She's Good With A Bow And Arrow.
A one-shot, dedicated to my father, because me and Katniss have the same predicament.
"Where's lover boy?" Clove asks maliciously. "Too bad he's not here to save you. Cato said that if I got to kill you I had to put on a show. Where should we start." She trails her knife along my face searching for the perfect place to begin torturing me.
"I guess you're going to give me a slow death, right?" I inquire with mock curiosity.
She smiles, and the smirk reaches from ear to ear. "Want to say your goodbyes before the pain starts?" She offers impolitely.
"Yah, thanks for asking." I take the opportunity. I come out from under her, all the while she remains passively surprised at my response. She still holds a knife readily. I head closer to my bow discreetly and plop down on the ground within arms reach of it. "Thanks, Clove. For understanding. I get claustrophobic." I laugh. "District twelve, thank you for letting me starve in safety. The times that I felt like dying but couldn't because the electrified fence kept the animals from tearing me apart. I doubt they wanted to though, considering I was barely any meat." I start, my voice lingering longer than necessary on the word electrified. Gale was probably getting a kick out of that one, or anyone else who knew about the flimsy fence.
"Hurry up, girl on fire, I'm getting bored with your sentimental...ness." Clove whines with immature absent mindlessness.
"Fine 2. Just give me three minutes." I say.
"I'll be counting." She assures me.
"Not, that you can count that high." I mumble under my breath but just loud enough that Clove could here me. I snicker. "Mother, my greatest regards, because you gave birth to me, brought me into this wonderful world. As you can see my life turned out great. And I lived in the best place ever, where I could live in comfort. Thank you for making sure I had a good life, I care about you as much as you care about me. Stay motherly." My tone drips with acid and poison. Two more thank you's to go.
"Two minutes, start wrapping it up." Clove says twirling her hair with her finger staring in the opposite direction of my face. Did I look that bad? I took the opportunity to reach for my bow and sheath of arrows while saying another goodbye.
"Prim, I love you so much and you mean the world to me. You are a sweet, caring, productive little girl that has grown up so much in front of my eyes. You are wise beyond your years, where you shouldn't have to be. And I am so sorry that this happened to you. I love you, and care for you. And that was is dying wish."
"Literally." Clove smirks. I glare at her. And trust me if looks could kill she would be dead right now. A few tears are trailing down my face, leaving a sticky streak, and now my bow has an arrow nooked in the filling.
I begin again, and catch Cato coming out of the shadows to see what's taking so long. He doesn't see me yet as he still has to turn around the corner of the cornucopia. I aim the arrow at Clove. "And Gale, you are my hero. The person who always knows how to comfort me. I hate that this I show you find out, but I knew that if I had not had this fate, we would have been together. And I was so happy to have you as mine. Honored to be yours. I was just waiting until the day when our fate would become one. I love you and loved the possibility of us. I love you and I'm sorry,"
Clove turns around while i confess. Her face full of emotions, mourning for me with glistening eyes. I feel triumphant. She is in shock that my bow has suddenly made a reappearance.
"Not sorry for you Gale, I'm sorry Clove." I correct. And then there is two canons.
Clove's and Cato's. Cato obviously died by Thresh's hand, whereas Clove's by my arrow in her chest. Not wanting to have more competition, I shoot Thresh while he looks at me expectantly. He was waiting to see what I would do next. The arrow reaches his temple and pierces through. The canon goes off two seconds later. Now I have two weaklings to pick off.
I return to the cave two hours later, and night settles around us. I quick slit an unconscious Peeta's throat and wait for the canon. The anthem plays loudly. Down to me and fox face. The blood on my forehead has thickened and I rest with a deteriorating Peeta keeping 'watch' beside me.
In a few hours I hear rustling outside the shelter. Peeta is gone. The hovercraft must have taken him during my peaceful slumber. I crawl over to the opening with a knife. My eyes wide and alert, scanning the trees around us.
At last I spot her fiery red hair and slender face. She's looking at a bush. There are berries on the bush. It's a night lock bush. Jokes on her. She eats them quickly. It's too late to save her, so I come out of hiding.
She faces me with cowardly big eyes, and turns to run, but ends up slumping dead. "Second runner up, fox face. Nice. I underestimated you. I should have warned you. I'm sorry." I stand up and do a victory dance. I won, I won, I won. I think. I breathe out the breath I think I've been subconsciously holding in. A huge weight comes off my chest. And another one comes on in its place.
I've been strapped to the metal ladder on the hovercraft and I'm being pulled away from my nightmares. I won, and now I'm rich. I can marry Gale and he won't have to work in the mines.
Life will be perfect. And then I think, how would I have ended up, if I hadn't known how to use the bow and arrow? I wouldn't have been good with a bow and arrow, and would have had no chance of winning.
I couldn't have done without one special person. A person that I love the most. I wouldn't be alive if it were for him. But he isn't Gale. It's the one person who I had watching my back the whole time. The person who should receive the credit.
My Father.