I don't know how or why, but I was awakened. My mind ran around in circles as I tried to gain my bearings. I shook my head from the crazy thoughts; I didn't even realize I had actually been able to fall asleep. I didn't know how long it had been—the room or the lights hadn't changed, and no weather outside the window above the mattress indicated how long it had been.
My body felt somewhat sluggish, but I still forced myself up.
"Egh.." I rubbed my eyes, drying off the sleep from my sight. I sat up, stretching out my body. I felt the bones on my back extend with a loud and satisfying crack. My wings bent and stretched along with my movements.
Feeling more at ease, I stood up from the mattress before walking off. I looked down at my hands; I was still wearing what I wore before "sleeping". It had no wrinkles, it looked as good as it had been before. I cringed at how it made me feel, like it was part of my body. The wings already did that for me, and the clothes now too? Were all these new changes good?
I now had even more questions for Bridget and Seth. My body was no longer shaking in fear; I had a little idea what was happening.
I still needed answers. I wanted to know more about my new environment, these washed-up thoughts, or.. whatever they were called..
My head spiked, and I groaned, holding back a cry as I squeezed my eyes shut. "Don't… don't…" The whining wasn't on purpose, but I couldn't help it from escaping my lips. I stood back up, pushing the thoughts out of my mind. I just needed to get on top of Angels Cove to meet the two.
That was all I needed to think about right now.
I exited the room I had created, opening the wooden door that closed off the room from the rest of the cove. I was welcomed with a burst of fresh air. It blew past me, a few stray feathers fluttering along with it. It was bright; a yellow shine from the sun covered the interior of the large tree.
The tree was covered in life; I saw angels of all ages and colors flying around. They seemed so happy—some were playing with heaven pups, while others were talking with cupids. But there were more angels all around the cove.
My body immediately went stiff. It wasn't the right time to get nervous like this; I had to do this. I sucked in a breath and walked away from the safety of my room and to the middle of the hall. My eyes were strained forward, ensuring I didn't bump into anyone who couldn't see me.
I accidentally made eye contact with a few angels, and they waved to me with a wide smile. I gave a shy wave back, wavering between groups before walking quicker. A small group of cupids moved past so I could walk through without bumping into any of them, but it wasn't the same when I walked past a small cupid next to a group of angels.
My wing brushed on her exposed back, causing the cupid to tumble.
"Oh crap- I'm so sorry-!" I curled the bulky wings close to myself, closing it onto the other wing as I tried apologizing.
The small cupid got help from an angel who gave a small laugh. The cupid turned in my direction, and a small smile appeared on her face. It looked like she was blushing, with embarrassment in her eyes and a deep flush on her cheeks.
"It's alright; you're new," she nodded to me. A fellow angel held her by the elbow, guiding the small being away so nothing touched her. I looked behind me as she brushed her short, fluffy pink hair from her face.
She had a bit of sweat running down her bright red face. An angel about the same height nudged the girl with his shoulder. "It's been a while, huh?"
"You tell me!" She giggled, nudging him back and ensuring his wings didn't brush her skin.
I turned back, questioning what had just happened as I made my way to the very end of the area. At the far end, I was near a wall covered in blooming leaves, a few flowers grew along with them.
I huffed, looking around to see if there was a way up. I growled when I realized where I wasn't. A gust of wind blew past me from my left, and when I turned, I found an exit where a few groups of angels were chatting. I walked over to where they were, exiting into the open space where the sun's glare was even stronger. The heat warmed my skin, and the smell of growing life all around me relaxed my body.
I was out now; I kept walking forward until a fence stopped the platform. I was tempted to look down, but I could already tell I was high off the ground. So instead, I looked up. I caught sight of a smaller platform at the very top of the tree. It had vines hanging from it and they grew on the large branches. Other things like the leaves parting for smaller window-like platforms, caught my eye.
I saw a few figures on the small platform at the very top. I knew I had to get up there, but how was I supposed to do that if I didn't know how to use these wings?
"Ahem," a voice coughed out. I jumped, seeing an angel standing by me with a funny smile. "You have wings- why are you looking around like you're searching for an elevator?"
"Uh..." I turned to look behind me, stretching my wings out. It felt light, almost impossible to lift myself from the ground. I shook my head, "I don't know how to actually use them."
"Oh, you must be new?" The angel came forward; they were a bit bigger than me, with a fairly feminine face, but their body looked more broad. It was bulky and built relatively strong, unlike their delicate face. Their hair was a very vibrant, bright red that reached their shoulders, and their eyes were a yellow brass color.
Their clothes confused me; they didn't indicate any key elements. Their shoulders were exposed with a draping white fabric hanging over their arms and above a cropped shirt that had small ruffles. They wore shorts with more dull red ruffles, and the draping cloth hung down their arms with bright red cuffs and similar white gloves that I wore.
"Well, if you can't fly yet, use those."
They pointed to the vines that crawled along the large trunk; tons were folded together so there was space on the floor. I gulped, looking up to see the vines stretch to all the platforms on the trunk.
"Can't climb either?" They giggled, giving a slight smirk on their bright red lips. I ignored the comment, walking forward to where the vines touched the platform I was standing on. I grasped one in my hand, pulling harshly down.
It was sturdy, not moving an inch. I looked back up, seeing a pathway on the top where I needed to be. It was enough; I would have to switch between vines a few times to get to the very top, but I could make it.
With great confidence, I grabbed the vine and pulled my feet off the ground. I used both hands to slowly pull my way up the thick vine. It didn't bend to my weight, so slowly but surely- I pulled myself up the trunk.
My body weight hurt as I trudged up the vines, and my arms felt sore from the overwhelming weight I was pulling up. When I held my wings up, they were light like feathers; they barely weighed anything, but pulling myself up was difficult.
Sweat trickled down my forehead. I didn't bother looking down; I kept looking up. Why did it look like the platform wasn't moving up? Was I not making any progress? This was getting irritating; having to keep up with the same thing was getting boring and excessive. I should probably learn how to use my wings- this was getting ridiculous. I was making no progress!
"Huff-!" I closed my eyes in frustration, gripping tightly to the vine that held my entire weight. "I'm getting nowhere..."
"I'll say," a cheery voice said from beside me, I almost let go in fright at the voice. I turned, seeing the same angel who pointed me up here, next to me. Their wings fluttered behind them as they took me in. "It would be easier if you used those wings back there," they looked at the white limbs on my back, then to me. "Or else they are just sitting there with no purpose."
"Hu.." I looked back to the vine, where my hands grew white from holding onto it so tightly. I turned back to them, "I got this. I know what I'm doing."
"Sureeee," they spaced out, looking up to someone at the top ledge where I was trying to get to. They waved their hand up to them, and the draping cloth swung under them. "Hey, I'll be up in a minute."
They called out before turning back to me. I ignored them, pulling myself up with clenched teeth. They hummed, watching me slowly but surely pull myself up. My hands felt sore and numb, and my forehead sweat dipped onto the base of my neck. It was both exhausting and exhilarating in some weird way.
"You look hot; try fanning yourself with your wings," the angelic being suggested, rolling onto their stomach in midair. They put their hands under their chin, gazing at me.
Instead of ignoring them, I turned and made eye contact, breathing out tired breaths. They tilted their heads to the side, indicating that I should try. I did, but I didn't know how, so a gust of wind blew up to me. It felt nice; it took barely any effort to put the wings on my back to some use.
They fluttered up and down, sending feathers flying up to me. The wind blew through my hair, running through my hair to cool me off. I couldn't help but smirk, even if this was tiring- it felt almost fun.
It was exciting, climbing up and using the strength I didn't know I had. Something about it was familiar in a strange sense. I couldn't entirely concentrate on that thought, but it was familiar.
The spiking pain in my head was sudden; I closed my eyes- cursing as I tried to shoo it away.
"Hey, you good?" The voice said from beside me. I ignored it again, trying to push the pain away. My grip loosened, and I almost fell; my mind was freezing up, and my muscles were tensing. "Hey- keep going. You're doing great, new girl!" The voice beside me was combined with other similar voices.
My eyes shot open, and I saw Seth and Bridget looking down at me with a few unfamiliar faces. They cheered me on, echoing under me as more angels started to cheer. The angel beside me flew back, watching from afar as I forced myself up, gritting my teeth while the pain in my head slowly disappeared.
A smirk lay on my lips as all I focused on was ahead. I put all my focus on the vine's thick stem. The smiles and encouraging voices from above moved me, while the ones below pushed me forward. I could no longer feel the pain, only the overwhelming excitement as I made it to the top.