The sound of trumpets rang throughout the whole small town of Miss. Dawson's Home for the Truly Gifted, its volume so loud it was sure to wake the deepest of deep sleepers. After the song played out till the end a voice came on the speakers, a happy cheerful voice of a younger woman though was definitely older but not yet middle aged.

"Good morning everyone, and welcome to another day at your new home. Food is being served now at the mall, so hurry over there before it gets cold. Also, jobs start at eleven thirty after lunch and end at dinner time at six thirty. Please be dressed for your jobs and ready to work, as there will be no breaks at all. Have a wonderful day everyone!" The woman said before the speakers shut off. Miss. Dawson took a deep breath in and out, taking a gulp of her strong dark roast coffee and letting out a content sigh.

Her long red hair concealed her face for the most part so no one could see it clearly, her green eyes staring at her monitor of her home. This beautiful place was all hers, yet she could never enjoy it. No, she had to stay down in her secured underground base in order to monitor everyone and keep from being found out. If they had a chance to kill her, she knew that they would in a heart beat. So Miss. Dawson stayed in her comfy computer chair, eating whatever she pleased and drinking coffee to stay awake. Honestly, she hadn't slept in years, which luckily her body could take thanks to her powers but it was starting to take a toll on her.

She was strong, stronger than one could imagine, but her powers were weakening little by little. She knew she would have to rest at some point, but luckily she was skilled enough to keep the force field running while she did so. She took another gulp of her coffee, staring at everyone as she took them all in. Some were older, some were younger, and some were in between. But either way each one was unique and was truly.... Gifted.

---

Artemis Reed woke up as she usually did in her soft bed, knowing now that it was better than sleeping on a cement floor. She had spent three months being experimented on and being cramped in a tight dirty cell, so from that this was a definite upgrade though honestly she wanted to go home. She didn't tell her sister, but she missed her mom and dad, she missed her home, and she missed just being able to laze around all day in her cat form. Artemis stayed silent as she rubbed her eyes and stretched, deciding to get to the grub before the pickings got slim.

She sluggishly made her way to the bathroom, yawning as she combed out her semi-matted curly hair and put on just a touch of mascara and lip gloss. She pulled on her usual attire, which consisted of her hoody with the fur on top, a small corset tube top and het short shorts. She could get cold or hot extremely easily, so she would keep on her hoody unless she got too hot. She headed out to the fields first, counting the cows, pigs and chickens to make sure none had gotten out. Once she was satisfied she headed to the mall, wondering whether to get pancakes or crapes.

---

Persephone Reed had been up long before the morning call on the speaker, tending to her garden as she always did. After all, she was in charge of the produce, she couldn't let it die or get eaten by bugs. She'd get into major trouble if she did, and Persephone knew if she did get into trouble she may not be able to protect her sister if she got into any trouble, and she was not about to let that happen again. Persephone started to hum as she decided whether to grow cucumbers or tomatoes next to the squash, and whether or not to place the potatoes next to the onions or put the carrots there instead.

Oh, and she couldn't forget about the fruits, she would have to go to the orchard later on and see how everything was doing. She smiled contently, happy living here until the time arose that they were able to escape.

Persephone did miss her home and her parents, but she knew that ever going back there even if they did get out just wasn't an option, no matter how much she wished it was. And she would stay strong for her sister, as they needed each other and she was the eldest, so she was the back bone and always would be, and she had accepted that fate long ago. Persephone could feel someone's eyes on her, but decided it was just her imagination, going back to deciding where to place everything before she would create them.

The morning was still dreaming of fight he had won, when the morning bell rang to wake him up from his blooded paradise. It was Miss Dawson's voice calling them for breakfast, and to reminde them of their jobs. Azai had been prisoned in here for about a month, but still that wasn't his worst nightmares, it was the job he was assigned to a lounge supervisor, why wasn't he assigned for security instead? He would've even taken a bouncer job, he wasn't much of a people's man or a service guy, he worked in restaurant once and was kicked out because he yelled at a customer.

He woke feeling energetic and did some stretching exercises, to get all the sleep from his eyes, he then went to the bathroom and shaved his beard and had a shower. After he got out he got dressed and went to the window, he stood there watching the outside world as it went by without him, he missed his brother, he wanted to see how he was doing. He was thinking about his monochrom, in all this time that he stayed here, and all types of the training he did, he still wasn't able to fully master it, he was still unable to control who to affect and who not. He took a deep breath and scratched his head in confusion, and decided to drop the subject, so headed out to the mall.

Monica's eyes opened slowly as the sound of trumpets rang through the air. A rather loud groan escaping her lips as she got up and started getting dressed. Throwing on her normal clothes a black tank top with a button up red shirt over it, and a pair of blue jean shorts. She pulled her brown hair up, a braided strand hanging down lose from her ponytail in her face. She rolled her eyes going into her kitchen, as the voice came over the speakers.

How the hell could that woman be so cheery every morning? It was all she could do not to set someone on fire every time she heard Dawson's voice. Still this was a better house that she had grown up it. At least here she was about to be around other people, to have people that appreciated her gift. They were always happy when she put out the fires they created. Which in its way was slightly bitter sweet, seeing that was the reason she was found out.

Her food being warm wasn't one of her biggest worries, after all it was rather easy and quick for her to warm it back up. Grabbing a bottle of milk she had gotten at the mall, she poured two saucers of milk for her cats. She took the time to love on Ember and Nightshade a little bit, before heading out towards the mall.

---

Zaniel was already up and getting dressed when the morning trumpets started playing, he looked toward the window in his room frowning. He made a flicking motion with his hand the shadow of his dark room covering the window, muffling the sound from outside. He could still hear her voice but it wasn't loud enough to randle his brain anymore. Zan didn't really hate Dawson for trapping him here, here he had a place to sleep and food to eat. If anything he hated her because she was annoying. No one wanted to wake up to that voice every day!

He headed out to the garden instead of to the mall like everyone else. He honestly didn't care about the food, never really hungry in the morning in the first place. Seeing that Persephone had already beaten him to the garden he smiled a bit. Every morning he tried to beat her there, still she was always a step ahead of him. It was almost like she either slept in her clothes for the next day or maybe she didn't sleep at all.

He shook his head before walking up behind her, hearing the soft humming as he did. Zaniel concentrated a bit, making a shadow being harder to do without any shade. The shadow going above the garden and blocking the sun from hitting the plants around Persephone and himself. "Good morning Persephone, you're looking lovely today." He said smirking down at her a little bit.

Jack heard the morning racket from behind his shut eyes causing him to mumble incoherently while he decided if staying inside was worth the hell he'd get later for it. It took a couple minutes before he relented and started to get up, he was a light sleeper but enjoyed getting it once in awhile which was hard for him. Sure they were given all the necessities or more but he hadn't exactly come in without a struggle which he was sure had made him a prime target for surveillance especially given his power and heritage which took away a great deal of credibility from him. After all who would really trust someone who could force someone to do practically anything within reason while revealing the worst of them should it go for long enough? Hell he probably seemed like the perfect stereotyped villain at first with his "gift" though admittedly it did have its uses like getting information out of people or just getting people to listen and act on when he spoke but around here there was rarely a point in exercising it. However, he admitted it certainly could have been worse because they could have just decided to separate him from the pack.

Jack realized he had been tuned out for a little just thinking, something of habit he had developed not willing to give up information so easily and certainly not out loud, and got himself washed up and dressed in a gray, long-sleeved T-shirt with tan pants. He figured getting over to the mall quickly wouldn't be too difficult what with breakfast taking precedence in his mind now that his stomach had started protesting so he began to jog over scanning around him as he did so. There wasn't a day he could remember being the first to get up but honestly he could care less about it just like how long he had been here which to him really didn't matter as long as the damn barrier was up. On the bright side his job was hardly challenging just having to make sure the bowling alley was running properly and playing the occasional game here or there to pass the time while he thought about ways to get out. Then against there were few times when he wasn't considering possible ways to get out but the staff never let him get close probably out of precautions Dawson had taken when she realized what the man was capable of if he got the chance.

Should be thinking about what to eat probably...oh well. Jack thought lazily reminding himself the reason he was heading over to the mall in the first place.

Trumpets, as usual, kicked Rebecca's morning off. Groaning, she got out of bed, mentally preparing for a new day at the Home. Beginning her short morning routine, she wondered if today would bring anything new. She glanced at the lesser pile of library books on her nightstand, recalling the previous night. Throwing on a nearby dress, she pondered what to read next time she had an hour - or more - to kill. Life at the Home was... alright, but it sorely lacked freedom. Rebecca missed the freedom of her old life, her friends, her parents. Rebecca was ripped from her thoughts as a suddenly heavy towel slipped from the counter. Sighing, she put it in place, finishing up her morning routine with a simple ponytail.

Rebecca began making her way to the mall, stomach subtly growling at her, as if telling her to hurry up. Walking, she looked around the Home, admiring the plants and nature - such things were nearly almost pristine, no doubt thanks to Persephone. In a way, the perfection of the Home was comforting. In another, it was deeply disturbing and clinical, like taken out of a children's book. A light shudder ran down her spine. No matter what, she couldn't quite shake that feeling of being watched like a common pet, something to toy and experiment with. Not that that was entirely wrong - as far as she could tell, it certainly seemed as if Miss. Dawson was watching, waiting, at all hours.

Oh well, Rebecca thought, that's not easily changed, and I'm starving.

Alex was already awake long before the trumpets sounded the start of the day. Just like always, he was swimming in the lake, training his body. Just to be ready when the time was there. When he had to save someone. He knew he shouldn’t wish it, but he hoped it would happen. Only so the nagging guilt would start to diminish. Only just a little. Once he heard the trumpets, he stopped and swam back towards the sandy shore, dried himself off and got dressed. But he didn’t go towards the mall. Instead he looked over the lake one more time. The Cherry blossom trees were flourishing. Soon their petals would fall and the lake would be colored pink. Alex smiled. The place was so calm. Not just the lake. He liked it here. He knew that could change. But for now, he had no real wish to escape. Not yet. Though he knew that opinion was popular. So he kept it to himself.

After that he started the walk towards the mall. He was already later than he should be, taking his time to look at the serene lake. To make matters worse, Alex had gotten a craving for bacon. And he liked his bacon sizzling hot.

Artemis grabbed a tray and looked at breakfast, cringing as she looked at the bacon and eggs, knowing that bacon used to be Donald the Pig. Yes, she knew all the names of the animals she raised, she communicated with them every day. This was why she was a vegetarian, though she made it a point to not eat eggs as they were really unborn chicks and she felt bad for them that they never had a chance to be born and see the world. At least the calves and piglets had a chance, but those chicks didn't.

Artemis loaded her plate with fruit salad and toast with grape jelly, getting some coffee with milk and sugar. She sat down at a booth, feeling disgusted by what she had just seen. Those animals were her friends, and now they were dead. She pushed away her breakfast, hating Miss. Dawson for putting her in this job. She crossed her arms order her chest, not feeling hungry anymore.

---

Persephone's smile disappeared from her face as she saw a giant shadow appear over her head, knowing exactly who it was the minute he used his powers. "Good morning Zaniel.... What the heck did I say about shadows on our plants?" She asked, hiding her anger as she was not about to let him win. She knew how much he loved seeing her get angry, calling her anger cute which pissed her off even more. She couldn't let him win.... She just.... She couldn't.

"So, not eating breakfast again I see. You know breakfast is the most important meal of the day, right?" Persephone asked, looking up at him and the smirk on his smug face. She hoped that he hadn't seen her tattoo, feeling her hair move against the mark that told exactly how she and Artemis ended up there.

She let out a quite sigh, Persephone knowing that at any time she could have flash backs of what had happened though she prayed that it would be back in her room so that nobody could see. She pushed back her thoughts, deciding that right now was not the time to think of all these things. "Hope you're ready to work!" Persephone said with a small smile, hoping she didn't have that dark look in her eyes like she usually did when she thought about the base.

Lina Evangeline

Lina awoke to the sound of trumpets playing reveille over the loudspeakers and the cheerful voice of Miss Dawson greeting the day with her usual infuriating enthusiasm. The girl grumbled discontentedly as she dragged herself out bed. She'd been in this "Home for Truly Gifted" for almost two years now and she still wasn't used to being awoken like that. Infact she believed that she never would get used to it. "If I wanted to be woken up like this, I'd have joined the army..." She muttered, giving the speaker mounted in the upper corner of her room a black look as she pulled on her clothes. Once she was dressed, gave her hair a quick brush and tied it up into her usual twin-tails before slinging her violin case over her shoulder. She never went anywhere without the instrument. As she was getting ready to leave for breakfast, her eyes fell on the open book lying face down on her bedside table. She been reading it before she fell asleep last night and she decided to take it with her to read on the way to the mall.

It was a book of classical poetry from various authors, each piece concerning love, and when she discovered it one day in the mall she'd felt an almost physical compulsion to get it. Now, as she walked towards the mall for breakfast, she opened the book to her favorite passage and read aloud to herself.

"Stephon kissed me in the spring,
Robin in the fall,
But Colin only looked at me
And never kissed at all."

She suppressed a sigh and looked up at the sky as she walked, a dreamy look in her eyes as she imagined what Colin must have looked like. The others must have been handsome and confident, but she imagined Colin as small quiet man, unassuming, with soft eyes. He rarely spoke, she fantasized, but looked at you with a passion beyond the others. He didn't just see a girl, but everything that the girl was. A little smile crossed her face, the discontentment of the morning long forgotten, and returned her eyes to the book to finish the poem.

"Stephon’s kiss was lost in jest,
Robin’s lost in play,
But the kiss in Colin’s eyes
Haunts me night and day."

She lowered the book to her side, enjoying the slight tingle that the final line of that poem always gave her. Belatedly, she realized that she'd reached the mall and, after tucking the poem book into the violin case, she went to go get herself something to eat. Food in hand, she went and sat down by herself, picking at the food on her plate as her mind wandered. "Where is my Colin...?" She questioned softly.

Monica took a deep breath of fresh air as she stepped outside of the building, if that was one thing that she didn’t necessarily hate about this pace, it had to be how beautiful and peaceful it was here. Far from the gasoline filled air and loud crowded streets of the city she had grown up surrounded by. Here she could hear the birds outside and see the stars at night. If only she wasn’t once again caged up behind walls, in this case the wall being the force field, it would be perfect. Even though one could say that maybe her not having freedom again was a good thing. However, she shook her head of the thought, she was going to try and not be a downer today. Sure that was something she told herself every day, but this time she meant it.

Her eyes looked down at her stomach as it growled, reminding her of the reason she even bothered not to go back to sleep after the trumpets stopped playing and Dawson had finished talking. With a bit of a frown she continued her way to the mall. She was slightly surprised that she was the only the third one to get to the mall, with how late she was getting out of the apartment. Quickly she grabbed one of the plates filling it with eggs, bacon, and a couple pieces of toast before getting a glass of orange juice and sitting by herself as she usually ended up doing anyway.

---

Zaniel’s smirk only widened at Persephone, he didn’t need to hear the anger in her voice to know he was getting on her nerves, her question already something it all. “Who knows…you get all squeaky when you’re mad.” He answered with a slight laugh, still getting a little bit of enjoyment out of picking on her. Over the three months that he had been at Dawson’s, he had become a little fond of Persephone and how cute she got when he pissed her off. Even though she insisted that he was going to ruin her plants, he only shaded them because he knew full well that she could fix whatever he did damage to them, if he ever did any.

“No.” Zaniel answered before shaking his head a little at her. “I know, you tell me that every morning. I’ll get lunch later. Why aren’t you getting something to eat?” He asked though he wasn’t really enough attention to notice her tattoo before she looked up at him, his smirk only growing a bit. Still he sighed, it becoming clear that he wasn’t going to get her all mad and sneaky. Before letting shadow slowly fade, letting the sun hit down on them both and the garden. It wasn’t easy to keep it up and he didn’t want to kill the plants and get Persephone in trouble anyway.

He noticed the dark look in her eyes when the shadow went away, and stared at her for a second before laughing. “Not really, I had planned on lacking off while everyone was at breakfast. Though since you would me here so badly.” He said smiling a bit at her before picking up one of the garden shovel. “Alright where did you want dug out so you could plant?” He asked before he started digging out rows for her plants.

Toby was already on his third protein shake of the morning by the time the morning announcements came on. In the year and a half that he’d been a “guest” of Miss Dawson’s Home, this had become routine. Four shakes in the morning, before what ‘normal’ people would consider breakfast, four before lunch, and finally four before dinner. Granted, he didn’t enjoy the shakes (who would?), but it beat being tired and hungry all the time. He’d heard through the grapevine that it had been Miss Dawson’s idea. At the very least, someone had left a flowery-worded message on the whiteboard in his apartment’s kitchen, with instructions. Neither his parents, nor the medical professionals who had overseen him in the past had thought of it, he knew that for certain. The fact that someone who at least worked for Miss Dawson went out of their way to actually help Toby put him in a minority; he actually didn’t mind living at the Home. In fact, given the choice, he’d probably stay here, where monsters like him belong. He knew that there were many others who felt differently, so when such matters came up in conversation (what few conversations he’d had) he kept his head down and stayed quiet, usually with noncommittal grunts or nods.

He set his cup down and looked in the mirror in his bedroom. “Hi!”

Wow. Too forward much? Not to mention that his smile seemed just a little too big. Facial expressions still gave him some trouble since ‘the incident’. Or incidents, if you’d prefer.

He’d already decided that today would be the day. He was finally going to talk to that girl, the one he saw every day. He should try to approach her during breakfast at the mall. He figured she’d be there; pretty much everyone was there at that time.

“S’up?” Nah, too casual.

But casual would be his approach. He didn’t’ want to seem too nervous. He had to relax. There was this girl in his old high school. He wanted to ask her to the spring dance, because that’s what normal kids did. So he asked her, without any prepping. Bad idea. He stumbled, he stuttered, his voice cracked, and his skin turned a nice shade of sunburnt. Needless to say, she rejected him. No one would want to be seen with a monster like him. He wondered briefly if the other kids had seen him as a monster at that time, or if it was afterward…

“So…I don’t know if you know me. I’m Toby, the-“

Butcher? Slaughtermaster? He chuckled to himself. ‘Slaughtermaster’ sounded like a cool name for a supervillain. Or maybe a death metal band. But villainous or not, that was his job. According to his superior, Toby was the only ‘youngster’ to make it through more than a week. Sure, his first week had been sloppy, but over time, he perfected his technique. Just a quick… Nah, best not to think about that now. Save it for work. He decided to introduce himself as the butcher. Or maybe butcher’s apprentice. Yeah, apprentice sounded good. Did saying his job even matter? What if she hated what he did?

He downed the last of his shake, and immediately set to making another. He’d drink it on the way to breakfast. After getting dressed in his usual attire, a tan-brownish hoodie, cargo pants, and a greenish t-shirt, he grabbed his last shake and headed out the door toward the mall.

It was a nice day outside, perfect for exercising or walking Luka, it was still sleeping when he left, sleeping on its back barley doing any reaction or even looking at Azai when he left. Yet he still loved his Luka, it was like a son to him and his only friend here. He remembered the first time he met Luka, it was when he was coming back from the dojo, he saw it winning a fight with a bigger dog and had a fighters look in its eyes, and the will and stubbornness to back it up. They instantly connected back then and stayed with each other from that moment.

Azai didn't notice that he was at the mall, time slipped by quickly while he was lost in thought and memories, he was hungry and dying for something to eat. There were all kinds of food here, it was surprising how much effort Miss Dawson put in all this, it made him ever wonder just how much Miss Dawson's wealth is worth. He shook his head and went straight for the eggs, bacon, and the fruits with a cupe of tea to swallow it all. Azai had a huge stomach but it was mainly because of his training and the rest was that he simply loved food.

He went and sat at an empty table, munching down his food and watching other people wondering what kind of powers and abilities they had, and their reasons of coming here, they must've all had some sad history like being deemed dangerous by society for one mistake or either shun out, but he was pretty sure that no one was like him dump enough to come on their own and sentencing their fate to this false paradise. But what intrigued his curiosity was if they ever thought about escaping like him? Or are they really enjoying themselves here? He was sure that he didn't with that crappy job that he had now...

People were already entering the mall when Alex arrived. Fearing his favorite piece of meat, bacon, would be gone before he had the chance he waited anxiously for his turn. When his time finally came, he was relieved to see that a whole new batch of sizzling hot bacon had just arrived. He quickly grabbed some and proceeded until eventually he could go and take a seat. Incidentally he took his seat in the vicinity of Artemis.

He glanced over at her, recognizing her from somewhere. As a safeguard, you see your fair share of people around. Everyone wants to forget their worries for a second and just sunbath. Or others just want to go for a refreshing swim. Still, he might have seen her from somewhere else. It didn't matter though. What mattered was that he knew she was somehow responsible for the bacon he was eating. That he heard from someone, though that person didn't know exactly how she was involved. Alex, trying to friendly looked at her and said: "You helped making the bacon in some way right? It's delicious." Then, with a smile, he took another bite from the tasty, salty meat. Thinking the little girl's day might be just a little better by just a friendly compliment.

Lina Evangeline

Lina heaved a sigh, pulling herself out of her reverie. It wouldn't do to spend the whole day fantasizing about love. She shook the idle thought away and focused properly on the task of devouring her meal. After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. As she polished off the last of her food she looked around the mall. It struck her every time she came here that the building, and in fact the entire so called Home, was awfully beautiful and extravagant, some might even call it overindulgent. It was the sort of place that Lina wouldn't have minded living, if only she'd had a choice in the matter. Growing up in a family with a famous concert violinist meant she wasn't a stranger to the comfortable lifestyle, but even a gilded cage is still a cage, she mused.

After finishing her meal and wiping her hands, she decided to indulge in her other passion, and maybe, just maybe she'd be able to brighten the day for a few of her fellow caged birds. She carefully cracked open her violin case and withdrew the instrument. She spent a few short moments tuning the beautifully crafted violin back to perfection which was a task she could've done in her sleep, after years of practice with it she knew the instrument almost as well as she knew herself. Finally, she settled the violin on her shoulder, placing her chin lightly on the chin-rest. She took up the bow and placed it across the strings and, after a moment of pause she began to play

Artemis stared at the man who sat down with her, watching with wide eyes as he had a full plate of Bacon.... Bacon.... Bacon! She was practically seething with rage as he complimented her on her contribution to making the bacon. "You're eating Fred.... Fred the 2 year old runt. I can tell because there's not that much fat on the bacon. You're eating the pig I raised from a baby and enjoying him." Artemis said as her right eye twitched, looking at his mouth as he chewed Fred.

"I'm giving you one second to run. Run." Artemis said as she turned into a white tiger and devoured him whole. One after another she swallowed everyone whole until she was the only one left, turning back into her human form before she made her way to the grazing pastures, smiling as she looked down at her animal friends. "Don't worry everyone.... You'll never have to be eaten ever again." She murmured as suddenly Artemis snapped out of her day dream, looking at the man who was still chewing on his bacon.

"It's okay, it's the cruel circle of life after all. Fred would've died eventually, so better now then later." Artemis said with a small smile though she was finding eating her breakfast to be harder and harder now that someone was eating Fred right in front of her though she knew she'd have to control her anger though she could feel her sister having some troubles with that at that very moment.

---

Persephone's first rolled her eyes as he teased her about getting angry and having a squeaky voice throughout it. "Sure, whatever you say Zaniel." She says in a sarcastic tone as she smirked up at him, realizing that she had never told him about her condition.

"Oh, since my powers revolve around plants I kinda use photosynthesis to live. That's why I sleep with the lights on, because I can't go for more than 10 minutes without light of else I'll die." She explained, her tone so casual it sounded like this was a normal occurrence. As he asked where to start she pointed to him where to go, using her powers to create whatever plant are so desired and started the growing process before she watered them and let them do their own thing.

Jack made his way inside having taken a short break outside after the jog over, he was maybe just a bit out of shape. By the time he got up to the food he decided on a light breakfast of a couple buttered English muffins with two fried eggs. It seemed a couple of the others not too far off from him were talking a bit and it didn't exactly seem to be going well because he could practically feel the anger coming off the girl which wasn't helped by his power giving him a good sense for it, not to mention being observant. Great just get the girl riled up immediately why don't you? He thought mildly annoyed but in no rush to get involved. He then realized who he was picking up the anger off of which was Artemis one of the younger inhabitants, and while he didn't have much direct experience with her but knew she raised the animals that they ate he didn't hear what was said but its effect was obvious to him. The thought drew out a displeased sigh from the man and he would probably step in if it got out of hand but there was no guarantee anything would go wrong yet so he moved his gaze around the room to see about the others since he had inhaled his meal.

Jack knew at least the job or if not the name of more than a few of the other residents more out of comfort for himself that anything. Knowing who and what he was dealing with was important to the man rather than just rolling up to someone and hoping for the best. However, even if he did know general info on the person it never meant he actually talked to them or at least not on a regular basis while he got them straightened out in his head. He heard music being played from one of the seats and just sat for a moment to listen, he enjoyed hearing the violinist lightening up the place, though he had no intention of going over and interrupting the young girl playing after all that would make her stop. He saw two others also sitting alone the guy being the lounge supervisor, it was likely a joke of sorts from Dawson to put him there because he was pretty sure he the guy hated it, and an older girl who worked emergency who occasionally gave off some pessimism though not so much today as usual.

Jack decided he might try to talk with the guy and figure out what upset him about working in the lounge, he remembered going through and seeing him stressed, because it seemed to be one you could just chill out while doing. He got himself up and moved over nearby to see if he couldn't get a conversation out of him.

"Hey. How is it going?" Jack asked the guy(Azai) casually trying to start off on a good foot.

Rebecca arrived at the mall, noticing a few others making their way inside as well. Grabbing a plate and loading it with pancakes, she looked around at the people who had already arrived. A girl was playing the violin quite beautifully, seemingly in her own world for the time being. Rebecca recalled seeing her at the mall's ice cream shop, though she'd never spoken to the girl. She recognized a few others she knew also worked in the mall, namely the guy from the bowling alley striking up a conversation with the lounge manager. At another table, it was obvious there was some tension between a young-ish girl and older boy. The girl was practically seething, but hiding it well. Some also sat alone

Rebecca decided to sit at the other end of the table with the mall workers she had recognized. Quietly eating her breakfast, she listened to the two men, taking care not to disturb their conversation. She closed her eyes, enjoying the violin in the background. I must look stupid, she thought after a bit, and opened her eyes, looking around to see if anyone was looking at her funny.

After arriving at the mall, and disposing of his cup, Toby wasn’t quite sure of what to do next. As he considered getting something to eat, he scanned the room for the attractive redhead that he’d had his eye on for the past few weeks: Artemis Reed.

He wondered if she’d mind some dude approaching her while shoveling food in his face the entire time… Well. When you put it that way… He could already feel the Hunger setting in, but he resisted. Maybe when she rejects me, I’ll just grab some avocados and a peanut butter sandwich to go.

There. He finally saw her. She was seated at a table across from some guy. He couldn’t tell when they were saying, but the guy certainly seemed happy. Toby was crestfallen; he’d been hoping to catch her alone. Then the sting of rejections wouldn’t be so bad…or public.

Suddenly, he heard violin music and he smiled. It was that really sad song from the movie that his mom liked. Listening to music always calmed him down, he supposed that it was one of those things that confirmed that he was indeed some sort of monster; music soothes the savage beast, right?

He exhaled. It was now or never. He stuck his hand in his pocket and strode over to the table where Artemis and the guy were sitting, and took a seat nearby. “Mind if I sit here,” he half-mumbled. This time, he got a good look at Artemis’ face, and she didn’t seem amused as she was glaring at the guy’s plate.

He lowered his hood and brushed some hair from his face, still unsure whether these two were dating or not. In fact, maybe he was intruding. He was beginning to have second thoughts, but he couldn’t just get up and leave. He’d already committed to his idiocy.

Instead, he glanced around, pretending to look for someone.

Two weeks, five days, seven hours, forty four minutes and twenty one seconds.

"Twenty two, twenty three, twenty four.." Mumbled Eddy under his breath, counting how long he had been at the compound since he came to. He remembered very little as to what transpired to wind him up at the strange compound, he remembered looking down at his legs, pins screwed into his bones to hold them in place, then a pretty nurse came in with a tray of medicine, a small green bottle that looked to be one of those droppers. She sat by his bed side and stroked his hair, father having fallen asleep in a chair nearby and not giving him much attention.

They talked for a few minutes, the nurse and Eddy, the woman putting him at ease with her gentle voice. Eddy had never had a mother, she had passed away soon after giving birth to him, and the sound of a woman's voice was completely alien to him; in the books he had read (the numbers too numerous to recall), he always fantasized what a woman's voice must have sounded like, when a female character spoke he relied on the description his father gave him, a higher pitch to men and much smoother but every time he interpreted it in his head they just sounded like men with higher voices.

The nurse told him to open his mouth and lift his tongue, when he did so she pulled the dropper off the top of the bottle and squeezed a single drop of the sweet liquid into the soft base of his tongues. At the touch of the medicine he grew drowsy and the last thing he remembered was the fading voice of the nurse, "Sweet dreams.." She crooned.

Then he fluttered his eyes open and he was looking at a ceiling not at all like the one of the hospital, he called for his father, nothing. He called for the nurse, nothing. Ed slipped out of bed and looked down at his legs anticipating screws but found his legs devoid of metal, the only clue that he had steel pins in his bones being small dot-shaped scars around his leg. He ran, bare foot, bolting out of the apartment building shirtless, wearing nothing but grey track pants and blue socks. Eventually he found himself in the library, lost in the maze of books, but soon he settled in, finding sleeping amongst books more comfortable then sleeping in a foreign bed, he essentially moved in, building a book fort in the far corner to call home.

"Twenty five, twenty six.." He continued to count under his breath, as he flipped the page of the book he was reading, his eyes rolling over the printed ink with a practiced ease, as all he did back home was read and there, it helped him get his mind off being parted from his old life. Ed's reading was interrupted by the sound of a woman over the intercom, Miss Dawson he learned she was called, her voice wasn't like the nurse's bird song, he didn't like it, she told of breakfast at the mall. He took the woman up on her offer. Puffing out of the fort and into the hallway outside of it, he made way to the mall, still shirtless but otherwise clean (why did the library have a shower?). He plodded into the food court, looking around at all the people, 'so many people' he ported to the back of a distant line and waited to get to the front. His body buzzing and letting off a faint static hum, his energy finding nowhere to go but into the air around him because he wasn't teleporting.

Artemis was tempted by her earlier thoughts, wondering if she should act on them when another male asked him if he could sit with her instead of just sitting down like the other one. "I will talk to you later, as I'm sure we'll see each other at dinner. I think this guy wants to talk in private." She whispered to the male who was already sitting down, "Oh, and after she's done tell the violinist she was amazing and that I will also talk to her later. Thanks." Artemis looked up at the tall quite good looking male, realizing she knew exactly who he was but decided that she wouldn't bring it up unless he did.

"Sure, but let's go sit down over there. Gives us some space from all these people as you seem a bit nervous." She said the last part quietly and a soft smile appeared on her face while she relaxed a bit since he wasn't devouring her friends and their children. She picked her tray and moved to the farthest table from everyone and sat down, realizing she could've done it when she first got there and that guy wouldn't have sat with her and made her so mad that she would envision such a thing.

Once the male had sat down she decided to ask what his name was as right now she only knew his occupation for a fact. "So, what's your name? I'm Artemis Reed but by the looks of it you possibly already know who I am." She said in a cheerful voice, trying to hide the growing excitement that her sempi had noticed her.

Zaniel frowned looking down at her as she said she needed light to live. Suddenly feeling like a dick for shadowing the sun from her all the time. He would just have to figure out a way to pick on his friend without worrying about killing her. "You know that is really something you should have told me, instead of saying I was hurting your plants." He said sounding a bit annoyed himself this time. He got down on his knees and started digging the row of holes from her plants muttering to himself.

He stood up watching her plant and water the plants. Once she was done he started on a second row, avoiding getting his pants in the wet dirt as he dug. He waited for her to start planting again. "How long are those plants going to take? The ones we planted last week aren't even ready to harvest yet." Zaniel asked his impatience for waiting for their garden to grow showing a little already this morning.