"Feeling better?"

Mornings in the countryside, you can expect an early rise six out of seven days in the week. Living there, roosters were an abundant sight. Roaming the fields, sneaking into the backyard somehow. You'd know when they do. Because six out seven times… the crowing and cawing at day's break would do your alarm clock's job for you.

Seems as if city life wasn't so different, after all.

Minus the crowing, and maybe perhaps also the cawing.

The rooster can be kept though, for she was right here… no backyard sneaking necessary, rousing me awake with such a tenderness to her words, contrasting so starkly with the stinging sensation she inflicted onto my still stirring eyes causing them to burn with the intensity of a thousand suns.

Ria was a very bright bird. Especially when basked in the rays of the early morning light.

And I still very much was aching to the most painful extent.

Something raspy suddenly rang abradingly in the air. It took a second to realize that it was actually me trying to give voice to my discomfort.

"Bright… You're too… "

One sentence uttered from my lips sounded more like trying to grind rocks together in a blender. Meaning to say, I run the risk of making anyone in the vicinity go deaf from just a single word, further evidenced by the way Ria's eyes were wincing.

"Might shatter the windows… if you're gonna finish that sentence," She said, shaking her head. "I really don't think you should. The Elf needs her sleep too."

It was only after she mentioned that did I finally feel a little bit of something peculiar pressing down on both my legs stretched out on the sofa.

Now I've heard of lap pillows before, speculated briefly about how they'd feel if I ever got the opportunity to place my head one. Never crossed my mind before that I'd end up being the one giving instead of receiving.

Actually, I guess it was more of a calve pillow than it was a lap. But close enough, I suppose.

Somewhere just a little below my knees were a pair of arms laid crossed against each other, and resting atop of it, Ash's sleeping expression stared back at me from afar.

So blissful, peaceful. Her silvery locks draping over most of her face, save only for her eyes closed deep into slumber, bathe in the glow of sunlight filtering through the gaps in the curtains.

The moment I took notice of her, I found it hard to turn my sights anywhere else. The way she was hunched over sitting, sleeping against me… suddenly I wasn't aching as much anymore.

Way it looked, how the ends of her white sundress settled in curls and furls across the living-room carpet, Ash was like a daisy in spring. Cause I've seen many flowers, in many meadows, out in the days of country life - and I can say with confidence that none bloomed as beautiful as she did right then.

My creeping staring did not go unnoticed, however. I nearly forgot that I still had another pair of eyes on me, one that seems to have regained a bit of its zest back.

"I'm sure you can pretty much guess she was with you the whole night never once moving an inch," Ria took a deep inhale. "Just look at her, it's like I'm watching one of my soaps all over again."

No comment.

"Y'know, for your information, I stayed up too… heck, I'm still awake right now. Where're my lovey-dovey eyes?"

Now that I could comment on, and I did, feeling a small smile slowly forming.

"Jea… lous?"

Ria just snorted and rolled her eyes. "Just thought I'd point it out. Don't want you to start playing favorites here. I care too. Probably not as much as she… but… yeah, I worry."

Didn't expect to be greeted with a dash of sentimentality first thing in the morning, and especially not from her. Last night was… it was a Ria that was a complete stranger to me.

I could still feel the warmth of her hand pressing against my own.

Don't think that was a Ria I'll be seeing too often and I don't think she's too keen on showing more of that side either. Now it was back to normal, feisty Ria, springing upwards to her feet.

"We've talked a bit while you were unconscious," She said, plopping herself to the couch on the opposite side. "Elf told us everything. The mall, bumper cars, restaurant… some guy with a limp."

Before the word 'limp' even began to shape her lips, I was already shooting upright with eyes wide.

"Clocks," I said, trying to come off as urgent - well as urgent as one can be sounding like they just smoked the entire world's supply of cigarette packs in one day.

To my surprise, Ria merely waved my concern away like a stray ember obstructing her sight.

"She's already taken care of it," she said, nudging her chin to the 'She' sleeping soundly at my side.

"Granted, she didn't really know what she was looking for taking down all the clocks around the place. I helped in that department too, so uh…" Ria spread her hands to the side. "I'm awaiting my lovey-dovey still."

There was something amiss here I just realized. Yesterday, though I was drifting in and out of awareness, I could still distinctly remember that I was being tended to by more than two people.

The question now was, where was the third?

"Where is... Adalia?"

"Ahh…" Ria narrowed her lips, her eyes veering away from mine. Bad sign. "Was hoping we could get into that after you've freshened up a bit more."

"Why?" I felt a swelling in my throat, and I don't think my soreness had anything to do with it. "What's happened to her?"

"Vampires, right. The thing about them is… when they don't want to be seen, you won't see them."

"Meaning... what?"

"Adalia snuck off to somewhere," She said, flailing her arms helplessly. "I've no clue where she went."

My jaw metaphorically fell loose onto my lap. "Joking."

Ria shrugged her shoulders. "Nope."

"Concerned?"

"Not really. She'll be back, I'm sure. Vampires tend to do this often."

"How… often?" I asked, fearing the prospect of Amelia ever finding out about this. I rather not deal with another irate vampire incident here.

"Often enough," Ria waved her hand again. "Look, you've got more pressing concerns to deal with here."

"I beg to differ."

"Well Blightfall begs to differ to your differ," She snapped back. "Most of the town is covered with it. Adalia and I narrowly missed getting covered in it while we were at the park. And you're a speaker - this is serious business, you know? Did the Elf ever mention to you what it does besides making you go cry and scream like a psycho?"

"No… not… not really."

Ria stared silently for a moment. That gaze of hers… just from the look of it I could sense my brief resting period has come to an abrupt end, short-lived as it was, I suppose the questions have been amassing ever since the start of yesterday morning.

Today's morning, however, was one that I feel would have plenty of answers. Well, at least it'll be a better wake up call than any crowing or cawing out there.

"Blightfall is the rain of the dead, and as you know, the dead rots and decay. The rain, the droplets? What do you suppose would happen if one were to fall on an entire city. A rain of death and decay? What do you think it'll do to the buildings, the cars… or the people that came in contact with it? It'll rot, and it'll decay, everything, everyone until there is nothing left but blighted earth."

Spoke too soon...

This was worse.

A lot worse.