Let's Play Pretend

The Dragon

-How the hell did you manage to lose Jenna? She's a person, not that thingy on the back of your earring! Or your house keys... Or your phone... Or... You get where I am going with this? How the fuck do you manage to lose a person? In haven, even. The safest place there is, or... that's what it's supposed to be, anyway! And it's the person all this crap is happening around, too. One would think you'd keep a special eye on her, you know?

Doll was the first to speak, after the shocked silence had ran it's course. She was fuming, the ire coming off of her in heat waves you could feel knocking the air out of you.

-I mean, I am sure Aiden is very pleased you lost his wifey, too? He will no doubt be able to focus perfectly on the job when he knows the love of his freaking life is lost somewhere? Oh yes, piece of fucking chocolate cake. With sprinkles on. He's just going to act like nothing serious has happened in his life and just carry on without making any stupid, rash decisions... won't you, dragon boy?

The crestfallen look on Coral's face spoke volumes. So did her words.

-You've... mated the girl? You silly, silly boy.

She turned to Aiden, looking straight at him, and he felt the need to set things right. To explain, to make her understand that it he had had no other choice. That it had been right, and good, and perfect. If a little early, and not quite as regulated as Coral would have liked . But before he could say anything at all, Doll, still fuming, interrupted him.

-Don't you fucking dare, Aiden. Coral can read your mind, but I can read you, and you're about to apologize. For what? For loving Jenna? Because you got to know, we all already knew that was coming. If any of us wanted to stop it, they would have interfered by now. Did you want to apologize for not telling Coral? Coral, the freaking mind reader of immense power who would have fucking knownhad she taken Jenna's safety seriously enough to just swing by her ever so often! Coral. You're our boss, and the closest thing I have to a mother. I love you, but you're not getting to sit this one out. You're not going to let Aiden blame himself in whichever way we know he will do, because it's on you. That he dragon-wed her or some shit is besides the point. She would have been lost by now regardless. And it would be because you lost her.

Coral flushed. If it was with anger or embarrassment was hard to tell, but Aiden would have put money on a perfect mixture of both anyway. He had never seen her so red before, her cheeks burning with a hue reminiscent of ripe apples.

-Right. We will get to the proper procedures of this later, but for now we may have to focus elsewhere.

Jenna had in fact been kept under surveillance for the most part, the older lady explained. But (clearly) overestimating the safety of the haven, and trying to let the girl have some privacy had resulted in some holes in the security routine. They hadn't seemed worrying at the time, as there were merely minutes here and there. Added the heavy wards put upon Aiden's residence and the impenetrable mountain they had, to be honest, felt they were kind of overdoing it.

-There's also another person missing. Minna, the Ice Giant? She's been seen together with Jenna more often than not the last few days, and now they are both gone. We are trying to work out the most logical scenario here, but so far they all seem far-fetched.

Aiden knew Minna well, and... Anything involving the giant woman with the demeanor of an exceptionally cheery four year old would necessarily seem far-fetched. Ice Giants didn't just disappear into thin air, and loud ones who favored neon bright colors... even less so. Had he not been so upset and worried, he would have found the whole thing quite hilarious just from how surreal it was.