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At Caelius return, Kat went silent. She was curious on how long it would take for him to show up. Not that she cared. Though, with luck, maybe the whole chaos with those students would keep him from noticing that she was even there. After all, she was in no rush to take another trip to the desert.

One look, she thought, was enough to confirm her mental question.

Yup, totally the type to kick puppies.

"No need to apologize, sunbeam." Lex smiled, letting go of her hand. She seemed like she was getting a hold on herself again, which was a good sign.

Then Caelius came and started to threaten...students? What the hell were they even doing here? How did they even...?

Oh, right, Kat. She was pressing herself into the bed, scared stiff. He threw a sheet over her, hiding her from him; with how pissed the man seemed, Lex didn't want him seeing someone he'd sent off to die. He made himself look busy, fearing the Death leads wrath and the power over him he held at the moment.

A hand crept into Ceres' own and there was a squeeze. Bix was there at her side, quiet as Caelius laid it down. The archer had been drifting among the gathered crowd to mentally catalogue if all of his friends were all right. He wasn't exactly involved in the students coming along but he at least knew who Mei was.

The memory of Allan being left there was eating at him.

"I'm gonna head back." To his room. He leaned in to whisper to Ceres, placing a kiss on her temple. He was relieved she was alright but seemed to be a bit anxious.

"I'll see you later maybe?" Bix was somber and quiet in the wake of this mission but it had been their first major one since returning.

With another squeeze to her hand, he slipped back through the crowd again and headed back to his room.

[EXIT]

It had been easy to assume he was all right. He'd just opened his eyes and compared to the suffocating darkness beforehand the stark bright of day had seemed a rejuvenating relief. He assumed he was healthy and mended, back in the fray and ready to do his job fighting back the armies all around him. It didn't take long to register there were no more armies and that he wasn't well yet at all, his breath coming up short, body feeling chill and drained as his brain was informed it was writing checks it couldn't cash. Tracey flickered out feebly and he dropped back to the cot with a look of startled surprise, almost slipping back into the dark oblivion of unconsciousness as his vision wavered and darkened - but he held on, determined he wouldn't fall back into those dark and fitful dreams.

Harrison got a confused look, uncomprehending, what was the daft git sorry for? He was alive, he was okay, he'd brought him back like he knew he would.

He raised a hand to weakly pat his arm.

"You didnae."

The touch on her shoulder had been unexpected, concentrating too much on the current situation. So of course, she did make a squeaking noise as she turned and nearly slammed her head into Bix's as he was right there.

She barely stopped in time.

A chill ran down her spine as she too remembered suddenly. How could she have forgotten? He had not mentioned it, but she knew him well enough to know something was eating at him. She had tried not to think about Allan being left behind, wondering if he was ok or if.... the horsemen. She liked Allan. Ceres had a hunch that was what was eating at Bix.

Turning towards Kat and Lex, she gave them both small smiles. She knew Kat was in good hands, Kat did not need her at the moment. "I have something i need to attend to as well, we will talk later ok?"

[exit]

[ENTERING]

It was some time after the initial wave of exhausted and injured swept in that Jordan appeared, looking tired and haunted, Ferros still in his hand, though the weapon dissolved back into his totem form a moment later. He scanned the field, picking familiar faces out of the chaos; Cass and Melvin just leaving, Ceres, Ofelia, Jerry - there were Rep and Harrison, and a tiny bit of the tension he carried eased.

He was about to move over to check on them when a too-familiar, inhumanly cracked face caught his eye. Ferros was resummoned in an instant as a memory of blinding pain made the thin, pale scars on the left side of his neck ache. The broken doll had nearly killed them in the Haunted House. What was she doing here?

Tense moments slid by until he realized that the creature wasn't making any aggressive moves, that she was, in fact, surrounded by several hunters, and seemed to be staying close to Gale and Eva. Maybe, just maybe, she was here as a weapons candidate.

Stupid, he groaned mentally. It wasn't as though one of the students would be here to attack, not here, not surrounded by so many hunters. Horsemen - well, he wouldn't put it past that particular subtype of freak to take on an insane suicide mission and plunge straight in. But not the less fanatic sorts of creatures. He cautiously desummoned again and made his way over towards Harrison and Rep, though he still kept a wary eye out towards the little knot of people surrounding the doll.

Harrison grasped the hand, and lifted it up to kiss the knuckles. His cheeks were wet. ********, he was a mess.

"Yeah," he rasped, at last, "We made it out."

He looked again to the door- and this time Jordan was there, walking over and half-occupied with the group Caelius was addressing.

He didn't wait for Jordan to walk the whole way, holding Jordan in between his hands and sweeping him up in a deep kiss. He felt like he'd been thrown overboard and each contact was holding on to the only rope tying him to the ship.