Raden never went back to the inn. Instead, he spent the night in the stables tending to the horse. At least that is what he kept telling himself. At some point during the night, Raden had finally stopped fighting sleep and passed out on a fresh pile of hay. He was only woken up by prickly whiskers tickling his face.

He woke stiff and aching. His body fell as if it had been through a hundred battles and was trying to mend a wound that was able to be mended. At least not with healing properties. Raden forced himself up and start the day like normal. He went out to find some breakfast for him and Azrael. He decided to just leave the food by the door and not force his way in. He finished up his meal by the now died fireplace before going out and finding a bridle for the horse.

"Hey there, sweet girl," Raden greeted the horse, "I think it's time to get out of here what do you say?" The horse snorted almost in agreement and rested her snout on Raden's chest.

I don't know why this horse feels bad for you. You fucking prick. There was that stupid voice again.

Raden rolled his eyes trying to block out the voice and focus on anything else. Consciouses can be very annoying sometimes.

~~~*~~~

Sunlight found its way through the curtains of the small room. They danced around finding their way to the sleeping girl. She groaned in annoyance and flipped over and covered her head with the blanket. At this point, footsteps grew louder and louder until they stopped at her door. Azrael was fully awake now as she strained to hear. She held her breath and quietly hoped it was Raden that was going to walk in. There was silence for what seemed like forever, but then footsteps echoed away until they could be heard no more. Azrael let out a shaky breath and slowly pulled herself out of bed. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror and stood looking at an unrecognizable girl. The joy that always seemed to follow her had been taken away. Azrael's eyes sat red and puffy from the night before. Tears had stained her dress which she never changed out of.

With a forced deep breath, Azrael opened the door to grab some fresh water to clean herself up with. There at her feet sat a small bag of food and she knew for a fact that it was indeed Raden that the footsteps belonged to. Tears slipped out onto the floor as she picked the bag up. She opened it and saw a small muffin inside.

"Pull yourself together Azrael," she whispered to herself. She roughly wiped away the tears and set the bag on the dresser. "We can't afford another heartbreak."

Azrael walked out to the lobby where she picked up a bucket for the well. It was late morning and the well would be crowded. She made her way down however because a bath was needed. The sun had begun to warm the town from the cold night and Azrael was grateful for it. The trek to the well wasn't bad but may be a challenge when lugging a full bucket of water. Azrael carried on when the sight of black wings made her freeze. She followed the wings to the person they were attached to.

She caught Raden's face which was across the way staring back. Azrael sucked in a breath and gripped the handle tighter. After a minute, she finally turned away and carried on with a quicker walk. She never looked back to see if he was following even though a small part of her had hoped he would. He never came.

The crowd at the well wasn't horrible with about ten people there. Azrael was able to grab her water and start back in less than ten minutes. However, given the bucket was now a bit heavier it would take some time. Azrael made it about twenty feet before the bucket slammed to the ground. Frustrated, Azrael places her hands on her hips and just glares at the bucket.

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"You need any help," a voice she knew all too well behind.

Azrael turned and saw Raden standing there. She could see now that he had been crying. Something she never would've guessed.

She shook her head. "I got it thanks," she answered coldly. Azrael turned back to the bucket and started thinking of ways to get this damn bucket back to the inn.

"I could get it there in no time really..."

"I got it okay." Azrael turned and faced Raden. She was trying her hardest to keep a blank face. He couldn't know how much he affected her. "Just leave me alone to deal with this." Azrael turned back to the bucket and remembered a simple charm. A small smile crept on her face as she reached for the handle. "Supernatet." Azrael grasps the handle firmly and felt the bucket float up a few inches. She continued her way back to the inn without another word.

Raden stood and smiled sadly. "That's my girl," he whispered. Oh, how he wished he could take back what he had said.

~~~*~~~

Early afternoon crept up on the town and most were out and about getting ready for long treks back to hometowns and cities. Azrael had made her way to some of the local shops in search of much-needed clothing and other travel necessities. She spent the afternoon in town because spending one more minute cooped up was going to drive her crazy. After exiting one store, Azrael saw Raden leaving the stables. He looked to be heading to the inn and Azrael decided to follow him. Raden was quick when he was on a mission for something. He disappeared into the inn and Azrael kept her distance. She made her way into the inn to find an empty lobby. Up the stairs, she went and found that Raden stood nervously in front of the door.

"Raden?"

He snapped his head over. "I was coming to talk to you."

"Yeah alright." Azrael pushed past him and opened the door placing the bags next to the dresser. "What do you want to talk about?"

He took a deep breath. "The library." Her heart dropped a bit. She always put too much hope into everything and everyone. "If you're still up for it, I'll take you."

"And what about Merikh or the others for that matter?" Azrael folded her arms waiting for another excuse.

Raden pinched the bridge of his nose and squinted his eyes close. "I know I know, but I gave it some thought. He's never set foot in there and I would be very surprised if he did now," he explained.

"And the others?"

Raden shrugged. "They can get over it," he let out a frustrated sigh, "Look we'll be in and out in an hour. Nobody will know what happened."

Azrael gave him a cold stare. Inside though she was jumping with joy, but he couldn't know that. "Alright. We go and get out." She saw a glimpse of something cross Raden's face. "When we're done, you'll leave me alone?"

Raden's eyes widened slightly. "What?"

"I can assume you can protect from afar, right? I don't see why you need to be by my side if you're only here because of an order from your master." Azrael shrugged nonchalantly. She turned away from Raden because she could feel the tears forming. She swallowed the lump forming in her throat and continued, "I've made it this far in life on my own. Clearly, you've chosen where you stand and I'm not going to get in the way of that as a weak mortal." Weak mortal… the way Azrael said those two words were like daggers. Raden knew it was meant to hurt him, and boy did it.

Raden watched Azrael as she shuffled around the bags. Her long red hair seemingly danced in color under the rays of sunlight entering the room. Oh, how he wished to run his hands through her hair. "If that is what you wish then…"

Azrael turned her head slightly. Raden could only see a slight side profile of her. "You know this is not what I wish for. Don't act as if I have a saying in any of this."

"Right." Raden dropped his gaze to the floor. How was he ever going to make this up to her? Would he be able to? Oh so now you're pitying yourself? There was that stupid voice again. Raden shrugged his inner monologue for the time being. He looked up again still fading the back of Azrael. "Well, whenever you're ready we can head out."

He walks away without another word and Azrael turned to face the empty doorframe. She looked down at the dagger in her hand. She felt like an idiot for buying this thinking it would somehow make the Raden she had come to know return to her. Azrael stuffed the dagger back into the bag and swung it over her shoulder. Library of Gods, how bad could it be?