A/N: This is a prequel to my story, Unopened Letters. While it is not necessary to read Unopened Letters, it may help to further understand as we delve into this story. This story will contain abuse, as a warning. Please read with caution.

Prologue

"My dying wish. My promise. To keep him alive."

I rather die than live in a world without Katniss. My thoughts are cliché, but entirely too true. Sometime in the next few days, I will die in this manmade arena but even then, I can only hope Katniss makes it out alive.

She's too stubborn. She will not accept the fact that I will die, and she will live. She is too gallant, too noble. She wants to die a hero, not as the damsel. In this light, neither one of us is the hero or the damsel – in fact, we are all pawns, all victims in this cruel, mirthless game.

She wants to protect me, but I want to protect her. Which one of us will win in our own miniature battle? It's a game in a game, and there's no way out.

My thoughts are abruptly interrupted by Katniss. She takes my face in her hands and kisses me softly. "Don't worry. I'll see you at midnight," she whispers in my ear. Will she really?

Beetee and Finnick lead me near the force field. They're faster than me, but they still try to slow down so I can keep up. Their attempts to keep me alive are useless. I'll die, anyways.

When they reach the edge of the arena, I am still by the lightening tree. I see Finnick and Beetee whisper, waving their hands in complex motions. They look over and signal to me to stay there.

Are they planning some sort of conspiracy? My dying wish, my last desire is for Katniss to win. She will live without me. She is strong. She still has family and a will to live. She has Prim, Gale, and her mother. Who else cares about me besides Katniss? My brothers, they care, but they can easily to adjust to a new life without me. They never needed me. My father will, too. I was just another burden he had to care for since no one else did, and my mother, she never loved me, so her life would be better without me.

A shot of a cannon makes me jump. I enter a frenzy of panic. If Katniss died, I have been no use. In my hysteria, I hear footsteps. I snap my body around to face the other direction, and two figures are sneakily running towards me.

I clench the knife in my pocket. If I kill at least one of them, Katniss, if she was still alive, will have a better chance of making it out. I think of her promise. She must be alive.

Brutus sees me behind the tree and makes a running start. "Lover boy, you're going to die anyways. Might as well die by my hands," he grumbles as he approaches. Enobaria rushes past me and towards Beetee and Finnick. I'm in my own battle, and I cannot help others, so I don't bother helping. I would do more harm than help.

"I already killed Chaff, little baker boy, and he can actually run, so how long do you think you'll live?" Brutus taunts, flicking a spear dangerously close to my face. In the distance, I see Beetee and Finnick quickly glance at me, with worried eyes. "There's no hope now, Peeta. Your little lover will die too, if she didn't already." The anger in my body boils. I stab him in the lower stomach. If he doesn't die instantly, he'll die by lack of blood.

He simply gapes at me, as I slowly back away, rethinking my actions. I turn away from his body, avoiding the blood dripping from his abdomen. I hear a wail of pain, and I immediately recognize it as Beetee's. The sky is dark now, and the only way to distinguish someone is by the slightly darker frame. Another set of two figures run again, a thicker, taller one that I name as Finnick dragging a smaller, limping one who I know is Beetee.

Whatever he was trying to carry out, Beetee had better have finished his plan.

"Katniss!" I howl. "Katniss!" I am confused and angry. I just need Katniss to win.

Her response comes quickly. "Peeta! Peeta! I'm here! Peeta!" she screams.

I curse silently, under my breath. She's attracting hunters, and she damn well knows it. "I'm here! I'm here!" she calls again. "Peeta!"

"Katniss!" I yell, attempting to draw them back to me. It's too late.

Another cannon booms, and I know for sure Brutus is now dead.

If Katniss survives, I know she'll have something to remember me by. She has the locket and the pearl. Is that enough? She will carry our legacy, I am sure of it. She will diminish the Games. She is strong enough for both of us. I need her to make it out of this sadistic puzzle, once and for all.

In the distance, I see lightning strike the tree. I bite on my lower lip in anticipation. Beetee's plans better have damn worked. The darkness obscures my eyesight, but I do see the arena rupture into a bright, blinding blue light.

I'm thrown back to the ground, like a poor turtle on its back. I lay there, startled and shocked. Just as I find myself realizing that the arena is no more, the explosions appear.

The whole ground erupts, sprinkling bits of plant and dirt everywhere. Turned and tossed, the trees blaze up. The sky is pounding, bright lights blazing everywhere. I quickly recall them as fireworks from the forced Capitol programs we forcibly watched. They are decorating our deaths, illustrating a flashy end to our lives, or perhaps the Capitol citizens are not nearly satisfied with the sudden, surprising ignition in the arena.

I question if Katniss is still alive, in the midst of the detonation.

I find a claw appearing by my side. Its metal talons scoop me up by from the bottom. I am silent and patient. I deserve any punishment I am about to go through. As long as Katniss is safe, I will lie content.

I close my eyes as the hovercraft swoops me up. The only thought that lingers in my mind is the fact that I really didn't see Katniss again at midnight, and instead, a horrific eruption greets us.

A/N: Thanks for reading! Old readers and new ones, I am happy you're here! As for old readers, I still have not rewritten the first few chapters of Unopened Letters. As for new readers, I, again, strongly urge you to read the original on my profile, but for now, the story is rather self-explanatory. In the next several chapters, Peeta will be going to the Capitol and will be tortured, so please keep in mind of this. Again, thank you for reading, and I hope you have a great day!

Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with The Hunger Games, Scholatic Press, or Suzanne Collins, and my writing is merely for entertainment and practice. Any entire lines in italics are direct quotes from the novel.