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"3 days, with just him."
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"For Pete's sake, hurry up Reddy. We're almost late!" Lira complained as I tousled along behind her, after fighting a miniature shrub for my jacket.

Ugh, I hated this. I grunted in frustration as I dusted my jacket.

I wasn't prepared for the Games. As far as me and my little mind knew, we were supposed to make this journey tomorrow. When the sun was out, not 15 minutes after midnight fighting against the cold, the wind, and apparently-

I clapped in mid-air at the annoying buzzing, staring down at my hands in disgust.

-mosquitoes.

"RED!" Lira bellowed, and I sighed as she motioned for me to come along.

Something was up with her since the match, you would think she would be happy.  Andrew won! Lighten up a little. But of course not. Lira looked more pissed than usual.

And I was not about to ask her why. I needed my head to stay on my body. We walked down the maze lines side by side, quietly.

I glanced at her, watching the tightness in her jaw.

Yeah, she didn't seem like she was in the "talking or sharing mood."

Whatever must have happened between her and Andrew in that locker must have been something.

I strained my ears at the sound of voices the nearer we got to the open. I guess we would have been almost late if everyone was already there.

"Harvest is going to have my ass if we're late," Lira grumbled whilst I chuckled.

No matter what, it would never be funny whenever I saw Lira this way. It was indeed hilarious (in its way) that she, Miss Feisty, Miss 'Nothing Gets to Me' would be indeed terrified of one thing.

Harvest.

Well in her defense, she was not alone. Heck I had been her a few weeks ago... so scared of that brooding boy in black-

I paused at that thought, tightening my back strap as I thought about it.

Had been?

After all, I had seen how could I say I wasn't afraid? Something must be wrong with me.

I should be.

I should be frozen to the bone.  The sight of him, his dark eyes, the spider-like veins crawling on his face, looking soulless, and his wings...

They shifted from that dark obsidian, the feathers gone until it was bony-like, and set on fire.

He looked,

-hellish

I should have told Gravis about all I had seen and yet, I haven't, and I know I won't.

Poor guy. The only thing he asked of me was to stay safe and here I am, protecting a potential threat.

Potential?? Who was I kidding?

Harvest stopped two Ancients and killed a fleet of undead vampire-like bats!  He could disappear and appear in a second, and I was pretty sure none of that sat under the powers a yellow could have. Because he wasn't a yellow. He was the heir of darkness.

By the life of me, I understood it and yet didn't at all. What was the heir of darkness? Perhaps the question I wished to ask was how was harvest the heir of darkness?

I stared at the leaves that we trampled on as we turned, before glancing down at my princess notebook, tucking in the dangly pen before it could hang off.

I had made up my mind.

He was going to tell me everything, I was now ready to hear it all. My 3 days thinking period had ended at midnight. He was going to say something, I was sure of it.

It was time I knew the truth or I was going to squeal like a pig to Gravis.

Well, I wouldn't do it, but he didn't have to know that.

If he could throw threats, I could too.

Ying and Yang. I found myself smiling at this analogy.

I had so many questions, and I was a hundred percent sure he had all the answers.

It was just a matter of...getting him alone. He had said he was giving me some time to think, but there also was something stopping him from coming to me, ever since...

My fingers fumbled the necklace mom had given me my throat running dry. This. This little thing hanging around my neck.

"I know you're naturally quiet. God knows what goes on in that little head of yours, in all honesty, I'm too afraid to ask but..you're being way too quiet," Lira commented giving me a side eye, "oh God, I hope you're not sick or something?" She huffed stopping abruptly as she looked me over.

I yawned motioning to her I was only tired, and sleepy.

Like I said, I wasn't planning on being up this late.

"Good," she sighed in relief, "god knows I do not want to be stuck on baby duty," she huffed moving forward as I rolled my eyes but chuckled.

"Anyway, good thing Harvest- I mean "Alpha," she corrected, grunting as she gave the title air quotes, "volunteered to babysit," she grinned.

It was my turn to stop abruptly, the voices of fellow leviathans now only a hedge away.

How could I forget? Harvest had put the two of us together last time. I knew nothing of my role in the games except to stick with him.

I let out a shallow breath, looking back up as Lira chuckled.

"I would not want to be stuck with the stuck-up brute for 3 days in the middle of a frickin forest, but then again, if I was a little red riding hood like yourself, perhaps having a big bad wolf to protect me wouldn't be so bad," she joked, pushing forward, "come on sweet stuff, the Games are only beginning!" she called back, disappearing into the bustling opening.

My breath was a little shaky as I stood frozen in front of the entrance.

Okay, okay...

Deep breath.

This was what I wanted right? I would have 3 whole days with him. Perhaps this was what he wanted.

I looked forward as the lights flashed from the gathering. I should be terrified.

I should be running into the Crown for Gravis. Why on earth would I ever want to be alone with him?

Yet, as I moved forward, A smile mysteriously appeared on my face.

3 whole days..with him.

—————————————————

I couldn't help it.

My eyes stayed steadfast on Harvest's figure. Watching as he passed through the different cycles tailed by 3 captains.

I told myself it was always good to keep an eye on him, after all the abilities he showed last time, and since I was quite sure he was not a convert, I would be wise to keep one eye on his dark figure at all times.

And yet...I kept waiting for his eyes to suddenly meet mine whenever he turned my direction, or to hear his voice in my head somewhere somehow-

To the point of actually craving to hear it.

But it never did.

Was he still upset? Was he angry?

I scoffed at this thought, why was I flipping this on me?

Turning away for a moment,  I tried to focus on anything else, only to have my eyes snap back to his figure the next second almost like I was glued to him.

He seemed to be now questioning a silver, a couple of cycles over, one of the earliest cycles it seemed.

The boy had short dark hair with silver stripes in random places. He was of a good natural height but average looking, his right arm wrapped up in a sling.

"Oh, he's in so much trouble-"

I glanced up as Omkara took a seat beside me, sitting cross-legged on the grass as he rubbed his hands together as if preparing to watch the show of a lifetime.

I waved a hi, and he grinned in reply, before looking back at the boy.

"Artemis," he informed, seemingly unimpressed by the boy, "I hope he gets what's coming to him," he muttered.

My eyebrows arched at this, writing down a question that I handed to him.

He glanced at it for a second.

"His arm?" He echoed, and I nodded, "You haven't heard?" He asked a surprised look in his eye.

I shook my head in return and he seemed avidly more surprised.

"It's only today's gossip" he mocked, "that and of course the match," he added before turning to look back at the silver.

"He and his friends are complete assholes," He proceeded to comment, before shrugging, "Well, in his defense, I think all silvers have a stick up their ass, " he commented like it was the way piece of information, which I found quite ironic because, in my opinion, yellows were the worst considering all I had experienced.

"I heard they dared him to fly up to a girls' room," he explained his tone low as leviathans bustled around us, someone lighting another torch nearby us illuminating our dark area.

"Unfortunately, he peaked into an orange room, scared the hell out of her, activated her laser eyes, and.." my eyes dropped to his slung arm, "the rest is history."

"What a Douche," I signed giving him a disgusted look having no feeling of pity on his part.

I could barely imagine turning around half-naked and seeing a flying boy out my window.

Omkara grinned at this.

"I don't know much, but I know the sign for asshole when I see it," he stated, his accent thinking on each word.

Chuckling, I nodded. Yes, it wasn't the exact translation, but it was close enough.

Befitting.

My eyes trailed back to Harvest and Artemis, watching as the boy's smug look dropped from the frame of his face in an instant, a look of embarrassment dawning against his reddening cheeks as he stepped back, hanging his head in shame.

"Well, seems the Alpha's done what he does best," Omkara joked, "suck the life out of people and make them feel small."

My smile faltered at his comment, knowing he would never know just how many things Harvest was capable of, a shiver crossed my spine.

My eyes trailed back to the boy in question,  my eyes falling on the so-called Alpha, chilled to the bone as I watched him inspect the rest of the team, my heart pounding.

Not because of what I knew or what I had seen but because of my calculations

-he should be heading here next.

My heart rammed against its cage, but I couldn't take my eyes off the boy in black, his dark hair tussled around his face in a messy cut and yet nothing else could look better on him, bringing out that dangerous gleam in his pacific eyes. Eyes that I now knew were much more capable of stealing a soul than ever before.

It suddenly got to me that I would never quite know his limits. I watched him curiously trying to see if I could spot that hellish darkness I had seen in him that night,

But as my eyes lingered on him, all I could see was the boy who cheekily followed me wherever I went, who saved me from a siren, (it was still technically his fault), brought me back with a kiss- lifted me out of those stilled murky waters whilst I was unconscious- the boy whose fingers entwined in mine, warming my body when it was at the brink of freezing to death, who stayed up with me all night and watched the sunrise,

And even the boy who burned a whole army of Mannagaals before they could lay a finger on me.

My throat ran dry at this, looking at the ground.

He said he wouldn't hurt me and it made sense.

If he wanted me dead there were enough chances to do it- scratch that, I believe I would have found death arms on my own without him lifting a finger-

He did always complain about how clumsy I was.

All this led me to one conclusion, he was either telling the truth or he needed me alive for some reason.

My eyes kept on his figure. I still remembered the conversation with the oldbloods. There was something there I was not fitting into place.

That was the reason I needed to know. That's what he had to tell me.

3 days, with just him.

I watched how his eyes lifted and fell back to his clipboard, such a small movement, and yet it had a beauty to it that made my heart stop for a second.

With my gaze fixed on him, I watched as he turned to Raskei who was near our cycle.

My heart beat louder than ever, knowing he was going to come here.

I hadn't noticed that Raskei had been standing so close to us,  as she was cleverly hidden in the shadows,  only the glint from the switchblade she was rotating between her fingers that repelled the light, had given her away.

They seemed to have an unspoken agreement I discovered, watching as he gave her a slight nod to which she returned, before he abruptly turned away going the complete opposite direction, Raskei instead walking towards our cycle.

All this happened quickly, leaving me confused for a second as the seated leviathans stood up around me and I got to my feet, completely ignoring whatever it was Omkara was saying, trying to see above the heads of one of the leviathans to see where Harvest was headed to.

I caught the sight of his dark coat, pausing for a second as my eyes steadied on the rest of his figure. My breathing became rugged, my heart ramming as he turned slightly.

Could he hear it?

My heart beating so loudly for him.

I meant, Because of him.

Shoot- that didn't sound right either.

My eyes strained on him so much so, I thought it would burn a whole through his head- just anticipating the second he would finally turn—

His jaw ticked, suddenly walked away, leaving me confused, his team of captains trailing behind him.

Maybe he was angry.

Why was he being so petty? I frowned, remembering how angry he had gotten at the match. I had brushed it off as his normal frustration but was he going to ignore me over such a little thing?

If anything, I was supposed to be the angry one.  It was I who got played, you got chased by vampires, who got lied to, whose memories he wanted to take.

And I wasn't giving this much attitude... was I?

I watched as he disappeared from view, finally drawing my attention back to what was happening, folding my arms with a slight frown.

Reason clouded my judgment. I would be spending the next 3 days with him, there was no need to rush things, I reassured myself.

He would eventually talk to me, as usual, and I'd give out one of my eyes for a chance to get a break from him in due time.

Sighing at the thought, I watched as Raskei, walked through our cycle, tailed by our 3 moderators, Lira, Talon included, who seemed to be out of it today.

I watched her for a moment, stepping back slightly when Raskei came into view, now going through the first leviathans in my town.

Watching her curiously, I remembered her offer.

She offered to train my dilect. Lucas was helping me with combat, who else would be better to help with dilect? She was the only other unspoken and had garnered respect for a reason.

But what if this was some ploy? She said she respected my efforts to protect myself but could I trust her?

I "trusted" Harvest and well...

Didn't work out well for me. I stepped back when she passed by me, watching her inspection in my row.

When she was done, she gingerly walked away leaving us with our moderators.

"As was done in practice," Talon began, pacing ahead of us. I watched the other cycles slowly field out behind us, picking up torches as he talked, the camp heading into the Fare-born forest.

"Stick with your partners and your roles. As the last cycle, The Alpha has not assigned you specific roles other than mids, as he feels you haven't been trained well for any other responsibilities. Find your pairs, and follow camp behind us, your trainers," he explained, "When we get there regroup and we will pick it up from there."  He finished, someone, handing him a torch, nodding wordlessly to us as he moved behind the already marching Camp.

My fellow teammates grouped, matching in their pairs whilst I stood idly, rubbing my wrist, whilst I pulled my jacket sleeve over that funny mark.

I searched for the dark figure to see where he was.

He was after all my partner.

I bit my lip as my cycle slowly began to move, my eyes still searching for Harvest- or rather the alpha, nervously twirling my pendant.

"Talanda!" Omkara called and I turned slightly to see him walking back to me from the departing cycle, "what happened? I thought you were coming behind me," he stated, eyebrows drawing in confusion, "Talon said we partners should stick together."

It was my turn to be confused glancing back in the direction I saw Harvest disappear to earlier before looking back at him, trying to tell him Harvest had made it clear the last time that I belonged to him-

I mean.. that I was with him in the games.

"Didn't you hear what I said? Alpha said you're now cleared to be in the games, you're my scout," he informed.

My eyebrows arched. When did Harvest say that?

"C'mon, our cycles leaving," he grinned throwing his backpack over to me.

"You two! Here, now!" Lira yelled sternly, from the last of our cycles.

"See?" Omkara chuckled.

He pulled me along whilst I stared back at the few leviathans still behind us trying to see if I could spot his dark coat.

This meant I wouldn't be spending 3 days alone with him.

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