#tideum

==> Stop

Stop right now.

==> Stop

...Young lady, are you listening to me?

==>

...ARADIA.

This time you manage to push yourself back away from the computer, breaking its spell upon you, and you immediately wish you hadn't. You sit a few feet away from the desk and just stare at the screen. From this distance you can still see the cursor blinking over the text box.

What were you doing?

You couldn't provide an answer.

Your head fell so you could stare at your hands where they lay in your lap. You felt it coming on but couldn't do much about it; they looked distant, unfamiliar. Lifelines and luck lines crossing to and fro. They didn't have the callouses of an adventurer or strifer or much of a proper troll at all. You knew they had to be your hands, but maybe it would've been nice to blame them for the last few days. Perigrees even.

You'd gone too far with this whole charade. The online social life and sneaking out. It was wrong, and you knew it. And now.. now you were even entertaining thoughts like..

You needed something to get your mind off of it, and immediately. You knew the most logical answer. The chair screeched as you got up suddenly and shoved it back under the desk, turning on your heel to go find the nearest carapacian. A short conversation and the little white pawn scampered off, leaving you to clean yourself up and go sit in the waiting room. She didn't leave you waiting long. She returned with two of the Midnight Crew's mooks, who completely dwarfed her and you both. You simply smiled genteelly in greeting-- like they weren't the mob members who were assigned to keep you from escaping-- and only pausing a moment to tap a message into your handheld before rising to follow them. One of them only bothered to speak once you'd reached the car:

"Where to?"

The corner of your mouth lifted in a lopsided look. You knew the name and reputation of your renter this time.

"Orphaner Dualscar's residence."

You recognized those looks the mooks gave you. They didn't ask any more questions on the ride through Midnight City, nor when they dropped you off in front of his hive.