Everyone regrouped at Equius's house. His father would be occupied with the devastating breach in security that caused the assassination, and the Zahhak household was the largest, though weirdest, option they had. Nobody appreciated the horse decorations in the house, although Roxy got a kick out of the horse cocks. "Dirk would be simultaneously entranced and disgusted."

Both of the Makaras and Amporas had arrived. Cronus called Eridan over to make sure he was safe (at least, that's the reason they all agreed on). Karkat called Gamzee, who brought Kurloz in tow. Nobody had any word from the Striders.

"Hey," Sollux said to Feferi. Sollux was laying on the couch with Aradia asleep on top of him. She had been hectic over the disappearance of Damara. They were at each other's throats frequently, but when Damara's daily insult didn't reach Aradia, she began to worry.

"What's up?" Feferi asked. Cronus was sitting on the floor in front of her, also asleep. Eridan had confided in her that he hadn't slept normally in a week. She was absentmindedly stroking his head, appreciating that his hair wasn't slick with grease.

"You know Tavros doesn't hate you." Tavros was currently running interference between Rufioh and Horuss, all of which were in the separate living room.

"I doubt it," Feferi scoffed.

"He's pissed. Well, pissed doesn't even begin to explain it, but he's not stubborn. He's starting to understand why it had to happen."

"He'll never forgive me."

"Well god, FF, I never said he was gonna let anyone walk all over him. Remember why he needs those legs?"

"How could I forget?" It had been a particularly dark time for everyone. Middle school for trolls was hard. Their bodies made drastic changes to become larger, stronger, more capable of killing and fighting. Lowbloods were about as bad as any human during puberty, but highbloods were vicious. Gamzee needed to be sedated by high dose of sopor. Equius was breaking everything, Feferi had fits of violence, Eridan had extensive plans on a human holocaust, but most severely affected was Vriska. She was ruthless. She and Terezi were scheming with everyone and everything. Vriska's favorite victim was Tavros, who she would purposely bait into idiotic situations. The worst involved a realistic dog dummy, a speeding car, and a clueless, generous Tavros.

"But look at Vriska and Tavros. Those two are pretty close friends despite her paralyzing him."

"I killed a man. Well, helped at least. There's a big difference."

"Yeah," Sollux sighed. "But you were always nice to him."

"Hey Sollux?"

"Yeah?"

"You suck at cheering people up."

"Yeah, well, I'm great at video games, and that's all that really matters."

They fell quiet. Equius walked in from the kitchen, where he and Nepeta had been having a feelings jam. "My father just called. He should be home within the hour. He is aware that everyone is here, and is more than happy to let you stay for a bit longer."

"We should probably wake everyone up," Sollux said. "It'll be weird if everyone was asleep when a presumed terrorist attack just occurred."

"Wake everyone up," Equius said with a smile. "Coffee will fix everything."

Sollux gently woke his matesprit up, softly explaining the situation to her tired face. Feferi nudged Cronus with her foot, and when that didn't work, she started rubbing his horns. He woke up laughing, but soon they were able to wake everyone up and distribute coffee to those who had been sleeping.

Feferi and Aradia were talking about the possible whereabouts of Damara when Mr. Zahhak walked through the door. He glanced between the connected kitchen and dining area before saying, "Goodness, Equius, I never realized you had so many friends."

Equius turned a dark shade of blue. "Yes, well, I'm quite the social butterfly."

"How is everything, Mr. Zahhak?" Nepeta asked sweetly.

He chuckled. "Is that honestly a question?" When he realized that all of them were staring at him with expectant eyes, he leaned against the counter. "It's been terrible, I've had to deal with the press asking about lack of proper security and I've had to deal with more press asking whether or not this was a terrorist attack from the Entriot Union or the Vector."

"Was it?" Terezi asked.

"Definitely not. Trelgi was the best candidate in the opinion of most world leaders. If Frolid was assassinated, it'd be a terrorist attack. Then again, I wouldn't really mind if Frolid was assassinated." Everyone laughed at this.

"What about the breaches in security?" Horuss asked, holding Rufioh's hand. Mr. Zahhak's eyes flitted downward and well-hid disgust crossed his face. Feferi always thought it was because Rufioh always reeked of weed, wore too many rags and had too many piercings. Now she assumed it was because he was a lowblood.

"The shooter wasn't in the crowd. That much is certain. We think the shooter was on the top of Grist Bank. Most likely using an illegal gun, from the looks of the bullet. That's all I'm allowed to say."

"Think it was a homemade gun?" Horuss asked.

"No, definitely something on the black market." Feferi risked a quick glance at Jade, who was looking at her phone nervously. Mr. Zahhak noticed this, but didn't mention it. Then again, there would be no reason for him to suspect any of them. "I need to go back to the station, I just dropped by to make sure everyone was okay. Feel free to stay here as long as you need, but be sure to alert your families that you're safe. Oh, and Feferi, watch the news at seven. Your mother has a surprise for you," he said with a wide grin.

As he said his goodbyes to everyone, Feferi searched through all of the news she could get to pertaining the current situation. Sollux leaned towards her and said, "I couldn't find anything either, but we only have to wait a little bit."

"What do you think she'll say?"

"Mind if we butt in?" Rose asked, Kanaya beside her. Sollux and Feferi separated to allow room for them. "I would assume she's going to alert the press that the city is safe and there is nothing to fear."

"Makes sense," Feferi agreed.

"But your mom's kind of evil. She's probably up to something," Sollux said.

"What if she's making an announcement on the behalf of the Liberal Party?" Kanaya said, putting her hand to her chin.

"Well, we'll know in half an hour," Feferi said.

"Guess we'll find out soon enough," Rose muttered. As they waited, some started to leave. Aradia, Tavros, Rufioh, and Karkat all left together to go back to the midnight crew. John and Jade left with Roxy, who promised to come back for Rose in a little bit. The rest of them stayed, waiting in front of the tv, watching the latest news and reports on the assassination.

Then the screen switched to a podium, the same one Trelgi was supposed to speak at. Her mother walked up to it. Everyone was silence. There were a few flashes from cameras as she adjusted her microphone. Then she smiled.

"This assassination was a terrible blow to our country. Whether this was a terrorist attack or the act of a criminal citizen, one fact remains clear. Notras Trelgi was assassinated for his forward, liberal ideas. He was killed for his desire to help this country. But while we mourn the loss of a wonderful politician and loving troll, we must look to the bright side, to the future. I am here to formally announce that I am running for president."

"Fuck!" Sollux said.

"Shit," Rose said. "Dirk just texted me."

"What'd he say?" Kanaya asked. Even Vriska turned to pay attention to Rose, despite her tendency to ignore her for some unknown reason.

"He's going to Karkat's house. We need to get there now," Rose said, her hands shaking. Everyone piled into the few cars they had and rushed to the Slick household. Dirk was waiting, sitting on the steps to the front door. Jake was with him. Rose gasped.

"Rose! I didn't get the chance to call everyone else, but Roxy should get here soon with everyone else." He had his arms wrapped around Dirk, who had healed cuts across his face and arms. His glasses were cracked and flashing red.

"Where's Dave?" Rose asked, her voice cracking.

"I don't know."