Chapter Three:
Black
Disclaimer:I do not own the cartoonStorm Hawks. It and all its respectable characters are © to Asaph "Ace" Fipke and Nerd Corps. Lupin and all plot contents within are © to me. All shows/ books/ video games/ songs that are mentioned in this chapter are all © to their respective owners, I don't own them.
Note: First off, I want to give a shout-out and a thank you to Hedlum for the lovely review. :) It made me grin stupidly every time I went back to read it because I kept it in my email for the longest time, trying to find a proper way to reply. I still haven't, but I wanted to say thank you regardless of my lack of answer since the chapter's posting. XD
And in answer to your question, unfortunately I have not read the story you made mention of, although I'll have to give it a look. I do enjoy Charles de Lint's novels, which tend to bring in a lot of supernatural creatures into the modern world as well. :D
Now that all of that's out of the way…onwards with the story, my lovelies!
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Far off in the distance, somewhere you can't see
Allegiances have formed your destiny
Opposition all around, feeding off your soul
Trying hard to swallow up you whole
And the demons all around you waiting for you to sell your soul
-Kari Kimmel, Black
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"She's late."
Something was wrong. Something just felt…off.
Stork watched as Piper paced across the bridge, his eye twitching and lips peeled in that snarky grimace it usually was in. The transmission Lupin had shot off had been several hours ago, saying she was on her way. It was usually the only way she let them know when she was coming. After that, silence ensued, with no sign of her. The few attempts at sending back a message were met with no answers and growing anxiety levels.
"She hasn't ever been late. Not on purpose like this or anything. Something might have happened to her."
"We barely know anything about her. How do we know what she's like?" Stork retorted, eye giving a telltale twitch every so often. Piper breezed past him and back out to the outer deck, paced out on the catwalk outside a few times, then wandered back inside.
"She hasn't been late before. And she's been pretty straight forward with us so far. I don't think she'd just up and drop a job like this. She just…doesn't seem like that kind of person."
"Most of the repairs we can do ourselves. We don't really need her anymore," Stork muttered. Piper shot him a mild glare.
"The parts we're using aren't exactly the same as the ones from Atmos. We might need her for a final inspection."
"We can do our own troubleshooting. Even Aerrow said so. She's not needed anymore for that. Far as I can see it, the sooner we cut ties, the better. The less she knows about us, even better."
Piper's brow creased with worry, even when she paused, unable to deny that this was true. The rest of the repairs could easily be done by them, there really was no need for Lupin anymore. She glanced back at Stork, who was merely dusting off the helm, looking rather nonchalant. He caught her staring and sighed, waving his hand vaguely.
"If you feel comfortable continuing in allowing an outsider like her traipse about the Condor, be my guest, but don't be surprised when we have her government's forces charging up our ramps to try and take us down."
"She wouldn't do that."
"Oh? And you know this, how? Because she promised? Or is it because she just seems trustworthy?" Stork narrowed his eyes again. "Just because she seems nice, doesn't mean she actually is. And just because she says one thing, doesn't mean she actually stands by it. Actions speak louder than words and she's been acting pretty hesitant with us ever since she stepped foot on the Condor. Who knows what she might be planning when she isn't around us? She might just sell us out if it benefits her more than keeping our secret."
Piper hesitated. A few years ago, she might've said yes, that she trusted someone like Lupin. But newer experiences and past results of betrayal made her falter, made her think before she answered. Would their mechanic do something like that? They'd only known her for a few days. And even in the beginning, she seemed rather calloused and ornery, unfriendly even. Should they expect open force from her people?
She knew Stork was playing devil's advocate in this situation, as he always did—voicing the worst possibly scenario, in general, really—and while most times he was way off…there have been plenty of times he's been close on the money too.
"It'd be better if we cut our losses now, fix what we can, and get out of here." He paused, almost as though for effect before adding, "How did your meeting with that 'expert' go?"
The young woman scowled a little at his condescending tone, but she sighed regardless and shrugged, glad for the subject change. "It went about as well as expected. The guy was a bit of a nut job. He even asked if we could take him with us."
It had been a rather disappointing venture. Some of the things he spoke of were of interest. Her contact, however, had mostly griped and whined about the woes of the world and how he wished his personal life was better. He did briefly venture into the verbal territory of how difficult it would be to cross over to another one. Hypothetically, that is.
While some of the world news had been biased, she assumed, it was interesting and even worrisome to note the amount of conflict going on worldwide. Counties were constantly at war with one another with several others threatening to get involved; a few civil wars were either going on or looming on the horizon; internal government conflicts were as obvious as gaping sores to the public; and natural disasters that no one seemed to be paying much attention to—or at least, turning a blind eye to—instead of helping end the suffering aftermath completely. The economy was losing ground and many people were unemployed worldwide. The list was, she was sure, endless, and there were many more things that were wrong with this world.
But even with all that said, his information on crossing over between worlds was lacking, all hypothetical and theoretical, and drawing off entertainment mediums for reference. She couldn't even begin to comprehend half of what he spoke of once he started mentioning someone called 'Doctor Who'.
She sighed, shaking her head at Stork. "Back to square one."
"We barely have a square one. We've been lucky to have lasted this long, thanks to your Solaris Crystal, but how long until that runs out, hm?"
"Stork, stop. Any hope we have right now is better than none."
"Any hope we have is dwindling, Piper. Your Solaris Crystal can't recharge everything and eventually, its life cycle will continue to decay at a rapid rate from its excessive use until it hits zero, and you know it. We need to find a way back home."
She pursed her lips. The pessimistic attitude wasn't helping very much, but she knew he was right. It would only be a matter of time before even the sun couldn't recharge the Solaris Crystal she had and in turn, couldn't recharge everything else with it. Its decay rate really was dwindling down quickly and probably wouldn't last much longer.
"What if we used fuel converters on the engine of the Condor? Like we did with our bikes? Do you think that would help delay things?"
Stork whirled, looking at her aghast and spluttered until he screeched, "Are you nuts? We are not converting the Condor's engines to pump that—that filth through her systems! And where would even get that amount of fuel to do it, even if I agreed to do it? The Skimmers were one thing, but the Condor? No way."
Piper made a 'calm down' motion with her hands, looking apologetic. "It was just an idea, Stork. If you don't like it, we won't do it."
He stared at her for a few extra beats, suspicious, before he turned away to wander over toward the catwalk. Piper followed him outside.
"Next thing you know, we'll be forced to live in this place, permanently. Doesn't look good for us, does it? First we're stuck on the Far Side for almost seven years, chasing that damned witch Master Cyclonis, and now she's dumped us here, exiled and unable to get back. Looks like she might get Atmos like she wanted after all."
"Don't say that. We've pulled through before."
"Pure dumb luck," he grudgingly admitted. "Surprisingly."
Piper pursed her lips, settling to stand beside Stork. She put a hand on his shoulder gave it a reassuring squeeze.
"We'll get back. You'll see."
"Right. Remind me to kiss Radarr the moment we do."
She laughed and smiled. "I'll hold you to it."
"Please don't, I was joking."
In spite of his words, there was the slightest of smiles on his face. For the time being, it was enough for Piper.
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It was nearly dark by the time she pulled into the bay of the Condor. She was irate, her nerves were frayed. And, on top of it all she felt rather bad that she hadn't been able to shoot off a message to say she'd be late. Just as she was getting ready to leave, she had gotten a call from work, saying she needed to fill in for someone else who'd called in sick. That blew apart every plan she had for the afternoon. Not to mention, she'd forgotten the damned walkie-talkie device back at her garage. That didn't help matters much.
The big guy, Junko if she recalled correctly, met her in the bay. He was smiling when she stepped out of her car, Kosmo not far behind her. The German Shepard trotted over to Junko with an excited wag of his tail. Her grinned even wider and laughed, rubbing the dog's head with a massive hand and a chuckle.
"Well, hey there, Kosmo, good to see you too!"
Gray eyes lifted to meet mismatched ones and there was warmth even then. Lupin was surprised, and felt a little abashed once again for having been discourteous and late.
"We thought you weren't gonna show. We were starting to get worried," Junko started, still patting Kosmo, who panted happily away. Lupin grimaced.
"Yeah, sorry about that. I, uh, got drafted into work just as I was heading over. Had to fill in for someone else who didn't show up."
"Oh. Right, you have a job here, don't you?" The big guy scratched the back of his head. "Well, that's fine, I guess. You're here now." He peered over his shoulder, back at the doorway that Lupin knew led further into the ship. Junko groaned. "But, uh, I dunno if the others know, they been kinda running around the whole place, fixing things up, doing chores. Mind if I go, and uh…?"
He jabbed a thumb behind him and Lupin flapped a hand at him, diving back into her car for her tool box.
"Shoo with you. I won't go wandering around unsupervised. Promise," she replied, waving at him further as she hauled herself to the Skimmer. She paused, however, when she noticed some of the work she'd left unfinished yesterday was nearly complete now. A frown pulled at her lips and she looked to Junko. He rubbed at the back of his head, looking sheepish.
"We…didn't think you'd make it today after the first hour or so after you called in and didn't show. Aerrow already started putting up the rest of the repairs earlier. Sorry."
"Well, then I'll just…finish the rest of the repairs tonight and he can probably finish troubleshooting tomorrow, make sure everything's working like it should be," Lupin faltered in her answer, unsure of what to feel. Disappointed? Indignant? Upset? Relieved, even?
Junko hesitated before he nodded. "Right. I'll just…go tell the others you're here now."
She watched the broad-shouldered Wallop amble off and disappear into the depths of the ship before turning back to the bike. Most of the minor issues she'd put off for today were mostly complete. Cosmetic work would be needed, and the new chassis pieces she'd managed to snag were already laid out, ready to be fitted onto the frame of the bike now. They had been custom made at the beginning of the repair week, the order put in to a buddy of her's, and they had done fantastic work. It would need a paintjob, but she couldn't just roll the bad boy off the ship and all over Los Angeles to get to the place she had in mind.
Lupin sighed. Well, it was apparent that they didn't need her for very much longer. This was to be expected, of course, so it didn't come as much of a surprise. She couldn't get mad about it. That would be just…petty. Petty and stupid.
It didn't mean it still didn't hurt, even if by a little.
As per usual, she seated herself on one side of the bike, with Kosmo beside her. She didn't need the manual anymore. After having read through it several times, she had some confidence that she could do the rest of the repairs without consulting the book as much, if at all. Her ears twitched and swiveled toward the door, listening to the sound of approaching footsteps on a metal catwalk headed her way.
Moments later, the door slid away and in marched Aerrow and Piper, followed by Junko. She gave them a passing glance before returning to her work.
"Sorry about the delay," she called to them as they approached.
"So we heard. Junko told us." Piper replied.
"I did tell you I had a job. That sometimes entails to taking someone else's shift. I got shanghaied into doing that today, just as I was about to leave to come here. I left the transmitter ya gave me back at my place when I left, though. Sorry."
She tightened a bolt, secured some wirings into place, paused. Moved on to the next setting.
"I see you already finished most of the repairs. Guess I'm not really needed anymore. You can probably finish this before midmorning and conduct your troubleshooting like you wanted to by noon," she finally concluded when she stopped to assess things. She ran a hand over some of the panels that had already been secured into place, some of the original pieces of the chassis that had survived. Her eyes lingered on the panel, fingers tracing over something she hadn't seen before. A name.
Air Skimmer III Ultra.
She's never heard of the brand name.
It was curious. She could've sworn she's heard it from somewhere before, but she couldn't place when or where. She was sure it'd come to her, though. Eventually…
She removed her fingers and packed away the tools she'd taken out. "Not much use for me now, I suppose. Job wasn't gonna last for forever." Kosmo leapt to his feet as she picked herself back up. She checked her watch and sighed. Almost nine. "You can pay me tomorrow. I should probably head back home."
The other three stood by, looking a bit sheepish.
"We didn't really mean…I mean, we couldn't get through to you. We didn't know you were tied up," Aerrow started. Lupin waved a hand at him dismissively.
"I know. It was my fault. Not yours." She shrugged, looking at Aerrow. "Anyway, I'll return your transmitter tomorrow."
Gathering up her tool box, she clicked her tongue at Kosmo, who bolted toward the car. She was taken aback when hands reached for the tool box and took it from her. She bristled, shoulders tensing. Aerrow stood at her side, hefting the tool box into a more secure position. He grinned at her.
"Or, we could pay you tonight."
"Trying to get rid of me, huh? Classy," she snorted. His smile faltered.
"That's…not what we're trying to do," he said. She studied him before motioning back for the tool box.
"Come on. Give it back. I can carry it."
"I know." He replied, sauntering off toward her car. She blinked, feeling slow on the uptake.
"Oi! Put it down!"
She heard snickers behind her and scowled at Piper and Junko. She turned back to Aerrow, who was already depositing the tool box into the backseat. He grinned at her.
"I just did."
"You fuckin'—smartass!"
Her ears flared back against her head, tail bristling indignantly.
"Well, it's certainly better than the other option. C'mon. Why don't you give me a ride in this thing? Show me how fun it is to ride in one of these vehicles. The only other thing I've been in is a bus and this looks like a much better ride."
That caught her off guard. Her ears popped up and her tail smoothed over in an instant out of surprise. She stared at Aerrow, briefly and genuinely unsure of how to respond to that. She normally was good at comebacks, but at the present moment, she was falling short.
"I…" She paused, gathering her wits. She glanced over at the other two again, feeling awkwardly out of place. She didn't like feeling like that. So, she gathered up every ounce of shamelessness she had left inside of her and threw it all out to hide her discomfort. "Right. Sure, I guess. I just…I could give you back the transmitter tonight, if that's the case."
He was already trotted around to the other side. A squawk at her feet and a blur of blue fur rushed past her, making her flinch. Radarr leapt over onto the hood of her vehicle and skidded over to the other side, scrambling inside with Aerrow. Sneaky little devil. She didn't even know he was there. The hazards of being small, she supposed. Well, that and her lack of situational awareness.
Step it up, Marine, she chastised herself. And at least he didn't leave scratch marks.
Once more, she looked over her shoulder at Piper and Junko. Junko gave a longing stare at the car, while Piper gave a wave.
"Um…do any of you want a ride?"
"We're fine. It'll be quicker with just one person. Just…try to bring him back in one piece?" Piper smiled. Lupin raised a brow.
"Fair enough, I suppose," she said with a nod, swinging herself into the driver's seat. She saw Aerrow watching her from the corner of her eye, Radarr crouching in his lap. "Seat belt?"
"What? Oh. Oh, right. You guys have the—yeah. Sorry."
He fumbled for a moment to find the safety belt before he yanked it over and clicked it into place. She sighed, doing the same and glanced in the rear view mirror to look at Kosmo. He gave her a doggy grin, then laid down, fully expectant of what was to come. She started up the car, felt the vibration echo back into the cab and sat still for a moment, a sudden feeling of nostalgia washing over her.
It passed quickly as she shook the thoughts away and put the car into reverse. She glanced at Aerrow and Radarr, allowing several beats to pass before her lips quirked into a half-smile.
"Ready? 'Cuz if you ain't, too bad."
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Aerrow had been truthful when he'd mentioned his only experience with transport had been a public bus. It had been slow, cumbersome, noisy, crowded and rather awkward. It wasn't that he had a problem, per say, with being confined next to other people. It was being confined with questionable people who may or may not try to case him out as a potential target to rob. Every penny he and the others had earned, they couldn't afford to lose. They also couldn't afford to store it in a bank. Piper's attempt had proved a blunder, but the information had at least proved worth something, if a little useless.
But that was neither here nor there.
He slipped away from the past several weeks' time and focused on the here and now, enjoying the ride. And for his first time in a privately owned vehicle, what a ride it was. It was loud, it was old—he could tell these things, since he flew in an aged ship after all—and yet, it flung itself forward with all the bluster it could boast. It proved to be quite a lot.
The ride was smooth, and the engine ranged from a guttural and boastful roar to a quiet, gentle purr that sounded like it was well cared for. No rattling, no ticking, no wheezing, no sputtering. Smooth. And, from the way the woman seated beside him driving said vehicle, it was very well cared for and loved.
The warehousing district that he and the others had hidden out in slipped away quickly as they rolled onto the city streets. Night had fallen fully upon them, but the city wasn't sleepy at all. A different kind of life was beginning to wake up; this was no different from any major city.
They came to an intersection, stopped at a red light—something he and the others had to remind themselves of constantly, this place had a traffic light system. The car idled, Lupin's hand resting comfortably on the shifter, her foot allowing the clutch to be lifted as she waited, the other foot pressed firmly on the brake. Another car came growling up beside them. Lupin's ear flicked at the constant revving beside them. Radarr whined, which devolved into an annoyed growl.
Aerrow turned his head to look out Lupin's window.
There was another vehicle beside them, shiny and sleek and black with red accents and looking noticeably newer than her older vehicle. There were two people in the front of the cab: the driver and his front seat passenger. They pointed at Lupin, honked the horn, catcalling to her to gain her attention.
Aerrow looked to Lupin. She had her eyes locked dead ahead, her expression almost…bored.
"Um…they're looking at you."
"I know they are."
"You…do know why, right?'
It was hard to ignore the look of mocking challenge on the others' faces. It was something he'd faced himself many times in the past. Well, before the Far Side…
"I know why," she replied, hand tightening on the shifter, foot slowly pressing down on the clutch while the other moved to the gas pedal. The other engine revved louder in challenge. The driver and his passenger cackled. Lupin breathed deep. The next breath, she slammed her foot on the gas pedal. The engine roared deafeningly like a great beast. Aerrow nearly clapped his hands over his ears at the surprisingly loud bellow it made.
The looks on the two males in the other vehicle fell and their raucous noise grew silent. Eyes widened. Jaws slackened. Radarr uttered a small squawk. Kosmo whined in the back. Lupin tilted her head to glance at the two males from the corner of her eye, her lips quirking into a crooked, mocking smile.
The light turned green. She threw the car into gear and took off at a leisurely pace. The black car remained to the spot behind them, the driver and passenger still staring, slack-jawed. Aerrow felt a grin pulling at his lips.
"Buddies of yours?"
He doubted it, but who knew?
That crooked grin of hers turned to him and her mismatched eyes flash in the night lights, reflecting like an animal's. He shivered.
"Nope. Just a bunch of assholes thinking I'm a wannabe car enthusiast, probably driving my boyfriend's car to look cool." She flicked her eyes back to the road seconds later, made a turn down another street. "Males will always underestimate and undermine females, no matter what category it's in. Some are for equality, to be fair, but others want control over a woman completely, including what she can and can't do with her mind and her body. It's rather annoying." She snorted before continuing, "I saw a lot of equality and I saw a lot of sexism in the military. Double-edged blade. Don't get me started on the civilian half of things, neither."
"I'll keep that in mind," he said. Radarr looked at him and he shrugged silently. Lupin sighed beside him. There was a slight pause.
"Sorry about that. I hate it when people think they can dismiss me or diss me. Doesn't matter what for: gender, size, whatever. It pisses me off when I see it happen to others too, especially people who're capable of doing things."
"Sounds…like a problem in this world." He wasn't sure where this was going and furrowed his brow at her.
"Sorry," she said again, looking slightly sheepish. "It's…personal experience lashing out, is all. I just wanted to put those loudmouths in their place. Probably not the best way. Then again, getting out and beating the crap out of them for being obnoxious would've been a worse choice."
A wry grin tugged her lips upward. The Sky Knight chuckled. "Maybe. You did shut them up, though."
"True. Another thing that irritates me is when people go around revving their engines like an obnoxious prat. And I always run into the most irritating Mustang drivers, too."
"A what now?"
"Ford Mustang. Fifth generation from the looks of it, 2011 or 2012 perhaps. V6 engine and automatic, too. Puny little thing compared to my baby's V8. They were being such tools tryin' to do that. Everything was stock, too! I could tell!"
Lupin's ears gave a purposeful twitch as she pointed to her ears before patting the steering wheel affectionately.
"So this isn't your boyfriend's car," Aerrow snickered. Lupin's smile faded and her breath hitched.
"I…no. No boyfriend. I built my 'Bee up from the ground, right from the dead even, back when I was fifteen. My stepdad, he…helped me buy the car. He taught me everything I know." The smile was a broken but wistful and nostalgic thing now, brow furrowed a little, eyes a little distant.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to upset you."
"I'm fine." The words came a little too quick, too harsh. He didn't prod further, but he still frowned at her sudden defensiveness.
An oppressive hush left him hanging and feeling a little more than awkward. The older woman allowed stony silence to fill up the space between them, her lips quirked into a thinly pressed line. Of course, he'd figured out when a girl said she was fine, they really weren't. That had taken some time to figure out, especially with Piper. The only problem was approaching the subject without igniting offense, which was tricky and quite often dangerous. Not physically of course, but still. So, instead of pushing and prodding with an air of nosiness, he allowed some time to pass between them, to let the air clear up.
"So…I'm guessing you're trying to get back home?"
The question came out of nowhere, breaking the relative silence. Radarr snuffled, and Aerrow exchanged looks with his friend. He shrugged, but didn't give any negative connotations to keep quiet. Aerrow glanced at her.
"Yeah."
"Lemme guess: you got stuck here doing…whatever. Fighting an evil overlord or empire. Accidental meddling with ancient artifacts when you shouldn't have. Something along those lines. Can't think of anything else right now."
"Erm…the first one. Sort of. And the second one, too, but it wasn't…accidental. Not with us, anyways."
She only nodded, as though that were the most reasonable answer there was.
"Sorry. I watch too many movies and read too many books. It's, I dunno. Cliché, sort of?" She smiled apologetically.
"Well, when you put it that way…"
"Yeah, I know. I'm sure whatever happened…well, I hope you get home. Wherever that is. Atmos, right?"
"Yeah." Radarr gave a soft, pitiful whine, head lowering and ears drooping slightly. Aerrow placed a reassuring hand on his friend's back, lips pursing. "I'm hoping so too, but…so far, no luck."
"I won't prod if you don't want me to. It's not really my place, considering my job ends after you pay me."
That struck a harsh chord, even if it was technically true. It didn't soften the blow much, though.
"Y'know, you're…pretty mellow about all this," he said cautiously.
She shrugged. "I'm a werewolf. One of my buddies is a skinwalker, turns into a giant bear. I've seen ghosts and violent spirits. I've killed two other werewolves. Honestly, I thought I'd meet an alien more than someone from another world, but I'm not gonna be picky on the encounter." A lighter tone seeped into her voice, and a slightly playful smile made her lips quirk upwards again. She glanced at him briefly from the corner of her eye, saw the boggled expression on his face. "Trust me when I say this, you want someone mellow. You don't want a spaz or a nutjob or a backstabbing snake being your contact. They can get…iffy. Trust me."
He found himself smiling back in spite of himself and even Radarr perked a little.
They stopped at another intersection, idling behind a truck. Aerrow glimpsed writing on the back window and laughed. Lupin snickered.
"'If you're reading this, I hate you'."
"Pffft. I don't care who ya are, that's funny right there. Bumper and window stickers are amusing when they're on somebody else's cars. Or obnoxious, it's hit or miss half the time."
The light turned green and then they started back down the road, still laughing. The shops and businesses slid away behind them, giving way to condos and apartment complexes. He'd never been in this part of the city. He shifted in his seat to watch, as did Radarr, curiosity winning out in lieu of conversation.
"Almost there," Lupin said quietly after a while, interrupting his thoughts. He straightened in his seat. Kosmo whimpered behind him. Barely a minute passed before she spoke again in a quieter voice, dripping in agitation. "What the fuck is going on out here?"
The street was clogged with people, vehicles, blocking their way further. Lupin bristled before snagging a parking spot by the curb. Aerrow watched her.
"Something's wrong. I smell smoke. There might be a fire."
He sniffed the air and faintly, he could smell it too.
"Where's it coming from?"
"Down by my street. I can hear them, the firefighters." She paused, frowning and brow furrowing. "Hope nobody I know is hurt."
"You can tell all that from here?"
He stared, incredulous. She nodded, already getting out. "Come on, we're not that far. We won't be able to get there by car. They'll probably have blocked it off by now. Hopefully we can get past the crowd. We'll be in and out and then I'll take ya back to your ship."
"Thanks. You, uh—," he hesitated, unsure of what to say exactly. He barely knew her or anything about her, to be honest. Well, that wasn't true. Her work was rather superb. He settled on that. "You…you did a great job with helping out. Thank you."
"You're welcome." She paused with a smile before turning on her heel, motioning for him to follow. "Now, come on. Kosmo, come boy. Allons-y!"
They took off down the street, pushing through the sparse crowd, but the closer they came to Lupin's street, the denser it got. People were either running away or running towards the commotion.
"Are you sure everything's all right? Is there anything that, I dunno, we could do to…help? Whoever's in trouble, I mean." He was worried. What if someone was hurt? It was duty to help people.
"No. The firefighters won't have a job if people like you rushed in like that. No offense, but they're trained to put out fires. Are you?"
"Well, no, but…" he trailed off. She had a point. The paramedics would certainly have more to do, though, if more people jumped in blindly to help. He'd admit, good intentions from people are often misguided. Radarr growled as he walked beside Aerrow. No one seemed to notice the blue-furred creature. Kosmo trotted faithfully beside Lupin, panting away.
"Just around this corner."
"Lead the way."
"It's what I do, Aerrow. It's what…I…"
Her somewhat cheery response dropped off completely as they rounded a corner. She stopped dead in her tracks, staring, frozen, expression blank. Bright light danced over her profile and when he turned the corner, he could see why.
The fire was less than a hundred yards from them, across the street. Two fire trucks were parked haphazardly in the street, and a ring of people—the neighbors and passing pedestrians, no doubt—stood just outside the hazard area. Great, foaming sprays of water speared against the fire, trying to tame it back. Immediately, the worse came to mind when he looked back at Lupin, but he didn't even get a chance to ask, to confirm. The look on her face was all he needed.
"My…my garage. It…it's gone."
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