2

"A thing is not necessarily true because a man dies for it."

― Oscar Wilde

Renge ran the brush through her hair and gave a large yawn. She didn't want to go to school, having stayed up late to play a few games. It had been a couple days since moving in with her cousin and she could tell that he couldn't figure her out at all. It was a little funny if she was to be totally honest. She couldn't help it, she loved to mess with people. Alchemy required equivalent energy to be used to craft, destroy, or change things. Usually that meant the combination of both light and dark.

Typically it focused on chaotic magic, which, luckily, she specialized in.

Renge grinned to herself and put the brush down. She could cause so much trouble and no one would know it was her. Well, until she had to step up and stop being a brat. Only way that would happen is if there was serious trouble. And she doubted that would be the case.

"Should I be worried about that expression?" Ryou asked as she exited her lair, the nickname he had lovingly given her room.

"When it's directed at you, yes," Renge confirmed and he looked at the toast before him with an unreadable expression, "but at this moment? No."

"I should be worried about your mental health," he quipped and she snorted, glad he wasn't as much of a pushover as he presented to the world.

"My mother had me tested for insanity," she stated, and then proceeded to not elaborate.

Ryou gathered he was getting used to her if that didn't send him into a worried state. She moved about the kitchen and he was ready to strong arm her into eating something. He was fairly certain she was living off curry buns. She needed something more than curry and fried bread. His magic, something he hadn't used in a while, should be enough to stop her in her tracks for a few seconds so she could be given a proper lunch. With an unpracticed swish of his wand, that he had kept under his pillow because it brought up painful memories, he watched as Renge was stopped in her tracks and sent him an amused look.

"Good, it's nice to see you using your magic," Renge informed him, crossing her arms across her chest, "did you really need the push that bad?"

He stared at her in disbelief as she easily removed his jinx and went to sit down at the breakfast table. What sort of game was she playing? She had been such an ass just for him to use his magic? A part of him really wanted to punch his cousin, but another was oddly touched. She poured herself a cup of tea and picked up one of the strawberry scones. She used honey for her breakfast pastries, he noted.

"You'd have fallen into a spiral if you had kept holding back your magic," she informed him with a semi-serious tone, "bursting into a cloud of conscious magic isn't a fun way to go…apparently."

Was that the knowledge that came from in-depth magical schooling? Or did she just like to read about what happened when magic was suppressed for long periods of time. She bit into her scone and smiled a little before it fell. At times like this, he wondered if he was seeing the true face of his cousin. A sweet girl that had been twisted into a chaotic gremlin by horrible events. He would never inform her of that title, knowing she'd happily refer to herself by it.

"How's school going?" He asked and she looked to the side in thought.

"I've been planning on getting back at two guys that are messing with my desk neighbor," she stated with a shrug, "he's a nice kid and just plays games for the most part…I don't think he's ever been mean to anyone in his entire life."

"Maybe you're being mean enough for the both of you?" His joke got her to grin a little, and he noted that she had pretty long canines. "You aren't a werewolf are you?"

"Nah, these came from my grandparents on my dads side of the family," she explained, "French alchemists…they never really kept in touch."

He tilted his head to the side as she quickly finished her food and got up from the table. She must've really wanted to get back at those two for her desk neighbor. A part of him was incredibly jealous of this unknown boy. He wished someone would do that for him. She paused on her steps and quickly back tracked to him, plopping a strange device in front of him.

"If you have problems, summon me," she informed him before hurrying to the front door and pulling her shoes on.

"What do you mean by summon?" He asked as the door shut behind her.

Oh god, what did she mean by summon?! His mind echoed in horror as he looked at the strange device.

Renge was the first one to school that morning and stepped up to her locker. She opened it and saw some letters sitting inside on top of her indoor shoes. She picked them up in confusion and noted the shaky handwriting on the envelopes. A haughty laugh reached her ears and she looked to the side. A girl with red hair was looking at the pile of letters in her locker and Renge gained a look of disbelief. She was that proud that people put things in her locker? She was weird.

"Himekoji-Senpai, you're so lucky," one of the other girls by her simpered and Renge quickly shook her head and changed her shoes.

The letters remained in her locker, she had more important things to do.

She reached her classroom while breathing heavily. She let out a soft cackle under her breath and slipped into the classroom, stopping at the blondes desk first. She knelt and slowly worked a magical symbol into the seat. The symbol for lightning was overlapped with tiny, a small shock each time he touched or sat in the chair. His desk ended up with the symbol for movement, it was always going to shift on him when he tried to write anything. It was a small prank, harmless really. It wasn't as good as what she used to do back at her previous school.

The brunette got the same seat treatment, but his desk got the symbol for noise. It was always going to be hard for him to focus due to the constant noise. She stood up straight and clapped her hands together, ignoring the rush of magic in her veins, to rid them of the 'dust' on them. She practically skipped to her desk and plopped down with a happy expression.

Renge wondered who she was putting the act on for.

She took out a small book on runes, and quietly read as the rest of the class slowly trickled in. Her desk neighbor had his head hung and refused to look anyone in the eyes. He glanced up so he wasn't running into anyone and noted that the new girl was watching him with curiosity. He found her pink eyes jarring, as did most people, but noted that they were warm. Her mischievous streak aside, he rather liked the new girl. She was her true self and didn't take crap from anyone. He wanted to be like that.

"Good morning, Renge-Chan!" He greeted and he saw her start for a few seconds.

She'd been staring at him without meaning to. Renge didn't know how to move past that and instead gave Yugi a grin in response. It freaked Ryou out when she did that, but it only made Yugi smile back. Perhaps she should be worried that he didn't react like he should to her fear tactics, but it was rather nice to see someone that could match her energy.

Well, she hoped he could match her energy.

Renge decided it was time to make a friend. It would be easy for her, she could be likable when she wanted to be. Sure it was rare that it happened, but it needed to. Ryou would start to worry if she didn't make a single friend. Ayame didn't count, that was her senpai. Senpai definitely don't count as friends. She tapped her book against her desktop and inwardly argued with herself for a few minutes. The cons weren't outweighing the pros. The only con she could see was that she would have to protect him. For some reason the universe seemed to hate him, and was trying to murder him. She closed her book and faltered for a few seconds. Her bravado fading away.

It had been such a long time since she'd had to make a friend.

"Oh..Renge-chan, do you like games?" Yugi asked, taking control of their friendship without realizing it.

"Love 'em," Renge confirmed and his expression brightened a bit more.

Mutou Yugi felt as though he was finally getting another friend. He nervously played with his fingers and she gave him a smile, her eyes closing with the smile. He felt a little uneasy by the sight. He shook himself from those feelings and gave his own small smile. It was nice to gain a friend, even if she was a little weird. Well, she couldn't be too bad if she was a part of the gardening club.

"Do you like plants?" Yugi's question surprised her. "The only people who join the gardening club like them."

"Yeah, I usually grow herbs at home and plants for old style medicine," she admitted, finding Yugi oddly easy to talk to, "that and I have a few poisonous plants."

Poisonous what? She chuckled at his worried expression and gently patted the top of his head without thinking. His hair flattened under her normal hand and she wondered if she should ask what kind of product he uses. It was softer than it looked. She held in a snort at the flushed appearance of his face. It was like he was unused to someone being physically affectionate with him. She paused for a few seconds and gained a closed-eye smile on her face.

"This isn't normal for Japan, is it?" She asked.

"Nope."

"I'm sorry."

She quickly pulled her hand back and Yugi gave a surprised look. He hadn't been expecting the apology and Renge looked towards her blonde victim when he entered the room and went to sit down. The second he made contact with the chair, the second he let out a loud yelp and jumped back on his feet. That made the entire class turn to look at him, his face turned red and he tried to sit down again. He grimaced at the shock that hit him again, but remained in his seat this time. Why the hell did his seat shock him? Renge gave an inward smirk and shared a shrug with Yugi.

"What's your favorite game?" Yugi asked and he watched as her eyes gained a bright glint to them.

"Ever play Civilization two?" She asked.

He hadn't and the grin she gave him made him wonder if he should've just said he had. She was practically vibrating in excitement. He was saved from her delving into her explanation when Chono walked into the classroom, her blonde hair tied back for once. Yugi wouldn't have minded the explanation, it was just how excited she had gotten. It was like no one had ever asked her about her favorite games.

"Today you'll be partnering up to do your work," Chono informed the class and Renge tilted her head in thought.

This wasn't normal, she could tell by Yugi's confused expression. He looked around and she saw his gaze fall on a brunette with blue eyes. Ah, so she wouldn't be picked as his partner. She wasn't going to lie, that did sting a bit. She rested her chin on the heel of her palm in thought. Who would partner up with the weird new kid? She wouldn't have, no she was happier working on her own.

"It seems as though we had an odd number of students, sorry, Bakura-kun," Chono said, holding a hand up to hide her painted lips.

Renge froze for a few seconds before narrowing her eyes. All this because of her hair? She mentally cursed and wanted to ask Ryou for ideas on how to get back at her. She hated people that abused their position of power. She had never liked it, really.

That, and she deserved retribution.

Renge listened to the groups around her as the day progressed. Yugi had paired with a childhood friend named Mazaki Anzu. Renge's hurt practically disappeared. She understood where he was coming from. She looked at the dish she had been tasked with making for Home Economics. A profiterole of all things. It wasn't going to be difficult to make, no her worry was the blonde and brunette.

They were planning something.

She cleared her throat and silently cast a spell over her work station. She refused to allow them to destroy her hard work. Her cousin was going to get one of them. He might like a chou à la crème. She blinked at the use of the actual French word for them. She was making cream puffs that were just filled with ice cream, for her puff of a cousin. He would never know that's how she referred to him as in her own head.

"The hell?" The blonde muttered when their attempt at throwing flour at her was thwarted and she grabbed a spoon and threw it at him.

He got smacked right in the face with it, and he withheld his wince. Shit, for a girl she threw incredibly hard! His friend let out a snort before he got a spatula to the face. He turned to face Renge and saw the expression on her face. He wisely elbowed his friend.

"Holy shit," the brunette muttered.

"Who knew a girl could glare like that," the blonde stated.

"Let's not fuck with her."

"Yeah, I don't think it'll end well."

Renge wondered how long that would last. Probably not very. She looked to the side as she made her choux pastry. At least the extra flour hadn't gotten in the pan. A small smirk started to form on her face at a sudden thought. Yes, her payback towards those two was going to be legendary. She was forced from those thoughts when her pastry started to cook.

"This is…" the teacher trailed off as he looked at more than a dozen perfect profiteroles. "Fantastic!"

Renge made a face at that as he picked up one of the pastries and bit into it. She'd be taking the rest home, she would make sure of it. She was given a slip of paper with her grade and she found that she had been right. Home Economics was going to be her easiest class. She packaged up the profiteroles and put a stasis charm on them when no one was looking. They would last until she could get them into the fridge at the apartment.

"Renge-Chan is so cool," a few people muttered in unison and she felt a drop of sweat go down her cheek.

She wasn't, she was hot, big difference.

Renge gathered the food and her school bag before heading down to her locker to change into her oxfords. Upon opening her locker, a few envelopes fell to the ground and she was forced to look inside it. She had more letters in her locker than she had that morning! Did people have nothing better to do with their lives? She flinched at a sudden thought, who was she to talk? Renge quickly gathered the letters and stuffed them into her bag before changing her shoes.

"Oi, Yugi-kun!" She called out as she saw the shorter teenager heading home.

He froze and looked over at her with wide eyes. She almost felt bad about startling him, just a little. He got a soft huff out of her as she opened up the container and offered one of her creations to him. He accepted one and she closed the container before giving him a salute and hurrying the opposite direction. He studied the profiterole in his hand before giving it a small bite. It was delicious.

"Thank you!" He called out to Renge.

She simply waved a hand in the air before turning a corner. She broke into a run, wanting to get to the apartment faster. She got a strange feeling that she was needed. If she was late, then something bad would happen. She narrowed her eyes before smirking a little. Well, maybe she'd let it happen if it was deserved. As the Americans say, talk shit get hit. She hit the stairs and ended up bent over on their floor, trying to catch her breath. She stumbled into the apartment, her magic unlocking the door faster than before.

"Woah, did you kill someone?" Renge asked as she noted the bloody shoes in front of the door.

"Why is that your first thought?" Ryou asked, and she tilted her head in thought.

That wasn't really her softer cousin. She stepped out of her own shoes and quickly made her way to him. He didn't step back, and that cemented it for her. She rubbed the back of her neck in thought and shot him a look. So, he was possessed? Or was this a separate personality? She wasn't too sure.

"If you're going to act like my cousin, could you please try and pull the wool over someone else's eyes?" Renge requested. "I'm not stupid, I just act like I am."

"Damn," he quietly cursed and he dropped the act completely, smirking her way.

"Don't even think about threatening me, as long as you don't hurt my cousin or any friends I might make, I don't care what you do," she informed him with a shrug, "do you want a profiterole?"

He gave her a blank look and she opened up the container. She could be pushy when she wanted to be. He took one and gave it a sniff of sorts. Renge went to put the rest in the fridge as he ate the pastry. This version of her cousin didn't seem too picky when it came to food, which worked in her favor. It really did.

She needed a new guinea pig.

"Good huh?" She asked, she needed an ego boost.

"Maybe," he said and she slowly looked over at him, "you should stick to engineering."

She blinked.

Wow, it had been a while since someone had insulted her. Everyone had tiptoed around her after the death of her parents. It was a breath of fresh air. She snorted, and he quirked a brow. She was so unbothered by him, and it freaked him out a little. What sort of sociopath did his host live with? She gave him a small wave before heading into her room for the day. He stood there, unsure of how to proceed, he hadn't expected her to be that sharp and figure out the differences between him and his host. Well, he just switched back with his host. Confusing the teen a little bit. He looked around before shrugging. Ryou was just going to go on, and not worry about it.

He was more focused on the pastries in the fridge, they were his favorite.

Renge focused on her homework and felt her eye twitch a little at the sight of the Japanese before her. She made an annoyed sound as she erased an answer and wrote the correct one down. Homework was tedious, which wasn't any different from her magical work. She sat back in her chair, the cream colored wood creaking at the movement, and looked over towards a small corner of the room. She could set her little potions lab there.

She would rather be doing that than the Japanese lit homework.

Renge heard Ryou's surprised sound and tilted her head back when he opened her door. His grin made her blink. Huh, so that other personality was gone. Where was he hiding? She would find out eventually, and when she did she was going to give him a nickname. She had a good one lined up.

"Did you make this?" Ryou asked, motioning towards the profiterole and getting a nod out of her, "it's delicious!"

"Great, my ego needed boosting," she stated and he choked a little on the pastry, "relax, I'm joking. I'm glad you like them."

"Are you struggling with your homework?"

She was silent for a few seconds and slowly looked back towards her lit work.

"I'm not."

"You sure?"

Another beat of silence followed.

"Somewhat."

That was how Ryou found himself helping his cousin with her Japanese homework. It was a little amusing that she spoke it so well, but couldn't read or write it to save her life. He was helping her through the story of Kaguya and watched as she made a face. Right, she didn't seem the type for such stories.

"I get where she's coming from," Renge stated, "being sent down here would be one hell of a punishment."

"Yeah, we aren't the best species," Ryou agreed, watching as she finished writing her last character for her homework.

"I'm just glad that's the only one I'd need help with tonight, have you done yours yet?" She asked and he froze.

He pulled the same tactic she did, and she was surprised to see that it was genetic.

"Yes?"

"Was that an answer or a question?"

"Both."

Ryou found himself having help from Renge on his science homework. She was good at it, her talent for potions shining through. He finished faster than he would've on his own. She moved to her own magical studies and he sat there, feeling more than a little awkward. Ryou had always wanted to go forward in his magical education, but his father had been aloof about his wishes.

"Grab a book if you want to, I'm not worried about you destroying them," Renge informed him, and he did so.

He delved into the history of magic, starting with Egypt or rather Kemet as it used to be called. Historians were unsure of the timing as the knowledge had been stricken from several tablets and glyphs over the years, but thousands of years ago they fought using shadow monsters and the souls of people. It was fascinating, and oddly familiar to him. He heard Renge get up from her desk, and carried the book with her as she moved towards a corner of the room. He blinked before realizing he had taken her bed so he could read. Well, she hadn't said anything so she probably didn't mind.

"Are you creating a potions lab?" He asked, watching as she slowly drew a circle on the ground.

"No," she stated, finishing the circle and stepping back in thought, "I'm creating a meth lab, I'm going to run the streets of Domino with an iron fist."

"I am so glad you're joking," he sighed.

She was silent at that and he began to worry a little. It was a joke, right? She placed the book down and clapped her hands together. The act startled him a little. That wasn't a usual way to do alchemy. Was this the family magic that she had been taught? She put her hands down on the circle and a wooden station slowly rose from the floor, detaching itself as though she had simply bought it more than created it from the floor itself. She tilted her head in thought and drew another circle on the station itself. Ryuo watched, fascinated by the lack of expression on her face. He had grown used to the constant smirks, grins, and glares. So to see nothing was eerie.

Unnatural.

"Looks good," he complimented and she gave a small nod before tilting her head in thought.

"How much do you think-"

"Don't…don't even finish that."

"You've gotten used to me, congrats that's the fastest I've seen that happen before."

He didn't doubt that. She gave him a grin and an uneasy feeling disappeared. He hadn't even realized that he had grown uneasy. She went to her bed and pulled out her suitcase from underneath it. Kuriboh stared at him, and he stared back. It was adorable, and didn't suit his cousin at all. He narrowed his eyes in thought.

"You know him, don't you?" Ryou asked and she looked up from her suitcase in confusion. "Industrial Illusions CEO."

"Yeah, we shop at the same book store…or rather we did," Renge shrugged, pulling out her potions equipment, "is it that big of a deal?"

"Kinda," Ryou admitted and she snorted.

"He's a grown man that loves comics about a rabbit, trust me he's not that big of a deal," Renge stated, putting down her vials and small cauldron, "did you want to do a campaign tonight?"

Ryou brightened at that question.

That was how Renge found herself sipping on a soda while Ryou fixed up the game board. Her little figurine joined his white mage and she enjoyed her little half-elf alchemist's design. She sat back as he finished putting up the last diorama, a small village on the outskirts of the world board. He tilted his head in thought as the laptop slowly set up the program he used to keep track of his campaigns.

"Right, so we'll be playing to figure out the myths of the ancient world," Ryou stated, "I'm taking a lot from history and mythology, think you can keep up?"

"Please, just because my written Japanese is trash doesn't mean I don't know a lot about mythology and history," she stated, her abundance of confidence confusing him, "let's start the game, yeah?"

"Right," Ryou agreed, grabbing the two dice they would need to roll for attacks and decisions, "this journey sees the half-elf alchemist joining forces with the eleven white mage to see who descended the world into everlasting darkness, where should we begin?"

"I say we do side quests first to level up before even thinking about going after the big bad," Renge stated as she looked at the board in thought, noting the excellent paint job and craftsmanship that went into it, "you made the actual board from magic, but hand painted everything? This is very well done."

"Thank you," Ryou said with a tiny smile before looking at the town made from limestone, "we'll start in the distant past, in a city inspired by Thebes."

"The bazaar would be the best place to look for information regarding any quests, or stock up on supplies if we need them," Renge agreed, picking up their figures as he opened the diorama so they could put their pieces inside.

She looked at the bazaar, noting the small cats painted in different places, and the way that the people were dressed. She saw a woman with her bare chest out and she felt her brows raise. He had certainly done his research on ancient Egypt if he knew that nudity wasn't as big of a deal as it was in the present. She looked at the small figures that were set up and noted that one of them was standing near an oil booth. He had large earrings on and a turban, his white clothes more similar to the people of modern Egypt than ancient Egypt.

"Does the gentleman at the booth have information about a mission?" Renge asked and Ryou gently moved the figure to face theirs, his blank blue eyes made a shiver go down her spine. "Got any information for us?"

"Oh, well the powers of darkness fell upon us so suddenly that our city was unprepared, the gentleman informs us," Ryou stated, putting on a voice for the figure, "we would gladly pay for you to take care of the nearby snakes of unusual size."

"Done, if that's okay with you, Ryou," Renge agreed to the mission before looking his way.

"Yeah," he confirmed before returning to the voice he was putting on, "oh wonderful, the snakes lay within the forbidden temple, if you make it through the temple you may have what is within."

"Hmm, can't be anything too powerful," Renge thoughtfully said as she picked up her cola and took a sip of it, "want to do the temple and then call it a night?"

"How long do you think it'll take?" Ryou asked as he mentioned for her to pick up their figures so he could close the diorama.

"Anywhere from thirty minutes to an hour," Renge stated, as she picked up the figures and he closed the diorama, "lead the way all might leader."

"Right, well the temple does require an intelligence roll to enter," Ryou informed her as they moved to the pyramid diorama, "it's a good thing the desert doesn't have monster encounters, it's the temple that's going to give us the most trouble."

"I'm going to roll for an intelligence check," Renge stated, her intelligence one point higher than his.

"If you get anything higher than ten we can enter the temple," Ryou informed her, handing her the dice so she could roll.

She shook the dice in her hand and felt the weight of them. They were incredibly light, and a deep crimson that was the colors of her house. She closed her eyes for a few seconds before tossing them onto the board, listening to them clack until they came to a stop in front of Ryou. A fifty was staring up at them and he grinned as he input that into his laptop. His fingers flew across the keys in excitement. It had been a long time since someone had played with him, and seriously at that.

"The ancient door to the temple is opened by the alchemist reading the transcription and solving the mechanical puzzle attached," Ryou read off the laptop, "the adventurers journey forth into the depths of the musty temple to defeat the snakes of unusual size."

"What's the monster encounter percentage?" Renge asked as he opened the temple diorama.

"It sits at thirty percent for the first level of the temple and grows the further you go in," he answered, rolling for the encounter on the first level and somehow getting a forty, "we don't get a monster this level."

"That's a good thing," Renge stated with a shrug, picking up her drink once more and taking a small sip.

They moved to the second level, and also didn't come across any monsters. Ryou and Renge shared a look and shrugged in unison. Sometimes the dice were kind to the player. They rolled again for an encounter on the third level and got two monsters to spawn. Renge welcomed the fight. Ryou placed a couple of snake pieces on the board and she smiled at the sight of them. They were beautifully painted, their silver metallic paint glittering in the low light.

"We'll roll to see who goes first, us or the monsters," Ryou stated, taking the roll for them, "our roll is sixty, and the monsters if fifty, we go first. The alchemist starts out the first attack."

"Let's go for a crit," Renge stated as she was handed the dice and she gave them a quick roll.

"It's a six, let me calculate the damage," Ryou said, quickly doing so and smiling at his cousin, "the alchemist takes down the snake with a quick reaction."

"Your turn," Renge informed him, smiling as she moved one of the snake pieces off the board.

"All right," Ryou said, grabbing the dice himself and rolling, "I got a three, I too destroy one of the snakes. We both gained two levels due to how strong the snakes were."

"Let's knock this temple out," Renge stated, noting how late it had gotten, "only one level to go,right?"

Their encounter roll brought four enemies to the board and she felt a little nervous. She steeled her nerves and ignored the discomfort as they rolled to see their turns. She was going last, and Ryou second. The snakes would be going before them. She winced a little. Those snakes could easily put a stop to their campaign before it got good.

"The monsters attack," Ryou stated, rolling for them, "they rolled a fifty, not a good hit, do you roll to counterattack?"

"Yes," Renge confirmed, accepting the dice and rolling to destroy the snake, "I got a crit!"

She did, and Ryou blinked in surprise before inputting that into the laptop. She destroyed all four enemies with a lucky roll. He chuckled as she held out her hand for a high-five. He quickly slapped his palm against her's and they went to get the treasure from the chest that sat on an altar. They needed a wisdom roll and she turned to him, his wisdom was higher than hers.

"I roll," Ryou announced, and he was rewarded with a twenty, "the white mage uses a small unlocking spell to open the chest and inside is a staff that can perform powerful magic."

"The alchemist passes up the staff for the white mage," Renge stated, "I don't use staffs, don't need 'em."

"Thank you," he thanked and gently placed the staff in his figures hands before sitting back, "the adventurers leave the temple to return to the bazaar and inform the gentleman about their victory over the snakes of unusual size."

Renge and Ryou both moved the board around so they could return to the desert city bazaar. Renge blinked in surprise. The gentleman was gone. She scratched the back of her head and wondered if Ryou somehow put some magic into the pieces while painting them. It was possible. She looked to see he was confused as well.

"Where did…" Ryou muttered and she gave a small sigh.

"I wouldn't worry about it, lost items always have a habit of returning to us," she informed him before yawning, "I'm going to head to bed, let's get this packed up for tonight so we can continue it soon."

He welcomed the help of putting the diorama's and figures away. She ruffled his hair before heading to her room. He heard the heavy foot fall and knew she had to be tired if she wasn't putting a charm on her prosthetic to keep it silent. She closed the door to her room and he tilted his head before sparing one last glance at the figures.

Where could that one have gone?