Written for Chiaroscuro's Writing Extravaganza, Again event.

Part 1 by Chiaroscuro
Part 2 by Kaos_Kitten
Part 3 by Overlord_Aqua_2
Part 4 by lyliaa
Part 5 by Crois

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  Ari sat on her bed, thinking over the whole situation. She remembered how it all started, back when she had thought that it would all work out. Back then, a happy ending for this story seemed almost certain to her – why had it all gone wrong?

  It was all Emmett’s fault. He was the one who turned Jules away. He couldn’t be completely open about it, but everyone who knew him knew about his revolutionary ideas. Jules had fallen victim to that same way of thinking. That was where all the problems started.

  As these thoughts passed through Ari’s mind, an idea began to form. The authorities were not indifferent to the people under them – those who worked hard and earned enough could eventually buy their way to the surface – but those same authorities did not tolerate revolution, or ideas that could lead to it. Emmett was just the kind of person who they would consider dangerous. If they found out about what he was doing, their response would be swift, and Emmett would be out of the picture.

  Ari had the power to stop Emmett. All she needed to do was to find someone to report him to. However, something inside her warned her against going that way. Maybe it was a simple matter of conscience at first, but another thought came to her. “If you really love Jules, will you take away the person he cares about so much?”

  Ari felt uncertain. What would the best choice be? If Emmett was gone, maybe Jules would turn to her, and the two of them could live happily together as a family. But still, she would have a secret to hide, one that could ruin everything if Jules found out about it. But if things continued as they were, it seemed her pain would only grow greater as time went by.

  By now it was getting late, and Ari decided it was time to go to bed. In the morning, she would make her decision.