"Strike, Windbreaker, Reaper, your presence is requested in Wing B, room B113." The announcement rang out of speakers. Aru and Brynne groaned, staring sadly at their respective plates. Mini sprung up immediately, worry and annoyance warring on her face. "Come on, you two. We can't be late."

"I would love to be late, actually," Aru grumbled, dumping her half eaten food in the trash and putting the plate in the sink. She could hear Mini reprimanding her for her 'lack of sportsmanship' and 'absence of team spirit'. Aru easily filtered her out, returning her thoughts to their mission a few days prior. The apsara's boy, the singer. That's probably what this was about, if she was being honest. Half of Wing B had been sectioned off for him, citing 'aggressive tendencies' and 'precarious mood swings'. Aru thought he was just being a brat. That wouldn't be very unusual for these famous-type people.

As they stepped into the wing, Aru scowled at the bright lights. Mini tossed her a pair of sunglasses, which she gratefully put on, sighing at the relief it brought. "You think it's too late to comm them to ask for dim lights?"

"Yeah," Brynne said, "Besides, humans need more light and this is pretty much Siren-Boy's hall now."

"Ah, rats." The statement was oddly timely as a few rats scuttled by. Brynne frowned.

Their mentor, Boo, stood in the doorway. He was a short middle aged man whose face had feathers where there should have been a beard. His wings were messy and damaged, large chunks of feathers missing. Aru hated seeing him like that, knowing it was their mistake that his feathers had been damaged that way. They knew Boo forgave them, but it still didn't sit right seeing his feathers like that. Mini gave a sharp salute to Boo, while Brynne just nodded at him. Aru handed him an Oreo, watching his gaze immediately soften. "Hello, girls. I called you three here today because we need to discuss how to proceed with Acharya." Aru nodded slowly, frowning.

"So are we like... putting him out for ransom yet? That's what the plan was, right?"

"Initially, yes," Boo said, "We were just going to put him out for ransom. But recent developments have indicated that it's not safe for him or us yet. Our intention isn't to hurt the boy, it's to get money. Apsaras will pay a handsome sum for him... as long as he stays pretty, that is."

"Okay," Brynne drawled, inspecting her nails, "and we're going to do what about that? Are we killing the danger or something? That'd make all of this pass by way quicker." Boo shook his head, exchanging a knowing glance with Mini.

"We are not killing anything. The Sleeper—"

"That is a dumb name," Aru supplied.

"—is a formidable foe—"

"With that name? I think not!"

"—ARU! Let me finish!" She held her hands up placatingly. "As I was saying, The Sleeper is a formidable foe and we aren't ready to take on him quite yet. But, since we can't safely put Acharya out for ransom, we'll need to integrate him into HQ until we can figure this out. And that's where you three come in!" Aru's eyes widened at Boo's implications. The three sisters, Vestiges of Last Night and Harbingers of New Dawn, were going to be babysitting an apsara's boy? The three yelled out at the same time.

"This is a disgrace—"

"That's a human, Boo, we're not stooping that low—"

"I think that's a good idea—" Boo held up his hand, his wings flaring out as much as they could. His feathers ruffled and, with all the scariness of a pigeon, he bellowed, "SILENCE!" Despite the lack of intimidation, the sisters did quiet down, not wanting to truly upset Boo. Aru, however, did continue to seethe silently.

"You are all truly ridiculous," he said exasperatedly, "about to turn into adults and you still act like children! I am not giving you a choice in this matter. You will... watch over the boy until the situation gets sorted? Understand?" Aru huffed and Brynne rolled her eyes.

"Sir, yessir."

Aru watched Boo retreat around the corner, before throwing her hands up. "This is so dumb! Just give the dude WiFi and a TV, man, why do we have to watch him?!"

"Well, according to many psychologists, interaction with another being can improve mood and mental health—" Mini started, causing Brynne to groan.

"And let me guess, if they don't get that interaction, they die?"

"They can develop self-destructive urges, yes," Mini said primly. Oh. Well, that would not be ideal. Especially if they wanted to get money. Aru buried her face in her hands, letting out a dramatic whine.

"Fine, fine! Let's get this done with!" They pushed the door open.

They were met with a glare. "What?" Aru, unlike usual, did not answer. Aiden's stare was hard, unkind, but his eyes glittered like stars in the sky. She caught his eyes, and the pull was instantaneous. Flicking her gaze away as fast as possible, she scowled. Dang apsaras.

"We're here to keep you company or whatever," Brynne said, rolling her eyes. Aiden raised an unimpressed eyebrow, turning back towards the mirror. Self centered much? Aru thought.

"Great. Love having you here, I guess."

"Can't you try to be nice?" He turned on her with a glare.

"I would have if you guys didn't, you know, kidnap me." Mini grimaced, hunching her shoulders.

"That... is a fair point. We apologize for kidnapping you, but, uh, can we make it up to you by keeping you company?"

"Ah yes. Make up for kidnapping me by forcing me to hang out with my kidnappers. That tracks." Aru blew her hair out of her face, glaring right back at him.

"Look, we're trying to be nice here. None of us wanna do this any more than you want us to, alright? Just deal with it until we can get this mess sorted out."

Keeping him company turned out to be standing around his room in various positions while he kept glancing into the mirror at his shoulder. Eventually, Brynne asked what was going on. Aiden glanced away, chewing on his lip.

"It's... a long story."

"Well," Aru said pointedly, "we've got endless time. Might as well explain."

"Aru..." Brynne warned. She flinched at the implications of what she had just suggested. "No pressure of course. Ignore the fact that I peer pressured you. You don't have to." When he didn't respond, she looked at him, catching him looking at Brynne. His hard gaze had softened, and Brynne's own had become more understanding.

Aru still didn't know what to do, but maybe if her most aggressive sister could make peace, she could too.