Shifter 1x1 with squid.

[teeshirt.]

Cliff could hear her, but it was muffled. They never told him he would be able to hear the distress in her voice. Then he realized. It wasn't a sleeping mix after all, but a sedative. He couldn't cooperate respectively, but he could hear everything that was going on. Stepping from the shadows, Aria's dad stared at Cliff's unresponsive body. They did well. Leaning down, he hoisted Cliff from one shoulder and had another experimenter help out. He had a mask over his face, so that when he released the gas that forced everyone's memories away, it wouldn't effect him. With a simple nod, an experimenter released the gas into the air. It was almost instantaneous. The memories were forced away. He barely took notice of Aria, until then.

[squid.]

Aria was shaking Cliff and crying. "Wake up Cliff!" she cried, but nothing was happening. She saw people coming out from the shadows, and she saw them as they tried to take Cliff away. She quickly grabbed one of their arms, which happened to be her father. She held on tightly, trying to pulling away, but them she gas was release, she let go, falling limply to the ground as her memories were being taken away. She had no idea what was going on, but she knew that nothing about it was good.

[teeshirt.]

Instructing them on what to do, Aria's father waited until they were out the door with Cliff. He then leaned down and shook Aria. "Aria? Are you okay!?" he asked, feigning horrification. He took her by the hand and helped her up. "We have to get out of here. Someone came in shooting people at random," he instructed in his fatherly voice. As long as she didn't know about Cliff, they would be fine. She couldn't know where he was going, or anything really. He didn't want her knowing anything really about this double life of his. She was only there to provide information needed for him about the Crest's. Lucky enough, Cliff had actually been the one to lead them there. Silly kid didn't even look in the box, or remember that it was there. Luke was a great help too. To bad he didn't know what was inside.

[squid.]

Aria felt hand on her, shaking her awake. She groaned, and she looked up, seeing her father. "Daddy?" she said in a groggy voice. He pulled her up, and she struggled to stand at first. What had happened? "H-how did I get here? I don't remember coming here. How did you find me?" she asked him oddly. She was so confused about everything. The last thing she remembered was leaving school, going home, and doing her homework. Everything after that was a blurry haze. "I'm scared daddy. I can't remember anything," she told him quietly. She was genuinely terrified about the whole thing.

[teeshirt.]

Her father gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "You hit your head pretty hard. You fell while running," he whispered. The answer seemed plausible enough. "Let's get home. I don't think food would be a good idea now," he continued, indicating to the abandoned table Cliff and Aria had been in before. He wrapped an arm lightly around her to help her out of the restaurant. Meanwhile, Cliff woke to a bright light. Or at least, he felt as if he had just woken up. Since he had been continuously subjected to the gas, he was somewhat immune to its effects. Yet, he only had bits of pieces of the evening. Aria did not register in his mind, which must have been the experimenter's motives, because they have him a series of questions and seemed pleased when he couldn't recall any of it. He was left alone minutes later, blinking and willing his memory to return. It didn't. The door opened a crack and someone too too familiar poked his head in.

[squid.]

Aria bit her lip as she heard her father. She nodded, but she knew that something was missing. Something just didn't seem to fit, and she was determined to find out. She always trusted her father, but he seemed to be keeping something from her. It was strange to think of her father like that considering he was the only family she had. Her mother had been gone from the start. She slowly got up, only nodding. "Okay," she said quietly. "How did I get here? I don't remember going out to dinner," she said to him.

[teeshirt.]

Her father put an arm around her to help her walk before he listened to her questions. He frowned softly and said, "Did you really forget? I drove us here for a little treat." He sighed softly and lead the way out the door. "You really did hit your head hard. What do you remember?" he asked, feigning worry for her. He knew very well what had happened, but there was no way he was let her know that. He got into the car and motioned for her to get in on the other side. He received a text, telling him that they had Cliff safely back at headquarters.

[squid.]

Aria bit her lip, and she shook her head. "I don't remember anything. All I remember is coming home from school. Everything else is foggy after that," she said. She slowly got on the other side of the car, and she bit her lip. "Daddy, why did they start shooting?" she asked him. She buckled up, and she held her throbbing head. What had happened to her? She didn't believe her father at all.

[teeshirt.]

Her father backed out of the space rather quickly once she got in. He zoomed into the thick of town and headed for home. "I don't know. I think it was a robbery," he replied, glancing her way before looking ahead again. His phone beeped, signaling a call. He put the phone up to his ear and scrunched his brows. "What do you mean?" he snapped; his patience was running thin already. "Fine, fine. He can stay with...no I don't want to hear it. Enough, Ryder!" he snapped before ending the call rather angrily. That had not ended how he would have liked for it to. He and Ryder went way back. He was one of the few people who actually knew who he really was.

[squid.]

Aria nodded, and then his phone started to buzz. She bit her lip, and she couldn't help but jump as her father yelled. "Work?' she asked him quietly when he was finished. Sometimes he would get so stressed out and he would yell, and it honestly scared her. His voice always had an odd amount of authority, even when she was just a little child. She never really understood why though. She bit her lip when they reached their house, and she glanced over at her father. She planned on following him if he left her, which he most likely would.