Chapter 6 – Companions
I woke up to the sound of branches snapping. "Shh! Bonnie, we need to be quiet! You never know where they are hiding!" a feminine voice whispered loudly. My mockingjay awoke at the noise and flew off before I could stop it. I ran towards the nearest tree, hiding in its shadow. Another loud crack shot through the dense air, and another voice cursed. "Twill! It's broken! I-I can't move! I can't go any further without my crutch!" Suddenly a peacekeeper appeared. I hid behind a thick tree as the figure half-carried a small silhouette into the opening. The peacekeeper looked around and then sat the silhouette on a rock that I previously inhabited. "It looks safe here Bonnie. Are you alright to rest here?" the peacekeeper asked. "Yeah, there's a cave here, so we can just stay in there tonight," the small shadow replied with a sigh.
The peacekeeper took off the dirty helmet, to reveal mid-chest length auburn hair tied in a messy bun. Cocoa coloured eyes sparkled in the sun as she assisted her companion to follow suit. The figure turned into a female, 16 at the oldest. Her hair was the same shade as the other girl, as were her eyes. The teen spoke, "Twill. We are not alone." Her eyes were staring into somewhere distant, and her hair was deadly still, even through the harsh summer breeze. "Bonnie? What do you mean? Of course we're alone," the woman, Twill, replied. Her forehead creased with worry and she bit her lip, looking around quickly. "A man is hiding here-a terrible man. Our leader's huntsman. The lioness' big brother. The President's poison." Bonnie turned her head to my hiding place. I stifled a gasp as the adolescent stared into my eyes, the whites of her eyes covering her original brown. "You! You will bring his downfall! His beloved spy will bring his death! Remove your hood Judas, and clean your knife!" I saw the child collapse on the stepping stone, and 'Twill' ran over to her. She lifted her up and started shaking her shoulders gently. "Bonnie? Bonnie! Wake up! Bonnie!" Tears streamed down her face and she turned her back on me to lay her companion on the ground. Whilst I was out of her range of sight, I stepped out from the tree silently.
The adolescent opened her eyes and sat up. She looked me directly in the eye, and Twill turned around. A ray of sunlight enveloped me, but I kept eye-contact with the two females. A cloud blocked my sunlight and I took a step forwards. "Who are you? What are you doing here? Who sent you?" The elder woman asked hysterically. She stood in front of her companion, shielding her from gazing upon me.
"Calm down. I am not here to harm you. I have been trying to find somewhere, but I am lost. I mean no harm," I replied in a calm manner, placing my hands in front of me in the universal symbol of surrender. The child nodded, and then rose to her feet. She slowly moved in front of her friend and looked me in the eye. She raises one eyebrow, studying my face. "My name i-" I started, only to be interrupted by the child. "Which name are you referring to? The one the Gods gave you? Or the one your king presented you with?" Her eyes sparkled as she smiled knowingly, and I couldn't help but return the grin.
"You are smart child. But I go by neither of those names now. I need a new one. What my 'king' is unaware of, is that his dearest assassin, is no longer serving his court. Therefore I have no name. The only name I am called by is the name which people wish to hear," I replied wittily. She giggled. "So by what name do you wish for me to be called by?" I asked. She smiled and pulled her partner next to her.
"My name is Bonnie. Bonnie Ford. And this is Twill McKenzie," she told me, gesturing to her blushing friend. I shook her hand and said, "Pleasure to meet you ma'am." She laughed softly. "Please, call me Twill."
"So Bonnie, what name do you wish for me to be called? I have been thinking for a while as I need a new name. I want it to be obvious, but I don't want him to be able to figure it out." Bonnie giggles again, looked around for any hidden cameras and then whispered in my ear.
"Well Seneca, I think you should be called. . . Mors Regis. The president will be so swooped up in what you are doing to him, that he won't actually stop to figure out what it means and who would use it." She took a step back and her face lit up. "The king's death. Seems appropriate. I guess that is my new name then. Thank you Bonnie Ford," I whispered back. Bonnie giggled, blushing like a schoolgirl, and Twill beamed at Bonnie's laughter.
A branch snapped and suddenly I heard a man's voice. "He must be here somewhere! Stupid bints! Let's 'ope they dinnit run inter that Crane! It'll ruin everythin'!" Bonnie and Twill ran into the cave. I looked around and saw my mockingjay swooping down. The speech played again and I chortled. "Bonnie, Twill, you can come out now," I asserted. They lingered in the cave, and then slowly crept out. I pointed to the bird, which swooped down and landed on my finger. "It was just my mockingjay," I explained. Twill's eyes widened, and she glanced at Bonnie. She didn't even try to hide her astonishment. "Y-You trained a mockingjay?!" she half-yelled at me. I laughed again and shook my head.
"Of course not. They're impossible to train! And I should know!" I winked at Bonnie, who nodded in understanding, and Twill raised her eyebrows at me. "I helped it a few days ago, and now it follows me about. And lucky it does, 'cause we need to move now if we're going to avoid the clones." Bonnie burst out in giggles, doubling over in laughter. "The clones?" Twill asked. Twill looked at me questioningly. "Peacekeepers," I replied meekly. She shook her head and picked up the two peacekeeper helmets.
"Se- um, Mors?" Bonnie whispered over the smoky remains of our fire. "Hmm?" I answered with a mouthful of the strawberries Madge gave me. "A-are we, um, I mean, err, d-d'ya th-think we co-could b-be, erm, I-I m-mean, um, do, do you w-want t-to be, um-" Bonnie stuttered, before getting cut off by Twill. "Mr Regis, I think what my student is trying to ask, is if we could be allies, if you would be our, companion, of sorts," she asked. She appeared perfectly calm, but I could see the worry in her eyes. "Please, call me Mors, Twill. And I was just about to talk to you about that. Would you mind if we talked in private?" I replied smoothly. She looked at Bonnie, who nodded and smiled, chewing on her rabbit leg.
"Seneca. I have no idea what you are doing, but it is extremely dangerous. You must realise that I know. I know that you probably want to stay solitary. I have been pretending that I am unaware of your identity, so that Bonnie won't go around yelling your name. I understand your task. Before the bombing, my husband and I were visited by the president. My husband, he used to be best friends with one of Snow's newest peacekeepers. And Romulus refused to become a Peacekeeper unless we were allowed to escape the bombings. As you know, my husband didn't make it. Instead, I was given Bonnie. And all I want to do is keep her safe. We've both lost everything, and only have each other. And if she wants you to be with us, then I am willing to have you along. You have already saved us once. But I swear to Panem, if you let her get hurt in any way, shape or form, I will hunt you down, and I will reveal your secret to all of this nation. And I will show this," she pulled out a leather bound notebook, "to your beloved President. And I will watch as he tortures you for the crimes of Treason, which as I am sure you're aware, is punishable by death." I stood, my jaw hitting the floor. Then I chortled, and smiled gleefully at her.
"Twill McKenzie. I have no plan to hurt you, nor your friend. I give you my word, that if you allow me to accompany the both of you to District thirteen, I will protect the both of you with my life. I appreciate you keeping my identity a secret, and there will be no need to go to such drastic measures, although I have no doubt that this is an empty threat. For I too, have lost everything. And if you will take me, I am happy to come," I replied to her outburst.
We laughed whilst walking back to our camp. I slung my arm over her shoulders and she blushed, leaning into me. Bonnie took in our intertwined form and beamed at me. She wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and Twill shrugged out of my grasp and sat next to Bonnie, hitting her shoulder gently. I smiled at them and started sorting the berries for our meal. "Yes, I would very much like to accompany you on your journey, although I do need to make sure I reach my checkpoint within the next few days, if you understand what I mean." I winked at her, and she giggled, earning a smile from Twill.
Suddenly she jumped up and reached for the backpack she had concealed in her peacekeeper uniform. "We meet someone in the woods, she gave us some bread and bandages," she explained as she pulled them out. I reached for the bandages, and started re-wrapping Bonnie's swollen foot as she ate some of the wild blackberries we found.
"So where are you looking for, Mors Regis?" Bonnie asked as we lay in the trees. I looked at her, glanced at the sleeping form of Twill in the tree next to us, and then back at the adolescent. "I am headed to the same haven as you are."
She looked confused for a second, and then sat up. I gave her a nod.
"District thirteen…"