A few minutes earlier, Saif got word from Rollo telling him that someone might come looking for Keven and Kai. He didn't give him all the details, but knowing his friends it wasn't that difficult to guess what kind of trouble they got themselves in.
The kids had to take care of themselves somehow and those two took on pick-pocketing to survive. They had trouble with their victims before, but none bothered to come all the way to the slums. That's why it came as a surprise when he saw Simon making his way toward their playground.
"Setsuna." the boy signaled toward the newcomers. "Go tell Rollo his guests are here. I will keep them busy."
The girl was confused for a moment, but then her complexion paled when she saw the gang leader. Without saying a word she moved away from the staircase and slipped into the nearby abandoned building.
Saif went to face the visitors on his own, and as he approached them he couldn't help but think it was weird that the gang boss came without his goons. Saif recognized Sara Pinkman as well. The reporter was famous on their side of the settlement, and many respected her for not being afraid to speak against the Resistance. The two girls dressed in brand new clothes, he didn't recognize either.
They were putting some effort into hiding their faces so he guessed they were famous enough for it to be a problem if people saw them.
When Simon asked about Rollo, Saif's first thought was to deny that anyone like that exists. He dropped the idea right away, though, having realized that they wouldn't come all the way here if they didn't have trusted info. He decided to ask them what they wanted instead.
When the girl came forward to talk to him, Saif felt dumbfounded for a moment. He was sure he had his most intimidating face on, but she didn't seem to be intimidated at all. Still confused, he turned to the man by her side and raised an eyebrow.
"Is she serious?"
"Of course I am serious!" the girl exclaimed in the most unserious voice he had ever heard.
"She is serious."
The tired sigh that followed Simon's response showed that he felt the same way Saif felt right now. It caused his expression to soften, and before he knew it, his wariness dropped quite a bit. After struggling with what to say for a while, he finally let out a sigh and faced the masked girl.
"Listen, you... whoever you are. Just get a new phone and be done with it. It's pointless to try and get the old one back."
"I can't! I got it just a few days ago!"
"Really!?" The tall one regained her spirits instantaneously.
Saif, on the other hand, had a very bad premonition.
"Yeah, this guy here was probably trying to buy time while his friend warned the others." The short one said. "I just followed the girl that slipped away earlier. I can't really tell what they're doing from here, but I have the feeling they aren't going to stay around for long."
Even with the mask and glasses, Saif thought that he could see the smug grin the short one gave him as she spoke. She saw straight through him from the start, but something about what she said didn't make sense.
'She's talking about Setsuna...' he realized. But... how?'
He was sure she took a route they built inside the abandoned building. The passages were made so only children could pass through; it was supposed to be an escape route inaccessible by adults, and it was hidden well enough so it wouldn't be seen from outside.
'How did she-'
For a moment, something sparked inside Saif's mind. He recalled what the short one said seconds ago, and the name she used to refer to her friend. Juni. He felt like he recognized that name, but he couldn't tell where he heard it. As he struggled to remember, the tall one turned to her friend and grabbed her arms, shaking her while speaking in a panicked voice.
"Then what are we waiting for! Let's go!"
"Calm down." The short one seemed really annoyed by the shaking. She freed herself then turned to Simon and Sara, Shaking her head. "Well, you two wait here just a little. We will get it done with and come back."
The one who seemed to have the strongest reaction was Sara. Her face lost its color and she was about to say something, but before she could the two girls disappeared.
Just like that, they were gone.
For a second there, Saif thought he saw something. It was a purple crown, but it was floating in the air right over the short girl's head. It was exactly then that he remembered that he heard the name Juni during the award ceremony from the previous day and that it belonged to one of the Valkyries who contributed greatly to the war.
"No way..."