A/N - Not lots of Clato in this chapter sobs. And it's short, even more sobs.
"10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 3, 2, 1!" And then there's a loud boom. My brain shuts down and my feet take over. Before I can even comprehend what's happening, I'm racing past tributes, picking up anything I can. By the time I reach the mouth of the Cornucopia, I already have a bag strapped on over my shoulders, filled with things I'll sort out later. After I reach down a grab a few knives, I decide it's time to eliminate some of the competition.
The first one didn't even see it coming. The sleek knife instantly brings him to his feet, and I can see the blood splashing from his mouth. Once his head is well hidden by the ground, I am able to see Katniss scrambling to get up. I snicker as I flick my knife right at her. Right into the orange bag she just stole from the guy whose life I just took. "Dammit," I say as I begin to turn around. There's no time to waste. "Next time, fire girl," I mutter and race back to the bloodbath.
A small girl limps not too far off and makes it a bit too easy for me to chuck one of my weapons into her head. I jog over to her and take it out of her head and go back over to the center of all the damage. A hand rests on my shoulder and the person who owns it barely misses a knife to the heart. Once I make out who it is, I feel a pang in my chest.
"Cato! Don't scare me like that!" I shout at him.
"What would you do? Kill me?" he says and he cockily snorts. "You're a quarter of my size. But hey, you are a bit feisty."
"Shut-up, Cato. Now tell me why you're wasting time talking with me when you could be getting rid of the others?"
"Kill another one then meet up by the lake. Nahla, Marvel, and Glimmer are already setting up there," Cato says, then he gives a sort of laugh. "Marvel has a good arm, but both him and Glimmer are about as sharp as cotton."
I can't help but give a little giggle. I nod and run over to the other part of the woods. Quickly, I throw a knife at a girl who is trying to climb up a tree. She has little to no skill at doing and is stopping for a rest, so she's is an easy kill. She falls from the ground, and I take my knife from her back. Before going to the lake, I rush over to the Cornucopia and browse my options. I take about 20 knives and set them up in my jacket before going over to the lake.
"I mean, I've always loved the games, and they're already so much fun to be in, but why couldn't this year's arena be a little less dirty?" I hear Glimmer asking Marvel. Cato was right, she's not too smart.
"Well, you're going to be here for a bit, unless you'd rather die right now?" I ask as I approach them. Glimmer gets a little startled and Marvel grabs his spear. Well, they're obviously going to be horrible guards, too.
"Oh, Clove. Didn't hear you come over here. Mind if we go through your bag?" Marvel asks, poking his chin behind.
"Yeah, sure." I take it off and walk in between them. Marvel is at least six feet high, but he lacks in any real weight or real muscle. Glimmer is, to put it short, busty. At least she seems to be somewhat muscular. Filling her canteen with water is Nahla, the district four tribute. She hasn't spoken to us the whole training time, minus when she asked to join our group. Honestly, I could care less if she ends up being the first one killed, but she seems stronger then both of the district one idiots.
I dump the bag out. Looking through the pile of my stuff, I see there's another knife (which I take for myself), four baggies of mixed dried fruit and nuts, a pair of sunglasses, an empty water bottle, and a rope. Marvel grabs the bottle and tosses it by Nahla. "Fill it up, will ya?" he says. She makes no sound and begins to do so.
Cato comes back and we're all here. "Tomorrow morning, we're getting all of the stuff inside that thing," he says, pointing over to the Cornucopia. "Tonight, we'll be doing a little bit of hunting. If you're like mermaid girl over here who's been hiding from all the real action, you won't be in this little alliance much longer. For now, set up camp." When no one but me moves, seeing as they're all a bit stunned with Cato's demanding tone, Cato gets real furious. "Now!"
Marvel, Glimmer, and Nahla begin to work on a tent. Whoever grabbed that is the brightest. Instead of assisting dumb, dumb, and dumber, I walk over to Cato, whose face is red.
"Lovely career pack we have this year, right?" I ask him, my voice reeking of sarcasm.
Facing me, Cato says, "At least we have you in it. I mean – you've got the strength and the wits."
I can't help but blush. "Thanks, I guess, but now's not the time for compliments. It seems like the future victors need a bit of help." Cato and I both chuckle as we walk over to the others who are clumsily fidgeting with the tent. I cannot wait until they're gone.