The relentless beep of my alarm shattered the silence of the morning. Beep. Beep. Beep. It was the kind of sound that could drive anyone mad, and Luke was no exception. He groaned irritably and buried his head under his pillow like a sulky toddler.

Another weekend had slipped away, and with it, the grim reality of Monday had settled back into our lives.

I rolled over, running my fingers through my bedraggled hair as I reached out to switch off the alarm. The clamour of the clock stopped, leaving a peaceful—if temporary—silence.

"Do we have to?" Luke groaned, dragging out the final word with the drama of a small child.

Reluctantly, he shoved himself upright, his sleepy eyes squinting as he clambered out of bed. It was only the beginning of my second week at this new school, and in that short time, I'd managed to get into more than enough trouble. I really didn't want to add to Miss Reid's already well-established dislike for me. Besides, today marked the start of the Proelium sign-ups, something Luke was absolutely buzzing about.

"Unfortunately we do," I replied through a yawn, stretching out my stiff limbs like a cat emerging from a nap.

Luke pouted dramatically as he rummaged through his drawers for a shirt. Within minutes, we were both just about dressed and not-so ready to face the day.

Over the past week, I'd become more accustomed to changing in front of my roommate. I mean we were friends now too which helped but back home I'd never shared a room with anyone, it was strange. But a good kind of strange. Still, there were those awkward moments—like when he casually stripped off everything in front of me—that left me flustered and scrambling to look anywhere but his direction. I swear, the last incident was still giving me nightmares.

***

Everything up until lunch dragged. Even hand-to-hand with Mr Holt felt like a slog, since he'd decided to subject us to meaningless theory instead of practical work. Boring didn't even begin to cover it.

When the school's cafeteria finally opened its doors, I trudged in and slumped at a table, my gaze fixed on a tray of lacklustre food that looked as if it had given up hope. The glistening surface of the meatloaf was more of a murky grey than an appetising brown. I longed for The Hideout's warm, welcoming atmosphere and the promise of a decent sandwich instead of the greyish slop before me.

"Nate?"

The sound of Luke's voice pierced through my daydream of culinary redemption. I blinked and looked up to find him leaning across the table, his brow furrowed in mild annoyance. His attempts to catch my attention had clearly failed more than once.

"And you complain when I don't listen to you," he rolled his eyes. "As I was saying, I'm off to sign up for the Proelium so head to class without me. I'll catch up later."

His words jolted me upright. "Wait, you can't sign up alone! Let me join your team. I'm sure Mara and Nilla will want in too."

Luke stared at me as if I'd just suggested we all go skydiving. "Why would any of you want to do that?"

The urge to smack him on the head was almost overwhelming. Sometimes, he really did act like a clueless kid. "Because we're your friends, idiot. Besides, it'll be fun, right?"

His surprise melted into a genuine smile, the kind that made him look less like a troublemaker and more like a genuinely nice guy.

"Fine, but we should probably ask the girls first." He grabbed my hand and began dragging me through the bustling hallways, his excitement practically fizzing in the air.

Our destination was the school gym, where Mara was engaged in what seemed like a relentless workout session. She was halfway through a set of sit-ups, sweat glistening on her forehead like a halo of hard work.

"What do you two want?" she huffed, rising to her feet and swiping at her face with a towel, leaving streaks of sweat across her flushed cheeks.

"We were wondering if you'd join our Proelium team," I blurted out before Luke could say anything that might make things worse between them with, well, with whatever they had going on.

"Well, since it's you asking, pretty boy," Mara said with a smirk, her tone lightening, "I guess I'll join. But only if Nilla does too."

With a dramatic flourish, she whipped out her phone and dialled Nilla's number, holding the device away from her ear as Nilla's enthusiastic response boomed throughout the gym.

It was clear that our newest member was already bouncing with excitement on the other end, filled with the same energy that already seemed to have taken root in the rest of us. Mara's grin widened as she ended the call, grabbing her jacket in one swift motion.

"Looks like we're in," she said, pulling me and Luke towards the door. The prospect of the Proelium seemed to ignite a new kind of fire in all of us.

I know what you're thinking, why would kids be so excited to jump at the opportunity to fight people? But trust me, here in Astraven we're raised for this kind of thing.

***

After we found Nilla, we headed to Miss Reid's office to officially sign up for the Proelium. The grand white doors towered over us like some mediaeval fortress entrance. Inside, muffled voices floated through the thick wood.

"Maybe we should come back later?" Mara suggested, already turning on her heel when she realised someone else was already inside. But Nilla, well, Nilla didn't believe in second thoughts. She barrelled towards the door like an excited puppy and burst through without a hint of hesitation. I guess she's never heard of knocking.

"Oh, hey Nilla!" The guy with the snowy hair—Alec, right?—barely had time to react before Nilla flung herself at him, wrapping him in a hug so tight it looked like she was squeezing all the air out of his lungs. He smiled down at her, like an older brother used to his little sister's chaos, and gently hugged her back. It was weirdly sweet.

They were so close, I wondered just how long they'd known each other.

"Hello, Miss Reid!" Nilla chirped, as if the headmistress wasn't, well, the headmistress. She waved like they were best friends instead of teacher and student. Mara, Luke, and I trailed in awkwardly behind her.

Miss Reid raised an eyebrow at the lot of us, clearly not phased by the sudden intrusion. If anything, she seemed a bit relieved, like we'd interrupted something she didn't really want to continue.

"And what brings you all here?" she asked, looking between Alec and us like she was half-expecting a disaster.

Luke stepped forward, always the fearless leader. "We wanted to officially sign up for the Proelium." He sidled up next to Nilla and Alec, trying not to look out of place but failing miserably.

Miss Reid pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and turned to her computer. "I see. A strong team, indeed," she murmured, fingers dancing across the keyboard like she was some sort of typing wizard.

"Let's see," she continued, "four members ranging from sixteen to eigh—"

"Wait." Alec cut her off, a mischievous glint in his eye. "I know I'm the headmaster of another school, but it's not against the rules. I'd like to join your team, if you'll have me?"

He aimed the question at us, completely ignoring Miss Reid's deepening scowl. Clearly, sibling dynamics were alive and well, even between two head teachers.

Luke scratched his head, trying to process the fact that we were suddenly getting a wildcard entry. "Um, sure? I mean, we've got space."

Nilla, of course, practically bounced with excitement, jumping like a dog who'd just found a new bone.

Miss Reid sighed, her knowing glance at Alec saying more than words ever could. "Very well, five members, ranging from sixteen to twenty." Her fingers resumed their rapid dance on the keyboard, clearly accepting defeat.

Once we were officially signed up, we agreed to start training together after school. Simple, right? But as we left Miss Reid's office, my brain kept chewing over the same question: why did Alec want to join our team? He usually entered alone, so why the sudden change? And what exactly were he and Miss Reid talking about before we barged in?

My thoughts kept spiralling, drowning in questions, until Luke nudged me out of my head. "Nate? Class is over. Let's go meet up with the others."

I blinked, realising I'd been walking around in a daze. Luke was already halfway to the door when someone stepped in front of him, her expression flat and uninterested, like she was there by accident.

It was Blake.

"Blake? What's up?" Luke asked, doing that thing where he pretended not to care, but you could tell he was curious.

She brushed past him like he was invisible, heading straight for me. Awkward.

She fidgeted for a second, something I'd never seen her do, and mumbled, "Can I join your team?"

"Uh, sure, I guess?" I glanced over at Luke. "Luke?"

Luke looked between me and Blake for a moment, then shrugged. "Well, it fills up the last spot, so why not?" He gave her a friendly clap on the shoulder—bad move.

Before either of us could react, he was harshly flipped over Blake's shoulder and onto the hard floor with a thud that echoed through the hallway. He continued to lay there, rubbing the back of his sore head, clearly already regretting his decision.

"Yeah, maybe don't do that again," I snickered, offering him a hand. He took it, groaning as he hauled himself up.

"Come on," I said, already heading for the door. "We're going to be late for training."

Luke pouted, still rubbing his sore head, but followed after me with Blake in tow, the weirdest trio you could imagine.

So they have a full team of six. I wonder if they will ever be able to work together as a team? Thanks for reading and don't forget to vote!