NOCTURNALS ~ { ReGenisis Chronicles II }

10. Kate's Strange Happenings

-Jake Aylesbury -

When I got to Miss Andersen's door, I froze. Her scent was faint and I couldn't hear any sounds from within. I could smell blood, I told myself it was her usual nosebleeds. Still, anxiety rattled through my ribs. Knocking and calling for her didn't seem to get any response.

I opened the door and stepped into her white room. From the doorway I could see the sheets were a mess, there was the usual from her nose and perhaps some from her ears last night. But the arrangement of pillows and bedding and the other red marks told me she'd dug her nails into herself whilst she thrashed about in bad dreams. I sighed, even with that, her scent was fainter in here. I moved towards the bathroom, the generic products pre-provided for her were lined up in a row on a little glass shelf over the sink. All but the soap. She'd cleaned herself up before she left, only leaving a couple droplets of red stray, one of them diluted with water than dried beneath the sink where she probably hadn't thought to look. I followed the trail of her scent out of the bathroom, and then out of her quarters. That was when I detected whiskey in the hall.

I turned and watched Cole go in to Swan's room. I frowned, it wasn't that unusual to see them together. But moments later the door opened again and there was Kate looking flustered.

Her face lit up when she saw me, relief. But also I could see a similar look in her eye to that of one Martello would often have when she was eager to discuss a finding. Kate zipped up the hallway in a blur and saluted. "Aylesbury," she said, "I know there's Unit business to take care of, but something really weird happened last night."

I could detect more of Swan's juniper on Kate than her own, softer scent, and frowned. "Is it that you spent time with your sister, outside of the gym that is?"

Kate rolled her eyes, "Well yes, but no, not that." She grabbed hold of my wrist and started to pull me down the hall impatiently. We were headed for the lift, she hadn't even thought of changing out of her night clothes.

"Andersen," I said snappishly,

She stopped and looked down at herself. "Oh," then let go of my hand and after throwing me a glance, sped back towards her room telling me to, "stay right there!"

When she got back she was in one of her sweater-dresses, red, and wearing black tights and boots. She liked being cosy more than she liked practicality. But being a Nocturnal, she could afford it I supposed. "Into the lift," ushering me forward, I obeyed without thought of pulling rank. She seemed lighter than she had been in a while. "We're going to need Jennings, now he's got his superpower back," she said as she hit the button for the ground level and swiped her key card. From up here no scans were generally needed unless the floor someone wanted to go to was restricted access, the cards were new since the turn, to identify better which agents are where, more specifically the Nocturnal ones. Ground and basement level required scans of prints to get to any other level now, not just the restricted access. There were ways to bypass the system if you didn't want to be tracked through the building or slowed up, I'm sure, but I hadn't gotten around to figuring them out. As they may come in handy later.

"What is this all about, Andersen?" Her toes were wiggling inside her boots, making the leather creak as it formed to their shape and gave to her fidgeting, I clenched my jaw, ran my hands back over my hair and let out a breath. Sometimes even I could be irritated by the smallest things.

Kate glanced up at the dark grate above our heads, she'd made the camera in it, and put on a fake smile. Out of the corner of my eye I watched her lift her hand and wave to it, so quickly I was reminded of three people, two of which may have directly influenced her. Rin being at the top of the list. Without even looking back at me, she spoke through her smile, "Just something interesting."