All the stars in the sky

Thomas walks up the hill, hissing at a sharp pain in his leg. He looks down to see a red and yellow snake beside him, and he flings the snake away from him before continuing up the hill to collect firewood for the people in the village they now call the New Homestead.

In the time they've been here, the people who escaped WICKED's clutches through the Flat-Trans nearly a year ago have built a village they're proud to call their home in the mountains, and the results of their sweat and tears have paid off. Though life is still hard, the people of the New Homestead are happy now.

Yet Paradise isn't really Paradise without...

Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, he stops to catch his breath. It's getting dark soon and he knows he should be back before it gets too dark to see, but surely it can't hurt to just stop for a while to rest, especially since he's suddenly so dizzy...

He sits down on the edge of the path he just walked up, and marvels at the beauty of what he sees. The path plunges down into a small cliff below him, and the leaves of the plants at the bottom sway gently in the evening breeze. The sun hangs just above the mountains in the distance, its light painting the sky shades of orange and pink that slowly fade to dark blue, and small clouds float across it, forming different shapes. The chirping of the crickets create a gentle lullaby, and the occasional rooster's crow or bird's song add to the music he hears all around him. The village slumbers in this peaceful setting, wooden houses all resting on the edges of the slope.

It's the first time he's felt peaceful since he stepped out of the Box in the Glade, and his thoughts inevitably take a sad turn to the people he's lost. Chuck, who gave his life to save him from Gally's spear; Teresa, who died never knowing that he's forgiven her...

Newt, his best friend, the first one he trusted, who died from a bullet that Thomas had shot.

He knows that that was what Newt had wanted, that by killing Newt he'd put him out of his misery.

Yet it's hard to forget how he'd looked into the face of the person he loved, loves, and put out the light in the eyes that had once shone with hope.

He's not sure how long he's been here, but soon the sun has set completely and the stars come out, thousands of lights that draw pictures in the night sky above him. As he gazes into the sky above him, he thinks about Newt, and hopes that Newt is happy up there with the stars and the moon.

In fact, he thinks he sees a familiar figure above him...

He gasps as he sits up straight, but it isn't a mistake. The stars have moved to form a new picture in the sky, the silhouette of a person he knew as well as his own, and the figure runs and jumps across the night sky, face glowing with laughter, the limp he'd had in life gone.

"Newt?" The word slips out of his mouth, and as he reaches up to rub his eyes to take a closer look his fingers come away wet with tears he didn't know he's shedding.

Newt turns at the sound of his name, and his eyes shine bright with happiness Thomas has never seen in life. Newt walks towards him, and as he gets closer he holds out his hand for Thomas to take.

Though Newt doesn't speak his intention is clear, and without a second thought he reaches out and takes Newt's hand.

OoOoO

In the morning Minho finds Thomas lying at the edge of a path on a cliff. Though Thomas' skin is deathly pale, and the area around the twin punctures on his leg is swollen, the smile on his face glows brightly in the warm light of the morning sun.