I think about the boy from District 1 as I walk back to the cave. I wondered what he was like, what his name was. But now he was dead, and I'm allied with the boy who killed him. I frowned as all these thoughts whirred around in my mind.
"My skin hurts," a deep voice jolted me out of my thoughts. I turned around, looking at Stearic.
"What?" I asked slowly.
"I have blisters from the stupid rain," Stearic muttered, frowning.
"Think you'll live?" I ask with a little smirk. Stearic grinned slightly.
After a few minutes, we reached the cave. It was around noon now, and the sun was beginning to beat down on us. My forehead was just beginning to get moist with sweat when I walked into the cave. The cave was nice and cool, but damp. I plopped down on the ground, setting my backpack next to me. I carefully unzipped it, pulling out the dead raccoon. I gagged when I saw it! It was broiled so most of the fur was burned off, and it stank horribly! I set it aside, covering my nose.
"That is so disgusting," I mumble under my breath.
"Nine," Stearic said from the entrance of the cave. I cast him a strange look.
"Pardon?" I ask, raising my eyebrow.
"There's nine of us left," Stearic replied, leaning against the wall of the cave casually. I gulped hard, looking down.
"Oh..." I remark quietly. I fumbled with my fingers. I hated this. I hated every bit of this! I hated the Games, I hated the jerks who enjoyed watching it, I hated the swamp, I hated the heat, I hated everything!
"What's wrong with you?" Stearic asked, breaking me out of my concentration.
"What?" I ask as my mind raced to figure out what he was talking about.
"You look like it's the end of the world," He laughed, seeing my confused expression. I wanted to laugh at his joke, but I just couldn't. I just stared at him for a second as it seemed like everything was sinking in. A lump formed in my throat as I put my head in my hands. "I'm not going to cry, I'm not going to cry!" I thought, willing myself to not break down in tears. Thankfully, I didn't cry. I couldn't cry, this was the Hunger Games! Crying was a major sign of weakness, and I couldn't afford to have people think I was weak. Even though I have already broken down at least twice... Yeah, I'm a wimp.
I just got done eating the horrible, horrible raccoon. Stearic and I had split the raccoon, and right now I wanted to throw up more than anything! I gagged as I swallowed the last bite of the raccoon.
"That is so terrible!" I hiss through clenched teeth. Stearic nodded, having the same look of disgust.
"Definitely doesn't taste like chicken," He muttered, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. Stearic turned his attention to the entrance of the cave.
"What time do you think it is?" He asked curiously. I bit my lip, looking at the brightness of the sunlight.
"I would say... Two-ish?" I replied, leaning against the wall of the cave. Suddenly, Stearic jumped to his feet, looking alarmed.
"What?" I ask, tensing slightly.
"Uhh... N-Nothing. Hey, why don't you uh..." He stammered, his eyes frantically searching the ground. His gaze settled on the empty canteen beside my backpack. He reached down and picked it up, handing it to me, "find some water and bring some back?"
"Now?" I frowned, slightly confused. Stearic nodded and smiled, as if trying to act casual.
"Yeah, we're going to need it. Afternoon is supposed to be when the swamp is hottest," He replied. I narrowed my eyes at him.
"Okay... What are you going to do?" I said, taking the empty water canteen and staggering to my feet. A flash of pain shot through my hip as I did, but at least the wound was healing. Stearic shrugged.
"I guess I'll try to find something to eat, maybe see if there are some weapons I can find in the cornucopia," Stearic answered as he promptly left the cave. I watched him go, my eyes narrow. "Something's off." I think to myself with a frown. I gripped the canteen tightly in my palm as I headed out of the cave in search of water.
Have you ever been in a swamp when it's two in the afternoon? Don't. It's extremely hot and very humid, so humid that it's kind of hard to breathe! I wiped some sweat off of my forehead as I waded through the swamp. I felt sticky with sweat, and the ground was so soft that my feet kept sinking into the damp moss. I wasn't used to this at all, because I'm from District 8. I've never felt what grass feels like, I've never seen a tree, I have absolutely no idea what moss is or why it's here, and I'm definitely not used to so much water or heat. But one thing I do know, is that it isn't hard to find water in a swamp. I kept falling over from the unevenness of the ground, and I was so tired! It isn't easy to walk through a swamp if you've never been in one before. I also felt dirty, and not in the "lets go partying!" kind of way.
Eventually, I came to a river. To get to this river, however, I had to wade through knee-deep mud! Already exhausted, I try to walk to toward the river. "Slurp! Slush! Slurp!" echoed through the air as my feet sank into the mud. "No tributes better be around, because I'm being as loud as a firetruck!" I think to myself. I was now completely drenched in mud from the waist down. Hot, sticky mud! Finally I made it to the river. Breathing heavily, I fell to my knees as I stuck the canteen under the gentle water. Once the canteen was full, I lifted it out and secured the cap. I then cupped my hands, dipped them in the river, and brought them to my lips. It felt strangely amazing to drink the cool water. I glanced around to make sure no one was around to kill me, then I threw caution to the wind and dunked my entire head into the cold river.
It was a weird, wonderful sensation to feel the icy water gush around my head. I've never had enough water to dunk my head under. Never! I then lifted my head out of the water, grinning.
"That was so weird!" I laugh, wiping some water away from my eyes. Then I bit my lip, smirking. I stood up, slowly wading into the cold river. Tell you one thing, I wasn't hot anymore! I smiled, it felt so weird to be in so much water! I walked in until I was forced to swim. Then, my eyes widened. "I don't know how to swim!" I think to myself as I flail my arms around, trying to swim. After a few moments, the toe of my shoes hit the sand on the shallow part of the river. I just stood there for a second, grinning. I was in a river. Aspen Darnell was in a river! A real river! Well... If I think about it, technically the Capitol made it... But still! Almost real!
"Sluurrrp!" Suddenly echoed through the air. I jumped slightly, looking around to find what made the sound. My heart began racing as my eyes searched everywhere. Then my eyes settled on a scrawny, red headed kid a few feet up the river. He was face-first in the river, drinking heartily like a dog. I let out a shriek of surprise, not knowing who it was. I then instantly covered my mouth, regretting that I had ever made a sound. The kid jerked his head up in surprise, his grey eyes wide with shock. I don't know how I didn't recognize him before, it was Timre! For some reason, I was still tense with fear as our eyes met.
"T-Timre!" I yell with a slight smile. It was good to see my only friend! Well, besides Stearic. To my surprise, Timre scrambled to his feet and ran like there was no tomorrow into the swamp, disappearing from sight. I paused, staring in the direction that he had ran. "Did Timre just run away from me? Why did he run away from me?!" I think to myself as I wade out of the river. I crawled onto shore, standing up and wringing out my fish braid. I was still in shock that Timre had ran. Was he afraid of me? Did he even recognize me?
I grabbed the now-full canteen and made my way back to the cave. The heat was fierce, but I was still cool from the river. After about 20 minutes of walking, I figured I was close to the cave. I was swinging the canteen when suddenly, something caught my attention. I stopped in my tracks when I heard the faint sound of voices whisper through the air. I tensed, looking in every direction, but I couldn't see anyone. The voices were so faint that I couldn't even tell which way they were coming from! If I ran one way, I could be running toward them. So I decided to play it safe and not move. I craned my neck, trying to listen or at least pick up on a few words.
"She isn't even that dangerous," A soft voice whispered.
"I'm telling you that she is, I can feel it," Another replied ever so quietly. I narrowed my eyes, wondering who they were talking about.
"And what about that little runt? The District 4 bro?" The voice hissed. "He's probably the biggest threat here, besides me!"
"I'll take care of him,"
"You'd better,"
"I will,"
"For your sake, you had better be telling the truth,"
I clutched the canteen tightly, thinking about the boy from District 4. He was a big threat! He was huge and very, very smart. Almost everyone was afraid of him! From what I know, he's still alive. Then to my dismay, I heard a twig snap beside me! "I forgot to grab my knife before I left!" I think to myself as I realize the only weapon I have is my canteen. Does a canteen count as a weapon? I don't know, but that's all I had. I instinctively take off running at a sprint in the direction of the cave. I could hear footsteps behind me, as if someone was chasing me. "Remember what happened when Zeke was chasing you and you looked back, don't make the same mistake twice!" I think to myself as I raced through the swamp. After a few moments, I realized that the footsteps behind me had stopped! Had they stopped chasing me? I took a daring, deep breath and spun around, tense and braced for if the person attacked me. But to my surprise, no one was there! I gulped hard, frantically looking in every direction for the person. But there was no sign of them! Had... had I imagined the whole thing?
Finally, the cave came into view as I neared it. I walked into the cave, seeing Stearic all the way in the back skinning a few rats. He glanced over his shoulder at me, smiling when he recognized me.
"Hey there!" He said in a friendly tone of voice. I didn't make eye contact with him. All I could think about were the mysterious voices I had heard. Who were they?
"Hey," I replied quietly. I tossed the canteen-full of water-to Stearic, which he quickly caught.
"I saw Timre at the river," I say, glancing at the skinned rats.
"Did he push you in?" Stearic joked. I paused, confused. I was still thinking about the voices. I gave him a strange look, having no idea what he was talking about.
"You're soaked," Stearic said slowly, seeing how confused I was. I looked down, realizing that I was dripping with water.
"Oh, yeah... Look at that," I stammer, shrugging.
"Well did he?"
"No, he ran away,"
Stearic paused, setting the knife that he had been skinning the rats with aside. He looked amused.
"Weren't you two buddies?" He asked, chuckling. I narrowed my eyes, offended that he thought it was so funny.
"Yeah, he was my friend. He's like my little brother, and he looked really scared of me. I don't see why you think it's so amusing," I say coldly, turning my back to him and sitting down. Stearic was still chuckling, but he put his hand over his mouth to try and hide it.
"Oh, gee, I'm sorry," He said, clearing his throat.
"Whatever," I say harshly. I had enough of Stearic and his sarcastic self. For all I know, Timre could be die in the next five minutes, and Stearic was making fun of him. We sat in silence for a few minutes as Stearic began to continue skinning the dead rats. Suddenly, Stearic burst into laughter.
"I'm sorry, I just can't let this go. Why are you friends with that little dweeb anyway?" He said through his laughter. I glared at him. Anger boiled inside of me. Timre was like my best friend here, like a little brother to me. He wasn't very strong and as far as I know, he doesn't have the best chance of winning. I guess I felt kind of responsible for him. I casually stood up and walked over to Stearic. He looked up at me with his hazel eyes, still laughing. I narrowed my eyes and slapped him across his face as hard as I could. Shocked, Stearic held his cheek.
"Did you really just do that?" Stearic says as he stands up, towering over me. I'm kind of intimidated, but I was too angry to care. Someone had to stand up for Timre, people couldn't just think he was useless because he wasn't as old or as strong as them.
"Yeah! I did! Watch, I'll do it again!" I hiss as I slap him with a backhand. Stearic just stood there, glaring at me, as if daring me to do it again. I wanted to punch him this time, but I chomped down on my lower lip instead.
"He might be scrawny, but he's stronger than you could ever hope to be! You're just a jerk!" I shout as I march toward the entrance of the cave. Stearic opened his mouth, as if about to snap something back, but he held his peace. For some strange reason, I felt like I had to dig it in once more. I spun around, looking him right in the eye.
"And he's sure better looking!" I hiss and I storm out into the swamp. Stearic's eyes widened in offense, but he didn't say anything. I marched into the swamp, feeling a lot better now that I had let all my anger vent out. But I had only been walking for a few minutes when I felt a harsh hand grasp my arm, forcing me to stop. Startled, I spun my head around to be face-to-face with Stearic. I took in a sharp breath, wondering what he was going to do. Fierce anger was in Stearic's eyes, but his voice was calm and gentle.
"I'm sorry," He said softly, slowly loosening his grip on my arm. I inwardly let out a sigh of relief that we were still friends. I could tell that Stearic was offended and angry, but he was trying not to be.
"You're right, I shouldn't have said that about the kid. I'm sorry, Aspen," Stearic said, dropping his eyes to the ground. I shrugged.
"You're forgiven, and his name is Timre, not 'kid'," I say slowly, "and if you make one more crack about him, this alliance is over," I say softly but firmly. Stearic nodded, not making eye contact.
"Okay," I say quietly. We silently walked back to the cave. Soon, it would be night and we would have to go to sleep, risking our lives for a few hours of rest.
Hooday! So... sorry I haven't updated in a long time. I just wasn't really up to making an another chapter, but... I made one anyway! :D So... thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed, and faved! It really means a lot! So... please tell me what you think in reviews and I'll try to update this week. buh-bye!