For hopefully the final time, Damian turned around to face the mother and daughter pair once again. Aurora had once again stuffed Tilly behind her while glaring at Damian warily, but the young girl was poking out from under her mother's arms and smiling at him.
"I don't know why you're giving us money, but it helps a lot!" she smiled genuinely, a far cry from her earlier fierceness. "I know you can probably afford much better food, but at least let us thank you by offering you dinner!"
Hiding his glee, Damian raised an eyebrow and remained calm. "Oh?" he turned his attention to Aurora, a charming smile on his lips. "I suppose I have no other plans, but I don't think your mother would like that…"
Aurora scoffed, but couldn't say anything before Tilly answered. "Mom doesn't believe there's still good people in the world!" Tilly answered in a chipper tone as she glanced at her mother. "But she's agreed to one meal, right Mom?"
Aurora glanced down at her daughter unwillingly. Yet, when she looked straight into Tilly's large, brown eyes full of hope, she could only sigh in exasperation. Carefully, she checked the small pistol her son had given her, well-hidden under her clothes. It wouldn't have made a difference earlier, but with one man…
With the confidence of knowing her weapon was still there, she finally looked back at Damian again with narrowed eyes. "One meal!" she growled warily. "Then you're gone!" Muttering under her breath, she continued softly, "Or you can just go now…"
Pretending not to have heard that last part, Damian smiled gratefully. "I have actually been feeling a little homesick. I think a meal prepared by a caring mother could be just what I need. I'll gladly accept your offer, Miss Aurora."
Aurora snorted dismissively, yet she couldn't help but let her guard down a little. His handsome looks, polite manner, and charming smile made her feel things she hadn't felt since her late husband passed.
Next to her, Tilly pouted and looked up at her mother accusingly. "I'm sorry for Mom's tone, Sir. She can be a little wary of strangers…"
"Don't worry about it," Damian answered gently. "I'm sure she has plenty of reason for that."
Aurora didn't answer, but didn't lower her guard anymore than she already had, so Damian simply gave an elegant gesture towards this grimy, dark alleyway's exit. "I hope the two pretty ladies won't mind if I escort you to the store?"
"Of course not!" Tilly immediately answered as she finally wriggled out of her mother's arms and started moving in Damian's direction. Her eyes were shining with curiosity. She seemed to like his polite behaviour.
"Tilly!" Aurora immediately cried out and went after her anxiously. Yet, she was quickly held back by a short coughing fit. Damian frowned, and Tilly quickly turned back to help her, seemingly worried, but not surprised.
Fortunately, it wasn't long before Aurora could move again, and they finally left the alley. Once on the street, Aurora made sure to walk in between Damian and her daughter. She kept a few steps between them as well, which Damian respected with indifference.
The street was relatively calm, as it was night and there wasn't much in terms of an active nightlife in this part of the Expanse. What few people there were clearly weren't gangers, and far too miserable to bother a group of three people, especially when one was a strong-looking man in expensive clothing.
A few curious glances lingered on his expensive clothing, but curiosity was quickly masked by practiced indifference. These people weren't gangers, and knew better than to provoke anyone who could afford to flaunt their wealth.
"What's your name, Sir?" Tilly asked in a bright tone, leaning forward slightly to look at him past her mother.
"It's Damian," he smiled lazily. He didn't see a need to hide his real name at this point. If anyone from Eryndor heard it, he'd simply claim Damian was the fake name, and he thought of it because of his young master's death.
"You can both just call me Damian," he continued with a shrug, hands crossed behind his back. "No need for the honorifics," he assured her gently.
"That's a nice name!" Tilly claimed enthusiastically, before immediately continuing to her next question. "Can I ask why you were in that alley?"
"I was just taking a stroll," Damian chuckled dismissively, before glancing at the suspicious, grumpy woman beside him. "What about you two? Isn't it a little late for grocery shopping?"
"Hmpf," Aurora grumbled, her stance wary, yet felt compelled to answer his question. "I guess it's obvious you didn't grow up here in Slagfall…"
Damian had heard the name Slagfall before. The locals called this subdistrict of the Expanse, Slagfall, earning its name due to the heavy industries, constant pollution, and factories spewing smoke and slag that filled the area.
"The streets here are actually safer at night," she continued bitterly as her eyes flew over the dilapidation and neglect that filled their surroundings. "It's not like the police cares about Slagfall, so criminals have no reason to wait until night before they destroy what's left of our lives. Not that it helped us much today…"
"I see," Damian nodded calmly. He remembered Luna telling him similar stories of Eryndor, and couldn't deny feeling some sympathy for them. Fortunately, helping them was just what he intended to do.
"What about this Crash you mentioned before?" he continued curiously. "Was he unable to come along tonight?"
Aurora sighed wryly, and Tilly's expression fell. "Big brother Crash and his friends are working all night," Tilly muttered sadly as she poked her fingers together.
"After their father, Kiyomi, died, Crash took over his night shift at the factory," Aurora explained, sighing miserably. "But Kiyomi had debts with the local gang, and now they're squeezing us for the money… Crash is supposed to pay them every night from his earnings, but I guess he missed a payment…"
"No way!" Tilly immediately exclaimed, full of conviction as her bright smile faded into indignation. "I'm sure that bitch was lying!"
Sighing, Aurora shook her head with closed eyes. "I'm sure you're right, Tilly…"
Despite her words of encouragement, Damian could hear the hint of doubt lingering in her mind, as well as the guilt for feeling it.
He glanced at the two women beside him and saw a storied past behind their haunted eyes. A past that was no doubt common in the polluted nightmare that was Slagfall.
He couldn't say that their tragedies touched him exactly, but it was impossible not to draw a few parallels between them and his own family. A caring but worried mother, a chirpy but fierce younger child, and an older sibling working hard to earn his own way.
Fortunately, he didn't need to suppress the sympathy bubbling up inside him. A lot would depend on this Crash character, but his plans should improve their lives, even if he focused on his own benefits.
Meanwhile, they reached a 24-hour store with flickering neon signs above and a dimly lit interior. It was small, but they weren't the only ones doing late-night shopping. Damian's companions clearly weren't the only ones who considered the night safer.
Yet, there was no conversation. A gloom hung over everyone, suppressing the sparks of life behind their eyes that ached to get out.
Only Tilly brought some life into the place. The credit chit Damian had given them held twice as much money as they originally had, so the sixteen-year-old was running around excitedly. The basket in her hands filled up quickly.
"We have something to celebrate tonight!" she smiled sincerely.
Aurora didn't have the heart to stop her, and Damian refused to show the disgust he felt on his face. None of what they sold here could be considered food in his eyes, but he had enough of a heart not to dampen Tilly's enthusiasm with his opinion. Instead, he simply smiled encouragingly, with his hands casually resting in his pockets.
All the while, Aurora coughed regularly and never lowered her guard. She kept a cautious eye on every shadow, habitually assessing threats she could neither afford to ignore nor fully face. In contrast, Tilly's cheerful determination to make tonight special was almost heartbreaking in its stubborn optimism.
Soon, they left the store and headed for Aurora and Tilly's apartment.