Disclaimer: I do not own the Maze Runner series.

Third POV

Thoughts

Memories

About Personal Things

Moon's body moved faster than her thoughts. To be perfectly honest, she didn't want to be anywhere near that guy, but the Creators must have sent him there for a reason and she sure as hell couldn't just stand aside and let it happen, whatever it was. Thomas was standing in front of the closed Gate, and it only took her only a minute to get herself behind him. The question was… what exactly was she going to do now?

"How about you take a step back?" she spoke up coldly and watched him flinch in alarm and turn around immediately.

His dark eyes widened in surprise when he saw her.

"I wasn't about to-"

"Of course you weren't," Moon cut him off simply, slowly striding around him to place herself between him and the Gate. "You woke up early to watch the sunrise, right? It's to die for."

Thomas didn't say a word. He just stared at her, his eyes examining every inch of her face, desperately looking for something and failing to do so. Moon knew that feeling all too well, but that didn't make her feel sorry for him one bit. That all could be nothing but an act.

It probably was an act.

"Walk away," she told him firmly, hoping for a quick end to all this.

He blinked, his eyes quickly flickering to the Gate and then his whole stance hardened with determination. "No."

Moon's hands curled up into fists and she had to suppress a large amount of insecurity because Thomas just stood there, being all tall… and dangerous. The image of him standing in that hallway was clearer than the sky above her head and it was making her uneasy. The leftover alcohol in her system wasn't helping, making her dizzy and her mind fuzzy, but still… somehow this whole situation felt familiar.

"You're an idiot if you think you can make it in the Maze on your own," Moon scoffed in very condescending manner.

Thomas wasn't fazed by that.

"Then come with me."

… What?!

"Whoa, easy there…" Moon instantly took a step back. "I'm not going anywhere and neither are you."

"Why not?" he wanted to know, taking a step forward. "Why are you even staying here?"

"You think we're happy to be here?" Moon frowned in disbelief. "That this is just a vacation for us? Do you think we made out the rules just out of boredom? That we don't understand, and you're special?"

She could almost see Newt in her mind, tilting his head and giving her that look of his.

You, Moon, are a bloody hypocrite.

Moon didn't have the time to self-analyze at the moment and it didn't matter how much her words hit the spot with Thomas because the Gate behind her back started opening. The Greenie watched it in awe that also seemed pretty damn familiar and Moon could see he made his decision before he even opened his mouth.

"I'm not staying here," he stated firmly.

Thomas was obviously hardcore stubborn… but so was she.

If I'm trapped here, so are you.

"Have they told you about the Pit?" Moon asked lightly, her brows lifting in question. "Nasty place really… I heard they once left a guy in there for two whole weeks. He just couldn't hold it together…"

"I hold it together just fine," Thomas snapped back.

"Yeah, I can see that…" she drawled sarcastically, her eyes catching a glimpse of movement behind his back. "Well, do what you want. But just so you know, you have audience…"

Moon pointed with her chin, making him turn around and see that the Glade already came alive as it did every time the Gate has opened. There were many people in the background already preparing for the next day, but the most important one was Minho who was clearly walking in their direction.

Moon could see frustration cross Thomas' features and she smirked.

"Yeah, you're never gonna make it. As much as it pains me to say it - Minho is the fastest shank in the Glade. You wouldn't be able to get to the first turn, and, just so you know, he's gonna drag you back through the dirt like a dog. So have fun."

With those words, she turned around and walked away. Her work there was done. Minho was already pretty close and if Newt wanted to have another talk with the new Greenie, he could be her guest. Moon just wanted to get the hell away from Thomas.

"Wait!"

Moon could hear his voice behind her and his steps, so she sped up.

Please, just leave me alone… Don't you know how much it took just to go there and stop you?!

"Hey!" Thomas exclaimed again and with a few quick steps, he got himself in front of her. "Why won't anybody tell me what's so dangerous about the labyrinth?!"

Moon walked around him, not sparing him a glance.

"Maybe because you've been freaking out since the second you got here?"

He trailed after her, not giving up.

"Nobody's giving me any answers - could you blame me?"

Yes. I mean… no. I mean yes.

"You can't just-"

"I just remembered we're not allowed to talk. Sorry, Greenie," Moon interrupted him flatly, not feeling sorry at all. This was probably the only good thing that Alby has ever done for her. He gave her an excuse to avoid this guy, and she was going to take it gladly.

In the corner of her eye, she could see Thomas frown, his brown eyes watching her skeptically.

"Why?"

Moon sighed in annoyance.

"Let's just say that I'm not really good at playing mind games? I would've probably told you everything you want to know and… well, we can't have that, can we?" Yeah, just stew on it. I had to go through it, so why should you have it easy? "See you not later."

Thomas finally took a hint and right after she stopped talking, he turned away from her with an irritated sigh. Moon watched him walk away and there wasn't a pinch of satisfaction in her system. Uneasiness and fear were happily mixing in her stomach and she had no idea what to do to stop it.

"So…" a soft voice stretched out lazily. "That was mean."

Moon unwillingly flinched when she heard that - she hadn't realized that she reached the original place where she and Newt slept last night and in the tall grass; the blond was almost invisible.

"Hey, don't look at me," Moon put her hands up, averting her eyes.

"Alby's orders."

"Right," Newt scoffed sarcastically, slowly pulling himself back to his feet. "We all know that Alby's word is the word of God to you."

Moon met his amber gaze, unwilling to give anything away.

After what happened last night, after that absolute and utter fiasco of her drunkenly coming onto Newt about which they were never going to talk about - she wasn't quite ready for another life-changing situation.

Hell no, we are not doing this right now…

"Is there something you'd like to say, Newt?" she asked evenly, both of her brows lifting.

"Nothing," the boy chuckled easily. "I just don't bloody understand why you're giving Tommy such a hard-"

"Oh, he is Tommy now, isn't he? Interesting."

He even has a nickname for him already…

"… What?"

"Nothing."

Newt frowned, his brows furrowing.

"What are we talking about? Are you still drunk? Or are you wearing your crazy pants today?"

"I have no idea what that even means," Moon informed him calmly, turning around on her heal, ready to walk away.

Newt instantly moved forward to catch her wrist and turn her back.

"Care to tell me what's going on?" he asked, his voice dead serious.

One look into those piercing dark eyes and Moon knew they were actually doing it now. She wasn't about to feed him some pathetic lie and given the fact that he was already creating a bond with him… Moon wouldn't be able to stand it any longer anyway.

"I saw him in one of my dreams," she blurted it out as if she was ripping off a band-aid.

Newt just stood there for a moment, completely stunned.

"You saw… Thomas in your dream?"

Moon gave him a nod. "He was one of them, he had to be. I would've started screaming it out loud too, but Minho told me not to cause any panic until we are absolutely sure-"

"Wait…" Newt interrupted her by raising his hand. "You told Minho and not me?"

Moon closed her mouth, pressing her lips tightly together.

Oops.

The blond boy just shook his head, scoffing.

"Typical…" he noted bitterly.

Moon frowned, going on offense almost immediately.

"I was trying to tell you, but you were too busy with your new friend," she remarked pointedly.

Newt looked down at her, his eyes narrowing.

"You've gotta be kidding me with this…"

Okay, maybe this went a little too far…

"Look," Moon spoke up again in a softer tone. "I was just-"

"You really think you have a right to be jealous, huh?" Newt interrupted her swiftly, his eyes dark and burning. "To feel betrayed? You?"

The conversation had gotten off track, and while Moon was aware of it, there was absolutely nothing she could do to steer it back the right way - not when Newt had that look on his face. She bit the inside of her cheek to stay quiet; since every single time she tried to fight with Newt when he had that look, things just got much worse.

"You're running in the Maze - the one I never wanted you to go into, by the way - every shucking day with Minho, spending hours and hours with him alone, and now you're telling him things you keep from me. But you are the one who should be jealous?! You?! Of course, you. It's probably because I'm the only boy in a group full of bloody girls, right? Oh, wait!"

Moon watched him rant with her eyes wide open. It wasn't like Newt to lose his cool like that. He obviously was on edge about that for quite some time but still… Moon was honestly shocked.

"What's that have to do-?" she tried calmly but was cut off immediately.

"No!" Newt snapped sharply. "I'm talking and you are listening!" Running a hand through his messy hair, he shook his head again. "I just can't bloody believe you! That's nothing new, but still… Do you remember the day you punched Winston?"

You mean… the best day of my life?

"I walked up on Ben and Zart standing up for you and I… I mean, I was glad they did, but still…" Newt sighed. "I feel like something's changed and I seem to be late all the time… But Minho is there, he's always-"

"I hate Minho!" Moon exclaimed before she could get cut off again. She couldn't believe they were even having this conversation. How could he put himself on the scale with Minho? Newt was… Newt.

"No, you don't," Newt declined evenly. "And he doesn't hate you either…"

Moon took a breath to deny it all, but he moved forward, putting a hand over her mouth.

"I'm still talking!" Newt insisted, his dark eyes piercing through hers for quite a moment. Then he dropped them to the ground. "Wow… Look at me - I'm making a bloody scene… Anyway, my point is… you don't get to be jealous. Alright? Just no."

Moon waited patiently until he pulled his hand away and stepped back.

"Sorry, you can talk now. You don't have to, though. I'm not gonna lie, sometimes it's better when you don't…"

It seemed that he was expecting some kind of sarcastic remark or a silly joke, but Moon wasn't in the mood for either. This whole thing just threw her off so completely that, for a second, she forgot all the chaos that was happening both around her and inside of her.

"You being jealous is so bizarre to me it had literally never crossed my mind," Moon admitted evenly, watching the boy before her cautiously.

You really don't know how much you mean to me, do you?

Newt took a breath, but then screaming sounded not far away from them, and his head instinctively snapped towards the noise. Moon turned around only to see Gally and Minho struggling to keep Thomas in place, only a few steps away from the open Gate. Other Gladers - including Newt, of course - instantly rushed there to help.

"Get off me! GET OFF!" Thomas kept on yelling when it became clear to him that he was no match for the two older boys.

"Calm down, Greenie, calm down," Gally kept on repeating, his voice surprisingly calm and it had no impact whatsoever. Probably because while he was doing so, one of his arms was securing Thomas in a headlock.

"You can't keep me here!"

"Hey, hey, it's okay, no one's gonna hurt ya… Just relax." "LET ME GO!"

Thomas was inconsolably hysterical and clearly on the verge of a panic attack, or so he would have them all believe. Moon was watching the display from a distance, her heart pounding heavily in her chest while she tried to distinguish the truth. To be perfectly honest, she wished that it was real. If it was, it would change a very little for her - Thomas having no memories of being one of them wouldn't pardon him in the slightest, but it would certainly make him less of a threat. However, if this all was actually an act, it was flawless. If he just played them, he was good, very good and Moon already knew the Creators; the people who put them there, wiped their memories clean and played their little games with them, were perfect in what they were doing - she was the only exception to that rule.

If he was playing - they were all doomed.

Sooner or later, he would convince all of them, one after another, they would all believe. Watching Newt jump around him, trying to get him to calm down, Moon knew Thomas had already got him, and her heart was breaking. She couldn't count on Newt, not this time, not when it came to this. Unless he would be given some solid proof, Newt would have never condemn Thomas or anyone else in general. He was just good like that, and at that moment, Moon truly hated it. She really needed him to just believe her intuition on this one and follow her blindly which really wasn't his style or anyone's in the Glade for that matter, except maybe Chuck's.

However, there was a list of people she could try to sway on her side, or at the very least make them unsure of the new arrival and therefore wary of anything suspicious. It wasn't a very long list, so it didn't take her long to pick one name. Turning around, she headed straight for the Med-Jack's hut.

xXxXx

Opening the doors, Moon already knew that Clint wasn't alone. She could hear him talking to someone from the outside and she only prayed it wasn't one of her 'haters'. However - as was established so many times before - the world simply hated her and sitting on the table before her was Terry, the Keeper of the Baggers.

Clint instantly turned around to face her, his light eyes quickly checking her.

"Do you need help?" he asked when he couldn't find any obvious injuries.

"Yeah…" Moon stretched out, ignoring the other boy completely. "My wrist kinda hurts…" "What happened?"

"I fell on it." "What a shocker," Terry snorted condescendingly. "From what I've heard you do more falling than running…"

"Hilarious," Moon deadpanned. "Would you get out of here now that your booboo's been taken care of?"

The Bagger raised an eyebrow at her.

"I'm in no rush, Greenie," he smirked. "I'm not a Greenie anymore," Moon informed him flatly. "He, however, tried to flee this place a few moments ago, so I sincerely hope you weren't the one on the Gate duty…"

Terry jumped down from the table, heading for the door instantly and on his way out, Moon attempted to trip the bastard. When she turned back around, Clint was giving her a deadpan look.

"As always, you are a delight, Moon," he remarked sarcastically, motioning her to come closer. "Sit down."

Moon did as he said while thinking over her decision to include Clint in this mess. It wasn't the best start for this kind of conversation, but then again, it didn't really matter. The Med-Jack took her hand and was moving it around a little while she made up her mind.

"Does this hurt?" he asked, giving it another spin. "No."

Clint lifted his eyes, studying her expression more closely.

"There's nothing wrong with your wrist, is there?"

"No," Moon confessed. "I just wanted to talk to you."

Clint immediately let go of her hand, pushing himself away.

"Don't pull me into your bullshit, Moon."

Despite his harsh words, Moon smiled. "Did you just cuss? Geez…" "I mean it," Clint carried on calmly. "I don't want to be-"

"This is important, Clint," Moon cut him off easily. "Don't you want to know what's going on?"

The redhead's brows furrowed a little.

"Why are you telling me? You never told me you are actually remembering things or any other stuff that was going on with you…"

"Seriously?" Moon let out in utter disbelief, blinking. "You've said like five words to me since we've met, and one of them was your name! I'm sorry if I didn't feel like opening up to you about personal things, Clint!"

"Yet now you do," Clint noted, annoyingly stoic. "Could it be that Newt isn't available for this particular subject? Or have you already talked to him and didn't quite get what you wanted?"

Moon narrowed her eyes, pressing her lips tightly together so she wouldn't impulsively snap something back. God, she hated how smart he actually was. Any other day, she would just get up and leave, moving on to the next person, but this wasn't about her recruiting an army against Thomas. Although that would have been quite nice…

I'm doing this for your own safety, for God's sake!

"This has nothing to do with Newt," she told him evenly. "It's about Thomas." Curiosity flashed through Clint's eyes and in that moment, Moon knew she got him.

"So," Moon tilted her head to a side, giving him a tight smile. "Do you want to hear it, or not?"

xXxXx

Clint wasn't a big talker - he wasn't one to share his thoughts, and he wouldn't just willingly chitchat with you, that just wasn't him. So Moon shouldn't have been so surprised when she got almost nothing out of him, after she told him about her dream/memory where Thomas played the main part.

"I don't want you to go around causing panic, Moon," was basically all he told her. He probably needed some time to think about it, but even if he didn't actually get back to her with his own input, Moon accomplished her goal - he was warned.

Moon wasn't causing any panic. For obvious reasons, Gladers were terrified of the history repeating itself, so they kept most of the important things quiet and secret, putting up walls between each other, and Moon wasn't about to join them. Spreading important information wasn't causing panic, Moon wasn't causing panic. She was minding her own business, being a responsible Glader, eating Frypan's delicious pasta, and trying to figure out the best possible way how to tell Ben about all of this.

The best solution was probably to talk to him in his room, so she headed for the Homestead, only to run into Newt by the threshold.

"M." He blinked in surprise, but stayed standing in her way. "We should talk…"

Those simple three words got Moon's body temperature to rise quickly. What did he want to talk about? Last night? This morning? Both? Moon had no idea how this conversation was going to go and even though she was terrified of it, it was about time.

Moon took a breath to say something, but then she noticed movement behind Newt's back and realized someone was standing right behind him. Newt moved aside to let Clint out of the Homestead and whatever feeling was stirring in Moon just a few seconds ago, she wasn't feeling it anymore.

"I'm such an idiot," she chuckled, shaking her head at her own stupidity.

Of course, he went to tell him. After all, he's given me up before.

"It's nothing personal," Clint started calmly. "I wanted-" "That's twice now, Clint," Moon interrupted him, her voice just as calm as his. "It feels kinda personal."

The redhead put his hand into his pocket and pulled out a lollipop. Warily, he presented it to her like a peace offering or a bribe or just a little band-aid on the tear that his betrayal ripped open.

Moon scoffed.

"Just get out of here."

Clint lifted his eyes to Newt who gave him a nod and walked away from them.

Newt wordlessly took her shoulder, moving her away from the Homestead, out of any potential eavesdropper.

"I just wanted to warn him, that's all," Moon stated simply, trying to avoid a lecture.

Newt was looking down at her, his eyes unreadable.

"Who else did you tell?"

"No one." "Who else were you planning to tell?"

"Ben. Zart. Frypan…" Newt gave a deep sigh, closing his eyes for a second.

"Please, don't. You can't go around spreading information when we actually don't know what it means."

Moon frowned. "But I know what it means."

Newt watched her for a moment before he spoke up again.

"I thought about it and… There's no bloody way he could be a spy for the Creators."

Of course, you don't see it. You trust everyone.

This time, it was Moon's turn to sigh.

"Newt-"

"I know a real fear when I see it, Moon," Newt interrupted her, his voice adamant. "This kid is scared out of his mind. Alby put him in the Pit, and he was crying there since…"

There was no place in Newt's mind that would even consider that Thomas could be pretending all of that, and Moon knew. However, even if it wasn't an act, it didn't change a thing for her. Memory or no memory - he still was one of them.

"I knew what I saw," she told him firmly.

"What you saw could have various different explanations… It could mean a lot of things and… What exactly do you want me to do?" Newt threw his hands in the air in frustration. "This shank doesn't remember a thing. You want me to put him on trial? Banish him?"

Moon didn't want any of those things, not yet. She didn't have any proof, her memory was hazy, she didn't want to cause panic and made unfixable mistakes… A lot of things she hadn't figured out yet. However, what she wanted from Newt, was pretty straightforward.

"I want you to stay away from him."

He's dangerous… I just know.

"I can't do that," Newt refused calmly.

That brought a frown on her face. She was excepting this answer, but still… Why did everything had to be so shucking difficult with him?!

"Why the hell not?"

"Because now everybody wants to stay away from him and don't take this the wrong way, but it's your bloody fault."

Moon blinked.

"My fault?"

The blond boy sighed.

"You took it the wrong way…"

"How exactly is this my fault?" Moon wanted to know. Why is everything always my fault?!

"After everything that happened with you, the others just don't know what to expect anymore," Newt started explaining cautiously. "They let their guard down when Thomas turned out to be a boy, but then he tried to run in the Maze on his first shucking day. That kinda rings a bell, don't ya think?"

"So basically, there's another troublemaker on board," Moon summarized.

"Basically, yeah," Newt gave a nod. "The others aren't exactly thrilled, Alby's so done, and I can't just leave that bloody kid alone just because everyone around is shucking tense and paranoid!"

Moon felt tight knots tying up in her stomach because there was no way in hell she could get Newt on her side now. Thomas already had him, he was wrapped around his finger. It was so simple. A scared little kid, panicking and crying in the Pit…

"You're going to visit him, aren't you?" Moon realized halfway through her thought. Of course, he was. He was Newt.

The blond boy looked at her, tired.

"M…"

Moon mirthlessly smiled at him.

"I guess you really do those things for everyone."

Ignoring his calls, she turned around and walked away from him. If Newt was out, he was out. Moon would never pretend like she changed her mind or nothing happened - she wasn't about to lie to his face again. This time… she had to manage without him.

"Hey! What's going on?" Minho caught up with her, pointing back to the Homestead where most likely Newt was still standing. "Are you and dad fighting?"

"Shut up," Moon mumbled, trying to shake him off.

Minho was persistent in his following.

"Is it maybe because you're jacked and totally paranoid individual with extensive mental issues?" he wondered.

"I'm really not in the mood, Minho, shuck off."

The Keeper obviously didn't care one bit about her mood.

"Just so you know, the kid is like totally crying in the Pit right now," he informed her, his voice mock-serious. "You were right the whole time - the real evil has arrived."

Moon didn't respond to that. So Minho was out too. Who cared?

She was the one with memories, it was all about her, so who's to say she couldn't do this on her own? She was the one who found the way out, after all.

"Where are you even going?" Minho asked, trying to catch her arm to stop her, but Moon dodged his hand.

"I'm not sleeping in the Homestead tonight."

At that moment, Minho stopped following her.

"Wait, so you're metaphorically taking the couch? That's some serious shit!"

Shuck them all.

Moon was just in the right mood to climb the wall, walked through the door in Section 8 and leave them all behind, but she was aware that was just the heat of the moment talking. This was a fight or flight situation for sure, and since she knew running away was almost impossible… it was going to be a fight.

Thomas was not going to get away with anything, not even in his wildest dreams. No matter what would happen, Moon made a promise to herself that she would never trust that guy. No matter what… she would find out the truth.

Hey there!

I hope you all having a great day, guys.

I can't thank you enough for the reviews, I loved every single one of them!

To answer the question about my updating schedule, as much as I would love for it to be regular, it isn't.

On the top of all, I just got really busy lately with school, so I'm not sure when the next chapter will be out.

I will try my best to not take too long.

Anyway, let me know what you think about this chapter and see you later! :)