Peeta's Struggle
Peeta's point of view from the blood bath until Katniss finds him in the weeds. I don't own the Hunger Games or most of the characters.
Chapter 1:
The reaping, the training, the interviews: that was all just a prelude to what is soon to come. I stand in the hovercraft alone, leaning against the window watching the wilderness flying past below us, trying not to dwell on the fact that my life, my love and my sanity are all close to an end. Katniss. She comes to my thoughts more often then I want to admit. So strong and determined, I know she can win these games. I know that I will do everything in my ability to make it so.
Portia comes into the room with my clothes for the games. She sees me leaning against the window. "Aren't you hungry?" she asks.
I look over at the table. I haven't touched my food, but really I'm just too nervous, worried, and full of other random emotions to eat. "Not really," I reply.
"Here are your clothes to change into," she says as she lays them on the table and leaves.
I go over and pull on the outfit, a green button up shirt, brown pants and a belt, comfortable black leather shoes, and a black jacket, then sit at the table and sip some water, still unable to eat. Portia comes back in and sits across from me. She says nothing which for the moment suits me fine.
Finally the widows turn black, the hovercraft slows, and we arrive at the launching site for the games. Portia escorts me out and I give her a brief hug good-bye. "I won't forget you Peeta," she says, which surprises me, but I have genuinely enjoyed her company as my stylist, something I would have never expected to do. I silently go to the metal disk and prepare for the launch.
I know nothing. What am I going to do? Whatever I do, I'm going to protect Katniss, but now I'm simply at loss.
The disk starts to rise. Darkness, then blinding light. Claudius Templesmith's voice booms over the arena, and then comes the quiet before the storm, 60 seconds to take in our surroundings.
I see a lake to one side, and a forest. Across the way a field full of who knows what, then the cornucopia filled with its array of food, supplies, and glistening weapons, one of them, a bow and a sheath of arrows. Katniss! I find her among the tributes; she's facing the cornucopia, prepared to run straight for them, directly into the careers and the weapons. I cant' let her do it. I try to send her my thoughts: Don't run there, don't do it! She squints at me as I shake my head, and I hear the gong ring.
I don't see where she runs, but I now know I need to get to the weapons myself. I run forward instead away like I was directed. I pick up a small switchblade knife and shove it in my pocket as I bolt toward the cornucopia. Most of the other careers are there when I get to it, already using their deadly weapons to attack the other tributes. I don't make it to the arrows or anything else when I see a boy running at me with a spear. It's the boy from District 4.
I don't run away, but instead as he approaches I dodge him then knock him to the ground with my arm. I jump on top of him and he releases his grip from the spear. We begin to wrestle, he elbows me off of him and tries to pin me to the ground, but I knock his head back. We wrestle for a while like this, and I realize with surprise that we are nearly equally matched. Finally I manage to get him into a headlock, and then he bites my arm.
This isn't just another wrestling match. This is the Hunger Games, there are no rules. I reach into my pocket and grab the switchblade. I'm back at him again, this time I'm armed. Not that I want to kill him, but this boy is now directly in my way of letting me accomplish what I desire. I aim to jab the knife into his shoulder, but am instead cut in the arm—he has a knife too. The cut is not deep, but it's enough to make me pull away in pain. As I do, I get punched in the jaw.
He's scrambling to his feet as I kneel there trying to recover from the shock of it all, he swings his knife, and I manage to duck the blow, swinging my knife at his legs. It grazes his legs, enough to distract him while I get to my feet, but not enough to do any damage. We both stand there for a moment, taking in our enemy. He is the same size as me, broad shouldered and muscular, we are an equal match. But I look at his cruel gaze and the knife in his hand. He has come here to kill.
He comes at me again, but I don't hesitate. I grab his wrist with the knife, and try to pin it over his head. Strangely he does the exact same thing. We're standing face to face, neither able to move with our arms above our heads and ignoring the other fighting going on around us. His hazel eyes stare hard at me. He tries to stare me down, and then unexpectedly he knees me. Pain! I'm on the ground again; fortunately the switchblade is still in my hand. I have no time to recover when he's on top of me, pushing my head into the dirt. I jab my elbow into his gut, but he has me around the neck. He makes a loud grunt and I feel spit on the back of my neck as his grip instantly loosens. With one more burst of energy I throw him off of me with amazing ease and pin him on the ground. Then I realize, it wasn't saliva I felt on my neck, it was blood. Quickly I look up to see who the knife in his side came from, and I see the girl from District 2 just as she throws another.
She's dangerous this girl, but if I can get close enough I know I can overpower her physically. I grab the spear that lies near me, the one the District 4 boy dropped when I pushed him to the ground. The girl throws another knife, and I barley dodge it as it glances my ear. With all my strength I throw the spear at her. She dodges it, though I know it wouldn't have done much harm even if it hit her, but at least it distracts her enough for me to get to her and wrestle her to the ground. I'm on top of her, pinning her hands above her head, but at loss of what to do next, when I feel myself being pushed off her.
"Get him Cato," I hear the girl yell. It happens so fast, I'm pinned face down by the massive boy from District 2, him sitting on top of me and a sword threatening my head. Suddenly I know what I can do. I know how I can save Katniss.
"Wait!" I shout, "I know her secret!" I had seen the boys glowering face during her interview, the way he looked at her, I just knew that he was out to get her. Perhaps I can use her as a weapon against him, rather that him using her against me.
I know he understands what I'm saying when he flips me over and sits on me, holding the knife dangerously close to my neck. "What do you mean? What's her secret?!" he snarls at me.
"I know how she got that 11, I know her weapon."
He eyes me, his sword making a thin slit in my neck. "So what's her weapon?!" he demands.
"She doesn't have it yet. I'll be able to tell you when the information becomes useful."
I see that he knows what I mean. It's obvious to him to that I know he'll try to kill me the instant the information is known, but he seems to ponder if I actually will be of use. He slams my head down again. "I though you said you loved her!" he says accusingly.
"Well sometimes you have to say things for the games, and other times you have to put any feelings aside for the games." I see the girl wince a bit at my words. I'm gambling with my life now. Words are all I have now between life and death. I just hope this works. Cato eyes me suspiciously, then gets off me and pushes me up, spear at my chest.
"If you can be with us, prove it!" He starts poking me with his spear, leading me somewhere. "Come with me Clove," he says to the girl. I look around. Several tributes are lying around the cornucopia, bloodied and dead or dying. I see the District 1 girl with the bow and arrows, trying to shoot after someone limping into the woods. She's not pursuing him though and she turns back to check bodies. The two other Careers, the boy from 1 and the girl from 4, seem to be fighting their own battles with unmatched wounded tributes.
Cato and Clove lead me to a body of a tribute. I look down. No, not a body. She's still alive. I'm not sure, but I think she's from District 7. She's groaning. "Kill her!" says Cato. "Prove you can be one of us!" He tosses me a spear. I catch it and look at her.
Strange that they would have me do this. I look at the girls eyes. They're pleading, but not for life, for death. I need to do this, if only to let this girl out of her misery. I lift the spear and slam it in the middle of her chest. She's dead. That's one for me I suppose.
Look at Clove and Cato. Clove is running the blade of a knife over her mouth, and Cato is still pointing his spear at me, but I seem to have satisfied them for now. "Check for supplies!" demands Cato, and I do.
The fighting surly is almost over. District 1 are piling supplies, and the girl from 4 is hitting already wounded tributes with a spiky mace. Then she finishes and walks near the cornucopia. We all do, the five Careers and me. We look each other over, people eyeing me suspiciously, and Cato's spear aimed directly at my neck, but everyone seems satisfied enough as the first cannon shot it heard.