Proxima passes Corvus the conspiratorial paper.

"Found this in my old bedroom. Going to talk to Father about it. Need you to lock down the residential wing while I'm gone."

Corvus reads over the brief note.

"Oh." He blinks. "I see why you're so concerned."

After committing the text to memory, he passes it back to Proxima.

"If there's further evidence nearby, I'll prevent anyone from tampering with it."

"Good."

She gives the naked Corvus a brisk peck on the cheek, then ducks back into the hallway and motions for Grim to continue following her.

In the throne room, she calls an elevator. A couple seconds later, the elevator doors slide open.

She tells Grim to get in.

Grim continues to follow and listen to Proxima's orders, but there's something in the way she moves that indicates she's choosing to do this, not submitting.

They reach the command level. Proxima leads the way to the frontal control room of the Santuary II. Most of the rubble has been cleared away since Grim's fight with Ebony Maw, but the walls are still torn up in a few places.

Thanos stands facing the viewport-lined wall, conferring with the Chitauri that surround him in their own language.

The chatter in the room falls silent as Grim and Proxima enter.

He turns to face his children.

"What is it?"

Grim nods sharply, but waits for Proxima to fill him in - she's not going to start this by protesting her innocence.

"I found this letter in my old bedroom." She hands the incriminating paper over to Thanos. "I encountered Grim on my way here. She claims to never have read this letter before, nor any others like it. I thought it best not to take my eyes off her, and I instructed Corvus to keep an eye on everyone else."

Thanos gingerly holds the edge of the paper between his thumb and forefinger. He lifts it up into the light to better read the text printed upon it.

"Proxima?' He lowers his hand again and looks her in the eye. "What were you doing back in your old quarters?"

Honesty. Honesty with her father, always. Her childhood deeply ingrained this instinct, and so now when Thanos poses his question she answers it forthrightly and without hesitation. Even though she really would prefer not to, especially not in front of all these people.

"Imissedmyoldtoys." Her face scrunches up as she blurts out the words, and her eyes squeeze shut. It's hard to tell, given her blue-gray complexion, but this confession has left her flush with embarrassment.

Grim lowers her eyes, tries to make herself, in some way, less obvious, as though that might ease Proxima's embarrassment. (Wonders, a little, at the idea of having things like that to miss, wishes she had anything like that. Tries to ignore the momentary pang of loss she remembers feeling when her rifle was destroyed.)

One of his children has turned against him?

The thought of that hurts. Thanos resists the temptation to deny unpleasant possibilities.

Because that Is Not What He Does.

Thanos prides himself on facing unpleasantness head on and systematically addressing them.

He turns his attention to Grim. He wants to hear from her in her own words, especially considering the tensions between her and Proxima.

"This letter appears to be addressed to you. Is it true you had no knowledge of it until Proxima intercepted you earlier? And that you've read no previous documents of its kind?"

The Chitauri in the room have been steadily backing away since this conversation began. They have no interest in getting caught up in their sovereign's family affairs.

"That one, no, definitely not, I knew nothing of it till Proxima brought it to my attention. Others-"

She pauses, looks away, seemingly trying to recall. "As I said to Proxima, I might have, I- was trying not to pry. I only used blank paper, when doing my sketches. I- didn't read anything on the other sheets. Proxima had made it clear she disliked me. I didn't want to give her another reason to hate me."

Proxima narrows her eyes. "So you're saying there were several papers like that on my desk when you started using it, but in all this time you never read them and never asked me or anyone else about them?"

"Would you have answered if I had? It wasn't my business. If there's one thing I learned from my father?" (And she tenses, flinches, one hand twitching like electricity had just sparked through it.) "It was to keep my nose out of other people's business. That I wouldn't like the consequences."

He wants to hold her close, and tell her everything's alright...

...but then, awareness--a gap in the story has just been suddenly filled in.

"Grim. You're hiding something."

(Off to the side, Proxima is smirking)

(She's never learned how not to hide things.)

She lowers her eyes. "I- didn't want you to think I was trying to- make you think they were- I didn't know it wasn't someone trying to make it look like- And I've never-" (been able to trust that her word would be accepted.)

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. I know- I just. Got- used to this. And I didn't want to lose it. And didn't know how not to. Not if you thought I was-" (And that's plain truth.)

She straightens, eyes still lowered. "I accept the consequences."

Thanos grabs her by the shoulder, more roughly than he has on prior occasions. It's still a supportive gesture, not an angry one, but it lacks its usual warmth.

"Daughter. Look me in the eye and speak clearly."

It doesn't stop her flinching. Too used to anger and violence in response to admissions of guilt. She's shaking as she forces herself meet his gaze, and her eyes keep darting away, like she doesn't know how to keep them still. Her voice, when she speaks, is monotonous, hopeless.

"I- saw a note. With- similar content. And I didn't bring it to your attention because I was scared of the consequences. Because I- didn't want to lose this." (She seems to think she's lost it anyway.) "I- am. Ready." (She isn't, she never is.)

"I understand. You weren't brought up right. Your siblings had it so much easier--I raised them from a much younger age, never taught them to lie to me, never gave them any reason to."

He sounds disappointed, but not surprised.

"I'll consider how to address this shortcoming of yours at a later point. A frightened, untrustworthy child is a less pressing concern than the possibility of a traitor in our midst."

"Yes, sir." Somehow the disappointment is worse than violence. (And she's still not convinced that the violence isn't going to come, and that will only make the reprieve worse.)

"I couldn't find the earlier correspondence that the intercepted message referred to. I assume that Grim concealed or destroyed them."