I notice when Etienne winces as his fingers brush against a nasty bruise just under his hairline. I get up from my stool and move back around my cart, gathering a bit of crushed up ice into a clean cloth. I twist the end and hand it to Etienne, much like I did just recently with Ryuunosuke.

"For what it's worth," I sigh, trying not to sound so damn serious, but it's hard, with everything going on. "I'm glad we met. It's always good to find out you have more allies than you thought."