Thank you to the guest reviewer who told me that I didn't do Thresh. I apologize sincerely. Here's Thresh, and I'll re-upload Cato as the next chapter.

Happy reading :)

Disclaimer: I don't own The Hunger Games.

Chapter Seven: Thresh

"Just this time, Twelve. For Rue."

I can still remember her wide, shell-shocked eyes as I grab the pack and run. I know it's suicide to take 2's pack and flee; it guarantees that he'll chase me instead of her. But then again, that's exactly what I want.

I don't know why I'm doing this, but something inside me compels me to. There's something about Twelve which tells me that she may be the one to kick-start what everyone has wanted for years.

To end The Hunger Games.

When Rue was called, I'd already decided that I was going to volunteer. I wasn't about to let sweet, helpless Rue be sent into the Games alone, not for anything. In the end, perhaps fate itself wanted me to be sent into the Games to protect her.

What a twisted ending it turned out to be when I learnt that she was dead. I had never killed anyone in the Games up to that point; I never wanted to have that guilt on my hands, the guilt of ending another person's life. But when I heard 2 taunting Twelve about Rue, I snapped. It wasn't enough for them to kill a sweet 12-year old who did nothing to anyone, but they had to joke about it.

I've felt the strain of that ever since; the strain of seeing the life ebb away from 2's terrified eyes, the strain of knowing Rue was gone, dead with nothing to mark her existence in the world. Nothing to show how she had brightened the life of everyone she met.

I had been 12 when I met Rue.

"Dammit," I cursed as I pulled up yet another weed. The whole field seemed to be full of them. "Cursed things never stop growing." My grandmother had sent me to clear the weeds from the field near the woods. I had never gone into the woods: the electrified fences and watch-towers were warning enough for me.

But something was still more peaceful of that side of District 11, something that let me be at peace with myself since the death of my parents. I tried not to think about that too much-I had only been six when they died but I remembered everything.

How they shot my mom first when she tried to protect the little kid they were going to beat to death.

How my dad followed her after tackling the man who shot her.

I had witnessed the whole thing, and my hatred for the Capitol had been growing ever since that moment. I wanted every single last one of the Capitol citizens gone, dead so they would never bother anyone else with their sadistic whims again.

"Are you alright?"

Scowling, I looked up to see a little girl staring at me curiously. She had olive skin like me but her eyes were deep brown, looking at me with interest. They were so curious; bright and alive.

Most people in District 11 wore such beaten expressions; faces that showed as if they would never be cheerful again. This girl seemed like she lived life smiling at everyone she met.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"I'm Rue. You look sad," she said simply. "Mummy said I should help people who are sad."

"I'm fine, kid," I said, going back to my weeding. "You just run along."

Instead, she came to me and gave me a hug, wrapping her little arms around me. I froze, not knowing how to react. When she pulled away, she gave me a smile and I instinctively smiled back.

"There," she said proudly. "You're not sad anymore."

My eyes stung, and I wiped them furiously. I had just lowered my hand when I heard the tell-tale break of a twig behind me. I whirled, my spear ready in my hand, already knowing what I was going to see.

2-I think his name was Cato-stood behind me, chest heaving with anger. His eyes were dark with anger and hatred. We stared at each other for a minute, and then he lunged. I blocked the blow with the backpack, causing the sharp tip to stick into the pack.

He yanked sharply, pulling the pack out of my hands. I knew he wasn't going to run; Cato was a killer, and I had just killed his district partner. From the look in his eyes, I had a feeling she was something more to him.

"You die," he hissed. "Right now."

He had the advantage-he was using a sword, a short-range weapon perfect for fighting like this. I was using a spear, something to be thrown from a distance. He was a better fighter, skilled by years of training and talent.

It would only be a matter of time.

His sword cut sharply at my hand, leaving a wound so deep I could see all the way to the bone. The sudden pain was enough. My grip faltered for the slightest minute and his sword entered my heart.

I collapsed.

He yanked out the sword, wiping off the blood on the grass. He looked at me for a minute, and then yanked the pack off my shoulder. I closed my eyes, hearing 2's footsteps fade into the distance.

I looked up. The sky was dark, the first stars starting to come out. They twinkled across the expanse of darkness, and I could tell by the rumbles of thunder that it would rain soon.

How many left? I wondered, as the pain spread through my body-stilling my heart, stopping the blood that ran through my veins.

Cato, and both of 12.

They would survive. Something deep inside told me that she would win. The Girl on Fire would start a spark that no one would be able to contain, a spark that would spread through the districts until the Hunger Games would be obliterated.

That's when a shooting star streaks across the sky, bright and sparkling as a firework. Make a wish, Thresh I remember my mother saying. A wish upon a shooting star.

And so I do. I close my eyes and wish upon the star.

Do it for us, Girl on Fire. Stop the Games, once and for all.

And with that, I slip peacefully into oblivion.

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