is pleasing to watch. Your shoulders are going to take longest, unfortunately, as you use your arms quite frequently."
She dipped a clean cloth in the water she had boiled, and used it to clean Michael's back, being extra careful around his lacerations. She allowed him to take the cloth to clean his chest and abdomen, allowing him to feel a little cleaner. Ravenna re-wrapped his chest and back, using the same deep-V pattern to wrap his torso.
"Get rid of your trousers, now."
Michael turned bright red, hearing the boldness coming from Ravenna.
"Excuse me?"