Time Flies [II AU]

Two

".....Now, you understand your assignment, correct? Ask any questions you have now."

Paintbrush nodded at the first statement. "And.. I don't have any questions."

The object in front of them raised his eyebrows, staring at them through narrowed eyes.

"Oh, uh..... sir," Paintbrush corrected themself after being prodded by Lightbulb who stood beside them, unusually quiet.

"Great." The object, most of his features obscured by shadow, clapped his hands. Two different models of sentient phones stepped forward a few moments later. "They'll escort you to your ride. You can never be too safe, am I right?"

"Right..." Paintbrush felt themself being nudged forward by one of the phones, this one with a golden rim. Lightbulb was pushed forward as well, and as Paintbrush watched, they had half the mind to tear that phone apart for touching their friend. But they remained silent, making their way toward the front entrance of the building. They still remembered what had happened the last time they'd set a Meeple product on fire. As they were reminded of the previous event, they instinctively touched a blackened part of their handle, grimacing.

Before they knew it, they were standing at the front of the tall silver building, Lightbulb immediately lighting up and illuminating the surrounding asphalt and concrete. Dark clouds crowded the sky, only providing a glimpse of the otherwise beautiful sunset.

Both phones paused, then turned robotically back around and headed back into the building without a second glance.

After checking that the devices had entered the building, Lightbulb spoke with a sigh. "Ugh.. I hate it in there."

"Me too." Paintbrush laid a hand on Lightbulb's shoulder, and Lightbulb smiled up at them. They felt their face grow warm for a second as she took their hand in response. A few moments passed, and Lightbulb took a step forward.

"Test Tube?" She called.

A figure immediately popped up out of the darkness at her words and hurried forward. "Are you two ready?"

They both nodded. Test Tube smiled, showing them a thumbs-up, and led them over to a van, which was parked a few blocks away.

Paintbrush thought gratefully of how the Boss had offered to move his company's headquarters to the ground. Prior to the change, it had been somehow suspended in the sky with technology that only the Boss himself would know of. Being in the endless blue expanse above had unnerved them, and they were now glad to have solid ground beneath their feet.

The van's door slid open as they neared it, and Fan waved at them from inside. Lightbulb waved back at him with a smile.

All three of them climbed into the van, Paintbrush taking their seat behind the wheel. Test Tube immediately sat at the desk she'd placed in the back, taking a small gadget from inside one of the drawers and starting to work on it. The van started up with a low, mumbling hum, and they were off.

Fan, who sat in the front passenger seat, provided directions to Paintbrush as they drove. Test Tube hadn't seen a point in fixing the built-in GPS of the van, so Fan was just using his phone.

"Wow, this place is really far away," Fan remarked. "Are you sure this is the right address?"

"This is the address he gave us," Paintbrush shrugged. "If it isn't the right place, it isn't our fault. We can always go back and get a new assignment."

Lightbulb was in the back, absentmindedly watching as Test Tube picked a screwdriver up off of the desk. Paintbrush glanced into the rearview mirror to get a small glimpse of her, looking back at the road soon after.