Broken Stride

Breaking and Entering

It had all started as just a regular day at work—cleaning tables, taking orders, handing out drinks—of course, this particular incident had to happen right as she was about to take her break; two teens who had spent a good three hours or so in the back broke a cup, and of course, Crow had to be the one to clean it up. That in itself wasn't all that unusual. She was more upset about the timing than the fact that they'd broken something.

She hadn't expected to bump into one of the kids. She hadn't expected to feel a spark of mana from him either—one that told her he was a villain and a strong one at that. Seeing villains around wasn't that strange given she was one herself, but seeing one friendly with a psyker definitely was a peculiar sight; Crow found herself watching them out of the corner of her eye as she ducked behind the counter to toss the broken cup in her pocket.

She had only taken her eyes off the kid for maybe three seconds, but by the time she looked back, he was already halfway out the door. Crow quickly shook out the rest of the dust in her pocket and ducked into the back room as she summoned one of her Crows.

"Follow that one for me, Little Crow?" she instructed the mechanical familiar, releasing it out the back door of the shop. It nodded and fluttered away in a puff of black feathers.

Of course, there was nothing stopping her from following the villain herself to sate her curiosity, but she did enjoy having a job so a familiar would have to do for now. In the meantime, Crow got herself comfortable in one of the breakroom chairs. She only got 15 minutes of break and she was going to enjoy it.

~

She didn't end up getting a chance to visit the location her familiar had scouted that night—apparently, there were other people living with her suspect, and bursting into a civilian's apartment claiming one of them was a villain wouldn't go well for her especially if she'd been mistaken. So, as any normal person would do, she found a shop nearby the next morning and waited for one of the two residents to leave. You know, like a normal person.

It wasn't long before the Crow she'd planted inside picked up movement from the apartment. A few minutes later she spotted the brown-haired woman she'd been waiting for sprint down the front steps, pink suitcase in tow as she headed for the garages next door. Crow glanced down at her watch as the woman disappeared from view. By her estimate, it would probably be another hour or so before the teen left as well. That is—if he planned to go to school, and the website she checked hadn't lied to her.

Well. . . Driver had checked the website, but potato potahto.

She spent her hours wait browsing the meager selection of magazines the shop had to offer. When her clock hit 7:46 and there was still no sign of her prey, Crow was starting to get suspicious. It seemed she had no choice but to invade now. Crow took a brief moment to tidy the section of the shelf she'd messed with before slipping out to the street and into the apartments across the way.

By the time she got inside, it seemed like most of the residents had already left for the day—she managed to navigate the elevators and hallways of the 7th floor without running into a single person. A good thing too since she wasn't sure how she'd explain to someone that she'd come to break in should they question her.

Shaking off the thought, Crow approached the door she'd been searching for. Kneeling down next to the potted plant nearby, she retrieved the summon she'd planted and returned it to her void space before reaching for the door handle.

. . .

She'd expected it to be locked, so was surprised when it swung open instead. That was even more suspicious.