Para angels invented Snaps so we could all see what it feels like to have other angels’ powers. Akons can have Snaps, but nothing will happen. Their powers don’t come from Omnis. They come from Atourum, so only he can give them more powers or take them away.
The thing about Snaps is they are fun to mess around with but should never be brought in during a battle because sometimes they are faulty. It would be dangerous to take a Fire Snap during a battle. You could open your mouth but instead of fire, you hiccup dry air.
To a buy a Snap, I won’t use human money. It has no real value in our world. The currencies we use are our wings. Our wings have three layers. The first coat is the one that is easily replaced. It is made to withstand all types of flying conditions. Things like Snaps cost about two or three feathers off of our first coat. It’s no big deal as our outer coats grow back quickly.
The second coat is closer to our souls, so it’s more valuable. When we go to Sellers to purchase things most of the time their asking price starts with the second coat. Say I went to Tony-Tone to get weeping oil. Weeping oil costs five two-coats. That means five feathers taken from the second coating of my wings. But knowing Tony-Tone, he would probably ask for ten two-coats.
The third coat is the one that covers our soul. Since our souls are to us what the heart is to humans, angels rarely pay from their third coat.
The person we buy from doesn’t literally pull out our feathers. They simply touch our wings and the agreed upon layer will fly away into the merchant’s hands.
Fifty first-coat feathers equal one second-coat feather. And four second-coats equal one third coat. Third coats do not grow back like the first and second coats do. You give too much away from your third coat, and you will no longer be able to fly. And the light will no longer be in your reach.
A few angels have gotten addicted to Snaps and the power they hold. They begin to look for ways to extend the duration of time they have powers. In the black markets, Sellers sell Snaps that can last for days. But they cost five third-coats. And there is no guarantee that there won’t be any side effects.
Some angels have stripped their third coats bare in an attempt to get more and more power. They become power junkies. Soon they have no more third coating and cannot fly back home. I knew all about junkies from my Earth life. Once they taste something they like, getting them to give it up is almost always a losing battle.
When an angel has given all of their third coating away, it is called being Grounded. If an angel is Grounded he will be reduced forever to a life on Earth. There are a number of angels who have had that happen. They request to be heard by Omnis. He rarely looks into matters of angels who have been Grounded. I think it makes him mad that we could trade in our wings for temporary power.
Sellers who operate Snap Shops have to be licensed by the council. There are rules they have to follow. The council gets to inspect all their flavors to make sure none of them are harmful. Also Sellers have to have a meter in the front of the shop to tell them if the person entering their shop has a soul. If they sell to Runners or Pawns, their shop will be closed down.
It’s easy to know if you’ve hit upon a Snap Shop. There will be no lights on or people in the window, but the sign says “Open.” Humans pass by them thinking the owners forgot to change the sign. Then way in the back of the store, there is a room filled with gumball machines and what looks like different types of candy.
I look around for the Snap Shop Jay had told me about. He said they had pretty good powers. I know Ameana has always wanted the power to Blink like Reese. Snap Shops are open twenty four hours a day. But after midnight, some kinds of Snaps are not allowed to be sold. Fire Snaps, Lightning Snaps and Brawn Snaps.
We knock on the door and the Seller opens up. We follow him to the back of the shop. Some Snaps come in the form of Tic Tacs. Some are bubble gum tape and others are rock candy. They have Snaps of all colors, shapes and texture.
“Hey, can we get eight Gum Snaps, please, two Ice, two Blinks and two No See.”
A short while later the Seller comes back with a bag filed with the Bubble Gum Snaps we had ordered. He touched my top coat and my feathers flew right into his cash register. We walked out into the night.
“I’m so excited! I have been wanting to Blink for the longest time,” Mimi says.
“We only got the five minute ones. Do you want me to go back and get the ten or fifteen?”
“No, five is perfect. Can we Blink first?”
“Okay, but save the Ice ones. I want to do that last.”
She looked a little nervous about putting the white gumball in her mouth.
“I can’t believe you are such a punk about this, Mimi. I have to tell Reese. You are afraid of a little old Blink Snap?”
“Oh, okay. It’s on now.”
“Wait, where do you plan to Blink to?” I ask.
She is a few feet away from me. She takes a few more steps back. She pops the gumball into her mouth and instantly disappeared.
“Meana?” I ask, looking down the street for her.
“Yes, baby?” she whispers softly in my ear. She had Blinked right on to my back. I was completely taken off guard. She laughs at being able to sneak up on me.
“You’re supposed to use it to travel great distances. I’m like five feet away.”
“I’m supposed to travel to what I want. And you’re what I want.”
“Alright, sexy, hang on to me.” I pop my Blink Snap into my mouth. The two of us disappear. It looked like the street we had just left had suddenly gotten blurry. Seconds later we are standing in the middle of the Dubai Marina courtyard.
The city is alive with energy and lights. The trees are lit up and the fountain in front of us springs water out in a dazzling display of patterns. Mimi hops off of me and her eyes are immediately drawn in to the center of the fountain. It’s circular with a myriad of different colored fish. The underwater lights reflect waves on my baby’s face, making her already beautiful face that much more amazing.
“This is my favorite one so far,” she says. Mimi loves fountains. She doesn’t ever make a wish herself, but she loves watching people throw pennies in.
“Don’t hate me for saying this—you are so beautiful.”
“Don’t hate me for saying this—I know.” She bursts out laughing. She was never really one to brag about her looks. This was a big step for her.
“I think the Snap has faded out. I don’t think we can Blink anymore,” I say.
“Good, I want you to stand still while I do this.”
She bites her lower lip. She moves in slowly. She tilts her head to the side and does something she has never done before: she kisses me. She didn’t wait for me to test myself to see if I could resist kissing her. She just leaned in and sought my lips. No waiting game. No test. Just her. It was…nice.
I don’t remember what made me stop kissing her. I’m sure it was something out of my control because I never would had stopped on my own. She looks up at me and a grin spreads across her face.
“What is it?” I ask.
“You’re so pretty when you Shine.”
“What? You—.” I look at my reflection in the water and, sure enough, I am glowing so brightly, I looked like I could blind the whole city of Dubai.
“You are so gonna pay for that.” I run after her playfully. She takes off immediately, laughing the whole way. When we get into the air, she dodges and swerves but I keep up with her. Then, out of nowhere, she disappears. I knew she had taken the No See Snap.
I find her hiding behind one of the skyscrapers. I knew it was her because the flag on the top looked like it had been wrapped around something. She’s hiding under the flag twenty stories up.
“Gotcha!”
“You are such a cheater,” I accuse.
“I would have beaten you anyway. I’m faster than you.”
“You are not.”
“Really?” Oh, so now she wanted to challenge me, huh?
“Okay, we’ll race.”
“Where to?”
“The other side of the country.”
“You’re on.” No sooner have I said that then she takes off. I fly fast and steady on her heels. Then I get a small lead and I pop in my No See Snap and disappear. Then I wait for her to catch up and I trip her. She only loses her balance for a fraction of a second, but that is enough for me to maintain my lead.
“Cheater!” she shouts as she tries to catch me. We fly at top speed and are neck and neck most of the time. Just a few miles shy of our destination, she stops.
“What? What’s wrong?” I ask, concerned.
“I think I hurt my leg back there.”
I rush over to her. She sees me coming and pops an Ice Snap in her mouth and before I realize it’s a trick, she blows a breath of ice around me. I am trapped in a block of ice.
“That is not angel-like behavior,” I say.
“Don’t let the wings fool you,” she teases. I smash the ice and it falls harmlessly into the water below.
“I win,” she screams.
“That’s because you cheat.”
“Yes, I do, but it works out for you.”
“How does your cheating work out for me?”
“Well, you don’t get to win but you get a consolation prize.”
“What?”
“Me.”
We kiss so intensely we lose focus on where we were flying. We start to fall, but we don’t stop kissing. We just don’t care. From the corner of my eye, I realize that we would soon hit the water below. Now one thing I know for sure about girls: angel or no angel, they hate their hair to be messed with.