A weak knock rang out on the other side of the door, beating out a familiar jingle that broke Susie out of her thoughts. She shot up from her chair, noting the quiet bubbling coming from stove. Somehow, the water was already boiling. She grabbed a large handful of noodles and dropped them in, alongside the tiniest pinch of salt her claws could muster. Didn't she salt them already?
Behind the door she found Berdly, alone, using all the effort in his body to maintain his composure, his eyes betraying what they both went through less than a day ago.
Susie lazily looked down before her eyes regained focus, darting around him. "Hey Berdly... Wait, where's—" His eyes went wide and he pushed Susie to the side. "What is that... THING doing uncovered??" All the effort Berdly had put into his calm visage quickly came crashing down the moment he saw the cage, sitting plainly on the kitchen table, as if it was just a decoration. He ran inside, slamming the door behind him, feathers instantly standing on edge. "You were SUPPOSED to be WATCHING it! Someone could've seen it— Then it's—"
Susie rolled her eyes, grabbing a blanket from one of the chairs and covering the cage, tucking the ends under it. "There. Feel better? No?" She looked down at him, though her words mocked him, her voice conveyed understanding. She's been through this already, staying up most of the night just staring at it, hoping it would help them, somehow, though she clearly underestimated how Berdly would react.
He grabbed a chair and pulled it as far away from the table as he could, before sitting down. Still visibly tense, he wouldn't dignify that with a response. Susie sat down next to the cage, eyes looking at the floor in front of her, tracing out the fake pattern on the fake wood. "That's what I thought. Any luck playing 'concerned citizen' at the Church?"
Berdly crossed his legs, the outline of his shorts betraying where his thighs ended and his thin yellow calves began. "I am a concerned citizen, Susie. And... no. Nobody had seen Kris since yesterday, and even then, what they say just..."
Susie looked up, brows furrowed as Berdly crossed his arms. He had that familiar expression on his face, the one he made when trying to solve an impossible puzzle, or to answer a riddle that was clearly written as a joke. "Use your words, dumbass." Clearly now wasn't the time to play 'Annoy The Lizard'.
"It doesn't make sense!" He shot up, nervously pacing around the kitchen, subconsciously avoiding the table. "QC said she saw Kris in the morning, right? She opens at 8, so I managed to narrow it down to a five minute window..." he produced a well-used notepad from his back pocket, a pencil with an eraser strapped to the spine. He flipped it open to the middle, checking his notes as he paced. "...but, perplexing as it is, Officer Undyne didn't see them leaving their house, or anywhere in town during her morning patrol! And when their mother left for the school an hour earlier, she said she heard Kris in the bathroom." A bead of sweat formed on his forehead with the last comment, displaying an unusal amount of frustration for Berdly. "She didn't even check or get any confirmation! She just heard the water running and..."
Susie's hand appeared in his path, pulling him back to reality. "I got it. Kris was being Kris again. Anything else?"
He stepped back, talons sinking into the floor. "I-I... I saw the Mayor near the church. I was surprised to see her, but I- I couldn't bring myself to talk to her... she left without saying a word to anyone." Something about seeing the Mayor silently walk from the graveyard to her office made him feel uncomfortable. Looking straight on, ignoring all her citizens near the Church, not a hint of emotion on her face. "...she didn't even step inside."
Susie put her hand down, curling it into a fist. "Great. So we've got jack, and Kris is still missing." The coarseness of her voice managed to mask her concern well enough. Carol barely ever attended service, so it's wasn't that surprising to her. Neither did Susie, in truth. Seeing the Prophecy unfold in front of her eyes made church readings seem like a joke compared to the real thing. "Did Noelle go home with her mom, or..?"
Berdly began reaching in his back pocket before he suddenly stopped. "Not— H-Huh? What exactly do you mean?
Susie looked at him as if had asked her what color the sky was. "You... went with her, right? To the church?"
Berdly raised his eyebrow, his shoulders slacking. "N-No! She—" He shut himself up, tensing up as he looked to the side, before quickly turning around in embarrassment.
Susie turned to look where he did, the empty doorframe that led to her bedroom. Well, not so empty anymore.
"Hi, Susie..."
Noelle leaned on the wooden frame, wearing a set of heavy, pure white pajamas, slightly oversized for her height. She "forgot" this set at Susie's place several months ago, and frequently used it whenever she got to join her for a 'sleepover'. Though, clearly, she wasn't in the mood for that right now.
She smiled, but there was something wrong. The kind of smile you see on a grieving widow, trying to seem composed to her friends and family, lest they notice the breadth of her sorrow. Of course she didn't go to church, why would she? To hear it all again? Hollow condolences and platitudes taken from the last page of this week's obituary.
"We'll find them, don't worry."
"She couldn't have gotten far."
"I'm sorry for your loss."
Her eyes looked empty, almost lifeless, as she stepped forward, glancing at the flustered bird, who was busy looking precisely at the corner of the ceiling. The sight seemed to amuse her, bringing a glint of true joy to her otherwise forced smile. "I'm not your mother, Berdly, you can turn around. It's not like I'll send you back to Church, fahah..."
