Illyana was surprised at how quickly the time seemed to go by as she was speaking with Aurel about animals, the serpents, nature in general. It had always been her favorite thing to research, that and the occult and fantasy creatures and things. Because of her deformity, she had been convinced at a young age that there had to be some truth to myths and fairy-tales, and the more she discovered about Aurel's relationship with his snakes, the more she began to realized that a myth may well be sitting right in front of her. Lucien with his healing wasn't far behind. She couldn't tell anything about Faolan aside from his size, but he could be entirely human otherwise for all that she knew. 

The deeper she dived into this train of thought, the more relaxed she became. She felt more comfortable around Aurel than she had around anyone else, aside from her sister, including her peers and even younger children. It was strange to think that this was all it would take for her to let down her guard...

But as soon as she realized this, she put up the wall once more. It would not do to become attached to any of them, knowing she was parting with them so soon. She had to keep herself focused on the tasks at hand, getting back to her sister and getting them both out of that house, or she might make a mistake along the way...

As they neared Utica, Illyana became more and more antsy, and once they were within the city limits, she could no longer sit idly and talk to Aurel. She was too nervous and distracted to pay attention to him, so she got up and made her way to the front of the bus. She stood between the two seats, giving Faolan directions as he drove. Her house was only about fifteen minutes in, and she could feel herself becoming more and more anxious as things began to look familiar to her.

Finally, they were on her street. She was standing between the seats, bending around to try and get a glimpse of her house before they approached it. Her hands and face were sweaty, her eyes wide, her skin flushed...and she bounced around with a nervous energy that only children seemed to have. 

Faolan had followed the directions smoothly and to a T. He had been right about this girl's intelligence, she seemed to easily slip between the whims and fancies of a child and the stoic demeanor of an adult. He could feel how anxious and excited she was, but see fear in her eyes. When he looked at her, he was reminded of a mouse that had been caught in a box, all of its senses screaming to find a way out but knowing there was none. It was sad to watch, knowing what they were bringing this girl back to...He shared a glance with Lucien as they approached and the bus began to slow before coming to a complete stop outside of the house.

Illyana had been so anxious to get home that she had re-positioned herself in front of the door. As the bus came to a stop, she looked over her shoulder at Faolan, pleading with her eyes only. She was too charged for words. Although she could tell he was reluctant, he slowly pulled the lever to open the door and release her.

She had been carrying her bag with all of the contents, what few there were, held inside. She had the intention of filling it with her things as soon as they got into her room, getting it ready for when she and Isy were able to leave. As soon as the door was open wide enough for her to get out of the bus, she squeezed through and rocketed toward her front door.

It was a modest home, three bedrooms, and antic and a basement. It had a large front room and a huge bay window that the girls loved to sit in front of in the sunlight and play or read or draw. The floors were wood and were very cold in the winter but nice and warm in the summer. They had a small front yard with a fence, but no signs of any pets, and no garden. Her parents didn't have time to tend to things like that.

Illyana ran up the walkway to the front door, smiling despite herself, overwhelmed by the happiness she felt at seeing her sister again. They had never been apart this long and she hoped they never would again.

She was so overwhelmed that she didn't even notice the sign in the yard or how clean and bare everything looked. How dark the windows, how barren the driveway, how empty everything looked... 

The little lost girl pounded up the concrete steps to the front door, put both hands on the handle and tried to turn it. She was met with resistance, and a look of confusion crossed her face. She shook the handle hard, using all of the strength of her tiny body could muster, but the door would not give way. She almost called out to her sister, her mother, but thought better of it. Instead, she slowly stepped back from the door and looked around, the weight of the silence finally settling on her. Something was wrong...

Faolan had seen the sign the moment the girl's feet touched the walkway. His heart sank. The house was For Sale. Though it was the end of the day, and many people had already arrived home from work, there was no car in the drive way. The windows were dark, the house was empty. Illyana's family was gone.

[color=a36209]"Shite..."[/color] the Irishman said with a heavy sigh, making eye contact with Lucien once again as he hoisted himself up and exited the bus. Once outside, he crossed his arms and glanced around, but no one was out in their yards or anywhere along the street at the moment. He watched with sad eyes as Illyana shook her door handle, a look of worry and confusion crossing her face. He sighed again, then looked down at Lucien once more, who had joined him.

[color=a36209]"I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't this..."[/color] If anything, he thought that the girl's parents would be confused to see her, but that they would accept her back. What kind of self-respecting parent doesn't welcome their child home with open arms in front of the neighbors and peers? What kind of parents abandons their child and then moves away?

A third possibility was that Illyana was lying about her family and how she had gotten here, but it was unlikely given her sincerity. She was smart, alright, but she wasn't an actress. Faolan could sense that she wore her heart on her sleeve, something he thought the two of them had in common. Besides, she was genuinely concerned and fearful now, and why go through the song and dance if it wasn't true? No, this girl had been left behind. The circumstances were unclear, but that much was certain.