Secrets of the Crown Assassins

16

INDIGO

People jostled back and forth as I pushed through the thickly pressed bodies and made my way to the stairs. The stadium was humming with the excitement of ten thousand Streeters. 

Rubbing the temporary tattoo that the admissions officers gave me upon entrance, I looked up at the jumbo screens. They were crisp and clear, even through the visor. I huffed, looking up at the seated areas, and turned my attention to Wolf, who was right in front of me.

"Why couldn't we get a ticket in the seated area?" I asked, struggling to be heard over the crowd.

"There was no way Laine would've paid for a seating ticket for a task that might not even pay off," he shouted over his shoulder. "Besides, we won't be able to get out of the stadium quickly from up there."

I was half-expecting Nydia to shoot back a complaint, but then I remembered that she wasn't here. Wolf said she wasn't needed at the moment. Even when I asked her, she declined and quickly slipped back into her room. I had absolutely no idea what she was up to, and I wasn't sure that I wanted to know.

Sliding past a sweaty, middle-aged man, I followed Wolf up the first few steps of a set of empty stairs. They would lead up to the seated Streeter areas. A guard stood at the top in front of the door.

I used the empty space of the stairwell to take a deep breath. Wolf cast me a sideways smirk.

"What?" I asked.

"Just amused at your lack of versatility in a crowd."

I rolled my eyes and looked down at the empty, circular pit with large tunnels on either end. It didn't look like much, though I knew better than to judge it by its appearance. This was the national championship game, the one which drew members from all over the nation to watch, no matter how empty their wallets were.

"You still didn't tell me what we're doing here," I pointed out.

"I know."

He didn't say anything else, his light eyes watching the crowd as he leaned against the railing. He was starting to remind me of Xavier, a comparison that didn't sit well with me.

"Wolf Reznor!" a boy's name called out. I looked down to find a boy my age smiling up at us. A girl stood next to him, sharing the same ecstatic smile.

"He's finally got himself a girl!" the boy exclaimed turning to the girl next to him. "And it isn't you!"

The girl whacked his head and retorted, "At least I was a candidate. You were miming at his feet his whole life and got nowhere."

"Pining," Wolf corrected.

"No one cares, Wolf."

"You're just jealous, Mia."

Mia held up her middle finger.

"Man, I thought you would've been in the seated area by now," the boy said. "I would've stolen the ticket for myself."

"Jamie, you're not supposed to tell your friend that you're using them," Mia scolded.

"Wolf doesn't care. But seriously, why aren't you in the seated area yet?"

Wolf shrugged. "What can I say? Running a bakery isn't very stable."

"Don't you always tell us to save money?" Jamie asked.

"Yeah, and you still throw it away like we're the fucking Crowns," Mia scowled.

"I did save," Wolf responded. "Just a lot of things eating it all up before I can make more."