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Kyoko was doing something in secret, something she didn’t want the rest of her coterie to know about. It was a ritual she had learned about, but hadn’t done yet. It was supposed to only be done in situations where the caster would be worried about being attacked during the day. She loved Violet and Hester like they were her family, but she knew she would be told off if they found out about this.
Kyoko was going to have to be very careful. This ritual could be dangerous, even though it was meant to help protect the caster from danger. She burnt the bones and feathers, mixed her Vitae, drew the circle around her bed, and hid the evidence. Then all she had to do was set an alarm and go to sleep. Because the ritual worked best if the caster was in danger, she made her alarm a fire siren. Hopefully, her day-sleep brain would register the danger and rouse her. To make sure the alarm wouldn't wake her coterie, Kyoko used headphones. Then she went to sleep, restless and excited.
Several hours later, Kyoko’s piercing alarm sounded in her ears. She opened her eyes, her body twitching into life. Her Beast grumbled and growled within as she checked the time on her phone. 11:00 am. Kyoko covered her mouth to stop a cry of delight. It worked! She was awake during the day for the first time in years!
Now was when Kyoko had to be careful. She crept out of bed and moved through the dark room. The windows were carefully blacked out and the doors locked. She unlocked the door and tiptoed out. The room beyond the bedroom was less light-tight. She unlocked another door. This one would lead outside. She hesitated, her hand on the handle, shaking with excitement. At the last moment, she decided to put sunglasses on. Then she very carefully opened the door a few inches and peeked out.
Kyoko was saved from any sunlight damage by the awning over the door that both cast shade, and protected the door from rain. As it was, the light outside was glaringly bright and made her flinch. Kyoko pushed through that discomfort and looked anyway. There was the street, lit in glorious Californian sunlight. She could hear birds and traffic. Someone walked past with a Dalmatian on a leash. Kyoko covered her mouth again to suppress joyous laughter and awe.
Not wanting to risk too much more, and because her Beast was definitely not happy, Kyoko closed the door and locked it again. She danced around in the dim room, spinning and bouncing happily. “Yes! Yes! Oh, my God!” she exclaimed quietly. She was simply overjoyed that her little experiment had worked.
Kyoko stayed up as long as she could, but eventually, her Beast and her Blood started urging her back to bed. She re-locked the bedroom door and lay back on her mattress in the darkness. Even as she fell unconscious again, she could not keep the joyous smile off her face.