Chapter 5 — There's Me

A rhythmic, metallic clanging sound echoed from the back of the Engineer's Workshop. CB absently kicked his heels against the metal wall, lying on his back on the low roof with his feet overhanging, regardless of much of the world around him. He was well and truly miserable. Years of being the ever-smiling, ever-helpful Red Caboose that everyone knew him as had made him forget what it was like to be miserable. Now, however, he couldn't forget even if he wanted to.

It wasn't just his exclusion that got to him. It was also that he was banned from the freight yard, the place that had for so long been almost his home. That, and Greaseball. He was still angry with his so-called ally for betraying him. Electra, too, but Greaseball was the one he was most annoyed at. After all they'd done together, after everything they'd done for each other, he'd come right out and betrayed him. CB wasn't a hateful person, but he'd never been so angry with someone.

"CB?"

The brake vehicle shut his eyes tightly. He didn't want to see anyone right now. He wanted to be left alone. But he had a horrible suspicion that he knew the voice that had just called his name.

"CB? Are you there?"

No, he wanted to reply. He recognised the voice now: it was Dinah. He wanted to see her least of all. He could face anyone right now, even Greaseball, but not Dinah. He couldn't stand to let her see him in this condition.

"Don't move, CB, I'm coming up."

CB considered hiding, but now he realised that it wasn't actually Dinah's voice calling his name. He sat up, frowning in puzzlement. Sure enough, it wasn't Dinah's face that appeared at the edge of the rooftop—it was Chalcie.

CB realised he'd been wrong. There was someone he wanted to see even less than Dinah, and it was her.

"Are you okay, CB?"

CB didn't answer. He drew his legs up from the edge of the roof and turned away from her.

Chalcie didn't push her luck. She didn't know CB very well (they'd met once, a long time ago) and she knew well enough not to impose on his solitude, least of all now. She sat down on the roof edge, still some distance away.

"Dinah's looking for you," she said. "I think she's worried about you."

"Go away, Chalcedony," CB said without turning around. It wasn't an order he'd ever given before and it sounded strange, even to him.

"I spoke to Greaseball earlier," Chalcie continued. "Well, not spoke to, as such. He's training for the race."

"Good for him," CB said flatly.

Chalcie hesitated, tracing patterns in the dust. "Do you want me to talk to him?"

CB drew his knees up to his chest, maintaining his silence for as long as he dared. "What about?" he asked eventually, without turning.

"What do you think?" Chalcie asked with a summery laugh. Her words didn't have the desired effect, and she cleared her throat. "About owning up," she said. "About telling the truth about what happened yesterday."

There was a long silence. Then, finally, CB turned around.

"What good'll that do?" he said. Although he was angry and he'd meant for it to come across, his voice still sounded heavy with melancholy.

Chalcie shrugged. "Maybe I can persuade him to help the Marshal forgive you."

"He won't," CB mumbled. "Greaseball, I mean."

"I think he will," Chalcie reasoned. She paused, then added, "He is your friend, after all."

Something in CB's face changed at this point. It was hard to tell what he was thinking. There was silence for some time as the two brake vehicles simply gazed at one another.

"Go away, Chalcedony," CB said again. His tone of voice had changed; he was much quieter now, and without aggression. Chalcie took this to be more of a request than an order. She decided it best to respect his wishes, and stood up.

She had jumped back down onto the step at the side of the workshop when she heard CB's voice again. "Would you?"

Chalcie smiled without looking back up. "Of course."

Silence. She assumed that this meant 'yes'. Shrugging, she turned and skated quietly away.

"Crikey, Pearl!"

This was the greeting Pearl had expected when Buffy spotted her returning. She didn't have the chance to speak before she'd been seized and hauled over to sit down to let Buffy and Ashley examine her anxiously.

"What happened, Pearl?" Buffy asked.

"Nothing," Pearl lied. "I just...I slipped from the rails and fell."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Ashley asked anxiously. "You look like you've been crying...!"

"I...I had an argument with Greaseball," Pearl admitted eventually. "He was just a bit angry, that's all."

"Why? Why was he angry with you?" asked Buffy.

"He wasn't. I just...oh, it doesn't matter, Buffy. It'll be okay."

"I don't know, Pearl. You look like you've been beaten up. Look, just take it easy and I'll..."

"Hey," Ashley interrupted, standing up, "is that Dinah?"

Pearl and Buffy jumped up as well. Sure enough, in the distance, it looked like Dinah was skating their way, followed by the unmistakable shape of Electra.

"What's going on, do you think?" Buffy asked curiously.