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[absinthe_eyed]

If anyone would like to mark their doors with blood, I have some--one or two doors' worth.  It doesn't take much.  Mark it like this.  I don't know how closely the deities expect us to follow the Biblical myth, but it seems sensible to replicate it as closely as possible.  The blood came from a young male lamb... unblemished, as prescribed

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[chasingmorning]

[Of course she wants people to be safe. And of course she ants whatever is going on to be over... but absolute compliance with killing something and then having its blood around, that's different.

Justin knows what's going on though, she reasons. At least he acts like it. She was not present or a part of the lamb retrieving and...the rest of it.

She watches him take to the kitchen.]

Food is part of it?

[absinthe_eyed]

[Justin doesn't know what he's doing, and the parts he knows about? He would rather not. He's going to feel guilty about that damn lamb for a long time. He doesn't look at Shilo from his food preparations.]

In the Bible, yes.

[Paaause.]

I'm sorry.

[chasingmorning]

[She leans on the counter near his workspace.]

It's okay.

[From the look of the kitchen, it's like nothing happened out of the ordinary.]

We just don't know.

[About the City she means, about the end. She sighs, not quite a teenage melodramatic type to give a frustrated father. But a little one. Being mad at Justin isn't done. And she isn't mad.]

I hope nothing bad happens.

[absinthe_eyed]

Not exactly.

[What's left of the lamb is outside and it was slaughtered and bled with as much obsessive neatness as possible.]

We're not going to know until it's too late to do anything else.

[chasingmorning]

[Shilo slowly scoots closer to his side.]

Do you need any help?

[That bread is so flat! Did he mean to do that? Not that she's made bread from scratch before, it could be a cracker.]

[absinthe_eyed]

I don't think so. I looked directions up...

[But the bread looks strange and the meat doesn't smell right. The Bible and the internet recipe hadn't specified the kind of bitter herbs to use.]

[chasingmorning]

I've only had lamb at restaurants or frozen.

[Sniff sniff. It does smell rather strong.]

There is macaroni and cheese in the fridge still I think. You could add that.

[That always makes meals more delicious.]

[absinthe_eyed]

[He thinks about this for a moment then retrieves a box of instant macaroni and cheese. This he can make.]

Between that and ketchup, it should be edible.

[Shilo's making this much easier.]

Are you afraid of this curse?

[chasingmorning]

[Oh, fresh stuff. That's even better!]

I wasn't. But everyone's talking about it on the network. You can't get away from it.

[That's something of a yes.]

I'll get the ketchup.

[Shilo goes to the refrigerator.]

[absinthe_eyed]

[He studies the directions on the box very carefully.]

They're all frightened. That's what the deities want.

[Neith sneaks into the kitchen. The lamb meat might smell a little off, but, judging from the way she's licking her whiskers in anticipation, that doesn't bother her at all.]

...Do you think Neith's the firstborn in her family?

[chasingmorning]

[Shilo opens the door and picks up the ketchup. Just as she's shutting the door she sees other containers filled with red stuff. She opens it up again to look. ...Then promptly shuts it.]

I hate being afraid.

[She looks at Justin and takes a deep breath. It's just blood. She's seen it. Neith the next perfect roommate is a welcomed tangent.]

She's big isn't she?

[absinthe_eyed]

[In retrospect, maybe Justin should have put the blood somewhere else. Fortunately, Neil will be taking some of it off of their hands...]

So do I.

[He manages to avoid looking at her entirely.]

For a house cat, she is.