Jest Valencia, 18
District 5, He/Him
June 11th, 97 ADD
12:14 PM
Jest was not looking forward to today.
Even though there were no issues spying on the Cornucopia, yesterday had been stressful enough. Despite his concerns, neither Jest nor True had to intervene at all while Jude spied - and while he hadn't thrown a single punch, Jest had spent most of the afternoon with his heart racing.
But today, he would not be so lucky. Today, they would take the Cornucopia for themselves.
Or, at least, they would try to.
Each of them had been put in pairs to attack together. He'd been put with Tomo, leaving Jem with Chevre and True with Wisdom. It had been unanimous that Jude would not be part of the initial attack at all- they would hang back and keep tabs on which way any remaining Careers went. After the fight, True would go get him and bring them back to the rest. Jest was glad he didn't have to worry about the kid getting hurt; there was enough to worry about today.
You're gonna go out there today and show Jiddana you meant it- you're going home soon, he told himself.
(Hopefully, not in a body bag just yet.)
And show everyone else what you're made of.
(He'd been psyching himself up for this for days now. The old Jest had to come back, and he had to be far worse than he'd ever been. It didn't matter that the old Jest was the one Jori had hated. Jori was gone- he didn't get to tell Jest how to live anymore. The old Jest wasn't enough to save Jori, but maybe he could be enough to save himself.
Not like he had any other options now.)
As they packed up their camp that morning, Jest found himself working alongside Chevre. He glanced at others, making sure they were too far to listen before he spoke. "You nervous about today?"
Chevre exhaled. "I mean… yes. It would be dumb not to be. But I think we have as good a chance now as we'll ever have, and we need to take it."
"Right," he mumbled.
She gave him a sidelong glance. "Are you?"
He hesitated, then nodded. "I, uh… I don't like hurting people. But."
"But," she agreed.
"But it's all I'm good at," he mumbled. "So might as well use it now."
She tilted her head. "That can't be true. That's all you're good at?"
"Oh, yeah," he said, his face getting hot. "My brother, uh, he used to hate me for it. He was right, though."
"'Used to?'" she asked.
Jest ducked his head. "Yeah."
"Oh," she said. "I'm sorry, Jest."
He shrugged.
"Siblings are tough sometimes," she said. "I've got three."
"I've got one now," he said.
"Older or younger?"
"Younger," he replied, "and she's got a kid of her own, too. My niece."
"Right. I remember now," she said. "They're lucky to have you."
He sighed. "Thanks."
"And for what it's worth," she continued, "you're good at plenty of things. You built a good fire yesterday, and you helped Jude, and I've seen you do other stuff too."
The warmth in his cheeks spread to his ears. "Oh. Um."
She gave him a small smile. "You're not so bad, Jest. Don't beat yourself up before the Careers do."
Jest gave a short, strained laugh. "Sure."
Her smile widened, and somehow, despite everything, Jest found himself returning it.
Jest leaned his head against a wooden wall, waiting. Tucked next to him in the alley was Tomo, his breathing shallow and uneven.
"Tomo," he whispered. "Calm down."
Tomo looked at him, wide-eyed and pale. "That doesn't seem possible right now."
"You won't run off on me, right?" Jest whispered.
Tomo took another deep, shuddering breath. "No. I won't. I promise."
Jest nodded, reassured by this. It was something he'd been quietly worrying about since being put with Tomo. "All you have to do is help me," he whispered. "I, um, I know you're not a big fighter. Just help me where you can, even if it's just distracting them or something. Just, um. Don't leave."
The tension in Tomo's brow eased as he watched Jest carefully. Jest could've sworn he saw Tomo's brain putting the pieces together of what he was asking. "I didn't think you were scared too."
"It'd be dumb not to be," Jest said, his conversation with Chevre still fresh in his head. "But, um… yeah."
Tomo nodded. "I won't leave."
"Good."
Jest picked his head off the wall, dread curling in his gut. It wouldn't be long now. Wisdom and True would be sneaking up soon, with that awful fucking thing Wisdom had made from the sponsorship gifts they'd requested, and then-
A shattering of glass. A thud. A door slammed open, and footsteps pounded against the dirt. Someone was coughing themself miserable, and a long whistle rang through the air.
Jest grabbed Tomo's arm. "Time to go."
He didn't wait for confirmation. Jest ran toward the Cornucopia, the curl of his fingers into fists achingly familiar.
This was what Jest was good at. He hoped Jiddana would understand.
Invincible Gaultier, 18
District 1, They/Them
2:03 PM
As soon as Vince saw the window shatter, they reached for their spear. It wasn't until their eyes and chest started burning that they understood what was happening. They wanted to hold their breath, but they couldn't stop fucking coughing, and every cough only made their lungs burn even more. They stumbled to the door and slammed it open, kicking the canister out into the open so it could spew yellow-green gas into the open air instead of Vince and all the supplies. Then they paced around to the other side and started coughing harder, tears sliding down their cheeks as they tried to flush whatever the fuck that was out of their eyes.
Somehow, despite it all, they could make out footsteps pounding against dirt. Vince used their spear to drag themself up, wiping their eyes furiously.
"Who-" they coughed- "the fuck-" another cough- "is there!"
They wiped their left eye again just in time to see two boys running up the nearest street into town. One of them Vince recognized- Mercury's little friend. The other was the burly tattooed one from whatever district. Didn't matter. Vince wasn't stupid- they figured out what was happening now.
A fucking siege.
"Aveline!" they hacked. Vince had been left alone to guard the Cornucopia, but their shift was nearly up- the others would be back soon, had to be. Get the fuck back here, Vince thought, their throat burning too much to get their panic out properly.
Because Vince could hear more footsteps.
Vince twirled their spear, shoulders hunched, as the two boys closed in on them. They inched to the side, unwilling to be cornered like a damn animal. As soon as the shorter boy, Five, got close, they swiped out at him. Five leaped back just in time, his gaze wary but focused.
"Back," Vince spat. They wished they could make the tears stop pouring down their face. "Back!"
Six started circling around the other side, and Vince stabbed at him. Their vision was too blurry to land a hit, but Six shrank back anyway, shaking like a leaf. Five lunged at them again, starting high and then ducking low, slipping past Vince's outstretched spear and socking them in the ribs. Vince choked and swung the spear back towards Five, thwacking him in the shoulder. Five winced, but drew back and pulled his fists back up.
Shit. "Leave," Vince wheezed. "You're-" they coughed- "not getting our shit."
"Mercury said it would be hard to fight you," Six said, his fists hanging limply by his sides. "But-"
"Mercury?" Vince coughed, astonished. "You're- you're fucking-"
Five took advantage of the distraction, leaping forward and slamming his fist into Vince's temple. Vince's head snapped back, their ears ringing.
("You have a good ear, love," their mother smiled. "Nearly perfect pitch. If we take care of it and practice, you could become an even better violinist than me.")
Vince screamed, their hands curling around the spear and lashing out. Once, no, twice, no, not now, not her, three times, she's not your mother anymore you're not her son not his son either I'll never be anyone's son ever again-
"Jest!" Six shouted. Vince drew back, panting, their eyes still blurry but not so much that they couldn't make out the red hole on Five's leg. They smiled and spat, ignoring how pink their spit was, and lunged at Six. Six shrieked and skipped back, and Vince shifted back to Five, flipping the spear to whip him in the head with it. Five ducked, and Vince came around lower, landing the shaft of the spear on Five's arm with a crack. Five cried out. Vince thought he would pull back, retreat, and so was caught off guard when Five instead leaned in and pounded his fists into their chin, their eye-
"Vince!" someone shrieked. Vince knew that voice. "Brizo has the ones on the far side, I'll get those other two- just hold on-"
Vince groaned and staggered back, pulling one hand to their eye and glaring at Five from the other blurry one. "How many?" they shouted.
"At least six!" Aveline answered.
They wanted to swear again but fuck their throat hurt. Instead, they coughed again, swinging the spear at Five and forcing him to sidestep.
"I'll be right there," Aveline yelled. "Just hold on!"
Vince had half a mind to scoff, but then Five was moving again, and Vince stabbed at his leg again, but Five was quicker than that. Six came in closer, trying to shove them, and Vince slashed out, tearing through the sleeve of Six's upper arm. Six cried out and shrank back again.
Vince twirled their spear, ready to drag this standstill out as long as they needed.
(And no more slips. No more thoughts of shattered violins or silent houses.
Invincible Gaultier was here to put on a show, dammit. And it was their show. If there was one thing Father and Mother had taught them, it was how to demand a fucking spotlight.)
Vince gave Five and Six a grim smile. "C'mon, fuckers. Try me again."
Bastet Avarne, 18
District 2, She/They
2:11 PM
She and Tiss were on their way back to the Cornucopia when they heard shouting. Bastet broke out in a run, Tiss matching their pace, and it only took them a few minutes to make it back.
The scene in front of her was like the Bloodbath all over again.
Vince was being circled by two boys, their shoulders hunched and their cheeks shining. Something was wrong with them, but they were smiling and both of the boys were bleeding, so things couldn't be going too badly just yet.
Behind the Cornucopia was where the bulk of the noise was coming from. Another shout rang out, and Bastet identified it as Brizo's. Tiss ran off towards the sound.
And there, a few steps ahead and just off to the side, was Aveline.
If they were in any less danger, Bastet could've stood there and watched all day. If there was one thing Aveline knew how to do, it was wield a claymore. Both the tributes she was facing were having a hard time getting anywhere near her so long as that giant sword was in her hand. But that wasn't stopping either tribute from trying, so Bastet advanced, spinning a blade in each hand.
Aveline swung low, panting, and one of the tributes- the tall, lanky boy- dove out of the way. "Bastet!" she shouted, her eyes lighting up. "You're here!"
Bastet responded by whipping a knife towards the small blonde girl, who disappeared around the corner of the Cornucopia just in time.
"Just like old times," Aveline grinned.
(Bastet remembered. When the riots got out of control in Two last year, Aveline had followed her into the violence, just like this.
That was what their whole life together had been, really. Violence.
But it was nice to fight together again. Bastet could admit that much.)
The tall boy, Nine, made a move towards Aveline again. Bastet could see the long-bladed dagger in his hand now, and she didn't like it one bit. She threw another knife towards him, forcing him to dip out of the way and abandon his attack.
He glared at Bastet. "Mercury did say you were a piece of work."
This was enough to give Bastet pause. "What?"
He sidestepped Aveline's claymore again- Aveline was quicker with it than more, but the weapon was heavy. It didn't hit often, but when it did, it was lethal. Nine's mouth thinned into a straight line. "Mercury? Your district partner?"
"I know who he is," Bastet snapped, starting to circle around to his other side. She wanted to finish off that small blonde girl quickly, maybe distract him long enough that Aveline could kill him.
"Had a good talk with him yesterday," Nine said, his eyes glittering with a mischief that Bastet did not like. "He sends his well-wishes."
"Shut up," Bastet demanded.
"You talked to Mercury?" Aveline asked.
He nodded, narrowly avoiding another knife from Bastet. "Actually, he kinda doesn't send any well-wishes at all. I think he said something like 'get 'em good-'"
Aveline frowned and slashed low, right around Nine's knee, and he dipped out of the way. Slippery fucking outlier. Bastet took the chance to step to the side and find her clear line of sight, yanking another knife from her belt to throw right where the small blonde girl was hiding-
-but she wasn't there.
"Bastet!" Aveline shrieked.
Bastet turned on instinct. The blonde girl was behind her and running towards them, a long, jagged piece of glass in her hand. Bastet's hand tensed as she took aim- this would be no trouble at all, getting rid of a weak little outlier who should've died on day one.
And then there was the cool kiss of metal on their back, shallow and delicate-
"Bastet!"
A hand on her shoulder, firm and sure, shoving them down. Bastet sprawled face-down against the dirt, humiliation rising in their throat as they fumbled for another knife. She twisted until they could see sky.
Until she could see Aveline standing over her, frozen.
Until the dagger that was meant for Bastet was pulled from Aveline's gut, making something hot and red splatter across Bastet's face.
Bastet screamed, stabbing into Nine's calf with her throwing knife. Nine howled and fell back, the horror on his face nothing compared to Bastet's anguish, no, no this wasn't happening, this couldn't-
(not again, please-)
Aveline swayed on her feet. She looked down at Bastet, her eyelids fluttering. "Oh," she murmured, and collapsed. It was all Bastet could do to try to catch her, to cushion her fall, oh, Aveline-
From the corner of her eye, she saw that same blonde girl trying to get close. "Get away!" Bastet screamed. "I'll fucking kill you!" She whipped a knife out again, but it went wide. They didn't care. They'd kill both of them, Bastet would kill all of them in the end-
Aveline drew in a ragged breath, staring up at Bastet with a smile.
"Why are you fucking smiling?" Bastet demanded. They pulled her into their lap, trying to keep her head off the ground.
"B-because I- I saved you," Aveline murmured. She reached up towards Bastet's face, tucking a rebellious curl back behind their ear. "L-like a… a h-hero."
"You're not a hero," Bastet pleaded. "You're a kid, you don't need to be a hero, Ave, oh god, stop doing that-"
Her eyelashes were fluttering again. Aveline's smile trembled. "W-wanted to b-be. For y-you. No m-more com-competing."
"Stop it," Bastet said, "you're not- you don't get to leave again."
"I h-have to," Aveline said, her breathing shallowing. "Y-you can win. Don't n-need m-me. Never h-have."
"No," Bastet begged, "come on, Ave, stop it, this isn't fair, I don't want you to leave, come on, please, I- I can't-"
Aveline's hand shook violently as she cupped Bastet's cheek. Bastet didn't know when they had started crying. "I love y-you," Aveline whispered.
Bastet clasped Aveline's hand. "Stay," she pleaded.
Aveline's eyes lit up. That dumb smile of hers spread from ear to ear, making her freckles crease around her eyes. "You love m-me that m-much?"
Bastet nodded.
"Then so be it," Aveline whispered.
Her warm brown eyes went cold. Her hand went slack.
And Bastet screamed so loud they couldn't hear the cannon firing.
True McKellar, 18
District 8, She/Her
2:14 PM
True was convinced the Four boy was some kind of demon.
The plan had gone well at first- True shattered one of the General Store's windows with a rock, and Wisdom had thrown in his toxic glass thing right after. It worked in getting the guard out, but now this other one had come out of nowhere.
It wasn't so much that he was a great fighter, it was that he was relentless. True wasn't used to having to be so fast. Everywhere she turned, there he was again, and it was all she could do to stay out of the way of his sword. Sometimes, though, that wasn't even enough; Four had cut her arm badly, and it was starting to slow her down.
And then the Four girl showed up.
"Wisdom," True panted, narrowly diving out of the way of another swing from the Four boy. "Wisdom!"
She couldn't spare enough of her attention to look at him, but a few seconds later something was hurtling towards the Four girl. The girl shrieked and fell back as one of Wisdom's acids splashed across her chest, soaking into the cloth of her shirt. Screaming, she clawed at the buttons, trying to get it off her skin.
The Four boy turned toward her, his mouth falling open, and True took her chance to dart forward, socking him in the chin. Then, True drove her elbow into the old wound in his shoulder, which she'd been aiming for and he'd been keeping her from since the fight started. Four howled with pain, and True started to pull away, where's the sword now, where is it coming from-
-and then he slammed the blade of the sword into her back like a hammer. True screamed, her back arching, trying to stagger away from him, she needed to get away, but then he did it again and she could've sworn he hit bone.
"Wisdom!" she screamed. The Four boy lifted the sword again, and True shoved at his shoulder wound again, forcing him to stumble back. After a few steps, he regained his balance and leveled the tip of the sword at her again with a sneer. Behind him, the Four girl had finally torn her shirt away. True could already see the skin on her upper chest blistering, and might have winced with sympathy if this wasn't a fucking Career.
The nearest door to the Cornucopia slammed behind her.
True's jaw dropped. "Wisdom?" she called, not daring to turn her head to search for him. Did he fucking leave?
"I just- let me find-" he shouted, frantic. She couldn't make out the rest of what he said from outside the Cornucopia.
Her shock turned to desperation as the Four boy started swinging again. True was forced to dive to the side, narrowly avoiding his attacks. He advanced toward her, his teeth bared, and as he tried to slam his blade into True's skull, she went low. She tucked and rolled, lashing out at his shins with her foot.
He screeched, and True kept rolling, kicking out again at the backs of his knees; his legs buckled, and True scrambled back to her feet. She wanted to punch him in the back of the head, but he was quicker than that, whirling around and slicing through the air with that fucking sword again. True wasn't fast enough this time, and he cut into her chest, dragging the blade tip down her sternum. "No!" True cried, buckling over.
Where the fuck is Wisdom?
She saw the Four girl swinging her spear around, and True fell to her knees, tucking her head and just barely avoiding it. True was dizzy and she was bleeding, fuck, she was bleeding a lot, where the fuck is Wisdom- "Wisdom!" she screamed. "Jem! Jest!"
A shadow loomed over her. She looked back up, and the look on the Four boy's face made her want to vomit. True McKellar had been a fighter all her life, but not one like him, not one who took some kind of sick pleasure in causing this. She had always fought for her family because she loved them so much she'd tear Eight apart if it kept them safe. Not because she loved pain.
The Four boy drove his sword into her right shoulder. True screamed, her vision clouded with blotchy patches of red. Only once she was done screaming did a wicked smile curve across his lips. "Oh, look," he said. "We match."
"You're sick," True spat.
"No, I'm not," Four snarled, "I'm- I'm-"
He didn't bother finishing the thought. Instead, he drove his elbow into True's newly-bleeding shoulder, making more splotches fill her eyes, like when she would look at the sun a few seconds too long on those few days when it managed to peek through Eight's smoggy skies. True slumped forward, barely up on her knees anymore. The boy took another shot at her chest, then her other shoulder, even arcing up and onto her back once-
"Brizo," said another voice. True vaguely thought it could be the Four girl's, but she was too consumed by her own dizziness to care. "Brizo, come on-"
"She deserves it," the boy snapped. "Coming here, trying to take what's ours, trying to humiliate me-"
"You- don't you think this, this is enough, you've shown her plenty-"
The sword ripped into her back again, and True groaned.
"Stop!"
True crumbled to the ground, making her arm, her shoulders, her back gush with fresh blood. She was sticky and her body burned and she could feel the bruising starting on her knuckles, and maybe if she could just get inside the Cornucopia, this would end. The Fours kept arguing above her, and she took a chance. She clawed at the dirt, trying to drag herself toward the door. She cried out as her wounds protested, but she couldn't give into them, she would survive this- she was True McKellar, dammit-
"That's right," she muttered to herself. "C'mon." She heaved herself forward, her vision swimming again with those red splotches, fresh pain ripping across her torso. "C'mon," she demanded, "keep going, that's right-"
The door slammed open, and True craned her neck upwards, trying to see clearly. She caught a brief glimpse of Wisdom, finally, his face drawn. Something glinted in his hand, and she heard glass shattering. He looked down at her and grimaced, but then smoke filled her eyes and she couldn't see anything at all.
She dug her nails into the dirt and pulled herself forward again. Again. Again. She could make it still, the door was open now, someone would help her up. A few more feet and she'd reach help, but…
She had to stop for a moment, resting on her scraped elbows, to catch her breath. Just one more second. She just… she just needed to catch… her breath.
True looked up, the smoke curling around the wind. She couldn't see the sun. A bitter grin twisted her lips; just like home, she thought. God, she wanted to go home.
And then, for a second, she could see it. A beam of light parting through the haze.
Then the smoke returned, and True McKellar couldn't see anything at all.
Jude Finnegan, 12
District 8, He/They
8:37 PM
Night fell, and Jude Finnegan didn't move an inch. Not when he heard footsteps, not when they heard screaming, not when there was cannon fire, and not when there were more footsteps running out of town, accompanied by swearing and arguing. He didn't even move when the anthem played.
No, Jude would be a good ally and follow the plan. He would wait right here, sitting on the bed in their old single-story abandoned house, and wait for True to come get him. She would come back and do the special knock, and then she and Jude would sneak through the streets back to the rest of their allies, just like they'd done with Jest the day before.
He squeezed his eyes shut. It had been a long time since they'd left him in their hiding spot. Jude didn't want to think about what could have happened to his friends- he already had enough speculation from his dreams. But just as their mind started to wander towards the possibilities-
(-what if someone got hurt, the Careers are really good with weapons, they could've hurt someone really badly, maybe even enough that they-)
-they heard it.
The special knock.
Jude leapt off the bed and opened the door. Sure enough, True was standing right there.
"True!" they said. "Are you okay?"
True had a bandage on one shoulder, and her clothes were torn and stained a dark reddish-brown, but she gave him a weary smile. "I'm okay," she said. "C'mon. Let's get back to the others, 'kay?"
"Okay," Jude nodded. "Did it work? You guys chased the Careers away?"
True started walking back down the hall, her long braids swinging. Jude followed. "We did," she told them. "It was a hard fight, but we got 'em."
Jude sighed with relief. "That's really good news."
They walked out the front door and started making their way up the street together. "What happens now?" Jude asked. "Since the plan worked?"
True exhaled. "I don't know," she replied. "I guess Jem and Chevre will have some ideas. But for now, we'll keep watch and sleep. We could use it."
Jude nodded. "Okay."
"And they left most of their stuff, so that's good," True said. "Won't have to worry about food for a bit."
"You guys did a really good job," Jude told her. "I knew you would."
The ghost of a smile flickered across True's lips. "Thanks, bud," she said. "Wouldn't have happened without you. Knowing their patrol schedule helped a lot."
Jude looked at their feet. "Thanks, True."
"'Course," she answered.
They were silent for a while, weaving their way through the ghost town streets. As they turned a corner, Jude saw one of the ghosts- a short girl with curly black hair and a book held tightly against her chest- skip past them and disappear.
"You know," Jude said, watching the ghost girl go, "when I was, um… when I talked to my dad before we left Eight, he told me to find someone to stick by."
"Yeah?" True asked, tilting her head.
"Yeah," Jude said. "So I'm glad I have someone to stick by."
True smiled. "Me too, bud."
They turned one last corner, and they were back at the Cornucopia. The pedestals still lined the edges of the small clearing, with the General Store in the center. A light was on inside, and Jude walked toward it. Since all the doors were closed, he did the special knock.
The door swung open right away. "Jude!" Jem said, his eyes wide with relief. "We were just about to come get you. Oh, god, are you okay?"
Jude nodded. "I'm fine. Are you?"
Jem winced. "I, ah… I'm okay."
Jude's stomach rumbled. "Do you guys have food in here?" he asked, peeking inside hopefully. "True said you did."
Jem froze. "...What?"
Jude looked up at him, confused. "True said there was food," he repeated.
"Jem, what are you doing?" a voice called. "Let them inside."
Jem stepped to the side, his face paling. Jude walked inside the General Store, marveling at all the supplies inside. There were crates full of all kinds of things- weapons, sleeping bags, flashlights, nets- and in one corner, food.
"Don't eat anything that isn't packaged," Wisdom cautioned. "Everything needs to be washed. That gas probably would've contaminated more of it if One hadn't kicked it out so fast."
Jude nodded. Wisdom was sitting in one of the corners. Thankfully, he looked pretty okay. So did Tomo, who had a bandage around one arm and a few scrapes, but nothing serious. One of Chevre's hands was cut up, but she seemed fine otherwise. Despite what he had said, Jem wasn't looking too good- Jude noticed a thick bandage around one calf, and he was limping badly.
Whatever happened, it seemed Jest had taken the brunt of it. The Five boy sat up against a wall, and after making eye contact with Jude, closed his eyes. Jude saw one of his thighs was wrapped up tightly, the bandage a little bloody in the center, and he held one arm close to his chest.
Jem closed the door, and Jude turned back to him. "Wait," they said, "True's still out there."
The room went very, very quiet.
"What do you mean, buddy?" Jem asked. There was something off about his tone, but Jude couldn't catch what it was. "You said you talked to True?"
Jude nodded slowly.
"Jude," Chevre said, "did you see the sky tonight?"
"No," Jude answered.
Jem sat down on a crate. For the first time, Jude noticed a ghost lingering behind Jem's wiry frame- a girl with short blonde hair and freckles, bleeding from her stomach. It sent a chill down his spine.
"Jude, listen careful, okay?" Jem asked. "True, uh, she… she didn't make it."
Jude stared at him, unbelieving.
Jem swallowed. "Things got real dicey for a while there," he told them. "She was up against the Fours. Wisdom helped the best he could. She was still alright when the smoke bomb went off, but by the time the wind blew the smoke away… we found her, Jude. She was gone."
Tears filled his eyes. "No."
Jem nodded, the skin around his brown eyes creasing tightly. "Me and Chevre killed one and ran the second one off," he said. "Jest and Tomo kept at the One kid, but once one of 'em ran, all of them did. The Fours were gone right after."
"No," Jude sobbed.
"I'm really sorry, Jude," Jem murmured. "She deserved better than what she got."
Jem reached for him, the way his dad would for a hug, but Jude pulled back. "She said we'd stick together," they insisted, fat tears rolling down their cheeks. "She came back for me."
Jem's frown deepened.
"Maybe it was one of the ghosts," Chevre suggested.
Jude knew it wasn't. "She's really- she died?" they asked. "Are you sure?"
Wisdom nodded. "Positive," he said quietly.
No.
This wasn't real, this couldn't be real.
Jude slammed a fist into his head. "I have to wake up," he cried. He hit themself again. "Wake up, wake up-"
Jem grabbed their hands, holding them away from Jude's head. "Hey, no-"
"It's just a dream," Jude insisted. "I saw her, I talked to her- I must've fallen asleep waiting for her, I'll wake up and she'll come back for real this time-"
"Oh, Jude," Chevre murmured. Tomo put a hand over his mouth.
"I'm sorry, Jude," Jem said. He was crying too, now, making his dark eyes shiny. "I wish I'd been there with her. I should've stopped it."
"I don't want it to be real," Jude sobbed.
"I don't either," Jem said. He pulled Jude close to his chest, and Jude crumpled in Jem's tight embrace. "I'm sorry, Jude. I'm so sorry."
(As Jude sobbed, they waited for the dream to end. He would wake up and True would be standing there with a big smile on her face. She'd call him her buddy again and everything would be good.)
(But this time, there was no waking up to be done. The only dreaming had been the fantasy that True ever came back for Jude at all. Unable to cope with the possibilities, their mind had tried to comfort him. But it wasn't real. It wasn't True.
And so for once, when they fell asleep later that night, sleep was welcome. There was nothing they could dream tonight that was worse than the truth.)
19th: aveline averone, d1 (killed by jem piper)
18th: true mckellar, d8 (killed by tisiphone fotis)
kills:
aveline: 1
bastet: 1
mercury: 1
tisiphone: 1
jem: 1
mendi: 1
alliances:
invincible, bastet, tisiphone, brizo
wisdom, jest, tomo, jude, jem, chevre
chase and fleur
valentina and aescelin
patrek and mendi
mercury
featured ghosts:
illyria fleetwood, d7, gilded cage (killed by ardalion "lio" collingwood)
aveline averone, d1, fool's gold (killed by jem piper)
thank you to linds and ty for sending me aveline and true. they were extremely different but i had lots of fun with both, particularly through their relationships with bastet/vince and jude/jem, and it was tough to part with them here. if it helps, we'll see them again soon- i'm all about lasting consequences :D
hope everyone is having a good time with phase one! buckle up because we've got quite a ride from here! hope you're as excited as me :)))
thank you as always to goldie for betaing! blog will be updated momentarily & i'll see you guys next time!
rb