Midnight Subsiding

Nolan stood facing one of the library's massive windows, which spanned the height of the entire wall, his back facing the door. The moon shining through gave everything in the room a subtle glow. The only light sources were several large enchanted chandeliers, which Nolan had dimmed down so as to keep the reflections on the windows minimal. He looked out at the stars, which seemed to be the only objects in the universe as outwardly cold and isolated as himself.

The silence dispersed through the air in this room was pristine. Everything in this room was pristine, it's why he enjoyed it to the degree that he did. Even his meticulously ironed suit was creased and folded in just the places that it should be. He could not remember a night so perfect as this since that of his fourteenth birthday, when he was promoted to an assassin, and he burnt down a library much like this one.

The screams of the people dying within it were one of his sweetest memories.

He heard the doors behind him open, and he gave a rare, genuine smile, "Mister Popov." He turned to face the new arrival, "I hear your mission was successful." His smile expanded so his teeth were showing "I congratulate you."