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Blight glanced at the others. "She's been good to us so far. We can trust her."

"For now." Chaos said after a short pause. "And if not . . . we'll deal with her. Come on."

Walking quickly to Natalie's car, they piled in with Chaos up front, Solace sitting between him and Natalie, and the others in the back. When Natalie pulled away from the curb, they drove in complete silence. Blight would've normally attempted to break the tension, but he couldn't see any way how. He was still a little shaken after being taken from their home so easily and didn't attempt to start up any kind of conversation.

When they finally came to a stop, it was in a suburban area, in the driveway of a house painted white with grey trim. Blight looked around as they got out of the car. Most of the houses looked the same. Vex shared a glance with Havoc. This was going to be different from what they were used to. Solace clung to Chaos' arm as they got out of the car. Being here in the dark scared him.

Natalie went quickly up the walkway and unlocked the front door to the house, ushering them all inside. When she'd closed the door behind them, she sighed in relief.

Blight glanced around the room, then looked back at her. "Why did you -"

Chaos cut him off with a hand on his shoulder. "It doesn't matter. What's done is done."

Natalie shook her head slowly, leaning back against the door. "And, to tell you the truth, I have no idea." Maybe it was just her maternal instincts. "I saw them . . . loading you into a van when I was on my way home. Honestly, I didn't really have a plan besides following you."

"I'll think of something," Chaos said calmly. "Don't worry. As long as you're helping us, we won't hurt you."

She made a worried face and walked past them, muttering sarcastically, "Thanks for the assurance."

A loud bark came from another part of the house and Solace practically leapt into Havoc's arms, cowering away from the noise. A huge, brown and white dog came trotting down the hall, right up to Natalie.

Blight looked at it for a second, tilting his head to the side. "St. Bernard?"

Vex looked at him in a surprise. "How'd you know that?"

"What?" Blight shrugged. "I look at more than plants, you know."

"Don't worry," Natalie said, hanging up her coat, "That's just Brandy. She won't hurt you."

Brandy turned away from Natalie after receiving a pat on the head and walked towards the boys. At first, Solace cowered more behind Havoc, but after twenty seconds or so of Brandy just standing there, wagging her tail, he moved towards her. Cautiously, he held out a hand. She sniffed it a couple times and licked his palm. He broke into a grin. And she jumped on top of him.

He shrieked in surprise when she reared up on her hind legs, pushed a paw into his stomach and sent him crashing to the ground. Before he could get up, she got on top of him and licked his face. He held up his hands, squealing, and tried to push her off. But he stopped. Laced his fingers through her fur.

Vex and Havoc stared to lift the dog off, but Solace swiped at their hands.

"No!" He cried, wrapping his arms and legs around Brandy. "Let go! Let go!"

Confused, they pulled their hands away. Solace relaxed again and Brandy took a few steps back, enough for him to sit up. He grinned and wrapped his arms around her thick neck when she sat down between his feet. He liked the way her fur felt. It was soft. This was the first time he'd felt or seen anything like her.

Blight made a gagging noise, covering his mask with a hand. "Good god. Cute and cuddly, but I can't stand the smell."

Havoc gave a teasing smile. "And you're the only one that smells it."

"Oh, shut up, snake."

He crossed his arms huffily and looked away.

Natalie sighed and ran a hand through her disheveled hair. "It's late. You should sleep. We should all sleep. Bathroom's down the hall, the couch pulls out into a bed and you can help yourself to whatever's in the kitchen. I'll get you some blankets."

She walked off down the hall, wondering why in the world she was doing this. She knew it could get her killed.

When she came back with her arms full of the three spare blankets she kept in the hall closet, Blight and Chaos had figured out how to unfold the couch and had it set up already. Solace was curled up against Brandy on the floor while Havoc and Vex decided who would sleep on the couch-bed and who would be on the floor.

Natalie set the blankets down on an arm of the couch. "If you need anything else, I'm just down the hall," She said, unconsciously fiddling with the fringe of her sleeve.

"Don't be so nervous." Chaos said calmly, sitting down on the couch normally instead of lying down. "We'll keep you watch. No one will come in this house without us knowing."

Somehow, the word of a boy with no ethics and a look that could kill didn't do anything to calm her nerves. She looked briefly towards the "youngest" of the five, contentedly curled up on the floor with her dog. If they didn't feel the need to protect her, she knew that they would protect each other. And, that being the case, she guessed that her house would be safe at least for the night. Sighing wearily, she bid them goodnight and went back to her room, thinking she needed a hot shower and a lot of sleep.

"Go to sleep, guys." Chaos said quietly when she left. "I'll take first watch. We'll take two hour shifts."

Nodding, they settled into the placements they'd decided on. Blight and Vex shared the couch-bed with Chaos, taking two of the blankets, and Havoc took the third to cover up Solace. Havoc didn't feel like he needed a blanket and simply laid down on the floor, Solace between him and the dog. With Chaos on watch, they all felt at ease. They fell asleep easily.