Eventually, the lunch table found itself back in order, Sunny still sharing a slight tinge of red on his cheeks, with slight frustration at the world and a little at Kade. Nonetheless, he stuck around while Kade and Dawn were still finishing his meal.
"Kade said you were sunny. Do you two know each other?" Dawn asked fork pointed forward.
The street kid replied snarkily
"No, never met this brute," before squinting his eyes at Kade. "How did you know my name?"
Kade leaned back in his chair, quickly throwing a grape up into his mouth and responding casually.
"Master Jet mentioned among other things that she wanted me to check up on you" his eyes twitching. "Might be doing a bad job if I nearly killed you already"
"She said that?" Sunny asked with subtle surprise.
Kade nodded.
"Well, something like that. You and she both were outskirts people like myself. Either way it's nice to have someone familiar in a sense".
"I'll take that as an insult"
Kade flinched, his dumb smirk still plastered.
"Ouch, taking my kindness only to backstab me" he scoffed "I was right, you do give me a sense of home"
Sunny rolled his eyes, deciding to depart from Kade's antics and on to Dawn who sat across.
"You on the other hand do look familiar"
Dawn on the other hand looked taken aback.
"Me??"
Sunny snapped his fingers, in recognition.
"Yeah, I remember! It was from that one video that went around recently, one where Master Jet was fighting an awakened, then the crazy cloaked guy darted off-screen only to be shot in the head live on camera!"
Sunny narrowed his lines as he pointed at the alarmed Dawn.
"You were the girl with the gun," and then to Kade, "Then you were that one guy holding the awakened back..."
The blind girl who had been listening quietly along suddenly froze.
"She did what?!"
Dawn grabbed the hem of her dress [Lady Death] and answered hesitantly.
"That was me... And he was going to kill us, so I had to do so; otherwise we would be dead."
"Especially me; I was holding the awakened back after all if Dawn hadn't done so. Would be poetic shame to die the same way my old man did."
Sunny stopped his tangent and asked with curiosity; Dawn was also keen on hearing the story.
"How did he die?"
"Oh, nothing much; I shoved a dagger in his throat while he was asleep. He woke up only for a second to see my eyes, then slumbered his way down to the dreamscape that is hell."
The table went dead with silence. Sunny brows twitched at his words; Dawn only stared at her companion wide-eyed and speechless. The blind girl shivered as she made himself smaller.
The three having their own contemplation.
'I wasn't expecting that. I thought the bastard would be a bit more like Auro in a sense, but he's the complete opposite, proud, unclean, and seemingly indifferent to his wrongs. He probably has had his fair share of experience then. If that the case its going to make letting his guard down a bit more troublesome'
'.... Since when did he kill people, not to mention it being his DAD!? Just what the hell happened to you to be you, Kade? And why do you not seem that bothered by it?
'I'm sitting at a table with two murderers?! ... Maybe three. What has happened to my life...?'
Sunny broke the silence with a cough.
"Kade, you know this is a public cafeteria; you just spouted that out loud."
Kade looked behind him lazily to the few sleepers around him staring wide-eyed like traumatised frogs.
Reaching forward again, trying to ignore all the gazes weighing on his back, drink in hand.
"So? They will know what to think of me; I don't give a shit. They probably already thought of me as gutter trash. It wouldn't of changed much if I said something good. Like, 'I take care of the homeless in my local community and run a rat shelter!"
Sipping his drink, Kade responded deadpanned.
"They wouldn't care either way, so why should I?"
Dawn, to his side, observed Kade; he said it like he didn't care, but Dawn could swear she saw that he did, the slight twitch in his eyebrows and the little dip in his usual smirk.
It wasn't anxiety or sadness, but irritation. As if the reminders of others looking down upon him angered the upbeat Kade ever so slightly, but he tried to hide it.
The awkward silence perturbed once again, and Dawn took her role to break it.
her eyebrows knitted as she attempted to talk to the blind girl.
Her state of helplessness reminded her what Dawn felt like when Kurt was hunting her, yet she had it way worse than Dawn ever did.
"Anyway. What's your name? I hadn't managed to get it"
The girl jolted nervously.
"It's Cassie..."
"Well, it's nice to meet you Cassie" Dawn said, her expressions with hidden apologies, Not that Cassie could see of course, just that she felt bad for bringing Kade of all people to the timid girl with a cruel flaw.
Kade looked in with new interest from his hidden slump and joined in.
"Sorry if I scared you, Cassie; I just hadn't been in the company of someone so timid in a while... Normally they run away if they're scared, but I can see that might be a bit difficult regarding your circumstances."
Cassie flinched.
"Ow—hey!"
Dawn didn't even look at him. "Don't be an arsehole."
Kade sensing the accusation around him sighed.
"Look I wasn't trying to be rude; the fact you're even here is impressive Cassie. I don't know what I would do if I had that flaw, but honestly you might have been doing better than I would now."
Dishevelled Cassie softened up slightly and offered a half smile.
"It's alright. Thank you, but I don't think I'm doing too well.
I'm nothing, really… just a walking corpse—"
Her voice cracked, the words heavier than expected.
Kade slammed his hand on the table.
"Bullshit."
"Wha—"
"You're not a zombie, are you?"
"No!?"
"Of course not, so you're wrong. Since walking corpses have pale green skin, rotting flesh and an eternal desire for brains! Your nothing of the sort"
Sunny and Dawn quickly exchanged glances at the absurdity.
"So you're alive then? I know you're scared of the winter solstice and all, but you'll be fine"
Cassie gritted her teeth and asked.
"How can you be so sure!"
"Because why would I let you die? If the spell wants you dead so badly with a flaw like that, then I ought to make sure you live to spite the spell. Don't you want to do the same?"
"Then I'll just be a burden," she said, her voice sharp with shame. "I'll slow everyone down, get people hurt."
Kade scoffed rolling his eyes.
"You can complain about your situation after you awaken; how about that?"
"Kade's right," Dawn said softly. "Ill also be there to protect you"
Sunny who had watched the clown show joined in.
"Oh yeah, how?"
Dawn gave him a death stare, then casually reached under the table. Her boot tapped the base of Sunny's chair; blue light flared, the seat shimmering out of reality, the whole thing collapsing beneath him.
"Aagh—what the hell?!" Sunny yelped, flailing like a fish before he hit the cold floor.
[You have received a memory: Cafeteria Throne]
Sunny grumbled as he picked himself off the floor, brushing sparks off his sleeves.
"Jackasses. I'll take this as my cue to leave"
The duo watched the back disgruntled street kid walk away hands in his pockets.
Cassie fidgeted for a moment at Sunny's departure. then quietly said, "Wait."
Kade and Dawn turned toward her.
She hesitated, swallowing her nerves. Then she offered a small, genuine smile.
"…Thanks. Both of you. For not treating me like I'm already gone."
Dawn gave her a warm smile in return.
"Its no problem.
Kade stretched as he stood, his chair groaning.
"If you're ever in trouble, yell my name and I'll come fist-first and questions later!"
Cassie nodded happily.
"Ill be sure to then"
-----
The three left their separate ways; Kade said his farewells and walked off back to his room.
But was found blocked by a certain individual, the same young man who had caught Nephis before her fall. Blond hair, broad shoulders and an elite air of a legacy. His followers looked down upon the approaching brawler.
Kade looked at the small group, curiosity lanced with amusement.
"Hello gentlemen, what can I do for you today?"