Trigger warnings- Major character death, swearing and a fight. 

Several of the dictator's guards ran over to the dictator.

Raven and the other Champions ran over to Kaiden, who was standing in shock staring at the limp body beside him. Raven untied him while Finley kneeled on the ground.

"Cadence," he muttered, "Cade, stay with us."

He took her hand. Raven joined him in kneeling on the ground.

Raven pulled her onto his lap and took her other hand.

"Why did you do that?!" Kaiden asked, angrily.

"You deserve to live," Cadence managed to choke out. "I don't."

"Cade, don't be silly," Adrielle replied, "you deserve to live too."

"No. I don't." Cadence said. She paused for a second. "D-do you know the o-only reason I joined you guys in the f-first place?"

They all shook their heads, except Reina.

"I wanted to be a hero," Cadence explained. "I only j-joined you so I could b-become famous. T-that's wrong isn't it?"

"No," Raven replied, "it's not wrong. You are a hero, Cadence. We all are. You might have only joined us because you wanted to become famous, but you became more than that."

"You became family," Adrielle muttered.

Everyone except Finley nodded, though Kaiden hesitated slightly.

There was a long silence.

"Cade, you didn't have to do this," Kaiden said. He seemed to have calmed down. "You and Fin lost so much, he can't lose you too."

"He c-couldn't bear losing you. I-I know he couldn't."

"Cadence, I'm sorry that you never got the chance to be with me," Raven apologised.

"I-I saved your brother for you. It doesn't matter now Raven. You b-being happy is all t-that matters t-to me."

"I'm sorry I didn't do more for you," Finley said.

"You were the b-best brother I c-could've asked for. Just, make our d-dad proud."

"I will, I promise."

"Can I g-get one more thing?"

"Anything," Kaiden replied.

"Raven....," Cadence trailed off, but seemed to snap back to reality. "Kiss me."

Raven looked at the others. All of them except Finley nodded, but he was already crying into Kaiden's arm.

Raven leaned over and kissed her gently on the lips.

Cadence smiled. "I can d-die happy now. I wanted to g-go like this. My family around me. S-sorry for d-doing this t-to you."

"I'll never be able to repay you, Cadence," Kaiden said. "Thank you, for everything."

"Y-you don't h-have to repay me Lynch. Just m-make Fin happy, that's all I ask."

"I will do everything I can to do that. I promise."

Cadence groaned slightly. "Remember g-guys, you might not be t-to anyone else, b-but you're all my heroes."

Cadence's eyes fell shut and her chest slowed to a stop.

Raven placed her gently on the floor and got up.

Finley was crying hysterically. Kaiden picked him up and held him as he cried into his shoulder.

People all around were crying too. Not for the dictator, but for Cadence.

No one called for Kaiden to be killed. No one shouted obscenities or insults at them. People simply looked at them with sympathy.

"Speech!" They heard people call. "Speech!"

Raven and Kaiden looked at each other and nodded.

Kaiden was still carrying Finley as they made their way to the stage.

Kaiden cleared his throat. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse. "The Ceremony will be scrapped. We understand that some of you may have viewed it as entertainment, but to anyone who has been forced to compete, it is anything but entertaining. Thank you for your support."

Kaiden walked down from the stage, and Raven followed.

—-----

The next two weeks passed in a blur.

Finley had finally agreed to speak to an interviewer after now being in charge of the country for a fortnight. Only if Kaiden could be right beside him as he did it.

"I will be changing the title of dictator to president. It sounds much less foreboding." He explained. "I am also going to enlist the help of a vice president to help me with the large amount of work."

"And who is that going to be, sir?" The interviewer asked.

"Well, who came in second place in the election?"

The interviewer paused. "Y-your sister," she stammered.

Kaiden took Finley's hand.

"It's ok," Finley said. "I think I have an idea of who I can choose instead."

—-----

"You want me to be your vice president?"

"Yes Kaiden, I do. I can't think of anyone better." Finley replied.

"Why not ask Raven? He's way better with paperwork and speeches and all that boring stuff."

"Do you not want the role then?"

"The only thing I want in life is you. So, thanks anyway, songbird, but I don't want that much responsibility."

"Thanks. I could ask Raven. It means choosing a new head guard though, but I think I have a perfect replacement."

Finley walked out of the office. Kaiden followed.

They walked down the hallway for a little until they reached a large room at the end of the hall.

Finley pushed the door open.

The two boys watched as Raven, wearing a guard's uniform, stood talking to a boy slightly younger than they were. He was also wearing a guard's uniform.

"You did a good job today, Max," Raven said, "but you need to work on your stance. If you move around a little more when you're fighting, you'll be more successful in disarming your opponent and dodging attacks."

"Thanks Lynch," Max replied. "You always know what's wrong. I'll see you tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yep, same time as always."

"Actually, you won't see him tomorrow Max," Finley interrupted.

"What?" Max said, questioningly.

"Have I done something wrong?" Raven asked.

"Not at all, it's just...I've been thinking about enlisting some help from one of you as my vice president. I wanted you to have the role."

"Really? I would've placed money on you asking Kaiden."

"He did," Kaiden interjected, "but I don't want to do it. Too much responsibility."

"I'm surprised you know the meaning of the word," Raven teased.

"Don't get cocky just 'cause you have a sword, don't think that means I wont punch you."

"Don't let the sword scare you off."

"You're asking for it!"

Kaiden ran over to the stack of swords and grabbed one.

"Before you start fighting, I'd like an answer, Bird?" Finley questioned.

"I don't want it either. I did want to ask whether you could get someone else to help me with training the guards though. Managing six fifteen year olds on my own is pretty difficult." Raven explained.

"I was going to ask Adrielle if you said yes. You two are back together after all."

"I kind of wanted to ask Kaiden," Raven replied, looking at Kaiden as he continued, "you're way better at the athletic side of things. Not to mention that it'd be nice to have someone I can use as an example to fight with."

"You want to use me as your example?" Kaiden snapped, though he was obviously not being serious. "More like you'd be my example, I could beat you in a fight."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Is that a yes, Kaiden?" Finley asked.

"Do you mind if I say yes?"

"No, not at all. If you want to work together to train the guards, I'd be happy for you both."

"Thanks," Raven said. "Ready to see who's better then?"

"Always," Kaiden replied. "Get ready to lose."

"I'll leave you guys to it," Max said. "Can I still get that one on one training, Lynch?"

"Sure, Max, but call me Raven now. It'll get confusing otherwise."

"Sure thing Raven."

"He answers to Bird as well!" Kaiden called as Max left the room. "'Cause he's a bit of a chicken sometimes."

"Who are you calling chicken? You're the one who gave me that nickname. You even call Fin, Songbird. You have an obsession with birds. Maybe you're the chicken?" Raven teased.

"Or a pigeon. Any other bird could come up with more creative nicknames," Finley added.

"Hey, don't you start," Kaiden snapped, pointing his sword at him.

"Hey, don't you point your sword at me, I am the president after all."

"Yeah, K, he can make you do some cleaning for him," Raven teased.

"He can do his own cleaning. He wouldn't do that anyway, I am his boyfriend." Kaiden snapped.

"Don't push me Kaiden, Raven's right, I could change my mind," Finley replied, smiling.

Kaiden moved his sword. "Alright, sorry."

"Not the right answer."

Raven sniggered.

"I don't have to call you sir," Kaiden replied, almost pleadingly.

"You do if I say you do."

Kaiden looked horrified. Finley and Raven burst out laughing.

"I'm joking Kaiden. You two have fun. Let me know who wins the fight, but don't get carried away, dinner's at seven, remember."

"Sure thing, Songbird," Kaiden said. "Ready to lose, Bird?"

"Ready to watch you lose, yeah!"

—-----

The next day, the Lynch brothers were training the new set of guards.

Raven was attempting to lead the lecture, but the guards were so excited about their mentors that they kept asking questions.

"Sorry to interrupt Raven," one said, "but Kaiden, is it true that you killed the boy from Astra with your bare hands?"

"Yes, I did, but we're focusing on fighting techniques, Lucas," Kaiden replied.

Lucas ignored him, "woah. And is it true that you had an argument with Antonio Sanchez?"

"Yes, but again, that's not what we're focusing on right now."

Ever since the rebellion had ended, Antonio had been writing articles about all of the Champions. Kaiden especially was the main villain in his narrative. Antonio had managed to build quite an audience of people, who, like him, didn't think Kaiden and the others deserved to be Champions.

They were interrupted again when the door suddenly opened. Reina was standing there.

"Can we help you, Reina?" Raven asked.

"A new recruit for you," she explained. "I'm not sure how well this is going to go, but he insisted."

"Let him in," Kaiden said.

She stepped aside as Rick Sanchez stepped in, already wearing a guard's uniform.

"You have got to be joking," Kaiden said.

"Hey Lynch. Pleased to see me?" Rick asked.

"It's always nice to see you Rick. It means I look forward to when you leave again."

"I won't be going far. My family moved to the Citadel. I'm sure you've seen the stuff my dad's been writing about you."

"Yeah, I've seen some of the shit he's written about me," Kaiden replied.

"It's not shit. It's all happened. It's just that some of it didn't happen to you."

"Like what?" Kaiden asked.

Rick smirked but didn't answer.

"Like what?" Kaiden asked again, this time with more anger in his voice.

"You remember when Castel's number came up and he did that girly scream?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Kaiden growled.

"Well, I told my dad that it was you who made that stupid noise."

"You did what!"

"Some people believe him as well."

Kaiden charged towards him and pinned him against the wall.

"Careful, Lynch. I could report you and you'd lose your job."

"Who are you going to report me to? Your boyfriend?"

"Or my dad. He'll write an article about you, then Castel will have to fire you."

"Just try it," Kaiden hissed. "Watch what happens."

"He's written about all the Champions. He hates all of you."

Kaiden finally backed off. He looked at Reina. "Do we have to keep him around here?"

"Afraid so. He's passed all the basic tests. Adrielle ran through them with him and he passed with flying colours."

"How long are we stuck with him for then?"

"Six months."

Kaiden groaned. Reina and Raven both tried not to laugh, and failed.

"We'll knock him into line, K. Rick, go and stand with the others," Raven said.

"Sure thing, Lynch," Rick replied.

"Just call me Raven."

"I'll call you handsome."

"What was that?" Kaiden asked sharply.

"Nothing," Rick snapped.

"What did you just call him?"

"What? I can't say that your brother is handsome? You're identical, it's a compliment to you as well."

"It's not a compliment coming from you. You probably shatter every mirror you look into."

"Oh we're giving insults now are we? Well, maybe you should take a look at yourself. Your head is so big I'm surprised you can hold it up."

"At least I don't need to try flirting with someone who already has a girlfriend, because he can't find one of his own."

"You're only dating Castel so you can live here instead of with your dad. I'm not surprised he doesn't want to see you. I wouldn't if I had a choice."

This was the final straw.

Kaiden struck first. A direct punch to the face.

Rick clutched at his nose and raised his arm to swing at Kaiden. Kaiden kicked Rick in the leg before he could and Rick collapsed to the floor, where the two boys continued to fight.

"Kaiden, stop!" Raven exclaimed.

"I'm teaching this lot how to deal with insolent little shits like him!" Kaiden called.

"They don't need to be taught that, Lynch," Rick snapped. "They have to deal with you every day."

This caused Kaiden to begin fighting again.

The two were throwing kicks and punches and were taking it in turns to pin each other to the floor and punch each other.

Suddenly, Finley appeared in the doorway alongside one of the guards.

"Stop it you two! Finley shouted. "Roberts, stop them."

Roberts entered and quickly broke up the fight.

"I need to talk to both of you in my office. This isn't acceptable." Finley explained.

"So much for your boyfriend protecting you," Rick muttered to Kaiden.

"Shut up!" Kaiden snapped. "You started it."

"You punched me first!"

"Enough!" Finley called. "Just go and wait in my office. Reina, can you go and get Eloise?"

Reina headed for the door. "Sure, Fin."

—-----

"This is your fault," Rick said.

"You're the one who insulted me," Kaiden snapped.

"You should get fired for this!"

"You shouldn't have joined the guards anyway!"

"I can join if I want to."

"Yeah, well...."

"Stop!" Finley shouted from the door. "You two can't stop arguing for a second can you?"

"He's impossible, sir," Rick complained.

"Ooh it's 'sir' now is it?" Kaiden teased.

"Kaiden, stop," Finley replied.

Rick smirked, "trouble with the love birds."

"At least I have a boyfriend!"

"Kaiden, enough. What happened exactly?" Finley asked.

Both of them began talking at once.

"Stop!" Finley called over them. "I can't understand you if you talk over each other. According to Raven, you both had a part to play in this."

"He punched me first!" Rick complained.

"He was flirting with Raven!" Kaiden added.

"Ok, ok. Rick, are you sure that you want to be a guard?"

"Yes."

"Ok, well Kaiden is one of the head guards, so you're going to have to learn to get along. You're stuck with each other for six months, so here's what I'll do. After the other guards have left, Kaiden will give you some one-on -one training."

"Is this some sort of punishment?" Kaiden asked.

"You could call it that, but it's to help the two of you get along better."

Rick smirked.

"That doesn't mean you're not to blame," Finley said sharply. "You can't flirt with Raven. He's not interested, and he already has a girlfriend."

"Yeah, whatever."

"Not the right answer."

This time, Kaiden smirked.

"Yes sir," Rick replied.

"Good. You can return to the training room. Kaiden, I need to talk to you."

Rick smiled. "Good luck," he said sarcastically, and he left.

"Don't let him get to you. He's only trying to get a reaction from you." Finley explained.

"Have you heard the shit his dad's written about me?"

"Yes, I have, but you need to ignore him. He's just jealous. You need to try and get along with him, otherwise one of you will end up in hospital."

"It'll be him. He'll never get one over on me."

Finley smiled and kissed Kaiden's cheek. "I know he wouldn't, but please try and keep calm when you're with him. For me?"

"Alright, I'll try. Is Roberts ok?"

"Yes, he's fine. He's moving to the Citadel so you and Raven can see Eloise."

"He wants us to see her?"

"He really appreciates everything we did for the country. He's resigned from being a guard. There's no hard feelings from you putting him in the hospital. He said you're welcome at his house anytime."

"That's...really nice of him," Kaiden replied. "Is there any news on our dad?"

"No, no sign of him. Sorry K."

"It's ok. He'll show up eventually."

"While you're here, I actually had one other thing I wanted to say."

"What is it?" Kaiden questioned.

"I wanted to say thanks. You've completely changed my life. I never could have imagined being friends with you, let alone being your boyfriend. I love you so much."

"I love you too Songbird."

Kaiden turned to go, he didn't see Finley reach into his pocket.

"You made my life so much better, in so many ways Kaiden. I wish I knew a way to pay you back for everything, but I don't. Maybe, this could be a start."

Kaiden turned to ask what he meant, but Finley was crouching down on one knee.

He opened a box with a beautiful ring with a blue gemstone inside. "Kaiden Lynch, will you marry me?"

Kaiden smiled, "Finley Castel, nothing would make me happier. Yes. A thousand times, yes."

The two boys hugged and kissed until they were interrupted by cheers from outside.

The door to the office opened and Raven, Adrielle and Reina bounded into the room.

"I only told Raven I was going to ask. Apparently good news travels fast around here." Finley explained.

"I wasn't about to let the girls miss you asking my brother to marry you. I'm glad you said yes, K. It would've been a bit of a letdown if you'd said no." Raven replied.

"I would never have said no, but I thought it'd be me asking the question."

Finley kissed him again. "You're just jealous 'cause I beat you to it."

Well, the love birds are getting married. :) I love these two so much. Also Cadence made a huge sacrifice didn't she? How do you guys feel about that? And, Rick is back! How's that going to go? What will happen now that Rick is stirring up trouble?

Find out in Chapter 36!