Epilogue 

In heaven, there are two principles that all angels must abide by. Firstly, we do not sin. Sinners cannot become angels, and the mere thought of one being capable of sin is absurd. Secondly, we do not interfere with the human realm without a command. Any of the two results in immediate banishment, or so I'm told… Where does that leave me? Perhaps, at my name? I have been a nameless angel for as far as I can remember. My mortal past, just a blur… None of us gets to carry over our memories, as they’d be nothing but burdens, chaining us to the corporeal world. I guess this is where my story truly begins, as far as I’m concerned. 

*** 

A canvas of white clouds extends out into the nothingness, an endless sky discernible only behind transparent fuzz. One of the countless clouds serves as a chair for our protagonist, sitting in wonder, staring into the distance with his eyes shut. He seems lost in thought, when laughter entices him out of nowhere: “I could watch them all day, those funny creatures!” 

He opens his ice-cold cerulean eyes and stands up to take a closer look at the sunset. “Was I really that way, too, once upon a time? Always rushing somewhere to be, having something to do…”, he wondered, contemplating what might have transpired in his past life. “I guess I will never know for sure, but it sure is so boring up here! God, when will it be my turn? When will I be sent down to help a lost soul?”, he said into the nothingness, reaching out to an unknown deity, to no avail. 

*poof* 

The angel falls onto a soft cloud that magically appeared beneath him, and crosses his arms behind his head. “Ah, I mean, I can’t complain! It’s pretty comfortable up here! Plus, I have all these stories to watch… The human world is a wonder!” He lowers his halo slightly and shuts his eyes once more. It seems his shiny ring allows him to see through human eyes… How interesting! “Oh, how I envy their morality and drive... Loving something or someone to an extent that motivates you to chase it for a lifetime, I truly wonder what that is like...” *yawns* “Oh my halo, let me dream of this world once more”  

Day One 

A sticky board filled with photos of nature, animals and people, as well as a dream catcher with fluttering feathers on the ceiling, a somewhat messy room… On the other wall, a book case with an assortment of classic games, manga and camera lenses and parts. “YES! I finally got that legendary staff to drop!” a female voice shouts with excitement. A teenage girl is sitting at her desk, playing what looks like a computer game, an RPG of some sort. One screen is playing a live rain wallpaper, water drops hitting a window, while the other is dedicated to a playlist of calm, instrumental music. “Alright… I really should continue my sketch, but oh, I’m so exhausted… Yosh, I gotta push myself!” She quickly Alt-F4 the game she was playing, and opened up a drawing software with a blank canvas. Lifting her legs up on her chair she whispered “Hmm…”. A few minutes pass as she contemplates her next idea *wheels rolling* “I can’t do this, I have way too many ideas! Where do I begin?” *thump* She falls onto her bed, cuddling her plushy cat. “So many good ideas have been done already! Where do I even begin?”, she glances at her board. “Honestly, it feels pointless sometimes…” She gets up and jumps back onto the PC. “Ok, one step at a time... Right… Theme! Hmm, what theme can I go for...” She is distracted by her wallpaper for a second, when realizes “Oh, what about rain? Maybe, a character? That’s it!”  

*Zap* 

“Oh... Time’s up for today? What a peculiar girl! She seemed rather indecisive, yet so full of energy! I think I found my new hobby for the week!” The clouds of heaven are back in the middle of the night, the angel sitting up on his fluffy cloud, looking straight at the moon. “I wonder if she’ll finish her drawing tomorrow…” His silhouette fades out into the night. 

Day 2 

*stretching* 

“Good morning, world!”  The angel stands up, his gorgeous set of glowing wings stretched out wide. “Time for my morning flight!” *Swoosh* Huh… Where did he go...? Oh, he’s just flown 20 feet into the air in a blink of an eye… “Woohoo, yeah! I’m on top of the world!” He keeps hopping around, as if he’s doing stunts, despite the fact that nobody is watching. “Who's the greatest angel in all of heaven? It’s me, of course… Oh, sugar-!” A flock of birds storms through, an unlucky one hitting our character straight in the face, sending him tumbling through several clouds. A soft bed of fluff breaks his fall. “OK, I think that’s enough flying for today! Hehe…” he mutters to himself, as he notices the current position of the sun. “Oh, she must be up by now!” he says, lowering his halo once more and shutting his eyes. He gets comfortable in his meditation, propping up his legs on the clouds. “Show me what you’ve got today.” 

*school bell rings* 

A typical high school hallway, lit by the rising sun, with a faded sign hanging right on top of the door: Ancient Greek Studies. That same door slams open a second later, teenagers pouring out of the classroom, in groups, or perhaps, herds, judging by their speed! Finally, a tiny female artist comes out, focusing on her notebook instead of the walking. She is dressed in a typical teenage attire, yet still standing out in a peculiar way; a black hoodie with a cat print, paired up with a few accessories, modestly giving away her love for nature. A golden clip in the shape of a moon and a white cat pendant hanging from her phone, its wallpaper a beautiful snapshot of a rainy forest (“Did she snap that herself?”, the angel wonders). On her notebook, there is a rough sketch of a game character, this time with a lot more details than the one the angel saw last night in her room. Upon closer inspection, he notices some interesting calligraphy surrounding the character; Greek, or perhaps Latin, having been listed and crossed out next to the character, indicating she is still deciding on its name. As she packs up her things and is preparing to leave, the angel notices her lack of any social interaction. She seems lost in thought, hyper-focused on something unknown, deep inside her own mind. She picks up her headphones and switches on the same playlist as always, before making her way home. 

*yawn* 

“I wonder why she’s so reluctant to speak to others, her classmates seem friendly enough”, he says in slight disappointment. After phasing out for a bit, he hears her whispering: “Why is everything so noisy; after all, everyone is just waiting to die… What’s the point of this life?” Intrigued, the angel shuts his eyes once more and regains his focus… 

“I can feel you, you know? At least help me out here… You have been present since the beginning of humanity, or even longer than that. Please tell me, have we lost our way?” Her palm gently touching a wet, ancient oak tree. The angel is shaken; for a second, he thought she might be aware of his presence. Her eyes shut, she is breathing heavily while talking to the majestic tree. “There is so much happiness, and even more sorrow, but it all leads to nothing. Please help me find peace, please help me and turn these thoughts off…” And with one last deep breath, her teary eyes open. Suddenly, she is lot calmer as she looks around the park. It looks like she’s taking in as many sights as possible; reacting to every brisk sound of leaves brushing with the wind, not a single raindrop is left unnoticed. Suddenly, a single tear drops from her left eye. “Thank you” she whispers, before suddenly jumping forward and hugging the tree. She quickly releases the tree, and notices the bark had left a few dirt marks on her palm. She examines her hand closely, before turning and walking home with a little more vigor than before. 

*thud* 

She drops her notebook on a very messy desk and jumps onto her bed with a sigh. Suddenly, she… smiles? “Yes, that’s perfect! I like it…” she mutters as she falls asleep. The striped notebook slides from the desk onto the ground, revealing black bold letters written at its back: VROXI. 

*halo sliding* 

“OK. What was that?” The angel is skeptical about what he had just witnessed. “Why was she talking to that tree? Was she really getting some sort of response? There is no way...” He proceeds to lie down on the clouds, playing with his silky, white hair.