Sandbox Post with Plot Catchup In A Flashback
Aiden had not slept well in the past few days, for all of the obvious reasons. Oh, the handsome young man wasn't worried about Shilo, not really. Sure, he had bonded with his little sister more than almost any other person in the world, save perhaps his mother....and his adopted-sister-turned-lover. But no, Aiden wasn't wallowing in terror over what might become of the young girl that had permanently secured a place in the swashbuckler's heart. After all, if Shilo was safe anywhere in the world, it would be wherever Talon Sky was.
Aiden kept telling himself these things....so why didn't he believe his own mind?
Several days ago
Aiden crossed his arms and leaned against the wall of Anna's room, his sharp gray eyes full of disapproval. Talon and Anna were discussing things while Shilo hummed cheerfully and packed a small bag, the seven year old never letting some brand new book that her mother had just given her out of sight. Both Shilo and Talon were wearing black cloaks that Aiden's father had produced by dark magick, cloaks that shimmered despite the lack of moving light and with silver tassels that looked like captured moonlight.
The same cloaks worn by the Nobodies, the very enemies Talon and Shilo were off to spy on. It was smart and practical to wear those cloaks, Talon was in the middle of reassuring Anna. They were made from some creatures of darkness called Dementors and would serve well to obfuscate the pair from the Nobodies, as well as protect their hearts from the evil energy that made up the mystical corridors of darkness the Nobodies were establishing. Talon had left his hood down, but Shilo kept pulling hers up and down; each time it was pulled up, her entire face was hidden in magical darkness.
The hours of prep had been long, with many tears and nearly a screaming match the one time Talon had pulled his hood up to test it. In that cloak, with his face hidden, there was nothing to distinguish Talon Sky from his darker alter ego, Laxton. Doing this in front of Anna had been a big mistake, and so it became Aiden's job to watch his father like a hawk and prevent any more screw ups on the half-demon's part.
It was a harder job than one might realize.
Present
Aiden had managed to nod off only momentarily, before the image of Talon and Shilo walking, cloaked, into that corridor of dark fire startled him awake again. It had been a hell of a few days since then; Anna had disappeared into her room, Grotham had flown off on some "mission from Talon". Hell, even Kat had been less than her normally talkative, kind self. The very atmosphere of the Inn smelled depressing.
No.....actually, it smelled like coffee.
Dressed in a simple black shirt and black sweatpants, Aiden tied his shoulder length blond hair back and made his way downstairs. It was sometime before dawn, and it seemed like the only sound in the world was the rhythmic spitting of the coffee pot. The young quarter-demon grinned as he caught that familiar scent of coffee mixed with fresh books, an undeniable indication that Anna had indeed rejoined the land of the living.
(Everyone feel free to jump in as you wish. Nova, do you want your character's scream to be heard now, or would you rather her wander up on her own?)
With
200
100
100
