Libby jerked awake to the sound of her alarm clock going off. She rolled over and rubbed her eyes to look at the time, which read 6:30am. Pushing her covers aside, she slowly sat up and reached for her prosthetic leg. She fumbled clumsily with the different straps and buckles, her mind struggling to wake itself up. Wasn't there something she had to do today...?

"Good morning, sleepyhead. Are you ready for the trip?" Libby looked up groggily to see her father standing in the doorway to her room. Unlike his daughter, Lloyd was already fully dressed and seemed to be completely awake, finishing the last bit of his tea while he spoke. Libby guessed he had been up for several hours already. She finished adjusting her leg and stood up, starting toward the bathroom.

"Yeah, I'm ready." she yawned. "I just gotta... get the last of my stuff together." Lloyd nodded in acknowledgement before turning around to head back downstairs.

"I'll be waiting in the kitchen for you," he called over his shoulder. "We should leave as soon as possible." his shoulder accidently brushed against a picture frame, causing it to slip from where is hung on the wall. He whirled around, expertly catching it with one hand. Putting it back in its place, Lloyd stood back for a moment, gazing the beautiful face of his deceased wife. He smiled softly, then continued down the stairs.

...

Cole waited expectantly by the bus stop, doing his best to restrain himself from checking his phone for the millionth time. He already knew that it was still 8:02am, and glancing at the time every few seconds would only make time go slower. He let out a yawn before standing up from the bench he had been sitting on for the last ten minutes to toss his empty coffee cup into the trash can. He pulled out his phone. 8:03am.

"How late is this bus going to be?" he mumbled to himself, retaking his seat. Every time he heard a particularly loud engine in the distance Cole glanced up, only to be disappointed when the vehicle drove right by his stop without slowing. Finally, at 8:09am, he watched as a bus pulled around the corner and screech to a stop a few feet away from him. The side door opened, and people began to file out onto the already crowded sidewalk. Quickly standing up, Cole's eyes searched for a glimpse of long black hair among the different heads passing by. A few times he thought he saw her, but every time the person he thought he had identified turned around to reveal otherwise. He was starting to feel uneasy that he wouldn't be able to find her, when he felt a tap at his shoulder.

"Hey dad," an amused voiced said behind him. Cole spun around with a look of surprise to face his 23-year-old daughter, who was laughing slightly at his ignorance.

"Nikki, there you are!" he let out a laugh himself, and embraced her tightly. He held her back at arm's length. "Look at you, it's no wonder I didn't recognize you at first. You look so much more grown up. Your hair is different, for starters." Indeed, Nikki's once waist-length hair now only fell to her shoulders, and where it had usually been straight, it was now expertly curled into loose ringlets. She put a few strands behind her ear and smiled up at her father.

"I thought I was long past due for a few changes." she explained, leaning down to pick up her bag. Cole reached out and took it before she could.

"Let me take that for you." he offered, starting off in the direction of his car. "Come on, we have to meet up with your mom and brother." Nikki hurried after him, having to walk fast to keep up with his long strides.

"Do you know if there's anyone at the temple yet?" she asked, panting slightly. Cole stopped in front of his car and unlocked it, pushing open the trunk door.

"Well, the Walkers are there, Jay made sure they arrived first apparently." he mentally rolled his eyes at his old friend as he loaded his daughter's things into the car. "I don't know about the others, although, I heard Evelyn had some trouble at the airport, so the Smiths might be late." Nikki couldn't help not feeling surprised at Evelyn's misfortune. The master of fire seemed to be a magnet to bad luck, which, Evelyn even admitted to herself, was mostly her own doing.

"I hope they don't take too long," she said, sliding into the passenger seat. "I can't wait to see everyone."