Abaddon had gone around the entire house looking for Thrudd.
Of course, this was something of an act, as he could already sense that she wasn't home.
Now that he had made up his mind to tell his daughter exactly how they had ended up as a family, he needed all of the time he could buy himself.
He had to do things exactly right. He had no room for mistakes or indecisiveness, since he had already messed up once by refusing to answer her curiosity when she'd asked. Now he had to do everything perfectly to make it up to her.
"Boo!"
Abaddon felt a familiar hand grab him from behind, and though he didn't react, he was fairly surprised.
He closed his eyes as he nuzzled against Seras, and for a moment, he felt significantly less anxious.
"I thought you would have been asleep by now."
