Ryuuko had just settled into her own quiet time upstairs and Wendy was staying in Hydra dorms, presumably, or so Blake hoped, attending the party. Not because he wanted Wendy to drink and act like an idiot, but because the boy needed to get better at socializing. That's what moving him to Hydra had been all about - despite Ryuuko's vocal opinions on whether or not the wendigo was in fact ready to leave the nest - so to speak - so soon.
Blake, given the evening to himself now that the summer of travel was completed - first to Iceland for some family matters, but then out to other parts of the world as Ryu grew bored - Blake had picked up a book he'd been meaning to read and set himself up on the couch with a glass of wine. Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight: An African Childhood lap open on his lap.
Alexandra Fuller's words reached out to him from the page: This is not a full circle. It's Life carrying on. It's the next breath we all take. It's the choice we make to get on with it.
The knock on the door made the Dragonslayer visible tense. Old habits died hard and Blake had made a very old habit of making things want to kill him. Reminded of where he was, why he was, and the decency of decorum, he set the book down, picked up the wine glass, and came to find who was calling on a Friday night.
He already knew who he wanted to see before he opened the door, but Blake smiled with genuine pleasure at seeing his thought manifest into flesh. "Jack Cavanaugh. It's about damn time. I was just about to open another bottle of wine." The door widened to let the banshee inside, but Blake's sharp eyes did more than a cursory look over Jack's clothes and mannerisms. Old habits.