rewind

Her eyes snapped open when she realized that it was the sunlight warming her face. She shot up, forgetting about the fresh injuries she had sustained the night before and winced when they protested. With a short groan, she flicked back the covers and slipped out of the bed. As soon as she stepped out into the hallway, she knew where she was going, though she'd never been there before. She had enough contact with Ales to pull key markers from his memories.

It was as if she'd lived there herself.

"I've never seen you in the daytime," he remarked as she stepped into the dining room, then he looked up from the paper. "Are you alright?"

That was the second time he'd asked her. But this time, she was ready.

"I'm an esper, not a vampire, Ales," she sighed, mouth pressing into a mild pout as she joined him at the table. "Sorry, you had to carry me back here."

"Who was that?"

"You don't waste time, do you?" She chuckled, reaching for a piece of toast. "He's a mad scientist. He wants to experiment on me. Apparently, meeting an esper with healing abilities is extremely unusual."

Ales stared at her, mildly disturbed and hesitant to accept it for what it was.

"You would think I'd be able to take care of it on my own," she murmured. "But that new gun of his... This brand. I can't get my abilities to manifest. Someone is helping him. This is going to get messy."

"What do you need us to do?" He asked, folding the paper and tossing it onto the table.

She paused mid-chew and shook her head at him. "You can't get involved, Ales," she said. "This is way too big for any of us."

Ales frowned and tapped his finger against the tabletop. "We aren't going to sit around and do nothing," he argued. "I'm going to protect you, whether you allow it or not."

"You're so hardheaded," she groaned.