Katniss POV

"Katniss? Katniss? Can you here me? Are you there?" Prim called out. I can see her blonde curls dancing in the darkness. "Katniss? Are you there?"

"I'm right here, little duck!" I call out. "Come here, I'm right over here!" I try to move, but my feet are stuck.

"Katniss! Where are you?" Prim continues to shout frantically.

"It's okay Prim. I'm here." Gale appears and kneels in front of Prim. She wraps her arms around him. "We just have to accept that she's gone forever, just like our fathers."

"I wish she was here." She sobs

"I am here!" I shout. "I'm right over here!"

Cassius emerges from the darkness. "Not for much longer, sweetheart." He lunges at me with his sword drawn and…

I wake up and gasp, abruptly sitting up and clutching the blanket to my chest. It was just a nightmare. Prim and Gale know I'm alive. Cassius is ten floors below me. I am still alive. And, I need air.

I slide open the door and peek around the corner. The last thing I want to do is get caught breaking curfew. Nobody is moving in the hall. I slip out and quietly slide the door behind me. I creep into the common room, hoping to find a comfortable spot to watch the rain fall on the Capitol.

"Bad dream?" Cato's voice startles me.

"Yeah. Prim was crying. Gale kept talking about me like I had died. And then Cassius appeared out of nowhere and tried to stab me." I sat down on the couch and hugged my legs close to my chest.

Cato sits next to me and pulls me close to him. "It's the stress. It must be getting to you. I had a similar dream on the train. Here, try some of this. It'll calm you down. It's called hot chocolate." He hands me a steaming mug of pale brown liquid.

It's the most delicious thing I've ever had. The creamy, rich, sweet liquid melts away all my fears. "Thanks, Cato. It's just what I needed."

"That usually does the trick for nightmares."

We talk for a few hours before we both fall asleep. The morning sun wakes us up as it rises over the mountains. I find myself curled up next to Cato, his arm wrapped around my shoulder. I look up at him and smile. He smiles back.

"We better get back to our rooms before Effie and Haymitch wake up and realize we're missing from them."

I giggle as he picks me up and carries me back to my room. "Thanks Cato."

It's only a few minutes before Effie is knocking on my door and I'm swept up into the formalities of breakfast and dressing for training. Before I know it, Cato and I are standing in the doorway of the training room. Stations line the wall. All different aspects of survival are covered, from fire building to swordplay to disguising yourself.

"You want to go try fire building?" Cato asks, pointing to a station on the far wall. The instructor is helping the tribute from Eight with her pile of kindling.

I shrug. "Why not?" I look up at Cato. His face is completely void of emotion. I try to do the same. Emotions are not what others should be seeing right now.

"Hello! Good morning District Twelve!" the instructor chirps sunnily. "Happy Hunger Games!" A fake smile plasters her face. I grimace internally. How can Capitol citizens be so oblivious?

Cato and I begin to work on building a fire. Across the room, I can see a pair of tributes watching us and whispering. I recognize them as the pair from District One. I elbow Cato and jerk my head in their direction. Cato looks up and mutters something under his breath about it being about time.

"Hi Cato!" the perky blonde says as she sashays towards Cato, placing her hand on his arm. "My name is Glimmer. I'm from District One."

"Hello, Glimmer." Cato replied evenly, removing her hand from his arm. He continued to build a fire.

"I'm Marvel, Glimmer's District partner." He and Cato shake hands. "So, um, Clove sent us to talk to you cuz Cassius won't let her out of his sight. Anyways, Cassius changed his mind and the Career pack is happening, mainly to keep Clove away from you. But to all of us, it's a way to sabotage him."

"Can you help us? Like, you wouldn't be in the alliance, but we would help you if you helped us. I guess." Glimmer looks confused by her own statements. At least she isn't flirting with Cato anymore.

"I'm sorry. Katniss and I are a team. If she isn't a part of this, I'm not." My heart leaps for some reason when he mentions that we're a team. I also notice a surprisingly steely edge in his voice.

"Who's Katniss?" Glimmer asks, the flirty edge in her voice missing.

Cato rolls his eyes. "I'm right over here" I said, waving.

Glimmer walks over slowly and circles me. "Let's see… Dark hair, olive skin, grey eyes… You must be from the Seam." I nod. She turns to Cato. "She's from the Seam. I won't ally with some who doesn't know the difference between attack stances."

"She's right. We were taught never to ally with Seam." Marvel's eyes are cold and hard.

"Then I guess you've lost me," Cato shrugs, "because that's where I live now." Glimmer and Marvel stare at him, mouths hanging open. "Of course, if you were to change your minds, then maybe we could help you."

Marvel marches up to me. He's only a tiny bit taller than me, no more than a quarter or two of an inch. "Prove yourself, Katniss."

I peek around him and meet Cato's icy eyes. He nods slightly. I shrug and walk over to the archery station. The bows are all different shapes and sizes. I search through them until I find one that looks like mine from home. It's drawn slightly tighter, but that shouldn't be too much of a problem. I pick up an arrow from the sheath and notch it onto the bow. I sigh, draw my bow, and aim right for the dummy's throat. The arrow flies from the release and sinks deep into the dummy's chest. Fake blood gushes, drenching the thin fabric in red. A kill shot.

Once again, Marvel and Glimmer are speechless. The pair whispers with Cato, and then hurry across the room to where Clove is throwing knives under Cassius's watchful eye. I walk back over to where Cato is building a fire.

"What did you tell them?" I asked.

"I said yes to the secret alliance. We're both in it. And, they promised to get you a bow from the Cornucopia. I'm not letting you get too far into that bloodbath."

His attention returns to the sparking fire.

I remember how every year since my father died, I had to shield Prim's eyes from the first blood of the Cornucopia. My father used to keep us both protected, but I had to protect Prim, forcing me to watch it. Some years, over half the tributes died in the fist hour. Others, few. District Twelve rarely survived past the first hour, with at least one usually dying.

I think of Prim, and how in my dream she thought I was dead. In some ways, I wished I was.

At least she would have closure.