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Consequences of A Sleepless Night

Sitting cross-legged on the floor, Sky appeared to be rearranging the urchin collection in Portside Books by color. As she placed the last green volume, her head snapped up to look at the ceiling, having heard the sound of heavy footsteps. She continued to stare up at the sound with a worried look on her face until the noise ceased. Attempting to turn her attention back to the books, the worried expression remained. Scottie had holed himself upstairs in the Dark Section all morning, pacing back and forth. He was acting strange. Not only strange, but also in a downright foul mood which he unsuccessfully hid.

Sky knew. Well, she only knew what she sensed the night before. For as long as she had known him, that was the most panic and fear she had felt from her husband. She wondered why Scottie had not woken her to help him, to soothe him. Yet he seemingly calmed on his own to where she saw no need to keep him up longer with questioning.

As they got up that morning it was evident he was still bothered and shaken despite his thin veil of chipper attitude. He was practically silent as they prepared for the day and would not look her in the eye as he responded to her questions of, “Are you alright?” Sky would try to be patient, he would tell her in time. If not…no, he would eventually tell her one way or another, she would see to that.

All day she could not shake a vague sense of dread. Doing her best to curtail her vivid imagination, Sky busied herself by going on a long horse ride which she told Scottie was for her patrol. Lost in her thoughts and racing around Babbage, she would have collided with a derailed trolley had it not been for Soot’s survival instincts. Upon her return, she immediately saw that Scottie continued his brooding ways and lost herself in preparing a new fight schedule for the rest of the evening. That night, exhausted from pent up worry on both ends, the Melniks quickly fell into restless sleeps.

In the dead of the night Sky felt her husband moving, gasping for air once again. This time she dared to open her eyes. Seemingly fast asleep, Scottie was experiencing some kind of nightmare. Not wanting to frighten him, Sky just listened and watched. After a few moments he muttered loudly, “Vincent, no! Alyan! Alllyyyannn!” Sky resisted the urge to wake him in that moment and waited until he had quieted to close her own eyes again. Sleep never found her in those few hours until dawn. Her only comfort was that when the sun rose she would have answers.

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