Pitch gave a slide glance at the clock. There were five more minutes until his throat would be slit.

“If I give you a second chance, you won’t be a bad guy anymore?”

The Seer saw the desperate gaze of wanting to say yes immediately, but Raphael knew that the warlock had intellect enough to understand Sara was smart. Adults saw children as dumb and reckless, but they adapted and learned quickly. If Pitch agreed right away, she would be suspicious.

Pitch pondered this, wanting to show her that he considered her question deeply. “Yes, Sara. I will try my absolute best to better myself.”

Sara gave him a thoughtful look. She let out a contented smile. “Alright, I trust you.” Pausing with a cute pout, the girl said, “I don’t know how to help you after this besides letting you out.”

“I can show you a trick that I do when I desperately need an escape. I only have done it once.”

An excitement flickered on her face about this magical trick he suggested. She walked over to the device panel and hesitated for the briefest second. Raphael’s breath caught in his throat. The little girl hovered her hands over the screen.

“Now or never…” Sara’s mind debated.

The panel beeped softly, and the glass wall disappeared.

Amazement crossed Pitch’s shocked expression, and he wasted no time stepping out of the cell. He kneeled to Sara, hugging her and holding back tears of gratitude. “Thank you so much.”

“I stopped the cameras from working, so now it looks like you are sleeping in the security room,” Sara claimed with a proud smile. “Show me your magic trick!”

“Right.” Pitch whirled around the prison and waved his hand. “One time I was in deep trouble. I had duplicated myself to distract an archangel relentlessly attacking me. I cast an invisible spell and escaped." A duplicate of him appeared on the twin bed.

He turned back around, asking Sara to put the magical barrier on again, which she compelled. He squeezed Sara in a hug again, whispering many thanks.

“You deserve a second chance. I can just feel it!” squealed Sara.

Kneeling to be the same level as her height and looking directly into Sara’s eyes, Pitch whispered, “I am forever in debt to you. I can’t thank you enough. I hope we can cross paths again.”

Sara beamed with a thought, and she unhooked her butterfly necklace and hooked it around his neck. “For you, so we don’t forget each other.”

The time was nearing closer to his execution. Three more minutes.

Pitch swayed his head in disbelief at this charming girl, gushing out his happiness, and grabbed her small hands. “I will never forget your kindness.” He sighed, staring deeply into her eyes, and he pressed his fingertips on her forehead, catching her before she fell. “You will never even remember a thing. This will just be between us now. I can't have you slipping up.”

Shaking his head, Raphael curled his fists together and hardly believed what had truly happened. Why, Sara, why?

Pitch waved his hand, ensuring the cameras kept recording him while he slept since Sara's powers would cease when she passed out.

He picked up Sara, a lavender portal sparking alive.

One more minute.

Raphael followed him into the silent woods and laid her on the forest ground where a trail was. Pitch put a log down, and magically, a bruise appeared on her head. He was trying to explain what happened to her: Sara had casually walked into the woods and slipped, banging her head and getting a concussion.

His hand glowed with lavender on Sara’s temple, casting out the memory of her releasing him. He muttered, “I know you might get a headache every time you think of this day, but it’s for the best of us. I can’t have you slip up; I’m sorry.”

There were sounds of people jogging close by.

Thomas Pitch gave one more glimpse at Sara, a sad smile tugging on his face. A portal sparkled alive, and he hurried into it.

The scene before the Seer faded away was the lavender strand flowing around him. The wisp of magic crackled, but it was not electrifying like it was before. The strand got dimmer until it dwindled into nothingness.

***

The rhythm of the evening kept the pace of being stressful and tiresome. Michael watched his daughter slack in a chair, her breath heavy as if she were having a terrible nightmare. His brother hadn’t moved an inch, standing there with his two fingers pressed on Sara’s temple.

Time ticked away for about a good thirty minutes, but to the Archangel, it felt like endless hours with no hope of it finishing.

Finally, though, Raphael flung his eyes open and stumbled back, rubbing his face tiredly. He looked up at his siblings with a shake of his head, clarifying, “Sara indeed helped Pitch escape. He had erased her memories so she wouldn’t slip up.” He glanced at Sara, still unconscious. “She will probably need some rest today because she’s going to be worn out.”

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Hearing the news about Michael’s daughter freeing Pitch made him frown. He looked away and crossed his arms. “Why Sara?” He muttered to himself.

Before Raphael could answer, Sara groaned, and she fluttered her eyes open, looking around the office in some confusion with no idea where she was. Michael came over to her side quickly, helping her stand up.

Sara remembered who and where she was. Tears trickled down her face, and she buried her head in her hands. “I’m sorry, Father.”

Even though Michael disliked what his daughter had done, he hated to see her upset, knowing the consequences her actions might bring. He hugged her, hushing, “I’m not mad at you.”

Hiccups from sobbing, Sara pressed her face on his chest. “Why? I made a horrible mistake!” She had remembered everything from her uncle unlocking a memory. Even with Pitch ‘erasing’ her memory of that day, her piece of the past would always be hers to recall. No matter how powerful a person was, they could never completely erase a memory that belonged to someone else.

Sam said, “Sara, why don’t you head to bed and get some rest? It’s been a long morning.” She nodded to Michael, wrapping her arm around the girl and leading her out of the office. She stared back at her worried brothers. “Don’t cry, darling,” smoothed the Seer, “everyone makes mistakes.”

“But my mistake could lead to millions dying, Aunt Sam!” cried Sara, glancing away from utter shame, unable to look at her father.

They headed to the Celestial Hotel, but John stopped them on the staircase. He glared at Sara, weeping, and then flickered his hardened gaze at the woman. “Ah Samuel, I see Michael had to call you with his tails behind his legs.”

She snarled, “My name is Sam now, and don’t you dare disrespect our brother like that.”

John gave a mocking laugh. “Of all Choirs, it would be you to change what our Conductor has given you as a gift.”

“It’s between our father and me about what I choose to do with my body,” snapped Sam, swallowing down her anger. She whipped past John before he could say anymore, escorting Sara into her bedroom.

“John, don’t listen to him,” Sara whispered as she sat on her bed. Wiping away her tears, she felt better, but now the disappointment of what she had done lingered inside her.

Sam sighed. “Don’t worry about me, okay? Why don’t you get some rest?" She smiled, leaving her alone and going back to the office.

Sitting on the bed, sulking, Sara heaved out a heavy breath, hating herself for her childish actions. She grabbed a pillow, screaming into it and tossing it aside.

A shadow caught her attention, and Sara stared up to see Sal leaning against the wall next to her windows. He lowered his head, and the sunlight made his horns glossy.

“What’s wrong?” asked Sara, pursing her lips thinly.

He glanced up at her, looked away, and shrugged. “Just tired.”

Sara would’ve thought Sal would be all over learning about her assisting in Pitch’s escape, but something seemed off about him. “What’s wrong?” she questioned again, furrowing her eyebrows together.

Sal smiled and said, “It’s your birthday. Why are you worrying about me? Go rest and party for the rest of your day. You are only sixteen for one year.”

“Tell me the truth!” demanded Sara, sitting straighter in her bed, holding her breath as if he would comply.

“It’s your birthday,” remarked Sal, “and I have decided today to let you have your energy.” He disappeared before she could ask anymore questions, leaving her alone in the evening.

Sara pulled the blankets over her, deciding not to worry about the man stuck in her head. He’s not real, anyway. She looked out her window, the sky blue and the clouds fluffy. Reflecting on her recovered memory for a while, she texted Kate, deciding not to have a pity party. She asked her friend if she wanted to come over to her room, and they could watch some movies or something.

The assassin also alerted Timothy to what happened and told him to come over and finish the movie they started. The young warlock had come with some questions about her aiding Pitch in breaking out.

Then, they finished their show. Kate rushed into her room, apologizing furiously for forgetting about her friend’s birthday, but she had a present for Sara.

Her boyfriend was with her, and so was another teenage boy with spiked black hair. He looked familiar. The boy grinned, handing her a bowl of snacks and popcorn. “I’m Nathan! It’s nice to meet you. Happy birthday, Sara! I heard you like boba tea. I had Kate take me to a boba tea shop, and I got you a coconut one since you seem like a girl who likes coconut.”

He gave her the drink, which Sara beamed with happiness, and she blushed. "Thanks, Nathan, nice to meet you too.”

Kate muttered, “Michael told me to watch this boy, Nephilim, so he tagged along with me.” She handed her friend a wrapped box. Sara eagerly unwrapped it, revealing a friendship bracelet. She put on the jewel, loving every single bead on it. Her friend lifted her arm, smiling, “I got one too, and I made them both. So you have purple and black as your colors, and I have orange and blue as one, and both of them say BFF for life!”

“I love it,” giggled Sara. Her heart warmed, and true happiness sparked inside her for what seemed like a long time. She told Kate and everyone else about her situation of letting Pitch out. Nathan and Kate gazed at her in shock. However, after some minutes of questions, they understood that Sara realized her mistake and left the subject alone for now.

The teenagers, besides twenty-year-old Andrew, sat on Sara’s bed, allowing the birthday girl to pick whatever movies she desired. After hours of shows, laughter, and eating snacks, Michael and the Seers walked in, halting their celebration.

But the Archangels were to deliver a homemade Indian dinner, one of Sara’s favorite dishes. After eating up and putting the plates on a roller tray, Michael gave Sara her presents. He gifted her a sword that his father had given him during the Holy War. The weapon was a broadsword, bulky by width and taller than most swords by length.

“Well, I wanted to give you a jewel, but I couldn’t find anything that suited you, I will take you soon to let you pick out one.” Michael seemed not upset by what happened and moved on, just wanting to celebrate with his daughter.

Sara gushed out her thanks from the sharp-edged sword, loving every inch of it. Michael also presented her with a sweater with kittens on it, some books, and a new set of headphones. Her aunt and uncles gifted her four varieties of daggers, each designed differently.

The Archangels had to leave after two hours of talking about stories of the Holy War. Nathan had many questions about the war, asking, “So what won the Holy War was a Phoenix created from the Choirs?” He gasped with awe. “The Infernals and Choirs experimented on themselves with different animals on earth, hoping to defeat each other's sides, which eventually created the supernatural race."

“Yes,” replied Sam, sighing, “I remember that time like it was yesterday. We won, obviously, but it was a hard battle; we lost good Choirs.”

When the Seers and Michael left, the rest of the day passed by with her best friend and boyfriend and two new friends who laughed with her about silly things.

By the end of the day, Sara felt full of energy for the first time in a while, and her pale skin had a golden shade to it tonight. She collapsed on her bed when her friends left, sighing contentedly and grinning brighter than any diamonds.