“Az!…Az!…Aziley! Come one wake up! We’re here.” Tyler said trying to wake me. We were on our way to the museum for a field trip, oh joy.

“Sorry, up.” I said making to stand up realizing that we till had ten minutes till we got in sight of the museum. I slapped Tyler on the arm and said, “We’re no where near there. Why’d you wake me?”

“We’ll be there shortly, I have no one to talk to ‘cause Josh is in the back, and Amanda dared me. Why are you so tired anyway?” he said.

“Um…” I pulled the yawn excuse to make up a story. “My mom had me wrapping presents for Chale and Zat till one in the morning.” I was really up till two flying because I wanted to think, and I wanted to see if the mystery winged boy came out again.

“Zat? What do your parents do make up names in the spare time?” Peter said popping his head over the seat.

“Ha ha, very funny, but no they don’t. Zat or Zathew is named after my uncles Zackary and Matthew. While I’m named after my aunts Alice and Rosalie and Chale is named ager Grandpa Charlie and Dale. I like our names better then those that are boring. I mean how many times have I heard Peter in my life.” I answered back. No one likes Peter but his idiot gag of David and Mark and I was too tired to put up with him.

He glared at me then added, “they’re still stupid names.” Pouting he sat back down.

“Like that’s going to do anything.” I mumbled to myself. I didn’t mean for anyone to hear but Tyler did, or so I assumed for he had chuckled. “Anyway, why are you pestering me about sleep? You’re the one with circles under your eyes as big as a horse shoe.” I said turning back to Tyler and getting off the subject of me.

“You should know. My dad and his buddies hammering away at the addition till midnight at least, because Troy and Maci his new wife are moving in.” he grumbled.

“I thought they finished that. I should know, I half live there.” I said confused

“The outside yes, the inside is another story.” He didn’t like that in another week he will ne living in a room next to a newly wedded couple. Frankly I would hate it as well. “I can’t believe…He got to tell her… Same age as me… why not Az… We’ve been friends longer…” he said mumbling to himself. I ignored him and went to staring our the window. He mumbles like this to himself all the time. Every time I ask what he means he’ll just blush and not answer or say nothing or never mind. I sighed and day dreamed of being out there in the sun, sky, and clouds.

Three days later

“Mom?” I said not really sure wether or not to ask her.

“What Az?”

“Um…Can I um…” I took in a deep breath. “Can I…you know…with Tyler only…” I bite my bottom lip. “We’ve been so close,…and…un…he’ll understand…please!”

“Well…” My heart and wings fluttered a little at her hesitation. “I…um…No. I can’t I didn’t let Ezalet and I couldn’t let you.” She said shaking her head.

“But mom! That’s not fare! Ex never had a best friend like Tyler is to me. She switched boyfriends every other week, and Tyler’s my best friend not boyfriend. I’m going to his house tomorrow and I wanted to show him. He keeps saying we have no secrets when I’m upset, but I have a secret nigger then ten feet wide!” so the females in my family have wings. Tyler and I have been friends since we met in second grade. He could handle my winged family. I know him he would do it.

“I didn’t let Ezalet and I can’t let you I’m sorry Aziley.” She smiled at me I have no clue why this was no time for smiling. “Come here” she said pulling on me for a hug. She wrapped her wings around me. No matter my mood I couldn’t help but feel happy and safe in her warm, brown, wings. “You know I love you Just believe me and don’t tell him.” She said pulling away.

When she looked me in the eye I whispered. “Please mom. Ez told Sarah and Tyler]s my Sarah times ten. Please. I need someone to talk to about my real life.”
She was silent for a few minutes. She put her hand on my cheek and finally said, “If you want to tell him that badly yes, but you have to bind his tongue.” I grinned from ear to ear.

“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I love you, mom!” I squeeze her tight and ran out the back door to go fly for a while. Maybe mystery boy would be out, I’ve been seeing him a lot this last month.

The next day

It was noon and mom and I had just flown to Tyler’s house using the excuse of leaving the car at Wal-Mart right around the corner. He’ll know the truth soon enough. When we got to his front door mom looked me in the eyes then bit her
tongue so I could see and smile.
I crossed my finger in a fits so she couldn’t see and whispered “I promise.” She nodded and walked over to the woods to take off. I pulled my wings even fighter to my back under my sweat shirt and knocked on the door.

“Hey Tyler your girlfriend’s here!” I heard Troy call from inside.

“She’s not my girlfriend idiot. She’s my best friend.” Tyler called from farther away.

“Not yet! She might be even today. You know how the chicks dig the—“ his sentence was cut short and then I heard him coughing. It sounded as if Tyler had knocked the wind out of him.

The door flew open and I was right. Troy was out of breath and Tyler was smiling in front of me. “Come on upstairs before he recovers.” I laughed and ran up the stairs to his room.

“What did you do to him?” I had to ask.

“Flew or jumped down the stairs and kicked him in the stomach. It shut him up.” He grinned at me.

“Oh, okay.” I sighed and smiled back at him.

His grin vanished to a semi-serious face and he looked me in the eye saying “Az, I have something to tell you.” He hesitated “Well, I know I always say we have no secrets…and …well…that’s not entirely true. I have a really big secret, and …um…I wanted to… well tell you after all this time.” He swallowed, looked away, and stood up.

My eyes widened in shock when he started to take his shirt off. His stomach was hear me, but the thing that was surprising was that he was taking his shirt off. He never did around anyone. He swam with it on, now so did I but I have a good reason. He never told me his, and I think he’s about to.

“Tyler!” His mom screamed from the doorway. He dropped his shirt back on. What I thought he was going to say was something like, ‘it’s not what it looks like’, or ‘I swear we weren’t, we haven’t even kissed,’ or something like that.
Instead he said, “Mom please, it’s Az.” H looked at her with pleading eyes.

“No” she defiantly said.

“Please!” he whispered.

“Bind her!” she glared at him.

“What! No! She wont tell” he glare back. “I know She still hasn’t told on Troy!”

“What about Troy?” She demanded.

“He has a tattoo on his ankle. She found out two years age. She still hasn’t told you and we didn’t hind her tongue then.”

At that sentence everything clicked at once. Binding tongues, always having a shirt on, big secret, barely any sleep at night, the mumbling, it all made since to me know. I don’t know why I hadn’t seen it before. It’s bluntly obvious. He has wings. His family had wings, the males had wings.

I pulled off my sweat shirt and put one of my wings between the two bickering family members. They both fell silent and stared at me with wide eyes. I pulled my wings to their comfortable position of barely out and wider then my shoulders. “Two winged families, one of male, one of female, will meet once again and join through the youngest of the wings.” I started the prophecy.

“Friends till the end the children will be, till the day they bind the once hating families to one, form once the portal will open and so they return to the land of Skylend.” Tyler finished for me. He beamed at me and hugged me tight. Then let go of me and took his shirt off to reveal straight black wings. He gave me a hug and we wrapped each other in our wings.

His mother stood speechless at the door, just standing there staring at us. Him shirtless and wings wrapping us up and me with an old shirt with holes in the back and wings wrapping the rest of up. I might peel sate in my mothers warm brown wings but Tyler’s black wings just felt like they should be there and I felt safe, and perfect there. Like nothing could ever hut either of us, no matter what happens.

“Troy, Bryan, come here! Tyler and Aziley have something to tell you.” His mom squeaked out eventually. Tyler let go of me and I pulled my wings into my back.

“What do you need mom.” Troy said when he say Tyler he added “what the little twerp not bind her tongue. You know even mom’s tongue is bond.” He smiled evilly.

“Don’t tell me that’s the reason we’re called over here.” Tyler’s father said showing up.

“She doesn’t need her tongue bond.” His mother answered. “You’re look at our new daughter in lay.” She added still in shock.

“What do you mean new daughter in lay?!” He turned and looked at Tyler. “ You didn’t bind her tongue and you proposed! I didn’t even know you liked each other that way, and you’re only seventeen!” his face was bright red.

“I coughed to get his attention. “Sir!” I said “ he didn’t propose, we didn’t like each other that way…It’s just well.” I sighed and spread my wings to there comfy spot. “We’ve been foretold to be married.”

He was frozen with shock, and so was Troy for that matter. Both of them popped theirwings out in surprise. Toy had golden wings that faded to brown, while his father’s shaded from brown to black I was the only one with white wings. Pure white and not a speck of color.

“Good job my bro!” Troy finally spoke up first. “Never thought you’d scare so high. Man I actually thought you were batting for the other team.” He grinned. His mother slapped him on the arm and gave him “the look”.

His father finally spoke up saying, “Well boy we better go find this pretty young lady a ring.” He smiled and laughed.

“What?!” We both said in unison. “We’re seventeen and still in high school.” Tyler continued on.

“Just because you’re engaged doesn’t mean you’re getting married tomorrow.” He laughed some more. I felt the blood rush to my cheeks.

“Aw! She’s blushing.” Troy teased. “Didn’t I always tell you, you had a cute one there?”

“Oh shut you trap Troy.” Tyler said, “Come on Az, we need to get out of here.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me though the door, down the stairs, and out the back door to the woods. From there we took off for the first time as a male and female pair of wings.

Five years Later

We were hanging out in Tyler’s room like we did a lot. It was the summer after we had both graduated college. No one else was there. Troy and Maci had moved out and his parents were working. We had got his father off the idea of engagement at seventeen, so we were a couple at age twenty-two hanging out. Well that’s what I thought, Tyler had different thoughts.

He was pacing so I knew he had something big up his sleeve. “Az, come here.” He finally said pulling me off his bed and into his arms. He wrapped his beautiful black wings around me and whispered, “You love me?” into my ear.

“Of course I love you. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t” I whispered back smiling.
He nodded, “Good! You love me and I love you, and we’ve been for told to marry.” He let go of me and then got down on one knee. At this point I wasn’t stupid enough to not know what was on his mind. “Aziley McKenna Schaltner will you marry me?” He half smiled and looked me in the eye. I could see in his golden brown eyes he was worried of my answer. In his hand was a ring that was beautiful, two small sapphires and one larger diamond in the middle, set on a white gold band.

I looked him in the eye and said, “Only if you give me a real Tyler smile.” He beamed my favorite smile and stood up.

“That can be done.” He whispered in my ear after hugging me. He let go and slipped the ring onto my left ring finger. “It fits you,” he said smiling. “Goes with you angelic appearance well.”

“What angel? I see no angel.” I teased back.

“You with your white wings, dirty blood hair, and green eyes. Your beautiful and stunning. You always know what to do. You’re my perfect little angel,” he answered giving me his smile and holding my hands in his.

“Well then you mine.”

“How is that? I poses none of these qualities,” he said sounding confident in this.

“Wrong! You have better ones. Black wings, black messy hair, golden brown eyes, and a smile that makes anyone smile pulls you towards the perfect categories. You’re handsome, and loving. You can comfort me and make me smile in one hug, and you know just what to do to make me happy no matter my mood.” I leaned against him and he kissed the top of my head. Both my heart and wings fluttered at the jester. He chuckled. “What?” I asked.

“Oh nothing, just that your wings flutter almost every time I kiss or touch you,” he chuckle again as I blushed. “Don’t be embarrassed, I like it. I think it’s cute,” he said smile down at me, lifting my chin up to see my eyes. Then he kissed me on the lips, “So what if my fiancé’s wings flutter when I kiss her,” he kissed me again, “hey my fiance has wings,” he chuckled.

“I guess so, besides I like the sound of that,” I smiled up at him.

“The sound of what?”

“Fiancé,” I stated.

“I knew it! I just knew it!” Tyler’s dad said from the door.

“Every one knew it.” I stated back at him.

“Troy, give me that fifty bucks, I won!” he screamed down the hall.

“No fare! You couldn’t have waited one more day Tyler?” Troy said from down stairs.

“You probably should have picked a different place to propose,” I whispered to Tyler.

“Yeah, you’re tight, but this is the place where we found out each others big secret,” he answered back at me. “Besides now I can do this,” he whispered in my ear. Then louder he added, “Come on Az we need to get out of here!” and just as before he grabbed my hand, and dragged me out the door, down the stairs, out the back door, into the woods and into the air. This time as the first engaged set of wings.