Chapter Two
I would live after all, though I didn't realize at the time just how lucky I was to do so…
We made our way back to the camp after a few hours, Marvel still awake at his post, obviously exhausted. He seemed relieved to see me and I felt likewise, though what I felt most at this point was confused. Confused how I could so easily risk my life and my district partner's as well because of a silly infatuation that might wind up killing us both rather than saving us as I'd hoped.
Under the pretense of our "conversation", Cato rudely informed him that it was decided I had not been living up to my end of the bargain pulling equal weight with the other Careers and so I was going to take watch over until daybreak. I didn't argue…the silence would give me space to sort out my feelings and figure out just where the hell I stood with everything.
I walked over to the base of the giant tree where Marvel was still leaning, twirling the haft of his spear every few seconds out of either sheer boredom or irritation. He stopped as I leaned up against it next to him, offering the weapon to me. I shook my head.
"I suck with a spear, you know that." pushing it away. "I have my bow & arrows" I continued, unwrapping them from within my sleeping bag where I had kept them hidden.
"You suck worse with those Glim" he quipped back and I laughed half-heartedly. Ok, he was right. My first weapon of choice was a set of curved handled blades, known as mezzalunas. I had also been trained to use a crossbow and a rapier, unable to properly wield a much heavier broadsword as Cato could. Neither of my favored weapons had been available at the Games this year. But thanks to Seneca, a marvelous pair of mezzalunas had found its way inside the Cornucopia to be surrendered up to my tender mercies. Yet much as I loved them, I also realized these weren't the smartest weapons for range or defending your camp from a girl stuck up a tree ten yards above you. Clove seemed to have cornered the market on each and every knife in a five-mile radius, leaving me with the leftover weapons. Fortunately for me, these had included the set of curved knives I had on my person-but only because the wily little bitch couldn't figure out how to throw them.
Well, correction, I had part of a set…the other was on the floor of a cave somewhere to the east of here. I made a mental note to go looking for it in the morning once the group was rid of Katniss and able to go hunting again. Lost in my thoughts I didn't immediately notice Marvel staring at me in the firelight, his eyes narrowing. He tapped his cheek and I reflexively touched my own, darkening and purple, now realizing what he saw.
"It's nothing really" I said but he just kept staring…
"Seriously, don't worry about me! I can take care of myself" I finally snapped. I instantly regretted my words but not before they were met by stony silence as Marvel stomped off, ostensibly to sleep.
I could be such a bitch sometimes.
The night continued uneventfully, or at least as far as I could tell it was. Watch duty was incredibly boring and I found myself nodding off every so often. Though I desperately wanted to sleep, I didn't allow myself the luxury, even though in the back of my mind I really wondered how the heck Katniss was planning on getting past us alive. But I wasn't going to take the chance of pissing Cato off to find out.
Stupid girl. I hated her so much. If it wasn't for her, I'd be sleeping curled up in Cato's arms in a warm sleeping bag and not propped up against this uncomfortable old tree. I leaned slightly further back against the trunk, waiting for the sunrise just peeking across the hill. Suddenly I felt something strange behind me. Vibration? From what? I looked up just as a fleck of tree bark fell into my eye and while I reached up to rub it out, all hell broke loose.
Clove was the first on her feet, and she wasted no time grabbing Cato by the arm and pulling him awake. I heard from behind me TO THE LAKE! GET TO THE LAKE! then suddenly a dozen….maybe more?...needles shot through my clothing simultaneously injecting what had to be pure acid into the skin beneath. Still unable to fully see from the sawdust in my left eye, I tripped, falling down over the now empty sleeping bag that Clove had occupied. I had no idea which direction to go to, for the voices now seemed to be arising from the ground itself and my entire body felt like pirhanas were feeding on me down to the very bone. Nothing I had ever undergone in Career training prepared me for this kind of pain.
Somewhere amongst the screams which I vaguely recognized as my own I realized someone was trying to get to me. And it was in that same instant I realized someone ELSE was trying to get on TOP of me while I was fighting to get back up. I fell down once more, winded by the sudden weight of a girl a little smaller than myself struggling to break the quiver of arrows off my back. Still stunned by the impact, I crawled forward only to feel something sharp….a rock?...strike my hand and I dropped the bow, howling in pain. Beside me I heard an equally horrible yell and the unmistakeable wet, gurgling sound of someone's guts being pierced by something sharp and awful as the incessant buzzing continued ringing in my ears along with my screams.
The last thing I remembered hearing was a cannon and my consciousness left me as I vaguely wondered if it had been my own.
Three days passed before I would open my eyes again, this time to a splitting headache and swelling in my joints that would make even Effie Trinket consider offing herself just to get it over with. My vision was fuzzy but after a few moments I was able to focus enough to scoot back against the wall and get my bearings. It was mercifully cool and dark and I could see daylight outside of whatever structure I was in now. I realized we had come back inside the Cornucopia.
"Look, it's Sleeping Beauty" I heard a familiar voice taunt, and I turned to see Marvel smirking at me. I couldn't remember a time when I was so happy to see someone.
"and I guess that makes you Prince Charming huh?" I replied smiling.
The action made my face hurt like hell though and I instantly regretted the action, supressing a moan of pain instead
"Process of elimination, oh Princess of Panem. You should see yourself" he winked.
No, no thanks I thought. Judging by the swelling in my fingers, I could only imagine how the rest of me looked like. My wounds were going down, covered in some combination of blue gel and what appeared to be spit up grass. Ugh. I looked around, my eyes finally coming to rest on a small dark haired figure sleeping across from me against the wall of the Cornucopia.
Clove. Of course, that would be my luck.
"Is she going to make it?" I asked Marvel softly. I had no idea where Cato was.
"Yeah. She's small, so it's gonna take the poison longer to work its way out. Sponsors sent her some anti-venom but Cato decided to split it equally between the both of you. Tracker jackers got her as badly as they got you but at least Loverboy is dead. Stung to death by Cupid's arrows I like to think" and Marvel laughed at his own joke, feeble as it was.
I laughed a little too, sighing with relief upon learning this. That was an even trade I guess.
"What about Catpiss?" I growled. I now realized she was the girl who had managed to not only drop the nest on us, but had wound up busting up my right hand in the process. I had a good inkling two of my fingers were broken and this was definitely going to put a cramp in my style trying to survive, much less killing any other tributes. I would have to rely on my skill with the one remaining mezzaluna I had and that with my non-dominant hand. This thought only served to darken my mood as I awaited his reply.
"She's dead too. Killed her myself" he answered, not without some pride. I could see now my fellow Career was chewing on some sort of leaves and spitting them into a pot while we spoke. My mind made the connection between this and the poultice on my stings and I suddenly felt ashamed at my ingratitude for not acknowledging him. I had pretty much given him about as much afterthough as one would give an Avox. Sure maybe I hadn't wanted his help…but in the end, I had desperately needed it.
"Thank you" I said simply, raising myself up onto my elbows in an attempt to sit up. The effort was monumental but I knew I couldn't be seen as weak much longer lest I lose whatever sponsors I had left by now. I had Games to win still.
"For what?" Marvel asked, cocking an eye at me. "For killing Katniss? I'm sure you would have done the same for me. But I don't think Clovey's gonna be so happy she missed out on the fun when she wakes up though"
"No, not just that" I whispered, hoping the cameras wouldn't hear. " I'm sorry I've always treated you like…well, like crap."
"Wow, you must be ill Glimmer!" He laughed. "But hey, apology accepted"
Sadly, that was the last meaningful conversation I would ever get to have with my childhood friend and district partner.