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  Mrs Finch waltzed into the room, barely sparing a glance at her daughter and husband as she whisked away their breakfast dishes and grabbed a pre-made smoothie from the FDU. She was already dressed in the navy blue uniform that was almost identical to her husband's. The only difference was that while Mr Finch's was covered in small burns and smears of grease, Mrs Finch's was still spotless.

  "Morning mum," Anais said cheerfully. "I hadn't forgotten. I just think it's stupid that we have to go."

  Mrs Finch shot her a disapproving look.

  "I don't think you realise how important this is. You do know that once they assign you a job, that's it? It's important you make a good impression. Have you memorised your questions to ask them?"

  Anais rolled her eyes. There was only one question she wanted to ask - how long would she have to work in her assigned job until she could leave and do something she actually wanted to do? She chose not to mention this to her mother.

  Anais stood up and gave her mum a quick hug.

  "Don't worry about me, mum, I'll be fine."

  Mrs Finch squeezed her back.

  "I know," she sighed as they pulled apart. She tucked a strand of Anais' hair behind her ear. "I just worry about you. It's natural for mothers to want to protect their first child."

  "I'm your only child," Anais pointed out and Mrs Finch rolled her eyes. She shooed Anais away.

  "Be off with you! You don't want to be late. And Martin, shouldn't you be in bed?"

  "I'll go to bed if you join me," Mr Finch growled, reaching up and pulling his wife onto his lap, drawing her in for a kiss. She shrieked in surprise and giggled as she kissed him back. Anais wrinkled her nose.

  “Please,” she said. “Save it for the bedroom.”

  Mrs Finch broke away from her husband's embrace looking flustered, but pleased.

  “Well if you'd left on time, you wouldn't be here to witness it now would you?” she chided her daughter, as she smoothed back her pale green hair.

  An icon in Anais' vision flashed, informing her she had one hour before her appointment at City Hall. Another icon appeared next to it, stating that she had a new invitation waiting. Curiously, she opened it, her heart giving a little leap as she saw who it was from:

  Request from Xander Silvas. Cinema. Proposed time: 20:00 - 22:00. Accept?

  Anais couldn't stop the smile spreading across her face.

  "What are you so happy about?" Mrs Finch asked, looking suspiciously up at Anais from where she still sat on her husband's lap.

  "Nothing," Anais said, immediately wiping the smile off her face. "Just something Dalla sent me. I've got to go, see you later."

  "Good luck! Be careful today," Mrs Finch called after her. "And come straight home after you've finished. Okay?"

  Anais waved back at her parents to show she'd heard. As she picked up her jacket, the message from Xander still glowed gently at the top of her eyesight. She hesitated for a moment. She knew her parents wouldn't approve of her going out tonight, not after the news of the murder, but privately she thought they were overreacting slightly. Murder in the Imperial City wasn't unheard of, but it was uncommon, especially since the penalty if you were found guilty was death.

  She was torn between wanting to see Xander, and not wanting to cause her parents any extra stress. But she only had to think of Xander's indigo eyes, crinkled into a smile as he looked at her, and her mind was made up.

  Anais accepted the invitation as she rushed out of the flat, into the bright autumn morning.

  Two

  Anais had to run to the station, her candy floss pink hair flying out behind her as she ran round street corners, dodging in and out of the other commuters. Her parents, like her grandparents before them, had chosen pastel coloured hair for their only child - Anais strongly suspected it was because pastel shades were one of the cheaper options when choosing your child's initial DNA, but she'd never asked.

  As Anais ran down the path and onto the street, she called up the map function on her RetCom, programming it to City Hall. She'd only ever been to the City Hall once, when she was five years old, and her parents had to register her for school. An orange line appeared in her vision, guiding her to the maglev station and informing her to take line 7 into the city centre. There was another ping inside her head, and this time she was unsurprised to see Dalla's name flash up next to the little message icon:

  At station. Where are you?! D xxx

  Anais fired off a reply back to Dalla saying that she was on her way and upped her pace. Today of all days, Dalla was likely to be even more wound up that usual about being late.

  Colourful blocks of flats towered above her, their large glass windows gleaming in the morning light. Trees lined the city streets, their dark green leaves waving in the breeze. As Anais rounded another corner, she could just make out the shining glass and steel skyscrapers through the hazy horizon that marked the beginning of the city's downtown district. Despite how late she was, she couldn't help but drink in the sight in front of her, taking in deep breaths of fresh air as she ran. A slow smile spread across her face as the city glinted before her in the morning sun.

  Her RetCom went off again and she opened the new message without breaking her stride. This time it was from Xander. Anais' heart gave a funny little backflip as she read through it:

  Hey A. Looking forward to tonight ;). Good luck at your CA! X

  How was it that everyone else remembered about their Career's Advice and she hadn't? She would have to see if she could get Dalla to tell her how to set up a new reminder function on her RetCom. Her smile widened as she read through the message again.

  She was so distracted by the warm fuzzy feeling the simple message had induced in her, that she was forced to swiftly twirl around an orange haired woman as she rounded a corner at speed.

  “Sorry!” she shouted over her shoulder to the disgruntled looking woman.

  Thankfully, the rush was worth it and she arrived at the platform with two minutes to spare. As she bent over to try to get her breath back, her RetCom flashed up her vital stats. It informed her that her heart rate was too fast for the speed she'd been running. It helpfully asked her if she'd like to schedule automatic exercise notifications. Anais blinked the irritating little box away and stood back up straight. She tucked her long hair behind her ear as she surveyed the crowded station for a glimpse of Dalla's distinctive brown curls. Commuters and students alike lined the platform, some formed groups which were chattering loudly, others looking as though they were talking to midair as they conducted conversations on their RetComs. The smell of coffee and freshly baked pastries filled the air, wafted out from the crowded platform shop. She was just about to phone Dalla when she heard a shout above the usual morning racket.

  “Anais!” She craned her neck over a group of smartly dressed commuters and saw a hand waving in the air. She pushed her way through the crowd and was greeted by the sight of her best friend, looking immaculate as always in a black and white striped shirt and black trousers.

  Dalla threw her arms around her as soon as she got in reach, and Anais returned the hug.

  “Seriously babe, what took you so long? I thought you'd been knocked down by a cab or something,” Dalla broke away, peering down the empty train line. “Speaking of which, d'you think we should get one? I don't think we'll get there on time -”

  “It'll be here,” Anais said smoothly. “Stop panicking.”

  “Yeah but still, it doesn't -”Dalla broke off as she looked her friend up and down. “Sweetie, is that all you're wearing today?”

  “Well, yeah,” Anais glanced down at her outfit. Denim shirt, favourite faded red leather jacket (that somehow didn't clash horribly with her hair) and dark blue jeans. “Why?”

  “Anais,” Dalla complained, her dark curls bouncing as she shook her head. “You
know we have to make a good impression today. I even messaged you last night to remind you to dress smartly. Did you not hear that black and white is back in? What on earth are they going to think?”

  “That I'm not some weirdo who likes to walk around naked? Clothes are just clothes, Dalla, who cares?”

  Dalla closed her eyes as though she was mortally offended by Anais' words.

  "Besides," Anais added. "Our careers should already be decided, right? They look at our exam results, not our fashion sense."

  "Luckily for you," Dalla muttered under her breath, and Anais elbowed her.

  At that moment the magnet train glided silently into the station, it's doors opening with a small whoosh. Anais and Dalla hopped onboard, managing to grab a couple of seats by the window before the carriage filled up completely. Dalla hooked her arm through Anais' as they settled down for the ride. The train began to move smoothly out of the station, the blocks of flats blurring into a rainbow smudge as the train picked up speed.

  "I couldn't sleep a wink last night," Dalla said as she sat back in her seat. "All I could think about was whether or not Civitas will accept my internship application. I think I messed up on question 42b. I don't know whether they actually want you to be proficient in Xiscor software, or if you're just supposed to be aware of it. The question wasn't that clear. I'm hoping I'll be able to ask someone today. Do you think it'll affect my chances of getting in?" She broke off, chewing her lip and looking at Anais nervously.

  "Definitely not," Anais said. "If they're going to pick anyone, it's going to be the person who scored the highest mark out of the whole year on their Programming exam. Besides, don't forget we've always got our second and third options, if we don't get our first choice."

  Dalla flashed her a grateful smile.

  "I don't know how you can be so calm. I'm so nervous," Dalla squeezed Anais' arm.

  "I forgot about today," Anais said truthfully. Dalla gaped at her.

  "How could you forget?! This is like, the most important day ever!"

  Anais raised an eyebrow.

  "I don't know, I just..forgot," she said and Dalla rolled her eyes.

  “You'd forget your head if it wasn't screwed on,” Dalla teased, as Anais stuck her tongue out at her.

  They sat in companionable silence for a few moments, watching the city scenery roll past the windows. It was only when Dalla turned to speak to her again that Anais noticed something slightly off about her friend's appearance.

  “Dalla,” she said sharply, and Dalla jumped, looking guilty.

  “What?” she asked, trying to sound innocent while avoiding Anais' eye.

  “Look at me,” Anais demanded. Slowly, like a small child that drags it's feet when they know they've done something wrong, Dalla met Anais' gaze before quickly shifting her eyes away again. Dalla's eyes, instead of being their normal deep brown, were now flecked with shimmering gold.

  “I don't believe it – Dalla, have you been to a HelixPod again? That's the third time this month!” Anais said in disbelief. Dalla squirmed in her seat as Anais glared at her, trying hard to look stern. Eventually, Dalla cracked.

  “Okay, so I had my eye colour done, but so what? Gold is so in this month - it really suits my skin tone, don't you think? And it really brings out the highlights in my hair,” Dalla said in a rush. Anais rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help smiling as Dalla looked at her imploringly.

  Secretly, she was baffled by Dalla's obsession with cosmetic procedures – although it was normal for everyone to have a little fixer-upper now and again, Anais couldn't understand why someone would want to change their appearance so often on a whim, in the name of fashion. But then again, Anais couldn't really complain – there was that time when she was fifteen and it was all the rage to have neon green hair and bronze skin. Her mum had almost had a heart attack when Anais had walked into the kitchen sporting that look.

  “It looks good,” Anais said truthfully. She couldn't lie – Dalla did look even more stunning that usual. She always had had a knack for standing out from the crowd, despite the fact that they were surrounded by flawless skin and perfectly made up faces.

  “Y'know,” Dalla said, looking at Anais thoughtfully. “It's been awhile since you've been to a Pod. You could just change your hair colour – what about mint green? Or a pale blue would look fantastic on you.”

  “No thanks,” Anais said firmly. “I'm fine the way I am.”

  "You could go blonde, and then get black and white striped irises - that would look so cool..."

  Dalla's eyes started to mist over as she began to consider all the possibilities, and Anais hastily changed the subject before she could get too carried away.

  "So did you hear the news this morning? About that man that was murdered?"

  "Yup," Dalla said, as she pulled a compact mirror out of her bag and began checking her immaculate make-up. "Daddy's not very happy. Every MediTech employee has been hauled in for questioning."

  "What? Why?"

  Dalla shrugged.

  "Just a precaution apparently. Just in case anyone noticed someone suspicious hanging around the building yesterday, things like that. I doubt they'll spend too long investigating, though."

  Anais watched her as Dalla held the mirror up a little higher so she could see her eyes.

  "How come?" Anais asked. Dalla snapped the mirror shut and dropped it back into her bag.

  "Well," she stopped and glanced round the carriage. Anais looked over her shoulder, but she could only see bored commuters sitting silently, their eyes occasionally flicking as they played games or composed messages on their RetComs. Dalla leant in closer to Anais and lowered her voice. "Apparently this Mr Anderson was planning on leaving MediTech and setting up his own company with some other guy from WireX Industries. Something to do with innovative new medical technology, I forgot what exactly. But he only had a week left at daddy's company before he was killed, poor thing. Daddy's company weren't very happy about him leaving, of course. He had to sign an agreement that he wouldn't use any of their designs or patents in this new company of his.”

  Anais raised her eyebrows. It wasn't exactly unusual for some tech whizz to want to break out and do their own thing, but the three big technology companies in the city - Civitas, WireX and MediTech - generally weren't too keen on someone else trying to stamp on their territory. The three of them had enough trouble as it was dealing with each other.

  "Speaking of tech companies, how's Xander?" Dalla arched an eyebrow at her, and Anais felt her face flush. Dalla squealed.

  "How's it going between you two?" she asked as she leaned forward, eager to hear the gossip. Anais shrugged nonchalantly, refusing to give into the bait.

  "It's going okay," she said, avoiding Dalla's eye, her lips twitching as she tried to hide her smile.

  "Just okay?"

  "Good," Anais amended. "It's good. It's...nice."

  She couldn't stop the smile spreading across her lips this time, as Xander's indigo eyes filled up her memory. The way he'd looked at her right before he'd bent his head down to kiss her. The way he'd brushed her hair back from her face, the tingle she'd felt across her skin from where his fingers had touched her. They'd only been together a few weeks, but Anais still got that little rush of excitement every time she thought of him. And it was nice - nice not to feel like the third wheel with Dalla and whoever her new love interest happened to be that month. It was nice to have someone else to talk to if Dalla was out and her parents were at work.

  "Well, I wish I could say the same about Marcus bloody Price. How many chances does that boy think he's going to get?" Dalla's voice cut through her thoughts, and Anais looked up to see Dalla pulling a face.

  "What did he do this time?" Anais asked and Dalla rolled her eyes.

  "The idiot only went and told me he's been messaging L
ara – Lara, of all people. I mean honestly, he won't leave me alone for weeks, then when I do finally agree to go out with him, he's all like 'sorry babe, I gotta keep my options open.' He's such a dick."

  "I'm sure -" Anais started, but a smooth female voice cut her off as it rang out through the carriage.

  “Imperial City Hall,” came the polite announcement. “Exit here for the Imperial Theatre and the Museum of Modern Art.”

  The pair stood up, jostled slightly by the crowd. The doors slid open without a sound, and Anais allowed herself to be carried off the train by the throng of people. As soon as their feet touched the ground, Dalla began to jog towards City Hall, Anais keeping pace beside her. The sleek glass building appeared in front of them, it's windows winking in the morning sun. The front of City Hall was almost entirely glass and it curved smoothly around itself, giving the impression of gentle waves on the sea. There was a manicured expanse of grass in front of the building, split into four quarters with smooth stone paths running between them. Right in the middle where the four paths met, stood a marble fountain carved into the likeness of two lions standing on their hind legs, their faces looking powerful and menacing as they bared their teeth at passers-by. Clear water cascaded around them, giving the image of the lions having living, moving manes.

  Groups of students were converging at the entrance as everyone rushed to sign in before their appointments were due. The whole quad was alive with the morning light; the trees waved softly in the cool breeze, and the sunlight ignited the vibrant colours shimmering off people's hair and clothes. There was every colour imaginable; from blonde, red and brown, to mint green, sleek silver, magenta and midnight blue – and that was just the hair.