"There's no way I time traveled in sleep mode!" Marcia exclaimed. She sprung out of her bed, and glanced around her room in every direction. Her room looked like what she remembered it did several years ago.
She rushed to the mirror at her desk and briefly slapped her face in front of it. "I must be dreaming!" She shouted in disbelief, though she felt the impact of her hand on her cheek. "Right?!" Her long teal hair faded to white at the tips and looked disheveled, and her gold eyes were wide open in shock.
Suddenly she heard a knock on the door along with the start of a progressive rock song she recognized. "Did you have another nightmare again?" Ruby asked over the music.
Marcia rushed to the door to open it; she saw Ruby standing in front of the door with a radio in one hand. She had long orange hair that was curly at the edges, had sage green eyes and was wearing glasses with an indigo tint, and she was wearing a flower-patterned dress.
"Well, I don't know if it's a nightmare yet, but my room looks different than it did and if anyone tried to remodel it in my sleep, I would've heard it with these ears!" Marcia said with a hiss, pointing to her snow leopard ears.
"You should try my herbal supplement, man." Ruby nonchalantly said. "The only people I can think of who could silently move everything around with magic or with their minds aren't here now." She chuckled.
"At least Regina isn't here scolding me for being the loudmouth." Marcia chuckled while she tried to make a joke, but then she looked in shock over Ruby's reaction.
Ruby went from smiling to looking confused. "She's too busy training to do that."
"But you know if she weren't busy with that, she'd say now I'm as much of a loudmouth as Kiah!" Marcia said.
"Who's Kiah?" Ruby asked, looking further confused.
"Our boisterous loud-mouthing, metal-working, hiking and mountain-climbing park ranger?!" Marcia said more loudly. She grew exasperated. "You know, reddish hair, dresses like a cowboy?" She hesitantly added since Ruby Moonflower still looked confused. How could no one remember Kiah or Regina unless this is actually the past, and Regina's training was as a new initiate, not leading the trainings!
"That must've been a weird nightmare you had!" Ruby chuckled. "Such a person would be fun to meet though."
"Definitely. I hope we will!" Marcia said.
"I shouldn't keep you for long since you have to get ready for that art exhibit to host!" Ruby said, pausing possibly to listen to more of the lyrics of the song that was playing on the radio. She smiled again when she was listening to them.
"A song about the limelight and I'm back in it..." Marcia nervously chuckled. "Where was it again?" She asked.
"Back in it? It hasn't stopped for you!" Ruby said, excited for Marcia. "Janine and Terrell will be ready to take you to the event. They can help you with that, but uhh...you don't sound fully awake so I recommend getting something to eat and load up on coffee."
"Thanks for the advice!" Marcia said, quickly walking through the hallway.
"Wait! Don't forget to change out of your pajamas!" Ruby said, but she was unsure if the rushing snow leopard heard.
Marcia made her way through the halls and through a large lobby area into the cafeteria. The cafeteria had a sleek, futuristic look to it with Frutiger Aero and Art Deco elements. In a daze, she wandered through them in a haze, in a state of disbelief. "I'm still popular, but to say that my time in the limelight never ended is an exaggeration, unless I actually time traveled back to that time." She thought.
It still bothered her as she noticed that the paintings and sculptures in the hall were arranged differently and some of them she remembered seeing the night before weren't there.
She considered checking the training areas to see if she'd recognize Regina either as the experienced instructor that she became, or as the new initiate who only began her training on the team before going to the cafeteria. However, the need for coffee, anything to feel awake, got to her first.
"So you have something coming up too?" Someone approached Marcia and curiously asked her.
"I do..." Marcia said, still dispensing coffee from a sleek machine into a large cup. She turned around and saw Fiore standing beside her; Fiore had short light blue hair with light blue eyes, was wearing a sleek black dress with silver and glass jewelry and long black and silver gloves. She also wore a silver headband, and an earpiece that had the Chariots of Colors insignia on it.
Marcia was nervous as she recognized Fiore was wearing her debut outfit. Another reminder that Marcia's suspicions might be true.
"Does it not look good on me? There are still a few days to make changes." Fiore worried.
"It looks wonderful!" Marcia cheerfully said, but she sounded nervous again. "I'm worrying about the event I'll need to host this evening, but you have your debut party to worry about and I wish you the best with it when it'll happen." She said this in a clenched manner; she said it with the suspicion that she was back in time to just before Fiore's debut, but also not wanting to believe it.
She then stepped aside to let Fiore dispense a cup of coffee. "There's room for both of us to worry about our events." Fiore nervously but cheerfully said.
"Yeah, there is." Marcia said before blowing on her cup of coffee and taking the first sip. "Oof... still hot." She said.
The two nervous coffee-drinkers continued their conversation at a table. Marcia remembered that Fiore has a lot to be nervous about; her debut, if it'll be received well, and being expected to aggressively compete against The Robotissières in a level of hostility that surpassed the rivalry between Chariots of Colors and Defending Waits for Nobody during their low point in the mid-90's.
Fiore's predecessors Mi-ho and Trey arrived with trays of food and sat down at the table with them in a rare time that they could all be together.
Mi-ho was wearing a black and silver sweater with an orange skirt, and her long brown hair was tied back in a ponytail. She had a similar headset that Trey and Fiore also have. Trey had light blue hair and gray eyes, and was wearing an athletic suit in black with light blue accents. The two predecessors gave Fiore advice about her debut and about the competition.
"Thanks... I think that'll help." She smiled. "I hope your event this evening goes well too!" She said to Marcia.
"Thank you!" Marcia said.
The conversations and smiles continued for a few more moments, before a silent and somber acknowledgement of the challenges that Fiore will face when she debuts.