Aslan pocketed his one glove, for he knew it would be even more improper to wear only one. In his haste, he had ended up abandoning its twin in the pew somewhere. St. Hilda’s Catholic Church could keep it for the small, divine price of letting him jump out of the pot and into the fire.

He lifted his bare hands to his face again. Was it on his hands? He could still smell him everywhere. Ugh, it smelled amazing. Maybe it was poppies or something; after all, he felt weirdly elated by it.

The smile dropped as soon as their door was in view, and Aslan unlocked the door without a sound. Hopefully, Nisa was still asleep …

"Good morning..." Came the cheerful voice before he'd even fully shut the door. Nisa was looking as awake and prepared for the day as if it were almost lunch time. She rose her brow as she stared at her brother and shook her head sorrowfully as she stepped up to him. "You are a mess. Is this more work?" She frowned more as she got close to help him take his things. Her maid was still asleep and she didn't worry to wake her for this.

"I woke a short while ago and realized you weren't here. I was quite concerned, you know how dangerous your job is so you can't blame me for worrying." She looked at him with large eyes that certainly had been carefully practiced. He knew her secret but she still treated him like she cared deeply. Whether she did or didn't, no one could clearly say.

"Why don't you wash up and I shall make you breakfast."

Home was a mortuary. That chill passed over him, that unnerving feeling of standing where he knew the dead had passed at one point or another. There was some level of that in every building: Whitby was an old place, after all. But not like this. Not this ever-looming gloom that made him wary of resting against the very walls, lest fingers tapped back and a fading voice creak, “help”.

Some animals ate their own in the wrong conditions. Perhaps Nisa, too, was just starved by a hunger she could never sate.

“You are too kind, Nisa,” he said, keeping his hands in his pockets.

Up close, there was blood on his breath and … something else. Something that dwarfed that. Something from his collar, and his chest. Something … flowery.

“I shall be a while,” he said, for he knew better than to mislead her about the time Aslan took in the washroom.

It was always too long. The least abrasive way to get that damned glue off involved a thorough soaking.

He handed his coat to her and murmured his gratitude, bare hands fixing an already fixed tie (though it looked a little rumpled) before carefully working fingers under his wig to find the clips.

Nisa nodded though she watched him carefully. "Take your time and don't make too much of a mess..." she said in a quiet but considerate tone. When she took his coat, a puzzled look came and she held it up a little closed. He didn't get far before her foot steps followed, each one faster than the last.

"Aslan." She didn't yell or raise her voice about a rude degree, her eyes watched him sharply like a hawk. She moved closer and looked away but with an intensity before her brow lowered. "What is that smell? It's not bad but I don't recognize it. Was it a client or someone you're tailing?" She looked straight into his eyes, trying to reach into his mind for the answer.

“I will do my best,” Aslan answered, rote.

If there was no dirt on his shoes, it was a hair out of place. If he cleaned up the hair, it shouldn’t have been there in the first place. One of these days, she was going to decide killing alone could keep her afloat.

Probably sooner than later.

“Tailing,” Aslan answered over his shoulder automatically, retreat to the bathroom unerring. “Sorry, it shouldn’t happen again.”

He closed the bathroom door gently but quickly, because heaven forbid anything in the place make a sound. There was no greater relief than a lock sliding into engagement.

Nisa watched him go as she held the coat. A frown creased her normally gentle face and she turned and headed to the back garden to hang the coat and air it out. "Ridiculous." She washed her hands and began to start on breakfast.

Her mind went to wonder things and every now and again she would find an excuse to walk down the hall and listen to see if it sounded like her brother was truly bathing. When it did seem too quiet, she leaned in a little and spoke, " would you like tea for breakfast? You have had a long night. Maybe you'd prefer something stronger to help you sleep."

Shaving one’s ass hair was one of the quieter and more tedious washroom tasks he indulged in. As profane as it felt, it was also something he could do whilst talking to Nisa at the same time.

Heaven forbid she ever found out.

“Nisa, you’re an angel,” he easily lied. “But I’m scheduled to meet at the constable station soon.”

He was almost exclusively ‘drop in and hound’ with the constables, but it sounded more inevitable and like his disappearance would be investigated and found that way.

Constable? Nisa looked away in thought. "Stay for breakfast and I'll have your clothes ready for you..." she called out cheerfully. "Maybe something dark and striking to show off your features m " She offered and walked away to resume her duties.

She was awfully insistent he stay a bit longer. Did she genuinely miss him? He’d made himself scarce as possible for months now.

Aslan thumbed his inner cheek, then rinsed and dried his blade. Pulled on his robe and let out a closed-mouth, shuddering breath.

Was this the morning?

“You know I can’t say ‘no’ to you, Nisa,” Aslan said, laying on an affection that he still remembered the feeling of as he opened the door.

Nisa smiled at his reply , "Thank you brother. Just so you don't have to keep going with an empty stomach.

She was in a good and generous mood. If her brother was going to rain on her sunny day, she'd be annoyed. And she was curious about his evening and what he wanted to see the constable for. She didn't think he would tell her even if she asked. It was unladylike to pry , but it wouldn't stop her to give a small attempt amd check up on him.