Gwendolyn stretched slowly, her joints popping from the strain of released tension, overworked by her standards from having brought all of her bags to her new room by herself.

I really must see about acquiring better accommodations. This room is so pedestrian...and where am I supposed to put all of my books?

She studied the two narrow bookcases in the double-occupancy dorm room, mentally calculating that even if she took up the entirety of both, she would still have half a box left unpacked, and that simply would not do. She pondered for a long moment, then sighed and shook her head, dismissing the notion of demanding a better room, the very same day that she arrived. It would set a bad precedent with the faculty, and furthermore, perhaps this was part of the school's image, to foster community between the girls living there.

Might as well give it a try, I suppose. The staff is probably tight as a gnat's chuff anyway.

Giving up, she began unpacking, the day slowly fading into twilight as she managed to just barely stow away the clothing she'd brought, though she wasn't quite sure when she'd be allowed to wear them, what with the uniform the school required. Turning from the closet, she unbuttoned her shirt a few pegs, rolling up her sleeves to let a bit of cool air wash over her skin as she turned to the more important work of sorting out her books. Grimacing, she brushed back her gray skirt as it trailed through the gummy adhesive keeping the box shut, prying it open and pausing a moment, head tilted curiously as she stared at the book lying atop the carefully arranged volumes within. She picked it up, tracing her fingers over the aged cover, frowning faintly at the unfamiliar characters gracing it.

And what are you luvvie? Don't remember seeing you before...maybe one of the housekeepers put you in by accident.

She turned and sat on the edge of her bed, flipping the book open curiously.

The Darklight Grimore had gotten, for want of a better word, nervous. Seraph had been getting edgy of late, although it had not really been able to work out why. His garden still had guests, even a few repeat visitors who had become, not that they would ever admit it, addicted to the intense pleasure it could give them. But despite all that Seraph had been slowly growing more and more bored, and that meant finding a 'special' student.

Fortunately the Darklight Grimore had detected a plane carrying a new batch of students approaching, and in an attempt to find someone completely innocent with no idea what lurked her the Darklight Grimore had teleported itself into a box filled to the brim with books and waited. That wait appeared to now be over as the box was opened and the student pulled the book out.

The moment the student touched the book it suddenly knew all about Gwendolyn, every possible piece of information was suddenly contained within its pages. She would do nicely. As she started to read the Darklight Grimore let her read the first chapter, only blurring out Seraph's true name.

Gwendolyn stared at the book incredulously, her eyebrows rising as she slowly perused the opening pages.

What is this? Some sort of autobiography...of an angel? Bloody hell...this is quite a piece of work.

She turned the pages with increasing curiosity, totally unaware that as she was reading the book, the book was reading her. It recorded her faint feelings of guilt over her lack of remorse at the death of her parents, her fears that she would end up like them despite her best efforts. It prized out her arrogance, her feelings of intellectual and personal superiority, and took them all down in its uncanny pages.

As she continued reading, the sun slowly sank beneath the horizon, causing her to pause briefly to turn on her bedside lamp, barely noticing the delay as enthralled as she was in the story. Things seemed to be coming to a head in the tale, the executioner angel growing more and more tired of his duties. Gwendolyn paused once more, frowning slightly as she considered what she had learned.

Judging by the details, this "angel" would be classified as a seraphim of the Judaic hierarchy of celestial beings. Apparently not one that rebelled, or at least not at the same time as the "Morningstar" of myth. Curious indeed. I wonder who wrote this, and what actually prompted it...

A faint unease tickled at the back of her neck as she resumed reading, a slight sense that something wasn't quite right. Finding the book seemed too...Lovecraftian in a way. And those sort of situations always ended badly for the reader...

Once she finished reading the first chapter the Darklight Grimore let her read the second, again only blurring out the true names of the various foes Seraph had faced. Of course eventually she would come to a rather abrupt end, nearly six centuries before Seraph's fall. it was at that point that Seraph had decided that what he was writing was dangerous, far to dangerous to continue writing it. It was at that point that the Darklight Grimore, its pages filled with the true names of hundreds of 'angels', had started to gain the semblance of sentience it now had. When she reached the end the Darklight Grimore considered what to show her next, but it felt Seraph's interest had been piqued by her.

The Darklight Grimore had been showing Seraph her soul, and now Seraph wanted to see for himself. But she would still have some time, and as she finished reading the last page of chapter two and turned the page it was blank, just like any other page she turned to after that. The Darklight Grimore, and Seraph, wanted to see how she reacted to that before he approached her personally.

Well well well, we've gone right arse about tit now haven't we? From origins and history to a...hit-list? Odd how the names are partially obscured...maybe due to political issues of the times. That would make these other names...what? Code names? Odder still, I believe I recognize a few of these from Maimonides...other angels? So this executioner was tasked with killing others of his kind, who had rebelled against God? Given the probable timing, and the correlation between texts....that would put the author anywhere between the 500's and early 1000's AD. Now this is a rum find indeed, especially as I am quite sure I would remember owning such a book....

Her silent musings aside, Gwendolyn was quite thoroughly immersed in the tome, her eyes flitting across the lists of names, trying to find a link, a connection to historical figures in the time frame she was supposing. If she was correct, this was a kind of coded diary, for a sort of ancient Hebrew assassin, likely assigned to kill the enemies of the faith, or those who betrayed the controlling elders. All in all, quite an amazing find.

She turned the pages eagerly, only to stop, her expression clouding as she found the first of the blank pages. She flipped forward irritatedly, searching for notes, watermarks, anything after the last entry...to find nothing at all, merely page after blank page.

Bugger. Now what does this mean? Did the "angel" die before finishing his writing, or...wait. Maybe I'm right barmy for even thinking it but...

Gwendolyn flashed a mischievous grin and laid the book open to the first of the blank pages, hopping to her feet and moving to one of her as-of-yet unpacked suitcases. She dropped to her knees and bent over, heedless of the way her skirt rode up on her hips as she rummaged and burrowed around inside the expensive leather luggage.

Seraph watched from the corner of the room as Gwendolyn reaches the end of the second chapter, and he smiled when he saw her turn the page to find the rest of the book blank. He could see her confusion as to why it suddenly stops clearly, and as the Darklight Grimore filled him in with some extra information about the student his smile grew as he realised it's intention.

For now, the two powerful entities of magic waited and watched. They both wanted to see how she reacted to this, and just what she was getting. Seraph was also quite interested in the way her skirt slid up her thigh, but that was just for idle amusement.

Soon Seraph would reveal himself, perhaps he might even allow her to ask questions to which he would provide accurate answers.

After a great deal of rattling and rustling, Gwendolyn emerged victorious, her arms clutching a small canvas bundle to her chest. Rising a tad unsteadily from the weight, she turned back to the bed and laid out the canvas, unrolling it to reveal a row of thickly padded pockets. Each pocket contained a different piece of equipment, some common, such as a magnifying glass, and a flashlight, others less so, such as a disc of translucent stone, and a bundle of tallow candles.

If I'm right, then perhaps these blank pages are written with a special ink, or method, that prevents the text from being read unless put under certain conditions. Now lets you and I see what you have to tell me, eh luvvie?

Her slender fingers flitted over the various pockets for a moment as she studied the book, debating various courses of action at lightning speed. She rather quickly decided to try the least invasive methods first, drawing the magnifying glass and placing it over the apparently blank page, scanning for any irregularities in the paper that may be indicative of an unseen marking. Even as she peered intently at the page, her other hand drifted down the row of pockets, finding by touch a small, oddly thick flashlight and pulling it out. She moved on to the thin translucent rock, a disc of halite to be precise, setting it beside the flashlight.

Seraph was actually curious as to what she was doing. Both he and the Darklight Grimore were reading her mind. Although not too deeply, in fact Seraph pulled out when she started examining the blank page. This could prove interesting, and potentially entertaining. The Darklight Grimore had it's own automatic wards in place to deter someone from reading parts they were not supposed to, and he wondered if she would trigger them.

The Darklight Grimore was less amused by her attempts to determine what else it contained. But Seraph was, and so it tolerated her attempts and did not activate any of it's own security wards. Despite her attempts the page did not reveal anything and remained blank.

The Darklight Grimore was protected by magic, and it would not reveal its secrets for anything less magical than what protected it. She could use whatever mundane techniques or equipment she wished, she would not discover anything stored in the Darklight Grimore. But as long as she did not try anything to mark the book the Darklight Grimore tolerated her attempts and did not take any action.

Well bugger all. I should have known it wouldn't be quite that simple, now shouldn't I? I suppose that means we try something a bit more intensive.

Gwendolyn set the magnifying glass aside, straightening her back and stretching after being hunched over for so long. She took a deep breath and hmph'ed determinedly, picking up the flashlight and halite gingerly. She checked the purplish lens of the light for any cracks, then carefully pointed it away from herself and clicked it on, illuminating a small circle of her bedsheets in ultraviolet radiance. She blinked a few times at some rather suspicious spots the light revealed, but put it out of her mind.

This isn't as good as a multi-spectrum imager, but it should at least tell me if there is anything here to begin with. I just hope the paper isn't treated with any photoabsorbative chemicals...

She slowly ran the violet circle of light across the page, squinting to try and make out any variances in color or design that would appear if there had ever been anything written there. To provide a helpful contrast, she interposed the halite disc, diffusing the UV light, and again running the now wider, irregular circle of light across the page, again searching for differences. Should the paper be treated in certain ways, it was entirely possible the UV light would damage it, even so far as to cause it to char or burn. She certainly hoped that wasn't the case.

At the light that now shined on it the Darklight Grimore realised that she knew this could cause damage to a book, which was enough for the Darklight Grimore to seek to protect itself. As the light shines on the book suddenly the torch becomes red hot, and as Gwendolyn lets go in surprise it melts and before it hits the ground has been reduced to vapour.

At this point Seraph decides to step in before either she or the Darklight Grimore goes to far. His form shimmers into existence behind her. Two of his wings remain wrapped around him, while the other two flap gently behind him in an unseen breeze. As his wings of light become visible the room is filled with a gentle glow.

May I ask why you did something that could potentially damage the Darklight Grimore ... Gwendolyn, wasn't it?

"Bloody fucking nadgers!" Gwendolyn exclaimed as the UV light became unbearably hot in her hand. She quickly dropped it, and watched incredulously as it first melted, then evaporated before her eyes.

What the blue blazes-? Did the batteries fry? But they couldn't possibly get hot enough to melt the casing, let alone...something isn't right here.

She continued to stare at the spot the light had fallen, only becoming aware of the glowing figure behind her when it spoke. She caught the faint brightening of the room as she looked up, then turned slowly to look at the radiant figure, her eyes widening. She stared at the angelic figure in mute amazement for what seemed like an eternity, only moving to raise on hand to her cheek, giving herself a vicious pinch.

Oww! Bugger that hurt...but if that hurt, that means I'm not dreaming, or hallucinating. If that is the case, then I should probably accept that my UV torch really did just disintegrate, and that there is indeed something I can only think of as an "angel" standing in the room with me. Yes, certainly, that sounds perfectly bloody sane Gwennie old girl.

Mostly certain that she'd for some reason gone stark raving mad, she decided to humor her delusion. She considered the question, and came to several quick conclusions. 1. This "Darklight Grimore" was likely the book she'd found in her boxes. 2. This "angel" was quite likely the author of the aforementioned. 3. He (it?) was apparently upset over her use of the UV light on the book. 4. The "angel" knew her name, establishing that it was indeed either a delusion created by her own mind, or, that it was actually a inhuman entity with unknown capabilities.

Having come to these conclusions, she took a deep, calming breath and ordered her thoughts, formulating a response. Best to be polite, honest, and direct, as she was quite sure this was either a monumental waste of time, or, a momentous occasion.

"I beg your pardon, sir. The chances of the UV causing damage to a book of that apparent age were very slim to begin with, not to mention my torch is a rather low powered model. In the event that there was a reaction it would have minor to start, at which point it is easy to remove the light and prevent any lasting harm. As to the reason I used the light in the first place, I simply wished to see if there was any hidden writing on the blank pages, as the entries seemed to rather abruptly end," she maintained an even, impeccably polite tone, only slightly marred by breathlessness brought on by the bizarre situation.

"Now, if I may be so bold...may I ask what you are doing in my room, and who you are?"

Take control of the situation, keep the atmosphere civil, and restrained. This "angel" may be the first truly supernatural thing you've ever personally encountered, but by thunder you are a Holloway, and you'll bloody well keep your composure.

Seraph chuckled as she pinched herself to check that she was in fact awake and not imaging things. He shrugged as she answered the question. You had the suspicion that it could damage the book and it reacted to that to ensure you did not. The wards of protection I put in place to protect that book do not hesitate to determine if something could damage it, it is far safer to search for intent to damage. As to your question ... What if i say you may not be so bold? What reason does a divine have to share its knowledge with a mortal human?

Seraph lets the silence stretch out for several seconds before he decided to giver her a break. Considering you just read the journal of my early years you should be able to guess who I am, however just in case you skipped over my common name Seraph will do. As to what I am doing, I am recovering the Darklight Grimore. I did not store every basic level incantation in that book just so it can vanish. Was their anything else or can I have my book back?

Her eyebrows rose steadily as the being spoke, first in surprise and curiosity as she learned that the book was "enchanted", then in outrage as it proceeded to belittle her. She stared hard at the "angel", only barely keeping herself from outright glaring. Divine being or no, it simply wasn't proper to enter a woman's room announced. The brief burst of indignation faded as the radiant creature spoke again, his answer confirming her suspicion and stretching a faint smile across her lips.

Best be on your guard Gwennie dear. If this "Seraph" is being completely forthright with you, then he is a very powerful creature...and fully willing to kill. Though...perhaps a few questions wouldn't hurt, just to see if your other theories prove true.

She pondered momentarily as she turned and carefully picked up the book, projecting thoughts of delicacy and respect toward the tome, just to be safe. This was quite an exciting discovery, to be sure....but something about this "angel" made her uncomfortable. Was it the wings? Shouldn't a seraphim have six of them? And why would an "angel" write a diary in the first place, let alone fill it with spells it did not wish to fall into the hands of others? Perhaps it was the pompous attitude that set her inner alarms ringing...after all, were angels not supposed to be the stewards of man? This one seemed more likely to demand service than provide it.... Maybe a little test was in order.

"Common name? I see. Then it is a pleasure to meet you "Seraph". And if it is this book you wish to have, then by all means take it. God as my witness I had no idea where it came from to begin with anyway," she spoke with the same cultured, well-mannered air as before, slowly stepping forward and offering the book to the glowing being, her eyes slightly narrowed behind her glasses as she watched him for any other oddities.

As the book was offered to him Seraph simple waved his hand and it appeared in his hand. He let is snap open and as he waved his hand over it the pages fluttered until he found the page he wanted. Starting to read he said, almost absent mindedly Saying god as my witness doesn't really mean anything. There is no such being, or if there is he, she, it does not care about this plane to interfere.

With that small titbit of information offered Seraph continued reading, but unnoticed by her he was still studying her. Hopefully that snippet of information would inflame her curiosity, and cause her to ask questions. For some strange reason Seraph felt like sating, at least some, of her curiosity about the various mythologies before he decided to first arouse, than rape her.

Gwendolyn jumped slightly as the book vanished from her hand. She closed her fingers tentatively, eyebrows rising as she felt nothing, then looking to the now open book in the winged being's hand. Her brow furrowed as the "angel" spoke once more, her expression turning wary and disbelieving.

No God? An "angel" who doesn't believe in any god at all...didn't I read something about this? "Among the fallen, they have lost the light of faith, as they are cast out from the presence of the Holy. They do not see Yahweh, they do not know Yahweh, all that is left to them is a nameless loss, and despair." I really...really hope I'm wrong about this. There has to be a way to tell if he is or not...though what I'll do with that knowledge is beyond me.

She studied the reading creature for a long, silent minute, only then raising her voice slightly to speak, the polite tone slipping into something more challenging.

"Am I to take your word for this then? That there is no God, or if there is He simply doesn't care about this reality? It seems rather strange to me that an "angel" would make such a bold statement...unless of course you aren't truly an angel at all. Pardon if I give offense, but you are an angel, yes?"