The next morning, Ravyn walked the school halls with his hood up and hands shoved deep into his pockets, the same as yesterday.
He found Luna in the corner of the courtyard during the lunch rush, seated alone on a stone bench beneath a tree. As usual, the students maintained a wide and very nervous radius around her.
Ravyn walked right through the invisible boundary.
Luna watched him approach.
"They're giving you a lot of space..." Ravyn noted, stopping just in front of her.
"Go away, Grantham." she said. "You saving me yesterday doesn't make us friends."
"Oh, I know that." Ravyn leaned against the tree trunk, looking at her. And he slowly smiled. "And it just means you owe me one big favor."
Luna squinted at him, her lips parting in surprise. "You're such a creep. And that's the first time I've seen you smile."
"I also saw your first smile yesterday, when you were trying to kill me. So I guess we're both creeps." Ravyn replied.
She ignored the jab, her expression hardening as she shifted on the bench. "What do you want, Grantham?"
Ravyn's mood sobered instantly. He rubbed the back of his neck. "I couldn't sleep last night. I was wondering how you had… magic."
"It's not magic, it's an ability bestowed by the Game. And everyone who accepted the mark has it. You used yours when you blasted that guy through the building."
"Oh? So my magic is just lifting rusty signs? How boring." Ravyn muttered.
"It's not magic, geez." Luna said.
"Look it here. My little sister trying to form her little Thrine band of misfits already?"
Both Ravyn and Luna snapped their heads up.
Standing ten feet away was a boy with an immaculate school uniform, hair slicked back and eyes that held the same fire as Luna's but colder.
He exuded an aura, his presence a clear statement of superiority.
Ravyn instinctively reached out to pull Luna behind him but she moved her hand before his fingers could even brush her arm, stepping out and facing the figure herself.
Ravyn noted the shift in her posture, a subtle shrinking that belied her usual intimidating air. The girl everyone was scared of was small now.
"Go away, Damien." Luna said, her voice tight.
Damien, smirked. "Stop embarrassing yourself, lil sis. There's no way you'll make it to the Game. You'll always be a worthless."
Ravyn jaw tightened and he took a reflexive step forward, ready to explode. Luna's hand was flat against his chest, a surprisingly firm gesture that held him back.
"Yeah, tame your stray before he gets put down." Damien drawled. He flexed his neck and Ravyn felt the immediate, crushing pressure of a far greater mana pool.
Damien held the pressure for three seconds, then turned with a final, pitying look at his sister and walked away.
"You really gonna let him talk to you like that?" Ravyn asked, his voice rough with anger.
Luna slid down the trunk of the maple tree until she was seated on the bench, leaning her head back against the wall with a hollow look in her eyes.
Ravyn sat beside her, his arms resting on his knees. "Hey. You know the real reason I came to you?"
Luna didn't look at him. "To ask about your lame magic?"
"To ask you for for a team up." Ravyn corrected, his tone turning serious. "Seeing your brother just confirmed it. This 'Game' is real and there are people out there who are strong and ruthless. If we stick together, we might have a chance of surviving. We can figure out what to do with the wish later... I know we can't share it but if we want to survive now, we need to stick together. What do you say? Let's form a team."
Luna stared down at her knees, then slowly a small, weary laugh escaped her. "You idiot, you really should've read the rules."
"Hey, you can't laugh when I'm being serious." Ravyn insisted, frowning.
Luna raised her head. "Let me try explaining in simple terms."
She paused.
"The Game needs three participants from each city and they're called the Thrine. What we are doing now as Candidates is the pre-game. We're fighting each other to be one of the three who gets to be a Participant. The Game hasn't even started yet, Ravyn. We have to kill and survive just to earn a spot to kill and survive more in the main event."
Ravyn sat stunned, the reality of the pre-game sinking in. He shook his head, pushing past the shock to focus on the objective.
"Damn, this is messed up." he said, resting his head in his hands. "But now that's clarified. What do you say we start our own Thrine?"
Luna looked him over. "You don't even know what your ability is... but fine. I will let you join my team."
Ravyn let out a long and slow sigh. He had invited her and somehow she'd managed to rephrase it into her own.
"Fine." he said, nodding. "Team Luna it is."