The plethora of savory sweet  smells of breakfast hit Dani square in the face as he entered the dining hall, wiggling his nose at the dizzying strength of each aroma. As he looked around trying to withstand the new powerful sensation, he stretched his bare toes in his black boots thinking about all the pairs of socks he'd torn up trying to simply put them on. Taking a deep breath, he sighed at what a waste it'd been. If only he'd just resigned himself to not wearing socks sooner, that was obviously the only choice. And as he stretched those toes, he felt the nails scrape against the boots' interiors. He could only hope that they too wouldn't get destroyed, but who was he kidding. The claws were more than he bargained for whereas the smell, maybe he could get used to that. He rolled his neck and shifted his shoulders as he pressed forward, beginning to gather a plate of the delicious goods.<br/><br/>All that panic had given him quite the appetite, perhaps even abnormally so as he piled two large plates to an extreme before sitting by one of the windows. His attention was completely drawn in, devouring almost an entire plate in less than ten minutes. As he began to slow down into a pace in which one might be perceived as actually enjoying the food rather than inhaling, his gazed wandered to the view of the quiet morning street. Nothing seemed entirely out the ordinary until a hunch gave him the impression something was wrong with this picture. His brows scrunched forward as he slowly counted the vehicles sitting outside until he came upon an empty spot that should've held his own. His jaw dropped mid-chew as it took him a moment to understand the situation.<br/><br/>Slamming his fork down, he could feel all the tiny hairs on his body rising with rage. Startling nearby folks, he stormed outside feeling sudden urges to tear through all obstacles standing in his way. The door barely managed to hold onto its hinges as his boots crushed each step down the porch as he approached the sad lonely space where his bike had been. Somewhere deep inside him he felt a terrible dark shadow lurking, begging to be released as he closed his shaking fists in an attempt to control the sudden on-burst of volatile notions of what he might do to the culprit.<br/><br/>Shutting his eyes, he took in several long breaths to help calm himself. Sense and logic began to trickle through his train of thought, previous experiences of having his bike stolen and what he'd done in those instances. As much as he'd traveled, of course it'd happened to him before. He couldn't remember ever feeling so much unbound fury, and as much as he was confused by it... Part of him wanted to let that control go. Hulk out, so to speak. And in that moment he released it for a split second, allowing his left fist free to assault the closest object to him which happened to be a rather pristine Kia's hood. The impact was so unexpected that it shook him from his brooding in order to inspect the enormous dent he'd made in the metal, shattering the headlights in the process. However it was not enough surprise to completely stem the freely flowing fervor for revenge, as Dani's momentary shock quickly subsided as innately he picked up a new scent.<br/><br/>Normally in this sort of situation, it was easy to find his lost bike through an app on his phone. But it seemed that would be unnecessary as somehow he knew in his gut that all he had to do was follow this smell. Lifting his nose to the sky and taking several sharp breaths, he took as much of it in as he could; almost like he was absorbing it into his being. Gradually as the thrill of the hunt filled his senses, the white of his pupils began to turn red. The tiny hairs across his skin tingled with excitement as he picked up the trail.<br/><br/>--<br/><br/>Gretchen wasn't the type to show worry, even as close as she was with her brother, however things felt different this time. As he reentered the kitchen and poured the dark liquid into his favorite flower adorned mug, she cleared her throat in order to get his tired attention.<br/><br/>"Are you sure you're okay?" Her thin brow arced sharply to which she was greeted with a laugh and an expression of surprise.<br/><br/>"Gretchen Chang, is that actual concern I hear?" He smiled and teased his younger sibling before giving a more definite answer. "Yes, I'm fine. This cup of coffee will do wonders."<br/><br/>She frowned. "Uh huh."<br/><br/>But that was that. It was as far as she was willing to stick her neck out in the moment, lest her hard exterior be exposed for actually caring for the only person that mattered to her in this destitute town. Not long after Richard emptied his mug and tidied up, the two were just out the door when unexpectedly his foot slipped. Gathering himself in confusion as he took his keys out to lock the door, he realized half the porch was covered in a thin layer of ice despite warm sun. Looking to Gretchen, it seemed she hadn't even noticed the slippery substance beneath them as she walked off towards his car. With uncertainty he locked his door before following after her.<br/><br/>"Did you notice all that ice on the porch?" He inquired as he buckled his seat belt and starting the car.<br/><br/>"What're you talking about?"<br/><br/>"You didn't see half the porch covered in ice? I nearly fell flat on my butt cause of it," he laughed at her obliviousness.<br/><br/>"Well I would've liked to have seen that," she snorted as she peered out the window towards the mysterious ice. "It looks like it must've melted though." She pointed, and right she was. Small puddles had formed where the ice supposedly been.<br/><br/>"Something strange is happening..." Richard muttered as he shook his head, pulling out the driveway. "I have to stop by the library by the way. It'll be quick."<br/><br/>Gretchen moaned at her brother's boring nerd errands but said nothing.<br/><br/>A short ride later and they were in the library's parking lot. Richard pointedly gave his sister a look of 'don't look at me like that' before leaving her there to be grumpy. As he walked to the entrance of the old building, he felt a strange energy in the area. A feeling of cold that separated himself from reality, even on the drive he'd felt extra cold despite it being a rather sunny normal day. Looking around, things also seemed quieter than usual. Much like the hush before a storm. Not many people were out and about despite the beautiful morning. Or was he simply thinking too much into it because of sleep deprivation? It could be that he was just disoriented from the previous night's anxiety... At least that's what he was convincing himself.<br/><br/>Absentmindedly he tugged on the large bronze door handle only to be taken aback as it was unhappily revealed that it was still locked. Glancing at his watch, the library should've been open already. Disappointedly, he shook the handle to ensure that it was indeed closed before backing away. He sighed loudly before heading back.<br/><br/>"Today's turning out to be a really weird day," he heaved as he got back into the driver's seat.<br/><br/>Gretchen distractedly looked up at him, "This town could use a little excitement anyway." Not that she was particularly mindful of what he'd actually meant.<br/><br/>"Careful what you wish for sis," he said as a shiver ran up his spine. "Why's it so chilly today?" He frowned as the car turned the corner and the library disappeared from the rear view mirror.