Morph [EDITING] || Wattys 2017 Winner

~THIRTY TWO~

~amelie~

"What you did was incredibly irresponsible," thunders Elian, red-faced and glaring. "What made you think it was acceptable to go off on your own like that?"

I have never felt more intimidated in my life. Thomas and I stand in front of three tall men, all wearing matching expressions of anger, all glaring at us Elian, Markus and my father - who's unexpectedly gained some semblance of trust from the rebels - are waiting for an explanation. And I don't have one.

"Well? What do you have to say for yourself?"
Thomas swallows. "We thought that if we tried to get the list first, we-"
"No," I interrupt, cutting him off. "Thomas was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. All he did was offer some help. It was my idea."

Bad move, but I couldn't let them blame Thomas, even partially. Now they're all looking solely at me.

"And why," says my father, "did you go off on your own?"
"I heard everything in your interrogation. Even when I left. I heard about the box, and the list, and I knew it would make such a difference."

This is the point that I have to conceal some truths. My mother, and Matthew, haven't been seen by anyone except Thomas and I. She wants to keep it that way, at least until we know the rebels won't be hostile towards her. She still doesn't know my dad is here, and I'm the one that wants to keep that bit of truth to myself. For now.

"Thomas, could you please give us a little alone time?" asks Elian, giving him a meaningful stare.
Thomas frowns, and looks at me, but he stands up all the same. "Okay."

He walks towards the door, throwing me a worried glance on his way out, and leaves. Elian turns his attention right back to me.

"So you went to get the box?"
"Yes."
"And?"
I bite my lip. "It... it was empty."

Everyone in the room stiffens, and I know we're all thinking about the same thing. The disastrous consequences of Roman having the list. But I can't stop myself speaking up to defend my actions one more time.

"But don't you see? I was right! I was right to go immediately after you told us. If we had prepared a proper team mission, we would have arrived even later." My father's expression darkens as I continue, "At least now we know he has it."

I'm expecting a little disapproval from my outburst. What I don't expect is my father slamming his fist on the table, making the room shudder. I jump back, eyes wide, as he starts shouting.

"Do you have any idea how much danger you put yourself in?" he roars. "Can you even comprehend it? What if you had got there at the same time as him? What do you think would have happened then? Do you really, really think he would have hesitated to kill you both if you were in his way?"
"Calm down, Nathan," mutters Elian, laying a hand on my father's arm.
He shakes it off. "No." His voice quietens, though, and the anger in his expression leaches away, replaced by exhaustion and worry. "Amelie, this is the last straw. You nearly died trying to capture me, and you think you're invincible now. But you're not. And, one of these days, you're going to get yourself killed for real."
He storms out of the room, eyes shining. I watch him go, aghast, realising the truth in everything he's said. "Wh-?"
Elian turns his gaze on me, the same pain in his eyes. "You're acting irresponsibly, Amelie, and right now you're a danger to everyone around you. You're grounded."
"What do you mean?" I say carefully.
He sighs. "No more missions."

Then Elian walks out, and Markus follows, and I'm all alone.

~~~

I walk through the corridors numbly, not paying attention to my surroundings. Faces pass, all drawn and worried, the news of the list and what it means spreading quickly. Everybody's training twice as hard as before, and the laughter that usually echoes through the training hall has vanished. But I don't pay attention to the sound, or lack of it. My mind's firmly on what I have to do now - go back to my mother and Matthew, and give them the choice of introduction to the rebels... or melting back into the shadows, where I'll never see them again.

I'm not sure which one I hate less.

I'm at the wall leading to the outside world in no time at all, but I spend time checking nobody's around to see me. Thomas was a lifesaver last time I left, but now I'm wary of anyone seeing me. The last thing I want is for my mother to be discovered if she doesn't intend for anyone but me to know yet. Luckily, the corridor behind me is clear, so I slip through into fresh air and sunlight. It doesn't take me long to walk away from the hidden entrance to the compound, over to the place we left Matthew and my mother. Thomas wanted to bring them in straight away, but I persuaded him we should leave them behind at first. It was their suggestion in the first place - but he still didn't like it, and the only reason he agreed was that it was me asking, although I have to admit I was a little doubtful too. I don't know why my mother was so reluctant to come with us - I just have to hope they're still actually here.

I'm crossing my fingers as I approach the small clearing, trying to catch a glimpse of either my mother or Matthew. I frown as I reach it, casting my gaze around. The space is empty, a shaft of sunlight slanting in between the trees and illuminating the utter lack of people. I curse. They're not here.

A hand clamps down on my right shoulder and I gasp, whirling round to meet Matthew standing there, my mother standing beside him.
"Hi," he says awkwardly, with a half-smile.
The adrenaline rush fading, I give him a relieved grin. "Hi," I reply.
My mother doesn't waste time with pleasantries, and she just gets straight to the point. "We've decided to come back with you."
I blink. "Okay. Why?"
"Does it matter?" she asks shortly.
I frown. "Not... really, but it'd be nice to know."
She gives me a matching frown, and there's silence for a few seconds. Then, she asks, "Where is it?"
"Where is what?"
"Don't be stupid," she says, annoyed, and I feel a pang of indignation. "The rebel base."
"I'll take you there," I answer, not wanting to tell her the exact location. Her sudden mood swing, right back to the cold person I always knew, has unnerved me slightly.

She sighs, but when I turn and walk away, she still follows. The path I take to the base is not the same as my earlier route, and it's longer and more winding. But we still get there quickly, and I lead them in quietly, hoping nobody's on the other side. As we pass through, I'm looking down, so the first thing I see when I enter the base is the floor. When I look up, I see six unsmiling faces - Dad, Elian, Markus, Hunter, Amber and Lila.

Oh.