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Orange has always found it difficult to track down that engineer.
Lime was always skittering around in those vent systems that nobody could fit in, thanks to their alleged “squish bone syndrome”. They always tried to avoid Orange, muttering things about conspiracies about HQ being a government, or Orange being some weirdo.
Which… wasn’t completely wrong, but– but they were wrong at the time!
“Oh, Lime! I need to speak with y–“
“GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU ALIEN!”
And slam. They sighed, slouching a bit. It was already hard enough to speak with the engineer about non-personal matters. To try and hold a conversation, after everything that happened, about such a personal matter with someone who barely makes connections? Orange was asking for some sort of miracle at that point! They almost let out a laugh thinking about it.
They frankly didn’t expect Lime to hold such a grudge. Lime refused to speak with them, even as ghosts! Always avoiding even looking at them, leaving Blue’s side if Orange came close…
They sighed.
At the very least, the parasite gave them a bit of room to think. It wasn’t as aggressive as Green’s was. Not constantly fighting for control; it only really wanted it around Green now, especially if the alien was in control of them.
It really wasn’t the brightest in the shed.
Orange has tried everything they could in the past week. They tried cornering Lime, talking to them nicely, asking Yellow and Brown to lure Lime in with some pizza (which they refused), they almost considered trying to touch the reactor! But they didn’t want their parasite to snap and break something.
They weren’t sure if that’s how that worked, but that wasn’t important.
What have they not tried yet…?
The vents, a voice echoed in their head. You’ve got my body in you now! You’re able to slide through those vents perfectly, with no damage to them whatsoever! Mira HQ doesn’t account for any pink slime found in the ventilation system!
They shook their head– they can’t. As desperate as Orange was, if they were to intrude on Lime’s only space this soon, Lime would likely never let anyone near them ever again!
Orange bit back a reprimand, knowing that Purple would think they were going mad (again) if they were to talk back to the parasite. They knew they were likely just as irritating as the parasite before everything happened because the parasite learned that behaviour from somewhere.
“I trust Blue more than any of ya. But trust is a construct.”
Orange clapped their hands together– that’s it!
Sure, maybe that might exploit their trust a little bit, but it might be the only choice. Blue’s the only one who’s able to get Lime out of those vents, other than food…
…though, Yellow’s complaint about how hard it was to feed Lime at all still rung in their mind. Orange decided to not annoy either of the chefs more than they likely already have. After all, HR has to make sure every employee is being fed!
They made their way to Medbay, leaning slightly on the doorframe.
“Hello, Doctor,” they cooed, admiring the beauty stood in front of them.
Blue turned to face Orange. “Ah, Orange. Were you sent here by any of the crewmates about the parasite?”
“Oh, no, I actually needed a bit of your help!” Orange slid right over to them, standing right in front of the doctor. “You’re good with Lime, right?”
They jolted ever so slightly at that. “Ah– Well, I’m not quite sure that they like me that much–“
Are they joking…?
“–but I am capable of holding some kind of conversation with them. Why? Has Lime done something against Mira’s rules?”
“No, no, not at all! I just wanted to talk to them, but I haven’t been able to pin them down at all!” Orange huffed. “I knew they were difficult, but this is a new level!”
Blue glanced at the vent, and back at Orange. “Well, I’m sorry, Orange. I promised them that I would do what I could to keep their distance from you. I worry that allowing you near them this soon could cause some unpleasant responses, and shatter their already fragile trust.”
Orange sighed. Another failure. Lime’s trust really was something rare to come by. “I understand. Thank you for letting me know that.”
They trudged away, a hand on their cheek. They wanted to give Lime their space, they really did, but… they wanted to make things right. Or at least try and know whether it’s Orange’s fault or the parasite’s! That was frankly what bothered them most. If it was the parasite’s doing, then that could be something Orange could fix– clear up for Lime. After all, the parasite barely takes control anymore. And it listens to Orange too. Mostly. But if it was an issue of Orange’s… then they would have to amend that. As the ship’s HR manager, they need to make sure they’re approachable and friendly, and if Lime (as eccentric as they are) can’t even bring themself to be in the same room as them, then they have to do something about it.
Orange aimlessly wandered through the ship's halls, trying to think. What could they do now?
Well, regardless, the first thing they need to do is actually figure out where Lime is. And where else is better than Security?
They strode into Security, hands behind their back to try and appear as friendly as possible. Purple, especially now as their shoulder was still healing, was a bit more difficult to handle compared to, let’s say, Red, who…
…was in the room with Purple.
They lingered by the entrance, watching around the corner. It wasn’t exactly HR-friendly of them to eavesdrop, but it wasn’t often that Red looked so openly nervous.
“Come on Red, I know you’re trying to be better and everything, but what do you mean you assigned me to Green watching?” Purple rubbed their temples. “You know I’m making sure I don’t leave cameras unattended like last time, right?”
“I– I just– I forgot, okay?” Red stammered. “Listen, it was an honest mistake! I was mostly randomly assigning shifts!”
“And you forgot to remove me from the list?”
Red grew redder. “I was thinking about y–“
“Okay, nevermind. Listen, you go and watch Green. I don’t think it matters that they’re claiming to be themself, we still run the risk of the alien taking over their body.”
“Y-Yeah, okay…”
They both paused.
Huh…?
On screen, Lime had begun to trudge to the storage closet Green was held in, leaning on the door and sliding to the ground. It wasn’t the most usual thing to see Lime out of the vents or working on machinery.
Orange’s grip on the doorframe only tightened. So it was an issue with Orange, not the parasite.
“I guess neither of us have to worry then, if Lime’s watching them!” Red shrugged.
Purple stared at them. “…really?”
“What? You still want me to go watch Green?” Red pouted, shuddering. “They give me the creeps to still be around…”
“No, no! I just– I’m surprised you trust Lime, and all,” Purple shrugged. “You don’t really seem to get along with them as well as you try to with everyone else, so…”
“Well, it’s better someone than no one, right?” Red huffed. “I trust you to alert me if anything goes wrong, Purps. I’ll get back to making sure we get to Industria safely, and I still need to figure out what to do with all those eggs.”
Orange turned and darted away before they were caught eavesdropping, face flushing. They shook their head. Alright, so Lime’s meeting Green. That’s fine! Maybe they’ll wait until Lime’s done talking to Green, and ask Green what happened! Surely… they– they have to fix this.
Lime tucked their knees against their chest, back pressed against the door that was keeping them from seeing the alien behind it.
“O-Oh, hello? Who’s there?”
Lime scoffed. “Don’t get your hopes up, alien freak. I’m just… taking a break.”
“I-It’s not–“ It sighed. “I-I’m glad you’re taking a break… you know–”
They blinked. “Excuse me?”
“Wuh?”
“What do you mean you’re glad I’m taking a break?!” Lime stood up quick enough to make them dizzy for a second. “You think I’m letting my guard down around you?! Well, you thought wr–“
“NO! No, no, I meant that– You do all this work around the ship on your own, I thought you deserved a break!” Green blurted out, before continuing to ramble. “Honestly, I don’t know anything about how a ship works mechanically, but from the books I read about ships and their crew, there’s meant to be more people who can maintain the ship and you’re the only one who can, I-I think…?”
Lime stared blankly.
“A-And Blue mentioned this too, when we were all dead– something about how they were worried about you after you found their–“
“Yeah, yeah, okay! Quit it already! I get it, it’s you, intern” Lime grumbled, face warming.
It was… embarrassing to hear them talk about this. Was it because they thought Lime was so incompetent they couldn’t handle this alone? They grumbled incomprehensibly.
“You– You know it’s me?”
“The parasite don’t know nothin’ about us as ghosts. No way it did.” They huffed. “I believe it’s you. I guess.”
Green hummed. “I’m kinda glad, then!”
Lime sat there by Green for the next few minutes in silence. Thinking.
So, Blue was right then. About them and the parasites being separate, especially now. Everyone was, really. And it made Lime only feel worse.
The reason why they were here at all ate away at them. It bothered them so much.
“You and that parasite…”
“We-We’re not the same person, I promise! They’re actually saying a lot of– uh, not so work-friendly things about Orange’s parasite right now, it’s getting hard to ignore…”
Lime let out a single ‘huh’.
“You know Orange’s deal?”
“Huh? Um, not- not really…? Why?”
The engineer glanced at the door, before immediately turning around to press their backpack against it. They felt way more vulnerable than they had to be at the idea of actually facing the door.
“I– Listen. Tell a soul about this and I’m pouring saltwater into the ventilation system for the storage closet, got it?”
“Y-Yes, Mx!”
Good.
“The parasite’s a separate mind from yours, ain’t it. Meaning I’m probably actually ignoring the real Orange who just–“ They pressed their face into their grease-covered glove. “…wants to talk to me.”
Silence.
“I’m surprised they even want to, but I keep avoiding the one person other than that wit– Blue who’s actively tried to talk to me.” Lime grumbled. “They’re probably thinking I’m not worth the effort. They should’ve realised that a long time ago.”
“Why?”
“What the hell do you mean, ‘why’?” Lime’s shoulders raised. “You seriously don’t get it?! I’m the crazy, kooky old engineer–“
“Didn’t you say you were six?”
“Leap year. I’m the one people don’t believe, because I’m paranoid and spouting about conspiracies twenty four-seven! They assume I don’t hear what they talk about, but I’m always in those vents. Their voices echo through the system!” Lime took in a breath, only realising how much they had said. “I really am just an outcast. A weirdo. Can’t even move past Orange like everyone did with you.”
Lime sighed, slumping back down against the wall. It’s not like they didn’t know it was the real Orange trying to apologise– they figured that out pretty quick with how much of an idiot their parasite half was. It was just seeing Orange that made their heart race.
They can’t believe they got vulnerable… if they hear the doctor saying some shit about moving on or whatever, they’re salting Green immediately.
Maybe not, actually.
“Actually, I don’t think anyone’s forgiven me at all either.”
Lime turned to face the door. “What.”
“I mean, people are still on guard about me. Nobody’s come here to actually see or talk to me, they only really visit because they have to so they can watch me.”
Lime scoffed.
“So, I don’t think you’re alone here, Lime…” There was rustling, as if Green was moving. Maybe sitting down…? “And I think people should listen to you more!”
What.
“I mean, from what Blue’s told me, and from what I saw– a-and what the parasite says about you, weirdly mostly good things– and you seem really smart. You know your way around the ship, and you only tried to really target me and Orange who were…” They giggled sheepishly. “Y’know.”
Their face burned. This was getting fucking weird. This is too vulnerable.
“I might actually kind of… adm–“
“Okay, I’m ready to get back to work,” Lime snapped, trembling. “Those emergency seals ain’t gonna fix themselves. Nice talking.”
“Wh– Buh– Okay…”
Lime sped away from the supply closet and to the nearest vent, hopping inside and making their way to their ‘room’. This was too much for them. Weird. The parasite was probably making Green say that stuff to them, get Lime on their good side because that dumb alien knows they’re on their tail! Lime grabbed their second favourite wrench (the first still lost to the void of space) and held it close to their chest.
There’s no way that intern was actually interested in the weird things Lime had to say. Nobody on this damned ship was, even if they were right about everything. About the aliens. It was probably like Blue. Probably pity, or… something.
They’re not planning on getting that vulnerable ever again.