Author's note~ Hope you enjoy.

"Might as well get comfortable. I'm not going anywhere at the moment, and, if I'm any kind of judge, you'll be wanting to give me the full Spanish Inquisition. Fire away."

"You said that you remember your life before, you remember everything that happened to you before you came up in the box." Alby stated.

"Yes, I did, and yes, I do."

"Who sent you here? Who sent US here?"

A deep sigh. "I honestly couldn't say."

"Why did they put us here?"

"Couldn't say."

"Are they punishing us, watching us? What do they want from us?"

"I Couldn't-"

"If you say that one more time, I swear I'm going to punch you in your shuck face!" Alby exploded. "If you remember, you should at least have SOME answers! Don't lie to me! Who put us here?! How do we get out?!"

"Look," Adrian said evenly, his chilly tone a sharp contrast to Alby's angrily demanding questions. "I can't very well give you information I don't have. Trust me, if I knew how to get out of this place, I'd tell you in a heartbeat. No one deserves to be locked in here like a rat in a trap. As to the people behind this whole fucking mess, the whos whats and whys, I just can't give you the answers you're looking for. I'm sorry."

A long moment of cold tension passed between them.

"Well, what do you know then? You said you knew why you were sent here."

"I said I have a pretty good idea," Corrected Adrian. "Most of my life, I've been a researcher. I retain knowledge really well, I have an eidetic memory. One of my favorite topics has always been the evolution of early man. I've read hundreds of texts on that subject alone. Utilizing botanicals, crafting tools, building shelters. I've always been fascinated by primitive peoples; their innovations and inventions are what eventually built the world we live in today..." Adrian trailed off, noting the unfocused look in Alby's eyes. He tried to simplify. "Survival skills, medicine, building shelters. I have a vast wealth of knowledge that can and will make life here better for all of you."

"Why would...they...send someone to help us? Why now? Why you?"

"They, for lack of a better term, must think that you guys are struggling to survive here. Apparently, they want to try to keep you alive and healthy for the foreseeable future. Tell me, how many people have been sent here all together?"

Alby sighed, resignation on his face. "The first sent here were in a group of 30. I was in that group. Then there were a couple of months where they sent up two or, rarely, three boys a week. Then it settled down to once a month with our supplies ever since. Not counting you, there have been 65 guys put here."

Adrian let out a low whistle; that was a lot of boys. "How many do you have out there right now?"

"There's 39 of us left."

Adrian winced, letting out a pained breath. "You lost more than a third of your population in, let me see here...about 18 months? That's a ridiculously high mortality rate. No wonder they sent me up here, they're obviously hoping to reduce that percent, have a better survival rate."

"So, what, they sent you to us to keep us alive? Why would they do that?"

Adrian took his time, considering his answer. Studying the boy across from him, he could see suspicion, disbelief and...was it a glimmer of hope? He thought about the rest of the boys in the camp site, 38 others who were probably just as nervous, just as desperate for answers as their leader must be. He knew that he'd have to tread carefully; hope was a dangerously fragile thing. One wrong move and he could crush it like glass, leaving the camp in a depressive - and dangerous - place.

"I can't guess as to the reasoning of those who sent us up here. All I can say is that I'm here now, so let's make the most of this opportunity. I believe I can help out a great deal, here. As for the rest? Let's take it a day at a time."

Alby's head dipped, his frustration and disappointment clear. Adrian clapped a hand to the young man's shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"I'm sure the answers will come, sooner or later. For now? Let's get to work. I'm going to need some information about how things work around here, what works, what doesn't. We'll make things better around here for everyone, and take everything else as it comes. A day at a time, man. Keep the faith."

Newt peeled off from the other runners as soon as they stepped out of the maze, intentionally separating himself from the others. Late afternoon sun shone on the glade, highlighting the vibrant green of the grass, the quiet beauty of the trees, the peace of the afternoon. Newt couldn't see any of it; he was too wrapped up in his own dark thoughts. He trudged along aimlessly, hands stuffed in his pocket and a scowl on his face.

Stone walls and ivy. Stone walls and ivy. Bloody stone walls and bloody buggering ivy. Every corridor, every junction, all the same. No matter how hard, how long we run, there never seems to be an end to the maze, it's just too shucking huge. Not even a glimmer, a hint of something that could lead to a way out. Every day, just the same thing every day. Stone walls and ivy. And no way out in sight.

His mood was further soured but his lack of rest the night before; he'd gone to bed early, but hadn't slept well. He tossed and turned for quite some time, and when he finally managed to drift off? His sleep was interrupted by disturbing and frightening dreams, dreams he couldn't quite remember when he was awake. Twice he'd woken up in a cold panic sweat, his heart thrumming like thunder. He probably hadn't gotten more than two or three hours of sleep, total, and he was definitely feeling it now. He rather desperately wanted to find a quiet place to sit; a chance to take some alone time to turn his brain off and just recharge. He didn't think that was really so much to ask for.

Voices greeted him as he walked, boys waved, but Newt kept walking, not feeling up to friendly conversation at the moment. He could always be counted on to lend a hand, offer a shoulder, chip in a smart-ass sarcastic comment to cut the tension of an argument, pitch in a bit of logic that caused a frustrated glader to look at things in a different way. He helped keep the glade united, focused, productive. By running, he helped the other boys keep their tenuous grip on hope; hope that somehow, some day they might just be able to make it out.

He wished he could find a way to see a little bit of bloody hope, himself.

Oblivious to his surroundings, Newt all but walked into Alby as he was passing in front of the supply hut. Alby held out a hand to steady the slender boy, his other arm occupied with a bundle of fabric.

"Oh, hey Newt, welcome back. Any progress?"

"...Still looking, Alby. Still looking."

"Ah, yeah. Okay. Hey, listen," Alby said, distracted. He looked a little frazzled, and considerably harried. "I've been talking with our new greenie for most of the day, getting some information, ideas...I told him I'd bring him some fresh clothes, but there's a couple of guys I really want to talk to about some of this. Can you take them over to him? He's getting better, but we probably shouldn't leave him alone for too long, at least until he's back on his feet, and Jeff's still down for the count."

Newt sighed inwardly, trying not to feel too put out at the request. He usually didn't mind babysitting a greenie, but he was bitterly disappointed that his quiet time was falling by the wayside because of it. He couldn't refuse Alby, though. His shorter, darker friend was trying to do the best he could in the leadership position he hadn't really wanted to begin with. Ever since they had lost their last leader, Nick, a couple of months ago, Alby had been pretty much forced into the job. Knowing how hard Alby tried, how he worked tirelessly to keep things working smoothly in the glade, how could Newt refuse? He nodded and took the bundle of clothes, changing his course and heading toward the med hut.

Struggling not to take out his frustration on an innocent party, Newt tried to force some cheer into his voice as he walked into the familiar building.

"Hey greenie, got a delivery for you. Hopefully they fit..."

Silence. The med hut was empty.

With more irritation than concern, Newt moved through the room, calling Adrian's name. A small pile of used bandages were sitting on his unoccupied bunk, and, on closer inspection, something had been scratched into the dirt floor in front of the bunk.

- BIAB -

l====)o

"What the bloody hell is that supposed to mean?!"

With the clothes tucked forgotten under his arm, Newt sprinted out of the hut, looking around in a flash. He didn't really want to think about the response from Alby and Jeff if he didn't find the greenie, and quickly. He could all but hear it now.

Oh sure, they've been keeping an eye on him for a full day and a night, no problem. Newt lost him in five minutes flat. Good show, Newt.

Trying to think, Newt closed his eyes and pictured the scratchy message in his head. The weird little design below the letters, it looked a little like...an arrow maybe? Newt opened his eyes and started walking briskly in the same direction the arrow had pointed. The guy was still injured, he certainly couldn't have gotten all that far. In only moments, Newt came to the scrubby underbrush lining the bank of the small creek, right where it joined the pool. He saw a patch of dug up earth and, with considerable relief, the torn, bloody pants hanging from a low thin branch. Mild panic fading, he reached out an arm and pushed aside the tangled branches, fully pissed now and prepared to snarl at the slinthead for buggering off without letting anyone know before hand.

Adrian was just ducking his head under the water of the pond when Newt spotted him. When he came up, he swam slowly over to a large stone that protruded from the water. He picked up something wet and dripping from the rock, lathering it into his hair with one hand and supporting himself with the other. Then he turned and slipped back beneath the surface of the water. Surfacing once more, he laid both hands on the rock and lifted himself out of the water, swiveling his body to sit firmly on the uneven stone surface. Tilting his head up so that the sun hit his face, Adrian closed his eyes and heaved a deep sigh of contentment.

Newt wasn't exactly sure what to do next, his angry words dieing on his tongue. The guy seemed to be vastly improved, and was obviously self-sufficient enough to manage a swim in shallow water on his own. He looked to be really enjoying his stolen moment of solitude, basking in the warm sun and cool water. Maybe he'd just take a short walk, enjoy a bit of alone time himself. Now that he knew where the greenie was, he could come back and collect him in-

"You can either come out and join me or piss off and walk away, but don't just stand there like a peeping tom. It's irritating as all hell."

Author's note~ A bit of a breather for our guys before we get to harder times.

~Ruby