S a l e t é I I

XXII - Cerveau - Sept

"Cassie!"

Cassia hadn't expected Sleeves to come running as soon as she did. It sounded as if she had been waiting for her to arrive, the young lady having probably heard of Monet's current visit in advance. She was already on the factory's ground floor, and she'd been stood with Chief by the central, candlelit space that they all frequented, her attention grabbed from the second she heard the metal door opening.

The fact that such a sullen structure could hold such life was already surprising, but the speed with which they were greeted with a joyful presence after arriving was something else altogether, and she had decided before today that she would never grow weary of it.

This time, the girl had no qualms with getting close, and she took a hold of Cassie's hands through her sleeves, the fabric still soft despite the obvious age.

"Chief didn't tell us that you were here before!"

"I know, we were really busy. We couldn't stay."

"That's okay, but I still wanna see you."

If the gesture hadn't been enough to fill Cassia with contentment, then hearing her wishes definitely was, and it was a sentiment that she extended to her companion.

"Tell me if you're here from now on! You're not allowed to visit if you're not gonna say hi." She told Uliana, and Cassie was happy to see some of her friend's tension slip away for a minute or two, Sleeves managing to ward it off.

As usual, Captain had been the one to greet them. Greet might have been a bit of strong term, in this case, as he had really just opened the door whilst looking upon them all with that steely gaze of his, the kind of glance that clearly said he was judging them, the only mysteries being in regards to what exactly he was judging and why. He had opened the door without a fuss this time, not even requesting the password, probably because of the preordained nature of their visit.

The building itself possessed a mostly cold air, which didn't reach the point of discomfort. Given the more open space within the main chamber, the use of minimal lighting like candles over barrels stocked up with junk and the overall feel of the place, it stood as one thing that was hardly surprising.

Chief had been waiting for them too, and Monet had gone ahead to speak with him whilst Sleeves had rushed to greet them, Cassia and Uliana now stepping forward to join whatever discussion had already begun between the two leaders. The young man held his typical air of cheerful confidence, that grin of his quickly appearing as he turned to acknowledge the girls coming his way, Sleeves now tagging along as well.

"Hello my lovelies, are we ready?" He asked, the way in which he addressed them earning a shy little smile from Cassie.

"Aren't you?" Uliana challenged, raising an eyebrow, her attempts to catch him out yielding no results. Instead, he looked up and called out, the building's high ceiling carrying his voice without the need for him to raise it very much at all.

"Spears!"

"What?"

"Monet's here!"

"Yeah, just a sec."

Chief shook his head.

"I've told him over five times to be ready by the time you got here, and is he?" He said to the girls, the younger three amongst them sharing a gentle laugh.

Cassia was glad that he was coming with them. If they'd had to go alone, as a group of three, she knew full well that she would have been far less confident herself, and that was before she considered the more obvious risks like a run in with a Sabre officer.