Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Maze Runner nor any of the characters from it.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE:

Proving Thomas' Innocence…

Day Sixty-Six – The "Glade"

When she opened her eyes, she noticed the sun shining through the window, indicating that she had probably slept through the entire day and had woken up the next day. Newt was sitting at the edge of the bed, watching her as she sat up. The bags under his eyes showed how little he had slept through the two nights. She felt horrible knowing that she had caused him that much worry.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, making him shake his head.

"You just did your job," he replied.

She moved herself closer, resting her hand against his cheek. "But I caused this," she said as she traced under his eyes, highlighting the dark circles.

He grabbed hold of her hand, intertwining his fingers with hers as he smiled. "I never slept much anyway."

"I needed you," she whispered, resting her head in the crook of his neck, tears forming in her green eyes. "I thought I was gonna die in there…I was so scared…."

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her even closer. He kissed the top of her head as he whispered into her ear. "I'm here now, and that's not gonna change any time soon."

"I only wish that was true…"

…

Half of the day had passed before Leo left her room, mostly because she didn't know if she would be able to handle going outside again without breaking down into tears. But, she decided that she needed some fresh air and joined Thomas and Minho out in the Glade. She wasn't sure how she'd be able to deal with them and their many questions, but she knew there was no point in hiding from them since they would just find her anyway.

She also couldn't handle the screams coming from Alby's room, which gave her the idea that he was now going through the Changing.

"Hey," she said as she walked over, her hands in her pockets as a small smile made its way to her face.

"Feeling any better?" Minho asked, patting her on the back.

She shrugged. "A little, I guess."

"Have you seen Newt anywhere?" Thomas asked as he looked around. "We need to talk."

She gulped, and the two knew that she had already seen and talked to him. They raised their eyebrows as they waited for her to cave in. "Follow me," she said with a sigh as she started making her way back to the Homestead where Newt would have been checking on Alby.

…

"You two know?!" Newt asked, his eyes widening as he glared at them.

"Trust me, we know. We saw it with our own shucking eyes," Minho said as he pointed towards her wig, tugging on it slightly, making it move.

"How?! What the bloody hell happened in that Maze?!"

"Calm down shank, Thomas is better telling that story. He found out first."

"You better speak up Tommy," Newt said with a glare, his arms folded.

"We were out fighting a Griever when it suddenly grabbed her by her neck. It pulled out the wig, along with the pins which is where the scratches came from…And then I saw the long hair and immediately figured it out."

She touched the back of her neck on instinct, making her flinch from the pain she received. Newt glanced at her quickly with a worried glance, before it went back to glaring at the two boys.

"Then we escaped and ran into Minho, and then he found out. That's all."

"Never would have thought the shank was a girl…A hot one at that," Minho said with a smirk.

"Minho," Newt growled, obviously not impressed with his little comments.

"Just trying to lighten the mood, shank," he said, raising his hands in the air as a defence.

"Please, you promised not to tell anyone after I showed you that note," Leo interrupted. "Please make sure you don't. You can gather what could happen if you don't."

"Why would we tell anyone?" Thomas asked. "It's your secret, not ours."

"Hold on, it'll be our little secret now," Minho said as he gave a wink, making Leo roll her eyes.

"You're ridiculous. Both of you!" Newt muttered under his breath, making Minho raise an eyebrow.

"Least we're not dating her," he replied.

"If you say a word about that to anyone-"

"Trust me dude, wouldn't dream of it."

Alby's blood curdling scream filled the air, making the conversation quickly die into an awkward silence, none of them knowing what should be said next. Minho was the first to speak as he sighed. "You better go take care of the shank. We'll make sure this one's safe. Good that?"

Newt looked down at her small figure before he looked at the door that led to Alby's room. She gave him a small nod, telling him it was fine to leave her. He gave a sigh, very reluctant to do so, but he finally agreed.

"Good that."

"Good, now let's go and leave Newt and Alby to it," Minho said as he pushed her forward along with Thomas until they were out the door and in the Glade.

…

Twilight had fallen over the sky, the screams continuing to fill the silent Glade. She had tried to fall asleep that night, but nothing was going to work. Even though she had taken the pins out, like she did every night, her neck was still stinging from the cuts. She wondered how she was going to get them treated without Clint or Jeff figuring out her secret.

She guessed she would just have to suffer through until it healed on its own.

"Leo?" Emil asked as he emerged from his sleeping bag. "You alright?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine. You can go back to sleep. Don't worry about me."

He went silent for a moment before he spoke again. "You know how I said I didn't like the Greenie?"

"You mean Thomas?" she asked. She assumed he nodded, even though she couldn't seem him clearly through the darkness.

"I've seen him…He's in my dreams…He's bad, very bad. Bad, bad, bad, bad…" He continued chanting, his voice gradually becoming softer as he started falling asleep, but even in his sleep he still continued to say the word "bad" over and over. She had no idea what was wrong with Emil and why he was acting this way, but she knew that she wouldn't be getting a good night's sleep in a while if he continued.

Day Sixty-Seven – Part One – The "Glade"

The next morning, all of the Keepers and Leo sat in their chairs, staring straight at Thomas. Alby was, of course, missing so Newt had to take his place as leader for the Gathering. Thomas looked anxious, sweating as he glanced at all of them. She had once been in that chair, the Keepers deciding her own fate, and now she had to do the same to Thomas.

"In place of our leader, sick in bed, I declare this Gathering begun," Newt said as he rolled his eyes. "As you all know, the last few days have been bloody crazy, and quite a bit seems centred around our Greenbean, Tommy, seated before us."

"He's not the Greenie anymore," Gally said. "He's just a rule breaker now."

Murmurs and whispers filled the room, but Newt quickly shushed them before they got any louder.

"It's not you turn to talk yet," Leo said as she folded her arms.

"Ain't yours either shuckface," Gally said with a glare.

"Gally, try and keep some bugging order, here," Newt said. "If you're gonna blabber your shuck mouth every time I say something, you can go ahead and bloody leave, because I'm not in a very cheerful mood."

Gally folded his arms, leaning back in his chair with a scowl.

"Glad we got that out of the way." He rolled his eyes again. "Reason we're here is because almost every loving kid in the Glade has come up to me in the last day or two either boohooing about Thomas or begging to take his bloody hand in marriage. We need to decide what we're going to do with him."

Gally leaned forward, ready to say something.

"You'll have your chance, Gally. One at a time. And Tommy, you're not allowed to say a bugging thing until we ask you to. Good that?"

Thomas nodded, reluctantly.

Newt pointed to the boy seated on the chair to the far right. "Zart the Fart, you start."

A few snickers went around the room, which only made Leo roll her eyes.

"Well," he began. "I don't know. He broke one of our most important rules. We can't just let people think that's okay." He paused as he looked down at his hands. "But then again, he's…changed things. Now we know we can survive out there, and that we can beat the Grievers."

"Oh, give me a break," Gally interrupted. "I bet Minho or even shucking Leo's the one who actually got rid of the stupid things."

"Is that an insult?" Leo asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Gally, shut your hole!" Newt yelled as he stood up. "I'm the bloody Chair right now, and if I hear one more bugging word out of turn from you, I'll be arranging another Banishing for your sorry butt."

"I don't see you telling him off," Gally said as he pointed over to Leo, scowling as he slouched in his chair.

"That's 'cause I haven't done anything wrong," she said back.

"Not a word," Newt said, pointing over at Gally. He sat back down, motioning to Zart. "Is that it? Any official recommendations?"

Zart shook his head.

"Okay. You're next, Frypan."

"Shanks got more guts than I've fried up from every pig and cow in the last year."

"Please don't say that," Leo said as she covered her mouth, trying not to gag at the thought.

"Sorry," he said, right before he continued. "How stupid is this – he saved Alby's life, kills a couple of Grievers, and we're sitting here yapping about what to do with him. As Chuck would say, this is a pile of klunk."

"So what're ya recommending?" Newt asked.

Frypan folded his arms. "Put him on the freaking Council and have him train us on everything he did out there."

She watched as Gally squirmed in his seat, trying to hold himself back from saying something, but he was failing. It took Newt half a minute to calm everyone else down as they all knew that Frypan had gone quite a bit overboard with his recommendation.

"All right, writing her down," Newt said as he scribbled it down onto the notepad. "Now, everyone keep their bloody mouths shut, I mean it. You know the rules – no idea's unacceptable – and you'll all have your say when we vote on it."

Newt then pointed to Edwin who was next in line.

"I don't really have an opinion," he said as he shrugged.

"What? Lot of good it did to choose you for the Council, then."

"Sorry, I honestly don't. If anything, I agree with Frypan, I guess. Why punish a guy or saving someone's life?"

"So, you do have an opinion – is that it?"

Edwin nodded as Newt scribbled it down again.

Next in line was Winston. "I think he should be punished. No offence, Greenie, but Newt, you're the one always harping about order. If we don't punish him, we'll set a bad example. We punished Leo for this, so why not him. He broke our Number One Rule."

"Okay," Newt said as he wrote it down. "So you're recommending punishment. What kind?"

"I think he should be put in the Slammer for a week with only bread and water – and we need to make sure everyone knows about it so they don't get any ideas."

Gally clapped, so happy that someone shared his opinion, which earnt him a glare from Newt.

Two more of the Keepers spoke their opinions, one of them agreeing with Frypan and the other agreeing with Winston.

"I agree with the lot of ya. He should be punished, but then we need to figure out a way to use him. I'm reserving my recommendation until I hear everyone out. Next."

Down the line everyone went, some thinking he should be rewarded and others thinking punishment. And then finally, it was down to the final three. Gally, Leo and Minho.

"I think I've made my opinions pretty clear already," Gally stated.

"Good that" Newt said, rolling his eyes. "Go, then, Leo."

"No! I still wanna say something!"

"Oh goodie, Captain Gally gets to deliver his famous hate speech," Leo said with a fake smile.

"No one said you could open your mouth, Pretty Boy!"

"Bloody say it already," Newt said.

"Just think about it. This slinthead comes up in the Box, acting all confused and scared. A few days later, he's running around the Maze with the Grievers, acting like he owns the place. Even Leo took at least a month before he caused trouble."

"Please stop bringing me into everything," Leo muttered.

"I think it was all an act. How could he have done what he did out there after just a few days? I ain't buying it."

"What're you trying to say, Gally?" Newt asked. "How 'bout having a bloody point?"

"I think he's a spy from the people who put us here."

The room went immediately into whispers and murmurs, creating an uproar between the Keepers. Newt was trying to calm everyone down once again.

"We can't trust this shank," Gally continued. "Day after he shows up, a psycho girl comes, spouting off that things are gonna change, clutching that freaky note. We find a dead Griever. Thomas conveniently finds himself in the Maze for the night, then tries to convince everyone he's a hero. Well, neither Minho nor anyone else saw him do anything in the vines. How do we know it was the Greenie who tied Alby up there?"

"I was there with him," Leo said, making the other Keepers stare. "He tied Alby up with the vines and did the same to himself, pushing himself and Alby up the wall. And all I could do was hide underneath the pile of vines he left behind." She turned to Gally, giving him a smirk. "Is that enough proof for ya?"

"But there's too many weird things going on, and it all started when this shuck-face Greenie showed up. And he just happens to be the first person to survive a night out in the Maze. Something ain't right and until we figure it out, I officially recommend that we lock his butt in the Slammer – for a month and then have another review."

More of the Keepers started talking as Newt wrote it down, shaking his head.

"Finished, Captain Gally?" Newt asked.

"Quit being such a smart aleck, Newt," he said, his face flushed red. "I'm dead serious. How can we trust this shank after less than a week? Quit voting me down before you even think about what I'm saying."

"He wrote it down like he did with everyone else," Leo said. "Not enough for you?"

"You too shank! How can we trust you? Weren't you the one who found Minho and Alby?"

"Your point?"

"How can we be sure you're not a spy? How can we trust you?"

"I wasn't aware this Gathering was about me. I didn't know the world suddenly revolved around only me. Leave me out of this," she said.

"Leo's not a spy. That's it," Newt said, giving Gally a glare. "Stop bringing him into all your bugging problems."

"There you go again. Voting me down because you don't like what I'm saying."

"Fine, Gally. I'm sorry. We heard you, and we'll all consider your bloody recommendation. Are you done?"

"Yes, I'm done. And I'm right."

"Not until you have proof," Leo muttered.

"My word's enough," he said which made her roll her eyes.

"Leo, go ahead," Newt said, holding his head.

"I was in that Maze with him the entire time. He had the brains to get Alby off the ground and somewhere safe away from the Grievers. And I was too busy panicking to do a damn thing. I was too weak…Then when they attacked, he was the first to move. He distracted them, saving both mine and Alby's lives. And I still couldn't do anything…As much as I might regret saying this, I say we make him a Runner."

Newt nodded as he wrote it down. Gally shook his head, rolling his eyes as he mouthed "can you believe this" over to Winston.

Newt pointed over at Minho. "Go ahead, last but not least."

Minho quickly stood up, taking the Keepers by surprise. "I was also out there; I saw what this guy did – he stayed strong while I turned into a panty-wearing chicken. No blabbing on and on like Gally. I want to say my recommendation and be done with it."

Thomas held his breath.

"Good that," Newt said. "Tells us, then."

Minho looked over at Thomas. "I nominate this shank to replace me as Keeper of the Runners."

Silence filled the room as all eyes were on Minho. Nobody could believe the words that had just come out of his mouth.

"That's ridiculous!" Gally shouted, standing up. He pointed at Minho who had sat back down. "He should be kicked off the Council for saying something so stupid."

"You're overreacting," Leo said to him.

Frypan started clapping as he drowned out Gally's cries of protest. Others, including Leo and Thomas didn't agree. Everyone had started talking, making Thomas hang is head in his hands as he waited for the noise to stop.

After what seemed like forever, Newt put down the notepad and screamed at everyone to shut up. He had to shout this many times before some bothered to listen.

"Shuck it," Newt said. "I've never seen so many shanks acting like teat-sucking babies. We may not look it, but around these parts we're adults. Act like it, or we'll disband this bloody Council and start from scratch."

He walked from end to end of the curved semi-circle of Keepers, staring each of them in the eye. He hesitated to leave Leo's glance as he gave her a slight which almost made her smile. "Are we clear?"

She nodded while the rest of the Keepers fell silent, giving their answer.

"Good that." He walked back over to his chair, sitting down as he put the notepad in his lap, scribbling down the recommendation before he looked back at Minho. "That's some pretty serious klunk, brother. Sorry, but you need to talk it up to move it forward."

"It's sure easy for you shanks to sit here and talk about something you're stupid on. Me and Leo are the only Runners in this group, and the only other one here who's even been out in the Maze is Newt."

Gally interrupted. "Not if you count the time I-"

"I don't! And believe me, you or nobody else has the slightest clue what it's like to be out there. The only reason you were stung is because you broke the same rule you're blaming Thomas for. That's called hypocrisy, you shuck-faced piece of-"

"Enough," Newt said. "Defend your proposal and be done with it."

"Anyway, listen to me. I've never seen anything like it. He didn't panic. He didn't whine and cry, never seemed scared. Dude, he'd been here for just a few days. Think about what we were all like in the beginning. Huddling in corners, disoriented, crying every hour, not trusting anybody, refusing to do anything, punching walls. We were all like that, for weeks or months, till we had no choice but to shuck it and live."

Minho pointed at Thomas. "Just a few days after this guy shows up, he steps out in the Maze to save three shanks he hardly knows. All this klunk about him breaking a rule is beyond stupid. He didn't get the rules yet. But plenty of people had told him what it's like in the Maze, especially at night. And he still stepped out there, just as the Door was closing, only caring that three people needed help."

He took a deep breath. "But that was just the beginning. After that, he saw me give up on Alby, leave him for dead. And I was the veteran – the one with all the experience and knowledge. So when Thomas saw me give up, he shouldn't have questioned it. But he did. Think about the willpower and strength it took him to push Alby up that wall, inch by inch without any help. It's psycho. It's freaking crazy.

"But that wasn't it. Then came the Grievers. I told Thomas we had to split up and I started the practiced evasive manoeuvres, running in the patterns. Thomas, when he should've been wettin' his pants, took control, defied all laws of physics and gravity to get Aly up onto that wall, diverted the Grievers away from him, beat one off, saved Leo's life, found-"

"We get the point," Gally snapped. "Tommy here is a lucky shank."

"No, you worthless shuck, you don't get it! I've been here two years, and I've never seen anything like it. For you to say anything…"

Minho paused, rubbing his eyes as he groaned in frustration. "Gally, you're nothing but a sissy who has never, not once, asked to be a Runner or tried out for it. You don't have the right to talk about things you don't understand. So shut your mouth."

Gally stood up. "Say one more thing like that and I'll break your neck, right here in front of everybody."

Minho laughed, raising a palm and shoving Gally in the face. Leo stood as she watched the Glader crash down into his chair, tipping it backwards and cracking it into two pieces. Gally sprawled across the floor, scrambling up to stand as he struggling to get to his hands and feet underneath him.

Minho stepped closer, stomping the bottom of his foot down on Gally's back. "I swear, Gally, don't ever threaten me again. Don't ever speak to me again. Ever. If you do, I'll break your shuck neck, right after I'm done with your arms and legs."

Newt, Winston and Leo grabbed Minho, pulling him away from Gally. Gally had jumped up, his face masked with rage. But, he didn't move towards Minho. He just stood there, breathing heavily.

Finally, Gally backed away, half stumbling toward the exit behind him. His eyes moved around the room, glaring with a burning hatred. He reached behind him to grab the handle on the door.

"Things are different now," he said as he spat on the floor. "You shouldn't have done that, Minho. You should not have done that." Then he turned to Leo. "You, you're weak. You shouldn't even be here. We should have left you in that Box to die instead of bringing you here."

His gaze then switched to Newt. "I know you hate me, that you've always hated me. Hated me even more when your boyfriend got a sharp tongue. You should be Banished for your embarrassing inability to lead this group. You're shameful, and any one of you who stays here is no better. Things are going to change. This, I promise."

He yanked the door open, stepping out into the hall. "And you," he said, glaring at Thomas, "the Greenbean who thinks he's friggin' God. Don't forget I've seen you before – I've been through the Changing. What these guys decide doesn't mean jack."

He paused, looking at everyone in the room. Then, he went back to Thomas. 'Whatever you came here for – I swear on my life I'm gonna stop it. Kill you if I have to."

Then, he turned and left the room, slamming the door.

Leo was ready to kill Gally right then and there. Insulting her was one thing, but insulting Newt was another. No way was she gonna stand for that. But, her thoughts for revenge were stopped when Newt grabbed her arm, shaking his head.

She stared at him, sighing before he let go of her arm.

"He's finally whacked for good," Minho said quietly.

"Well, you're not the bloody saint in the room," Newt said. "What were you thinking? That was a little overboard, don't ya think?"

"Don't give me that garbage. Every one of you loved seeing that slinthead get his dues, and you know it. It's about time someone stood up to his klunk."

"He's on the Council for a reason."

"Dude, he threatened to break my neck, kill Thomas and Leo! This guy is mentally whacked, and you better send someone right now to throw him in the Slammer. He's dangerous."

"Maybe he has a good point," Winston said.

"What?" Minho asked.

"Well…he has been through the Changing – Griever stung him in the middle of the day just outside the West Door. That means he has memories, and he said the Greenie looks familiar. Why would he make that up?"

"That's three people," Leo muttered, which caused Newt to raise an eyebrow. Though no one else seemed to hear.

"Winston, did you see what just happened?" Frypan asked. "Gally's psycho. You can't put too much stock in his rambling nonsense. What, you think Thomas here is a Griever in disguise?"

"Can I say something now?" Thomas asked, frustrated. "I'm sick of you guys talking about me like I'm not here."

Newt glanced at him and nodded. "Go ahead. This bloody meetin' can't be much more screwed up."

"I don't know why Gally hates me. I don't care. He seems psychotic to me. As for who I really am, you all know just as much as I do. But if I remember correctly, we're here because of what I did out in the Maze, not because some idiot thinks I'm evil."

Someone snickered, and Thomas stopped talking.

Newt nodded. "Good that. Let's get this meeting over with and worry about Gally later."

"We can't vote without all the members here," Winston insisted. "Unless they're really sick, like Alby."

"Does being mentally ill count?" Leo whispered to Minho, who snickered.

"For the love, Winston," Newt replied. "I'd say Gally's a wee bit ill today, too, so we continue without him. Thomas, defend yourself and then we'll take the vote on what we should do with you."

"I didn't do anything wrong. All I know is I saw three people struggling to get inside these walls and they couldn't make it. To ignore that because of some stupid rule seemed selfish, cowardly, and…well, stupid. If you want to throw me in jail, like you did with Leo, for trying to save someone's life, then go ahead. Next time, I promise I'll point at them and laugh, then go eat some of Frypan's dinner."

"Here's my recommendation," Newt said. "You broke our bloody Number One Rule, so you get one day in the Slammer. That's your punishment. I also recommend we elect you as Runner, effective the second this meet's over. You've proven more in one night than most trainees do in weeks. As for you being the buggin' Keeper, forget it."

He looked at Minho. "Gally was right on that count – stupid idea."

"Why? He's the best we have – I swear it. The best should be the Keeper."

"Fine," Newt responded. "If that's true, we'll make the change later. Give it a month and see if he proves himself."

Minho shrugged. "Good that."

Newt glanced around the room. "Okay, we had several recommendations, so let's give it a go-round-"

"Oh, come on," Frypan said. "Just vote. I vote for yours."

"Me too," Minho said.

"Me three," Leo said.

Everyone else in the room gave their approval. Winston was the only one who said no.

Newt looked at him. "We don't need your vote, but tell us what's bonkin' around your brain."

Winston looked at Thomas, then back to Newt. "It's fine with me, but we shouldn't totally ignore what Gally said. Something about it – I don't think he just made it up. And it's true that ever since Thomas got here, everything's been shucked and screwy."

"Fair enough," Newt said. "Everyone put some thought into it – maybe when we get right nice and bored we can another Gathering to talk about it. Good that?"

Winston nodded.

Thomas groaned. "I love how you guys are just talking about me like I'm not here."

"Look, Tommy," Newt said. "We just elected you as a buggin' Runner. Quit your cryin' and get out of here. Minho has a lot of training to give you."

"I wish I had this nice a treatment," Leo said, referring to how cold Alby had been about her punishment.

"What about my punishment?" Thomas asked.

"Tomorrow," Newt answered. "The wake-up till sunset."

The meeting was finally dismissed and everyone expect Newt, Minho and Leo left the room in a hurry. Newt was still writing notes down. "Well, that was good times," he muttered.

Minho walked over and playfully punched Thomas in the arm. "It's all this shank's fault."

Thomas punched him back. "Keeper? You want me to be Keeper? You're nuttier than Gally be a long shot."

Minho faked an evil grin. "Worked, didn't it? Aim high, hit low. Thank me later."

"You couldn't do this for me?" Leo asked.

"Well, if I'd known you were a girl, I would have made you my personal assistant," Minho said.

"Good thing you didn't figure it out huh?" she asked with a smirk.

A knock on the door got their attention. It was Chuck standing there, huffing and puffing, the colour drained from his face.

"What's wrong?" Newt asked, standing up.

"Med Jacks sent me."

"Why?"

"I guess Alby's trashing around and acting all crazy, telling them he needs to talk to somebody."

Newt started walking to the door, but Chuck held up his hand. "Um…he doesn't want you."

"What do you mean?"

Chuck pointed at Thomas. "He keeps asking for him."