Gwen was pacing the floor between the kitchen and the dining space. Their apartment had no furniture, so there was a lot of space to pace. The windows had no curtains, so Gwen was avoiding direct sunlight, but it was late in the day, and there was little daylight left to avoid. Gwen flipped the aetherswitch, but no lights turned on, so she summoned an orb of mana light and toyed with it, anything to keep her mind occupied.

  She decided she didn’t much like this new home. It was cold and lifeless. She missed the feirm. She missed not being scared and thirsty all the time. She missed Morgan and the comfort of familiar smells. In Garden City, the smells were strange and often repellent. Their new home smelled of heavy cleaning supplies, but not enough to completely cover the scent of death. From the taste in the air, Gwen gleaned the previous tenant had died of old age.

  In the windowless bedroom, Hinata was fitfully unconscious.

  Gwen could sympathize. She, too, felt exhausted and miserable with thirst. But it was odd that Hinata was struggling so acutely.

  What happens if Plenty doesn’t come back with blood? Gwen wondered. Can I restrain Hinata? Should I go out to find a victim and bring them back here?

  “You want my advice?” Raf asked.

  Gwen stopped pacing. Then she began again on a different route.

  Sure. What you got?

  “You can’t dispose of bodies, and you don’t know the area. Hunting is out of the question. You would get caught.”

  Gwen frowned and then slumped against a wall. Of course, Raf was correct. There was nothing to do but wait and hope.

  What if Plenty doesn’t come back with blood?

  “If that happens, you’ll have no choice but to scout the neighborhood. Maybe with enough planning, you can bring someone back here safely.”

  Gwen stopped and changed routes again. It was getting dark outside, and her mana orb was the only light source.

  You said hunting was out of the question.

  “It is for now. You need to wait for Plenty. If he’s not back by sunrise, you can worry, and we can plan next steps. But right now, you’re just riling yourself up. You should be meditating. You plan to start school tomorrow.”

  Gwen scoffed. As if I could sleep now.

  “Then don’t sleep. Meditate. Do your exercises.”

  Gwen sighed and rolled her head to crack her neck.

  Fine. Whatever. I’m not doing anything useful. Might as well do nothing useful half-asleep.

  She sat on the floor and crossed her legs. She concentrated on her mana orb and resculpted it into various practice shapes: a goat, a bird, a wheel, a sword, a cthulian, a pixie, and so on. Her mind slipped into a dazy, dreamy state, and the light became a man on a boat with a broken skull. The taste of his heartbeat lingered on her lips. The light became a door, a terribly familiar door, and behind the door, a grey woman with butterfly wings and madness in her eyes. The light became Raf, as she remembered him, young and human.

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  “Wake up,” Raf said. “Plenty is coming up the stairs, and he’s really moving.”

  Gwen returned the mana light to its housing crystal and stood up just as Plenty opened the door.

  “I have it!” Plenty shouted, and Raf interpreted. Plenty raised a thermos high in the air.“How is she?”

  Gwen's entire body seemed to sigh. ‘She’s alright. Still in the room,’ she pointed.

  Plenty rushed over and into the windowless room, and Gwen followed. He gently brushed Hinata’s face, waking her, and then lifted the thermos to her lips. He had to grab the thermos and steady it after she tried to gulp too much, too fast, spilling blood down her lips and neck.

  Hinata took a breath, and Gwen grabbed the thermos quickly, before Hinata drank all of it. There was still enough for Gwen to make a meal of it, but that was all. It tasted odd, sweeter than usual, almost floral, but carried none of the thrill Gwen felt when she drained that pirate. She handed Hinata back the thermos, who tipped it all the way over for any last drops.

  Then Hinata relaxed into the bed and sighed. “Okay,” she said. “I feel so much better. It’s crazy. I think maybe that shark blood didn’t have the same juice, you know? Where did you get this?” she asked Plenty.

  Plenty told them about Strangers, about Candy, and his new commitments.

  ‘This is good,’ Gwen signed. ‘No, this is excellent. Hinata, you should go with him tonight. Ask about Eve’s University. We don’t even know where it is or how to get there.’

  Plenty gently shoved Hinata over and said, “And you should move over. It’s my turn to nap.”

  Hinata kissed him and said, “Then I suppose it’s my turn to fetch you something to eat.”

  “Hm, that sounds good. Take a shower first. And wake me when you’re finished,” Plenty mumbled, and then he closed his eyes and started breathing rhythmically.

  -8-

  Hinata felt so much better. She gave Gwen a peck on the forehead as she got up and went to the bathroom.

  Like the rest of the house, the bathroom was dark. She flipped the switch, but no lights came on.

  Then Hinata remembered Plenty had been assigned an aetherstone before they’d left the copper consulate. Hinata rumaged through Plenty’s bag until she found a sparkly blue orb the size of an egg. Aha! Hinata hurried over to Gwen, showed her the aetherstone, and asked for help finding the power supply dock. Gwen summoned a mana light, and together, they searched the house.

  It didn’t take long. Gwen found it, probably with the assistance of her creepy brainworm, but whatever. Hinata dropped the aetherstone onto the housing unit, and immediately, lights flickered on throughout the house.

  Then Hinata took a long bath. Hot water came in a slow drip, so it took some time for the tub to fill, but once it was ready, she almost fell asleep in it. Their soap and body care supplies were exhausted, so she just had to scrub everything in hot water and hope for the best. When she was finished, the bathwater was turbid. She drained the tub and then rinsed herself off again in cool water. Plenty and Gwen would be needing a bath, and she didn’t want to take all evening. She brushed her teeth and combed her hair in the mirror. She briefly worried about having a mirror in the house, but decided it was probably fine.

  Finally, Hinata kissed Plenty awake and told him to jump in the bath. She had drained her bathwater and refilled it with fresh water for him. With a smile and a stretch, he rolled out of bed and into the bathroom.

  While he was bathing, Hinata tried to make herself look pretty. She shaved her upper lip hair, put on some eyeshadow, and rolled her hair into something cute.

  Gwen stood nearby, offering compliments and helpful suggestions as Hinata tried on clothes. ‘You look pretty. Nice work on the eyeshadow. Your other pants lifted your butt better.’ That sort of thing. Hinata had nothing “cute” to wear, so Gwen lent her a shirt. It was small on Hinata and revealed her navel, but that was the point.

  Once the outfit was finalized, Gwen gave an approving nod, and Plenty stepped out of the bathroom, fully dressed, hair combed, and ready to go.

  “It’s about time. Are you ready?” he asked.

  Hinata nodded. She turned to Gwen. ‘What will you do while we’re out?’

  Gwen smirked and signed, ‘Don’t worry about me. Have fun, but remember, the goal is to learn whatever you can about Eve’s University. And be back before sunrise, or I’ll worry.’

  Hinata smiled. ‘Okay, Mom.’

  ‘Shut up,’ Gwen told her. ‘Get outta here.’