Chapter Text
"And, if all goes well— Barbatos. Barbatos, are you listening? This is crucial to you."
Barbatos blinked at Morax a couple times, pretending he was listening. He would much rather attempt to balance the pencil that sat on the table under his nose.
"Right," Morax sighed. "If you'd just focus, you'd realize I was talking about your next project—"
He immediately went rigid, eyes wide. "Project?"
"It's been 1,000 years. Your punishment is over."
"Really? You mean, I'm actually going to—"
"Don't make me regret this. Please. Last time, you know what happened."
"I know, I know. I regret it every day, blah blah blah. What're the details on my new project?"
"I was just getting to that." Morax ruffled his usually still wings, once again letting them fold back into a stiff, immovable white shape. "This won't be easy. However, you'll only be down there for a few years at most."
"Few years?" Barbatos blew a raspberry. "I can handle a life project. Humans don't live very long," he reminded him.
"Of that I am aware. Have you forgotten we are the same age?"
"Tomato, semantics. Get to the details."
Morax started to look like he was regretting his job more and more. "Yes. Well. His name is Xiao."
"Fancy."
"Not... quite. Here's your copy of the file," he handed Barbatos a manila folder. They might have been guardian angels, yes, but regular stationery wasn't below them.
"Huh. Twenty-one years old. College student. Two jobs... homeless?"
"Yes. Your job is to see him safely to a point where he can support himself in his own living space."
"Is that all?" Barbatos scoffed. "I could do that with my eyes closed. All of them."
"Might I remind you, in your current state—from which you cannot change, by the way— you only have two?"
"I know, I know. Jeez."
Morax sighed again. "I hope you will not take this project lightly, seeing as it is your first in 1,000 years."
"Won't, I promise."
"Right. I'll need you to prepare your human identity by tomorrow. You'll be released at sunrise."
"Sweet. I'll just scoot down there as a bard, play some songs, and we'll be good. Right?"
"Bard? Those have not existed for 800 years at least."
"What?" Barbatos pouted. "Those were my favorite types of humans. They liked me."
"Since it's been ever so long since you've been down there, I might need to create an identity for you."
"But that's no fun!" Barbatos protested. "I wanna do it."
"You aren't aware of the current culture. It'd be best for you if I handle it."
Barbatos slumped back in the golden chair and Morax hummed for a moment.
"Hm. Yes. You'll go by the name Venti. You'll be a twenty year old music major— since you simply adore bards, this is the closest I could think of— and you'll eventually work at a coffee shop."
"Coffee?"
"You'll enjoy it. You'll also most likely enjoy the modern alcohol industry."
"Mm. Do they still have wine?"
"Many variations."
"I'm sold. Can I leave now?"
"No.”
“You’re no fun,” Barbatos pouted.
“I’m not meant to be. I’m meant to give you your project and be done with you.”
“Am I really that awful, Morax?”
“Quite. Continue to go through the file. Your disguise and human currency will be delivered to you tomorrow.”
“But—“
“But nothing. If you don’t need anything else, I’ll be off now.”
With that final statement, Morax left the room, letting the heavy gilded door shut loudly on the way out.
Five. Ten. Fifteen. Twenty. Twenty-five.
Only twenty-five dollars.
Xiao sighed as he leaned his head back against the wall behind his cot. Last night’s wages were even more meager than the last. He pocketed the cash and pulled his feet up onto the bed, resting his head in his arms. He was doing all he could. Was it still not enough?
He’d have to go to class soon. The sun was rising, and it took him twenty minutes to walk to campus alone. If he went early, he might be able to snag something cheap for breakfast…
He didn’t have time to think very hard about it. The people around him were starting to stir, and he knew by that time he needed to be gone. No time for a shower today. He’d have to take one when he got back. He quickly changed into an old and somewhat tight sweatshirt and the loose pair of beat-up jeans he kept with him. He stopped, glancing at his reflection in the window. If he could save enough, he could really use new pants.
He grabbed his dirty red bag and left the quarters as soon as he could, passing the front desk.
“Good morning, Xiao,” the woman at the counter said. “Did you sleep well?”
“Morning, Verr Goldet. Not really.”
“Ah. Well, that’s better than ‘absolutely not’. Do you want something for breakfast?”
“That would be nice.”
Verr Goldet tossed him an apple. He caught it midair.
“Thanks,” he replied, putting the apple in his jacket pocket.
“Don’t mention it. Oh, speaking of mention— I wanted to mention to you that Aether is stopping by later. I know he’s your favorite volunteer.”
“I don’t have a favorite volunteer,” he lied.
“Mm. We’ll see,” the woman teased. “If that boy brings you any more almond tofu, I’ll have to kick him out.”
“Please don’t.”
Verr Goldet laughed and turned back to the computer she was typing on.
“You’d best get to class. Stay safe out there, Xiao.”
“Thanks.”
Xiao turned on his heel and exited the shelter.
This side of town looked so much different at sunrise. The orange glow, mixed with the sleepy lull of a city not yet awake and the low hum of the streetlights… it made a sunrise walk to your college feel almost ethereal.
Xiao pulled his hood over his head, hoping to hide himself from anybody he could possibly know. He wrangled his ratty earbuds and old MP3 player from his bag and started his walk.
At the first crosswalk, he realized his tennis shoes were close to bearing holes. There was already one on the side, too… how was he meant to replace everything? His savings were near depleted.
As he passed the storefront, waiting for the crossing light to turn green, a boy decided to stand uncomfortably close to him.
“Um, excuse me,” he mumbled quietly, pulling out one of his earbuds. “Could you… scoot over?”
The boy turned to him. Two braids framed his face. “Oops, my bad. Your name is Xiao, right?”
…Huh? How did he know his name? “Uh…”
“I’ll take that as a yes.” After checking left and right for people— it was suddenly quite lonely now, no other person in sight except for the boy— he stuck out his hand in a showy fashion. A big, round golden bangle clung to his wrist. It was much too big and decorated to match with what he was wearing— a sinple green sweater, a beanie, and a pair of cuffed jeans. The bangle seemed to be decorated with dandelions and windmills. Odd. “Bar—er, Venti. Venti, at your service.”
Xiao glanced down at Venti’s hand. “…Eh?”
“Right, right. Morax said some people don’t like handshakes. Uh.” He muttered to himself, so Xiao couldn’t hear. He could hear.
“Morax? Like, the angel?”
Venti’s face switched to an ‘oh-shit’ expression.
“Um… no. So, uh, what’s up?”
“…” Xiao blinked at the boy. Something was off about him— extremely off. “You’re strange.”
“Thanks, I think. That’s a compliment, right?”
“It’s not meant to be. What are you?”
“Um… what am I supposed to say again? Oh— I’m a human, just like you, my friend.”
“That’s clearly not the case. You’re trying to cover something up, and not very well. You name-dropped Morax, you don’t know what a compliment is or isn’t, and you had to think about that ‘human’ response. That’s three pieces of evidence against you— tell the truth.”
Venti smiled, but in the way you would after getting caught. “The files weren’t lying. You’re definitely a forensic science major.”
“What files?”
He ignored this. “Well, since you want the truth— you were on the right track with the angel guess. Surprise, I get to be your guardian angel! Isn’t that great?”
“…You’ve got to be joking, right? You have to. That’s just some myth from forever ago.”
“Jeez, you ask for the truth and deny it once you finally get it. What’s up with that?”
“It’s just not possible. It can’t be.”
“It is.” Venti took the bangle off his wrist and spun it around a couple times on his finger. It elongated and started to glow gold. He tossed it up like dough and let it land, floating, just above his head. “See? Need more proof?”
Xiao blinked quietly as Venti took down the halo and shrunk it back into a bangle. Without hesitation, Xiao power-walked away, leaving Venti to chase after him frantically.