Jaden and I walk around the square for a while. I'm so relieved that nobody is acting up here. I really don't want to be the one who is forced to drag a bunch of innocent people to their deaths. I think back to the promise I made to that girl in district 8. The one I pushed into the train. I promised to get her out… but how? I have to do it before the train gets to the capitol.

"Are you hungry?" Jaden asks.

The thought of food makes my mouth water. I haven't had anything to eat since yesterday morning. "Yeah, I'm hungry. Are you?"

"I'm always hungry." He points in the direction of a tiny wooden shack. The sign over the door says 'Food here.' "Let's go get something."

"I…" How am I supposed to tell him I don't have any money? My stomach grumbles. Just tell him the truth, I think to myself. "I… don't have any money…"

"I don't either. Good thing we don't need any." He laughs.

"Oh." I say as we walk toward the little building. I'm confused.

"When you're with the Capitol, you don't have to pay. Guess you're not used to it yet."

We enter the tiny restaurant. I'm not even sure you could call this shack a restaurant. The floor is grey, and the walls are made out of wood. There is a grand total of three tables, with two chairs at each. I guess a lot of people don't have money to come to a restaurant. I pick a table in the corner and plop down into the chair. Jaden sits down across from me. An old woman with an apron appears at our table. She has long black-grey hair and olive skin. Her eyes are a soft green color. She bites her lip nervously when the door swings open and more peacekeepers flood into her restaurant.

"What can I get you today?" She asks quietly. I notice she has a slight accent.

"What's your special for today?" Jaden asks, like he's done this hundreds of times. He Probably has, I think. I've never once been inside a restaurant. We have one in District 8, but only peacekeepers, and people like the mayor can afford it.

"Pig's in a blanket, Sir." She says.

"Pig's in a what?" I ask. Maybe I didn't hear her right…

"A blanket," She repeats. Okay, maybe I did hear her right.

Jaden laughs again. "It's like rolls wrapped around sausage. It's an old recipe. My grandma learned it from her great grandma. She used to make it for me when I was younger." Jaden looks up at the woman and says "I'll have the pigs in a blanket, please."

She scribbles the order on to a wrinkled piece of paper. When she's done she looks at me. I don't know what they cook here so I just say "I'll have the same." She scribbles again, nods her head, murmurs a 'thank you', and walks away to leave Jaden and I alone again.

"So," Jaden starts. "Since we'll be sticking by each other, we have to figure out a way to recognize each other." I can almost feel his eyes analyzing me. A minute later he sighs. "All these suits look the same. I'll never be able to find you in a crowd."

"Of course you will." I say jokingly, "I'll be the one who looks lost and confused."

Jaden chuckles softly and I smile. I'm actually sort of happy…

"I have an idea." He straightens in his chair.

"What?"

"Okay. So we—

"Hey Guys." A man's voice sounds from behind me. I turn around to see another Peacekeeper uniform.

"Hey." Jaden says politely.

"Mind if we sit with ya?" He sits down on the floor before Jaden or I can answer him. "My friends are on their way, they should be here any minute. My name's Ivan by the way."

"Nice to meet you, Ivan," Jaden nods. "My name is Jaden."

Two more peacekeeper uniforms walk to our table.

"Hey Guys!" Ivan beams, and turns to Jaden and me. "This is Mabel and Abner."

They wave and sit on the floor next to Ivan. The tiny shack is getting congested. It's occupancy level should probably be at ten people, not twenty.

"I never did get your name…" Ivan says, and I know he's talking to me. I told Jaden my name, so I can't exactly give a fake name with him sitting next to me.

"It's Fr—

"Her names Frederica," Jaden interrupts.

My name is what?

"Hi." I wave, going with the flow. What was Jaden thinking?

"Good to meet ya both." Ivan looks around the crowded room. "Where's the waitress. She should be here by now."

Ivan grunts. His voice is easy enough to identify. It's a deep baritone voice with an accent. He must be from a different District.

"Ivan," A woman's voice says. Her voice is shrill and spine tingling. She sounds like an older woman…I'm guessing it belongs to Mabel.

"Hmm?" He says distractedly, looking for the waitress.

"Ivan!" She snaps. "Pay attention to me when I'm talking."

He turns his head toward her. "What?"

"Is there any update on District eight?" She asks, and my heart sinks. This is the information I've been waiting for.

But Ivan shakes his head. "They are still trying to contain the rebels. After they punish the people, I guess they'll leave. Felix says that they are going to send another train in about a week. Bring the uncooperative people to the Capitol for a more severe punishment. Instead of taking our route up through the districts they are going down. From district eight they are going to seven, then six, and so on." He yawns. "Where's the damn waitress?"

A few minutes pass, and the old woman returns with two plates of food. I've never seen so much food on one plate before. It looks so good. She sets the plates on the table and turns to leave.

"Hey old Woman," Ivan says.

"Yes, sir?" She looks over her shoulder at Ivan.

"Get me the same thing as them." He points to Jaden and me.

"Sorry, Sir, you'll have to wait. If you haven't noticed there is a lot of people in here, and I'm the only waitress available…"

"I don't give a damn. I'm hungry and I want some food now."Ivan's voice is loud and demanding.

"I'm sorry Sir. Like I said you'll have to—

"I don't wait for anyone. You hear me old woman?" Ivan stands up quickly and grabs the old woman by her arm. Her green eyes are filled with fear. "I could have you killed. If I don't get my food in five minutes, that's exactly what I'll do." He's lifts his hand, and is about to smack her. I can't let that happen to this nice old lady.

"Ivan Stop." I demand. All of a sudden the room is quiet, and I know everyone is staring at me. "Here," I push the plate of food away from me and toward him. "Take mine."

Ivan lets go of the old woman's arm. "You're a lucky old woman."

"Thanks Frederica." Ivan says as he takes a bite of the sausage.

Frederica? Oh yeah. That's supposed to be me. What is Jaden thinking, I wonder again.

Jaden offers his food to Mabel and Abner and they gladly take it. "Frederica and I are going on patrol. Enjoy the food." He says.

They all mutter a 'thank you' as we leave. We walk back towards the train station. When he leads me back to the edge of the woods I'm confused. What are we doing here again?

"Thirsty?" I ask.

He nods his head and motions for me to follow him again. This time I'm not hesitant. I follow him down the path that leads to the river. Once we get there he sits down by a tree near the river. He looks so peaceful, and I find myself wishing I could see his face. I sit down a few feet away from him, but he scoots closer to me. Was it only a few hours ago that we were in this same place? I feel more comfortable now. Hailers voice flashes through my mind "Don't ever trust anyone from the Capitol."

I sigh and lean my head back against the tree. I think of Ivan and Mabel. They both seem so Capitol-like. They are mean, disrespectful, and just how I imagined someone from the Capitol would act. Now I think of Jaden. He's not mean at all, and I know he cares about people. So… why is he with the Capitol.

"Jaden…"

"Hmm?"

"Back in the restaurant… why did you lie about my name?"

He sighs and leans his head against the tree. "I guess I just wanted to…" He paused and turned his head to face me.

"You wanted to what?" I ask when he didn't say anything.

"I don't know… I wanted to protect you."

"Protect me?" I swallow, "From what?"

"Ivan. He can get really aggressive. So can the others. They tend to give new peacekeepers a hard time."

"Oh."

We are both quiet for a long time. It isn't an awkward silence, but more like a peaceful one. I listen as the water flows softly down the river, and the birds chirp.

"What were you going to say before Ivan came over and interrupted you?" I ask.

"I don't remember…"

"It was about your plan…" I reminded him.

"Oh." He says, "You won't like it."

"Can you just tell me, please?"

"Okay." He nods his head. "But you have to trust me."

Trust him? My stomach flips. I can't tell if it's because I'm nervous or hungry. Probably both, I think.

"I… trust you." I say, unsure of myself.

He chuckles softly, "No you don't. But when you do, I'll tell you the plan."

"I'm sorry." I say, though I don't know why.

"For what?" He asks, "Making my day?"

I just shake my head. "I don't know."

"Freya," He starts. The way he says my name makes my heart beat faster. "I just met you today, but I feel like we've been friends for a long time. I know you don't trust me yet, and I don't trust you yet either. But that's okay. Trust is something we earn. Once I earn your trust, and you earn mine, then I'll tell you anything you want to know."

Anything? I wonder if he would show me what he looks like…

"Okay." I say, and nod my head.

"Good. I'm starving, let's get something to eat!"

"The restaurants so crowded though…"

"I wasn't talking about eating at the restaurant." He starts walking toward the river, and motions for me to follow him. When I do he says, "I hope you like fish."

"I do."

"Good. Because we are going fishing."

Back home, Hailer would always be the one to fish. He said that I couldn't fish for my life. I smile at the memory of him trying to teach me, and then giving up when he realized It was no use.

"You're going to have to teach me. I have no experience." I admit.

"That won't be a problem. You'll be a pro in no time."

I laugh.

"What, you don't believe me?"

"You really don't know how bad I am."

"You can't be that bad." He says, "I bet I can teach you by the end of the day."

"Okay, deal. You can try to teach me, but if you give up, you lose."

"I'll teach you, and I won't lose."

We walk down the river until we reach a small pond. I can see tiny fish swimming all over the place, and I hear the faint sound of a mockingjay humming a sweet melody. I smile. My dad was the person I was with when I first heard a mockingjay. We were in the woods, and he was teaching me how to hunt. This is the first time I've been in the woods since the day he died, and it feels so… nice.

"So," Jaden says steps into the pond. The water only comes up to his knees, and it doesn't seem to bother him. "First you have to get in the water."

When I do I don't feel wet at all. The uniforms must be water proof…

"Good." He nods his head in approval, "Now kneel down on one knee, hand place your leading hand into the water."

We are using our hands to fish? I put my right hand into the water with a splash, and all the nearby fishes swim away.

Jaden laughs, "Gently."

We move to another part of the pond, where the fish are active again. I get down on one knee, and place my hand softly in the water.

"Good." Jaden says again. "Now with your palm up, and fingers relaxed, begin moving your hand toward the fish. Take deep and quiet breaths, you don't want to scare them away. Slowly aim for the fish's tail."

I nod and wait for the next bit of instructions. He gives them to me.

"Undulate your fingers, against the underside of the tail."

I obey, moving my hands and fingers in a wave-like motion. The fish get's startled and swims away quickly. I sigh, "I can't do this."

"Shh." Jaden puts his finger to his lips. "You'll scare it away."

"I already did." I whisper.

He shakes his head and points a few feet in front of me. I look more closely at the fish. It's a red and yellow colored fish, and I don't know the name of it, but Hailer probably would.

"It might come back." He says, and in a few minutes the fish does. I repeat the process and when the fish doesn't swim away Jaden gives the next bit of instructions. "Move your hand slowly up the fish's underbelly. Be gentle, Freya."

Apparently I'm not gentle enough because the fish swims away again. I sigh and wait, but the fish doesn't come back this time. I don't blame it. I turn to look at Jaden. He just says "come on. Let's find another one."

This goes on for two hours before he finally says "Why don't I just catch the fish, so we can eat."

I agree quickly because my stomach is growling. He makes a small fire and hops back into the pond. As I sit by the fire, I watch as Jaden gets down on one knee, and makes the process I've been trying to accomplish for the last couple hours, look very easy. In just a couple minutes he has us two fish. He steps out of the water and carry's the fish over to the fire. I watch as he cleans guts, and de-scale's them, and then puts it over the fire to cook.

"How did you do that?" I ask, amazed.

"Practice," He shrugs his shoulders.

I watch the sky as the sun starts to set, wondering where Hailer is. He's safe, I tell myself. I will find him again, as soon as I have a chance. He could be in the train, and I could get to him. If he's not there I'll find a way to find him. I need to start planning my escape.

"So how long are we here in district ten for?" I ask.

"We are scheduled to leave here in four days." He adjusts the fish at a new angel.

"Where are we going after?"

"District twelve. Then the capitol."

I have to leave before they leave for the capitol. That should give me maybe a week or so to plan.

The sun continues to disappear over the horizon, and so does the temperature. But the fire manages to keep me warm. Jaden turns the fish over, and in about ten minutes, they are done.

"Careful, it's hot." He warns. He lifts up his mask to his nose again, and exposes the thin line of his mouth. He blows on his food a little. "It's not as good as in the restaurants, but it'll do."

I lift up mask up to my nose, blow on it and take a small bite. "I think it's very good." I compliment. Food is food to me. I don't get hot food like this back home. I take another bite.

After we are done eating Jaden pulls down his mask, and throws some pond water over the small fire. "We should get back… it's getting dark."

Yes, i re-uploaded the story, and tweaked a few things. I kind of switched the plot, so chapter 4 and 5 are different now. I hope you like it! Review please :)