THRICE

7 -- Backgrounds

The pungent smell of coffee, tea and pastries meandered around the busy café, guided by a light early afternoon breeze that weaved in and out of open windows. Tatiana sat, took a bite of muffin and tried to ignore her growing curiosity. Reflecting her own thoughts, Monisha said, "We should've heard back by now."

"Maybe Squall encrypted everything," Tatiana offered, curling up in her armchair behind her mug.

"Did you see how old that laptop was?" Monisha chuckled with a hint of warm sarcasm. "I'd be surprised if it could use a Caesar cipher."

"He wouldn't leave everything out in the open, though."

"No, he wouldn't." Monisha carefully set down her tea on the short table between them. "I have a couple more errands to run today, but I'll stop by the tech department later. You're going back to GRAD, right?"

Tatiana nodded. "Dr. Kross had an idea just as I was leaving. She might have finished the spell."

"Oh." Monisha's expression was unreadable.

"We'll have to see what Mrs. Duncan thinks," Tatiana said with a shrug, before noticing Monisha's uncertain look. "Is something wrong?" she hesitated.

"I'd guess you've already heard that CAMIO's hot on Squall's trail," Monisha said, a distant look in her eyes. "I think we're going to catch up to him soon."

"But, that's good, right?"

Monisha glanced at the fountain in the plaza outside. A few children were daring each other to jump through the gaps in one of the pulsing streams, but they invariably got wet, since the water never stopped for long enough. "Maybe," she murmured pensively.

"Aren't you looking forward to seeing your family again?" Tatiana asked, cocking her head in concern.

Monisha met her gaze again. "I didn't visit much. I think they've got a good enough idea of what happened, besides."

When they finished eating, Monisha left in a hurry, and Tatiana walked back down the street with her hands in her pockets. A group of soggy kids dashed past her towards the school, leaving a parade of wet shoeprints in their wake. By the time she reached the GRAD building's front doors, they had already started to dry in the unusually intense sunlight. With some of the flowering trees along the road starting to bud, it was clear spring was on the way.

Dr. Vivian Kross trotted to meet her as soon as she stepped inside. "You'll never believe it, dear!" she said, clasping her hands together. "This could be it! We only have to check that the magic stays stable."

"Wasn't that the only problem last time, too?" Tatiana asked meekly as the doors slid closed behind her.

"Yes, but-" Vivian waved her hands around in a less than explanatory manner as she searched for words. "I have a good feeling about this one. Let's go!" She took Tatiana's hand and bustled over to the elevator door, crossing her arms impatiently.

After a moment, Tatiana said, "Are we waiting for something?"

"Yes, dear, the elevator," Vivian replied distractedly, adjusting her large, garish scarf.

"Maybe you should press the button," Tatiana suggested, peering past Vivian at the panel on the wall.

The doors opened, and a man in a dark blue suit and sunglasses stepped out, slipping past them with an utterly unfazed look. "'Should' is quite a strong word, don't you think?" Vivian said. They got into the elevator, and Tatiana watched the man stroll briskly out the front doors, tapping a nearly invisible earpiece while he adjusted his grip on the handle of his slim briefcase.

Vivian caught her staring. "That was a Dark division agent," she told Tatiana with a frown as she pressed a button and the doors closed. "I've been seeing more of them lately." Excitedly, she added, "Maybe something's afoot!" Tatiana hummed quietly in reply and wondered why Vivian was so happy about that. She couldn't imagine anything good coming from news about Dark activity, especially if it was being kept secret.