Snow fell softly outside. The living room was lit by the fire burning in the fireplace. The light and warmth drifted around the room and fell on the beautiful pine tree that was decorated richly with the crowning glory on top.
A porcelain angel sat at the top of the tree, her hands were held up in prayer, her head was bowed and her eyes were closed as though she was asleep. Her hair was hand carved and painted poppy red. From her back two fine snowy white wings were spread. She wore a snowy white gown and the finishing touch was the small silver halo on her head.
A small girl sat on her knees watching the angel in silent awe, she just watched. Silently wishing that the pretty thing would move, but the angel moved not a bit.
The living room was large and decorated. Stockings hung on the fireplace with the names of the owners. On one of the couches the parents sat watching their children. The father had long brown hair and matching brown eyes, he had his arm wrapped around his wife, a pretty woman with long black hair shot through with streaks of bright red, her green eyes shown.
At their feet was their oldest child, a boy of seven years old with his father’s eyes and looks, he was watching his sister with a curled nose, unimpressed by how childish she was.
Watching the family from a corner where the warm light did not reach, in an old fashion domed birdcage, were two small bead eyes. They were a part of the fake black bird. His feathers were black and like those craft feathers you could buy at a craft store. But tonight was not his night, as it was many nights. The poor bird was ignored.
Finally Eglantine, the little girl, turned to her parents her eyes large and light green as she asked.” Mommy, Daddy, will Santa come tonight?” Hachiko and Stylus looked at each other and smiled fondly to each other, who know after all that they went through they would be married, have a house of their own, and two children?
Before one could answer the boy spoke up, he was the big brother and he seemed to make it his goal to crush his little sister’s dreams.
“There’s no such thing as Santa,” Dane scoffed and curled his nose. On the couch their parents exchanged a here-we-go-again-look, they knew what would end this, and mostly it ended with Eglantine in tears.
And truth is told that was the outcome. Tears welled in Eglantine’s eyes,” there is to a Santa!” she retorted trying not to cry for she knew he would make fun of her. After few minutes later she was full out crying.
“Dane!” Stylus snapped angrily, her green eyes becoming shards of green glass,” tell her you’re sorry, right now!” she demanded. Hachiko moved at that time and took his little girl into his arms holding her close.
“There is a Santa, isn’t it daddy?” Eglantine asked in sobs pulling back to look up at him as tears ran down her cheeks. Hachiko could feel Stylus watching him and he knew she was waiting. They both knew the truth, but they couldn’t break her heart any more than her brother’s taunts.
“Of course there is, you just need to believe,” he smiled to her and patted her soft black hair, Eglantine sniffled then smile and it seemed like that stopped the tears.
Later on Stylus was knelt by Eglantine’s bed in her daughter’s room, it looked simple, pink, roses, and princess with a few dishes, stuffed animals, mostly rabbits, a normal child’s bedroom. Eglantine lay in her bed watching her mother’s face as she was tucked in holding her plush bear close to her.
“Mommy, is there really a Santa?” Eglantine asked her. Stylus didn’t hesitate,” of course there is, you just need to believe and don’t let your brother get you down.”
Eglantine seemed to ponder this then nodded and settled down. Stylus kissed her good-night then stood and left, checking on Dane before she headed for their room, what a long night. When the house was silent the magic begun.
A pale silvery light shined into the living room like a spotlight. It swept over the floor and up the tree before it finally settled on the angel.
For a long time there was nothing, and then the eyes twitched. After a bit the eyes for the first time perhaps opened revealing eyes midnight blue and sea-sky blue. The angel blinked her eyes for a long while then pulled her hands apart and let them settle by her side.
She lifted her head and looked around. Silver light now filled the room and she knew it came from herself, she was glowing a silver white light, mostly from her gown and her wings. Speaking of wings she looked at hers curiously then twitched one before she folded them against her body.
She was sitting on her knees at the top of the pine tree that didn’t hurt her. She slowly stood up, balancing unsteadily on the thin branches before she finally gain her balance with her hands clutching the top part of the tree.
She let her eyes peer around before she moved some of her red hair away from her face and then she looked down. What a long way down, longer than she had imagined but she couldn’t stay up there.
This was not the first time the angel came alive.
When she was bought and brought home and that night she was touched by the silver light. She didn’t move although her body was changed. Blood began flowing through her glass body, a heart she didn’t have was formed and beating, she was alive but despite the urges she had gotten she couldn’t not make herself move.
This was her first time and now she stood on the top then jumped off, she beated her wings and just before she hit the ground her wings finally knew their purpose and she was flying. As soon as her wings were working she flew around.
The angel was not the only miracle brought on by the silver light. Don’t you remember the birdhouse that held the fake blackbird I mentioned? Well it seemed like the light touched him, despite the fact that his little corner was not touched.
Inside of a bird, there was a handsome boy with fair skin, messy, spiked hair, dark brown-black eyes, and from his fact were two black feathered wings, the same color that his hair was.
He sat in his cage with his slender arms wrapped around his legs with his knees touching his chest. His wings touched the ground behind him and he stared at the darkness in the cage. He looked up briefly when the angel flew past in her exploration but he said nothing to attract her attention nor did he move to the front of his cage.
The blackbird could not speak a word. His pale lips were shut. That was how he was made, and he didn’t know how to say a word, he couldn’t make a sound.
The angel had spent her long life with sealed lips, but she had listened to the humans speak. When it was daylight her body would return to normal and she would still her body. Her heart would stop beating and her blue blood would still in the veins. She would look like she had not moved an inch.
But she was a smart angel. In this stage she had listened to the humans and she remembers their words and how they used them. She hadn’t seen what they were referring to but she could make guesses, she began trying those words out.
She knew she was an angel and saying that word made her feel strange. It made her feel special. Soon she gave names to almost every object in the room, but not the cage that held the blackbird boy.
The boy was still silent, listening as the angel talked to herself, he understood many of the words for the humans spoke all the time, though never at him, he understood what they meant.
He watched as a form slinked into the dark room, light green eyes reflected as the huge tabby cat stalked into the room, it looked around the room and it too didn’t spare the cage a glimpse. It had learned that the stuff bird was fake.
It had not eaten well. Her humans had feed her well but dry, dull cat food was hardly something to look forward to.
Her ears twitched. Green eyes flicked up and the cat’s keen eyesight fell on the shining ball of life. Her lips curled up and her tail twitched. She watched it and waited then waited.
The blackbird saw this but couldn’t say anything. He was fearful and stood up not noticing if his feathers fell on the floor of his cage.
He looked at the bars of his cage. The angel was flying close to the ground to admire the bulbs on the tree; the cat was prowling towards her.
The boy grabbed the cold bars and shook on them hard making the metal rattle. The angel turned her head hearing it and then cried out in alarm.
Looming over was the tabby. She was crouched with her rump wiggling and claws out, she sneered showing her pearly white teeth with long fangs.
The instinct was made for her. As the cat lunged, the angel took off flying out of the way. The cat swirled with ease and ran after her.
The angel looked around. The light made her visible. The corner looked nice and she flew for the corner, but the cat lunged at the last minute, her paws swapped the angel right against the door, that was opened by the blackbird and he dragged her in just as the cage and stand was knocked to the ground.
The bang made the lights upstairs turn on and Hachiko with Stylus beside him came running down the stairs.
“Macavity!” Hachiko yelled angrily, the tabby was walking around sniffing the cage to find her prey, but the cage was locked well and the cat looked up sheepishly and let out a tiny mew. Stylus walked forward and checked the cage, not noticing the angel was in her normal position, hidden by the bird.
Stylus straightened it, and reached inside to straighten the bird her hand just missing the angel barely, she sat him up then gently closed and locked the door.
With that done she turned to the cat and kicked her. The cat yowled, turned, and fled out of the room. Stylus watched silently and snorted,” Stupid cat, why do we keep her?” Stylus asked and runs her fingers through her black and red hair.
Hachiko felt her frustration and shrugged.” She’s my parents’ gift from our wedding, we can’t deny her or it will upset them,” he sighed.
With one quick glance around the two turned and headed upstairs.
As soon as the upstairs lights turned off the silver light returned. The angel opened her eyes and stood up from her position. She smoothed her gown and checked her wings then looked at her rescuer.
The bird remained normal then slowly rose up and then he looked like the very one who had saved her. He looked at his velvet black outfit then looked at her silently.
“Thank you, for saving me from that savage beast,” the angel told him, her voice was clear as water, with the ring of a bell chime in it. The boy said nothing, just blinked his black-brown eyes. The angel seemed to not think of his silence.
“I am named Zexine, Zexine of the angel fairies, my father was an angel and my mother was a fairy, I have two siblings, both brothers and older then myself.”
The bird still said not a word but the word siblings and her parents made his nearly empty heart ache, he had parents, and a blind twin brother. But he remember very little of them, they were just there in his mind, whispering little voices.
He didn’t even know his own name, nor if he even had one. Living as an unmoving, fake creature he was nameless. The humans have only referred to him as the bird, but that was only when they actually checked on him.
The angel, know named Zexine frowned. She was curious. Her eyes fell on the bird that quickly looked away, as though ashamed, he turned his back to her then flicked one ebony black wing to the door.
Zexine let her light hues follow the direct and saw the outline of the door of the cage. “But it’s locked,” the angel said in her light voice, for some reason she decided that talking was a fun thing, it felt amazing to weave words out of your mouth mixing in it the sounds of long and silent letters.
The blackbird said nothing still but he turned and walked up to the door, reaching his hand through the bars and lightly stroking the lock. There was a click and the lock loosen its grip on the copper bars and the door lightly swung opened.
Zexine was impressed and she walked up beside him noticing that the boy moved away so they weren’t touching, not even their outfits, pure white and night black, and brushed each other.
“Thank you again…do you have a name?”
The blackbird was still for a moment then shrugged his shoulders before he turned and returned to his spot where he had been sitting before, he resumed his entire position and didn’t look at her any more.
Zexine sighed softly then turned and flew out of the cage, pausing to lightly shut the door before she carried on exploring the tree.
The bird watched her from the cage. He couldn’t deny that she was the prettiest thing he had ever laid eyes on, for indeed she was. She looked so perfect and her light glowed around her form.
He looked at himself. He was so dull. His outfit had that look of one of those old fashion vampires, the ancient royal ones that wore velvet outfits, but were old fashion that they would stick out in the modern world.
He sighed, but it didn’t escape his lips. Could he speak? It seemed possible since the answer whose lips were usually seal shut were now able to move freely, and the more he wonder the larger the ache in his chest.
He stood, straightened both clothes and wings, then went to the door and slowly pushed it opened. He slipped out onto the small platform and stood there for a moment. He looked around a bit curious of what to do and how he could do it.
The urge to flap his wings ran through his veins. He never thought of flight since in his normal bird form he had only fake black, fuzzy, feathers that were pasted to his velvet body, but that urge had been in his body since he came to life, but he fought it.
Now he could feel it. It was strong and it threatened to overcome him if he denied it any more. The boy gulped then took a breath through his nose releasing it then spread his wings, feeling the black feathers brush his arms before he beat them.
It was hard and he was exhausted when he finally got the blood flowing into his wings, he paused and rested with them out then stood and taking a breath he jumped. The fall was much like the angels, but the angel had further to fall. Not him he had to beat his wings furiously.
Just as he nearly crashed down his wings finally worked and he was lifted in the air, flying for the first time. For some reason this felt right. The blackbird knew it was and he flew around before he let his eyes study the room.
He felt overwhelmed and longed to return to his cage, he almost did but he couldn’t, not yet.
