Sen took the seat Beau guided her to without a word and without hesitation, breathing a deep sigh of relief as she heard him slide the lock home. She took a deep breath and then held it for a count of ten before gradually letting it out. Then did the same thing again, forcing her breathing to return to a normal pace, despite her heart pounding so strongly she marvelled that Beau couldn't hear it. She shivered a little as a mix of shock and adrenaline coursed through her, along with a flurry of turbulent emotions. On one level there was wild fear from the sudden attack. Beau had at least had the mercy of the darkened carriages keeping him from getting any clear view of their assailant. To Sen though, who's sight was unaffected by the contrasts of darkness and daylight, who only ever saw what was really there, no such mercy was extended. As surely as she'd seen the door ahead of her at the end of the carriage, the texture of the floor beneath her feet, the seats to either side of her and the ceiling above her, so also she'd seen the<span style="font-style: italic">thing</span>that had come after them, the thing that had<span style="font-style: italic">grabbed</span>her- and what she'd seen defied explanation... or any explanation<span style="font-style: italic">she </span>could think of right now. It was the sight of it, more than anything else, that had unmanned her with fear.. and Sen hated that.<br/><br/>She wrapped her arms around herself, another shiver going through her as the calm composure she'd had to build and enforce on herself throughout her lifetime forced the emotions that threatened to engulf her down, choking the life out of them before they could properly take hold. Panic would get herself and Beau killed! True, she might be naturally shy, but she hated playing a shrinking violet or damsel in distress. She'd always had a quiet confidence that had enabled her to get around and look forwards to the future whilst blind and, once her unusual vision had manifested itself, enabled her to explore without reservation or reluctance. To have that simply ripped away at the first hurdle.. okay, it had been a pretty terrifying hurdle.. but still! It left her feeling annoyed and angry with herself. Why had she given in so quickly? Sen replayed the scenario in her head. Ah- maybe she'd been playing the part too much already without meaning to?<br/><br/>Ever since she'd met Beau, she'd been acting blind and holding his hand whenever he'd offered it. True, it had been to conceal her more unusual abilities, but in acting like a shy blind girl who needed a hand to hold, maybe she'd allowed herself to actually become more of one than she'd realised? She'd have to stop that- the damsel in distress bit at least, that could get them killed! As for the acting blind part.. that could wait at least a little longer. Probably not much but a little.<br/><br/>She almost wished she'd listened to her instincts back at the station andf never got aboard this train- almost. If she hadn't she'd have never met Beau and he might be going through this alone... and, as much as he'd been the one to save her back there, Sen suspected he might need her and her abilities to survive whatever lay ahead. As her breathing deepened and her heart-rate slowed, Sen took a look at her hands, balling them into fists and then unclenching them again, as she fought to keep a lid on the annoyance and outrage she felt inside. Hunt<span style="font-style: italic">her </span>through the dark would it?! Giver her another chance, and Sen would show it what 'fear of the dark' really meant! Her roiling, whirling thoughts were interrupted by Beau's voce, bringing her back to the present moment.<br/><br/>"Are... are you ok..?" Beau straightened up and turned to look at her. He had had no time until now to consider how she might be holding up since that assault. "...I'm sorry for panicking back there."<br/><br/>"I just don't know what's going on."<br/><br/>Sen had a few suspicions as to what might be going on, but none she could voice that wouldn't sound far-fetched or outlandish yet, even despite their recent, traumatic experience. She turned her head towards him, keeping her face carefully blank of expression, trying to make any fear appear minimal as her calm reasserted itself and she answered his question.<br/><br/>"Yes.. and no," she told him, before elaborating further. "Yes as in 'yes I'm still alive and in one piece with no damage done'- and thank you for that by the way- and 'no' as in 'no I'm not okay, but I'm not dead and you don't have to worry about me'. If anything, I'm actually annoyed with myself for panicking.. and furious enough that I want to go back out there and hunt that<span style="font-style: italic">thing</span>down!" She paused, hating the way her voice had become half an octave higher and shriller than usual on that last declaration.<br/><br/>She noted Beau was looking at her with what seemed like a mix of incredulity and concern on his face. Incredulity at  her last statement, concern that she might be shaken up worse than she seemed to be. She took a breath, composing herself as she spoke again.<br/><br/>"Sorry, I don't usually let panic get to me.. I can't. Being born blind means you have to use your head and keep your calm all the time. A case of literally<span style="font-style: italic"> blind </span>panic can get someone like me killed very easily. Speaking of using my head.." Sen paused, finally allowing herself to take in their surroundings.. "I've got to wonder about the whole train we're in now".<br/><br/>She observed Beau tilt his head, a quizzical look in his eyes as she uttered that statement. "What I mean," she explained, "is things like, why this one carriage is so much better than the others? I can tell it is from the warmth and the ambient sounds being fainter, as well as the quality of them. Also,<span style="font-style: italic">you</span>heard a sound when<span style="font-style: italic">I</span>couldn't despite my depenence on my ears... what explanation can there be for<span style="font-style: italic">that?</span>Also," Sen added as a thought came to her, "Where was that<span style="font-style: italic">thing</span>hiding before now? Is the lock this door has to keep something out.. or to keep something<span style="font-style: italic">else</span>in?"