I've been on the run for two years now. I tried not to stray too far from Tony for too long. It's not that I didn't trust the others to take care of him, actually that is kind of why. But the darker presence that I've felt following me the past years has been absent for three months now. I think it's finally safe to return.

I push my wings harder as I see the house come into view. I'd kept a form of communication open with Grey while I was on the run. I think the humans call it coded messages. It hasn't been easy since I've had to dodge from the agency at almost every turn. I'm excited to be back.

Finally I land in the front yard and look around. "Well it's about time." I whirl around at the sound of a familiar voice. Grey is leaning against the house, his arms crossed as he throws me an irritated look. I smile, happy he isn't mad at me anymore. "I missed you too."

He huffs and stays on the wall. "No welcome back hug?" I ask, slightly amused. He still doesn't react. "Wow, tough crowd." Finally he reacts, the corner of his mouth twitches. Then he pushes off the wall and is instantly serious. "We need to talk."

I hate those four words. Whoever invented that phrase obviously didn't realize how much trouble it would cause for so many. This is not the welcome back I was expecting. I give him a worried look as he gently takes my arm and leads me to the back of the house. Every step we take makes my stomach clench and knot itself. My mind races, trying to piece together what could possibly be the cause of this.

Finally he pulls us to a stop and takes a deep breath. His hands rest reassuringly on my shoulders. "I have good news and I have bad news." I try to swallow the lump in my throat and nod for him to continue. "The agency sent someone. You're being put under probation. You're lucky they didn't court martial you." My shoulders sag with the news and I struggle to find a positive in this. "The good news is that you are not getting demoted. You get to stay in the field and work but you have to answer to your probation officer. I pulled some strings, don't worry. I'm your probation officer." This news is only a small comfort. I exchanged one form of captivity for another. It seems there is no way out of this endless cycle for me.

I keep my expression blank as I process this information. Grey is watching me worriedly, his face growing more concerned the longer I remain still. "Seraph? This is good news. Are you alright?" I don't answer for a bit longer, trying to get my emotions settled.

"What's our first move?" I finally find my voice. My expression is still blank, not betraying anything, not that there's much left to give away.

"Are you alright?" He looks at me with concern and I ignore it.

"Whether or not I'm alright doesn't matter. What matters is the job. So what is our first move?" My tone is emotionless and a small inward part of me cringes as it sounds icy.

He takes another minute to look me over before he nods. "Tony starts high school this fall."

"That's a tricky time for guardians. What are our options?" I make sure to keep all emotion from my voice. Focusing on the facts and the job.

"You know the options already."

I take a deep breath. There's a chance with all of the options. I can remain invisible and hope I can stay close to Tony in the crowds. I can watch the school from the outside and leave him unprotected inside. Or there's the third option. Not many guardians have even tried it, let alone been able to pull it off. But it's the best chance I have to keep him safe.
"How long do we have before school starts?" I finally ask.

"Are you sure you want to do that?" His concern is evident in his voice. I nod, we're going to play the long game. It won't be easy, and I'm in for a lot of pain but it will be worth it as long as Tony is safe.

"We have two weeks." He answered solemnly.

"Well then, we better get to work. We have a lot of work to do, don't we?" I start walking into the house. "Seraph," he calls after me, "are you sure about this?" I pause and turn my head so he can hear me better, "There is no other option. Get to work Grey, we're officially on the clock."

"You're forgetting something Seraph," his voice is suddenly stern.

"I'm not forgetting anything." My voice is steady. He knows I'm not lying.

"You work under me now."

I turn around to face him. "Nothing you say will change my mind. I might answer to you, but you do not own me. I'm doing this with or without you. If you have a problem then report me. But I don't think you will." Even I'm intimidated by my tone of voice, and it takes an archangel or higher to scare me. He stares me down for a few minutes, determined to win. But I've played this game before, with much harder opponents than him. We glare at each other for several minutes without blinking, one of the advantages of being angelic.

Finally he backs down. "I'll get a safe house ready. I'll call you when it's done. You better get ready."

"Don't worry about me, just do your job." With that he takes off into the sky and I enter the house, gathering what I would need to prepare. I'm not too fond what I have to do. Once I have everything I go back outside and find a comfortable place to wait. I take several deep, cleansing breaths and then I get Grey's call.

I meet him at the address and immediately claim a bedroom. I close the door and change my clothes into something more comfortable, and an open back. Then I open the door for Grey to come in. I take the leather wrapped rod from him and go to the bed.

"Are you ready?" He asks numbly. I lay down on my stomach and put the rod between my teeth before I nod. I can feel it right away. My entire back erupts in pain as I feel my wings being compressed and pushed into my back. Humans don't know how many bones and muscles are in our wings. More than are in our backs. And now my wings are being forced to occupy space that not only is far too small for them, but is already occupied. If something goes wrong in this process I'm paralyzed.

I squeeze my eyes shut and grip the bedsheets in my fists so tightly they almost rip. My jaw grows increasingly sore as it clenches on the rod between my teeth. That's better than the alternative though. I endure this agony for what seems like forever to me but in reality is just five minutes. Which I'm grateful for, if it kept up much longer I might've broken my jaw.

"It's done." Grey's voice comes through my pain and the agony turns to complete and total soreness. I hear him walk closer to me and gently take the rod from me. He rubs my hands to take away their tension so I can let go of the sheets.

"Don't try to move yet." His voice sounds like a warning, no need to tell me twice.

"I wasn't planning on it. Leave me alone now." He silently leaves the room and shuts the door behind him. I'm left to my thoughts and the consequences of my choice.