TW: blood, violence, romance iykyk rated: 12+ enjoyyyyy sry its short (also the next chapter is gonna have a new person's pov so beware) Chapter 3: Atticus Immediately following the announcement of the participants, a carriage arrives outside of the Palace. “I suppose that is your ride,” Dad says, his face emotionless. “Atticus, faresti meglio a vincere, e quando dico questo lo dico sul serio.” Ilana says, which roughly translates to, “Atticus, you’d better win this, and when I say that, I mean it.” which also translates to, “Atticus, if you don’t win this, I will murder your already dead self.” When Ilana speaks Italian, it's how you know she’s being 100% serious. “Sì, non possiamo permetterci che tu muoia con noi. Ci farebbe fare una brutta figura.” Thaxter snickers. Sometimes I really want to slap that kid in the face. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. Where’s Valor?” I frown. There is a moment of pure silence before anyone speaks again. “Do you have all your things?” “Yeah. But where is he? I haven’t seen him in a while.” It’s true. I haven’t seen my brother, Valor in a couple of days. I turn to Thaxter hoping he knows where Valor is. He always seems to know exactly where his twin is at any time. I’ll ask if he’s seen Valor, he’ll count down from three, and Val will wander into the room. Maybe it’s just because they’re best friends–even though they argue 24/7 about who should be higher up in line, yet Thaxter claims to be born 1 minute and forty-seven seconds earlier. Thaxter shakes his head. My heart sinks. I’m concerned for my brother, truly. And as much as I want to look for him, I know I can’t, because my carriage is waiting.
