(Untitled)

[godpleaseheal]

The life of any human has much to do with patterns and repetition. In some respects, being an angel is no different. Even so I found life on my second island to be somewhat less stimulating than I might have hoped for. In all fairness, of course, my basis for comparison was my somewhat brief and luxurious respite in the body of Theo Mandros while

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[backup_hero]

Neville wasn't heading for the church on purpose, not exactly, but as his mind wandered so did his feet and soon enough he found himself heading up into the hills. Apparently his subconscious had a mind of its own.

And it was a fact that Neville did have a lot on his mind lately. He'd been through a lot, both before arriving on the island and since coming here, and sometimes he didn't know quite what to make of it all.

At least if he headed up to the church he would have some peace and quiet to sort his thoughts out, he figured, but it turned out that there was someone else up there too, and Neville was too polite not to give him a smile and a wave as he approached.

[godpleaseheal]

Over time, my inability to recognize people had ceased to phase me and so I was not surprised when I could not place the young man heading in my direction nor did I find it difficult to be polite in turn. I waved to him, closing my book and smiling warmly. "Hello."

[backup_hero]

"I'm not bothering you, am I?" said Neville hesitantly. "I've only come up here on a bit of a wander. I wouldn't want to interrupt anything important."

[godpleaseheal]

Even if he had been interrupting some work of great importance, I would have been quite willing to set it aside. As it was, I could easily admit to doing very little of any real significance whatsoever. I have always enjoyed poetry, of course, and I have always felt that humans would greatly benefit from spending more time studying verse, but I hardly needed to spend the day entirely alone with Hafiz and his writings. "No, quite the opposite, I'm afraid."

[backup_hero]

Neville put his hands in his pockets and gave him another tentative smile. It felt and awful lot like an invitation to continue the conversation.

"Do you come up here a lot?" he asked him. "I've never really been before, myself."

[godpleaseheal]

I felt like asking the young man to sit down, but it was possible that he had other places to go and I had no real desire to detain him if that happened to be the case.

"Frequently," I admitted. "This area is very peaceful, I find, and often others travel up here to visit the church. I'm Raphael, by the way. It's a pleasure to meet you."

[backup_hero]

"I'm Neville," he said, and rocked back on his heels for a moment. He wanted to ask something, but he wasn't quite sure how, and wasn't sure how it was going to sound when he did. "I hear there's a cemetery around here?" he said finally, not quite the way he meant to ask it but getting the words out all the same.

[godpleaseheal]

I glanced around and frowned thoughtfully, wondering what need Neville had for a graveyard at that particular moment. Perhaps he had lost a friend or loved one recently. Regardless, it seemed wrong to leave him to his own devices or to fail to provide assistance if he, in fact, had need of any. "I'm afraid if there is I've yet to visit it, but I'd gladly to help you locate the cemetary if you like."

[backup_hero]

"I'm not sure I want to," said Neville, scratching the back of his head uncertainly. But he wasn't sure he didn't want to either, and maybe that was why his feet had taken him up here when he wasn't paying attention. "I'm not even sure the person I'm thinking about is even buried there. It only just happened not long ago."

[godpleaseheal]

Neville did not know what I was or had been, and while I knew that offering such a thing so early on was probably an error on my part, I couldn't help but try to be generous. He'd lost a friend, after all, or perhaps a family member.

Still, I hesitated for a moment before rising to my feet and looking solemn. "I am certain it's none of my own business, but... would you like to talk about it? I'd be more than willing to listen."

[backup_hero]

"I probably won't sound like a very good person if I talk about it," Neville admitted, looking at his feet for a minute. But he had no regrets, not about any of it, not even now. Especially not now. "I hated him. I'm glad he's dead."

[godpleaseheal]

Raising an eyebrow, I considered the boy and nodded. While I did not necessarily approve of hating people or delighting in their absence, I didn't think less of Neville for feeling as he did.

After all, I highly doubted he was directly responsible for the demise of this other person and I was certain he had good reason. I could not, of course, know for sure. The trouble with being human is one is forced to make a dreadful number of assumptions. "I suppose... Well, you can't be expected to like everyone."

[backup_hero]

"He wasn't even human anymore," said Neville, and maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised how much anger he felt towards him, but he was. "He was a monster. We defeated him once, and then he was here and someone had to defeat him again."

[godpleaseheal]

"I see," I murmured calmly before offering up a small, sympathetic smile. "And I'm sure you did what had to be done."

I could hardly pass judgment and I wouldn't have wanted to. You humans are faced with so many difficult decisions particularly in regards to right or wrong and love or hate. In many respects, my path has always seemed relatively straightforward by comparison, and I hadn't encountered many monsters along the way.

[backup_hero]

"Yes, that's it exactly," said Neville, even though he wasn't sure he was entirely being understood, or that he even could be. But he still had no regrets, not about that, and he was certain he never would. "I'm worried he still might come back again," he admitted after another few moments of comfortable quiet had passed. "Do you think he might?"

[godpleaseheal]

That was and still remains a disturbing thought. The island, unlike humans or beings like myself, did not seem to distinguish between good and bad or people existing in gray areas, but seemed to seek inhabitants at random. "I really couldn't say," I admitted with a small sigh. "For your sake as well as the others here, I should hope not, but one cannot be sure of such things."