"Feel free to sit down and make yourself at home—I'll be in the back looking for the parts you need."

Flight and Kevin followed Cotton Fluff through the door in the hallway into a small, cosy personal office whose lights had just flickered on at the mare's touch. There was a desk in the centre of the room made of dark, rich mahogany with only a computer screen sitting atop it. In the front half of the room, there was a sofa on either side of the room; Kevin plopped down on one and felt his body sink down a little and he watched Flight do the same on the sofa opposite him.

"Oh, and could I get that list again?" Cotton Fluff asked, looking up from the computer screen. "I'd like to double check it against my computer catalogue just to make sure I have all the parts before I start digging around for them in the back."

Flight and Kevin looked at one another for a moment and then back to Cotton Fluff; then, Flight stood up and brought the list over to Cotton Fluff.

"Thanks, kid!" Cotton Fluff said as she trotted over to the computer console,

"Heh... it's really us who should be thanking you," Flight said as she sat back down on her sofa.

"Yeah, I dunno what we would've done if we hadn't found you," Kevin added. Cotton Fluff saw Flight glare across the room at him in the corner of her vision, but she tried to keep focus on the computer as she typed each item into the catalogue program. For a few moments, the only sound in the small room was that of her typing.

"Oh, okay, awesome," Cotton Fluff said finally, looking up from the console to see Flight making funny faces at Kevin. As soon as the filly heard Cotton's voice, she stopped and both of the young ponies turned to face the older mare. "I've got all the parts here in stock," Cotton continued, "so it should just take me a few minutes to find them." Grabbing the list once more, she stepped away from the desk and towards a door on the left wall; with a push of the handle and a click of the latch, the door swung open. Flight smiled and waved as Cotton disappeared into the depths of the dark storeroom.

The mare closed the door most of the way behind her, leaving it open a crack. Then, she flicked on the light switch by the door, flooding the room with harsh white light that buzzed from long glass tubes in the ceiling. The storeroom was large and cluttered, with movable metal racks that lined the walls whose shelves were full of stuff. A pile of exhaust pipes of all different diametres here, a box of extra-strength space-proof vanity screws of all different colours there, and the worst part was that all of the mess was just jumbled in there, shoved in the first spot she could find at the time. She felt like she sighed more every time she entered the room, to be honest; one of these days she needed to just take a day off and sort out all the clutter.

It wasn't too bad, though—as Cotton Fluff walked between the shelves, following the curve of the room as it encircled her office, she found herself knowing exactly where to find the parts. In just a few minutes, the mare had located every last screw, connector, piston, and other part that was on the list and swept them into an old tote bag she wouldn't mind losing. It took her another few minutes to verify the serial numbers as specified; however, as she'd thought, there was not a part wrong or missing. Grinning, the mare lifted the handle of the bag off the floor between her teeth with a soft clink and trotted quietly through the storeroom. She was about to flick the light off and leave the room when she heard the voices of her young companions in the other room, speaking in hushed tones.

"Don't you think we should be more on the lookout?" Flight asked. "Umberlight's where he's from... he could be anywhere."

"I dunno," Kevin replied. "We have no idea if Gloss is still here. Maybe he went back to Dienna to try to arrest Doc Zed or something. I mean, how would he find us?"

Gloss. That one name—a name Cotton Fluff was very familiar with—sent a wave of realisation down her spine. Of course—how hadn't she remembered before? A green-grey unicorn colt and a yellow pegasus filly. Travelling alone, together, looking for parts. Specialised parts.

Cotton Fluff froze, and could feel her heart beating heavily in her chest. She didn't know what to do, but she needed to contact Gloss.

Taking a deep breath, the mare flicked off the light switch and pulled the door open, making sure it creaked as to alert the young ponies of her entry. She didn't want them to think anything was out in of the ordinary.

"You find everything?" Flight asked, looking towards Cotton Fluff.

"Heh... yup... everything here..." Cotton Fluff managed with an awkward smile, her teeth still clamped around the handle of the bag. "Just gotta... um... check something else." She shuffled over to her desk and set the bag down. Then, she looked down at the surface of the desk. It was empty, save for her computer keyboard. "...crud," she mumbled.

"Everything okay, Ms. Fluff?" she heard Kevin ask. The mare looked up and gulped.

"Yep! Eheh... just fine and dandy."

And yet, it wasn't. Here she was with those kids that Gloss had asked her to tell him about and she had forgotten, and led them all the way to her office. And, what's more, Cotton Fluff had forgotten to bring her comlink. She glanced back down at the empty spot on the desk as if that would make it somehow magically appear.

"Great!" Flight said, leaping up from the sofa. "Lemme just get out my card and I'll pay you."

Cotton Fluff nodded weakly, sweating bullets.