Chapter 8: Mira's POV

Early the next morning, the Glade was waking up again, all of them still hearing the song from last night in their minds. It got them thinking, maybe the girls weren't dangerous, maybe they weren't what Gally said they were...

Mira huffed as she watched Gally talk angrily with Frypan and Newt, leaning against a tree trunk. I wonder if I could kill him and no one would notice she thought sourly, thinking that thought over for a minute. Nah. People would notice if it went quiet all of a sudden. She decided, pushing herself off the tree trunk and walking over to where the boys were talking. As she got closer, she could hear more of what they were saying.

"Newt! They're dangerous! And the longer we let them walk around free, the more danger we put ourselves in!" Gally was saying, pointing a finger at the woods. He and the others completely oblivious to Mira who was only a few feet behind Gally. Mira smirked as Newt huffed and crossed his arms.

"Gally, so far the only person who has complained about those girls is you. And may I remind you that one of them saved our bloody leader. If anything, these girls deserve our respect." He said, looking extremely stressed. Mira felt a small pang of guilt knowing she and Ivory were kinda the reason he was so stressed, but she pushed that aside as Gally started talking again.

"They pelted us with Apples! They broke our rules! We can't just le-"

"Are you boys talking about me?"

Mira cut off Gally as she placed both hands on his shoulder and leaned her chin on them. Gally, Frypan, and Newt all jumped, making Mira let out a small laugh.

"Get off me!" Gally growled, causing Mira to smirk.

"Calm down Eagle-brow," she said, removing her hands and placing them on her hips.

Gally gave her a dirty look and crossed his arms, towering over her. Despite the height difference, MIra glared back at him without any fear.

"What do you want now Mira," Newt asked, shaking his head slightly as Mira kept glaring at Gally.

"Nothing, it's just boring sitting in a tree for hours." She told him, turning her focus to him with a slight frown. She watched out of the corner of her eye as Frypan shot a scared look at the trees.

"Oh relax, you're fine. Unless it's eagle brow over here, then you might have to worry." Mira said, taunting Gally behind her. Mira heard Newt sigh again and looked at him.

"Yeesh, I'm just having some fun. No need to get all angry about it," She said, giving Newt a look. Newt groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Where's Ivory?" he asked, looking at Mira with a hopeful expression.

"Oh, you know. With Minho and Thomas at the weird hut thing in the forest," Mira said casually, flicking some tree bark off her sleeve and hearing Gally stomp away. Newt stared at Mira in disbelief

"She's where?!" he asked, visibly suppressing a sigh. "Only runners are allowed in there, and just because Ably let you and-"

Mira tuned out Newt's lecture and studied the walls behind him, her eyes slightly narrowed as she measured the height of it. Only seemed to be two hundred feet or so. Not impossible to climb, but pretty hard. She thought, mentally counting the number of vines she and Ivory would need to make a long enough rope to climb the walls. She turned her attention back to Newt who seemed to be finished talking and nodded.

"Yup, sure, I understand," she said, pretending that she had listened to him. But Newt sighed and shook his head

"You weren't listening, were you?" He asked, sharing a look with Frypan who shrugged and gave him a 'what-do-you-want-me-to-do?" look. Mira smiled, cocking her head.

"Define listening," She told him, watching as Newt rolled his eyes and threw his hands up in anger. Suddenly, a sense of deja vu hit Mira and she blinked in surprise. Apparently, something like this had happened before. I wonder...

Her train of thought was interrupted by shouting from Gally and a few other gladers. Mira looked at Newt who had a confused look on his face and his eyes were narrowed in concern as the shouts grew louder.

"What the bloody hell..." he muttered as Mira shot off towards the sound of the gladers shouting, her knife appearing in her hands as she got closer to the shouts. The gladers were crowded around the base of the tree house, all looking up and a few with something covering them.

"What the..." Mira said, freezing as she took in the scene. Then something hit a glader and he shouted in pain as he rubbed his head. Looking up, Mira saw that the girl had woken up and was tossing what seemed to be rotten apples. Mira smirked, as she remembered her and Ivory doing the same thing, though with a few less people. Beside her, Newt stopped too, studying the scene with an annoyed expression as more apples hit the gladers on their heads. With a sigh, Newt ran to the boy Winston who started explaining what happened, while Mira made her way to the base of the treehouse, knowing she wouldn't get hit there. Newt shouted at two boys to go to Minho and they rushed off. Meanwhile, Newt and a few others tried to calm down the girl, but they only succeeded in making more apples hit them in the head. Mira smirked again, enjoying the scene before her. It was made even better after two or three apples hit Gally on his head in a row. Turning, she spotted Minho and Thomas making their way to Chuck who was standing on a hill, doubled over in laughter. Both boys turned to Chuck who pointed to the treehouse where the gladers were, and they rushed forward, Ivory following close behind them, also smirking. She started to head towards Mira, but an apple nearly hit her in the head before the boy Winston pulled her under the wooden board he was using as cover. Both of them started laughing and Mira saw a pretty funny sight. A little ways away, Minho was standing there, glaring at Ivory and Winston who were still laughing. Mira smirked, understanding the look in his eyes as he continued watching Ivory and Winston. She grabbed his arm and pulled him under the treehouse.

"You gotta stop staring if you don't want to get hit," She said under her breath, suppressing a laugh when Minho looked at her with a confused look.

"I wasn't staring," He said huffy, pulling his arm out of Mira's grip. Mira rolled her eyes with a smirk.

"Yeah, sure, whatever you say," she said, watching as Newt, Thomas, and a few other gladers continued to try and calm the girl down. Finally, Thomas shouted:

"It's Thomas!"

The apples stopped falling the second Thomas shouted and everyone smiled, relieved that the apples weren't hitting them, and maybe a little suspicious of Thomas. Looking up, Mira saw the girl peek her head over the treehouse, staring at Thomas.

"I'm gonna come up, okay?" He called, taking a few steps toward the ladder. When the girl didn't react, he started climbing up slowly. Below him, a few gladers stared in confusion.

"Why'd she stop for him?" One asked as everyone walked away, beside a few others. Mira stepped away from under the treehouse and walked over to Ivory. Mira nodded hello to Winston who nodded back and walked off, leaving her with Ivory.

"What were Minho and Thomas talking about in that hut thing?" She asked. Ivory glanced at Minho, then to where Thomas was still climbing.

"They have a map of the maze. It seemed pretty close to the real thing," She told her, and Mira smiled.

"So we might have a chance at escaping?" She asked, and Ivory nodded.

"Yeah, but Mira..." She trailed off. Mira sighed, knowing what she was about to say.

"Yeah, I don't think we should just leave them either. Some of them have actually grown on me. Except for some," She added, frowning. Ivory smirked and glanced up at the treehouse.

"What do you think of the girl?" She asked, and Mira looked up at the treehouse too. She shrugged and crossed her arms.

"Don't know, she seems....scared," Mira said, not knowing what else to say. Ivory rolled her eyes sarcastically.

"Jeez, really? It's not like she woke up in a glade surrounded by boys," Ivory jabbed, making Mira laugh.

"You know what I mean," She said, still laughing.

"What are you laughing about?"

Mira slowly stopped laughing and looked at Newt who looked at her, a smile on his face. Mira placed a hand on her hips.

"Inside joke, boys aren't allowed to know," She teased, making Ivory laugh with her. Newt rolled his eyes, and his smile disappeared. He looked up at the treehouse where they could see Thomas talking with the girl.

"Do you two know anything about her?" He asked, his voice sounding like it did when the girl first appeared. Mira shook her head.

"No, we've never seen her before. At least, as far as I remember. Which isn't much," She explained, watching as Newt nodded his head. He rubbed his chin, deep in thought. After a few minutes, Newt walked over to where Gally and Frypan were standing.

"What's going on up there?" Gally called, making both girls roll their eyes.

"Apparently, eagle-brow can't mind his own business," Mira muttered, watching as Thomas stood up and looked over the rail.

"Is she coming down?" Newt asked his hands on his hips. Mira walked over to stand next to Newt and nudged him in the ribs.

"Ever heard of 'waiting'?" She whispered, smirking when Newt shot her a glare.

"Uh..hey listen, you guys just give us a second, okay?" Thomas called down, making Gally huff. Mira rolled her eyes again. She was starting to become really annoyed with Gally.

"Alright," Newt said, turning around and waving everyone away "Come on,"

Slowly, everyone walked away, and Mira saw Ivory walk away with Winston who were both laughing. Catching up with Newt, she fell in step with him, then sighed.

"She's gonna cause problems, you know that right?" She asked, making Newt shake his head with a laugh.

"And you two haven't?" He asked, still laughing. Mira shook her head and pulled out an apple she had gotten from the kitchen a few hours earlier.

"We haven't caused problems, we just teased you, boys," She explained, tossing the apple to Newt who caught it with a sigh and a smile.

"What about the apples and the treehouse?" He asked, tossing the apple up in the air. Mira smirked and shrugged innocently.

"Okay, MAYBE we caused one problem, but only one. Also, that girl totally stole me and Ivory's move, just gonna say that now," Mira added, snatching the apple in mid-air. Newt gave a small smile, then crossed his arms.

"Do you remember anything before the maze? Even a small detail?" Newt asked, his face furrowed in thought as they walked closer to the homestead. Mira hesitated, remembering the conversation between her and Ivory. She had told Ivory not to tell anyone because it would have made them more suspicious. He would be sus if I told him about our memories, and it would be better if he wasn't.

"No, the only thing I remember is waking up in the maze and hiding out in the woods," She told him, not looking at him. Newt slowly nodded as he glanced at the homestead.

"One more question, back in the box, you started acting weird when I asked how you heard what I said to Gally, why?"

Mira sighed, shaking her head.

"I don't need to explain my every action to you blondie," She said, copying his stance. Newt sighed and gently grabbed her arm to stop her. Mira looked at his hand, then looked up at him.

"Listen, Mira, the others are starting to trust you. I can tell. But when you and Ivory act the way you do, it will take longer for them to fully trust you two," He warned, his grip tightening slightly. Mira frowned, about to speak, when pain shot into her head.

Mira let out an involuntary gasp as random images flashed across her mind. She saw tents around a fire, people walking around with smiles, then she was sitting on a log and Ivory was with her, along with a boy who was laughing. He seemed....familiar. Mira felt like she should know him, but nothing in her mind clicked as the memory faded.

"Mira? What's wrong?"

Mira took a deep breath and blinked. She was still standing where she and Newt had stopped, but now, Newt's hand lay on her shoulder. The touch felt familiar and Mira didn't like it. She quickly stepped back and Newt's hand fell to his side.

"I'm fine," She lied, taking another step back. Newt frowned, but he didn't stop Mira when she turned around and quickly sped off. She took a deep breath as she entered the forest. Although it didn't hurt, it left her breathless and shook her up. Mira couldn't shake off the feeling that it was inhuman for someone to lose their memories. Every memory felt like an invasion of privacy like she was peeking into someone else's life. It was a constant source of fear for her.

Taking a deep breath, Mira leaned against the tree, watching the glade from her spot in the woods. A few gladers, including Gally, walked around, their heads bent in conversation. Mira furrowed her eyebrows. Gally would be a problem if she and Ivory tried to leave, so he needed to be dealt with. I need to get Newt on our side, she thought. If he doesn't try to stop us, then no one else will. She watched the gladers for a few seconds, biting her lip. Some of them....she would miss if they left. But at that time, she and Ivory needed to leave, and they had a real chance. But it wouldn't last forever, and they needed to act fast. Hearing a snap, Mira froze, silent for a second, then smiled.

"Hey Ivy," she said, not looking back. Behind her, Ivory laughed as she came up beside Mira with a smile.

"Hey, back," She replied, still smiling as she leaned on the tree across from Mira.

"What'd you and Winston talk about?" Mira asked, smirking when Ivory rolled her eyes.

"I helped him in the barn and he told me a bit about the maze," Ivory explained, picking off some bark with her fingernails.

"And what is the mystery of this super-duper scary maze?" Mira asked, kicking a few leaves off the ground. Ivory rolled her eyes again but smirked.

"That's the thing. No one has found out," Ivory told her, tossing a piece of bark in the air while Mira scowled.

"These boys have been in the maze for three years, and no one has found out the mystery?" Mira asked, her scowl deepening as she realized what it might mean.

"Yeah, and some of these boys are pretty smart. We don't understand this place like most of the boys, we might need their help if we want to escape,"

"But we can't do it if they have no idea what to do," Mira finished, biting her lip. Ivory sighed and shook her head.

"What do you think of Thomas?" She asked, making Mira blink in surprise.

"You gonna explain what you mean by that?"

Ivory smiled and laughed as she shook her head.

"Do you think he could help? He seems...like he knows the place," Ivory told her, looking in the direction of the glade. Mira glanced in the same direction and frowned.

"Don't know. I don't know about a lot of the boys here," Mira said, her eyes tracing the walls surrounding the glade. Next to her, Ivory nodded her agreement and there was silence while both girls stood there thinking.

For a few minutes, both girls stood there, then Mira straightened up as her eyes narrowed.

"Blondie is walking over here," She announced, making Ivory look at her lazily.

"Should we run?" She asked, sounding bored. Mira smirked and shook her head.

"Nah, I want to see why he's looking for us," She said, as Newt got closer.

"And you know this how?" Ivory asked, laughing. Mira rolled her eyes and leaned against the tree again.

"Just wait, I don't think Blondie wants to shout at us," Mira said. Ivory rolled her eyes and started to speak, but Newt came up to them and cut her off unknowingly.

"You girls have to stop running off. It looks suspicious to everyone," He placed his hands on his hips and gave both girls a look. Mira turned to Ivory with a smile and Ivory rolled her eyes.

"Fine, you were right," She huffed, making a face at Mira.

"What?" Newt asked, looking at Mira with a raised eyebrow. Mira waved a hand dismissively.

"Nothing, I just proved Ivy wrong on something," Mira explained, grinning at Ivory. Newt stared at Mira for a second, clear confusion on his face, before slightly shaking his head.

"Can I ask you a question, Mira?" Newt asked, turning to her. Mira smiled, then tilted her head.

"You just did," She replied, biting her lip to stop her from laughing when Newt huffed in anger.

"Can you not joke right now? This is serious," He said, and Mira noted the hardness in his voice that she had never heard before from him. Ivory noted it too, and quickly pushed herself off the tree.

"I'm gonna find Winston, I'll see you later Mira," She said and quickly disappeared into the woods. Mira frowned and turned to Newt with her arms crossed.

"What's your question?" She asked, leaning on the tree again. Newt ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath.

"Why are you lying?" He asked, catching Mira by surprise. Mira froze, staring at Newt. How....No, he must mean something else. No one but Ivory and I know about our memories.

"I don't know what you mean," Mira said, clenching her fist. But Newt shook his head.

"No, you know exactly what I mean," He said, glaring at her. Mira gazed at him, observing why Alby had made him second-in-command. He had the natural look of a leader that was difficult to forge, and he could make even the most stubborn people like Gally listen to him. However, it didn't matter to Mira, and she wasn't going to let anyone boss her around...

"I'm not one of the boys, you don't get to boss me around. I'll tell you what I want to tell you, and I'll do what I want. Same goes with Ivory," Mira told him, causing Newt to scowl.

"Bloody hell, I'm not trying to control you two, I just want to know why you're lying about your memories," Newt explained, pinching the bridge of his nose. Mira froze, her arms dropping to her sides.

"I'm not lying about any memories. I told you everything I remembered," She said with a huff, placing both hands on her hips in anger. Newt shook his head, then spoke.

"I saw you hesitate when I asked you about your memories. It doesn't take a genius to know that means you're lying. Just because you have memories doesn't mean we're going to banish you," Newt explained, his voice telling Mira he was losing patience.

Mira scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Oh jeez, that's so easy to believe, especially since me and Ivory are being treated like we're the bad guys, all because we're girls!" Mira snapped, causing Newt to take a step back. There was silence between both of them while Newt tried to respond, and Mira calmed herself down.

"We're only acting that way because, for three years, it was the same every month. Then one day, you two appear and shake up everything we know. Now another girl is here, and we don't know how to react to this. These boys are not used to change. The glade is a home to them. They lost their memories, they don't want the only place they call home to be destroyed too," Newt explained, his arms hanging by his side. Suddenly, Mira saw a different boy - the dark circles under his eyes, the way his shoulders drooped, and the sadness in his eyes. He no longer looked like a leader, but like a boy who was forced to act like one.

"You were the second one here, weren't you," Mira asked, her mind racing. Newt didn't answer her right away but made a big deal of fixing a leather cuff on his wrists.

"Newt,"

"I was," Newt replied, his face going dark. Mira sighed, now understanding.

"So everyone who died, you knew," She said, shaking her head. Newt looked up at her, then at the ground.

"Yeah, it-"

Newt was cut off by Thomas running up to them, the girl following behind him.

"Newt, we might have a cure for Alby," Thomas gasped, something clenched in his hands. Their conversion was forgotten as soon as Thomas said that.

"What?" Newt and Mira said at the same time, sharing a glance.

"How?" Mira asked, looking at the girl, then to Thomas.

"I'll explain when we get to the MedHut, but come on, we gotta hurry," He said, then he and the girl rushed off. Mira shared another glance with Newt, then they both ran after Thomas to the Medhut.

"We don't even know what this stuff is. We don't know who sent it. Why it came up with you," Newt said, waving a hand at the girl Teresa. "For all we know, this thing can kill him,"

After they got to the Medhut, Thomas introduced Teresa to them, and told them about the "cure". To which Mira and Newt instantly didn't like.

Thomas stared at Newt with disbelief, then waved a hand in Alby's direction.

"He's already dying! Look at him," Thomas argued, and Mira could see what he meant.

Alby lay on a cot, purple and blue veins all along his chest, arms, and face. Along with that, he kept shivering and jerking like he was having a seizure. Honestly, Mira was pretty sure he was dying too, but she didn't say anything as Thomas started speaking again.

"How can this possibly make it any worse?" He asked, not waiting for Newt to respond. "Come on, it's worth a try,"

"Newt, it wouldn't hurt," Mira added, speaking softly. "And if this thing does kill him, at least he won't be in pain anymore,"

Newt was silent for a moment as he watched Alby jerk around on his cot. Mira watched anxiously, waiting to see what Newt would do.

"Alright, do it," he finally said, giving the vial of blue stuff to Thomas. Mira watched as Thomas rushed to Alby's side and fumbled with the cure. Next to her, Newt stared at the cot, his hands twisting in anxiousness. Stepping closer, Mira placed a hand on Newt's shoulder to calm him.

"It's okay," She said under her breath, squeezing his shoulder. Newt looked at her and opened his mouth to say something. But before he could, Alby started attacking Thomas.

"You shouldn't be here," Mira heard Alby say as he clutched Thomas's shirt and wouldn't let go. Newt and Mira both rushed forward and tried to pull Thomas away, but Alby had a grip like iron. As Mira struggled to break Alby's grip, she heard Thomas yelling at Teresa to inject the cure. Then they heard a hiss and Alby's hands went slack. Looking around, Mira saw that Teresa had injected Alby with the cure, breathing heavily.

"Well...that worked," Jeff said, looking at everyone with a slightly shocked face. Mira couldn't help but smile and let out a breathless laugh as she took a deep breath, pushing hair out of her face.

"Okay, from now on, someone stays here and watches him around the clock," Newt ordered, looking at Thomas, then at Teresa. Mira turned around as she heard footsteps, suppressing a sigh when she saw Gally.

"Hey," he said, making everyone turn to look at him. He glared at Teresa before looking at Thomas. Mira rolled her eyes. He seriously hates girls

"Sundown greenie. Time to go," he announced, watching everyone to see what they would do. Thomas looked at Newt like he thought he could help. But Newt just watched as Thomas walked away with Gally. Mira stood silent for a second, thinking of what they would do next, then turned to Newt.

"If word gets out that Alby attacked Thomas, you might as well banish him. No one will trust him. It'll be like fifty Eagle-brows," She said, causing Newt to smile and shake his head.

"You can't help yourself, can you?" He asked, and Mira gave him an innocent smile.

"I assure you, I have no idea what you mean," She said.