Book of the End- Stryker and Zeria only.

Noelani looked up at him as soon as he entered, her cheeks tear-stained and her lower lip quivering. She was scared and upset. And yet somehow...Bezeel comforted her with his presence. It didn't matter that she sensed something dark within him. She didn't know what it meant though. When she had fallen, her abilities had all been taken from her, just as her wings had been ripped away. She sniffled and shook her head at his question, looking away.

"No....I'm not hurt.....not...physically anyway...."

She smiled weakly up at him.

"It was...just a bad dream...I'm not...used to having them...so it was...really scary...."

She frowned suddenly, trembling still from being upset.

"Bezeel....why are you helping me....? My own people cast me out.....but you....you just...took me off the street.....you don't know anything about me....but you let me into your home...........why?"

Bezeel saw through the lie as if it was crystal. She was suffering because of her condition, because she was banished by those whom she loved and lost all her reality, now she was living a life governed by sadness, her extreme opposite. He moved his hand over to her head, patting her cheek and making her face him.

Why did I help you...It`s something I kept asking myself during the whole time...I guess it is because when I looked you I felt something stir inside me, like a pull in my heart or even my soul. I wanted to help you. Everyone deserves a chance to be happy, you only needed someone to give you that chance...

Alright he didn`t know where that came from, but decided to go along, he might aswell be going crazy and get beaten up from being all sappy with a fallen angel. It was either that or he was going soft and he preffered to be going crazy.

You are a good girl, if I had given this cahnce to someone else they would most likely take advantage of me. And you...remind me of someone..looking at you makes me feel like a dear friend I lost has come back.

Noelani sniffled and smiled a little bit more to Bezeel. He was so kind to her. She wasn't used to that at all. Since her fall, people had only been horrible to her, treating her like some kind of wretched creature to despise and be disgusted by. Some had thrown things at her. Others had hit or kicked her. Laughed at her. Called her names. But then Bezeel had taken her to his home. Let her have a bath. Given her a bed to sleep on. She sniffled and averted her gaze.

"Thank you...for all you have done for me...."

She didn't know who she could have resembled to him. She was an Angel. The only people who she had ever resembled were her sisters. And the only living one left was Makhellia, who Noelani looked almost nothing like. Makhellia was all curves and luscious blonde hair and glowing skin. Noelani was a tiny little thing with plain brown hair and no glow to her skin.

"I am...glad I can somehow make you a little happy..."

Bezeel gave her a simple smile and stood up, offering his hand for the small girl to use as support to get up. He was already being target by an angel so he might as well make good use of his time, namely by him this pure little thing become twisted like him.

Now then, why don`t you chance your clothes and we can go eat something. Then I will take you out shopping. I want to show you what you have being missing on.

His tone was warm and welcoming, trying to pull her in like a soft lullaby and goading her to let go and do as he suggested. He would make sure to fill her life with so much earthly pleasure that she would never once consider other worthy of her time. There was also the matter of an encounter between his brethren that he needed to attend. But that could wait.

Noelani nodded and took his hand, allowing him to pull her trembling form to her feet. The nightgown she wore was huge on her, enough that she had to pull it back onto her shoulders every time it fell off. She looked at him, confused what he meant by what she had 'been missing out on'.

"Missing? I am not familiar with what I could miss, other than what I was before..."

She was too innocent. She had been one of the Creator's perfect Joybringers: Obedient, Kind, Innocent, Unknowing. It showed in her soft green eyes as she stared at Bezeel, still unaware that he was a demonic creature.

"But if you wish me to change, I will......I...am not sure what is acceptable for viewing....."

All she had ever worn had been her angel robes. Mortal clothes were...sometimes very inappropriate to her eyes. And she still didn't understand why they wore some kind of hardly there clothing underneath all of their other clothing. It didn't make sense. She flushed a bit, fidgeting.

"...I've...never been out in public before either......I don't really...know what to do..."

Bezeel chuckled softly at how lost she seemed to be. It wasn't a problem through. He moved towards one of the wardrobes, opening it slightly and taking a look at the many clothes inside. There surely should be something of the girl's size. When he saw nothing he deemed it necessary to work a tiny bit of demonic magic, transforming a set of clothes for her. He turned around, carrying the complete set to Noelani and laying the clothes before her.

"Here are some clothes. They ought to fit you and will have to do until we can go out to buy your own."

It was then that his telephone started vibrating, signalling a message had been sent to him. The disguised demon took a look at the contents, marvelling at his luck. There was another demon he knew on town that was looking to meet him. Perhaps he could take advantage of it.

"Good news, Noelani. I just found the perfect place for us to eat at." The poor innocent soul was in for a wild ride, and she didn't even knew it.

She frowned to him, worried that she was an inconvenience. It didn't look like any of the clothing would fit her. She was too small. It was a great surprise when he found something that would fit her. With a smile of gratitude and appreciation, she bowed at the waist to him, taking the clothes and heading into the bathroom to change. She slipped the underwear and the bra on (though the bra took a bit of struggling), then reached for the dress. It was...beautiful. A white dress with lace and trim that gave it a dainty and feminine feel, that came to just past her knees. She smiled, taking a moment to braid her hair and sweep it over her shoulder, heading back out into the main room where Bezeel stood.

"Oh...food sounds...wonderful, actually......"

If he actually took a good look at her, he might find himself surprised. She looked nothing like the street rat he'd picked up. She was clean and beautiful and looked sweetly innocent beyond all comparison.

"Is it...custom to go with foot coverings here? I have never worn them before..."

Bezeel just shook his head. It seemed the girl had not learnt much about the living world during her exile, something that he did not fault her for but at the same time considered exasperating, so he just decided to go with the flow and look into the wardrobe again, taking out a pair of fancy-looking sandals. Hopefully those would not be too difficult for her to wear.

"These should be comfortable enough for you."

Without further ado, the duo took the elevator down to the lobby where Bezeel's motorcycle was waiting for them. The disguised demon took the time to change clothes too, wearing a simple combination of black jeans and a rock band T-Shirt with his trademark leather jacket. He climbed on the transport, motioning for the fallen angel to sit down and hold on him. He could only imagine that angel's face if she saw how he was pampering the little girl rotten.

Noelani took the sandals from him with a murmur of thanks, slipping them onto her feet and following after him. She observed the motorcycle with a sense of both fear and curiosity. Such a contraption offered no protection should an accident occur. She swallowed hard, moving to it and slipping onto the back, her arms wrapping around Bezeel's waist to hold on.

"I-I will...admit I'm...a bit scared of this transportation...."

~

Makhellia swore from atop a building as she stared down, observing how the demon had actually cleaned Noelani up and provided her with something that made her look beautiful. She could see that her sister had no idea what the creature was, and concern filled her. Almost immediately, she went to the Heavens, confronting the Creator.

"He is trying to corrupt her! She has been punished enough, has she not?! Please, Great One! I beg of you! Do not let him do this to her!"
"She is on her own now, Makhellia. She has free will and it is up to her if she decides to fall into sin. I cannot change her path"

Makhellia clenched her fists.

"He is a demon! Why can I not just kill him?! You know he will bring harm to the innocent people!"
"Because until he acts, I cannot. You know this. Now go. I have other tasks with which I must focus on"

Makhellia left with a deep pain in her heart. She prayed that Noelani would not fall into sin...

Bezeel frowned for a bit. He was no stranger to the sensation of fear, after all he had been subjected to it for as long as he could remember. Fear of death, fear of failing his superiors, fear of not upholding his side of the deal, fear of never seeing HER again. All those insecurities ate away at his soul. However, there was one thing he had learn from HER during their time together.

"Life is too short and precious to be spent in fear. Living bravely means to live without regrets."

He quoted his most loved person to the young fallen angel. Sure, he was quoting another angel, but as long as she did not know all was well.

"So climb on, Noelani. I'm about to show you a whole new way of life."

He gave her an encouraging smile, not a smirk nor a grin, but a smile. For the first time in millenia, Bezeel had unknowingly shown genuine emotion instead of a facade.

Noelani tensed up the moment the he spoke words that were very familiar to her. A memory flashed through her mind.

One of her older sisters danced around on a battlefield, fighting another angel. She won the battle through a daring move that could have seriously injured her. Noelani frowned and scolded her for being too reckless. Javi grinned and tousled Noelani's hair.
"Relax, kid. You need to be more brave"
"But sister...you could have been hurt...would you not have regretted such pain?"
"Noe...living bravely means to live without regrets. Live a little. You'll be surprised how wonderful it feels".

She flashed back to reality, her grip tightening around Bezeel's waist.

"Where did you....hear those words...?"

Bezeel felt a shiver go down his spine. Could it be that Noelani had met Javi. Many of his memovies were lost to him, but he did remember that Javi was popular amongst the Warrior Angels for her bravery and that she had many sisters. The disguised demon for a moment faltered on answering the girl, actually frozen in shock until he managed to regain his bearings. He had to thread carefully now, one wong word and it was all over.

"I don't remember. Maybe from a book or I overheard someone saying it..."

He knew his answer was a very poor lie that would not quell the girl's curiosity. If anything he was just adding more fuel to the fire. He turned the motorcycle on, hoping to silence the girls questions for a few moments as they raced through the streets of London.