Excerpt: All Around the Mullberry Bush

Mei woke up gasping. She was back in the tent and she wasn't sure how that happened either. Looking around she patted her chest and found the amulet. Breathing out a sigh of relief, Mei looked around for Gretta. She had to know,s he needed to know what Bath Kol was thinking and if she was really all behind this and what if anything could happen to her and Gretta and everyone else if she found Michael. Because the Michael in her dream she hadn't liked so much and it wasn't so much that she thought the world would be a better place with him.

What had the tree said? Unlearn what you have learned? And ok, so he was channeling Yoda and how did you sex a tree anyway? No like have sex with a tree but figure out of the tree was male or female because she didn't think it was really either. The voice in her head was a lot like that of those computer generated voices. Not at all soothing and kinda totally creepy.

Focus Mei, focus! She told her self. Find Gretta. Find out about Bath Kol, then worry about sexing trees that sounds like computers.

Mei glanced around looking for something anything like a flashlight or a torch or hell even a candle would do. the tent was open on one side and the moonlight was filtering in, but it wasn't enough and she needed to see more. Mei let out a breath and told herself to quit panicking. She was fine as long as she stayed near Gretta and wore her amulet. She picked her way out of the tent and stopped as she saw a fluttering on across the tent. looking up she saw nothing at first and found Gretta sitting at the edge of the tent looking up at the sky.

"hey," she said, sitting down next to her. Gretta smiled at her and then turned back to the sky.

Mei heard a fluttering, like wings and looked up again and gasped. Wings, thousands of black wings filled the sky as they passed over head. Mei slid closer to the Gretta and Gretta slid an arm through Mei's, linking arms.

"What?" Mei asked.

"They're looking for us. For you," Gretta said, tilting her head as if she was listening to something faint and far away. "They want to know where you've gone. They're angry."

"With me?" Mei squeeked, looking up at the mass of feathers and wings. She couldn't see the bodies only the wings and that was possibly creepier than anything else.

Gretta shrugged, "I don't know... they don't." She huffed out a breath, "they don't always make a lot of sense with their emotions. They're angry they cannot find you but I don't know why."

"And you're sure they're angels? Like good angels?" Mei asked.

Gretta shrugged, "I do not think any of them are good. But if you are asking if they are demons, no, they are not. Demons... " Gretta trailed off.

"Can you hear them too?" Mei asked, her eyes wide.

Gretta shook her head, "No. No, only the angels. But I wonder sometimes, if the demons, well, if they wouldn't be better to listen to."

Mei nodded, and they snuggled together and watched the angels pass over head, both of them safe from their wrath and Mei privately thinking the angels were kind of stupid for not looking down but then again they were pretty far up. "Do you think they ever hit airplanes?"

Gretta looked over at her and the back up before giggling. "how would you report that, do you think?"

Mei thought about it and started laughing, "the angels or the pilots? The pilots would probably just say it was a bird but how do you explain to your angel boss that you weren't paying attention and went through a jet engine."

Gretta started to snort giggle harder and Mei joined her. It was such a great giggle and Mei had to admit she hadn't heard it. Not even earlier that night when she was listening to the band. "Can you imagine?" Gretta started between breaths, "I didn't see it... it was just a silver tube and... "

Mei laughed harder and together they curled into the other laughing away tension and shared experience with the angels. With the horror that was coming if an angel just bothered to look down and see them in the flesh.

It was nothing then, when Mei glanced up and saw Gretta's face right there. It was close and Gretta was so very pretty when she was laughing. Mei closed the distance and kissed her. A chaste kiss, nothing more than closed mouth to closed mouth. She felt Gretta respond and Mei didn't push didn't deepen. When they parted Gretta gasped and pulled back.

"I'm sorry," Mei said, even though she wasn't sorry at all. At least not for kissing Gretta. She was a little sorry that wasn't Barrista Chick though.

"No, it was... it was nice. I just, I am betrothed." Gretta said, turning back to her. "I would not— I do not wish to lead you on."

Mei blinked ok, that was new. Usually she didn't worry about being led on or anywhere else. "Um... to who?" she finally manged to get out.

Gretta smiled. "Ezzedin. You've met him a few times, he is the lead singer in the band."

Mei thougth about it, oh yeah Tall Guy that was always sort of looking at her and being around her and Gretta. That made sense though because she'd heard the affection in Gretta's voice when she talked about him. Still, "the tribe is ok with that?"

Gretta smiled, "oh yes. The tribe... no one stays single long here and we are very fond of each other. It's a good match."

Mei nodded, "well if you say so. I mean I wouldn't want to get between you too and it wasn't, I mean, ok, this is going to sound just all sorts of bad, but it's not like I really, I mean I would if you were totally willing but... " She trailed off when Gretta reached over and put a finger on her lips.

"I understand," Gretta said and Mei figured she probably did.

"I've got someone at home. I just have been alone for a while now." Mei finally admitted.

Gretta smiled widely, "She must be very lucky then. To have someone as exceptional as you."

Mei chuckled, embarrassed and glanced up. The moon was now shining clear and the wings were gone. Which reminded her of the reason she came out here in the first place. "Gretta, can you hear specific angels?"

Gretta looked at her and thought it over, "I haven't ever tried it before. It's usually just... like listening to a radio or a police scanner."

Mei nodded, "I need to know about Bath Kol. What the other angels are saying about her, what she's saying."

Gretta ducked her head, "they don't like her, the other angels. There are some that do, but they are in the minority. Most of the others think... " She smiled at Mei, a smile that held a secret Mei was pretty sure. It was the same look that Tena gave Mei right before she turned over the juicy gossip she'd heard at work.

"What?" Mei asked, playing her part.

"they think she is the reason. The reason for it all."

Ok yeah, that was pretty much what the tree told her too, but Bath Kol hadn't wanted her to see that, to see any of it.

"Do the angels, do any of them know where Michael is?" Mei asked.

Gretta shook her head quickly, "No, that name... they whisper it like a curse. Like anyone that is bad will be like Michael."

"Michael, Michael. Like archangel Michael?" Mei asked, and ok that was weird.

Gretta nodded, "I don't know why, they don't talk about the whys. Just... his name is always said in whispers."

Mei thought that over, maybe Michael wasn't evil, although that was a possibility considering her dream, but more than likely Mei thought that maybe the other angels didn't want to have what happened to Michael happen to her. That was a sobering thought and might explain why her.

Gretta looked over at her, "they've been watching you a long time. Your name, it's spoken a lot." she giggled, "not always with high regard."

Mei shrugged, "that's how I roll." She giggled with Gretta and then looked up. "How do you know they were there?"

"I woke up, I heard them. So many of them. They are louder, when they're near. It was... it was deafening and I just wanted to see." She smiled at Mei, "they're beautiful when they're up there, when you just see them cross the sky like that. It's only when you think about what they do, how they are that you realize how terrified you should be."

Privately Mei thought that maybe Gretta was a little nuts. She hadn't found anything terrifying about the spectacle though oddly she wondered if she saw it again, if she shouldn't sketch it. Not that she had anything to sketch on mind. She would just have to make do or remember it in her head.