Felix tries to tackle Artemis, but quickly Kai jumps on Felix. The two of them pick themselves up off the ground quickly.

"Let me trade," Roman says because even if they might like to live they are content to die.

Evelyn whimpers in his arms. He presses the barrel tighter against her forehead. She is sure it is going to bruise if he doesn't kill her.

"No trade," Artemis says. "Go find him. Now."

No one tries to fight him, since the end of the barrel is on Evelyn's temple. One false move and she's done. Words will not convince a man. A part of them thinks they deserve it. After all, they did kill his sister. Another part of them thinks that it is not their fault that Poppy is dead, but The Divide's blame. They set a building on fire, they shot at them in the dark, they wrote a nasty poem accompanied by a dead body. How could it be anyone's burden but The Divide's?

A door upstairs opens. The cottage may be new, but its skeleton is old. Arthritic in the way it creeks, even.

"Are there more of you?" Artemis whispers.

Evelyn whimpers, shaking her head.

The group hears a set of footsteps making their way upstairs.

Kai wants to grab the pistol and tear it out of his hands. Poppy was shot and survived, at least for long enough. Evelyn would not be so lucky. He does not want to hurt her. He does not want to hurt anyone.

The footsteps disappear above them.

Artemis grabs hold of Evelyn around her waist and drags her towards the stairs. He heads up them, yanking her behind him. Felix wants to burst out of his seat, as her body thunks against the staircase. The pair of them reach the top, with Evelyn still in Artemis's arms.

The feet upstairs stop.

"Shit," Artemis mumbles.

He throws Evelyn down the flight of stairs and runs away.

They hear the front door open, and the bang of a gun, but none of them rush upstairs. Instead, they move over to a disoriented Evelyn, who holds her head in both her hands.

"We need to find an exit," Kai whispers to the others, as Ellie tries to tend to Evelyn, making sure nothing is broken.

"Don't bother," a voice from up the stairs calls.

They turn their heads to see a man and a woman. They look a bit older, but not much. Each of them is wearing a black peacoat. Beneath the men's jacket are plaid dress pants, and beneath hers is a green skirt. They are both white, both with blue eyes and blonde hair. If their faces were not quite so different, the woman with a hooked nose and thin lips, and the man with large ears and harsh eyebrows, one might think that like they are twins like Artemis and Poppy.

The woman extends a gloved hand, reaching for the bannister. The man also wears gloves, but in his hands, there is a pistol.

"You're not, him," Jetta says the last word with sustain.

"Your contact?" the man sneers. "No."

The woman walks down the stairs and reaches Ellie and Evelyn. She examines Evelyn's ears, presumably for bleeding, as well as her nose.

"She's fine enough," the woman says.

The two begin to leave.

"Aren't you going to explain what's happening?" Briar asked, her voice shrill.

"No," the pair say in unison, and the woman nearly snorts out a laugh.

The two pick themselves up and head back up the stairs.

The others, except for Evelyn, follow along. On the main floor, there is no body. Whatever gunshot they heard earlier resulted in no casualties. Ellie looks around the room and notices a bullet hole in the white wall.

"Who are you?" Felix asks the pair, who continue to walk ahead of the group.

"No one of consequence," the woman answers.

"You're obviously The Divide," Ez says.

The man is hurrying at a quicker pace than the woman, "what's that?"

He holds the door for her, and Kai ducks in front of her, preventing her from exiting. The man's hand tightens around the pistol, but Kai does not flinch.

"We aren't expecting every answer, but one at least," Kai insists. "Are we safe?"

The woman sighs. The man gestures with the pistol for her to leave. She pushes her way past Kai, and when the man leaves she holds the door open.

"A question on your ugly tongue

Well look at you a man so young

You're weak: I'm sure that must have stung

It's not your neck that will be hung

Don't waste your breath, don't hurt your lung

Don't fret, you're tale will go unsung"

The pair leave.

The other members stare at each other, without thought between them all.

The initiates pack up the cottage. They take down the paintings off the fridge, throw out the groceries, and pile all of their things by the front door. There is no telling how The Divide knew that Artemis would be there and that he was a threat. If the Prevost twin returns, it could mean more damage for them all, both physical and psychological. Perhaps there will be no one to swoop in and save them next time.

They book several cabs, just one less than the number they came in, to bring all their stuff back to campus. It is a shorter ride, less than fifteen minutes, but during that ride, they do not enjoy the countryside, nor the town they drive through. Instead, their minds are abuzz with questions. Why did this happen? How did it happen? How can they stop it from happening again?

Tom sits next to Vieira, and he feels calm. He offers her a bit of chocolate, and she takes it. Her normally perfect make-up is smudged from sweat, even though it is December. Tom thinks about all the limited time he has to prove to Vieira that he is good, because, while yes, he is like the others, that isn't a bad thing. He is not the sum of his deeds, not even the motives behind them. Tom thinks that people are only half themselves. The rest is a part they act. He needs to reconcile the two before he can ever think to pursue her. Maybe one day, he'll even tell her he is named Jared, after his father, but he is so much more than how people see him.

Jetta is more paranoid than ever. The Divide knew the initiates were at the cottage, they knew Artemis was Poppy's brother and a threat, and so certainly they must know she is transgender. Yet, with that sensation also comes relief. They knew and said nothing. Perhaps her father was wrong about this, as he was wrong about many things. If Roman can be out and proud, perhaps so can she. If Briar is not afraid to have her trauma heard, then the least Jetta can do is be proud in her own skin. She doesn't owe coming out to anyone except herself.

Vieira holds the two drawings she and Luis created. They are both beautiful, in their own right. At this moment, she realizes that she is just as culpable as the others, just as lost and confused. Maybe the world is not better with Poppy dead, but what is the point in spreading more pain. What even is justice if it just causes more hurt? She and Tom are in the same taxi, but they feel miles apart. She doesn't hold his hand not because she doesn't want to be with him, but because she wants him to feel like he can trust himself again.

Felix cradles Evelyn. He thinks about her, but he also thinks about himself. Life is too short to try and take up the smallest amount of space possible. He is used to being seen, but not used to being loved. Love was always conditional. It seems The Divide wants to protect him, despite the cruel things he has done, to Poppy and the others. He is not proud of himself, for the first time in a long time, but he doesn't hate himself either. His existence is oxymoronic in the way he loathes and loves himself. Right now, the feeling is different.

Kai is hoping he became the leader he expected of himself. Certainly, he feels less like everyone will laugh at his jokes. Leading is not about being the best, or the first. It is about uplifting others. He thinks of all the others as leaders too. He is not the star. Rugby teams are unlike football teams in that there is no quarterback. Kai hopes that one day, he can earn the ability to be seen equally in the eyes of the others. Not for his talent, nor his position, nor his way with the ladies, but for the quality of his character.

Roman feels hope. They are not dead. They volunteered to die in the place of Evelyn, and yet they live. In the daytime, there are still stars above, they just cannot see them. Each of them belongs as a constellation in their own right. Their tales may not be told, but they will always remember each other, perhaps even for years to come. Roman hopes that they will have many years in their life they might forget this, no matter how sad forgetting would be. For the first time in a long time, they do not think of philosophy. Instead, they think of how they do not long to see their father if means they will join him in a casket.

Ellie no longer feels the need to stand out. It is people who are different from the rest who get a target on their back. Being the best only alienates. Studying all the time prevents her from making friends. Ellie wants to be around people. Maybe one day, she wants to fall in love again. With a woman, although that's a can of words to unpack another semester. Ellie tries not to think about what The Divide has in store for them. Obviously, The Divide is trying to guarantee their survival. Is that enough for Ellie? Just to survive? She has been surviving for so long, and though she only sees a semantic difference between surviving and living, how she wants to live.

Briar is ashamed. She tried to please everyone else, to minimize herself, and it got them almost killed. No more will she be the girl who sits in the lounge with friends, laughing along to what they've said even when she doesn't find it funny. She let her guard down to trust someone, and they betrayed her, but she also let her guard down in front of so many other people who did not leave her. She will continue to fair well at Hawkwood since she knows the game of the rich. Yet, she doesn't want to play it any longer.

Luis thinks he will still be late for class. His room will be a mess, and he will wink at the professor when turning in assignments late. It reassures him that he isn't completely different from when he started at Hawkwood. The art school full of prissy elites couldn't beat the Luis out of Luis. Things may have changed, for better and worst, but now he has friends. Those that are like Jetta and Ellie will laugh at the stuck-up with him. The others are people who will make him laugh. He finally feels free.

Ez thinks about the poem. It wasn't a perfect example of iambic tetrametre, probably because the woman thought it up on the spot. He doubts it was the same person who wrote both poems, although The Divide is so small it could have been. He wonders if it will be him writing up one for next year's initiates, or if The Divide will cease to exist by then. He cannot imagine putting people through what he's gone through. He may not like people very much, but he doesn't want to be cruel. He wants to be someone people actually like. He wants to bake.

Evelynplans on getting checked for a concussion. All of her thoughts are loose in hermind, rattling around. Her excuse will be that she fell down the stairs in herdorm. It's believable, and she'll get Ellie or Tom to corroborate it if needbe. She won't challenge The Divide. She knows they mean business. She knows shewon't survive on love alone. Although, love might help her get through thetoughest of obstacles anyway.

~~~~~

There is still an epilogue to come tomorrow, but otherwise, this is mostly over. Ahhh! It's been some long months, some months entirely without updates with a rush towards the end, but I'm happy. Remember, Perverse applications close on Saturday night. I hope to see at least some of you over there!