𝐖𝐚𝐫 𝐎𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐬 - TMR, Gally

042 - Old Rituals?

Later, I was able to join a gathering. No one was sitting this time. They were standing, obviously. All the Keepers were there, Newt leaning against a pole. Thomas and Minho came back from the maze with what looked like a metal cylinder and threads hanging out of the end. A red seven was put onto the small, black square on the side of it.

Newt handed the strange device back to Minho after inspecting it. "We found this." Minho spoke up. "It was inside a Griever. These are the same letters we get in our supplies." He motioned at the w.c.k.d printed onto it, too.

"Yeah." Thomas nodded. "Whoever put us here obviously made the Grievers."

Wow, really? Had no idea.

I secretly glanced at Gally, only to catch him staring at me already. Then he looked away.

"This is the first real clue, the first anything, you've found in over three years. Right, Minho?" With a desperate look, Thomas stared at the Runner.

"Right." He confirmed.

Satisfied, Thomas turned to the person I considered as his crush. "Newt, we gotta go back out there. Who knows where this might lead us."

"You see what he's trying to do, right?" Gally's face was full of disbelief. He was looking at Newt too now, expecting him to choose for his team.
"First he breaks our rules... and then he tries to convince us to abandon them totally. The rules are the only thing that have ever held us together."

He had a point. So did Thomas. But Thomas wasn't trying to abandon the rules.

"Why now are we questioning that? If Alby was here, you know he'd agree with me." He continued. "This shank needs to be punished."

Before Newt could reply, Billy did. "And what about your girl, hm? I don't think we can let her get away with this either."

I was close to rolling my eyes.

"And I don't think we should be discussing that right now." Gally gave the boy a death glare.

"Gally's right." Newt interfered fast. "Thomas broke the rules. One night in the Pit, and no food."

"Oh, come on, Newt!" Gally threw his hands in the air. "One night in the pit? Do you think that's gonna stop him from going into the maze?"

Triumphant, he turned his head. "No. And we can't just have non-runners running into the maze whenever they feel like it. So let's just make this official." He gave Thomas a nod. "Starting from tomorrow, you're a Runner."

I gasped. And I knew this was not about me, but this what they were doing now? Discrimination.

I had tried and tried to be a Runner even before my attempt and got ignored, and now Thomas just got to be one after a single night of surviving while I survived too? I was aware I couldn't be a Runner with my limp, but still. Jeez!

"Wow." Gally moved toward the exit of the hut. Frypan tried to stop him, but Gally avoided his hand. "No, Fry."

A few seconds later, I got ready to leave, too. Not to follow Gally. But to do something that would keep my mind of all the drama going on. Such as writing poems.

~

I found myself close to crying a few minutes later.

I was sitting on my bed, legs crossed, and notebook in my hands. I went through the pages, staring back at the things I wrote in the past.

But the words were blurry and I couldn't concentrate, especially not when shouts came from outside.

It sounded too interesting to not check up on it, so I, very slowly, made my way to the noises. It didn't take long for me to see multiple boys standing under the tower, and someone throwing fruits from the top.