When Thea went to bed that night, she had expected that she was going to wake up and feel absolutely horrible, though not because of the alcohol, no. She thought she would feel horrible because of her interaction with Niall. She knew that it was the alcohol that gave her the confidence, so she was certain that once she sobered up, she would regret everything. She had kissed him on his cheek! She had kissed her boss on his cheek!

That was worse than the whole pretty-eyelash kerfuffle!

However, when she woke up the next morning, she surprisingly didn't feel any negativity at all. Instead, she felt... rather blissful and giddy.

Deep down, she knew that the General was certainly an unattainable man seeing as he was rich and powerful and handsome– at least, to her– and not to mention the fact that he was her boss. So something about this all felt like a rather innocent childish crush.

Strangely, she didn't feel bad about it at all, instead she found that there was something fun and exciting about having a little bit of a crush on a man you couldn't have. So long as Thea remembered that, surely she wouldn't get hurt.

Right?

Whatever the case, she found herself smiling as she got ready the next morning, spending a little more time on her hair and makeup than she had over the last few days despite the fact that the only person she was going to be with for the next few hours was Milo.

She didn't do anything special with her hair though, seeing as tight braids and buns with lots of pins and hair ties would be uncomfortable when she was forced to sit for hours on a train. So instead, she did a neat half ponytail, though weaving the top half into a loose, comfortable yet still elegant bun.

When she looked at herself in the mirror, pulling some little strands of hair out to frame her face, she smiled. For a moment, she actually felt a little pretty... she felt strangely confident.

Oh, the wonders of a childish crush... doing all kinds of strange things to her adult mind.

She even went as far as to put on a little bit of lipstick before smiling once more at herself in the mirror and slipping into a comfortable but thick plaid skirt and a black turtleneck. It was officially winter, afterall and though it had only just started snowing here in the Capital, Thea knew well that it would be much colder north in Abureth.

Milo and Thea's train to Abureth was scheduled to leave at seven thirty that morning, so the two had planned to leave to catch the streetcar at six thirty just so they could be early and make themselves comfortable before heading out. By the time Thea had finished getting ready, it was six-fifteen, so she was certainly good on time.

So after putting on a light coat, she threw her rather heavy bag over her shoulder, deciding not to take her suitcase because she had everything she needed at home, and then turned off her lights before making her way out the door of her room without the need to rush.

When she made it down the stairs, she saw that Mrs. Karse was up early, as usual, walking around the main floor doing whatever it was she normally did. The woman greeted her, wishing her a safe trip, before Thea left the hostel.

Unsurprisingly, Milo was already here, early as always, but what did surprise her was the sight of Niall, who was leaning against the side of his very expensive black car, right next to Milo, who was facing him as they conversed. The General was wearing a rather thick coat over his regular clothes and was smoking, making Thea wonder what could possibly be on this man's mind so early in the morning. Whatever the case, the sight of him, his face momentarily obscured by the light clouds of smoke that escaped from his lips, made her heart skip a beat.

The fact that his hair was actually a little messy and the top buttons of his white shirt were unbuttoned also made the butterflies in her stomach flutter at full force. She found that she clearly liked how he looked much better when he seemed more... relaxed.

When he looked up at her, his eyes lingered on her for a moment before he smiled warmly.

She wondered if he noticed that she had done her hair up nicely for the first time in a while, but then she chastised herself for being so silly. Of course a man like the General wouldn't notice little things like that.

"Good morning," he said to her as he dropped his cigarette and crushed it with his foot.

His words made Milo turn around and smile. "Morning, Thea."

Smiling widely, Thea skipped down the steps and the hostel and rushed over to them. "Good morning. I hope you weren't waiting long?"

"No, not at all," Milo said. "We just got here... the General offered to drive us, so we'll be there even earlier than expected anyways."

Thea looked at Niall. "Wow, thank you so much."

"It's fine," he responded, rather nonchalant. "You two have been working exceptionally hard... the least I could do is drop you off at the station."

Thea had no reason to argue with that, so instead, she thanked him once more before they got into the car and headed out to the station.

When they arrived, Thea noticed that no matter what time it was, the Acteonian Central Station was always bustling with people. Even at six thirty in the morning, there were hundreds of people running around, going about their lives.

Unlike most other stations in the nation, which usually closed for a couple hours between one in the morning and three in the morning, the Acteonian Central Station was always open, trains coming in and going out at nearly every hour of the day. Though you couldn't expect any less from the main station of the Capital.

After parking the car, though Milo and Thea told Niall that they would be fine on their own and he could go home and rest, he insisted on seeing them off, adding that it was the least he could do when they were technically working on a Saturday. Thea, of course, thought that was silly, seeing as Niall was always working.

They were much earlier than anticipated, so much so that their train hadn't even arrived at its expected platform yet. Instead, sitting on the rails at Platform 5 was another train that had only just arrived at six-thirty and they knew they'd have to wait for this one to depart before their train could pull in.

Though for a few moments the three stood and talked about their plans on how they were going to approach their research when they arrived in Abureth Town, eventually, Niall looked at the two with a minor look of concern. "You two haven't eaten yet, have you?"

They hadn't.

"Well, I'm a little hungry too," he said. "Let me go grab some breakfast for us at the station's bakery."

"Would you like me to join you?" Milo asked.

"No, no," he said, already beginning to walk off. "It's fine."

And then Thea watched as he disappeared into the crowd before she turned to Milo, a brow raised. "Is it just me, or does it seem like he's trying very hard to be nice? Driving us, walking us in, getting us breakfast?"

Milo chuckled. "I genuinely think it's just because he feels bad that we're going to be spending the weekend working," he said. "You know he upgraded our tickets to first class?"

Her brows rose. "What?"

Milo nodded, pulling the tickets out from his pocket and showing them to her. "He gave me these this morning, right before you came."

"He didn't have to do that!" Though of course, Thea was more than grateful. She remembered her first trip from Abureth to the Capital with Niall... the seats in first class were magnificent compared to those in the regular carriages.

"I said the same thing," Milo continued. "But I suppose if it puts his mind at ease then I won't complain."

Thea laughed at that, before smiling. More of a reason to like that man, she supposed.

The two continued to chit chat, waiting for the General but also for the train that was sitting on the rails to hurry up and leave so that their train could come and they could at least go inside and sit. When the conductor of the train finally pulled at his whistle, signaling that they were getting ready to depart, and all the workers began to gesture for all the patrons to hurry up and get in, she felt a little bit of relief.

She was moments away from getting on the train that would take her home. Sure, she wouldn't be there for long, and sure she wasn't going home to relax, but she was more than excited to go see her family again, the thought making her heart light in happiness.

As she watched the rather controlled chaos of people jumping onto the train that was about to depart, almost hypnotized by the rush, she noticed a few men, state soldiers, clear the way in front of the entrance to the Premium Class carriage.

Thea squinted, her interest piqued as she wondered who it was that was going to be getting into a Premium Class carriage... the one class that was higher than even First Class. Usually it was reserved for politicians who would get one or two carriages all to themselves, so she wondered which politician she was going to see getting onto that train.

However, to her surprise, no one was getting onto the train. Someone was exiting it.

She watched as a man stepped out of the carriage entrance, wearing his coat over his shoulders, though his arms weren't in the sleeves. He was dressed to the nines in a three piece suit, everything about him exuding expensive and luxury, including the cufflinks which he was adjusting as he stepped out of the train, the jewels on it glittering in the light of the station.

She always thought there was something appealing about men who dressed well... like the General who, even when he wasn't in his uniform, like today, always managed to look relatively put together. This man, whoever he was, certainly knew how to dress.

As she considered this though, she raised her glance until she reached his face, and almost instantly, her eyes narrowed.

She recognized the face almost immediately, it being a face she had familiarized herself with more than she would have liked, and though he looked a little older now, with slight dark circles under his eyes and his brown hair looking well cut and combed back instead of like the messy, loose curls that it was back then... she knew instantly who it was.

Especially when he turned, glancing over in her direction.

Their eyes met for just a brief moment, just long enough for her blood to run cold as her eyes darted away from his gaze. She stared straight at the train for a moment, but trying to understand what was going on and unable to believe her eyes, she turned her head and looked back.

He was still looking at her with those familiar green eyes, his brows raised, looking almost surprised.

Then it felt like the entire world had slowed... like the hustle and bustle of the train station had near to frozen while she looked at him and watched that within milliseconds, the surprise faded as his lips curved up into a crooked smile before it curved up more into a smirk. The look of amusement and even joy washed over his expression before he looked away and proceeded to walk off, followed by soldiers and some other entourage.

And as he walked off, without a word or anything of that sort, Thea turned to face the train again, frozen. Or at least, she felt like she was frozen.

She could hear Milo calling her, but his voice sounded like it was coming from miles away, like it was muffled and distant. She couldn't respond because she felt like she couldn't move, she couldn't do anything but stare straight at the train, eyes wide.

What she didn't realize was that she wasn't exactly frozen... not at all. She was shaking intensely, breathing deeply, her chest heaving as she began to hyperventilate, while the panicked Milo was trying to grab a hold of her, to help her to settle down. He was calling her name, trying to bring her back from wherever it was that she had gone.

But she could barely hear him, especially as the train let out its loud whistle, squealing loudly enough to make Thea's ears and head ache right before the train rumbled and roared, her bones trembling from the sound as it finally began to move.

She wanted to cover her ears, but her body still refused to move.

Instead, she felt the weight of her hair. It felt heavier than ever, like it was soaked with water and suddenly it all felt foreign, painful even... like thousands of little scratches against the skin of her scalp and neck.

It was only when her stomach began to turn that she felt her gain some control of her limbs again... it was only then that she got back control of at least some of her mind even... and when she felt the contents of her stomach continue to turn and lurch, she spun around, knowing she was going to throw up.

When she turned though was when she saw the General, whose worried eyes met hers as he slowed down his step, a couple paper bags in his hands.

She saw his expression change as he began to run over to them, though she didn't have time to concern herself over that. Dropping her bags she ran to the nearest trash can and the second her fingers grabbed the rim of it she threw up rather violently. With nothing in her stomach because she hadn't had breakfast yet, all that came out was acid that burned her throat and mouth on its way out.

And then she blacked out, the last thing in her mind being the green eyes boring into her.







Niall felt his heart stop as he watched Milo call out to Thea, sounding almost desperate. He was only gone for a few minutes and couldn't have imagined what had happened, but the second Thea turned around and their eyes met, the look of wild fear in her eyes and her hands shaking immensely, Niall began to run.

He reached her the second she gripped onto the rim of the trashcan, and knowing she was going to throw up, he grabbed her hair and pulled it away from her face as Milo continued to hold her, trying to ease her shaking.

Her heavy breathing was loud, she was heaving, the sight of which caused one of the workers at the station to run over to them. "Water, get some water!" Niall snapped at him.

The man nodded, and without hesitation, he rushed off.

When the heaving settled and the vomiting subsided, Niall and Milo got Thea to the nearest bench, sitting her down, but right when she sat, her body went limp.

Niall began to panic as Milo sat next to her and held her up, however she seemed to come back quickly, her eyes fluttering back open. Niall crouched down in front of her took her hand in his, feeling her incredibly cold fingers despite the fact that she was drenched in sweat, but when her eyes opened up and she looked him in the eye she panicked, terror on her face, her arms flailing as she gasped for breath and kicked him away.

"Thea, Thea!" Niall called as he stood and grabbed her flailing hands, trying to help the weaker Milo keep a hold of her. "Hey, it's me. It's alright."

She sat there, eyes wide as she stared right at him, looking almost as if it was taking her a moment to remember who he even was. Within time though, she began settling down as she came back too.

Niall put his hand on her cheek as she settled into Milo's embrace. "You're okay," Niall said, pushing her hair away from her face, her skin wet with sweat. "We're here."

Right then, the worker returned with a glass of water, handing it to Niall. As her hands were still shaking, he helped her take sips of the water until she turned her head away from it.

Niall crouched down in front of her once more, taking her hand in his again but this time feeling her hold it tightly... so tightly it actually hurt a little. He allowed it though, just watching her as her shaking subsided while she leaned into Milo, her head on his shoulder.

He and Milo exchanged a glance, both utterly confused and worried at the same time, but just as Niall was going to say something, Thea spoke up. "I'm sorry," her voice cracked as she said it.

"You don't need to apologize, Thea," Milo said to her. "Just tell us what happened. Do you know what happened?"

She shook her head, pulling away from him before taking a deep breath, trying to collect herself and her thoughts. "I think... maybe the lack of sleep..."

Both Milo and Niall knew for certain she was lying, not about the lack of sleep, seeing as they most certainly were lacking in sleep, but about the lack of sleep causing... whatever it was that just happened. Whatever the case, Niall wasn't about to let her continue to work if she was in this state. "Let's get you back to Achlis, Thea. I'll get a doctor–"

"No," she snapped, her grip on his hand tightening further. "No... we can't miss the train."

"You're not going–"

"No!" She insisted. "I can go–"

"I won't allow–"

"Please," she practically begged, now holding Niall's hand with both of hers. "Please... we need to go... we need to go, for Rue!"

Niall kept his eyes on her, wondering if this was his fault... wondering if he had put too much pressure on her. He remembered Aari telling him to trust that she could handle it, but he was wondering now if that was really the case. However, he also wondered what could have triggered such a reaction. She seemed perfectly fine when they first saw each other in the morning... frankly, she looked better than fine. She looked extremely positive... hopeful.

So what was this?

Did the pressure all just hit her? Maybe all at once?

He let out a breath, looking down at their hands for a moment before looking back at her. "Thea... please... tell me what you need. Tell me how I can help you."

"You can help me by letting me go to Abureth," she said, rather quickly. "Let me do what I need to do. Rue is the priority."

He watched her for a few moments, and before he could second guess himself, the sound of their train pulling into the station, the rumbling deep and squealing of the wheels against the tracks enough to make them all wince.

He sighed. "All right," he said. "Let's get you on that train."







Once the train had settled and prepared itself for the new passengers, Thea had to search through her tightly stuffed bag for her toiletries purse to grab her toothbrush. The taste of stomach acid still burned her mouth and the excuse of wanting to wash her mouth was perfect for her to get away for just a moment.

The restroom on the train, despite them being in the first class carriage, was still tiny and uncomfortable, but she was able to brush her teeth and get rid of the horrible taste in her mouth. However, as she set aside her brush and looked at herself in the mirror, staring at her sweat covered face, the hair she had worked hard on this morning now a complete mess, she felt a frustration and anger rise in her.

She found herself leaning against the door before sliding down in, knotting her fingers in her hair, wanting to rip it all out.

Adrien.

The name was repeating in her head again and again and again and again as she covered her ears and tried to get it to stop, his smirk burning its way into her mind.

How could this be happening?

How could this be happening right when things were going so well?

How was he here?

How was it that without a single word, he was able to make her crumble like a stack of unbalanced blocks. Was she really that fragile? Was she really that much of a fool? Did all these years really mean absolutely nothing when it came to her growth? Has she not changed one bit?

And more importantly, how could she allow herself to shatter like that in front of Milo... and Niall? What were they thinking of her? She knew that behind this door, down in their cabin, they were probably discussing her and her fragile mind, trying to figure out what the hell had happened.

How was she going to explain herself when even she didn't know what happened?

She couldn't even explain it to herself.

And how could she allow herself to take the focus of Rue for even a second? They had such little time left and here she was, falling apart simply at the sight of the man. How was she going to stand up and speak in front of a group of the highest ranking officials in Aiveria if the simple smirk could put her in this state?

She looked up, her cheeks wet from tears, her head aching and her eyes burning as she pictured the man in her head... the smirk on his face. He didn't even feel the need to come talk to her... what did that even mean? Did that mean he had grown? Did that mean he couldn't care to bother himself with her then? After all the pain he had inflicted on her all those years ago, was he bored now? Did the sight of her simply amuse him?

Of course, if that was the case, that would be a good thing. Thea would do anything to make sure that she never saw him again. If him being bored with her was what it took, she prayed that that was it.

But for some reason, she couldn't believe that that was it. She could not believe that he was simply going to leave her alone, not when he knew she was here... she couldn't believe it.

His smirk continued to infiltrate her mind.

She knew the smirk so well... even if he looked so different, older even, she knew it well. Though it was just a twitch of his lip, to her, it said so much... it almost screamed the words 'see you soon.'

She knew this wasn't the last she was going to see of him.

She wiped her tears, and right when she realized that she had to hurry and get out of the washroom before Niall and Milo began to worry, she heard a knock at the door. "Thea?" It was Niall.

She cleaned herself up quickly, wiping her tears away and using the mirror to try and clean up the eyeliner and mascara dripping down her face. When she was ready, she pushed the door open and saw Niall standing there, his brows furrowed as he looked at her, concerned. "Are you alright?"

She stepped out of the restroom, nodding. "Yes," she said. "Sorry... my makeup..."

"You don't have to explain yourself," Niall said, reaching out and touching her arm. "I just need to know that you're alright."

She nodded, looking away as she began hugging herself. "I'll be fine... I just want to get back to focusing on Rue. I'll catch up on my sleep afterwards."

Niall nodded slowly. "Alright," he said, which filled Thea with relief. More than any time ever she was happy that he didn't push her for more details. She couldn't do that. Not right now.

Maybe never.

She just didn't want to talk about it.

Right then, the train whistle went off, signaling that the train was going to leave soon, and Niall sighed. "When you get to Abureth, do what you need to do in regards to the research, but then I want you to relax," he said. "That's an order, do you understand?"

Thea nodded. "Yes, Sir."

He kept his eyes on her for a moment longer, before surprising her by touching her cheek with the back of his hand. "You're still burning up," he said. "I ordered you a cool peach juice... it should be in your cabin by now. The breakfast I got you two is in the cabin too."

Her brows rose, wondering how on earth he knew to get her a peach drink... her favorite fruit, and despite herself, she found her cheeks warming up more, also suddenly becoming more aware of the fact that they were standing very close together in a very narrow space. "Thank you."

"Give me a call when you get there and you're settled, got it?"

She nodded.

"And know, Thea, that I'm here for you if you need anything."

She nodded once more, believing that.

Niall smiled at her before letting her walk over to their cabin, and it was only after she made her way in and slid the door shut that Niall got off the train and left.

Milo was pacing within the large cabin, which was absolutely beautiful with a massive window right across from the entrance, a table in front of the window, with two comfortable looking chairs, a couch and even a bed. Honestly, it looked a thousand times better than her own hostel room.

Before she could take the room in completely, however, Milo was in front of her, clearly not wanting to waste a second. He reached out and took her hands in hers. "Thea," he started, sternly but also kindly, staring at her through his glasses with his warm, brown and very concerned looking eyes. "I'm not the General... I'm not the kind of person who can keep my nose out of places it doesn't belong... frankly, my entire job involves me sticking my nose into places it doesn't belong... so I'm not going to be like him and try to respect your personal space or anything of that sort."

Thea swallowed back her nerves.

She knew this may be the case.

"You need to tell me what happened... and don't say it's a lack of sleep... one second you're laughing with me and the next you are shaking and hyperventilating... you were acting like you saw a ghost... that can't possibly be from a lack of sleep."

She did see a ghost.

The worst possible ghost.

"And I'm your friend... I can't just sit around and let it go," he continued. "Not when I know something... or someone... has been bothering you–"

"Milo..." she started, cutting him off but also holding back her tears. She knew he meant well and she knew he wanted to help her... but she couldn't. "Please... not right now."

He lowered his shoulders.

"Maybe eventually... but not now, please. Right now, I need us to focus on Rue."

"But–"

"If I open this door and tell you, or anyone for that matter, I don't know when... or even if... I'd be able to close it again," she said, honestly. "It would take way too much out of me, Milo, and I need all my attention on helping Rue."

His frown deepened, though he kept a hold of her hands.

"Please," she practically begged. "For the time being, forget any of this happened."

He let out a breath before nodding. "For the time being," he agreed. "But please, Thea... I need you to know that I'm here for you. If you need anything, just tell me."

She smiled now, genuinely, grateful to him. "Thank you, Milo."

He nodded. "Now grab the drink on the table, the General ordered it for you... he said he thinks you like peach?"

"I do," she kept smiling. "It's my favorite." And as she walked over to the table and picked up the drink right before the train began rumbling to the start and heading towards Abureth, Thea took a deep breath and let it out.

Right now, her focus was Rue.

She would forget about Adrien.

She would focus on Rue.

On saving someone she had grown to care about deeply.

And maybe... just to feel a little more like she did right when she woke up this morning... she would also focus on the fact that somehow, the General knew that her favorite fruits were peaches.







When Niall made it back to the Military District, he surprised no one by making his way into Achlis on a Saturday morning. The only thing that surprised people was the fact that he was not in his uniform, instead, wearing a loose shirt, trousers and a heavy black coat to protect him from the cold he hated so much.

He made his way towards his office and the second he got there, he picked up his phone and called Julian while pulling out a cigarette.

Julian picked up as quickly as he always did, even when he was at home. "Brayne."

"It's me," Niall started. "I–"

"You seem to have read my mind, Niall," he said. "I was just getting ready to drop by your apartment."

"I'm at the office... why, is something wrong?"

"I wouldn't say anything is wrong... something interesting came up and I wanted to share it with you."

Niall placed the cigarette at his lips as he leaned against his desk. "What is it?"

"You asked me to look into Adrien Karney, remember?"

"Yes," Niall lit his cigarette. After the conversation with Milo about how Thea was acting, Niall didn't really know what to do except to look into the Karney boy and his history. According to the rumors, he clearly had something to do with the behavior that worried Milo so much. All Niall could really assume to do would be to stay a step ahead of those rumors that were going around... that would be one way to protect her, and what better way to do so than to find out a little more about Adrien himself?

"Well, I got a note this morning from my contact in intelligence letting me know that he arrived in the Capital about an hour ago."

Niall raised his brow. "Arrived here?"

"Yes. He came from the Karney Estate in the East of the province, arrived by train. Actually, you all may have just missed him when you arrived at the station this morning.

Niall lowered his cigarette from his lips, his eyes narrowing. He remembered finding it odd that there was an unfamiliar State Officer who saluted him this morning as he made his way out of the bakery. He remembered wondering why there was a random officer at the station in full uniform but decided not to care, assuming a high official was arriving. It wasn't necessarily unusual.

But it was Karneys son?

He then thought back to Thea and the sight of her body having such a physical reaction to something... or someone.

The timing was too perfect.

She saw him, the man who, according to Milo, tormented her through university. The reason she sped through her education at one of the best, but also most notoriously difficult Universities.

She saw Adrien.

So he was what caused her to act the way she did.

"Niall?" Julian called from the other line.

Niall felt his heart sink as he thought of all the possible things Adrien could have done to Thea to elicit a response like that. He didn't want to assume, but how could you not? How could you not assume the absolute worst when you knew nothing.

"Niall?"

"There was an incident at the station," Niall started. "That's why I called... to keep you posted..."

"An incident?" Julian asked. "While you were there?"

Niall took a deep drag of his cigarette, its end burning bright with embers as he breathed in.

"Niall... what are you talking about? What happened? Are Milo and Thea still headed to Abureth?"

He used the fleshy part of his palm to rub his eyes as smoke escaped from his nostrils, suddenly feeling... overwhelmed.

If Karney's son was here, he was here to shadow his father, to follow and work with him, to be seen with the man to boost his own image seeing as he was expected to take the reins from his father eventually.

If this was the case, then he was more than likely to be at the meeting on Monday. He would be there to hear Thea speak and if Thea reacted the way she did this morning simply at the sight of him walking by, what would him sitting in a room staring at her do to her?

"Hello?"

The part of him that cared for Thea as a person was immensely stressed, not wanting to put her through something that may, most likely, traumatize her. However, the part of him that concerned himself on the significance of this project, as well as the amount of time and effort they had put into this... and how close they were to the end of it... that part of him worried about whether or not they'd actually be able to find some other way to do this.

"Sir? What's going on?"

"Julian... I think we have a problem... a potentially big problem."





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