Sketchy

“Wow...” Mari looked around in breathless wonder. Everything as far as the eye could see was sparkling in the bright morning sun. She’d thought that seeing the sea from the top of Andressa was the most beautiful thing she’d ever seen, but Nacre might have surpassed that! Just as Azreal and Sariel had promised, everything was white, clean and gleaming. It was like standing in the middle of an enormous jewel! The various banners, flowers and shops everywhere added bright pops of color that made it even more aesthetically pleasing.

“How is this place real?” She breathed. Azreal let out a deep laugh. “Everything is amazing to you, you know?” Mari’s eyes were too wide and gleaming for something as mundane as a city. Though, to her, the entire world was fascinating and worthy of appreciation. Watching her gave him a new perspective on things that he’d otherwise found boring. He did realize how beautiful the capital of the Opal kingdom was, even with his disdain for it, but he’d visited it so many times that it was just another place to him. The one thing that had always captivated him was the grand cathedral, but he obviously never wanted to set foot there again. He still felt awe and reverence for the beautiful, sacred building, but seeing it would make his stomach twist into a knot. In fact, he was so paranoid and vigilant that he typically avoided walking past the church unless he had to take the shorter way to the palace to arrive at a meeting on time. But to Mari...even something as simple as coffee, a grapefruit, the ocean, the dirt in the garden after rain...everything was precious and beautiful.

“Okay, stary eyes.” Azreal playfully tapped Mari’s shoulder. “Let’s get going. Once I’m done with work, you’ll be able to gawk all you want.” “O~kay!” Mari chirped, following Azreal as he headed towards the center of the city. “Hey, Azreal, what do you want to do?” “Whatever you want.” “No. What do you like here?” Mari insisted. “Where do you think I need to visit while we’re here?” “Oh, you want...my recommendations?” Azreal stuttered in surprise. “Well, yeah! You’ve been here before, genius!” Mari lightly tapped her hip against Azreal’s leg.

“Um...” Azreal turned bright red. “You know how we talked about the city giving me anxiety? I don’t think you’d be interested in visiting weapon shops or forges...” The lightbulb went off in his head. “But I think you should go look at the grand cathedral. It’s a beautiful place and it definitely feels holy. If I could go anywhere I wanted to in Nacre...I wish I could go there again.”

“Okay, you’ll have to show me where it is!” Mari grinned at Azreal but, inside, she was stunned by the simplicity of his desire. ‘What sort of hell has he suffered that one of his only wishes is that he could visit a real church? And why does it seem like he isn’t welcome there? What sort of monster prevents someone from going to a church and worshiping God? Of all the petty, mean things you could do...!’ While she was excited by everything because she had so little firsthand experience living among humans, Azreal was seemingly outright blocked from accessing things and experiences by others, if not by him just punishing himself via denial of his own desires.

‘He said he wasn’t welcome in the capital.’ She recalled. She glanced at the people they passed. More than a few made horrified faces before they quickly looked away, and she noticed the occasional spiteful glare amongst the crowd. She could see why people would be uneasy around Azreal. She’d been comfortable around him from the start and, with the passage of time, he was completely familiar to her. But even she couldn’t deny that his appearance was unusual. His dark eyes would be considered unsettling anywhere, but his long black hair and sickly-pale skin stuck out like sore thumb amongst the people of Opal. While he wasn’t exactly muscle-bound, he was tall and strong. Combined with his dark, combat-ready clothes and the various scars across his body, Azreal’s entire outward presence screamed ‘I’m sinister and up to no good!’ But even with that, she still couldn’t square the level of public discomfort with the warmhearted, pure minded soul that was glaringly obvious to her. ‘Is this what happens when humans can’t perceive each other’s natures? When people misjudge and misunderstand each other...’

It was disorienting, the way that what was obvious to Mari was completely invisible to other creatures. Despite her divine nature being clear, humans would still think she was the crazy one and that her understanding of the soul had to be off. They were so beholden to their own perceptions and what they could outwardly make sense of that they’d act as if her powers of perception and discernment were the sort of thing that could be casually brushed off. ‘I suppose that’s the cost of being a creature on a higher spiritual plane of existence surrounded by humans...’ but even so, the denseness of humanity was so irritating that she’d like to turn herself inside out sometimes!

‘Ah, whatever. Being angry isn’t going to do anything. Besides, other humans are dumb. I love my Azreal and I don’t care what anyone else says! He’s not evil or creepy!'

“So, this might be a bit late to ask this, but unicorns don’t have any issues with mages, right? Not the kind that practice dark arts and evil things, just normal mages?” “Uh, yeah?” Mari raised her eyebrow in confusion. “It’s the same as with humans; as long as they aren’t evil I'll be fine with them. Why are you asking something weird all the sudden?”

“So, you know how I’d mentioned that I’d introduce you to my friend?” Azreal sighed, tucking his hand behind his head. “Well, he’s an archmage who’s the current court mage. The archmage, actually. Only one on this continent. But he’s, shall we say...a bit much. He’s a great guy but he’s moody and... excentric. Doesn’t leave his workshop unless he’s forced and has gone locked up inside with his research for years without a care. He’s...something.” He looked at Mari hesitantly.

“I honestly don’t know if putting you two in the same room is a good idea but, well, we’re going to try it and see how it goes.”