A/N The AU is now beginning! It starts in the middle of Chapter 8 of All I Can Do (AICD), so if you haven't read that yet, you should [EDIT: The extra reading is no longer required because of the prologue]. To those who are reading this because of the other one, thanks for your support! As in AICD, this story will also be in Buck's POV. I won't say any more, so let the AU 74th Annual Hunger Games begin!

Day 1

"Let the seventy-fourth annual Hunger Games begin!"

Claudius Templesmith's voice echoes around the arena, and the sixty second countdown begins. The Cornucopia is in a field. To my right is a steep drop off, and I can see fields of grain beyond it. On the other side of the Cornucopia is a lake, and the rest is forest. Perfect for a cripple like me. I look at the other tributes, standing on their metal plates. Step off before the countdown ends, and you're blown up. On my left side stands Circuit, the girl from three. She's fast, but she's weak. Next to her is Marvel. Great. On my right side is, oh no, Cato. Rue is on the other side of him, and she looks equally uncomfortable. I can barely see Meadow, half-hidden by the Cornucopia, and Jack and Maple also stand in that vicinity.

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I prepare to run as fast as I can, which isn't all that fast, into the woods behind me.

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The gong sounds, and I hobble as fast as I can, not daring to turn around. I keep going and going as screams and shouts fill the air. I don't dare stop. I'm not carrying any supplies, so I'm not bogged down. On the downside, I have no food, no water, and no weapon.

The cannons start to go off. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. Nine? Usually, ten or eleven tributes are taken out at the Cornucopia. Did Meadow survive? I know she probably ran for the Cornucopia; she doesn't have a physical problem that hinders her. Is that a good thing? Now that I think about it, me being crippled gives me an advantage in a way because I won't die at the Cornucopia.

I keep running. I don't want to escape the Cornucopia only to be killed by another tribute. I keep walking for another hour until I feel safe enough to stop. I sit down on a rock and take a close look at this part of the forest.

This area is a little sparse when it comes to trees, but bushes are everywhere, making it easy to hide, even if the trees aren't close together. To my disappointment, none of them have any fruit on them, so they won't be any help in terms of food. I think about Austin's instructions. He said to steer clear of the Cornucopia. Check. Find water. That's something I don't have now, since I ran from the Cornucopia. I guess this "advantage" isn't much of one. My priority should be getting water. Avoid the other tributes. I'm not positive that I'm alone, but it seems quiet enough. I'll move on later, so that'll be taken care of soon. What did he add to the last one?

Oh, he said that it was fine to stay with Meadow's alliance. I'll find out if that's plausible tonight during the recaps.

What should I do while I wait? I could go to the meeting spot, which is the forest directly in front of the Cornucopia, or I could find water. If I go wait near the Cornucopia and they're all alive, then I haven't lost anything. But if they're dead, I'll have no way of knowing until the recaps tonight, and I've watched enough games to know that the Careers often hunt at night. I guess that I don't have much of an option but to go find water. Even if I can't store it, I'll be able to tell the others where it is if they survived and I find them.

If they survived.

I try not to think about it; I don't want to get depressed over something I have no control of. Now, back to finding water. I walk around in this forest for a while with no luck. I don't go too far, because I want to be able to find my way back to the meeting spot if I need to. I search in a larger area. Still no success. After wandering around for a while, I decide to see if I can find food, since there seems to be no water in the vicinity. Luckily, before long, I stumble across a clump of berries. I take a close look at them, making sure that they're edible.

They are.

This seems too easy, but I know that the Gamemakers don't make things easy for us without a reason; I'll have to be extra alert. I pick a handful and eat them. I've been going for hours now, and the warm juice helps quench my thirst.

The shadows are getting longer, and I see that sunset is coming soon. I didn't know that I had searched for so long. If I'm going to spend the night here in the woods, might as well stay here, since I know which direction leads to the Cornucopia and the bushes provide shelter and food. I'll have to stay up all night and keep watch, but this is better than nothing. I find a secluded spot among the bushes and settle down. I watch the sunset through the trees, and it reminds me of the sunset at home. I guess it doesn't matter where you are; the sunset looks the same.

The light grows dimmer and dimmer, and before long, the sun has gone down and night is upon us. The Capitol anthem plays, and I move out of my little niche to get a better view. The first face in the sky is Glimmer's. A Career? And one from district one? I wonder who took her out. The second face is Acer's, district three. This on isn't much of a surprise, since district three is one of the weaker ones. In fact, the surprising thing is that the girl from his district, who was beside me at the Cornucopia, survived. The next one belongs to Alex, district five, so no more Careers died. Then come Jason and Marta for six, so Amber is still alive. I knew she had something up her sleeve. Sue from eight is next, and I breathe a sigh of relief. Both Jack and Maple made it out of the bloodbath. Then come Dagan and Millet from nine. That's eight, so there was one more casualty. I hope as hard as I can that is isn't Meadow.

It isn't.

The last face in the sky is Katniss', from twelve. I suppose that all her attention grabbing didn't help I remember her sister, for whom she volunteered. She (the sister) must be grieving right now, and I wonder if she feels guilty.

The anthem comes to an end, and I feel hopeful. All my (unofficial) allies are still here, so I'll try to meet with them tomorrow. I move back into my place between three dense berry bushes and prepare for the first night in the arena.

A/N I know you all hate me right now for killing Katniss, but it had to happen. I'm sorry. :'( . Just to let you know, if you feel that Glimmer's death was unreasonable, just know that it will be explained later. So far, how is this story? Anything I can improve on? (I know I have those areas; I just need you guys to tell me what they are.)