Chapter Text
Grey angrily heads down from the Greenhouse, spacing out as she does so.
What was that look of pity for? Why were they both so defensive?
Grey doesn’t think Dark Blue is completely innocent, but they’re treating him like an animal.
…Why?
Grey’s mind spirals with questions and theories as she turns, trying not to go face first into the walls.
Why can’t she know? Are the answers that harmful? What, is it gonna put her on a watch list or something?
What’s so wrong with wanting answers??
A collision with something cold, alongside a metal clang, snaps Grey out of her trance.
She stumbles back, rubbing her visor, until she feels a small groove. She stops, rubbing her thumb over it.
She then realises she’s back in the Skeld, where their lockers are. She must’ve gone to the launchpad.
Grey quickly heads over to the lockers she bumped into and opens what she thought was her locker.
But all she found was an empty locker. Well, almost empty.
There’s a single red flower sitting in the locker. Looks new too.
Someone must’ve put it in here recently.
Feeling like she shouldn’t be looking, she softly closes the locker. But she can’t help but become curious.
Grey opens the locker next to the red flower locker. Turns out it’s Dark Blue’s locker, since there’s a photo of him and Green, among other things.
Most of these items are normal, but there’s one that feels… out of place?
A pair of scissors.
Y’know, Grey wouldn’t have thought anything of it if she’d seen Dark Blue using them. But she hasn’t. And the fact that they’re glistening suggests they were recently used to cut something.
That’s when Grey hears footsteps.
She quickly shuts the locker, and tries to find her own.
“Y’know like, instead of using ‘Cool’, the kids are now using ‘Coral’ on the internet? They say the word cool is for old people now!”
“Really? Gnarly… I like usin’ the word cool though.”
“Nah, you’re cool. It’s prob just a passing trend or something. I see them all the time.”
“Sweet.”
The voices slowly approach.
“Grey?”
Aqua approaches first, with Lime approaching lazily behind.
Grey turns around nervously, crumpling the wrapping and throwing it in her locker.
“Aqua, Lime! Hey…!”
She says timidly.
“Hey! What happened? Are you alright?”
Aqua asks, concerned as he looks up at the top of Grey’s visor.
“What’s the bandage for? Was there some faulty equipment?”
Lime asks calmly.
“No no, I’m fine! I just…”
Grey brushes the bandage where that groove was.
“...I was distracted with… other things and accidentally collided with the lockers, cracking my visor a bit.”
Grey says, embarrassed as she looks away.
“Oh! It’s alright lol”
Aqua reassures her as Lime chuckles.
Grey closes her locker with a sigh.
“Y’know DB has cracked his visor too! He used to have a bandage on it, but eventually he stopped putting it on, due to laziness.”
He continues, as he takes out his tablet.
After tapping for a bit, Aqua shows Grey a photo of him, Dark Blue and White at MIRA, with others in the background.
Grey notices some things.
Dark Blue did have a bandage at the bottom of his visor, where the crack is now. He and White also seemed closer here… or maybe that’s just the photo.
In the background there’s Lime, Maroon (no Coral, surprisingly), and a red bean she doesn’t recognise.
Huh.
“When was this taken?”
Grey asks.
“A while ago, that’s for sure. I don’t remember all too much, but I know that Purple and Green weren’t in your crew then.”
Aqua says.
“Oh I remember that. That was when White first joined their crew. I was talking to Red about skateboarding. Sick.”
Lime says casually, their visor softening.
“Red…?”
Grey asks, causing Aqua to tense up, like he’s seen a ghost.
“Lime…”
He says in a hushed voice, making Lime realise what they’ve said.
“...Sorry…”
Lime says, looking down.
“It’s fine, don’t worry.”
Aqua reassures Lime, patting their head as his visor softens into a sympathetic look.
“It’s… not our place to tell.”
Aqua says nervously, looking back at Grey.
“...But if you do get into it, just… be lenient with DB, ok?”
Aqua also gives Grey a sympathetic look.
Grey did have a nagging feeling this Red bean was connected to Dark Blue, but now she has actual evidence.
“Also, please please please don’t tell DB we’ve told you this, or we’ll lowkey get slimed out.”
Aqua says quickly, while Lime nods.
…Maybe not concrete evidence in the form of a picture, but she’s not investigating for a court case, so it doesn’t matter.
That’s saved for the weekends.
“Your secret is safe with me.”
Grey says, chuckling at Aqua’s phrasing.
“Well we might wanna go do tasks. How many do you have left?”
Aqua asks, checking his own tasks on his tablet.
Grey pulls out her tablet, checking her tasks.
“I have some in… Cafeteria and the Balcony. What about you guys?”
She says, putting her tablet back.
“Lime’s done with their tasks, and I have one more in Cafeteria too, so Cafeteria it is!”
Aqua says happily.
“Let’s go!”
Aqua takes Lime’s hand as they start to head out of the Skeld.
Grey takes one last look at the lockers before following Aqua and Lime.