Chapter 1
Clove POV
I chucked a knife at the door, and it stuck. I technically wasn't supposed to have weapons at the reaping, but I never went anywhere without my knives. I have the worst luck in the history of the Hunger Games! I thought. I was reaped at age 16, when I wanted to wait until 18 to volunteer! No one volunteered for me! And to make matters worse, I'm going into the games with my boyfriend, Cato Astoria! Just thinking that name made my heart skip a beat. We had been inseparable since they met, when I was 8 and Cato was 10. But a few months before, we both had admitted to each other that we felt more than friendship towards each other. But I knew, deep down, that Cato would never be able feel the same way in the arena. He was a bloodthirsty killing machine. I was too. We were Careers. We fought for ourselves, no one else. End of Story. "Clove? Are you okay?" a gentle voice asked me. I knew that it was Cato's voice, without looking up. I hadn't heard him come in, probably been too busy thinking. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be? I'm living my dream. Going into the games!" I sure hoped I sounded more confident than I was. "I know you're worried. I am too. But I won't kill you. We will get through this, together," he told me. After that, he left and we were ushered on the train to the Capitol.
Stylist assistants ushered around me, and buzzed like bees. After 3 hours, I lost it. "Get the hell out of here! You are making my life much more miserable!" I took out my sole remaining knife and chucked it at the nearest one, narrowly missing. They scattered, leaving the room, just as my stylist walked in. "They were just trying to help, you know," he told me. I sighed and shook my head. "I'm Prodigy, your stylist. This is what you will be wearing for the parade, get dressed then I will do your make up", he instructed before leaving. I took one look at the costume, and wanted to be sick. It was a very revealing dress, definitely made to get us sponsors. I sighed and put it on, knowing that Cato would like it, and was comforted by the thought. Prodigy came back in and did my make up himself, just as he promised. He did my hair as well, putting it up in a messy bun, leaving some strands by my face. "Go on, take a look!" Prodigy grinned. I walked over to the full length mirror, somehow managing to stay upright in my high heels. What I saw there shocked me. The dress was dark gray, with sequins here and there, the light reflecting off them making them look like stars. A matching pair of stilettos complemented my dress, and the updo on my head was perfect. But my face was what shocked me the most. Black eye shadow with a hint of mascara made me look like a dark angel, and made my green look dangerous. "Wow, this-this is amazing! Thank you Prodigy!" I exclaimed. "You are welcome. Now we have to get you to the parade," he said curtly. That was no problem, and when we got there, I rushed over to the district 2 chariot. Cato was already there, chatting with Brutus, whom looked up at me with scorn and pity in his eyes before stalking away. Cato was dressed in a golden gladiator armor suit that gave off a very bad ass demeanor. Cato let out a low whistle when he saw me. "Gee, Clove, I-I don't know what to say," he looked me in the eye and I saw no sarcasm, only sadness. "Cato, are you okay?" I asked hesitantly, knowing I was treading on very, very thin ice. Cato hardly shared his feelings with anybody, not even me. "Yeah, I'm fine, I guess. I wished you looked this great for anything but our deaths. I've always wanted to win the games, but not at the expense of your death. Therefore, after I set foot in that arena, I won't be coming out. You will," he said slowly. My heart broke in two, hearing him say that. Cato was so selfless when it came to things like this. I felt a sob rising in my throat, but I pushed it down. We stared at each other for what seemed like eternity, but it could have only been a few seconds. We were interrupted by something pink and sparkly. My first guess to what it was would have been a cupcake, but my eyes focused and I realized it was that blonde bimbo for District 1. Her district partner, a brunette haired boy, followed her. "Hi! I'm Glimmer! You must be Cato and…" Ack, sparkle girl-Glimmer- couldn't even remember my name. "Clove," I practically spat out. "Yes, whatever,"Glimmer said. She was too busy making googly eyes at Cato to comprehend my name! Fucking lay off Cato! You bitch! I screamed mentally. I was about to scream that when another blonde ran over. "Glimmer, Marvel! Don't just stand there, ask Cato and Clove!" she screeched. "Yeesh! Fine Cashmere, you could've just said that. You didn't need to scream," the boy-Marvel, said. Cashmere, just glared at him. "Okay, okay! What she said. You up for an alliance?" he asked. "Yeah, sure," Cato answered somewhat distractedly. With their answer Marvel dragged Glimmer away, giving them an apologetic glance. Cato climbed into the chariot, then offered a hand to me. I took it gratefully, as I was pretty sure that I couldn't make a graceful climb into the chariot. The huge doors swung open, and the District 1 chariot rolled out. Cato and I put on our cold faces and the chariot lurched forward into the open. We stole the spotlight from Glimmer and Marvel, who had some of the the crowd cheering for them. The girls chanted Cato's name, and he smirked. But the cheering for me was even louder. Majority of the cheering was for us, even as the other districts came out. Then the mood changed and the crowd started to cheer 'Katniss' and 'Peeta'. I turned around, and what I saw shocked me. District 12 tributes, on fire! What the hell! I turned to Cato and saw the same shocked look that I'm sure I had in my eyes, before it turned to rage. "They're stealing our sponsors!" he hissed quietly. "They will be our first kills in the games, Cato. You get the boy, and I get the the girl. Got it?" I reassured him. He nodded, and calmed down. By that time we had reached the city circle, and President Snow started his speech. I tuned out, and I knew I should've listened because I'm a career, but I didn't. The speech was over before I knew it, and we were ushered away. Somehow our chariot ended up across from district 12. I watched as their drunkard mentor staggered up to them, chuckling at something only he could see. I watched as Cato glared at the girl. I decide to call her fire girl. While I was watching Cato, Darla, our district escort, yanked me into the elevator, leaving Cato behind. As soon as the elevator doors opened, Brutus threw himself at me, pinning me to the wall beside the elevator. "Why did you let them steal the spotlight?! Can you listen to us just once! Quite frankly, I think if Cato had a better district partner, we wouldn't be in this position. You are a bitch! A whore! A slut!" He yells at me. He is blocking my airway, my face is purple and tears are streaming down my face. "You are a let down!" he snarled. Then using his strength, he threw me into a glass case to the right side of me. It shattered upon contact, and glass embedded itself in me. Blood was everywhere. I sat there, stunned, tears running down my face. I felt the edges of my vision darken. The last thing I remember was Cato running over to me, before everything went black.
Cato POV
I noticed that everyone from my district had left, besides me. I snapped my gaze away from fire girl, before heading to the elevator. As the door opened, I saw Brutus storm away. Then I heard a scream that made the blood in my veins turn cold. It was just like the time she was corned in our 'mock' hunger games, back in District 2. You could get severely injured if no one saved you.
I had just 'finished' off Abrella, when a scream rang through the cold air. "Cato!" It was Clove. And that scream didn't sound like she just needed help. It sound like she was injured badly. "Clove! I'm coming!" I ran through a thorn bush. Ignoring the scratches, I kept running. "Cato! Cato, help!" she screamed again. I reached the clearing she was corned in, and saw blood. Everywhere. She was corned by Martin, a guy who hated me, because I supposedly 'stole Clove' from him. "Lets see how strong your little boyfriend is without you, little whore!" Clove flinched, but didn't cry. She never cried. I crept up behind Martin, my presence unknown to either of them. I un-sheathed my sword, as quietly as I could. Before Clove or Martin could see me, I slashed his back. Not deep enough to kill him, but still deep enough to leave a scar. He screamed, and let go of Clove. I cornered him. "Never say anything like that to her again. Never touch her again. Never," I say quietly. He runs away, and I turn back to Clove. I embrace her, and whisper sweet nothings in her ear.