Chapter Text
Tick
He knew this was nothing out of the ordinary. There had been countless nights she stayed late into the mines and made her way out just in time, that was her specialty. Lugging herself out of the elevator at the last moment she could, sleep dripping off of her every footstep as she moved to the mine cart. No matter what she always made it out okay.
Tick
So what if Marlon and Gil were off in the Calico desert looking into a newly discovered cave and wouldn’t be here to make their usual 3 am sweep. She had been deep in the Skeleton Caverns before, she could hold her own in the normal mines, even in this harder version.
Tick
Clint looked at the clock hanging on his wall, the warm glow of the hearth in the center of the room illuminated the face, though it made it more of a daunting sight than a comforting one; 1:33 am. He should have been asleep, finding himself insisting it was because he wanted to draft out a new design for a sword that he was awake at this hour. That was the only reason he was up so late, images of soft curls of magenta hair just happened to fill his thoughts when he was in a moment that lulled. Soft hands covered in a fine layer of dirt reaching across his counter only swirled around in his brain because he couldn’t get this one detail of the sword right. None of this had to due with her. His affection was all put forth for Emily, the apple of his eye. At most this was just him being concerned for a friend. But this was all normal for her, what he felt was normal, and she was perfectly fine in the mines.
Tick
His eyes darted from the sketch in front of him, locking onto the clock on the wall. 2 am. He felt himself move almost involuntarily, body climbing from his seat as though he were a marionette puppet being pulled by strings. A slight haze washed over his mind as he reached for a sword off his rack, subconsciously picking the sharpest one. Moving across the room he felt his heart rate start to pick up, as the flood of blood climbed so did his worry. His mind, desperately trying to reign in control, repeated one thing back to himself, this was normal for her this was normal for her this was norm-
The brisk air sent a shock wave through him, washing over him, contrasting the heat that he never knew whether it radiated off him or the roaring fire in his home. The feeling sobered him in that moment, striding towards the minecarts with a newfound focus. The ancient hinge creaked as it opened for the man, followed by him settling into the cart, flipping the lever, and he was barreling towards the mines
The cart squealed as he pumped the handle to break, finally reaching his destination. Rushing out of the small cart Clint nearly tumbles over himself, before regaining his balance, his grip on the sword tightening. The entrance to the mines was quiet. This would not normally be a problem with anyone else. But not with her. Visits to the mines had taught him that she could be heard humming or singing to herself as she chipped away at the rocks and ore in her path. The slicing of monsters was accompanied by comments made to no one in particular. But tonight, that was not the case. The only noise to be heard was that of the water dripping from the ceiling.
Something was wrong.