"You're sure?" Saphira asked seriously, not responding to Ruby's teasing tone. Ruby immediately lost any hint of playfulness and gave Saphira a sympathetic look.
"Yes," she replied gently. "This assignment is important, but we need Esmeralda at full capacity if it's going to work. She really is the best at what we do. It's why she always gets the tough jobs."
Saphira held her gaze a moment longer, then nodded. "All right - thanks, Ruby."
"Anytime, Sweetheart. You know that. And you call and let me know if either of you need anything, okay? My main job here is support. Don't worry about Matilda and Joe. I'll let them know what's going on. I'm sure they'll be worried."
Saphira patted the hand still covering hers, then slid her hand from Ruby's grasp and rose. "Thanks, Ruby," she repeated, then put her mug in the sink and returned to the room she shared with Esmeralda. Ruby watched until the door closed silently behind her, then she left to prepare for what promised to be a very long day.
************
Saphira crawled back into bed with Esmeralda, a chill passing through her being when Esmeralda did nothing to acknowledge her presence. Normally, Esmeralda would mewl softly or curl into Saphira's body or even simply sigh in contentment. But she did none of these things and Saphira's brow furrowed in worry. For a while she lay beside her, listening to her breathe. Only then did she realize that the breathing was slow and deep. She curled tighter into Esmeralda and let the silent tears roll down her cheeks unhindered.
When Saphira heard Amber and Coral return from their respective assignments, Saphira gathered herself together and rose from the bed. She crossed to the tiny bathroom and washed the remnants of tears from her face and stepped out of the bedroom once more.
Coral and Amber looked up from their breakfasts and then turned concerned glances towards one another. Without hesitation, they both rose - Amber led Saphira to the table while Coral swiped another mug and filled it with coffee.
"Saphira? Is everything all right?" Amber asked, her tone conveying her anxiety. She'd only ever seen Saphira lose her brashness once in all of the bickering and playful run-ins they'd indulged in over the millennia. So she had a hard time now trying to keep the fear and worry out of her voice.
Saphira shook her head. "I don't think so," she responded, accepting the cup from Coral absently. "I think Es may be relapsing," causing both heads to whip around in her direction.
"What?? How could she...?" Amber started when Coral cut her off.
"What makes you think that, Saphira?"
"Several things," she admitted. "I mean... I was hoping she was just tired. You know how crazy it's been around here for the last few days and her sleep's been cut into every time something new happened because of course it's her responsibility to keep track of everything that's going on. So I wasn't completely surprised when she claimed she was exhausted last night - too tired to even eat."
"Saphira, that's...."
Saphira watched the two guardians exchange glances and nodded. "Exactly." She sighed. "This morning she didn't notice me get out of bed to talk to the day crew and she never acknowledged me crawling back into bed with her when they left." She looked up at them, holding Amber's golden eyes with her own. "Her breathing is deep... coma deep."
"Oh no," Coral whispered.
"Yeah, that was about my take on it as well," Saphira concurred painfully. "I'm hoping she'll wake up soon - that she's just sleeping deeply because of her exhaustion."
"But you don't think so," Amber stated flatly.
"At this point, I don't think we can afford to wait to find out."
"So what are you going to do?"
Saphira shrugged and shook her head, letting her gaze fall back to the nearly full coffee cup. "I'm not sure what I can do at this point. We can't afford a doctor; and besides, you *know* what'll happen if Es wakes up in a hospital bed. And to be honest, I'm not sure how her heavenly body would react to all those earthly drugs being pumped into her system."
"So you're saying we do nothing?" Amber asked, her voice tight, but not quite accusing.
"I'm saying if you've got any viable ideas, I'm all ears, because I'm at a complete loss here." Saphira's voice was angry and her eyes were filled with tears. Coral tapped Amber on the shoulder before she could open her mouth to speak and jerked her head towards the corner. They squeezed Saphira's hand in support, then moved to the secluded spot where they could talk privately and still keep an eye on Saphira whose stare never wavered from her mug.
"What, Coral?" Amber ground out, needing to vent her frustration and knowing Coral was her only feasible target at the moment. Coral just held her eyes, understanding Amber's position and wanting to give her the outlet for her anger that she required. "C'mon," she pleaded when Coral was silent for a long moment. "Tell me you've got an idea."
"Oh, I've got an idea all right, but you're not going to like it."
Amber blew out a frustrated breath. "I've felt that way about a huge chunk of this assignment. Spill."
"I think this might be His way of moving things along."
"Excuse me?" Amber frowned hard. "You're telling me you think the Father may have worsened Es' illness? Because we're not moving fast enough?" she fumed. "I'm pretty sure if that idea occurs to Saphira, we won't have to do anything at all - she'll take matters into her own hands and force them together if she has to!"
"Will you shut up and listen to me for a minute?!" Coral huffed. "How do we know it hasn't been His strength... His will that has kept Es from relapsing all this time?" She met Amber's eyes steadily. "Amber, you *know* how sick Es was and how weak the sickness made her. Do you really think she recovered that quickly on her own?"
Amber snorted. "I wouldn't say she recovered at all. And I certainly wouldn't classify it as fast!"
Coral rolled her eyes. "Step back a minute and remember just how ill she was, Amber. She shouldn't have recovered at all. She should have died."
"Don't say that!" Amber growled, casting a worried glance towards Saphira. "Do you know the consequences we all would have suffered if she had?"
"All too well," Coral agreed calmly. "It's one reason I think He might be involving Himself in this now."
"Well, if that's true... why not simply involve Himself from the beginning? Or why bother to involve any of us at all? Why not simply put them together Himself?"
"You know He can't do that with humanity - not since He gave them free will to choose. As for the rest, I don't know," Coral replied, shaking her head. "I can't claim to begin to know how He thinks. But in a very twisted way, it makes perfect sense." She paused. "What better way to force both Brianna's and Charisma's hands than to let them witness and experience the aftermath of a broken soul bond?"
"And us? What about what we'll have to go through? What about what Saphira will suffer?"
"Collateral damage," Coral said succinctly, then shrugged. "I really don't know, Amber. It's just a theory."
"Unfortunately, I think it's also very possibly the truth. Is there anything we can do?"
"Aside from be there for the fallout and do our best support to Saphira?" Coral shook her head. "Not that I know of."
"This sucks," Amber grumbled.
"Yes, it does. I think we should probably talk to Ruby about it."
Amber blew out a breath and nodded. "Agreed. And in the meantime?"
"In the meantime, we take it one day at a time. Isn't that Es' first rule?"
Amber smirked. "One of them, at any rate."
"In the meantime, you can both kindly remember that I am an Angel of Vengeance and I can hear every word you're whispering to one another," Saphira said flatly from the table without looking up. Coral and Amber exchanged nervous looks, then crossed back over to Saphira's side.