Hope woke up with a pillow to the face. She grabbed onto it and rolled over, making Lanna shriek and she fell on top of her. Hope just grabbed Lanna like a teddy bear and held her tight. 

"Get off you weirdo!" Lanna whinner. 

"No." Hope yawned. "You woke me up, this is the conscience. Now shush. Teddy bears don't talk." 

"What? Snuggles and I wasn't invited?" Vera cried, and jumped on top of the girls, making them all groan. 

"Okay, so where were you last night?" Lanna said, propping herself up on her elbow. 

"I went for a walk. Stopped in the field and then talked with Fry." 

"Oooo! Hope and Frypan?" Vera giggled, making Lanna giggle. 

"Oooo. Hope and a boy?" 

"What? Eww. No!" Hope cried and then rolled her eyes. "You guys are absolutely ridiculous. I can't have a flippen' conversation with someone from the male gender without you two planning my wedding!" 

"He's cute though." 

"Lanna, you think every boy is cute." Hope groaned again, giving her friend a push. Lanna giggled, and winked. "That Minho though. Hot damn!" 

"Sure if you liked puffed up pricks." 

Lanna sat up, holding the pillow to her chest. "Okay...what's the story. Clearly you've talk to them... spill it!" 

Hope sat up with a groan and stretched. She yawned and then told the girls what happened with the cellar and the argument in the kitchen and why she needed a walk. Lanna was grinding her teeth and she looked ready to throw a punch. That's how Hope felt. The girl got up and got ready, Hope and Lanna were helping Odin train a few of the Right Arm members. They trudged into the Mess hall. 

"Good Morning Hope and friends!" A loud voice boomed around the big room. Hope looked around, standing in the line of cooks was Fry, an apron tied around himself, and he was waving a spatula around. He had a huge happy smile on his face.

"Aww. He's so cute!" Lanna giggled. 

The girls came over, and he handed them each a plate of pancakes, with a flourish of arm waving. Hope couldn't help it, but she chuckled. 

"You're up early." 

"Everyone's gotta help out, right? I'm used to getting up to feed the runners and Keepers. Thought I'd throw my help into the mix. You girls are up early!" 

"We're training some of the guys." Lanna grinned. 

"Girls who know how to use guns, I'll be on my best behavior!" He laughed. 

Lanna grinned at him, and then waved and went to sit down. Fry handed her a mug of coffee. 

"I still don't know how you take your coffee, if you have the options." 

"Milk and sugar. But milk was always a treat. So I learned to drink it black."

Fry frowned. 

"We had no way to keep milk cold in the scorch." 

Frypan's eyes went wide in realization and then they softened, he picked up the carton of milk and poured some into her coffee mug. Hope smiled at him. 

"Thanks Fry." 

"Anytime. Now move along, you're holding up the breakfast line!" 

He shoed her away with the spatula. Hope chuckled as she went to sit down with Lanna and Vera. They both raised their eyebrows at her. She groaned and rolled her own eyes. She sat down and started eating. A few minutes later Sonya and Harriet and the blond by from the other day came in. They got their food and then came over to our table. They had just sat down when the door opened and the elite three and the dark hair girl who came up the mountain with them, came in. Hope took a deep breath and slowly exhaled with a groan.

They turned and Newt led them over to our table, Frypan followed. Minho narrowed his eyes and Hope just rolled mine. They all sat down.

"Mornin'." Newt smiled at the table. "What's on the buggen' agenda today?"

"We're packing up, tomorrow morning first light were leaving." Harriet explained, "Sonya and I have another shift on watch. These two have some training. Not sure what Vince'll have ya do."

"Oh so the mighty Right Arm Princess needs training? Not as royal as she seems?" Minho raised an eye brow and pointed his fork at Hope.

"Uhh, Minho?" Sonya said, she was pressing her lips together, trying not to laugh. Hope picked up her coffee mug, and took a sip, her eyes locked onto Minho.

"She is the trainer."

The boy's mouth dropped open in unison his eyes went wide. Lanna giggled, "Gentlemen try Right Arm Queen."

The girls smirked and gave the boys a smug look. Hope and Lanna drained the rest of her coffee got up, grabbed her rifle, swung it over her shoulder just as Papa Bear came stomping up to the table.

"Good, you girls done? We got some stuff to go over before we get these pathetic bunch of soilders into shape." He turned his intense hard eyes to the boys, "You," he pointed to the guys and the girl, "you new ones. You'll be joining the training."

He left no room for argument. He stared them down and then spun around and left. Hope and Lanna right behind him.

•°•

Hope walked up and down the line of Right Arm members. Most of them had been fighting in the Scorch for long enough to know how to hold a gun, aim and shoot. Hope didn't need to correct them too much. A hand possition here or a stance there.

She was shocked though how little these Maze Elites knew. Yet Thomas and Minho were aragent enough to think they didn't need help.

"Why are we talking advice from the Princess?" Minho whined.

"Because she could out shoot you, you blood shank." Newt rolled his eyes.

"I don't believe it."

"Fine." I finally snapped. "Want me to prove it?"

"Yes actually I do." He smirked.

"Dude, I think this ain't a good idea." Frypan said.

"I don't mind showing the puffed up peacock he's wrong." Hope turned, "Hey Joe?"

"Ya?"  The young man called back.

"Call Odin."

He hurried away. And came back with Odin behind him.

"What's the problem?" He barked.

Hope had her arms folded and a hip stuck out. She nodded her head at Minho and Thomas.

"Our fancy new elites here, don't think they can out shoot me-"

"Hey leave me and Newt outta this!" Fry said raising his hands.

"Well. I smell a challenge." Odin crossed his powerful arms and raised his eyebrows.

"You would be correct."

"Alright." He spun around and cleared the area. He waved Minho and Hope over. Hope waved her hand and gave him a mock bow.

Minho looked less smug now that there was an audience, but he wasn't one to back out of a challenge. He brought the gun up and aimed.

"I'd change your stance. Feet are too close." Hope muttered.

She heard Minho growl.

He placed his finger on the trigger.

"Did you account for the wind?" Hope muttered again.

She heard him exhale heavily. He brought the gun back up. Took a second to adjust it and placed his finger on the trigger.

"I hope that's not how your gonna hold the gun."

He lowered the gun and spun around, "would you shut it woman!"

"Alright." Hope shrugged, she made a show of pretending to zip her lips. The crowd behind her chuckled.

"Shank, your done for!" Frypan chuckled.

Minho readjusted his gun, "Thanks for the support man."

"You did this to your self Shuckface." Newt said while he shook his head.

Hope stayed quiet, he pulled the trigger. He wasn't used to the kick back and he stumbled back.

"Told you to readjust your feet." Hope grinned.

He rolled his eyes. But swept his arm out for her to take his spot. Hope stepped up and in a swift movement had the gun loaded, aimed and shot in a few seconds. Hitting a bullseye.

"Hoooweee!" Frypan cheered.
Lanna also whooped, and gave Fry a high five. Newt and Thomas had a lopsided smirk.

"That's my girl." Odin grinned. He turned to Minho, who had gone quiet. "Listen to her boy. She's been doing this longer then you have. Put that ego in check."

"Hey Lanna, come here and hold the shooting stance!" Hope called.

Lanna did as she asked.

"Okay. Listen up. As Minho so wonderfully demonstrated for us, narrow stance is bad why?"

Hope spent the rest of the day training the group on how to shoot.

•×•

The group sat around the table at supper. Hope and Lanna had pulled Vera and Tim over to sit with them as well. Sonya and Harriet came back from their watch and sat down with them.

"So? How'd training go?" Harriet asked.

There were a few sniggers.

"What? What did we miss?"

"Ya Minho. How was training?" Lanna asked, the mock innocence made the table snigger some more.

"Just fine thank you." He snapped.

"He got out in his bloody place." Newt chuckled. He went on to explain what happened. The girls howled with laughter.

"Hey, Tess, where've ya been?" Thomas asked. The black haired girl showed up and quietly slipped onto the bench at the end.

She glanced up and everyone. Her bright blue eyes flicked over everyone. There was something in the way she held herself. Like she was shielding herself. She gave off a skittish vibe.

"Helping out." She said, and turned to her food.

Hope brushed the feeling away. New place, new people, change in routine. Guess these maze kids weren't used to the outside world yet. Hope kept an eye on her the rest of supper. She didn't say much. When she did, it was short answers, few word sentences. Thomas leaned into her a few times and talked quietly to her.

The Maze kids swapt stories, and laughed about similarities and differences. Complained about the same things. Hope, Lanna, Vera and Tim sat at the end and listened. They couldn't participate in the conversation. And the Maze kids didn't seem to try to bring them into the conversation. Time and Vera eventually left.

Lanna and Hope exchanged glances and then together they got up and left too. Taking their dishes to the sink, quickly washing their stuff and leaving the mess hall. They wondered the camp arm in arm.

"Those kids...very arragant hey?" Lanna finally said.

Hope hummed in agreement.

"They seriously have no clue what's its like!" She continued. Hope just nodded along. "Like come in and just expect the world catered to them! What about the rest of us?"

"I dunno Lan. I already told them off. But they don't get it. Whatever. Maybe once we leave here and get to the Safe Haven we won't have to deal with them much." Hope shrugged.

"It's too bad. Sonya and Harriet were awesome. Those boys come crashing in and throw everything into a frenzy, and everyone forgets about the rest of us."

"I know."

They had wondered into the field and sat down. They sat side by side, watching the sun set. Lanna placed her head on Hope's shoulder and Hope placed her head on Lanna's. They sat in silence, feeling sorry for themselves.

The sunset was pretty, bright orange and pink, purples, it was a happy sunset. The girls stayed until the last rays were just about gone. Hope got up and held a hand for Lanna.

"I'd like to stay. Just for a bit."

"All right. Don't get lost." Hope smiled.

Hope wondered back into the camp. She saw Sonya and Harriet sitting beside Aris at a fire. They were laughing and talking annimatidly.

"Hey! Aris!" Someone shouted.

Everyone looked around, sitting way up high on one of the ledges on the mountains side were the guys from the Maze. As soon as Aris waved they burst into laughter. Hope frowned. They seemed like such typical bullies, arragant, rude, cocky. Hope frowned. She had thought Frypan was better then that, he was so sweet when the others weren't around. Newt also seemed nicer, but in a crowd of arragant loud mouths, anyone would change.

Hope shock her head and kept walking. She rounded a corner back to her tent when she walked into something solid.

"Whoo there kiddo. Head up."

"Hey papa." Hope muttered gloomily, she didn't bother to pick her head up.

"What's wrong?"

Hope shrugged. Papa folded his huge arms and waited. He was always very patient. Never pushed, but knew when to press a little. He could read her moods quite well and today was no different.

"Just...I dunno. Still pissed about those maze kids thinking they're better then everyone."

"You never used to be bother by what others thought."

"No...but everyone around knew life was a mess and everyone was in it together. It wasn't us versus them. It was always all of us, together." Hope tried to explain her though process.

Papa hummed. "Come on, let's go get some hot chocolate." He placed his muscles and tattooed arm around her shoulders and led her to the kitchen. Hope didn't really care what happened. She was in a grouchy mood.

They sat down by a window, the first star was twinkling.

"First star is out."

"Make a wish." Papa chuckled.

"What's with everyone and wishes? Fry said wishing on a dandilion, your wishing on a star."

Papa chuckled. Hope was watching the star with a frown.

"Papa, I know I never went to school...but I'm pretty sure stars don't move and get bigger, right?"

"What? Like a shooting star?" He asked, sipping his hot chocolate.

"No. It's getting bigger. I don't think it's a star."

"What?" He said sharply and twisted his head to look out the window. Hope sat quiet watching the light get bigger. She could feel her muscles tensing and an anxiety rise in her chest.

"I don't like it!" She whispered.

"No....no me either." He agreed. He got to his feet. Still watching out the window.

It was definitely not a star.

"Shit! We've been compromised!" He cried. He kept over the table and yanked the door open just as the first explosion went off. Sending Hope and Odin onto the floor of the mess hall.

•°•

° Well...here we go! TMR story
line is now coming in hot! °