Kaspar lay back on his bed, letting out a long sigh. This was definitely not how he was expecting things to go. It had been a day since he had arrived here, and he still had no lead on where Grandma was. There was also the fact that most of the flatmates didn't seem to like him, although that was the least of his priorities at this point.

It wasn't that he didn't like his flatmates, he was definitely grateful that Colette had invited him here. Sutton in particular had also been very kind to him, and he couldn't stop himself from wanting to spend more time with him. But Kaspar was already involved in something much bigger than all this, and he didn't want to worry and endanger them.

Outside, he could hear the rain pattering on the window, the constant drumming disrupting the otherwise empty silence. He slowly sat himself up, looking to see if there was anything he could use to cover himself up, shelter him from the rain. In his panic, he hadn't picked up any of his clothes from Grandma's apartment, so all he had with him was what he had been wearing.

Kaspar quietly stood up, slipping out of his door and into the corridor. There was a pile of coats on the coat hanger by the door, and he carefully removed one of them from the pile. It was Sutton's; the boy had been so nice to him that he hoped he wouldn't mind. His coat was warm and fluffy, and it smelt like him. The scent was difficult to put into words, but it reminded Kaspar of flowers in the summer. He pulled the coat around him and reached for the handle.

"What are you doing?" a sharp voice called behind him. He turned around to see Eleanor stood there, arms folded, a frown on her face. "And why do you have Sutton's coat?"

"Oh, I was going out to get – supplies," he said, freezing up slightly. Although he was keeping quiet, he had been pretty confident that no one else was in the apartment. "It's raining outside, and I don't have a coat. He won't mind, he asked if there was anything he could do to help," he explained

Eleanor did not seem completely convinced. "How long will you be? Do you want me to come with you?" she asked him. Kaspar could tell this was her way of making sure he wasn't getting himself into trouble

He shook his head. If she joined him, that would only lead to even more danger, "Oh no, don't worry, you're probably busy, and I might stop to do some other things too," he told her, forcing a smile onto his face. "Have a nice day!" he added hastily, and he left the apartment before she could say anything to protest.

Kaspar hurried down the stairs and out of the building, shaking his head slightly. There were probably a million ways he could have handled that situation better, but he had panicked. If he was going to stay at the apartment for much longer, he was going to need to get better at being secretive. Things were complicated enough already, he didn't need to have to worry about them too.

It wasn't too far to get to Grandma's house – fortunately his new apartment was in an area of the city that he knew. He didn't know what exactly he was going to do when he reached her place, but if anything he could retrieve clothes he forgot to pick up yesterday. He was aware of the odd looks his clothes had received, and his priority right now was to blend in, if they knew he was here.

It soon became apparent, however, that it was too late for that.

Kaspar first became aware that he was being followed when he turned onto Grandma's street. It was usually a quiet place  – a retreat from the dissonant sounds of the city - so the fact that someone else turned in a few moments after put him on alert. There was a chance that it was just coincidence, that there just happened to be another person coming to the building at the same time, but Kaspar did not believe in coincidences.

Kaspar slowed his pace to a halt, not turning around to face his pursuer. "I know that you're there," he said, managing to keep his voice calm and level, "So you might as well come and tell me what you want."

"You know what we want from you," the person replied. He recognised the speaker – it was a girl's voice, a similar age to him. "It doesn't belong to you," she continued.

"I certainly have a better claim to it than any of you," he pointed out, shrugging slightly. "I know what you want to do with it, and I can't let that happen," he told them. His back was still facing away from them, his hands in his pockets.

"Schlosser," she said firmly, a sense of urgency in her voice, "This is not a matter of jest. I do not wish to remove it from you by force, but I will do what is necessary to retrieve it."

"See, that's the thing," he replied, finally turning to face her. She was taller than average, her dark brown hair reaching halfway down her back. A determined look was set on her face, her eyes glaring. "You didn't think I would be silly enough to carry it with me, did you?"

The girl blinked, a momentary glitch in her composure. "Of course we did not assume that," she told him. He knew that was a lie, but he kept his mouth shut to let her continue, "But if you did have it, it would have been made clear," she added, "So now you will tell me where I can find it, or I will make you bring it to me."

"Can I choose the secret third option?" he responded. Perhaps not the smartest choice to make, but it was the first thing to pop into his head. "The option where you leave me alone and I continue about my business?"

He took the fact that she charged at him as a firm no.

Acting almost instinctively, Kaspar held up a arm, deflecting her movements. She held a knife in her hand, and while they struggled, Kaspar had flashes of memories. Memories of being a boy, younger than he was now, his parents going through defence techniques over and over again. At the time, it had seemed pointless, but now he couldn't be more thankful for what he had been taught.

Having no weapons on hand, he curled his hand into a fist and threw a punch at her. Hand-to-hand combat was not his favourite way to fight, but it was all he had right now. He continued to resist, ducking and dodging whenever possible. The girl was relentless, a fierce look of determination on her face.

A sharp pain in his abdomen snapped him out of the zone, pulling him back into reality. The girl stepped back, as if satisfied with what she had done. Kaspar glanced down, fearing what he might see. To his relief, it was not a deep wound, nothing he should be worried about. But blood was still trickling out of him, pangs of pain rushing through his body.

"Where is it?" she demanded, still holding up her knife, "I will not hesitate to do that again, if that is what it takes."

"You will, though," he replied, gritting his teeth through the pain, "You need be alive and conscious, otherwise you'll never know. And nothing you can do will make me tell you."

She let out a noise of exasperation, "You are just as stubborn as the rest of them," she declared, looking at him accusingly. "This is not the end of this, Schlosser. I will return, and I will take what I need," she told him.

With that, she stalked off, disappearing around the corner in no time. Kaspar let out a cry, and put his hand against the wall to steady himself. He tore a small piece of fabric from his shirt, holding it against his injury.

Things were only getting worse.