Author's note: This chapter will cover two days, just because I'm trying to move things along. I'll probably start doing that more as the story progresses. :)
Chapter 11
Day 4
Skye's p.o.v.
It's raining again. Luckily, it's not full-out storming like it was, but it's still coming down pretty hard. I've never been so thankful for a rain jacket before. At least I have that.
The backpack I picked up from the Cornucopia contains a knife, a hatchet, a canteen, a blanket, an extra pair of socks, a tennis ball, and some craft yarn. The knife and hatchet will be very useful for defense, and I have already filled up my canteen with water. I plan to use the blanket and extra socks later, when they won't get wet. As for the tennis ball and yarn, I have no idea why anyone would consider them useful.
The one thing by pack doesn't have that I desperately need is food. I've eaten a few berries here and there, but no real food. Yesterday I tried to hit a few birds that were flying around with my knife, but no such luck. Targets like that are much too small and fast for me. Hopefully, that won't be the case if I need to kill a threatening tribute or mutt in a hurry.
I wander around, looking for some way of getting food. When I break out of the trees and into I valley, I realize I'm back where I started; the Cornucopia. But I also see something I didn't notice before. On a hill adjacent to the Cornucopia is a log cabin. No lights are on in the cabin, if it even has any, but if the Careers are smart, I have just come across their camp. It's already Day Four, and fifteen tributes are still alive, so I'm guessing the Careers have gotten impatient and have gone hunting. If I'm lucky, no one will be in the cabin, and I can find something to eat. As I climb the hill, I'm careful to stay as low as I can, but with their view, they should have seen me coming as soon as I came out of the woods. If they were paying attention, that is.
I sneak up to one of the windows and peer inside. There's not much there, just a table and chairs and six small beds. They're more like cots really. A pile of supplies lies in the corner, but the Careers are nowhere in sight. I find the door and slowly push it open. I take a tentative step forward, looking for anything that may be a trap. Nothing. These Careers must not be too concerned about intruders.
Searching through the Careers supplies, I find several packs of dried meat, fruit, and rolls, and multiple cans of beans. I end up only taking a pack of beef jerky and a bag containing a dozen rolls, not wanting them to know anyone was here. I slip back outside, making sure I leave everything close to how I find it. Before I go back to the woods however, I decide to check the Cornucopia, although I doubt anything will be there.
What I find is the total opposite of what I was expecting. At least half of the original supplies are still here. I wonder why the Careers didn't take everything. Oh well, I guess now I have my pick. I search through the backpacks and grab one that's plenty big, but will still be easy to carry around. Then I take out the stuff I don't want, and add items I do, making sure to put back my original supplies. I end up with three knives, the hatchet, the canteen, a water bottle, some rope, a pocket book on edible plants, a small roll of bandages, the blanket, two pairs of extra socks, and a sweatshirt. Food takes up the rest of the space. It's amazing how tightly I can pack my bag. I zip it up and look out into the pouring rain. I don't think I'm ready to leave just yet. Sure, I might be taking a risk, but it's a risk I'm willing to take.
Whitney's p.o.v.
I wake up burning hot, even though it's raining. Beside me, Clementine shivers violently, and her mosquito bites are angry and swollen. I swallow hard. Mine are the same way. They itch too, so I scratch one, but immediately jerk back from the pain. I've been stung by mosquitos before, of course, but it's never hurt.
Meanwhile, Clementine continues to shake so badly that I shake her awake. "Clem? You okay?"
"I'm s-so cold…" my ally stutters.
"Yeah… and I'm really hot… I think I have a fever…"
"W-why?"
I sigh. "I dunno. Maybe it's because of the mosquitos. Like malaria, or something."
"I h-hope not," Clementine replies. She looks down at her arms, and her eyes grow wide. "Whoa… I th-think it is…"
We huddle in the rain, not really able to do anything else. My body switches from hot to cold to hot again, and Clementine clearly feels the same way. We both feel terrible, and neither of us find the strength to speak. We're miserable, until a huge parachute floats down from the sky. Clementine is so sick she doesn't even notice, so I crawl over to it. The tag has a big nine written on it. I have a sponsor! I open the bag to find the biggest sleeping bag I have ever seen. There's enough room for both of us in here.
"Clem. Look what we got," I say, crawling back over to her. Luckily, the sleeping bag seems to be waterproof.
"Huh?" she asks groggily, barely lifting her head.
"It's a sleeping bag." There are zippers on both sides, so I unzip both and we slide inside. We spend the whole night getting in and out of it as fever and chills pass through us. It's not long before I lose track of how many times I've done it, and I'm doing so absent-mindedly.
I haven't felt so sick in my life… is this how I'm going to die?
Day 5
Clarissa's p.o.v.
Colton and I are both soaked to the bone, and I start to wonder if the Capitol is trying to drown us. First the thunderstorm, then a short period of dryness, and now it has been raining nonstop for a day and a half. To stay as dry as possible, we sit underneath the branches of a willow, eating berries and drinking water, but even that doesn't protect us from the rain. It's raining so hard the rain still manages to seep through the leaves. At one point, I sneeze, and of course, Colton overreacts.
"That's it. We need to find better shelter."
"Where?"
"I don't know," Colton replies. "But not here."
We set off into the rain, getting even wetter as we push through the soggy plants. Then I spot what seems to be a wooden building off to the right. "Colton, look," I say, pointing. "Is that a cabin?"
Colton looks in the direction I pointed in and grins. "Yeah, it is! Great job Clare!" He gives me a high five, and we walk briskly over, thankful for having finally found shelter. Hopefully it's not already occupied.
The door creaks open when Colton turns the handle. Inside the cabin is dark, making us unable to see any potential dangers. "Wait here," Colton whispers. "I'm going to make sure it's safe. He takes a wary step forward, then another. "I think it's -"
Crack! In an instant, the wooden floor gives out under my brother's, and suddenly he's gone, having fallen into the dark, most likely deep hole.
"Colton!" I scream, but it's too late. From the hole comes the sound of roaring, growling and my brother's horrifying screams of pain. Then a cannon fires, followed by silence.
"No… no, no, no, no, no!" I say to myself. He… He can't be dead. That was someone else's cannon. But deep down, I know it's not. It was Colton's. I collapse to the ground where I stand just outside the cabin, not care how wet I get or if the mutts come after me, and sob. My brother's gone. And it's all my fault.
.
Leo's p.o.v.
The boom of a cannon signals the death of another tribute. Fourteen of us left, with ten dead. That's not enough for my more bloodthirsty allies, but after a full day in the pouring rain hunting tributes and having no luck since the boy from Ten, we decided to take a break and stay dry in the cabin.
"Was that thunder, or a cannon?" Nova asks.
"Cannon," I confirm.
"One less tribute for us to kill, I guess," sighs Krill.
"I know," Selena groans, totally missing Krill's point. "How will we get sponsors if we don't kill tributes ourselves? This is so unfair."
"Is that all that matters to you? Killing tributes?" Nova snaps.
"No," Selena sneers. "Getting home and proving to Two that they were right to bring me here is what matters."
"Well, you don't have to be so ruthless about it," Nova argues.
"Please, bitch," Selena laughs. "Don't you know anything? That's the only way to do it. You know, I'm surprised you're even here."
"Don't talk to her like that!" I snap. No one calls my best friend a bitch and gets away with it.
"Why not? Is she your girlfriend?"
I really hope I'm not blushing. "No…"
"Then why are you defending her?"
"Because she's my friend, and doesn't deserved to be talked to like that!"
"Whatever you say," Selena replies, smirking at me. Around the cabin, Ares, Orca, and Krill are staring at us. And Nova… She's staring at the ground, her cheeks a rosy pink. What that means, I have no idea. It could be because she returns my feelings for her. Or, more likely, it means she's embarrassed that anyone could possibly think she was dating me.
Later after dinner, Selena comes and sits beside me. "Hi!" She's overly perky again. Great.
"Hey…"
"So, if Nova's not you girlfriend, then is it someone back home?"
I shake my head. "Nope."
"Are you gay?"
"No."
"Good," Selena replies, scooting closer to me. "So are you a virgin?"
I give her a strange look. "That's kind of personal, don't you think?"
She giggles. "Nope. And you know, we might not every have another chance to get laid with anyone," she pouts. "So what do you say?"
"I say I'm going to bed. Alone." I get to my feet and make my way to my bed, but not before I catch Nova glaring coldly at Selena, looking as though she's ready to murder her.
During Nova's and my turn to keep watch, it finally stops raining. It's a nice night outside, with the air a comfortable temperature and a gentle breeze, so we take two chairs from the kitchen table and sit outside the cabin.
"Long day today, right?" Nova asks.
I nod. "Yeah." I laugh slightly. "I don't think I can take much more of Selena's flirting."
"Yeah, me neither…"
I grin. Maybe I can have some fun with this. "Is someone jealous?" I ask teasingly.
"What? No! Just annoyed."
"Sure."
"What? It's true."
"If I didn't know better, Nova Malashewski, I'd say you were jealous. You're jealous of all the attention I'm getting and wish someone would give you attention too." Of course, this isn't true. Not many people would enjoy flirting that obnoxious, but it's so fun to tease her.
"Nope."
"Jealous."
"No."
"Jealous."
"No way."
"Surrender already. You're jealous."
"Not a chance, Donaldson."
I chuckle. "Very well then. I guess you'll have to suffer the consequences." I then begin to tickle her. She squeals in delight and wiggles right off her chair, and somehow we both end up on the ground, laughing uncontrollably.
"I'm so glad we made up," Nova says softly after a few minutes of just lying on our backs, staring up at the sky. "Even if it did take the games to do it."
"Yeah, me too. I just wish we didn't have to."
"It's alright. I would have done the same thing if it were you."
"Really?" I ask, slightly surprised.
"Really."
We both fall silent after that. I begin to wonder what would have happened if Nova hadn't been voted for. Would I have won, and come back to her a victor? Would we have still made up, and went back to the way our friendship was before? Or would it deteriorate even more? Or, on the other end, would we have gotten together, got married, and even had a family?
I guess we'll never know. I just hope she gets back to One and finds someone who will love and take care of her and the baby as much as I would have.
Author's note: I'm going to increase the number of points you can receive, just because I decided items are kind of expensive, but I don't want to lower the price. So for now, I'm giving ten free points to everyone, and next chapter I'll post the new amount of points you receive for certain things. If that makes any sense...
CQ: (For ten points): What do the numbers in my penname mean/stand for?
Sponsor point Record: (If you sponsored for a specific item, I may not have sent it right away, but still subtracted from your score. But it's still coming, I'll just send it at the right moment.)
Blueskies99: 28
Books are air: 53
Buttons301: 48
Celtic: 49
Coolcattime: 21
Deedledum: 33
EmilythatsMe: 47
EmilyTheOwl: 27
FannieForever15: 83
Jess: 107
Kate: 101
Rette: 12
RadioFreeDeath: 15
Skyeforthewin (guest): 15
Sweethearts together: 39
