The Adventures Of Mint & Coco

* 24: Our Beating Hearts (Coco)

I take a deep breath and step onto the platform. I try to ignore all the eyes trained on me. I buckle my equipment belt and exhale shakily. Today is the day we show our skills to Luna. Today is the day I prove that I am a worthy commander in chief. I close my eyes and put my fingers on the handle of a knife. I see Niko's blue eyes behind my eyelids, and I remember what he said this morning. "You'll do great, Coco. I know you will." I snap open my eyes. Targets rise from the ground, and I grab a knife and throw it. It hits the target. Bull's-eye. My instincts take over. I throw another knife, more sure this time. It hits the middle. I throw the rest with lightning speed, each time hitting the perfect target. I reach for another knife, but my fingers meet my jeans. I realize that I am done. Sweat rolls down my cheeks, and I wipe it away, flushing. I look up. Luna stands in front of me. She nods. "I want you to have this." She holds out her fist. She opens it. The light gleams off of it, and I squint, trying to make it out. My vision clears, and I see it. It's a thin gold chain with a charm shaped as a wing. "It was my sisters." Her eyes shine with tears. "I can't take this from you..." My voice cracks. I think about the sister I left behind. Ginger, I hope you are okay. "I want you to have it." Tears stream down her face, and I snap. I rush forward and wrap my arms around her. Gasps rise from the crowd. Luna is stiff, but then she wraps her arms around me. We stand there, silently comforting each other. Finally I pull away. She smiles, wiping her tears away. She realizes everyone is watching, and she stands up straighter. "Hold out your hand." She says. I hold out my hand, and she puts the bracelet on my wrist. "Congratulations, Coco. You are a worthy commander in chief." Everyone cheers. I grin. Niko walks towards me, and I meet him halfway. "I knew you could do it." He smiles, a lock of hair falling into his eye. He brushes it away, and I take his hand. "Now the banquet will begin!" Luna announces. Everyone files out of the arena.
Luna looks at me. "Good job." She nods. I dip my head. "Thank you." I look up, and she's gone. Hand and hand, Niko and I exit the arena into the sunlight.

I look in the mirror, turning this way and that. I wear a strapless purple dress that flows past my knees. I straighten the satin ribbon and twirl, laughing. My hair is in a messy bun with curls framing my face. I wonder what Niko will think...? I smile, trying to drown out my nervousness. My arrow pendant glows faintly in the light. I touch it and immediately feel comforted. I think about Mint. Shadow better be taking good care of you. I curl my lip, revealing my fangs. I retract them in disgust. I look in the mirror one more time before slipping my silver sandals on. I walk to the door and put my hand on the knob. Suddenly, my head aches terribly, as if a bomb has exploded inside of it. I sink to the floor, pressing my fingers into my temples. I hear a wail, and I realize that it's coming from me. My vision fades to black.

First I see the eyes, red, like burning fire. The same eyes that haunt my nightmares. Then I see the grin, sharp, gleaming. Then the voice. "What will you do, my flower?" I scream, grabbing my hair, pulling it out. "Flower, flower, flower..." The voice rises and falls with each word. I see the red eyes again. "I'm coming."

Then I wake up. I'm in bed. I sit up, looking around. My hair is no longer in a bun, but it cascades around my shoulders in curls. Luna stands next to my bed, watching. "Luna?" I murmur. "Hey, Coco. How are you feeling?" I frown, confused. "I'm fine. Why am I in my pajamas? I should go to the dinner..." "The dinner is over." She says. My heart sinks. "Over?" I squeak. She nods solemnly. "I was wondering why you weren't there, so I came to your room. I found you passed out on the floor. So, I got you in bed." She shrugs. "Thank you." I say. "No problem. Goodnight, Coco." She gets up and walks to the door. "Goodnight, Luna." I say. She exits and shuts the door behind her. I take my pendant in my hand. "What is happening?" I whisper. I look up at the ceiling. "What do you want, Jared? There's a reason Mint and I are here. I'm going to find out sooner or later." Thunder booms, and rain starts to fall. I hear something hit my window. I slip out of bed, and slowly walk to the window. I look out. In the rain, brown hair plastered to his head, stands Niko. I quickly open the window. I pull him in and shut it tightly. I turn to him. He stands in front of me, soaking wet in his pajamas. I shiver. All I have on is a thin camisole with sweatpants. "Coco." He murmurs. "Niko." I murmur. We stare at each other for a while. "Are you okay?" He asks softly. I nod. "How was the dinner?" I ask. He smiles. "It was okay. There was dancing." He shrugs. I hold my breath. "Did you...?" I breathe. He grins. "You're the only one I wanted to dance with." He chuckles. "Oh." I look down. I feel his hand slip under my chin. "We still can." He whispers. I look up at him. He puts his right hand on my waist and takes my hand in his other. I lay my hand on his shoulder. Then we dance. All I feel is his presence. We glide slowly around the room, to the rhythm of the rain. Lightning strikes somewhere nearby, and thunder crashes. The lights flicker off, and we stop. The rain intensifies, battering the roof. I watch Niko's hand come up. He slips his hand across my cheek and into my hair. "You're beautiful." He whispers. I close my eyes. "Niko..." I whisper. His hand trembles against my cheek. "Why are you shaking?" I murmur. I open my eyes. He exhales shakily. "Because I'm scared. Anything can happen in the battle. I could lose you..." He trails off, his eyes watering. "Coco, I love you." He whispers. I feel a tear roll down my face. I throw my arms around his neck and pull his face to mine. Our lips meet, softly, and our tears mingle into the kiss. His hands tangle in my hair and trail down my sides, tugging me closer to his body. I slip my fingers into his damp hair while our mouths move together in gentle rhythm. Niko pulls away. I hold my breath as he lifts his shirt over his head and lets it fall to the floor. I barely breathe. He gently grabs my wrists and brings my hands to his chest. He's ice cold. We stare into each other's eyes, barely breathing, waiting for the other to make a move. Before I can talk myself out of it, I pull my shirt over my head. Niko inhales sharply, his eyes roaming over me like the first day we met, but hungrier. Surprisingly, I'm not embarrassed. I push him onto the bed and crawl on top of him, and our lips meet again, fiercely, passionately. He grabs every part of me he can reach, my face, my hair, my shoulders, my hips... It feels so good, so natural, as if for sixteen years my body has just been waiting for this, for him. He pulls me down so that I lay under him, and I tangle my hands in his hair as he kisses my neck. What are we doing? A small part of my brain asks. I ignore it and wrap my legs around him, never wanting him to let go. He pulls away and stares into my eyes. I inhale shakily and slide my fingers into his hair. I pull his face to mine until our foreheads are touching. "I love you, too." I whisper. And I mean it, with everything I am.

                                           

I open my eyes and immediately feel the tension in the air. I bolt upright. Niko stands next to my bed, clad in armor. He holds a bow, and a quiver of arrows is strapped to his back. "They're here." He breathes. I swallow, slipping out of bed. "Luna and I will wait for you." He gestures to the armor laying on a chair. He nods, then exits the room, shutting the door behind him. I walk slowly to the chair. Shaking, I put on my armor. I buckle my knife belt and stand in front of the mirror. I'm not ready for this. I stare at my face. I look deadly. My eyeliner from the night before is slightly smudged, making my brown eyes pop. My hair is slightly wavy. I touch my pendant and feel little comfort. Taking a deep breath, I turn and start walking to the door. I stop when I see something glowing under my pillow. Frowning, I lift it up. I inhale sharply. It's Jared's pendant. All of the sand is gone from the hourglass. My pendant starts pulsing, and I grab the hourglass, slipping the chain around my neck. I tuck it under my armor so it's not visible. Satisfied, I exit my room and walk out the front door.
Niko and Luna wait for me.
Luna nods, then leads us into the plaza.
Everyone waits there, murmuring nervously. We stop in front of them, and the murmuring stops. Luna opens her mouth to speak. "We will be battling the cat mutants today. I know we will win!" She raises her sword, and everyone cheers. I close my eyes. Oh Mint. Please don't get in our way. I open my eyes as Niko grabs my hand. Luna nods at me. I step forward and raise my fist. "Stay strong!" My voice is drowned out by loud cheers. Luna smiles, and I exhale softly. "Coco and I will lead you to the battle field." Luna nods. I turn to Niko. He grabs my arms and pulls me against him. "Niko, what..." He presses his lips to mine, in front of everyone. He pulls away. "Be careful." He murmurs. I nod. He smiles, then disappears into the crowd of people. "Let's go." Luna says.

We walk onto the battlefield. I swallow weakly. It's the same one I saw in my dream. The cat mutants stand on one side, looking lethal. I spot Mint, and I look down. We stop ten feet away from them. I see Shadow's blue eyes, so similar to Niko's, but colder. Luna opens her mouth to speak. I shiver as a chilling wind blows. I flatten my ears.
Black mist swirls in the sky, blocking out the sun. I growl. "I'm coming, my flower." I watch, frozen, as figures form from the mist. I see the red eyes. Jared. He descends while the other shadow people stay in the air. He approaches me, and Niko rushes to my side. Jared grins. "It's so delightful to see you in person, Coco." He chuckles. Niko growls. Luna steps forward. "What is it you want, shadow?" She spits the last word out like its poison. Jared grins, then reaches out a clawed hand. "I just want what Coco took from me." He touches a claw to my neck. I shudder. He pulls the pendant over my head and slips it over his neck. "Why are you here? I know it's not just for your pendant." Niko snarls. Jared chuckles. "Why don't you ask Elsa?" He disappears. I watch as dark matter swirls in the center of the battlefield. Something forms there. I realize it's a girl. She has black hair and black ears and wings. She looks up. She has one icy blue eye and one piercing red eye. The blue eye is like Niko's, while the red eye is like Jared's. Then everything is in slow motion. Niko and Shadow rush forward to the girl, their mouths open in a silent O. I close my eyes and feel my pendant beating as fast as my heart. With a shiver, I recall Jared's words.
"You will all die. There is no hope for you."