𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗔𝘀𝗵𝗲𝘀 ~ 𝗞𝗹𝗮𝘂𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘃𝗲𝘀

~ Chapter Seventy Nine ~

Walking back into the academy sent a few chills down Dusk's spine as she entered the entrance hall of her former home. Part of her couldn't help but wonder if this was all a setup and the remaining Sparrows would attack them at any moment. She entered the living room, noticing Grace holding a plate of sprinkled cookies. On the wooden table were a few snacks, from cheesy balls to assortments of raisins and nuts.

"Thank you," she softly spoke, grabbing a cookie from Grace's plate. As the caretaker glanced over at her, she saw one of her eyes was missing. How in the world did she... she could feel Luther's gaze on hers, signaling that Grace stabbed herself in the eye. Regardless, the circumstances of the lost eye were very creepy. "Welcome, please make yourselves at home," Fei spoke, a few of her ravens trailing behind her, along with Ben and Dahlia.

"Bitch, this is our home," Allison rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry, what was that?" the icy Sparrow glared, her eyes turning ice blue. The Rumor glared back at her, daring her to let her guard down. As she sat down in one of the numerous chairs, Pennycrumbs sitting on her lap, Victoria also glared at the blonde. "Ice shit..." she lowly growled. "Uh... does anybody want jellybeans?" Luther stepped in, hoping to break the awkwardness. 

Dahlia, Victoria, and Allison all backed down, but not without letting out their own quiet sighs. "Where the hell is Viktor and Klaus?" Diego questioned. "With our luck, probably kugelblitzed by now," Five responded. What the hell, Five? That's my boyfriend you're talking about! "Ooo, what happened to your hand?" Fei questioned, looking at Diego's gauze-wrapped hand. But before Diego could respond, Ben clapped his hands, silencing the room. "We don't have time for idle chitchat. Everyone sit down," he instructed.

Dusk sat on the left couch, scooting next to Five and Diego. Lila joined in on the end. "So... this is nice, right? All of us here together, one big happy family," the ape-man tried lighting up the mood though it didn't seem to be working. "Look, I know there's been bad blood between us. Whatever. Bygones, right?" Dusk could tell that this new Ben wasn't one for long speeches.

Diego raised his hand, getting Ben's attention. "If I kill you, do we get our Ben back?" the Kraken asked. Fei snickered as Diego made it clear his question was only hypothetical. "Keep talking, and your hand won't be the only thing that's bleeding," Ben threatened. "Right, if you guys are done, I'd like to get back to a plan," Five intervened, not wanting this truce to turn into another brawl. Rushed footsteps came from the entrance hall, and Viktor entered the room, looking worried.

"Where is he? What did you do to Harlan?" he asked, his gaze shifting from Allison to Ben. "They didn't do anything to him... I did," Allison slightly lurched forward in her seat. "I killed Harlan," Dusk's eyes widened, but at the same time, it was no surprise to her that Allison had killed someone. If she was capable of hurting her siblings, she was very much capable of murder. Maybe not with killing Harlan, but perhaps the raven or one of their siblings.

Viktor just stared at her in disbelief. "I... I don't understand why?" He stammered. "Because he didn't deserve to live," Allison said lowly. "What? Because they said so? You don't have to listen to them!" As the two continued their spat, Ben scooted between Dusk and Diego. The couch was big enough to fit about five people. But even then, the more people sat there, the more cramped and crowded it became. "I bet you 20 bucks on the little one," Ben whispered to Dusk and the time traveler. "Shush!" the raven put a finger to her lips, keeping her eyes on the argument,