rrrrmmm… rrrm… rm…
Thunk.
Step...step...step...
A house of many a stone, wood and glass.
Concrete.
Clink, clink.
"...Seven whole days and its still raining..."
creaaak…
"...I'm home..."
Her voice echoed through the house, bouncing off the walls.
The smell of food drifted through the air, warm and rich, cutting straight into her stomach. She braced herself against the wall as she slipped off her shoes and set them neatly aside.
A pair of slippers waited just inside. She picked them up and slid them on without a second thought.
At last, her feet were free from the wet outside. She had already changed into a fresh pair of socks long before arriving.
"I'm gonna shower, okay?!"
Her voice carried through both stories of the house. She turned and shut the front door behind her.
"Wait!"
A voice reached her first, then the quick, light footfalls that followed. Sienna turned the corner just in time to see a young woman rush straight at her—long light-brown hair touched with wheat, with white feline ears flicking with every step.
She wore a simple but cute sleeveless dress with a checked pattern, each little square smaller than Sienna's pinky.
Then her footing gave out.
The young woman stumbled and hit the floor, stopping only a few feet short of her own disaster.
Sienna flinched, her mouth falling open before a reflexive curse slipped out.
"Oh shit!—Dude…you good? Hello?...Ikade?"
She crouched and poked Ikade's cheek once, then again, gently pressing the soft flesh to make sure she was still conscious.
Ikade let out a faint groan.
Her chest rose and fell while her eyes blinked open with the flat look of someone reconsidering life itself.
"Shut up."
The words came out muffled, one cheek still pressed against the floor.
Sienna snorted.
Before she could stop herself, a hand flew over her mouth and a giggle slipped through her exhaustion.
A few minutes later, Sienna was still doubled over, wheezing. Ikade, meanwhile, looked ready to disappear from sheer embarrassment.
"Its not funny! Shaddup!"
Ikade hid her face in her arms, her cheeks pressed against her knees. Her fluffy ears twitched at every giggle that escaped Sienna, her face burning red.
"Cough—! Heh—It's not funny, but it's funny—heh—hahhh—hahahaha…"
Sienna clutched her stomach, coughing between fits of laughter, all while she slid down the wall.
"I'm gonna piss myself."
Ikade shot her a wide-eyed look.
"Eww! Hello?!? TMI!"
Sienna slowly came down from it, dragging in deep breaths, her stomach still cramped from laughing too hard. She pushed herself upright with care, then made her way down the nonexistent hallway, found the staircase and climbed up.
She made haste for the room she wanted—her bedroom, a small one at that, still the same way she left it.
With a drop of her shoulders, she dropped her bag on the ground.
"I'm home...finally, after so long."
She stripped down until she was left in nothing but her underwear, before she tossed a look to her closet.
She opened it up, pulled out a change of clothes, and headed for the bathroom. Once inside, she shut the door behind her and turned the shower knob.
A moment later, warm water poured into the tub.
Steam crept over the mirror and swallowed her reflection. Droplets formed along the glass, then slowly slipped downward through blurry eyes.
"Do I need...new glasses already?"
"Hwah...."
fwhup~ fwhup~
Her hair, softness embodied.
"Huhh..."
She blinked a few times at her reflection—a tired face, cool as ever. White and blue strands drifted across her vision, unfocused. Sienna wiped the mirror once, and her unruly hair came back into view.
She grabbed the hair dryer and pressed the power button. It blew to life. She aimed it at her wrist first, then twisted the knob.
Her fingers moved to the band-aids wrapped around from her finger up. One by one, she peeled them away.
The little hard masses beneath caught the light at once, each one reflecting the bathroom around her. Both hands were covered in them, with one cluster stretching up her forearm.
Sienna ignored them and lifted the dryer to her head, her eyes shutting again.
Warm air rushed across her scalp, the pain in her hands fading beneath the noise.
A necklace rested against her neck, simple in every way. A thin brown cord held a small vial that swayed lightly with every movement.
She ran her fingers through her hair for several minutes, working through the tangles a little at a time.
Then, she shut the dryer off, set it on the counter.
"Hah."
Sienna dug through the small basket beneath the mirror, pushing past expired medicine and old receipts until her hand found what she needed most—painkillers.
She twisted the bottle open, then dropped two—no, three pills into her palm before tossing the empty container aside.
She cupped her hands beneath the running tap and let it pool.
"glup… glup…hahh."
She turned and opened the door, her slippers padding softly against the floor as she made her way to the bed. The clothes she had left behind lifted from the floor and followed after her.
Her discarded clothes landed on the mattress in a messy heap. She moved her medicine bag off to the side, then reached for her jacket and rummaged through the front pockets for anything still inside.
Done, she gathered the clothes in one arm and glanced out the bedroom window, the city glowing in the distance.
Her thoughts numerous like the street lights.
Once downstairs, she pivoted one-eighty, her eyes settling on the spacious laundry room.
Sienna walked around the island and stopped beside a washer already hard at work, then slid toward the unused one next to it.
whff—
Her clothes remained suspended even after she dropped them.
She opened the washer lid and walked off, letting the dirty clothes toss themselves inside. A few detergent pods doing the same.
The washer door slammed shut and the machine powered on.
She moved through the open doorway and took a right, passing the garage on her left.
A few more steps brought her to another left, past a small furnished lounge, then one more left after that.
That turn took her past a staircase on her left and a living space on her right. She cut through the pantry ahead, sidestepped the island with ease, and opened another door.
The smell of food hit her at once—rich, savory, warm, just like the person who made it.
Ikade sat at the dining table, eating with one hand and doom-scrolling through her phone with the other. The TV played somewhere deeper in the main living room, its light flickering across the walls of concrete, stone, and wood.
Sienna pulled out a chair and sat across from her.
Above them, the wooden squares in the ceiling gave the room a quiet sense of warmth. She clasped her hands for a moment, offering blessings and asking for others, then started eating without hesitation.
She dug into the spread before her. One hand took up the fork. The other reached for a few slices of homemade bread, dipping one into the sauce.
"Hic!"
Her utensils clattered against the plate, and she took a swig of red wine with real gusto. Beneath the chicken sat a bed of pasta, buried under a heavy sauce and finished with a scattering of greens.
clink—clatter…
"shff…mnch…crunch…mmm...more please..."
Every now and then, Ikade glanced up at her, the smile on her face never fading.
"Hic!"
"Hic!"
Her head rested on Ikade's lap, eyes half-open and glossy from food and exhaustion. Ikade watched the TV without much thought, her tail curled lazily against the couch.
On the screen, a drama was reaching its climax.
「You promised you'd come back!」
A woman cried, her voice cracking as rain hammered against a window.
The camera cut to a man standing under a sign, bleeding from his side and trying to smile.
「I did come back…just not the same way.」
"That line was terrible—" Ikade muttered, flicking a chip crumb from Sienna's cheek. "Who writes this stuff?"
"Hh-hic! Don't be mean…"
Sienna slurred, reaching for the bowl beside her and missing by a few inches before finally grabbing a handful. "He's…dying. Let him be dramatic."
"He's been dying for three episodes." Ikade adjusted her sitting position, lowering the volume a notch.
"If I ever take that long to die, just shoot me twice."
Sienna didn't respond, a mouthful of chips already in her mouth, her voice muffled while she chewed. Crumbs rolled down her chin and onto Ikade's thigh.
「Don't you see? You were my reason!」
The woman on the screen shouted, clinging to the wounded man.
"Agh, now she's crying again!" Ikade groaned, reaching for the remote.
"No—no—leave it!"
Sienna flailed a hand weakly toward the screen, crumbs falling down to the floor. "I wanna see if he actually dies this time."
"No."
The screen went black, and her hand dropped limply, hitting the sofa. Ikade stood and finished the remaining chips.
"I'm going to bed. I'm too tired to stay awake any longer."
Ikade gave her a lazy wave and walked off, stepping up the two stairs leading into the dining area, her tail almost brushing the floor.
Sienna stretched out and stared at the ceiling, feeling the blood rush to her head.
For a while, she just lay there, caught somewhere between rest and after-work.
After much deliberation, she pushed herself off the sofa and made her way through the dining room.
Her gaze lingered briefly on the wall of bushes and foliage running parallel to the stone wall. She passed through the pantry stocked with goods, then took the right that led toward the garage.
Her fingers moved across the garage keypad without hesitation.
Step step step.
She pressed the overhead door button twice.
clack...clack...
The mechanism overhead spun to life, and the garage opened inch by inch.
So did the cold.
Once the city came into view, Sienna stepped outside and walked to her car parked out front. Her eyes caught her gear for only a moment before its outline began to shimmer and blur.
Little by little, the rear seats came through.
A moment later, she was already back in the garage with everything she needed, even with the darkness of the garage.
clack...clack...
Her eyes adjusted quickly, landing first on her latest project sitting on a lift—low, sleek, and black. The entire front end had been gutted, nothing left but wires hanging from the chassis.
Even the front suspension was gone. Beneath the car lay the missing assembly, or part of it at least. The steering rack rested on a pallet, the wheels stacked over the coilovers.
Boxes covered the wall to her left.
Her gaze shifted right and found her most recently completed project—a glossy lime-green beast on silver rims. Its rear tapered into the shape of a wagon, even though it wasn't one.
Wider than stock.
Then her eyes moved farther down.
In the soft glow sat Ikade's car—a bright orange machine missing its rear bumper, wide wheels jutting from its low stance, planted to the ground with impeccable fitment.
And in front of it sat the shitbox, a small truck parked parallel to the garage door with a rusted passenger door.
Against the far wall stood a large CNC machine, taking up the center of the space. Hoists, chains, stacked boxes, and a welding machine bolted to the wall filled out the rest, its cable running upward and hanging from the ceiling.
She walked to the middle of the garage and turned to face the wall.
Snap~!
At once, the partition split down the middle and peeled away to both sides. Metal, glass, and opaque panels parted halfway to reveal the booth beyond.
She stepped into the booth without wasting another second.
The familiar clutter welcomed her back—dismantled parts, half-finished work, and the quiet mess on a table. She grabbed the rolling chair near the entrance, spun it around, and dropped into it.
A push from her foot sent her gliding across the smooth concrete until she stopped in front of a laptop.
Sienna grabbed it and placed it in her lap before—
Thunk!
Something rocked the work table before a figure revealed itself, the same one she returned with.
A driver.
She shoved part of the mess aside and opened the laptop.
Her hand reached for a smaller cable hanging from the front of the station and pulled it free from a half-broken container.
She leaned past the side of the laptop, plugged it in, and found the power button with her finger.
A second later, the screen came to life.
The sound of her button mashing echoed through the room once the background took over.
tap...tap tap tap...tap tap!
A paperclip icon pulsed, and she pressed it twice.
While it loaded, Sienna rose to her feet and ran her hands over her tool, shuffling its cover to the side, then over the micro rig fixed to its side. Her fingers found a pin beneath it, and she yanked hard.
Clnkk!
She set it aside, reached in again, and pulled another toward her, only for her knuckles to bash against the metal bracket holding it.
"Hija de—!"
She repeated the motion six more times, working through the rig and the bag beside it. Once the brackets started to slide free, she pulled them loose and hung them on a nearby hanger before moving the cover aside.
Hooking a finger through a hoop, she pulled hard to the left. A panel lifted slightly from the driver's chassis.
Sienna grabbed hold of it and shoved it farther left until it came free completely. She ignored the wrinkled sky-blue cloth beneath it and focused instead on the three dots blinking near the right corner.
Two held a steady green glow. The third flashed red.
A quiet hum left her as she leaned over the laptop, clicked the music icon twice, and brought up her playlist.
One song sat paused halfway through. She scrolled up and pressed play.
It started with silence.
Then the room filled with sound.
Let me wake up in your arms, you say it's not alright~♪
After a glance at the open panel, she inserted the end into a port just beneath the glowing lights. Sienna sat back down and scrolled past a handful of programs and useless files until she found the one she wanted.
It offered a few options. She checked several boxes, scrolled back up, and hit run.
The screen blacked out for a moment before a loading bar took center stage.
Sienna grabbed the end of the driver and pulled it toward herself. Its weight fought her the whole way, scraping stubbornly across the workstation and leaving behind another dent.
Once the stock slid past the edge, an opaque arrow appeared on the laptop screen, its tail curled into a glowing red circle.
PSHHHH—! CLUNK!
Something extended from the stock, and Sienna grabbed the hilt—a faded yellow wrapped in black lines. She pulled on it and the crumpled white cloth packed near the hilt began to decompress, rough and stiff as it came loose.
Once it was removed, a thin trail of brownish-black liquid dripped from the exposed end.
She snapped her fingers.
Rrr—Rrt—Rrk!
Plastic wheels rattled across the floor, and a cart rolled in hard enough to slam against her leg.
Sienna set the piece down on the cart, letting the droplets stain the plastic instead of her workstation. Two minutes of the song had already slipped by. She could hear liquid moving inside the driver, the faint crawl of air bubbles running through its length.
Her eyes drifted to the container hanging from the workstation. She rummaged through the bundle of cables until her fingers found a small box.
She opened it and found a single chip resting inside. A second later, it was seated in the laptop.
A soft sweetness drifted into her nose, her mind barely catching it.
She pulled up another program just as a green drop hit the table. A prompt blinked into view, and she accepted the terms without hesitation.
A few lines of code flickered across half her vision, then compressed into a single line and slid off to the side.
Her laptop screen began filling with lines of information, only for another window to override it and pull her eyes in.
Those two should be fine. I only replaced them a few weeks ago, that's fine too I guess...
But it keeps losing coolant...
Drip—drip drip drip.
Sienna looked toward the half-dismantled driver. Green fluid still seeped from it.
"Whut?!"
If she'd had water in her mouth, she would've spit it everywhere. She rolled closer to the cart, snatched a handful of shop towels from below, wiped down the workstation, and stuffed a few beneath the leaking tube.
"Auuh! I literally changed you before I left! C'mon...Hahhh..."
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me...I already fixed this. I already fixed this once! Don't start this shit again..."
Her eyes swept over the workstation, looking for the cheater bar.
The moment she found it, she dragged it over and slipped on a fresh pair of latex gloves. By then, the next song was already blasting through the garage.
She stuffed a few more towels under the fitting, grabbed the wrench, and carefully caught the hose.
One shove. Her weight went behind it.
The fitting loosened and her knuckles smashed against the desk. The glove barely helped. She rubbed at the bruise already forming.
"Dammit."
She pushed herself up, crossed to the boxes stacked against the wall, and dug out a few O-rings.
When she came back, the leak was worse.
Sienna unscrewed the fitting the rest of the way. One hard pull finally freed it, and she had to yank the old ring out from where it had stuck inside. Both gloves were already slick with coolant.
She reset the fitting and tightened it by hand first.
Then she locked it down with the wrench and checked the other end, barely an inch away from the cable.
One glove came off. She freed the cable from the port. The panel would cover the fitting anyway, so that was about all she could do there.
Another hose sat shoved beneath the one she'd just fixed, wedged farther in, its other end disappearing behind another panel.
Her eyes flicked to the two blinking yellow chip icons in the corner. She read what they were and dismissed them both.
Back in the chair, she grabbed the flashlight from the cart and shone it into the empty space at the rear of the driver.
The fluid looked clean, no flakes anywhere in sight.
"Mmhh...looks fine, I guess...not like I can just walk into a store and buy a pseudocap."
She stood and reached toward the back wall, her fingers closing around the hose coiled on its hoist. A pull on the lever near the nozzle brought it down toward where the scope would have sat—if the driver had actually been a firearm.
She forced the nozzle in despite the awkward angle.
It began to whirl with every passing second.
Both the oil and coolant pumps whirred to life. Sienna held the lever down, listening to the overhead pump force coolant through the driver.
The hose jerked with a sharp metallic click, and a dropdown bloomed across the white wall, lines of information flashing through it.
Pressure climbed in both systems, she only pulled the nozzle free once enough coolant had run through.
Her eyes stayed fixed on the fitting, watching for any sign of a fresh leak. Once she let go, the hose lifted back up on its own.
Sienna flicked her hand like she was swatting away a bug and the information collapsed into a smaller form.
"Mmhaa...what time is it now?...Ah, just past midnight."
With her gloves off, she recoupled the metal panel back onto the driver's body.
Sienna grabbed the rig and trauma kit still hanging from their brackets and gave them a firm yank, locking them back onto the driver.
Farther to the left, another container was attached—metal, matte black, slimmer than a briefcase.
A slim handle sat near the bottom, tracing the gunmetal frame within.
The back of her head thumped once, and the driver lifted on its own, flipped to the other side, then slammed onto the desk with a thunk.
A worn, battered crossbow crossed her view. Its container was shaped a little differently, barely holding onto the stock and throwing off its outline.
She grabbed the case's handle and pulled hard, un-collapsing it a couple of times.
"Oh, thank Terra! It didn't break! "
Beneath it, the other two capacitors still held firm.
Her gaze flicked to the two objects angled forward, dull red with flattened bodies and matte-black handles at the top.
"Extinguishers are okay too."
"Hahhh..."
Sienna leaned back in the chair and draped one arm over her face.
Her mind drifted nowhere useful, exhaustion creeping in by the second. She gave herself a lazy spin in the chair, her hair catching the air before the motion slowed on its own.
She reached over and closed the laptop. The music cut off with it. Her fingers found the shard at her neck, yanked it free, and tossed it beside the machine.
"I'll do it tomorrow...mmnh...not doing this anymore...need sleep..."
Sienna pushed herself to her feet, already done with the day, and dragged herself out the door.
With a last finger snap, the garage returned to normal, everything being swallowed by the dark.
She passed through the secondary living room—more a game room than anything now, and headed straight for the hallway across from the stairs. One by one, the lights went out behind her, each switch drowning another part of the house.
Step...step...step
Her hair bounced with every shuffle, her sight blurring from sleep.
After a long minute, she was where she wanted to be.
The room was split in two, joined by a bathroom in the middle, though Sienna had never cared much for the layout. At this point, she moved on repetition alone, brushing her teeth half-asleep.
Her eyes drooped shut before she even rinsed. When she lifted her head, her reflection stared back with those same cool eyes.
She held it for a breath, then shut the lights off.
Her feet carried her straight to Ikade's side.
She slipped off her slippers and crawled beneath the covers, wrapping both arms around her waist. Her face buried itself against those soft ears, breathing in the faint scent of warmth and home.
Something in her eased.
Her shoulders loosened. Her joints still ached, stiff and familiar, but they no longer felt quite so unbearable.
Who needed painkillers when Ikadium existed.
"Chiyade..." She mumbled
Her lips brushed against one ear, and the next words slurred together.
"You're... way too good t'me..."
"fhh—hh..."
Sleep.
More sleep.
Hours of sleep.
"Mmhh..."
Her eye's fluttered open, her pupils slowly adjusting to the light.
Auhh...everything's getting more and more blurry everyday...I haven't done anything to intense though..
She burrowed deeper into the bed. With Ikade no longer at her side, her heart turned a little blue.
I can sleep in right? I'm...too...
A pillow landed softly on her face, its padding offering a brief bit of relief.
She pushed it away with her head, her tufts turning even more unruly when Ikade perched herself over her.
There she was in the flesh, half-lidded eyes carrying a soft smile. She wore a simple long-sleeved knitted sweater, cream-colored, with a light brown skirt that fell to her calves.
Ikade stepped back a little and tucked a bit of hair behind her ear.
"So?" Ikade asked, voice light with mild amusement. "What's the verdict?"
Ikade leaned forward a little, one hand clasped over the other, the gentle curve of her charm on full display.
Part of her hair fell across one eye.
Sienna's voice came out muffled beneath the blanket weighing her down.
"Thanks...for the treat."
She stretched her legs, and the blanket slid down her body while sunlight spilled across her face. By then, Ikade had already wandered off to the restroom, rummaging through drawers for something.
Pushing herself up, Sienna rubbed at her wrist before getting out of bed. It still felt tired. She swung her feet over the edge and slipped them into her slippers.
Once both feet were in, she stood and walked to the closet, pulling the doors open wide.
She tugged out a big, fluffy blue jacket, having to wrestle one side free from where it had barely fit. Then she rummaged around for a pair of pants and found them soon enough.
They were straight-fit, worn, and faded from use. She crouched to open another drawer and fished out a crop top the same color as her eyes, only duller, the fabric rough to the touch.
The clothes landed on the bed in a soft pile.
She dressed quickly, tugged her jacket straight, and gave herself a once-over. The crop top stopped just above her belly button. Her necklace still rested against her chest, the vial catching the light with a faint glint.
Ikade appeared behind her and walked closer, brushing her hair with lazy intent. Without shoes, the height difference between them stood out more—Sienna had a good three inches on her.
They sat down on the bed together, the mattress dipping under their weight. Ikade hummed softly and brushed the tufts above Sienna's head back into place.
Her eyes flicked downward for a moment, catching the faint curve of skin beneath Sienna's jacket before she looked away again.
Sienna lifted her wrist and tapped the screen.
The date appeared.
'January 14, 1635 CE'
It didn't take long before Sienna found herself brushing her teeth, rinsing out the toothpaste, applying deodorant, and wrapping fresh band-aids over her wrists and left forearm.
Then she dragged herself to the dining room and grabbed a slice of bread. The two of them talked about nothing in particular on the way to the garage, Ikade already holding the keys before passing them over.
They stepped through the door and Sienna's eyes settled on the small dot in the middle of her vision, opaque like every other marker. When she focused on it, a car silhouette appeared at its center.
Not even a second later, the garage door began to push outward.
"Let's take mine."
Sienna said, already walking ahead.
"She hasn't gotten enough attention lately."
They climbed in and buckled themselves into the lime-green car, its tan interior almost teasing to the eyes. The rearview mirror gave her nothing but the wooden wall behind them.
She pressed the clutch, dropped the handbrake, and turned the key. The engine cranked to life, all six hundred and ninety-two horsepower of it. It idled for twenty seconds before she let it creep forward, blipped the throttle, and lifted the nose slightly.
Once outside, light bounced off the concrete below as she rolled past her Alfi parked at an angle near the front door. The garage shut behind them after they cleared the gate.
Sienna coasted forward, her foot pressing down bit by bit. The tachometer climbed. The engine's growl swelled through the cabin until the exhaust screamed back at the world. Ikade's ears flattened, and she covered them with both hands.
The stutter in the setup tickled Sienna's ear with its distinct tone.
The moment she found an opening, the car rolled out onto the street, pissing off everyone around them while a few people pulled out their phones to record.
Flames spat from the rear, nearly licking the front bumper of the car behind them.
What should have taken forty minutes ended up taking twice that long by the time they were done driving around, messing around, and getting carried away.
Ikade sipped through her straw while music played inside the car, the two of them waiting for traffic to budge. They were barely five minutes from their destination, so Sienna made the executive decision to pull into the parking lot on the left.
She paid ahead for an hour and let the car roll into a corner spot, shut the engine off, slipped it into reverse, and pulled the handbrake.
They got out and started walking toward the familiar building, conveniently just five minutes away.
Sienna looked to the side and the city handed her Ikade's profile like a reward.
Daylight and the shadows of the buildings played across her face in turns, like night and day. A breeze slipped between, strong enough to stir the strands near Ikade's cheek and make her lashes flutter.
"See something you like?"
Sienna's face locked up for half a beat before she looked away. Ikade glanced at her, then followed her line of sight.
"Huh...is it just me or are there more guards this time huh?"
Ikade took the last sip of her drink before tossing it in a nearby bin while her eyes floated over the cruisers and the extra bodies posted nearby.
"Looks like they're not taking chances this time."
Their feet carried them the rest of the way. They passed through the normal-looking building and closed in on the receptionist. Where an older man sat with a newspaper in his hand.
"Sup."
Sienna gave him a lazy wave and kept walking, earning nothing more than a grunt before she pressed the elevator call button.
A chime rang out when the doors slid open. She stepped inside and Ikade pressed the button for the fifth floor.
"Can't you just take us up there?"
Sienna asked, staring at the numbers ticking higher, her tone flat with boredom.
"Nope!" Ikade said, drawing the pause out on purpose just to make her wait. "I'm not that good. Besides, I didn't go to school for that. You know this."
"You're actually...kind of...useless, y'know that?"
Ikade smacked her on the arm.
The elevator opened onto a floor that looked normal at first glance. Clean. Polished. Better than some semi-prestigious hotels.
The lobby had people loitered around, though none of them felt random.
Most wore regular clothes.
Hoodies, jackets, loose shirts, everyday street clothes. A few dressed dapper than them, clean suit, cocktail dresses, a blend of many.
Sienna's eyes flicked toward the glass wall to the far right, catching the weaponry on display for less then a second.
Lined in neat rows, firearms rested at angles. Blades sat beneath them, while a few longer pieces sat locked behind thicker glass. Small cards rested under each item.
At the end of the hall, she slipped through a door and into a small bar where food sizzled somewhere behind the counter. Oil, salt, grilled meat, and something sweet underneath wafted to her.
The air was warmer, carrying a low conversation and the occasional scrape of a chair against the floor.
A man behind the counter lifted his chin when he saw her.
"Sienna."
She answered with a lazy flick of her fingers without slowing down.
Sienna followed the curve of the building, passing a booth where two men argued under their breath over a tablet and another where a woman ate with gusto.
They reached the next set of doors, heavier than the last ones.
The moment they stepped farther in, Ikade slowed.
"Are you sure you're not doing anything you're not supposed to be doing?"
Sienna looked back and stared at the uncertain face before her.
"When have I ever done anything to worry you?"
"..."
Step step step.
What waited ahead was a young man in a neat suit, with a much larger man beside him, black-haired and broad through the shoulders. Their tails moved with slow, easy sways.
Neither said a word when she passed. Her eyes caught on the taller man's beard for a moment, thick enough to swallow half his face. A rifle rested under one arm, held close against the chest rig he wore.
The other had a shield resting on his leg, its faded surface scarred by old dents and deep marks. Sienna gave it one glance and kept moving.
She knocked once and pushed the doors open without waiting for an answer.
Ikade, at least, had the decency to announce herself.
"Yo!"
"Hello."
Ikade spoke first, waving with both hands like a polite student trying to make up for her partner's lack of manners. Sienna only gave a lazy wave, then nudged Ikade through the double doors despite her protest.
Inside, a man sat in a spacious but cluttered room, a few folders stacked off to one side while he clicked away at a keyboard. The place was furnished well, aged in a way that pleasantly pleased Sienna's eye.
"Y'know...can you at least let me respond before you barge in."
His voice was slightly hoarse. His once navy-blue hair had already begun to gray, and his ears had gone white with it.
"Why would I ever do that?"
Sienna titled her head slightly.
He looked back at her with dull green eyes worn down by experience. His frame had thinned with age, but he still looked healthy enough.
"Why cant you be like Kaede?"
Sienna's grin faded. Her teeth clenched for a second before she forced her expression back into something flat.
"How's your day been, Edo?"
"Its been well, Maria is shopping today so she wont be back till later."
"I'm your daughter you know? You could at least pretend to care."
She turned her head aside with a tired little protest, one hand rising to her chest. Her eyes stayed on him anyway.
"I'm sorry—which one are you again? There's just so many of you, I can't be bothered remembering your names."
Edo stared right back. Their gazes locked with the ease of an old machine, well-used and still running, one she'd spent years helping build.
Sienna clicked her tongue, yanked open her bag, and pulled out a packet.
She shrugged and paced in a small circle.
"I wasn't able to retrieve it, so I gave up."
Her voice flattened, dropping lower with each word.
She threw her hands up, leaned to one side, and stretched her arms forward. Her fingers spread wide like the jaws of some beast closing around Edo's head.
"I was so—close!"
Her voice climbed with frustration, then her hands snapped shut with a clap, swallowing Edo's head behind them while her eyes stayed fixed on the makeshift jaw.
"Tch, so much for my retirement."
Edo took the packet and added it to the pile beside him. The room fell stale until he finally spoke.
"So—" He said, looking up at her. "Are you okay?"
Sienna blinked, her eyes looking his up and down behind the wooden desk.
"Hhah? Why wouldn't I be?"
"You just look tired, the greying hair you wish I'd never noticed—" Edo gestured, pointing at a grey patch of hair. "—you're turning into...me."
She looked absolutely disgusted with his words—mortified even, her whole body recoiling and she took a step back.
"Ew, please don't say that."
She looked at him like he was something stuck to the bottom of her shoe.
He leaned back in his chair with that old-man look that made her want to vanish into an alley and throw up.
"You know, if I were thirty years younger—"
"Stop. Stop right there."
Sienna threw her arms up to her side, pivoting anywhere but in his office. "I'm leaving before I throw up."
"I'll see you in a couple."
She pushed back through the door. Ikade gave one last wave, twisting just enough for their eyes to meet through the narrowing gap.
The smile had already left his face.
What remained in the worn chair was not the man from a moment ago.
Only an old Perro.