RHEA'S POV
The kids are all talking in the berg. I stand in the corner as Teresa rides the berg.
Andrew spots me. He's got Ava's eyes. I wave him over. He comes.
"We need to talk," I say slowly, really taking in his features for the first time, now that we're up close.
He's got a sharp jawline and nose, and he isn't short, though not as tall as me. Yet. I'm a few inches taller. His skin is fair like mine. His hair must have come from his father, like how mine came from mine. Which is good, because I've always hated Ava's blonde hair.
I lead him into a small room, labelled on the door as the Mini-Conference Room. There are two leather armchairs in there, each facing each other. Andrew sits on one and I sit on the other one, facing him, a coffee table between us.
"Is something wrong?" Andrew asks, frowning.
I run a hand through my hair, though it's tied up. "No, no. We're all safe now. The cure's been unleashed. I just... I didn't know till four days ago. And... well there's something you should know."
Andrew stiffens. "Yes?"
I lean back against the seat so that I can have a clear view of his reaction. My scar is almost non-visible to someone without sharp eyesight. I couldn't find another hoodie, but the strange thing is that I don't feel like hiding anymore. Especially now, when I want to see the world. This new world.
I finally look up at him, and he looks concerned, worried and fearful.
"You're my half Brother," I say slowly, and his eyes widen. "Your mother. Her name's Ava. You may know her as Chancellor Paige. She's... well, she gave birth to me as well."
Is it wrong, how easy it is for me to talk of her as if I didn't kill her with my own hands? Is it wrong for me to not feel any regret or pain?
"What-what are you saying?" Andrew asks slowly.
"I'm saying that we share the same mother. But we didn't have the same Father. No, our fathers are both dead," I say, chuckling a little darkly at the end.
Andrew shakes his head. "And- and Ava? How...?" A disbelieving laugh leaves him. "There's no way. Ava... I hate her. And she never told me. And she wanted to put me in the Maze. She isn't my Mother. You're lying. There's no way the devil could be my Mother."
I almost smile at the last sentence. "I'm not lying. I can prove it to you," I say, tapping my fingers against the armrests of the chair.
"Then prove it," Andrew says, fists clenched.
I sigh, reaching into the pocket of my jacket to take out a crumpled piece of paper. "Teresa took your blood last time. Me and you, we both made the cure," I say, carefully watching him for his reaction. "But I stole some of that blood and did a DNA test."
I unfold it and hand it to him.
His eyes skim the page and he shakes his head, his face growing paler. "No. No. Ava can't be my Mother. I hate her. I'm going to kill her."
I smirk a little at that. Well, maybe she passed on some gene to us. Or maybe she's just a horrible person to everyone who knows her. "Too bad, kid. I can't let you do that."
"Don't tell me you and Ava are close," Andrew's face contorts in disgust.
I scoff out an incredulous laugh. "No. We aren't. It's just that I've already done it."
Silence falls between us as Andrew gapes at me, as if seeing me in a new light. I worry for a second that maybe he thinks I'm a cold hearted murderer now, but in his eyes are... relief. A relief that echoes mine.
"You aren't lying," Andrew breathes out, eyes wide. "You seriously killed her."
I don't shy away from his gaze. "Yes, yes I did."
"Why don't any of us know?" Andrew waves a hand around wildly.
"Because I did it right before I left. It's the reason why I didn't board the berg with you before," I admit, leaning forward in my seat.
Andrew nods, and it's another minute of silence between us before he breaks it by asking, "Are you going to tell any of them?"
"I wanted to tell you first. You deserve to know," I say truthfully.
Andrew shakes his head, running a hand over his features and letting out a breathless laugh. "Thank you. Thank you so much, Rhea."
"What can I say, Andrew? I kinda like you," I smile dryly. It fades when I see the surprise in his eyes, and I clear my throat awkwardly. "I'm- I'm glad to call you my Brother. Even though it's only partially."
Andrew nods, a smile slowly forming on his lips. "Yeah."
I want to diffuse this awkward tension settling between us, so I latch onto the first thing that comes to mind. "Want to spar?" I ask, slapping my hands down against my knees as I rise to my feet.
Andrew blinks, clearly surprised by the sudden turn of conversation. "Spar? You want to spar with me?" An incredulous laugh escapes his lips. "You have no idea what you're getting yourself into."
I shake my head, smirking. "Don't get cocky, Andrew. Follow me."
I lead him out and into an empty room. There, I take out two knives and hand them to him. Then I take out my other two.
"First one to drop both weapons loses," Andrew says.
"Deal," I say, almost feeling sorry for him.
The battle begins. He lunges at me, and I sidestep him, using my knife to block his. I pretend to go down, and when he does, I kick his hand down and step on it. He shouts and flips over and kicks me in the stomach. I stumble back and throw my knife at his hand.
It misses his hand, as planned, and hits the hilt of his knife, sending it to the ground. Mine almost falls, but I catch it with my boot and kick it up in the air only to catch it again.
Andrew looks at me, wide eyed.
"Still confident you're better?" I say, an eyebrow raised.
"How...?" He says.
"I've been in WICKED my whole life. That knife trick earlier? I learnt that when I was thirteen. Now. Attack," I say.
He does. I jump and kick my legs against the wall. The force send me landing on my feet on the other side of the room and I attack him from behind, using the butt of my knife to hit his spine.
Andrew swings around to lash out at me but I use my knife to block his attack and kick him in the chest, sending him flying back and hitting his back against the wall. His other knife falls to the floor.
I raise an eyebrow. "Well. You're good. But you need to learn how to read your opponent's move. Anticipate their next step."
"You're amazing," Andrew says in amazement as I help him up.
"Thank you, I know," I say, pushing my hair back.
"Why did you come back for a cure? Did someone you love have the disease?" Andrew questions, brushing imaginary dirt off his pants.
I freeze for a millisecond, remembering the panic I felt when I saw Newt, remembering the anxiety and the fear that came with the thought of losing him. And with that, the memories of the talks we had, the way only he seemed able to come close to coaxing a smile out of me.
"Yes," I say softly, and the word feels like a condemnation of sorts. "He's cured now, though."
"He?" Andrew says, an eyebrow raised.
"Yes," I look away this time. "He."
Andrew nods slowly. "Another round?"
I let out a breath of relief that he's not pushing me to open up. "Yeah. Let's go."
~
We finally head out to the control room, where everyone is gathered, talking. Some see us enter and look at us curiously.
"Everyone," I say, gaining everyone's attention as the conversations die down. "I have something I need to say. I did something earlier. Before I came here. And I think all of you should know."
Now I have everyone's attention, even Teresa's.
"I killed Chancellor Ava Paige."
Gasps. Shocked murmurings. Teresa looks at me, thoroughly stunned.
"You killed her," She says slowly.
"I had my reasons," I challenge her with my gaze, wondering what she will do.
Teresa shakes her head. "Do you regret it?"
I let out a heavy breath. Speak the truth. "I don't."