The Missing Piece - Chapter Five

**I finally got around to finishing this! Friday was my final for my summer class so I was studying like mad the whole week which is why I didn't start this until Saturday. Now that that's over though I'll be able to write more. Yay! There's a bunch of dialogue in this chapter, but it answers the questions you may have after reading earlier chapters, hopefully. Okay, I'm gonna let you read now. I'll shut up.**

Silence filled the room, one no one knew how to fill. Dreams betrayed, relationships broken, and power asserted. All of this happened with one statement, nine words that Agustos had just spoken.

Ryder shot up oand raced out of the room. Leo started to follow her, but a strong arm forced him back down.

“Let her go. I’ll talk to her when we’re done here,” Haleema said, her voice firm. Clearing her throat, she turned to Agustos. “With all due respect, sir, I am not qualified to be a Hunter. I cannot do this."

“Yes, you can,” Agustos responded as she knew he would. “And if your friend Gabrielle wanted a second chance at becoming a Hunter, she ruined it by leaving the room. She was not dismissed.”

Haleema cursed under her breath. Why did Ryder have to be so stubborn? Couldn’t she have just sit still and listened to what Agustos had to say? Haleema understood what kind of pain her best friend was in, but did she really have to ruin her chance of becoming who she had always wanted to be? Haleema thought this all meant more to Ryder.

“So you would’ve reconsidered?” Haleema asked.

“No,” Agustos said firmly. Haleema and Leo shared a look before staring at their leader in confusion. His face stayed stern. “She would have to enroll herself in the Academy again, choose a new magical path. Basically start the journey again.”

“That seems hardly fair,” Leo spoke up. “It took me twelve years to finish my path at the Academy. And I started when I was five, still energetic and excited to learn. With everything that has happened to Ryder, she won’t want to have to go through the training all over again.”

“But maybe that is exactly what she needs.” Agustos argued, pulling up a chair. He sat and stared at each of them in turn, waiting for one to speak up. Haleema looked at him curiously.

“How so?”

“She will have motivation, am I correct? If this is indeed what she wants from her life, she will do almost anything to see it happen.”

“You don’t know Ryder like we do,” Leo said in a small voice. Haleema looked at him in surprise. He actually knew nothing about Ryder. His ignorance annoyed her. Who was he to stick up for the girl he teased throughout their years at the Academy? Did he think all was well and good just because he was her partner for the Hunter’s Test.

Yeah, that went real well, Leo. You totally made it up to her. Haleema thought. She immediately felt guilty for her thoughts. How could she think something like that about Leo? He wasn’t a jerk; he was the nicest guy she had ever met. He was funny and sweet and always knew what to say.

“Ryder wouldn’t waste her time, sir,” Haleema spoke up. “She already made the effort. There’s no point in making her do this all over again.”

Agustos shrugged. “Then it is her loss.”

“But why Haleema?” Leo asked.

“Excuse me?” Agustos responded.

“Why did you name her a Hunter,” Leo clarified. Haleema silently thanked him for asking the question she couldn’t bring herself to ask. “She has taken the path of Dameon. Healers can’t be Hunters.”

"The rules of the Hunters Test states that whichever pair exits the Dome first are named the new Hunters. Both partners must be alive and in well being upon exiting. Minimal injuries."

"But she didn't even participate." Leo argued.

"Yes, but she rushed in to help you," Agustos explained. "Because of that, she exited with you and Gabrielle first. Since Gabrielle was unconscious, she did not qualify as a winner. Haleema did."

"But I can't be a Hunter," Haleema argued, trying to wrap her head around the situation. "I'm a Healer. No one can be both."

“Dameon was.” Agustos replied.

“Only because there was no else to,” Leo countered.

Agustos nodded. “That is true. But it is not impossible for a Healer to become a Hunter. It is a very easy process.”

“What do I have to do?” Haleema asked quietly. She still wasn’t thrilled with the fact that she was a Hunter. But whatever the Capo wanted, he got.

“What everyone else must do,” he answered. “Choose a magic path and complete the required courses.”

“But that took Leo twelve years! You’re telling me I’m supposed to go out into the unknown and not be able to protect myself for twelve years? Are you crazy? That’s stupid!” Haleema gasped and covered her mouth as that could take back what she had said. She couldn’t believe she talked to the Capo that way. He was a man who was to be respected.

She heard Leo stifle a laugh. If she wasn’t so mortified, she would turn to glare at him. But as it was, she couldn’t even look up.

“It won’t take you very long,” Agustos said, no change in his tone of voice. “You have already completed your basic education through the Healer path. A few courses in the magics should be fine.”

“Do I have to?” Haleema mumbled. She still wasn’t thrilled with the whole idea. The whole reason she attended the Academy was to become a Healer. The one magic class she had took bored her to death. It was a general magic course. They weren’t taught any magic though, just about what it could do.

Haleema never saw the point of magic. Why have something that you don’t need? She had gotten along so far without it. She knew every Brya had magic inside of them, but it was each person’s choice what to do with it. Magic wasn’t forced upon anyone.

Until now.

“So which courses should she take?” Leo asked.

“Whatever strength you do not have, Leonard.”

“Well, she’s gonna be taking a lot of courses,” he joked. “I’m a master of nothing. You should know that, sir.” Agustos looked at him curiously before standing.

“We will discuss this later. Your friend Gabrielle needs consoling. Tell her of my offer; she would be unwise to refuse.” He turned to walk back to the room he came from. Haleema and Leo shared a look before getting up themselves. “And you will be at the gate tonight,” Agustos added, stopping suddenly. “Seven o’clock. Don’t be late.” He walked back into the room he had come from earlier, leaving Haleema and Leo alone.

Wasting no time, Haleema rushed out of the building to find Ryder. She felt bad about not following her out when she left, but it would be rude to leave. Besides, she needed answers from Agustos.

The sunlight blinded her as she stepped outside. It was high noon and the room they were just in had very dim lighting. It took Halima a short while to find Ryder. She said a silent prayer that Ryder hadn’t gone far. They might be best friends, but if Ryder didn’t want to be found, she wasn’t going to be.

“Looking for someone?"

Haleema whirled around to see her friend sitting on the ground, knees curled up to her chest, leaning against the outside of the building. Her face was somber, but dry. Haleema smiled slightly. She knew Ryder rarely cried. But she did know the situation was tearing her up inside.

“How you doing,” Haleema said, sitting next to Ryder.

“Will you walk me home?” she asked, her voice small. Haleema nodded and helped her up. They stared at each other for a while, neither of them knowing what to say.

Ryder suddenly glared and pointed behind Haleema. “He can’t come along.” Haleema turned to see Leo leaning against the open doorway, arms crossed. She groaned. It was going to be hard to be Leo’s partner when her best friend hated him. They would always be together and whenever Ryder would come around, she would mess everything up.

“I wouldn’t want to go anywhere with you,” Leo retorted. Haleema threw him a look of surprise, but he kept going. “Thanks for forcing me into something I didn’t want to do by the way.”

“What do you mean?” Ryder asked.

“I never wanted to be a Hunter,” Leo explained. “I was going to throw the Hunter’s Test, make sure I didn’t win. Then they made you my partner and I couldn’t do that.”

“It’s not my fault they put us together!”

“Yes, but you wanted to win so badly and we moved along so fast and–"

“Well I’m so sorry I ruined your perfect little life,” Ryder said sarcastically. Leo opened his mouth to reply, but thought better of it. He turned and started walking away in the opposite direction.

“Wait,” Haleema called out, catching up to him. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Nothing,” Leo responded. “Me and Ryder always argue. You know that.”

“You’re telling me whatever bond you and Ryder made during the test means nothing to you?”

“There was no bond,” Leo yelled suddenly. “I didn’t want anything to do with her, actually. But since they threw us together, I figured I might as well go along with what she wanted to do.

“I don’t want to be a Hunter, I never have. Don’t you get it? You act like Ryder is the only one who needs sympathy and – and consoling, but you’re wrong. What about me? Do you even care about what’s going on in my life? Does it matter to you anymore?”

“Of course it does,” Haleema face flushed. How could Leo think she didn’t care about him? He knew she would do anything for him.

“Then why are you so worried about Ryder and not me?”

“It’s just that this whole situation has blown up in our faces, you know? I’m not picking sides, I swear. Ryder is my best friend and I haven’t seen her since we left Academy Prep,” Haleema took a deep breath and chose her words carefully. “You and I have been together for a year and a half now. I see you nearly everyday. It’s a luxury.”

“Oh, so now you take me for granted? Is that what this is about?”

“You’re a real jerk, you know that?” Haleema retorted. She couldn’t believe Leo was being so stubborn. The last time she saw him like this was about a week before they started dating. It was how he normally was, but he never acted like that around her.

“I always have been.” Leo said indifferently.

“Not for the past two days you haven’t.”

“Well that’s over. This is the real me.”

“This isn’t the Leo I love,” Haleema said softly. He looked at her curiously and then his face softened. His gaze dropped to the ground and refused to look at her.

“You can’t say that anymore, Haleema.”

“Why not?” she asked.

“Because we’re Hunters now, partners. We can’t date,” Leo took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. “Something has to be done.” Haleema looked back at him, stunned. She knew the law about Hunters not being able to date, but that was one law she was willing to break. Leo wasn’t known to follow the rules. Why was he the one asking her to end it?

Suddenly, Haleema was angry at Leo; truly angry. She had never felt so much anger to him ever before. It wasn’t fair to him, she knew. After everything that had just happened, along with him and Ryder going back to their old, bickering ways, he didn’t need someone else against him. But she needed him and he was pushing her off a cliff.

Could they actually get along with each other if they ended it? No doubt there would be some distaste between the two. Haleema didn’t want to spend the rest of her life with anyone else; she wanted Leo. He didn’t understand just how much he was destroying her.

“This is how you end it?” her voice was just above a whisper, a trick Ryder had taught her once. If you really want someone to listen, find the perfect spot between a whisper and normal volume. That way they will have to concentrate that much more to hear what you’re saying.

Leo didn’t respond so Haleema continued. “We’re over because of a stupid law? No one is going to know if we’re following that law or not. Do you think they’re going to follow us outside the wall?”

“Listen, Haleema,” Leo said calmly, pulling her closer. “It’s just easier this way. I can’t stand being with you if I can’t have you.”

“Can you stand being without me? Because I sure as hell can’t.”

“We’ll still be together just not…”

“Like that.” Haleema finished. She was still mad at him. There were ways to work around the law and hide their romance; there was always a loophole. Leo hadn’t found it yet.

Haleema was still thinking of a way out when Leo pulled away from her. He offered his hand. “Friends?”

That tipped the scale for Haleema. She understood that they weren’t going to be all romantic, but that didn’t mean they had to be friends. They could still secretly love each other. It had been done before, she was sure.

Haleema felt like Leo was breaking up with her. Which, indeed, he was.

“Friends,” she said plainly, shaking his hand once. “Now I need to walk my other friend home. See you tonight.” She turned on her heel and headed to where Ryder was standing. A sudden memory popped into her head and she stopped to turn back to Leo.

"You should have kept your promise."

"What promise?" he asked.

"You promised you would keep Ryder safe and you two would win the Hunters Test," Haleema said cooly. "Good job. You really messed everything up."