The two of you stared at each other. Both surprised and not surprised.
Her green hair caught the light in the right way to glow in your peripheral vision.
You felt faint already, but this was a step closer into the pit of unconsciousness.
You screamed for a second, almost forgetting what building you were in, before your nausea returned to you.
Your knees gave in, and you fell to the floor.
Amity looked to you, flawless in her appearance.
Not a cut, or a bruise, or any sign of damage.
You were going to lose.
You couldn't fight Amity.
Amity...
Your best friend.
Even at the grief you were bawling over, she stood unwavering on the other side of the room.
Her fists clenched, he gaze unbroken. Like she had lost herself.
This time, you were against one another. There was only one spot to compete for. You both knew that you couldn't let your friendship make each other go soft.
Which is why, suddenly, there was nobody there to pick you up then you collapsed onto the floor.
The coven heads quickly left the room as the Emperor summoned them under the call of an emergency.
Leaving Darius to have to walk away, letting the feeling eat at him as your hot tears fell against the mosaic flooring.
Amity wasn't there for you. You were opponents now. She was grieving for herself.
For a second you felt the Golden Guard's presence, before realising how empty the spot next to you really was.
There was no affection, there was no comfort.
Just the cold, hard, tiled floors and the crippling feeling of guilt.
In a final fight for security, you let every wall of yours break down and you screamed for your parents.
The people who brought you here.
The people who raised you.
Your haunting calls for your family, for any form of security left the guards unfazed.
Maybe the occasional one twitched at the pure emotion in your voice, but it wasn't enough to get them to move from their post.
To join this coven you had to make sacrifices.
Now, you were going to have to sacrifice Amity.
You heard a clack of shoes against the ballroom floor, as you watched Amity pass you.
Her pink tights catching in your vision, before disappearing to your left.
She was right.
It was time to get up. It was time to get moving.
You stumbled onto your feet, smearing the brick dust on your cheeks around your face in an attempt to wipe your eyes.
After this, would you have a best friend?
Would your family have a business partner? Was this fight the end of your entire family's income?
The extra weight those thoughts had nearly let everything bubble to the surface again, before you stopped yourself in your tracks and kept moving.
Not here.
Not again.
Not in the Emperor's castle...
——————
The ride home was sickening.
So was the day after.
Your parent's didn't know what to think.
They turned their nose up at your appearance when you got back home, congratulated you on your success in your fights, then fell silent as they realised who your final fight was.
Your teachers reacted similarly.
Most of what they said just flew by you in the split second that passed, which to everyone else was an entire day.
You sat on your own for a bit, not witnessing Boscha's bullying of your friends, not noticing Amity finally distancing herself from the group. Not noticing the changes that were going on around you.
An entire hierarchy had shifted, and you were lost in yourself.
The echo of a challenge rang in your ears as you realised that Luz had just challenged Boscha to a Grudgby duel, on Willow's behalf.
Gus tugged at your sleeves as he dragged you onto the stadium seating for the final fight, his supporting flags were covered in gardeners tape. You weren't going to ask.
Boscha stood on the field, and for once, you really didn't care. Her grin, her demeanour, it didn't matter anymore.
Amity was the one who struck fear into your eyes.
She had been a Grudgby captain before, she was playing the game for some reason, after she swore she wouldn't. Maybe this was training for her?
That question made you feel guilty that you weren't working like she was.
You were going to lose.
You were going to lose.
Willow and Gus comforted you, but you were too far out to recognise it.
Gus sat with you on the sidelines of the Grudgby pitch before the fight Luz, Amity and Willow were getting themselves into.
It didn't even fully click to you that Amity was no longer on Boscha's side.
She seemed to be taking the entire thing quite well, like being sent to duel your best friend until exhaustion wasn't a big deal.
But, you knew how good she could be at faking it when she didn't feel fully safe.
With Boscha on the other side of the court, Amity had more than just you to worry about.
A bell rung and the match had begun.
For a second, your fight or flight reacted, and the noise made you jump, almost shooting your own magic into the arena.
Gus pulled you back onto your seat and started cheering for your friends,
"Hey, it's ok. You can calm down."
The feeling of support put a weak smile on your face. You couldn't calm down, but you could at least pretend you were able to, for Gus...
Magic shot across the stands. Fire, ice, plants magic.
Glyph magic too, since Luz was playing to win for her friend.
You felt questions running through your head, but you didn't have the answers for them.
It was like Amity could fly around, like your artificial magic.
A scream of pride rang from the left of you, until eventually the teams were neck and neck.
The final minute.
Then disaster struck.
Amity fell.
Like a thunderbolt, her body fell onto the ground.
Suddenly, you snapped back to reality.
She was hurt, it looked bad too.
Guilt seeped into you as you let out a sickening sigh of relief.
You just felt relief, over her pain.
The fight was going to be easier.
If there was going to be a fight at all.
A sick feeling cast into your face, loosening your muscles.
Titan, you were awful.
But sacrifices had to be made.
Your sacrifice was Amity.
And you were comfortable in your evil now.
"Hey, are you alright?"
Gus asked, catching onto your shift in face.
"Oh- I.. I just feel bad for Amity is all.."
Clearly it was convincing enough, as Gus didn't ask anything else, and nodded.
You felt like a liar.
You did feel bad, of course. But now you had a better chance at winning.
Sick.
You were sick.
But you were one step closer to champion.
For a second, you flashed back into your head.
The covention Atrium, mid collapse.
His golden features stared back at you.
Underneath you as you saved him from the rubble.
The heat of his mask pressed against your neck.
Do you think he knew how much you were going to do to see him again.
To join his ranks.
An impulsive idea later, and you thought about kissing him.
It filled you with a rush.
One you'd do anything for.
Whether it was for the adrenaline of the ordeal, or the fact that you'd been thinking about kissing him for a while now.
Hunter.
No.
You had a fight to win.
A step closer to the Emperor, to the life your parents wanted you to have.
To the life you wanted..
As Amity fell into Luz' arms. You realised just how soft she'd gone.
A power laced your veins.
An unlucky string of events. One that was going to lead you to win.
No giving up now, you were going to be the champion prodigy.
When you walked back into the castle, a sharp exhale stood you tall.
A sick confidence filled you.
Amity was being flown here by her parents, and your field trip to the castle that same day meant you were right where you needed to be.
The golden halls felt like yours.
That you'd become part of them soon.
A swing of a door, and Lilith stormed through the halls, a similar grin to yours on her face.
Like she'd finally won.
A turn to you, and she nodded.
Like you were being bet on.
A shudder cast through you as some of the guards started conversation as you walked past them.
You were being bet on.
A hand slowly placed itself on your shoulder.
Darius Deamonne.
"I must say, I'm quite impressed that both my prodigies made it to the finale."
He chuckled.
You fell silent, but looked up to him.
"But, no matter what happens. I'm so proud of you."
His smile started a fire in your veins.
A hunger for victory.
"You ready?"
Darius asked, gripping you tighter.
"As ready as I'll ever be."
You started stretching as Darius walked you to the outdoor arena.
No advantage. No themed arena.
The dirt and the outside air.
A hungry fear bit at you.
Your final fight, and you'd be the strongest witch in the isles.
Of your age, at least.
You stood in your spot, and looked over to Amity, slowly making her way down the arena steps, a cast on her leg.
Winner was really going to take all.
Amity was the underdog, and the idea of you being the villain of the story unnerved you.
You exhaled, and repeated the same words you'd been saying all day.
To be here, sacrifices had to be made.
Bring it on.
———————-
Hi! Sorry for the late upload.
The novel is taking much more energy than expected!
Also, I spent the weekend with my partner, and I got a job interview the day I was supposed to be writing and couldn't focus through the excitement.
My beta reader's comments on the next chapter were
"Oh god, oh shit. No??? What the hell!"
So, get excited for next Friday!
Lots of love, thanks for being patient,
Taco <3