Silas trudged through even knee-length tides as he made his way inland. He sighed in relief as he heard the first part of Arael's response. He was less excited about the idea of going back underwater to see the cave but anything was a sign of hope at this point. He dragged his feet until he felt the warmth of dry sand beneath his boots, and he concentrated on re-sealing his wings. De-materializing two soggy wings did wonders for his ability to carry his own weight. It occurred to Silas that despite how heavy it felt underwater, he wasn't even wearing his flight cape. Soggy wings were heavy.

The terrain sloped upward into hills as the mouth of the river went inland and as Silas neared the grass where Arael had plopped down he stepped out of the light and into the shade. When he realized this he instinctively leaned backward into the warm light and closed his eyes to cherish the moment of peace.


"You're leaving already?"
"It's getting late."
"The sun's still up."
"Goodnight."


He snapped upright and swallowed hard as panic flooded his memory. He exhaled and realized then that he had brought a sandy hand up to his mouth. He dropped it back by his side. "We have to find cave or we'll lose our wings for treason before we get anywhere," he insisted. Then he spun on his heels and marched back toward the water, panic fueling his newfound energy. He squinted at the water, looking for a clear change in aura.


Mars teetered on the verge of sleepwalking as she watched the two younger shinigami poke fun at the scavenger hunt. "Alright I'll leave cinnamon on the side in case you make up your mind later," she said as she turned to walk back to the pantry area. She, mostly on auto-pilot, grabbed a few mugs from the cupboard, found and poured some milk, and set them all in the microwave to heat for 2 minutes. She found spoons in the meantime and mixed sugar and chocolate in a separate dish. She liked to have a base for her hot cocoa and then add more sugar or chocolate later. While she waited she grabbed extra goodies from the cupboard: cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla extract, and 3 candy canes. When the microwave beeped she yanked a cookie sheet out from the oven to use as a sheet to transport supplies to the living room. The full mugs wobbled a little as she walked but were otherwise fine.

"I mixed the cocoa but there's extra sugar or chocolate if you want," she announced as she set it down on a low coffee table next to the younger shinigami's cots. She yawned as she stood. "Man I'm gonna be lonely and miss the party if I don't sleep out here, huh?" she joked. A moment later she was in the hallway digging for a blanket and a spare pillow in a closet. Happy to have found both of her favorites, she tossed them onto a couch near her friends. She detoured for a moment to double check that the front door had locked on her way in, and feeling safe afterward she plopped down on the couch. She could tell that there was still daylight peering over the horizon, but she felt no less tired after the evening chaos.

"Lea, how long have you been around these parts now? Has it been years already?" she wondered aloud as she claimed a milk-filled mug and candy cane. She scooped in some cocoa from the shared dish and began fiddling with the extra goodies. "We're all family here, and this place has been my home for who knows how long," she continued to ramble as she stirred a sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg into the cocoa with the melting candy cane. "I just can't keep the timeline straight."