XV

"Haha!" Leo cackled, perched atop the marble fountain that was the centerpiece of the neighborhoods. "You lose!" he stuck his tongue out at Camilla, who was sitting on the fountain's edge with a frown on her face.

"That wasn't fair," she grumbled, hugging her knees to her chest. "You got a headstart."

Leo put a hand up to his ear. "Sorry, what was that? I can't hear you over the sound of my victory," he taunted, grinning widely.

Camilla stuck out her lower lip in a pout, getting up from the marble ledge and looking up at her smirking brother. "I'm leaving," she announced, trudging away from the fountain and up along the cobbled road that wound throughout the neighborhoods.

Leo chuckled, watching her go with a boyish grin on his face. Well, I guess I'll be patrolling the east side, he thought with a chuckle.

While Leo and Camilla were busy pushing each other's buttons, Terrance was struggling to keep Penelope's attention longer than two seconds. "So, I'll patrol near the northern half, kinda by the palace?" Terrance asked. Penelope didn't answer; it seemed that she was staring off into space, as she often did. "Pip?" Terrance waved his hand in front of her face and she blinked.

"Oh, sorry. Did you say something?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

Terrance nodded, smiling a little. Unlike other Queensguardians, such as Valerie and Charles, Terrance was a very patient person, especially with people like Penelope, who were constantly daydreaming. Of course, the fact that he felt something more than a mutual closeness for her might have helped. "You know, on second thought, why don't we stick together? You seem to be thinking about something and you won't be able to patrol by yourself if you keep zoning out," he suggested kindly.

Penelope nibbled at her lip. "Um, actually... I don't think that's a good idea. We can cover more ground separately, and there are so many hiding places around here that it would be easy for someone to slip right by us," she explained shakily.

Terrance just nodded and Penelope spread her wings, meaning to make her way to the northern part of downtown. But before she left the ground, Terrance turned to her. "Hey, before you go... why are you so out of it today?" he asked casually.

Penelope's jaw tightened and Terrance immediately knew something was off. Penelope never kept secrets. "I'm just... a little tired, that's all," she replied as evenly as possible, but Terrance wasn't convinced. Regardless, he kept himself from questioning her as she launched into the air.

Meanwhile, Valerie and Charles hadn't uttered a word to each other since they'd left for their patrol. Charles wanted to try to talk some sense into her, possibly convince her to give him his Second position back, but he doubted it would go over well.

Valerie, on the other hand, just hoped that Charles wouldn't open his sharp mouth until they finished.

Of course, her wishes went unanswered.

"White really suits you," Charles offered quietly as the pair landed near Lake Laurier.

"Thank you," was Valerie's clipped reply as she re-strapped her weapons to her belt.

"You look beautiful."

"I agree."

"I like it when you have your hair up."

This time, Valerie turned toward Charles. "I don't give a flying fuck what you like," she snapped. Charles's eyes widened; citizens of Celestia rarely cursed. Especially the leader of the Queensguard. "Now start patrolling the Golden Forest before I take that Queensguardian badge from you."

Charles said nothing more and launched into the air, making his way east.

Valerie sighed in relief and fluttered her wings as she looked down at the surface of Lake Laurier. Staring back at her was her reflection, unsmiling. She frowned at it for a moment before opening her wings and flew up to begin her patrol.

While Valerie and Charles worked separately, Leo and Camilla had regrouped after Leo had gotten bored and decided to track his twin down. "Aren't you supposed to be patrolling the eastern villages?" Camilla asked as Leo lounged on a nearby bench, basking in the setting like a cat.

"Yeah, but I got lonely," Leo pouted and Camilla chuckled, rich golden-brown hair shimmering in the sunlight. "Aren't we almost done anyway?" he asked and Camilla nodded.

She immediately grinned, spreading her wings and sparing Leo a glance. "Race you back!" she exclaimed and shot off the ground, with Leo far behind her.

"Hey wait, that's not fair! I was laying down!" Leo called and Camilla only giggled, landing in front of the restaurant with ease.

Valerie and Charles were already waiting for them, unsurprisingly. What was surprising, however, was Terrance standing next to Valerie without Penelope in sight. "Where's Pip?" Camilla asked immediately and Terrance shrugged.

"That's the problem. We split up to cover more ground and I haven't seen her since. She should have been here by now," he murmured, more to himself than the rest of the group.

Valerie shook her head, pinching the brim of her nose. "We were waiting for the two of you so we could decide how we want to look for her," she explained.

Camilla's breathing began to grow fast and uneven. "What if she was kidnapped by a demon? What if they locked her up and she's being beaten and tortured right now? What if-"

Leo wrapped his arms around his sister's shoulders. "It's okay, Cami," he whispered. "I bet Pip is just fine. Knowing her, she's probably daydreaming and lost track of time."

The rest of the group stayed silent. It wasn't often that Leo showed that kind of concern and care for anyone but Camilla.

While everyone else was plotting the best way to find their missing Queensguardian, Penelope was waiting at the rooftop, watching the moon rise into the darkening sky. At first, she didn't think he'd show up. After all, why would he? If a strange angel girl asked her to meet herself at moonrise the night after she met her, Penelope probably wouldn't come. Not without speculation, she supposed.

But then there were footsteps behind her.

And Shawn stood a few feet away, almost blending into the shadows.