Two Bird On A Wire- TSBT Pheonix

It gets worse before it gets better

    Teo shoved the weight back onto the rack with a clang before turning in on Aurelio. “Why?” he snapped “Because I'm not a Gold?”
   Aurelio jerked back, surprised, but quickly recovered. “Yes,” he said, as if it were obvious. “The Academy has been training us for this since we were children. You have no Idea what you're doing–”
   Teo let out a sharp, bitter laugh, shaking his head. “Wow, you are so full of yourself–”
   The muscle in Aurelio’s jaw jumped, his nostrils flared. “If you'd trained half as long as the rest of us have, you'd actually do pretty well.”

  Something snapped inside Teo, something broke in him and released an ugly, rearing monster, jaws snapping and ready to bite. “You know what Aurelio?” Teo’s voice was raw with frustration and agony, he winced to hear his voice show so much of his pain to Aurelio. “Maybe I would do well if I'd trained half as long as you guys, like you said, but guess what? We don't get that opportunity to stand on the same level as you, we don't even get to have the chance to climb the ladder you do!”
    Teo’s voice had risen, Xio watched from his spot, a mixture of concern and horror etched into his features, but Teo couldn't stop now, the monster's jaws were already unhinged, and it was swallowing him whole. “You have no idea how privileged you are! You get to train with your fellow peers, but for us Jades? Our cities are so small, and we're so far and few in-between, we don't get to even learn  with other Jades that aren't family, much less train with them! And for Jades like me and Xio? We don't even have the privilege to be outcasts, even in our own homes we're shunned, we're not showered with love and respect like you!”

   Teo was yelling now, his throat was raw and he could feel tears fighting to fall, but he shoved them back, refusing to break in front of Aurelio. Xio was sitting wide eyed now, his lips a single hard-pressed line, his jaw set and tense. Teo couldn't read Aurelio's face, but he could see his fists curled into tight balls at his sides, slightly trembling as he took Teo's onslaught. “You know how we're seen? In our own cities?” Teo didn't wait for Aurelio to respond. “We're fucking FREAKS” Teo spread his wings as he said it, he felt ill. Bile rose in his throat as he shoved down memories from school, how they'd touched and prodded his wings and body. He could hear his schoolmates' voices asking inappropriate questions and comments in the back of his head, “I hear Quetzals aren't monogamous, does that apply to you too?~” “Your wings are so soft! Can I touch your back more?” “Aw guys look! He’s talking to the birds again! What a F R E A K!” 

Freak.

Freak.

Teo was so tired of that word.

   He heaved, taking a breath as the monster loosened its grip on Teo, it was more manageable now, but It was far from letting him go, he still had more venom to spit.  He looked Aurelio in the eye this time, feeling the venom rise in his throat, this time filled with bitterness and exhaustion though. “I wouldn't expect you to get any of this, because while you're fighting to win I'm fighting to live! I'm fighting to protect, can you say the same for yourself? Have you even thought about what it would mean to be the Sunbearer? To take someone else's life?” Aurelio flinched, still he looked at Teo head on, his fists ever trembling. Xio had left already, probably not wanting to stay after what Teo had said, but it didn't matter at the moment, because it was just him and Aurelio now. “Just imagine, what would happen if you were the Sunbearer, how could you sit here and say you’d kill them? What if it was Atzi? She's a child, just barely a teen! Could you take her life? Or Niya’s? Or Ocelo’s?” He was going to say “Or Auristela’s?” but he swallowed and said this instead, his voice much quieter now, “Or mine..?” Aurelio’s head snapped up, eyes wide, as if he couldn't believe Teo would ask that. He didn't give Aurelio a chance to respond though, instead he carried on, pretending to ignore Aurelio’s infinitely tense stance. “Actually, do I even need to ask that? We both know you would'' Aurelio opened his mouth “I–”