Chapter 19 (S875)
Unrest wrapped itself around Celeste's body as Picton continued his debriefing. Hope made no mention of this to her, so the idea that Patience was a traitor wasn't too far-fetched. It could've been for personal matters, but somehow she doubted that.
Even if she had her suspicions, that alone wasn't enough to justify withdrawing just yet. Spying on Patience would waste too much time, and continuing to work with them was too dangerous if they didn't clear things up.
Celeste bit her lip and reached for her weapon. "CAPR, we're going to pay HOPE a visit. Bring your weapons. We need answers."
Azure groaned as he rubbed his eyes. He hadn't changed into his pajamas in anticipation something like this would happen, but losing sleep bothered him to no end. Annoying as it was, he got up and threw his holstered Kusanagi over his back, yawning as he slipped on his shoes.
Rin was less responsive, and sighed at Celeste. "Just what do you think is going to happen?"
"Don't worry, we're not going to start a fight if we can help it. We're bringing them just in case something happens."
They scuttled out their dorm in a matter of minutes, and quietly made their way through the dead-silent corridors. A few rooms before they reached HOPE's, Celeste held her hand up to stop everyone, and nodded at Picton.
Without hesitation, he crouched and put his left hand flat against the ground. As quickly as he was down, he stood up with concerned look. "She's not there."
"What?" whispered Celeste. "Are you sure she came back?"
"Of course. The door is even unlocked."
"What about the rest of HOPE?"
"They're there."
They quietly covered the remaining distance, and stacked up against the door. Celeste hesitantly clasped the knob, and took one more look at her teammates. The door creaked open as she turned the handle, and they flicked the lights on as they entered.
The groans that followed fell silent upon recognizing CAPR standing before them. Celeste's tired gaze met Hope's, boring into her soul. "So, where did Patience go?"
Hope rubbed her eyes and yawned as she sat up. "What do you mean? She's right… There…"
There was a half a human depression on the mattress, but the sheets were still in place. Hope's other two teammates looked just as surprised as she did when they finally came to.
"She said she was going to come in late tonight, but never said why."
Some of the tension sitting in Celeste's chest dissipated - She could feel her response was genuine. It wasn't HOPE as a whole that was the problem - Just Patience. She nodded at Picton, who stepped forward at Hope.
"Patience was talking to Randolph. About what I don't know, but whatever it was involved making out, followed by a knife being swung around…"
Hope looked as confused as the rest of her teammates. They'd had no reason up to now to suspect that Patience wasn't on their side.
"... When they finished, they bid each other goodbye, and departed. Randolph went to sleep, and I saw Patience making her way back here. So where is she?"
They looked at each other as if one or another would know, but nobody spoke up. If none of them knew, they needed to find her. Celeste gave Picton a grim look. "Go check DSPR's room. Report anything that looks suspicious. Rin, Azure, come with me."
"Wait, what're you doing?" asked Hope.
"Finding her since she's still your teammate. If you're too tired, you can stay here. Just stay alert."
CAPR filed out without another word and gently shut the door behind them. Rin held up one of her daggers as a lantern, lighting up halls.
It didn't take long before they arrived several rooms away from DSPR's. When they did, Picton planted his arm on the ground again, this time remaining there for a few seconds. An uneasy look spread across his face as he broke his trance. "They're out cold except for Randolph. His heartbeat is still strong."
Something didn't feel right. Over 15 minutes had passed since Picton finished his debrief. Unless Randolph had problems sleeping, he should've been out by now. "Strong?"
"Like he's been running or exercising."
Though DSPR was supposed to be their enemy, the idea of foul play kept etching its way into Celeste. Where was she? Did she honestly have something else to do at this hour?
Beacon turned out to be much bigger than they thought it was. The hallways seemed endless, and on more than one occasion they wandered into wings that they didn't even know existed. They'd checked everything that might be important - Ozpin's office, the school's electrical room, the lockers, all to no avail.
Their list of places to check dwindled quickly, eventually taking them to the cafeteria. Instead of silently carrying on like they had for the past half hour, Picton stood up with haste. "She's outside. Inside the dumpster."
Rin rolled her eyes and glared. "Seriously? We don't have for this."
"Don't worry, trust me."
They scrambled outside, almost forgetting they were supposed to be quiet.
Celeste cautiously used La Massicot to push open the dumpster lid, as if something were going to jump out. There she was - Covered in leftovers, but definitely her.
Azure had the unfortunate honor of pulling her out of the mess. When he set her down, Celeste nudged her with the side of her blade. "Hey, wake up. You shouldn't be here."
A minute of prodding, and yet there was still no response. Finally, Celeste knelt to the ground and felt her pulse, gasping seconds after. "She's in trouble. Rin, Azure, get HOPE! Now!"
Picton raised her bandaged and limp forearm and removed the gauze. "A wound like this should be trivial. This looks a lot like poison."
"Are you sure?" asked Celeste. "Can you do anything about it?"
"No. I'm an infiltrator, not a medic. I cannot help her."