S a l e t é I I

XX - Dents - Cinq

Without the sunrise, the sunset, or Roslindis and her kind words of encouragement to mark the transitions between the different times of day, Cassia had taken to using the one regular thing that was now left in order to vaguely try and keep track of time - Monet's appearance as she organised the next trip. She'd not bothered to try and keep track of things in her notebook anymore after losing track early on, her less stable thoughts at the time to thank for that lapse, but she still considered the routine as the start of what was essentially "the next day".

Whether or not it actually meant that twenty-four hours had transpired since their last trip was a mystery, however. Was the time between their ventures equal on each occasion? It seemed unlikely - how would Monet know how many hours it had been? They had no clocks, and no other ways of telling the time. Maybe she'd just gotten a general feeling for this sort of thing, over the course of however long she'd been in Lower Merveille? If that was the case, then Cassia was impressed. In actuality, she believed that it was most likely just the leader making a decent guess.

The next trip was business as usual, Monet having decided that it was practical to carry on as normal whilst they awaited any sort of news regarding the shakeup the last few days had brought with them, whether that news came from the factory children, or in the form of rumours that they picked up on themselves, whilst they were out. For the excursion, she selected Cassia and Taya, the pairing one that Cassia herself had expected, given yesterday's line up.

"Hmm."

"What's up?"

"It's nothing to worry about. Our stores are the lowest they've been for a while, but we still have enough for a few days."

Monet had both looked and sounded contemplative as they'd made their preparations for the day in the storeroom, her meticulous gaze drawn to the remaining bottles of Honey in their possession. A glance revealed that there were indeed quite a few left, only the feeling of security that such a sight brought quickly began to wither when Cassia considered that there were six of them in the warehouse.

Worrying about whether or not they'd have enough to drink would have just been one more particularly gnawing grievance on top of the pile of grievances that she already had. Monet's thoughtfulness, as such, only encouraged her - their trip would be a productive one, and she'd be part of the reason why.

Thanks to the factory children, they had a few things of value that they would have been able to swap during the trip ahead, whilst Taya would no doubt be able to find more. Overall, Cassia's hopes were high.

The journey was quiet and uneventful as they made their way through the alleys and the back roads, the youngest girl's humming the only thing disturbing the air as they went, aside from the echoes given off by their footsteps. A sense of loneliness still hung over those narrower routes, given that they must have seen so much activity in their past, the other warehouses in their forgotten forms all but ensuring that such a feeling would persist for what could have potentially been years to come.

Perhaps some other bigwigs would turn up and alter that fate? 

Arriving at the old street went well, without anything unexpected occurring. Things appeared to be back to normal, with no more notable crowds forming anywhere and no more announcements being made, and Cassia found such a return to be a welcome one. She stayed with Monet this time, Taya heading off to play her latest finding game as they paired up, the older girl deciding that they would work together on this occasion.

As Monet sought out a suitable starting point amongst the various stalls and stands, all of which were arranged in the somewhat random style that Cassia had come to expect, the younger girl in the duo paid attention to what was unfolding around them, and - in particular - to the conversations being had.