Hi everyone!

As promised, here is the second upload for today! Enjoy!

Don't forget to vote and comment to let me know your thoughts!

Thank you! <3

Love, luckycharms <3

---

Driving Niall's beautiful black car was a luxury in itself. Thea had never driven something so expensive and glorious. It drove smoothly, with little jerking or bumping or anything of the sort, and she didn't fail to notice the stares of all the passerbyers who witnessed her.

She was a girl.

Driving a car.

But not just any car... an expensive one.

She wondered what they would think if they found out it belonged to the General of the Aiverian Army and the Deputy Secretary of Defense.

Now that would turn heads.

That being said, she couldn't deny that she was also absolutely terrified. The slightest nick on this beautiful beast would have probably made Thea want to die. But when she got to the prison, passing through the checkpoint with ease and seeing that she had successfully gotten there without any issues, she felt immediately better.

Thea had gone to see Rue every day of the week except for today, and as he had promised, he stayed silent. He was certainly very good at that... at hiding his emotions and revealing nothing. But at least she knew he was one to stay true to his word.

When she arrived at his cell, she unlocked it herself though a guard hovered over her in Luana's absence. Once the door opened, she walked in and unsurprisingly, Rue was sitting in his usual spot, cross legged, hands on his knees, eyes closed as if he were in some form of meditation.

He opened his eyes when she sat on the floor in front of him and greeted her with a nod.

She smiled and decided to get straight to the point. "You're from Thanina," she said. "Or... at least, the little coastal town next door. Your brother was one of the innocents who were slaughtered in the 1946 Siege by the State Military. That was what made you drop your pen and pick up a gun."

The slight twitch in his brow was enough to give away the fact that they were right.

And he was impressed.

Her smile faded, replaced by a frown. "I'm sorry that happened to you," she said. "I was seven when that was all going on... I heard about it but barely understood. Abureth Town was so far removed from the war at that point that... despite all the horrors other Elorians were suffering through... I was still living a normal life," she hesitated. "When I was eleven or twelve, it did reach us... yet..."

She thought back to that time when the Crows arrived in Abureth and the State Militia followed. There was panic in the streets and a curfew which led to silent nights, and though the division occupying Abureth Town was directly under Rhys' leadership... Rhys, the man in charge of all of the Crows... the Crows couldn't hold the town for longer than maybe a few months because the State wouldn't allow it. The State was determined to make sure that the Crows didn't maintain control over the Abureth Train Station and the important West Aburai Port, seeing as that would be a major advantage for them that would allow for the quick transport of men and resources, and the Crows knew this. Rhys knew this. They knew the State wouldn't give up and seeing what happened in Thanina, the bustling, heavily populated Abureth Town was at risk and they knew a lot of people would die.

So they retreated, under Rhys' orders.

It was a major loss for the Crows, but Rhys' decision saved the lives of thousands of Elorians. His decision avoided a massacre.

"In the short time that the Crows held my town though... there were a few shellings, but only one that directly targeted a regular civilian area," she said. "I was actually supposed to be walking home that day with my friend Aaryan, the one I told you about before... but he had stayed back with a few friends and I ended up heading home on my own. When I heard the sound of the planes, I didn't really know what that meant... I stood there and stared."

Rue was listening. Still quiet, but listening.

"Of course, my brother being your typical boy, but also a boy who dreamed of building aircrafts one day, knew exactly what the sound of those planes meant... especially when the leader of the entirety of the Elorian Revolutionary Armed Forces was hiding somewhere in our Town." She looked at Rue, seeing the interest in his eyes. "When my brother realized I was walking home alone, he sprinted... he left his sports practice where the teachers were gathering all the students into a makeshift bunker and sprinted all the way from the school, down the streets that were now empty because everyone seemed to know what that sound meant, and found me right before they dropped the shells," her eyes began to water. "There's a bridge near our home... it leads to my neighborhood... and I was standing there, gripping onto the side of it, frozen and staring at the warplanes dropping the shells when my brother grabbed me and threw me over, into the water."

Rue took a breath.

"The water wasn't high, maybe up to my shoulders, but my brother jumped in right after me, breathless and probably terrified, pulling me under the bridge and holding me so tightly as the shells landed and exploded and the shrapnel flew absolutely everywhere. Somehow, it felt like it lasted–" Thea shook her head, "–hours. It felt like forever, and I was bawling in my brother's arms, soaked to the bone in freezing cold winter water as the world seemed to be rumbling and my ears aching from the squealing and the explosions and the droning of the aircrafts... but what I remember most about that day isn't the shelling... honestly, I barely think of that anymore... only a couple people were actually killed, most of them Crows, and the damage was dramatic but nothing a close knit community couldn't handle... the shelling itself is a distant memory."

Rue seemed to know what she was going to say and she wasn't surprised that he knew. She realized now more than ever that somehow... they understood each other.

"When I think of that day, I think of my brother," she said. "I think of how my brother risked his life to save me... how even at that age, in a matter of life or death, his first thought was me," her voice cracked as she spoke and she had to pause to take a breath. "When he was holding me under that bridge... the way he calmed me down was by singing this song... it's a song my grandmother would sing to us when we were kids, when we were scared... an Old Elorian song. He sang that and just held me." She swallowed back her tears.

He had done the same for her not too long ago, while she was in university, after Adrien had hurt her. He was a remarkable singer... and hearing his voice always calmed her.

Those days back in the dorms of A.N.U... that was the last time she had heard him sing.

She shook her head, looking back at Rue. "When I read the poems you wrote about your brother, even though what I went through was nothing compared to what you did, I can still feel, maybe a fraction of what you feel... and I understand," she said. "I know what it feels like to have a brother who you love and adore... a brother who would give up his life for you."

Rue's shoulders lowered.

"What I don't know... is what it feels like to lose that brother... unfairly," she continued. "Sometimes I feel like I've lost my brother too... but not in the same way, of course, so I can't relate to you there. But if there's one thing your writing has shown me, it's that I pray that I will never feel that loss... and I feel for you for having to go through that," she reached out and touched his hand, a little surprised when he let her.

His hand was warm, and despite the fact that he was missing two fingers, it felt the same as any other hand she's touched. She smiled. "I see that you were fighting with yourself to do the right thing... I don't know how old you are yet but I know you can't be that much older than my brother, which means you've been fighting with yourself to do the right thing for at least a decade."

He was breathing slowly, seeming calm.

"And for that... I admire you," she continued. "I admire that you have that strength, and I wish more than anything that I could tell my brother all about you... because if I did then maybe he would leave Orynan behind and follow in your footsteps. We need more people like you as leaders to all these young boys who think they know what the right way to fight is... they need to know what you know... that there is no right way to fight. You just have to keep doing the right thing."

His expression softened and Thea's brows rose when he put his free hand over hers. "My brother said that very thing to me before the State took him," he said, breaking his silence. "To always keep doing the right thing, no matter how much it hurts."

Thea smiled, though she was holding back her tears.

She wanted to give him a hug.

This man had suffered so much and she wondered if it would ever end. They were fighting so hard to save his life, but what would that mean? Would he be trapped in this cell until he breathes his last breath or was there ever a chance that he would be let free?

Could that be her next goal?

To help set him free?

Would the General allow for that? Would he support her?

She wanted him to be free. She was being serious when she said she wanted her brother to know him. She wanted everyone to know him. To know him and his mind and his suffering.

She then realized something.

Lifting his hands in hers, she held them up to her chest. "Rue... let me share your poems... anonymously, of course, but let me get your voice out there," she said. "It could help one day... if people begin to know you, then one day, maybe we could use it to get you out. We could publish them... people will like them, Rue... and if they like them, they will in turn like you."

And that was that.

Rue said nothing else.

Thea was not disheartened by the fact that he didn't respond, instead, she took pleasure in the fact that he didn't look at her with complete repulsion after she suggested the idea. And now she felt a little bit of hope... like there was something good that could come out of all of this. Plus, there was also the fact that it genuinely felt like they had a moment of bonding.

Somehow, she really felt like the two were friends now.

When she arrived back in Achlis, she parked the car in the General's special spot and feeling positive, she rushed back into Achlis through the main entrance, wanting to get back to Milo quickly so that she could get started on helping him. However, she was suddenly startled by the General's voice. "You're back later than I expected,"

She turned to spot him, finding herself spinning in a circle as he approached from behind her before reaching her side. "Sir!"

The General was holding a coffee in his hand. "If I had known I would run into you, I would have grabbed you one as well."

"It's alright," she smiled. "Milo and I still have a lot of work to do, so we'll probably grab a coffee together soon anyways."

"Good," he responded. "I trust my car is okay?"

Thea laughed as she reached out and handed him his keys. "Perfectly fine. Thank you again for letting me take it."

"Of course," the General said, smiling rather warmly at her as the two of them began making their way towards the lift. When they stepped into the lift and the General and Thea were officially alone, away from the eyes of the strangers she knew were watching her as they nearly always were, she was suddenly embarrassed. She immediately remembered what Luana had done to her when she saw the General's reflection in the mirrored doors of the lift.

She looked down at her hands, biting her lips for a moment before deciding that she didn't want things to be awkward between the two of them.

Especially when things were going so well.

"Um..." she started, still looking down. Very quickly, the lift began to smell like the coffee in the General's mug and that pleasant scent did help calm her nerves a little. "About the other morning... with Luana..."

The General looked at her.

"I'm sorry about that."

To her surprise, the General chuckled before lifting his mug up and sipping his coffee. "You don't need to apologize," he said. "Though I'll be honest, I was a little taken aback."

Somehow, him not being annoyed or upset made her feel more embarrassed. "Oh... really?" then she cursed herself for saying that. Of course he'd be surprised, idiot!

"Yes," he started, "I suppose a man like me doesn't really get complimented very often. I'm not particularly easy on the eyes."

Now she was surprised.

So Luana was... right?

People didn't think he was handsome?

People were crazy! Every inch of her disagreed with that statement, but she knew that doing so out loud would make her into more of a fool than she already was.

"So you don't need to apologize for saying something rather pleasant," he started as he put one hand in his pant pocket and shifted his weight to his left leg, lifting his mugs to his lips again as his eyes looked away. "Unless of course... you were lying and you didn't mean it."

"Oh, no!" she said quickly, raising her hands up. "I mean, I did mean..." Her face grew hot as the General sipped his drink, watching her in amusement as she fumbled for her words. "I don't want... to cross... um, any lines... but I did mean it!"

To that, the General surprised her by letting out a laugh.

And when Thea looked up at him, watching his brows furrow and his lips curve up as he laughed at her, she found her heart beat raise despite her holding her breath.

The lift came to a stop and the bell dinged loudly before the old doors roared open and the General, still laughing, put a hand on Thea's arm. "Thank you, Thea," he said, his expression warm. "Now get back to work."

She was frozen, and it took her more effort than she thought to simply smile back at him and nod.

Sure, she thought the General was handsome when he was brooding and liked the fact that he was rather mysterious, but she knew now, from that moment, that she had never met a man more handsome than the version of this man who stood before her right now.

Despite the exhaustion evident on his face, he had an incredible laugh and a beautiful smile.

She wished so much that he would smile and laugh more often.

And something she knew for a fact now was that, no matter how hard she would try to deny it in front of Luana... she most certainly was falling for this man.