Day two was better than day one of officially starting the interviews. Many of the men were already beginning to speak to her now that they had seen her a couple times and Thea was thrilled. Despite deeming this day successful, she was well aware of the fact that she didn't really get any information that the General would find useful.

She didn't fret too much though, knowing that he'd probably be relatively satisfied with the fact that they were at least starting to open up.

It was however, when she got to Rue's door, that she started to feel a bit of panic again. She hadn't even really had a chance to speak to him at all yet but for some reason she felt rather intimidated, her mind constantly drifting back to the sight of his dark, unamused eyes.

Or maybe her fear had nothing to do with him at all.

Maybe it was entirely because of the fact that the General had made clear that getting information from this man was the most important and that his life was on the line. Maybe she was more intimidated by the responsibility, and also the fact that she had no idea what information this man would give her. Whatever it was... how she handled that information would also determine whether or not she was a traitor to her own people.

"You can do it," Luana said as she unlocked the door, snapping Thea out of her thoughts. "I believe in you."

After letting out a breath, Thea smiled before stepping in after the door creaked open.

Rue was in the same spot he was in when she first saw him, looking exactly the same as he had that first time too. He only looked up at her after Luana shut the door and the sight of her didn't look to please him. Instead, it made him let a sharp breath out through his nose and sigh.

"Good afternoon, Rue."

"I thought I said I didn't want to talk to you."

Thea hesitated. Despite thinking about this moment for so long since she first met him, she hadn't thought of what to say to him when he said something like that, which of course, she should have expected. "I... umm..." she began wringing her hands together. "I was hoping we could just get to know each other."

"I don't want to get to know you."

She frowned. "If you could just spare me a half hour–"

"No."

"Ten minutes, then?"

"No," he closed his eyes and leaned against the wall, as if looking like he was trying to sleep.

"How about five minutes? Let me talk to you for five minutes, at least."

He let out a long, loud sigh that clearly showed his irritation. "Listen... What was your name again?"

"Thea," she said.

"Thea," he continued. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to talk to you," she answered. "I've been given the opportunity to speak to Crows to share their stories and enlighten the public on your experiences."

"Hmm," he nodded slowly. "Well, listen carefully. I am not stupid enough to believe that that is actually why you're here. And if you truly believe that that's why you're really are, then you are the stupid one. You would be someone who is incredibly naive and foolish and I refuse to waste what little time I believe I have left talking to someone that stupid."

Thea was speechless as she swallowed back her frustration.

"So I ask you one last time. Leave me alone."







Theavi felt incredibly defeated as she sat at her desk in Milo's office and cleaned up her notes before her meeting with the General. She didn't fail to notice Milo, whose desk was facing hers, though being on the other side of the room, look up at her quite a few times while she sulked. However, it was only about an hour later that Milo spoke up. "You look... disappointed."

Thea looked at him with a frown. "Rue called me naive and sent me on my way."

Milo raised his brows before stroking his beardless chin. "Oh, well that's problematic."

"I know," Thea sighed before dropping her head onto her desk.

She heard Milo chuckle and then she heard him stand. When she looked up, she saw him moving his chair closer to her before setting it down next to her and sitting. "I've heard bits and pieces about Rue... and I know he's hard to get along with."

"That's the understatement of the century," Thea said. "He's... mean."

"You can't really blame him... he's been stuck in there for four years."

"I know," Thea responded, though she was certainly a little surprised that Milo was sympathetic to the man. "But I really have no idea how to approach him. The General said he is the most important person I'm dealing with yet he won't even talk to me."

Milo looked like he was thinking deeply, trying to help Thea come up with a solution. "What I usually do with people who are uncooperative is try to be patient," he said. "Maybe... just keep trying. Don't give up yet. As more time passes, we'll see how he does and change our approach accordingly?"

Thea smiled at Milo, knowing he was right and there was really nothing else she could do.

"And stay positive... I've seen your notes from today, you're doing great work." He smiled warmly at her.

Thea knew he was right, feeling a bit of relief after hearing his words.

So instead of fretting for too long, she continued to try. Every day for the next few days she continued to try to talk to him, though he rejected her every time. And oddly enough, every time he refused to talk to her, she became more and more curious. Who was this man? How was he so stubborn? What did he have to lose?

Even over the weekend, all Thea could think of was how she was going to get him to talk to her, to trust her.

On Monday, Thea felt a new confidence. The weekend of thinking and thinking and thinking motivated her. She was confident in herself and her ability to be persistent. Sure, it would be annoying, but this was her job. She had to do her job.

However, after the usual interviews, including a productive one with Veto, Thea took a deep breath as she and Luana made their way to Rue's door, her confidence fading as she wondered how her interaction with Rue would go. All the work she had done over the weekend in hyping herself up was beginning to falter.

Rue had clearly made his point. He didn't want to talk to her.

He wasn't going to tell her anything.

But she had to do her job, right?

General Killian made it clear that Rue was the most important prisoner. His information was the most valuable.

But would Rue yell at her?

She hated when she was yelled at.

"Thea?" Luana called, as she pushed the thick door open.

Thea hesitated once more before swallowing back her fear and stepping into the cell. Be confident and persistent. She thought. I have to be.

Rue was sitting in his usual spot of the very empty, dark cell, with one leg up and his arm resting on the knee of his raised leg.

At the sight of Thea, Rue sighed loudly, just like he always did.

"Rue," she started. "I understand your opposition to this but─"

"I don't want to talk to you," he repeated, shutting her down instantly. "Go tell your General that, if you want. I don't care what he decides to do with me, but I'm not going to talk to you."

Thea let out a frustrated breath. "I'm not going to report you─"

"Well, that's your choice," he said. He then closed his eyes, as if trying to create some form of barrier between himself and Thea. "I refuse to take part in fostering your naive ideas that will surely eventually lead to nothing."

Thea's frown deepened. "I─"

"Leave me alone," he said. "I've been sitting here in peace for the last four years and I would like to return to that peace, please."

"Peace?" Thea asked. "You're in solitary confinement.─"

"And I would like to return to that," he said, firmly. "I'd rather that than deal with your childish aspirations."

Thea straightened up defensively, looking down at him. "I'm not─" she cut herself off, thinking for a moment. "My ideas are not childish."

It seemed like he had had enough, responding by simply shaking his head.

She watched him for one more moment and not wanting to push it any further Thea sighed once more and then nodded. "Fine."

With that, she left, feeling defeated, angry and worried.

She supposed that she couldn't have expected any better from an ex-Crow... let alone one who was in some high position. He hated the State. He would not want to cooperate with the State. And she worked for the State, which meant he wouldn't want to cooperate with her.

However, despite the lack of cooperation, she had to tell General Killian something. How was she going to explain why she still couldn't get anything out of him?

Hugging her notebook more tightly, she let out an exasperated breath before making her way back to Achlis with Luana. She was going to have to come up with some sort of response for General Killian, or at the very least, some sort of alternative... if not, Rue could die, just like the General had mentioned before she first met Rue. And aside from the horrible fact that Rue's lack of cooperation could lead to his death, Thea also couldn't imagine what real use the General would have for her if she couldn't provide him with what he wanted.

And for some reason, that thought upset her.

She would have to figure something out.

She had to keep trying, no matter how annoying and how much of a nuisance she became. So for the next week and a half, despite his insults, Thea continued to try getting Rue to cooperate. But when the two week mark hit, she knew it was hopeless.

He wasn't going to talk to her.

No matter how much Milo and Luana told her to keep trying, she felt hopeless.

It almost seemed like maybe... Rue wanted to die. Why else would he be so stubborn? Could he really be that loyal to the Elorian cause? Did men like that actually exist?

Whatever the case, whether he wanted to die or not, Thea felt like a failure. She felt like she was the reason he was going to die despite that on the first day, the General told her that if Rue never did speak to her and was ultimately executed, he wanted her to have felt like she tried her absolute best. At this point, could she even feel that?

No. She didn't feel that way. She didn't feel like she had tried her best.

She felt like she had failed.

Thea made her way to General Killian's office for the scheduled meeting, deep in thought. She tried to think of as many excuses as she possibly could, but none of them seemed to provide any justifiable reason for why she had not gotten any information from Rue. So as she turned into the hall where the Generals office was, she frowned. Letting out a breath, she decided that the only thing she could do was be honest. Lying and making excuses couldn't have been a good option.

Right.

Yes.

That's what she would do. She would be honest, and then ask the General to give her more time. Then, she could go back to Rue and tell him that this may be a life or death situation for him. Maybe that would convince him, even if he didn't seem to care about that.

Maybe putting it into words would make him truly understand the gravity of the situation.

A slight amount of relief began to fill her.

That had to be enough to convince Rue. Unless he really did have a death wish. He was certainly─

"Thea?"

The sudden voice behind her startled her.

"Is that really you, Thea?"

She couldn't immediately put a finger on who the voice belonged to but all she knew was almost immediately, she felt uncomfortable. However, before she could think or react, a man grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her around. The action was aggressive, and Thea did not appreciate being touched by a man she wasn't familiar with, but when her eyes met his, she felt her throat go dry and her stomach drop to the ground.

She recognized the Aiverian boy immediately and just as quickly as she realized it, she wanted to run.

It was a fellow student from A.N.U., a boy she barely knew but recognized as someone who was not friendly to her... someone who was, however, friendly with Adrien... the boy who ruined everything about University for her.

The look of shock on the man's face turned into a smile when he realized who she was and though it had been years since the two had seen each other, Thea knew almost instantly that he was pleased. "It is you. I barely recognized you with your hair so long!"

She tried to compose herself.

She always wondered what she would do if she saw someone from University again... especially someone who was once friends with the man she was always trying so hard to forget. Or worse yet... that man... Adrien himself.

This was not how she wanted to react. So she forced herself to stand up straight before shrugging his hand off of her shoulder and trying to ignore the lasting feeling that it left on her. "Hello," she choked out as she hugged her notebook tightly in an attempt to hide the inevitable shaking of her hands. She had to make herself seem confident.

The man who, despite filling her with so much anxiety, she did not know the name of, shook his head in disbelief. "What the hell are you doing here?"

She didn't trust her voice, but she knew she needed to speak. "I work here."

He narrowed his eyes, looking as if he didn't believe her, and it was only then that Thea noticed the two other women who were standing closely behind him, both of whom were eyeing her in a way that seemed to scream the fact that they thought she was worthless.

Thea wasn't surprised, but was reminded of university once again... her shaking worsened.

"You?" he laughed. "The State hired you? For what?"

Her heart was beating quickly. She could feel the thumping in her face as she tried to keep her eyes away from his. "Research."

"Unbelievable," the man said, turning to the two women. "This girl went to university with me," he said, still sounding like he was in a state of disbelief. "She had a fun time with Adrien. You know, the Adrien Karney?"

Hearing his name out loud sent a painful shudder through Thea's body as the girls looked at each other before looking back at the man. "What the hell would Adrien want with an Elorian?" One of the girls said.

"Tell them, Thea," he said. "You were quite the partier back then, weren't you?"

"That's... not true."

"Oh come on," he chuckled. "Always around guys... messing–"

"No–"

"Nothing to be shy about. I know we had a crazy time in university, but we're all grown now, right?" he said with a humored grin, "let's let bygones be bygones and be friends again, hmm?"

He was mocking her, surely. He didn't want to be her friend. In fact, she knew that he probably wanted more than anything to make her miserable... just like they all did back then.

She knew she had to get away from him, she didn't want to be anywhere near him... near any of them... so quickly, she took a deep breath and spoke up. "I have a meeting."

"With who?"

She opened her mouth to answer him, almost stupidly, but realized that it was none of his concern. She didn't have to tell him anything. "I need to go," she said, about to turn, but as she did, he grabbed her by the shoulder again. "Oh come on, Thea," he said. "It's been so long, why don't we grab a drink and catch up. I'm sure my friends here would love to hear our stories from university. Everyone always wants to hear about Adrien... he's kind of a celebrity now, you know... trying to follow in his father's footsteps and all... and you knew him real well."

She didn't want to even think of Adrien at all, let alone as... a celebrity. However, his words suddenly reminded Thea that Adrien's father was the Premier of the Aiverian Province... and Adrien was following in his footsteps? Someone as horrible as Adrien may one day hold a position like that?

No... she shook her head. She wouldn't think about that. She didn't want to think of him. "I'm running late," she said, looking at her watch. She wasn't lying, actually. She was now three minutes late to her meeting with the General.

The man whose name she still didn't remember looked like he was going to say something in response to that, but before he could, they all heard a click before a door creaked open. Almost as if he heard her thoughts, she heard the General's voice coming from behind her. "Miss. Rhaanan."

A rush of relief filled her and she watched the man in front of her straighten up, eyes widening at the sight of the General. Even the women behind him seemed surprised. "Sir," he said, lowering his head a little.

Thea pushed his arm away from her before turning and rushing towards the General. "I'm sorry, Sir," she said as he held the door open for her and let her pass by him and into the waiting room of his office where Mrs. Railer sat.

When Thea looked back at the General, she saw that he still had his eyes on the man for a moment longer, before he turned and shut the door behind him. "Please socialize with your friends after our meetings, Miss. Rhaa–"

"They're not my friends," she practically snapped.

The General obviously noted her tone but chose not to say anything to that. Instead, he watched her for a moment before walking past her and opening the door to his office. "Come on."

The two walked into the room in silence and after taking his seat behind his desk, the General held his hand out, requesting for her to hand him her notebook. She did that, before taking a seat herself.

As the General flipped through her notes, she sat there silently, still reeling and looking at her hands. They were still trembling a little so she was pleased that she could hide them behind the desk, ensuring that the General would not be able to see it.

"Still nothing from Rue?" He suddenly asked, surprising her.

It always surprised her how fast of a reader he was. Only a few minutes had passed and he was already close to the end of her pages of notes. "No," she said, her voice sounding smaller than she would have liked.

The General seemed to notice it as well, looking up at her. "Why is that?"

"I just..." she started. "I just... need more time."

General Killian leaned forward before handing her notebook back to her and resting his arms on his desk, knotting his fingers together. "I can give you more time, Theavi, that isn't exactly a problem, but is something the matter?"

She shook her head. "No," she responded. "I think I may be able to get to him if I just have a bit more time."

"I'm not talking about that," he responded before using his eyes to gesture at the door. "Were those people bothering you?"

She tried not to widen her eyes at his question.

"I have told you, have I not, that if anything is bothering you then you should not hesitate to tell me."

"I'm fine," she said as she forced a smile. "The boy was just... someone I knew in university... barely, really. That's all."

Though she had hoped he would drop it, her response seemed to pique his interest more. "At A.N.U.?"

She nodded.

"And he's not your friend."

"No," she said before hesitating. She reminded herself of the fact that the General had done a lot of research about her before he even hired her. Would it have been surprising then to assume that he already knew everything? Did he know what happened to her?

A rush of discomfort ran through her and she knew the General could tell because he almost immediately dropped the topic. "Alright," he said. "More time for Rue. I can give you that, but I do need at least some progress."

Thea stood up quickly, seeing that she now had a chance to leave. "Thank you, Sir." With that, she turned around and left, leaving the General behind with a look of surprise.

She left his office and then she left the building even though she had about an hour left of work. She needed to leave and be alone. She needed to be away. So Thea went straight back to the hostel and locked herself in her room.

The first thing she did was angrily throw her notebook across the tiny room, watching as it slapped against the wall before falling onto the floor with a thud. She then sat on the floor, leaning against the door and hugging her legs.

Just when things were finally beginning to look good for her, he had to be thrown back into her life. Even if it wasn't him exactly.

It almost felt like he was haunting her... the aftershock of the disaster itself still rumbling its way around her... ruining her... trying to take what little she had left.

She felt her hands begin to shake again as the tears formed in her eyes, feeling hopeless and knowing damn well that this wasn't going to be the last of her interactions with ghosts from A.N.U.

And even though her worst nightmare wasn't even here... even though he probably hadn't thought of her even once since she graduated... somehow, he was going to make her life just as miserable as he did in university. There was no question about it.

He was going to ruin her.