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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 2228511" data-attributes="member: 10079">Chapter 212: The Morning After...It was a long night, but not nearly long enough. Neither Jyren nor Shadow got any sleep worth counting, and it seemed that the sun was peaking into the window of the bedroom only minutes after they’d first entered. But it had been all night. And it was over. Slowly, the mood was changing between them as the inevitable was beginning to rear its head.    Shadow was going to go off on her own, and there wasn’t anything he could do about it. It had been a subject gone over far too many times that night, but the situation had never changed. Jyren knew it wouldn’t, but it didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try and fight it to the last moment. And now, the last moment was being reached.    “You realize that me going wouldn’t actually change the fact that if you screw up we both die, right?” Jyren asked, not pulling any punches at this hour as they were getting dressed.    Shadow finished pulling on her tunic and idly glanced over her shoulder to him, “And that’s more likely to happen if you’re there with me. We’ve been over this already. I know you don’t like it but...this is my fight. Not to mention you’re the only one I’d trust protecting our family.”    He rolled his eyes, grumbling as he was fighting with his own tunic...the collar, specifically, which was too high and too tight and itched and...he sighed and grumbled actual words, “A day ago you were wishing death on our parents and Toby...now you’ve changed your mind all of a sudden. I think it’s an excuse so I won’t steal the show and ruin this whole matriarchal society.”    Shadow caught his grin, but just rolled her eyes right back and turned to give him a critical look, “Your trousers are on backwards, Jedi Boy.”    Jyren’s grin faded. He glanced down, went red, then mumbled something about having wondered why he had been having so much trouble with his tail. As he quickly fixed this problem, Shadow pulled on a belt and continued speaking, “Besides, a lot of things have changed since yesterday.”    Trailing off with a slight smile on her face, Shadow looked at herself in the mirror again. She now wore a flat tunic of a colour that was almost jet black but just a slight shade lighter. Her hair was also simply let loose, not in some horrible style as it had been the night before. It felt good to not be all dressed up and just be...herself. And comfortable. Though truthfully, the dress wasn’t all that bad...    Glancing behind her, Shadow looked at the piece of clothing which was still on the floor near the bed. She’d be killed if anyone saw it down there like that. One little wrinkle in the thing was bad enough, but on the floor like that? That was a death wish. So, she walked over and picked it up, straightening it out as best as possible and folding as well as she could before placing it on the bed.    She then saw Jyren’s suit in about the same condition, but before she could reach down to fix that, too, Shadow became very aware of struggling sounds from Jyren’s direction. That couldn’t be a good thing...it took her a moment to decide looking was a good idea, and she saw a scene that made him look like he was almost strangling himself.    It took Shadow another moment to realize he was fighting with the high collar on his tunic. He caught that she was watching him and mumbled, “...I hate these stupid high collars. They itch and they hurt and I can’t look down without choking myself...and its too tight...how do you people live with these?!”    Shadow sighed and walked over to him, reaching up to adjust the collar for him, “It’s a wonder you haven’t gotten yourself killed with that lightsaber by now with your skills...”    “I can dress myself fine, thankyouverymuch,” Jyren grumbled under his breath, but was smart enough to stand there and not move as Shadow fixed the collar, “I don’t see why you people need such dangerous clothes, though.”    Rolling her eyes again, she patted his neck, “Its to hide the chip you keep forgetting you wear back there, dear. Now are you sure you’ve got all your clothes on straight or do I need to make sure?”    There was a pause where Jyren was either thinking about that or trying to come up with some sarcastic comment. If it was the latter, he didn’t find one, instead just shaking his head but saying nothing. Shadow smiled and motioned towards the door, “Come on, lets get some food.”    But when she started for the door, she noticed that Jyren didn’t go anywhere. Stopping just two steps later, Shadow turned back around and asked what had to be asked, “What is it...?”    At first, he just shrugged. Then, smart enough to remember the link provided at least some insight for her, Jyren gave in and asked an honest question, “Why couldn’t this have happened months ago instead of now when you have to just run off like this?”    Ah. That. Carefully, Shadow walked back over to him and somewhat awkwardly drew him into a hug. She spoke in a quiet voice, “For one...we were children.”    “Well, yeah but...” he trailed off, returning the hug as he tried his last fight against reality, “...I should have said something a long time ago.”    “I should have, too,” Shadow admitted, pulling back a little to look him in the eyes, “But neither of us did. And besides, it might not have meant a thing then. You were still very caught up with Mare and I...well...I barely understand any of this right now, so I know it would have gone right over me before.”    “So we get a few hours and then that’s it?” Jyren asked, voicing a thought that was as much hers as it was his own.    But Shadow shrugged, “A few hours is better than not at all, right?”    “I guess...” he trailed off again, but then a grin slowly found its way onto his face, “You owe me two weeks in a remote part of the galaxy if we make it out of this.”    “Only two weeks?” Shadow started to grin, too, “You really aren’t a good negotiator, you know that?”    Jyren was going to make another comment. In fact, he got half of the first word out before a loud explosion drowned out the sound of his voice. Neither of them had a chance to reach before there was another, and then another, the entire floor shaking under them each time. And it didn’t stop. It just kept going as the two of them stood there in shock.    They knew what it was. They could feel it. And now, perfectly timed as usual, Ket’s attack had begun...on all places, the Capital world. Half the Empire away from Alraxia, where it had been expected. But now it was too late to think about things like that. Now it was too late for anything. In a moment, they were both running down the hallways to find and exit to at least see what exactly was happening.</blockquote>

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