Consecration Consternation

“Now, where did I put the blessed thing?” muttered Brother Manatos to himself. The thing was indeed blessed – a thurible needed for the consecration ceremony that afternoon. He wandered the vestry, brow knotted in consternation. He was certain he had brought it into the church-to-be, but where in Thiaz’s name had he put it?

*

“Give that back, right now!”

“You’ll have to catch me first!” came the cackled reply.

Phrenalia huffed and ruffled her black angel-feathers. That a demon had found its way into the church was nothing short of embarrassing! In less than an hour the unblessed thing would never have been able to set foot there, but for now it could reign supreme – and it knew it. The demon leapt from rafter to rafter, its iridescent scales flashing and leaving a faint trail of smoke in its wake.

There was nothing for it – some Guardian Angel she’d be if she let this ingrate ruin things for Manatos. She leapt from her perch and flew straight at the demon.

The frontal assault took the demon by surprise. Phrenalia didn’t manage to grab the thurible from it, but she did manage to make it lose its footing. Only a swift sprouting of wings and an acrobatic leap saved her rival. Phrenalia squawked in quiet frustration and continued her pursuit.

*

Something clattered above Brother Manatos’ head as he wandered out into the main body of the church. He glanced upwards and peered at the oddly blurry decorations up there.

“Odd. Probably a pigeon,” he muttered to himself, making a mental note to tell the verger that the bird must be removed before the service.

*

Time was running out. Phrenalia had to get the thurible before the dignitaries started to gather. If they should see anything untoward, then it didn’t exactly make for an auspicious start for Manatos’ big moment, being outfoxed by an infernal creature. The demon had learned her tricks now. Every time she swept at it, it dodged clean out of the way with a giggle.

She’d show him.

The next time she circled round, she made to fly at the demon. When it dodged, however, this time she made a sharp turn and intercepted it mid-jump. The demon let out a squeak of surprise. It was so shocked – to Phrenalia’s delight – that it immediately decorporealised and vanished in a puff of sin.

With a caw of triumph, she caught the dropped thurible in mid-air and winged her way towards the vestry.

*

The thurible had not been in the church, nor the antechapel, nor the cart in which Manatos had been conveyed there. He really was at a loss, when he wandered into the vestry and found the object of his quest lying on the desk where he had first sought it.

“Ah! Thiaz be praised! There it was all along.” Manatos shook his head at himself with a rueful smile. “I wonder why I didn’t notice it? Maybe my eyes aren’t what they once were. Ah well, can’t be helped, can’t be helped…”

He went about his business, muttering cheerfully to himself all the while. He didn’t notice the flutter of wings in the rafters above him. All was as it should be.

Author’s Note

This story was written as part of my October 2021 Writing Challenge. The prompt was “Thurible”.

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