I just wanted to thank everybody who's giving my story a chance. I will try not to disappoint. I also wanted to say I'm sticking with the book ending and children age, not the movie.
I sit behind my bush, subconsciously rubbing the scar on my side. I watch as the doe slowly bends down the take a drink out of the pond. The doe is relaxed, not suspecting a thing. I almost don't want to kill it. Almost.
Suddenly, the deer's head shoots up. It looks around, ready to run at any second. I know it can't smell me and I haven't moved for the past five minutes. There must be some one else here. My theory is confirmed. The poor doe didn't even have a chance to leap out of the way when an arrow enters its eye. The doe lies on the ground, dead. I panic. There are other hunters here. That means he could be there too. But would he really follow me for six years? I don't even know what he's capable of. I start to hyperventilate. I can't let him find me. No matter what, he can never take me back.
To my relief, a female voice calls out. It's joyful and full of excitement, and I can't help but smile at the sound of it. "Mama, I got it! Did you see it? It went straight through the eye!" A teenage girl runs out toward the doe, scaring a flock of birds in the process. "Willow, slow down! You're scaring all the game!" A teenage boy enters next. He seems to be about my age, maybe older. "But did you see that? My first clean shot!" The girl (the boy called her Willow) has obviously never hunted very much before. A women , no younger than thirty five, comes out of the wood later. She has tired gray eyes and long braided brown hair. The girl looks like a younger version of her with blue eyes while the boy has blond hair and her gray eyes. "Rye, please carry the doe back to our house. Your dad is waiting for us." The boy-Rye-walks forward towards the deer. I back up, trying not to be seen. A twig snaps and his head shoots up. "Rye? What is it?" He stares straight at me, without seeming to see me. "Nothing, just thought I heard something." He continues to stare at me until he drags the doe out of sight.
After I wait a couple minutes, I stand, sure they're gone. Big mistake. I'm shoved against a tree. My head slams against the bark and stars cover my vision. I make out the boy. He says something I can't make out. He says it again. "Who are you and why were you watching us?" I open my mouth but no sound comes out. God, how do you speak again? "Huh? Why were you watching us?" I do the only thing I know how to do. I kick him in the gut. He bends over in pain and I escape.
I run. As fast as I can. I can hear him following me. How could I be so careless? My legs hurt and I'm out of breath. I'm used to being the predator not the prey. I've been running for at least twenty minutes and he's followed me for all of them. I do the only thing I can think of. I reach for the silver whistle hanging around my neck. I blow as hard as I can, but I can't hear sound coming out. A big black dog comes bounding around a tree. I single to it and it launches itself at Rye. I see him stuggling underneath the dog. I let the dog beat him up a little before calling him back and running away.
The next day, I sit in the same spot, watching a moose. It's the biggest thing I've seen in over a year. Loud stomping fills the forest. The moose runs away. I throw my spear pathetically. It misses and bounces uselessly against a tree. I curse then silence myself, praying the person coming down didn't hear me. The stomp has a limp, probably made recently. This isn't good.
"Hello? I know your here. I heard you and saw the spear." Shit. It's him. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I just want to talk. And apologize. Just please come out." He's basically pleading now. I see Rye looking around for me. He looks right at the place I was sitting yesterday. He looks behind the bush only to find me not there. I hold my breathe, hoping he doesn't look here. "Look, I just want to talk. I brought bread." That almost makes me come out. I haven't had bread in so long. "Please. I just want to help you." He pauses, waiting. "I'm gonna leave now. I'll leave the bread here so you don't starve. But I'm coming back tomorrow." He leaves and after I'm sure he's gone-I'm more cautious than I was yesterday-I come out and grab it. I run back to my tree house.
It's more of a hollow tree than a house, just big enough to fit me and the black dog. I crawl in with my bread and whistle for the dog to follow me. I absentmindedly pet him while I eat the bread. I don't have a name for him. I have always called him "the black dog". I've trained him and calling him dog works well enough. No one's complaining.
The next day he comes to the same spot with bread. And the next day. And basically every day after that. He talks to me, pleading me to come out, telling me about what's happening in his life and in the outside world. Sometimes I think he thinks I'm not there. I am quiet and never show myself but I enjoy these. I look forward to it and some days I don't get much hunting done, just sitting there listening to him talk on and on about current events and how he's doing. He never brings his sister, Willow, down here or his mother, who I found out is Katniss Everdeen Mallark. His father never hunts and instead spends time indoors baking. His sister is terrible at both hunting and baking and instead draws and paints as much as she can. Her is good at both but did not inherit the artistic genes. President Paylor is resigning after 19 years of service and the election is coming early. This is the fourth year since the last election and she doesn't feel like she can wait one more for the election every five years.
He'll ask me to come out or at least tell him my name. I refuse every time, staying as silent as possible. But one day that changes.
"Over here! I found the Mallark house!" I tense at the voice. It can't really be him, can it? I freeze in fear, unable to move or run or hide. The heavy foot fall scares a flock of birds to the air and I watch as he shoots some of them down. I have never seen that much talent before (I was never allowed to go hunting) and I gasp. Someone spins towards me and I dart up a tree. I don't think he sees me. I sigh in relief. Then I realize there is someone else looking. One person asks "What's wrong with you?" "I could have sworn I saw Seraphina." The other man laughs "I think you're going crazy. She's dead, remember? She would not be able survive a day out here alone." They turn around and keep walking. I continue to follow them.
It all happens so fast. A house comes in sight. They get closer to it and throw the grenades. I want to scream, yell, shout, do anything so the people in the house will be safe, but I just stand there, frozen. Then I realize the grenades are not grenades but some type of gas bomb. The people come stumbling out. I recongnize them immediately. I am about to run to help them but the men start shooting. It hits Katniss and she collapses. I run up through the smoke where Rye and Willow are starting to fall. Inside the house, I see Peeta laying on the ground near a shell of the grenade. I hold Rye and Willow, dragging them out. I can only hope the smoke disguises me. Someone shoots and the bullet hits Willow on the back. I drop her, unable to carry that much weight. I drag Rye out and tie him to a tree. I hope they don't find us here.
