The sunlight didn’t usually wake Charlie, but the persistent sliver of sun falling on her face through the smallest gap in her blackout curtains was enough to rouse her that morning. Well, at first, she got to her feet and pulled the curtains shut again and went back to bed, but her brain had decided that she was awake and she wasn’t getting back to sleep, as much as she may have wished. So she got up and made her way to her tiny kitchen, putting on a pot of coffee.

Even if the solstice itself was the big event, the city tended to buzz for a day or two beforehand. And while Charlie had gotten lucky in getting the solstice itself off, she’d still been rushed off her feet the night before. It had been worth it, she’d made a significant amount in tips and she’d only had to throw out a handful of patrons. But she also had not needed the rude awakening the morning had brought.

She jumped slightly as the shadows behind her couch moved and yelled at her, before Solaris trotted into the kitchen. The cat wound herself around Charlie’s legs as Charlie measured the food out into her bowl. However, Lissie chose to ignore the food and instead sat and stared at Charlie.

“You know, I’m pretty sure normal cats don’t like Fey Berries,” Charlie remarked. “Come on then.” She poured her cereal into her bowl and she poured milk into her cereal and coffee, before heading back into her bedroom, Lissie trotting behind her. As Charlie sat back on the bed, Lissie perched on her legs and began batting at her spoon.

By the time she’d finished her coffee, Lissie had had her few Fey Berries, and she’d read through a few pages of the research she’d found in the past few days, she was starting to feel a bit more awake and a bit better about everything. Or, at least, awake enough to take in the city for a few hours in search of vintage gems.

Jamie tended to try and sleep through the day as much as possible. It was stereotypical, he knew, but as far as he was concerned, nothing exciting ever happened in daylight. And besides, the daytime wasn’t worth the itchy, stubborn rash that came with exposure to too much sunlight. But unfortunately, as so often happened, his insomnia won out. He’d gotten three hours sleep, and apparently his body had decided that was plenty. He rolled out of bed and went to the fridge, cracking open a bottle of FauxFizz and sitting down at the desk, opening up his laptop. It was the newest DwarvenTech model; not as pretty and as streamlined as the FeyTech, but more affordable and it could better handle the heavy editing software he used.

He glanced up as his phone buzzed with a text. He smirked as he saw it was Katari.

To: katari (?)
hell yes. pre-game at mine?

The Solstice was the biggest event of the year, with the biggest parties of the year. Jamie had gotten one or two invitations to big, fancy parties, but he’d turned them down in favour of a party at Arlo’s. Sure, big parties were good for exposure and for showing off on social media, but they weren’t as fun. They were too polished, too surface-clean. And Jamie was feeling the darker side of things tonight. Just like every night.

He should have been used to working on three hours sleep, but for some reason, he still couldn’t focus on the screen for long. He had emails he needed to reply to, bookings to sort out. He groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. If he couldn’t sleep, why couldn’t he at least be fully awake? He stood up and went to the kitchen, staring into the cupboard. He was going to be responsible for at least a few hours, he told himself, if only so he could properly enjoy the party later, and so he brewed one of the teas Briar had brought him with the cheery promise of keeping him awake when he wanted to be awake. He glanced at his phone. Only a few hours until the party started, he told himself. Only a few hours to get through.