"Psst, Greyson."

Greyson groaned and shook his head. He grabbed his blanket and pulled it up, completely covering himself from the cold air-conditioning of his room. Just as he was about to drift off to sleep once again, he felt a light shake on his arm. At first, he ignored it. But when it grew more urgent, he shook his head once more and opened his eyes. His room was dark, and the only light he had was the clock on his nightstand. He rubbed his eyes and grabbed his glasses, then opened his desk lamp.

"Mom?" Greyson said as he blinked himself awake.

His mother smiled and stood up from his bed. "It's almost midnight. Azul texted me that we should get ready. After you finish changing your clothes, go ahead and brush your teeth. I've prepared coffee, and you can grab any leftovers in the fridge in case you get hungry."

Now that she mentioned it, Greyson noticed the smell of freshly made coffee in his room. It stirred him awake even more, and he could already feel himself getting energized. "Thanks, Mom."

She leaned forward and pressed a kiss on his forehead. "I'll wait for you outside."

He nodded. As soon as she left the room, Greyson jumped out of bed and poured himself a cup of coffee, then changed into the clothes his mother prepared. He was so used to wearing his blue jacket that it felt strange to have a full black getup. He didn't remember owning these clothes before. Once he finished changing, he drank the rest of his coffee and grabbed his bag.

"Flash drive," he muttered as he moved his stuff from his grey bag into a black one. "Notepad, pen, phone number one, phone number two—that's everything."

His ears flopped down, and he shrugged on his backpack. He was probably overprepared. Yet at the same time, there was a pit in his stomach that made him nervous.

The Underworld was waiting for them in the lab. Maybe Zeus was the one waiting for them, maybe it was the Underworld's most important and powerful members—the Furies. He wasn't sure who specifically to expect, but he was confident that they were from the Underworld. The thought made him grip his bag's strap tighter, and he lowered his head.

Would Deimos also be there?

He shook his head and pushed the thought out of his mind. It didn't matter if Deimos was there or not. Everyone in the Investigation Squad was expecting the Underworld as well, not just him. And his mother was the DUO's head strategist for a reason. She must have had a plan in mind. He just didn't know what it was.

Greyson reached for his doorknob and—

"It's too reckless, I won't allow it."

He furrowed his brows and stepped away from the door. That voice... that was Viktor, wasn't it?

Greyson slowly twisted the doorknob, careful to make sure that it wouldn't make a sound, and opened it. The crack was small, just allowing him to see his mother's back facing his bedroom. Her white hair was loose, covering almost all of her back. Still, he could tell that her arms were crossed. Just in front of her, he managed to catch a glimpse of Viktor.

Lucinda sighed. "I know that you're thinking of the same thing as me. This is a better plan than the one you came up with. We're not sacrificing anything important here."

"Really? Do tell me, Miss Saffirus, what's your definition of 'important'? Is Greyson not important to you?"

Greyson furrowed his brows, and his ears flopped down again. What did this have to do with him?

"Don't you dare bring Greyson into this."

"Lucinda," Viktor snapped. Greyson heard him take a few steps forward, and he entered his view once more. Viktor's brows were furrowed in anger, and there was a frown on his face. "I need you to remember something. You might be the DUO's head strategist, but in the Investigation Squad, your place is below me. You're not even the second in command—Azul is. And as your superior, I'm telling you: we are not following this plan, especially since it does more harm than good."

Greyson noticed Lucinda lower her arms, and it looked like she sneered at Viktor. "And I suppose that you think your plan is better, Sir Viktor?"

"Any idea that doesn't harm the squad as a whole is a better idea. This conversation is over. I'll be waiting for the rest of you in the parking lot."

What that, Viktor disappeared from Greyson's sight. He heard the door to their apartment open, then click shut.

Before Lucinda could find out he was eavesdropping, Greyson walked back to his bed and placed his backpack down, acting as if he had just finished packing his things. He paused, his ears perking upward as he listened to the sounds in their living room. When it didn't sound like Lucinda was going to enter his room, he put on his bag and stepped out.

His mother was sitting on the couch. If Greyson hadn't heard it, he wouldn't have been able to tell that she was talking to Viktor moments ago. White strands of her hair fell down her face, covering one of her eyes. Her back was hunched, and there was something in her hands. Greyson squinted, making him recognize it as a ring. The rose gold band brought the crystal clear gem out, and the ring stood out as a whole when Lucinda put it on her finger.

Greyson fully pushed the door open, making Lucinda lift her head and turn to him. A smile formed on her face, and she asked, "Are you ready to go?"

He hesitated for a minute, and he almost shook his head. Still, Greyson forced himself to nod. If his coworkers could do it, so could he. "I- I am." He flicked his eyes to the door, then back to her. "What about the others?"

"We'll be going down in a few minutes. We're just waiting for a go signal from Anthea. Don't want to wake the rest of the building and let the entire DUO know we're leaving, after all."

"That's true."

His mother stood up from the couch and grabbed her hair, tying it into her usual braid. Greyson took this chance to grab a small snack and brush his teeth, joining her before the mirror to brush his own hair.

He stared at his reflection, and he almost stopped brushing his hair in place. When he was younger, he didn't exactly like the black side of his hair. He even remembered trying to dye it so it could be completely white. If he recalled, Lucinda's siblings also had white hair, and one of her parents must have had it as well. Greyson always wondered about the other half of his hair and how he got it.

But now that he met Deimos, he wasn't sure what to feel.

"That boy looks like you, by the way. I just thought I would mention that."

His grip on the hairbrush tightened, and he averted his eyes from the mirror. Did Greyson really look like him?

"Is everything alright, Greyson?"

Greyson blinked a couple of times before turning to her. "I'm just nervous, I guess. This is my first time doing an all-night investigation."

"That's understandable.

Lucinda paused for a minute. Then, she lowered herself down to his height. She placed one of her hands on his shoulder, then the ungloved one on his cheek. Greyson grabbed her ungloved hand and leaned onto her touch. Her skin was cold, perhaps because of the fact that she wore gloves all the time, and they felt stiff. But somehow, that made him more comfortable.

"Greyson." She brushed his bangs away from his face. "Greyson, listen to me. I'm... we're not sure what to expect from the lab. Obviously, the Underworld is going to be there, and we might bump into... people we don't exactly like. So I want you to be careful, okay?"

"Of course, I—"

Before Greyson could finish, Lucinda wrapped her arms around him. He froze in place, and his hands hovered above her back. Hesitantly, he patted her before returning the hug. Her grip on him tightened, and he felt her bury her face in his hair.

He didn't know how to explain it, but the hug felt cold, almost superficial. It was as if she was hugging him for the sake of hugging him. Even if she held him the same way she always did, his arms didn't feel comfortable around her.

"M- Mom?" he asked, clearing his throat when it sounded like his voice cracked. "Mom, is- is everything okay?"

"You're important to me, Greyson," she replied, her voice barely above a whisper. "I... I don't want to lose you, too. Please, be careful."

Greyson felt his throat dry up. Every time he opened his mouth, his words dissolved into thin air. Was this connected to what Viktor said earlier? He was about to tighten his hug on her, but a thought made his heart sink into his stomach, and his eyes widened.

Did she know he overheard the two of them?

Was she just saying that so he could feel like he was important to her?

Just as Lucinda pulled away from the hug, Greyson shook his head and blinked his eyes again, hoping that it could hide any sign of his shock earlier. There was a small smile on her face. It looked genuine, but he wondered if it truly was. If he hadn't heard her conversation with Viktor earlier, then he probably would have brushed it off. But now, he wasn't sure.

The sound of her phone's notification made his ears twitch. Lucinda grabbed her phone from her pocket and flipped it open. "We're good to go," she said before closing it again. "Well, are you still ready?"

Like before, Greyson forced himself to nod. "I am."

"Then let's go."

Once his mother locked their apartment's door, Greyson grabbed her wrist and followed her down the elevator. The entire time, he held his breath as they descended down the building. He knew that Anthea said it was okay for them to go down, but he still worried what would happen if someone else found them. Especially if that someone was from the Intelligence Database. He was certain that Director Simeon's voice would be loud enough to wake the entire building, perhaps even block.

When the elevator reached the lobby's floor, he only had a moment to appreciate the soft yellow lights and plant decorations before the bright neon lights of the city made him place an arm over his face. He moved it away from his eyes, then stared at the ground. At least that would let him adjust to the bright pink and blue lights from the corner of his vision.

His ears twitched downward. Now that he thought about it, this was his first time seeing Portia late at night.

Lucinda tugged his wrist, making him pick up his pace and follow her again. Once they reached the parking lot, the first thing he saw were Azul and Ciel outside of their car. Ciel's brows were furrowed down, and it looked like Azul was moments away from flipping the car over. He opened his mouth, but when his eyes landed at the two of them, he sighed and brushed some of his hair away from his face.

"There you two are." His eyes lingered on Greyson before a hum left his lips. "How you feeling, kid?"

"I'm doing well," Greyson replied with a chuckle. "Like I told Lucinda, it's my first time on an all-night mission. I had coffee before I left, so I'm sure I'll be fine."

"Sure you are. Shee, give it to him."

Ciel shot him a quick glare. Then, he grabbed something from his sweater's pocket and tossed it to Greyson. Greyson fumbled, almost dropping it in his hands. When he lifted his hand to see what it was, he felt his ears flipping up and down when he saw that it was coffee in a can.

"Drink it on the way," Ciel said as he opened the passenger's seat door. "And if you need more, don't be afraid to tell us since there's more in the car. There's food, too, and you can ask for some if you get hungry."

Lucinda sighed. "I don't think a twelve-year-old should be drinking a lot of coffee. You'll stunt his growth."

"First of all," Azul began, "that's a myth mothers like you made up so their children would stop stealing their coffee. And secondly, the kid's been looking at dead bodies since he was eight. A little coffee isn't going to hurt him."

As the two of them entered the car, Greyson opened the can and took a large swig. Cold coffee wasn't as good as a hot one, but it still managed to make him smile. Now he was sure he could stay up the entire night. Still, another one wouldn't hurt. Maybe he could ask Ciel for more later.

The smile on his face almost dropped when his eyes locked with Viktor. Fortunately, it was just quick. He turned back to Anthea, and the two of them continued with their conversation. Greyson sighed in relief, and he slumped his back on the car seat.

In the driver's seat, Azul adjusted his rear mirror before turning to them. "If any of you feel like sleeping, feel free to do so. It's a three hour drive. I'll just wake Viktor up if I'm too tired to continue."

"I'm offended that you don't think that I can drive us there," Anthea said with a huff.

"Doc, you have a fifty-fifty chance of falling asleep through the drive." He paused for a short while as he started the car. "And I'm not letting the woman who had her license confiscated twice take the wheel, either."

"How about you let Greyson drive? Doesn't he have a license?"

"I'd rather have someone who can reach the pedals do it."

Greyson puffed his cheeks and crossed his arms. "I can reach them."

"Sure you can. Now shut up, all of you. It's harder to concentrate while driving at night."

Greyson turned to the window next to him and watched as the city passed by while Azul drove off. Then he turned his eyes to his coffee, and his grip on the can tightened.

This wasn't just a night mission to learn about Demon. They might have to face off the Underworld, too. And Greyson wasn't sure if they were ready.

Guess who finally reached the 20k mark :pandaa:

Anyway uhh I forgot what the clever thing I was supposed to say here rip. So instead, have this chapter of Greyson having a mini identity crisis, the Investigation Squad worrying about their mission, and Lucinda thinking of ways to flirt with her ex again for the 2332th time.