I went unnoticed as I slid into the Deadheads. Climbing the trees I hid in the tips of the trees. I crouched on the branch and slowly observed what was happening.

The Glade was smoking. The homestead was still mostly intact, the kitchen was mostly functioning, I could see Frypan and a few Track hoes trying to clean up enough to cook. I saw the crops destroyed, nothing survived, there were still small fires here and there scattered in the fields. I saw Clint, Jeff and Newt running between a few Gladers laying or propped up, they were close enough I could hear them yelling at each other.

"Toss me that gauze!"

"Dude, Where'd the burn cream go?"

Chuck was sitting by the Slammer, his back on the door. He looked like he was in one piece. I couldn't see Teresa or Thomas or Winston or Minho. I saw Gally though. He was storming across the Glade towards Jeff and Clint.

"Captain Gall." Newt said with an eye roll as he straightened up.

"Where is she?" He barked.

"Who?"

"You know who! Where is she?"

"How the bloody hell would I know?"

"You friends with her!" He roared.

"Yeah, I am. And I haven't seen her since the first wave of buggen' Grievers were blown sky high!"

"You're hiding her!"

"Where Gally? Where the bloody hell would I be hiding her in the Glade, it's not exactly that buggen' big!? You've searched the bloody Glade! You also have Tessa and Tommy locked up!"

"You better tell me Newt!" He threatened, pointing a huge finger in Newt's face.

Newt just rolled his eyes and folded his arms. "Or what? You goin' to lock me up too? Hit me? What Gally, what are you gonna be bkoody do?"

He growled and spun away and stormed away. Jeff slid over to Newt.

"You have no idea?"

"None. I...I don't wanna think she was one who was bloody taken...but...its starting to look that way. No one knows where she is."

"How's Minho?"

"...not doing well..."

I stopped listening and turned towards the Bloodhouse. I slowly and quietly crept through the branches. I had to stop and wait for a group of guys to pass by. They were dragging some broken pieces of a building. Once they were gone I kept going. I stopped and pulled my backpack to the front and pulled my mask out. The smoke was thick from the still smoldering barn.

Slowly creeping forward, I kept my eyes open for Winston. I had seen him briefly. I got as close as I could and crouched down, waiting. I waited a solid ten minutes before I caught a glimpse of him. He had soot and ash smeared on his face, he looked tired, he had a big thing of gauze wrapped around his upper arm, but he was whole and in one piece. He came around the smoldering building and leaned on the one remaining support pole, a bottle of water in his hand.

I had seen Fry, Jeff, Clint, Newt and Chuck, they were safe; I knew Thomas and Tessa were locked up. Winston was here, I had no idea where Minho was and panic turned my stomach.

I broke a piece of a small branch and snapped it smaller. I threw it at Winston. It hit him in the back of the head. He whipped around, his eyes wide. This time I pulled a small little knife from my holster and tossed it. It hit the post he was leaning on, only inches from his face. He jumped but then smirked as he looked at the knife still quivering in the wood.

He yanked it out and flipped it. He looked up and his narrowed eyes scanned the tree line. He glanced around him, making sure no one was around and walked towards the trees, his eyes still searching. Once he was a ways into the forest he stopped and looked around again, spinning in a slow circle. I jumped off the branch and landed in front of him, landing in my favorite position, crouched with a leg out and a hand down for balance. I slowly straightened up and pulled my hood down.

"JayJay!" He whispered in relief. But then he smirked and folded his arms, sticking a hip out.

"Why do you always do that thing?" He asked, raising his eyebrows.

"What thing?"

"The thing...when you land...the thing..?"

"What thing? I don't do a thing!"

"Sure ya do," he uncrossed his arms and crouched down, "the thing.. with the arm..and the leg, flinging your hair..."

He stretched out his one leg and arm, over exaggerating flinging his head around.

"It's a thing. It's a landing pose. A fighting pose.. it's a pose. You're such a poser, JayJay." 

"I'm not a poser!" I rolled my eyes as he chuckled and stood up. Once he was up he threw his arms around me, laughing. And for the first time I didn't fight back, instead I threw my arms around him too. He squeezed me tight.

"JayJay! I can't believe you're still alive!" Everyone thinks you're dead!"

"Well clearly I'm not dead." I mumbled, my face was pressed into his shoulder.

"Clearly!" He smirked pulling away. "No one saw you after the Grievers separated you and Tess from us."

"I'm okay. I'm here, I'm okay. It takes more then a pack of shucken Grievers to take me down!"

"Clearly."

I pulled away, and held him at arms length, and searched his face.

"Winnie, where's Minho?" I asked worry and fear making my voice strained and quiet.

"He was...last time I saw he was in your room."

"Can...you do me a favor?"

"Ya Jay, what do ya need?"

"I'd rather stay...dead to others for the moment. Use it to my advantage. But can you please go tell Minho I ain't dead?"

He nodded, with a smile.

"I don't need him to unalive himself because he thinks I'm dead."

He smiled and nodded knowingly. "I'll go do it right now."

"Thank you Winnie." I gave his arms a gentle squeeze.

He stepped away and turned away, and with his long legs carried him away. I climbed back up into the trees. I sat down, pulled my hood back up pulled my backpack into my lap and leaned my head back and closed my eyes. My body was so tired; a full day in the maze with section seven collapsing around us, then fighting Grievers, and then chasing them back through the maze to seven, I was asleep within minutes.

•×•

I woke with a start. I sat up straight, awake from a dead sleep. I couldn't have been asleep long, but I felt better. I blinked a few times, trying to figure out why I woke up. I heard angry voices underneath me.

"What are you guys doing in the Deadheads?"

I scowled as Gally's voice broke the quiet of the trees.

"Plotting your demise." I heard a sarcastic voice that made my stomach flip and a smirk appear on my face. Minho.

"Keep it up Minho and you'll be locked up with your hero, Thomas."

"What are you gonna do? Lock the entire Glade up? Get over yourself."

"Careful Minho. You don't have the backings you did like in the gathering."

"Doesn't mean I won't break your shucken neck!" Minho hissed.

I heard a scuffle and a few thumps and an angry yell. A moment later Gally came stomping through the Deadheads and out into the Glade. I watched him go, making sure he wasn't coming back.

"Okay Winston...where is she?" His voice sounded strained and desperate.

"Just give her a second."

I slowly and silently got up, leaving my backpack hanging on the branch and dropped from the tree tops, landing behind the guys in my all too familiar landing; one leg under me, one out to the side, a hand down to brace my fall and the other arm hovering over my holster full of knives. Minho spun around.

"Jess!"

I stood up with a smirk.

"Hello there, Handsome. Come here often?"

"Such a poser!" Winston muttered with a smug eye roll.

Minho grabbed me and wrapped me up tightly, folding me up into his chest, his huge strong arms around my waist and back. He burried his face into my neck and his knees gave out and he melted to the Deadheads floor, taking me with him. I finally for the first time all night, I felt safe. I was home again.

"You're alive!" I could hear his thick voice break. "Shuck Jess!" He sobbed into my neck.

"Why does everyone think a bunch of deadly biomechanical monsters would kill me?" I scoffed.

His arms held me tighter. His one hand burried into my hair, tangling his hand deeper into it.

"Jessie..." He murmured softly, with a big sniff.

"I'm okay Minho. I'm alive and I'm okay." I held him tighter, slowly petting the back of his head.

"I...I thought they took you...after Gally's warning...I was...I-"

"Please. Gally's an idiot. And I can't die. Not yet. I got some shit to still fuck up."

I felt him chuckle. He slowly pulled away and held my face. His eyes searching my face. I could see the relief in his tear heavy eyes. I smirked at him. And gently brushed the tears from his cheeks.

He pulled me closer and kissed me. It was gentle and sweet, but desperate. I felt him sigh into the kiss. His hands buried deeper into my hair, pulling, tugging and holding. His kiss got deeper and more passionate. I had a hand holding his shirt tight in my fist and another hand burried in his hair pulling him closer.

"Ah hem." There was a dry throat clear right beside us."Still here." I slowly pulled away from Minho.

"Can I help you Winnie?"

"Well as much as I love this, it's so juice and shuck yeaaaaass girl, hot damn! We kinda have problems we gotta deal with."

"Fine...fine..." I rolled my eyes. I slowly got up and pulled Minho.

I rolled my eyes again and crossed my arms.

"Alright Winnie. Now, what the actual hell is going on?"

Winston stepped closer and leaned in, keeping his voice quiet.

"Okay...well, a Griever took Alby and Thomas tried chasing after it, but stopped when he saw the Glade. Gally came outta no where, punched Thomas in the face-"

"-your man here slammed his fist into Gally's face. Newt had to jump in the middle of it."

"Pfft. Please, it was nothin'." Minho smirked and waved his hand. "I'd do it again."

"No fare. I wanna punch that jackass!"

"Maybe soon, Baby." Minho soothed, pulling me closer and kissed my temple. I just growled.

"Yeah, Gally was yelling l sorta klunk," Winston went on, "Newt, Frypan and Clint tried to keep the piece. And uh while that was happening Thomas, the idiot, stabbed himself with a Griever stinger-"

"HE DID WHAT?!" I shrieked. Minho slapped a hand over my mouth. I ripped his hand away, "the fucken idiot did what?" I hissed.

"Uh yeah, he said he needed to remember, Chuck and Tess tried to stop him, but he had stabbed himself with it."

I stood with my mouth open. Lost for words.   "Why the hell would anyone want to willingly go through the changing? It's awful and painful!"

Winston shrugged, "Thomas seemed to be on a different level then most-"

"Ya level fucken stupid!" I rolled my eyes.

"Ya well...Newt still seems enthralled with the idiot." Winston smirked.

Minho rolled his eyes and continued with the story. "Jeff ran for the serum. Thomas got the serum faster than anyone, and he already stopped screaming. So...I'm guessing he'll wake up fairly soon."

"Huh. All right. What else? What's with this Gally in charge shit?"

"Well it's just easier to let him think he's running things. His big thing is keeping Thomas and Tess locked up, he was hoping to also lock you up, but everyone thought you were dead...so he was planning doing something with them...banish them I think. "

"Which is just stupid." Winston added folding his arms and sticking a hip out.

"Okay...okay...we could work with that." I said, slowly as I started thinking out loud.

"What do ya have planned, babe?"

"I saw the Griever take Alby. Tess and I took out the one from the roof. But wasn't fast enough to take out the other one. I saw it rip him from the broken wall. I chased them. They went to seven, Min. I heard them beeping like the cylinder, like it was almost like a tracking device. I tried but I couldn't get him..." I trailed off, feeling my defeat. I turned my exhausted eyes to Minho, he had to understand. "Min, I tried. I tried to get to him. But there was so many! I couldn't take on that many alone!"

He grabbed my shoulders and held them for a second. "Shhh." He whispered and ran his hands up my neck to hold my face. "You did everything you could. And you did great."

"He...he was still alive." I said quietly.

"What?" Winston gasped.

"He saw me, right before the doors slammed. He...he yelled, "Don't trust them and get them out."

It was quiet between the boys. They both frowned, and their eyebrows pulled together. Minho let go of my face and ran a hand fhrthis hair.

"What does that mean?"

"Shuck if I know." I also frowned, I chewed my cheek trying to think. "He went through the changing, and he saw different things than Gally and I. So...he knew something. I guess we just wait and see."

"Okay. So...going back to this having Thomas and Tess banished...how is that beneficial?" Winston asked.

"I'm glad you asked." I smiled wickedly at him. The boys stepped closer and I examined my idea.

"Perfect." Winston matched my evil smile.

"I can get you your stuff and a bow." Minho nodded.

"I'll go back through the trees to the slammer. I'll follow you guys, don't keep coming back here. I want him to think I'm still dead."

Both boys nodded. Minho pulled me into a tight hug.

"Jess... seriously don't ever scare me like that again okay?"

"No promises. But I'll see ya on the other side. I'll save ya seat in hell."

"As long as it's a throne, next to yours."

"Deal." I smiled at him.

He tipped my face up and brushed his lips against mine. "I love you so fucken much Jessie." His whisper tickled my lips.

"I love you too, so fucken much!" I whispered back.

There was a nother dry throat clear. I pulled away from Minho and smirked at Winston and drew a big heart with my fingers in the air, "love you too," I mouthed.

He smirked while Minho slowly turned back to the Glade, Winston followed close behind. I watched them go. With a huge sigh I turned and climbed back up the tree. Taking my backpack with me I slowly made my way to the other side of the Deadheads, where the Slammer was located close to the giant stone wall.

As I went I watched the guys. Many of them looked scared and jumpy. A few of them were walking around, clubs and branches in hand, almost like jailors. Most of them were Builders; Gally's guys. The Gladers would be whispering but then would stop until the Builders were past and then start whispering again.

If they were going to plan a mutiny it wouldn't be too hard, most of these guys looked done. I grinned to myself as I kept climbing from tree to tree.

It all rode on when Thomas would wake up and what he remembered. I still couldn't believe he had stung himself willing. The fucken idiot. But I had to admire his determination. His ideas were stupid and didn't have a lot of thought put into it, but somehow they always ended up working out.

I made it to a tree that was as close to the Slammer as I could get, but still fully concealed. It was easier to sneak around in the dark and in the shadows, but day time sneaking was still something I could do. It just took extra care. As I settled into a branch I saw Chuck still sitting there. He had the teddy bear clutch tightly to his chest. Something shifted inside me. I heard his snuffles. And I saw a hand reach through the bars and hold his hand. Tess. Tess was doing her best to comfort him inside the slammer.

I couldn't let my baby shank think I was dead. I slid a knife out, and tossed it. It sunk into the ground beside him. He yelped and toppled sideways. I slapped a hand over my mouth to stop the sound of my laugher.

Okay that was worth it just for that reaction.

He pushed himself up and looked down at the knife with shaking hands he pulled it out of the ground and looked at it and then spun around searching. I could see his face lighting up, but he couldn't find me in the tree tops. He turned back to the slammer and passed the knife to Tess and I watched as he leaned in to talk, this time a flicker of hope and a smile on his face.

Good. I can't have my baby shank upset like that....DAMMIT. Minho was right. I had caught feelings for the kid, as annoying as he was...if anything were to happen to that kid...I'd burn the world down.

•×•
× I hope someone (or two or a few) got the Natasha and Yelena references! ×