Thanks to Foxen Mustang, Ulrich362, and mcdinh for reviewing the previous chapter!

Yeah, this chapter is... um... interesting. I'll leave it at that.

I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh 5Ds or the Hunger Games, but I do own my OCs. Enjoy!

Chapter 10

I roll over for the umpteenth time in my bed, and tug my blanket up higher.

…It's no use. Not just my nerves, but the fact that I was unconscious for three days helps prevent me from falling asleep.

Even though I know that I need all the sleep I can get…

A noise at the door catches my attention, and I jerk awake. My father is standing at the entrance, something in his hand, and looking just as surprised as I am. "F-Father…? What brings you here?"

"You… you're supposed to be asleep…" he replies, taking a step back, and putting a hand to his face. "I… had thought… Nnn…"

I throw off my blanket and stand up. This is… really unnerving. I've never seen my father so nervous… not to mention trying to come into my room at whatever time it is now. "Father… what's wrong?"

He looks up at me—I never realized his head had been hanging—and says, "You can't know the truth. I'm… sorry."

Oh god. The device in his hand… it's like that spider thing that they removed from my head. Why does he have that? What… what is he going to do?

And then everything goes black.

That ever-present nightmare is back, except there are names and faces this time.

It still doesn't make sense, because this can't have possibly happened.

I mean, for one thing, the little boy who answers the door? Yeah, he looks exactly like Yusei from District 11, and that is definitely not a coincidence, because that boy—my twin brother—is also named Yusei. And the three Peacekeepers providing protection to the man who kills Yusei and my mother? One of them looks like an older version of Lucciano—that boy from 8 I don't trust in the slightest, and I know I've seen the other two somewhere before; their names just aren't coming to me.

And, to put the metaphorical cherry on top, the man with the gun? He's President Goodwin. This is clearly impossible, because… well, he's the president of Panem. He NEVER leaves the Capitol for a reason like… like killing my mother and brother… He would just have someone do it for him, right?

…B-Besides, what kind of motive would he have? None.

I jerk awake with a gasp, and rub my head. I have a killer headache… but I'm not sure why. Hm… I must have fallen asleep at some point. But I don't know when, and I don't know what I dreamed about.

…Ugh, stupid headache…

XXX

This is it. I'm in the tube, but it isn't ascending yet. I've got on the outfit I'm going to wear in the Games—right now, it's a standard black jumpsuit thing with the number five inscribed in white, but it will supposedly adapt to the ever-changing environment. And since it's only a jumpsuit right now, that must mean the first environment is not an extremely hot nor an extremely cold environment.

…Right?

I rub my arm, where they injected my tracker. It stings a little, but not too much. Still, I wish they didn't have to tag us, like we're some sort of animal…

Even if we are basically being thrown into a giant cage…

I-I can't think like this. I need to… think about why I'm fighting. If… If I stay focused on that, then I won't get too nervous.

Natsumi… and Yoshi… Father… Shoshan…

Yeah… Yeah, that'll definitely calm me down.

…! Th-The tube… it's going up. That means… it starts in one minute.

G-God… one minute…

I close my eyes so that I'm not blinded when I stop moving. When I open them, I first take in the scenery.

It's… like a city… that was bombed or something. There are buildings; most, if not all of them, are destroyed. There's some sort of fence surrounding it, and outside of said fence is a forest of pine trees.

Alright. Environment identified. Step two… find Crow.

…Crow's on the platform to my left. He doesn't nod at me or anything, but blinks once. His eyes dart to the side—towards the forest on the other side of the Cornucopia—and back at me. I blink in response, knowing what he means. We'll make a run straight through, picking up what we can, and head for the woods. Hopefully we don't get caught in the bloodbath.

Step three… find things that I want to grab while I'm running.

There's nothing extremely useful near my platform, but I can see a few things that I want in my path. A couple water bottles… a backpack that I think might have a tent in it… some meat, encased in plastic… and up right at the mouth of the Cornucopia is a black katana. Just like the one Natsumi used.

That is mine. I can feel it.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, let the 175th annual Hunger Games… begin!"

I'm off the starting plate instantly, running as fast as I possibly can. Everything just kind of… blurs after that. I… I mean, I remember picking up that backpack, one or two of the water bottles, and that katana… and I remember something hitting the back of my right leg… but I don't remember running into the woods.

Really, my next clear memory is when Crow and I collapse on this hill next to a river. My legs are killing me—especially my right one—and now I finally see why. The fabric is torn just below my knee, and there's a broken-off tip of a knife in my calf.

How I didn't notice that my injury was that bad, and how someone even managed to inflict it to me without me retaliating is completely beyond me.

"You wouldn't happen to have picked up some bandages, huh Crow?" I ask, as I press my hand over the wound after removing the metal. It makes the pain worse, but at least I'm… sort of stopping the bleeding.

"Huh?" He looks up at me—he was on the ground, trying to catch his breath—and his gaze falls onto my leg. His grey eyes widen instantly, and he sits up faster than I've ever seen him do so before. And that's saying something. "L-Lemme check!"

So I'm stuck, watching while he digs through the three bags he'd picked up—how he carried them all is certainly a mystery, because his arms were full of food while he was running—until he goes, "Hah! I've got something even better!"

"Crow! Don't be so loud," I say. "What if the Careers are nearby?"

"Er… right…" he rubs the back of his head sheepishly, but his grin comes right back on as he shows me one of the bags. It's white, with a red + on it. "Look, I snatched us a full-on medical kit."

My mouth widens a little. He's right—there's a variety of bandages, some medicine, creams, and antibacterial stuff. "Crow… you… Wow. Nice choice on what bag to pick up." I grab one of the giant bandages, the antibacterial cream, and head down to the river. There, I clean out the wound a little, and then apply the bandage after I dry it off and put the cream on it. Wouldn't do me any good to get an infection on the first day of the Games… but I'll definitely have to keep an eye on it.

"So… what now?" I ask him once I get back to the top of the hill.

"Eh… we can't stay here. Too open… plus the river'll attract animals and tributes…" he says. "Maybe we could find a cave or a less-open place and set up camp?" Still grinning, he adds, "And then we'll eat, of course!"

…Of course he's driven by his stomach.

XXX

We end up in a tight area of trees, and decided that it provided enough cover while letting us see the sky. I mean, we have to see which tributes died today…

Oh, but it's a shame. The bag I thought had a tent in it only had two sleeping bags. And we don't have pillows, or anything to use as a cover if it rains… We'll just have to hope it doesn't, then.

I'm nibbling on a piece of salami, one of the many food items Crow picked up. Meanwhile, Crow chows down three before I tell him we need to conserve our food.

"Whatever," he says. "It's not like this'll last for awhile. Might as well eat it while it's fresh, right?"

"…" I stare at the ground for a moment, refusing to say that he had a point. Then I think of something to ask. "So, what was in the two bags you picked up?"

""More food, some water, couple plastic containers, oh! And this pretty sturdy kitchen knife." He pulls out this thing that does not look like a kitchen knife.

"Crow… that's a machete."

"A ma-what-ee?"

I smack my forehead with my hand. "Never mind." I know he's just messing with me now. He knows what a machete is.

Then there's silence, until the anthem blares at midnight. That means they're going to show the faces of the people who died today…

The first face is, surprisingly, a Career. The girl from District 2. Brown hair, green eyes, and a kind of wolfish appearance. I don't remember her name, but I'm sure I knew it at some point.

Bruno and Mia are nowhere to be seen, meaning they're alive. Good. I'd hate it if they died before we met up with them. District 4 also survived unscathed… Crow and I are still here…

Ahp. The guy from 6… I think his name was Pearson or something… he's gone. Wonder how he died—Crow was sort of friends with him too while in training.

And then both of the tributes from 10 are in the sky. That's really a shame, for them to both be eliminated so soon… especially since they were both young—only slightly older than Lucciano… Bob and Patty, right? Yeah… it's a shame…That's it for the announcements. So… four people are dead? That's a surprise. There's usually a lot more people who die during the bloodbath.

Guess people were playing it conservative… even the Careers, I bet, after one of them was killed…

B-But… at least I'm still here, and so is Crow. We survived the first day… and we'll survive the rest.

To be continued…

Ah, the cruel dramatic irony and foreshadowing and EVERYTHING else. Like the Games starting. Heh.

Yes, that scene at the beginning was completely necessary, even though it definitely raises a ton of questions. Too bad you'll have to wait for the answers.

In the meantime, please leave a review!