[IC] || { Refracted: DH } ||

[sntabe]

"Fifteen," he answered, leaning back against the wall. Ethan felt slightly out of place here, mainly because everyone was several years older than him. For another thing, this wasn't his ideal job. He'd noticed that almost everyone he met wanted to stay in this career for life, which felt odd to him. "Hey, is this your dream job?"

[PopeMaddi]

Daya nodded. "Yeah, I suppose. I've always wanted to hunt demons and stuff ever since I was... ten, maybe?" She shrugged, and took another bite of her sandwich. "Are you hungry? I have an apple in there if you want it."

[sntabe]

Ethan politely refused; though the quality of her food would probably be better, he'd get something later at the college's complimentary bar.

Sebastian returned shortly after carrying a stack of three chairs, huffing lightly. He set them about the round table, and they were all different. "I, uh, got the best chairs I could. One of them's a bit rickety, but they're all comfy. I think. Oh, an' the colors change when the magic needs to be replaced, which is every couple months."

[PopeMaddi]

"Got it." Daya placed herself in one of the chairs. It probably wasn't the best seat in here, but whatever, it's a chair. At least she's not standing. "Okay, so, have you decided when the first mission will be?" Her eyes held a bit of excitement. Weird, wasn't she acting apprehensive earlier..?

[sntabe]

"Uh, we can go check the listings right now!" Sebastian crossed the room to a second door, which led into the central chamber. It was currently empty of other people, though the walls were covered in small pieces of paper. On each of them was listed a demon and its last seen location. Some of them had pictures, some only descriptions.

[PopeMaddi]

"Alright. I think we should go for an easy one, until we get used to this." She commented, inspecting some of the missions. "Here, how about this one?" She asked, taking the piece of paper off the wall.

DHHQ: MISSION 207

This demon has wolf-ish form, and usually prowls around the forests near the south at night. It has navy blue fur with bright yellow eyes, so it's a little hard to spot. It possesses large claws, moves silently, and impeccable hearing. Silent movement is needed for this mission. Spikes also cover most of it's back, so attack it's underside if you can.

[sntabe]

Ethan glanced at the paper, but didn't comment. Sebastian was a little more excited. "A wolf? Sounds fun! It might be a little bit of a challenge, though, if you guys are up for it?"

[PopeMaddi]

"I'm ready, I think. Are we gonna go right now, though? Because we need some supplies." Daya pointed out. "I don't think my knives will do much by themselves."

[sntabe]

Sebastian thought a moment. "We should gather food and first-aid supplies, and possibly a few camping materials."

"Demons can't be hurt by non-magical items," Ethan remembered. "Are they enchanted? Even if they're not, they're valuable distractions."

[PopeMaddi]

"Yeah, they're enchanted, don't worry." Daya put the paper in her pocket. "Okay, I'll go and find some blankets and matches for a fire at my place. I should have some food there too, but you guys probably wouldn't like it, so pack your own."

Daya lives in a small, hut-like building, with, luckily, running water. Not many hybrids had that these days. It wasn't the best place, as it often got very cold at night, but it protected her from the weather, so she was grateful anyway.

[sntabe]

"Okay, yeah. Meet back up here in an hour?" suggested Sebastian. Since he knew he didn't need to worry about Daya, he turned his attention to Ethan. "You need anything? Where d'you live? I can walk you home, if you'd like." Sebastian felt compelled to protect the kid, since he looked so innocent and fragile.

"I, um, that's okay, thanks," Ethan smiled awkwardly.

The hybrid wasn't convinced, but decided not to push it. "All right, back here in an hour," he repeated. "See y'all then!"

[PopeMaddi]

Daya nodded, and was the first one to leave. She walked through the DHHQ and into the sector in which she lived in. Though it was the smallest part of the citadel, it still seemed quite big to her. She walked down the streets filled with shops and markets; all of the vendors being hybrids. Once, she even saw another owl hybrid, though they looked like a different species of owl than her. After twenty minutes of walking through the semi-crowed streets, she approached the door to her little hut. As she went inside, she looked around for the supplies that she would bring. After a few minutes of searching and rustling through boxes, she had a bag full of food, a spare set of clothes, and blankets.

Daya managed to get back before the boys, and she waited patiently for them to return.

[sntabe]

Sebastian ran to his house, which was a bit of a distance. If he were a human, he wouldn't have managed to get there, pack, and return in time. But he was a hybrid, and a fit one at that. Nimbly darting through streets and alleyways, he picked up speed as the terrain became more familiar. He slowed to a jog as he reached his neighborhood, panting, but exhilarated. He'd just made four miles in twenty minutes.

While packing, Sebastian thanked himself for being so organized - it paid off to have everything neatly arranged. Everything he needed was gathered so quickly that he had enough time to wash and have a light snack.

Hefting a large bag containing blankets, spare clothes, toiletries, non-perishable food items, first aid supplies, a knife, and other miscellaneous essentials, Sebastian started back to DHHQ. He didn't sprint as he did before, since he was carrying a heavy pack, kept a steady, fast pace. He reached their office at just about an hour after he left - perfect. Daya was already there, and she had packed similarly.

Ethan was the last to arrive, about ten minutes after Sebastian. He carried the typical items, but also several pots of honey.

[PopeMaddi]

"What's with that?" She asked, spotting the plentiful amounts of honey. "I didn't know we were tryin' to attract bears out there."

[sntabe]

"Oh, er, it's just good all around. Honey's nutritional, doesn't spoil, and works well as both an oral and topical medicine. Um, anyway, are we ready to go?"

[PopeMaddi]

"Hm. Smart kid." Daya was impressed. Well, he is an esper, so I shouldn't be surprised. She thought. "Yeah, I think we're ready. I packed all I need."

[sntabe]

"Onward!" proclaimed Sebastian, taking the paper and replacing its spot on the wall with a card displaying their office number. He'd caught his breath by then, and was excited to get on with the mission. "So, kill mission, located near the south, spiky wolf," he rambled, reading off the paper as he jumped stairs three at a time. His free hand hovered over the rail, but the safety of it was far from. Amazingly, he managed not to slip or stumble, which unfortunately could not also be said of Ethan.

Ethan gripped the rail tightly as if he feared the stairs beneath him would suddenly vanish. He tripped about every couple stairs, and once nearly fell. Oddly, he'd had no difficulty walking up them earlier.

[PopeMaddi]

Daya shook her head. She was the only one walking down like a normal person. The sun was high in the sky still, so they would have to wait until night fell to actually hunt this demon. "Remember guys, it comes out at night, so don't become too tired." She reminded them.

[sntabe]

"Yes! We have all day to travel. We can take our time." Sebastian led them across DHHQ to the southernmost gate, where he stopped briefly to show the guards there his leadership ID. The three of them were given permission to pass through, and they were on their way.

Setting the pace, Sebastian walked firmly, though not terribly quickly. He listened to the sound of the dirt and the leaves as he walked, crunching crisply as it was the turn of the season. The deciduous forests around the citadel had begun shedding their leaves, draping a red blanket and yellow blanket over the ground. He breathed it in - this wasn't exactly his natural habitat, but it was much preferable to a residential block in a sprawling citadel. He wanted to run, scratch the trees, dig up the dirt, but he didn't. It was for those kinds of behaviors that his population was shunned by humans.

Sebastian wished humans weren't so judgemental. This thought process quickly turned to his group members. What did Ethan think of him? And what did he think of Ethan? He didn't really know. He felt a slight kinship with Daya, since she shared some of his troubles, but other than that, he didn't know either. They really should have gotten to know each other better.

[PopeMaddi]

Daya sighed, breathing in the fresh air. "Man, I wish I could live out here instead of that dirty place in the hybrid sector. It's so crowded." Daya stretched out her arms. If only she could fly, this job would be so much easier. Ever since they'd exited the citadel, she felt the urge to stretch her wings and fly, but that isn't possible. It's probably from her bird-like instincts, especially after being trapped in a small area for so long. Good thing that's going to change.

As she walked, she started hearing things in the undergrowth. Rodents, most likely. "Would you guys judge me if I ate a mouse or something?"