Since she's gotten back, Sally's been more withdrawn than normal, and much more formal. All of us have tried our various methods to cheer her up, even the new operative, Hilde Schbeiker, but none of it seems to work. I'm puzzled, because I thought that of all of us, Hilde would be the one to snap her out of it. Hilde's known Sally longer than the rest of us have know her, and they worked together quite a bit, from what I've heard, but Sally avoids her like a plague.

I hate to say it, but I think that Sally's a better person with Chang around. I never thought I'd say that I miss the reclusive, temperamental, egotistical, condescending Chinese man, but in relation to Sally's mood, I guess I do.

That, and he's not too unpleasant to look at, for the most part.

"Julia," it's Hilde. I turn and raise my eyebrows, the usual signal for the slim woman to start speaking. She glances nervously at Sally, and then motions me to step inside the break room with her. I follow, wondering what all the secrecy is about, and notice finally, as I glance at her in the brighter light of the break room, how drawn Hilde's face looks.

"Hilde, what's wrong?"

Outside, I notice that Lady Une has crossed to where Sally was talking with a few of our coworkers when we ducked in here to talk.

"Lady Une just got word about Trowa… and Wufei," Hilde says in a quiet voice.

"Ransom?" I ask, not quite sure where she's leading with this. On a scale of one to ten, I'm a ten at being a good office operative, and about a four at working things out quick enough to be sent on important assignments. I've known it since my Alliance days. If I had been in the same situation as Sally, I most likely wouldn't have made it out alive. I'm not… that type.

Hilde makes a slightly displeased face, as though my suggestion just left a bad taste in her mouth, and she gives me a flat look that says I should know what she's implying without having to be told. I spread my hands, surrendering to the obvious. I simply don't know what she's trying to say.

"We're not quite sure," she says in a quiet voice, her words hushed and uncertain. "Perhaps someone attacked the colony government from within, or maybe…" she sighs, "we can't be sure."

"Hilde?" my voice is just as tenuous as hers is.

Exasperated, Hilde runs her fingers through her glossy black hair. I cough, hoping to prompt her to go on, and after a moment of pause, and cat-like indifference, she says, "They were being held by the organization on L1 that was trying to gain independence from the Nation."

"That was almost obvious… were?"

Sally walks by the break room, an obvious mess, her hand clamped over her mouth. She moves very quickly for her office, and closes the door, hard, behind her. If I'm not mistaken, there were tears in her eyes.

"The group was attacked," Hilde says quietly, eyes trailing after the taller blond woman remorsefully. "As of right now there are no confirmed survivors."

"No… survivors?" my voice is empty.

Hilde collects herself, and nods once, going to get herself a cup of tea before heading to the door. I lean back against the break room couch and try to catch my breath. "Everyone's being informed… I… wasn't sure Sally had heard yet. Lady Une… wanted to be the one to tell her."

Without another word, she leaves the break room, and me to silence and my own thoughts. For the first time, I'm forced to consider…

They might not be coming back.

I didn't know either of them that well, but the idea that coworkers are… dead… unsettles me too much, and I have to lean against the counter to catch my breath.

We were often told about methods of torture, all of us had a briefing session on it before we were moved up to investigator, and it's something that I would never be strong enough to endure, I am sure of it. I can hardly handle missing my morning coffee and bagel without enough anxiety to kill a small horse.

The idea of actually undergoing torture… I raise a hand to my forehead and sink down against the back of the couch, my chin pointing to the ceiling. Soft, hesitant footsteps at the door make me look up.

"Julia?" a heavily accented voice asks, timidly. For all his bulk and imposing nature, Vladimir was tamer than a kitten, when it came to his coworkers and friends. Of all the people that could have walked into the break room, I am glad that he is the one to have caught me at such a weak point. Vlad… I… can trust him.

*

Hilde glances over her shoulder, halfway to turning back to comfort Julia when she sees Vladimir in the doorway. Contented that her coworker would be all right, she numbly started her way back to her own small office. She had been shoved into a new corner once she got promoted, but she doesn't complain about the cramped space.

A part of her wants to go and console Sally, but she simply cannot bring herself to, because she knows better. She had gone through the same kind of inconsolable hurt when Duo…

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Hilde turns her back on the hallway leading towards the offices and heads to the elevator. Hard news like this always required the same sort of consoling.

The quiet noises of sadness coming from the Chinese Preventer's office do not go unnoticed by the dark haired young woman, she simply thinks better of her ability to comfort them away.