"The hourglass is lying down.

And I just stare and wonder how...

It came to this..."

~ Dana Parish - 'We Fall Down'


DAY 5

Do you know that feeling when you can sense something really bad happened or is about to happen? That feeling that locks a breath in your throat and refuses to let go? Do you know what it feels like when something hits you with such force that your head goes dizzy? And you don't know what it is. Not yet anyway. But it's still there and you know it can't mean anything good. Nothing so frightening could ever mean anything good.

"Clove."

Do you know that feeling?

"Clove, you gotta wake up."

Do you know what it feels like?

"Shit, why won't she wake up?"

Do you know what it means?

"Cato, damn it, get over here!"

It doesn't go away. Not until you learn what had you feeling that way in the first place. And you can only wish that you didn't see it coming. But you did. You knew something would happen. Does that knowledge make it any better? Does it help you cope?

"Clove, wake up!"

It doesn't.

"Cato, what is wrong with you? Are you just gonna stand there or will you do something to wake her up?"

"She won't wake up!" he hissed at the other guy finally, tired of him and everything around him. Tired of how clueless his supposed allies were. "Want me to spell it out for you?! She is not going to wake up. It's sepsis. She's half dead. So unless you know where I should go to get the medicine for her, I'd suggest that you shut the hell up. Unless you have an idea other than running your damn mouth, I'd keep it shut. She's not gonna wake up. So yeah, I'm just gonna fucking stand here!"

With that Cato turned his back on the rest and looked out the window again, swallowing repeatedly to get rid of that damn lump in his throat that felt permanent. How did this happen? How did they get here?

Wake up.

"Cato."

God, please wake up.

"Cato."

Shut up.

"What are we doing then?"

He squeezed his eyes shut, as Thresh's voice echoed somewhere far in the distance. He couldn't understand him anymore. His heart began pumping the blood through his body so fast he thought his veins would burst. He swallowed the thick lump in his throat.

"Cato!"

"Shut UP!" Cato yelled finally, unable to help himself. Thresh looked at him as if the guy had just slapped him and took a step back. Cato panted heavily and looked around the room, noticing the shocked faces of his so-called allies. Only one person stood out; her delicate face wearing a sad expression. He took his eyes off of little Rue, feeling his stomach twist. He quickly realized looking away was a mistake, because next his eyes landed on Clove. He couldn't take it.

Cato grabbed his sword and quickly made his way out of the building, leaving everyone else to decide what to do next.


He heard the trainers call her and watched her step up on the boxing ring from his spot at the sword station. He was about to start warming up when her name caught his attention and he knew from that point he'd not be able to focus for the next few minutes, at least. She looked so confident and strong despite how tiny she was. Her opponent for hand-to-hand combat was Amos who at the time was a very serious candidate for a tribute this year. He had just thoroughly beat up a pretty experienced 17 year old before they called Clove. He was vicious and always came on very strong. He could care less who he was beating up.

Cato squeezed the handle of his sword and began to cut through the air just so his trainer stays satisfied; his eyes never leaving the ring.

"Ready, baby?" he heard Amos ask Clove, smirking stupidly. Cato grit his teeth, moving his sword even more aggresively.

"To kick your ass? Always." Clove responded with a straight face, picking up her little fists. She really was a small person, yes. But shit would he not be scared of her had he not gotten on her good side. There was something about her that was really creepy. She had this look in her eyes that could make one's hair stand up straight. He liked it, though, because that meant they had something else in common. It meant she was just as twisted as he was.

"Begin." Clove's trainer told them, stepping away from the ring as to see better. Amos' smirk was long gone by then and Cato could tell he did not like the way Clove spoke to him. He felt a lump in his throat at the sight of his big, muscled form approaching her. He was almost as big as him and he knew she would have trouble fighting back. He had fought her before, after all. She was good. She really was. Just not good enough to win. Except for that one time he had let her win. Well, two times. Tops. She never got injured in any way while fighting him, though. He'd always been careful with her, not too much but enough to keep anyone from suspecting that he was avoiding hitting her. Cato knew that Amos would not do the same. He was going to win, that was for sure. But in what shape was he going to leave his partner?

Out of the corner of his eye he saw his sword glisten, as he began moving it even faster without paying any attention. The hand that was not holding the weapon curled into a tight fist. For some reason he found it really hard to breathe.

Amos was the first one to attack and he did it fast, too. Clove blocked him with her arm, but a ghost of a wince came across her face. His other hand tried punching her stomach, but she quickly reacted and moved away. Taking advantage of the hold she had on one of his arms, she quickly spun around and twisted it. He gasped loudly, as his eyes widened a bit in surprise; he had definitely not expected this. Cato smirked to himself. That's my girl.

Amos shrugged her off quickly, pushing her away and getting his arm free. Before she knew what was happening, he already had her pinned to the floor, his face wearing an incredibly furious expression, as one of his big hands closed around her throat, while the other arm was holding her down. Her airways were cut off instantly and everyone could tell she was suffocating. Even then, she still tried to get him off. Before he could stop himself, Cato dropped the sword which fell on the floor with a loud bang. Since half the people from Academy were around, training, thankfully no one had noticed. No one heard the sound of his blade colliding with the hard floor. Just like no one noticed him beginning to approach the ring with a deadly look on his face.

"Enough!" Clove's trainer called it finally and Cato could bet that he had waited longer than he was supposed to out of fury toward Clove for losing so easily. Amos got off of her and she took a few deep breaths, quickly composing herself. She stood up, rubbing her neck and ignoring Amos' twisted smirk. She stepped off the ring and walked away toward the knife station as if nothing had happened.

"Okay." Another trainer spoke up, holding a list in front of his face. "Up next we'll have.."

Cato didn't remember making it all the way to the ring. Nor did he remember stepping up on it. All of a sudden he just realized he was facing a confused, but angry Amos, his heart beating so insanely fast he was surprised it hadn't burst yet.

"Hawks, I did not call your name-"

"Well, I called it myself." Cato snapped at the guy through gritted teeth, leaving him no room to argue. He then gave Amos the deadliest glare anyone had ever seen. "Let's go, bitch."

Amos didn't hesitate to glare back at him, but it was obvious he had lost a piece of his confidence. Because Cato was not just another avarege 17 year old. Nor was he a 15 year old tiny girl. Clove would kill him if she knew he thought of her that way. But at that moment in particular he did, because that's all he could see. Amos choking her on the floor of that ring. He saw red.

Before the trainers could argue or stop him, he was already throwing punches at Amos or what he would like to call him from now on: a big piece of shit. Amos, having not expected such a violent attack, seemed almost incapable of fighting back. Cato made sure he wouldn't get the chance either. He was so unbelievably mad. A flash of Clove being choked came across his mind again and he found himself losing it. Amos ended up on his knees with his arm twisted behind his back, held there firlmy by Cato. There was a loud crack and a pain-filled cry echoed around the training room, catching everyone's attention. It snapped Cato out of his trance and he let go of his victim harshly.

"You broke my fucking arm!" Amos cried out, holding his right shoulder. One of the trainers, presumably Amos', came up on the ring, his eyes wide in awe. Or anger. Cato couldn't tell.

"What the hell was that, Hawks!?" the man yelled, getting in Cato's face.

"I apologize." Cato responded immediately, keeping his head high. "I got carried away, sir."

Silence filled the room, excluding Amos' moans of pain. Cato glared back at the trainer, tough and brave. He could have not been more happy about what he had just done. And he would do it again.

"Hadley!" the man in front of him snapped at Amos over his shoulder without looking at his pathetic form curled up on the floor. "Stop the bitch crying and get your ass out of here!"

Amos obeyed immediately, although Cato could see a huge shock behind those unstoppable tears in his eyes. He did get up, though and got off the ring, having to push through the crowd, as no one was about to help him out or even move out of his way. Cato heard a lot of sneeres and nasty comments thrown at the 17 year old before he heard his trainer's voice again; "You're going to replace Hadley in tomorrow's Mock Games."

Mock Games were something the Academy organized every year for some of the most promising Careers. After Cade's death a few weeks back, Cato was not considered a good enough candidate, despite his skills and proportions. And despite the fact he had not been off his game at all because of what had happened to his brother. Now that he thought about it, he really was surprised that they hadn't chosen him to begin with. It was an honor to be selected, as it gave you bigger chances to be picked for the real thing.

Cato narrowed his eyes at the man in front of him and swallowed hard, feeling his heart beating fast in his chest and adrenaline flowing in his veins. "Of course, sir. It'll be my pleasure."

"Good."

And with that the man just went on to call someone else for another fight as if one of his trainees hadn't just had his arm ripped out of its socket. Cato got off the ring. He did not have to push his way through the crowd; everyone stepped aside for him. He ignored their half shocked, half challenging looks and headed for the door.

He was about to walk out of the room, when he saw Clove staring at him out of the corner of his eye. He glanced at her briefly, knowing he still had everyone's attention. He couldn't let anyone figure out why he hurt Amos so bad.

Clove just stood there, astounded, a sharp knife in her petite hand. But she didn't put the pieces together; he could tell that much. Cato looked away quickly and hurriedly left the room with his fists clenched, feeling his heart starting to slow down with every step he took.


Thresh knelt down beside Clove, placing one hand on her burned up forehead. She was shaking slightly, occasionally letting out a heavy breath. He winced, as he looked at the tiny drops of sweat covering her face and neck, as she trembled. He covered her up with the blanket more tightly and stood up.

Sensing everyone's eyes on him, he turned around with his eyebrows raised. "What?"

"What are we gonna do?" Peeta asked from his spot by the wall, staring up at him. Katniss was sitting right next to him, with her knees pulled up to her chest and her chin resting between them.

"I have no idea." Thresh said, running a hand across his head and looking very troubled. "I don't know if there's anything we can do to help her, unless they let us."

"That's not what I meant." Peeta said, getting up and throwing a brief glance at Clove. "I meant what are we gonna do?"

"Meaning?"

"Meaning," the brown-haired boy whispered, taking a step closer. "what do you think Cato is going to do when she dies?"

Thresh didn't know why, but he felt an unpleasant feeling in the pit of his stomach at the mention of his ally gone. He ignored it.

"We need to get out of here." Katniss said all of a sudden, staring at the floor in front of her.

"What?" Thresh growled, completely taken aback.

"We have to go." she repeated, making sure to keep her voice down. She picked herself up from the floor, as well with a sigh. "Once Clove's gone, we'll be worthless."

"What are you-"

"Come on, Thresh." Katniss hissed. "You were there with me in that cabin. The only reason he hasn't tried to kill us yet is because we're Clove's allies. That's about to change."

"You gotta stop." Thresh snapped back at her. "It's four of us against him alone. He won't do shit. And she is not dead yet. We can't just leave her."

Peeta and Katniss exchanged confused looks, making him even angrier. He knew they were right. Cato probably was going to try to get rid of them. He was a Career, after all. But he'd be lying if he said he was completely certain of that. And as long as there was a little bit of doubt about Cato's intentions, he did not like the idea of leaving a dying ally behind.

But then he looked at Rue. Her eyes met his and he felt his face soften at the sight of her; so innocent and vulnerable. What if they were right?

"We have to get out of here." Peeta decided to continue, breaking the moment. Thresh glanced at him coldly, then his eyes landed on Clove again. Something squeezed his heart. "We gotta go now before-" he stopped in the middle of a sentence and his eyes widened slightly, fear filling them. Thresh frowned, alarmed and quickly looked over his shoulder.

Cato was there, sword in his hand, a murderous look on his face. The sun behind him made his figure look all dark and big and ever scarier than usual. Rue stepped closer to Thresh, who put a reassuring hand on her small shoulder.

Terrifying silence filled the room. With every passing second the tension seemed to be getting only thicker. Peeta threw a quick glance at their weapons, abandoned on the other side of the room. How stupid could they be?

Just when they were sure a massacre was about to revolve, Cato broke the silence: "Get out of here."

Peeta's scared expression turned into a confused frown. He glanced at Katniss who looked just as startled. Did they hear him correctly?

"I said, get the fuck out." Cato snapped, his voice dangerously low. "All of you."

He didn't have to say it again. Katniss and Peeta gathered their supplies as quickly as they could and walked past Cato who refused to move out of the way. They ended up having to squeeze through between him and the doorway, his glare burning holes in their faces, as they did. His freezing blue eyes turned to Thresh and Rue next. And as crazy as it was, Thresh could swear his eyes softened a little. "Don't make me tell you again." Cato, still, hissed at them, squeezing the handle of his sword hard enough to make his knuckles turn white. Rue looked up at Thresh helplessly. He glanced down at her and then turned to look at Clove one last time. He swallowed the thick lump in his throat and picked up his backpack. Rue already had hers on her back. He nodded to her and she stared down at the floor, as she began to make her way out of the building. Cato moved away for them and refused to meet their eyes.

No one said anything. They just left.


Cato knocked twice on the door in front of him and waited, trying to remember how many nights in a row had he found himself outside of her dorm. It was like their new routine. It had been a week since Cade died in the Games and nothing could put him on ease as much as this. Those sweat-filled nights with Clove until the sun would interrupt them so very rudely. He couldn't sleep anyway so it didn't bother him that he'd been feeling like a zombie those past few days. He only felt sort of bad for Clove but she didn't seem to mind. And she still looked beautiful even though anyone would be able to tell she hadn't been getting much sleep either. Not that he was going to actually tell her that.

If anything was different about this night, it was the fact that no one had come to open the door for him this time. The lights were out and it was awfully quiet. Feeling an unpleasant pinch in his chest, he decided to just go ahead and try to open the door. He couldn't help but fear she decided she'd had enough and was not going to get up this time. To his great surprise, though, the door was unlocked; which was odd. They always have to lock their dorms. Girls, especially.

The room was dark and quiet and he was sure everyone was sound asleep. That was until he closed the door behind him which caused one of the girls to let out an annoyed huff. He heard her mutter something under her breath that she clearly did not want him to hear. Cato ignored her, though, and blindly made his way to Clove's bed. He had memorized that room by now so he didn't need any light. He heard her soft breathing, as she slept and almost felt bad for what he was about to do.

"Clove." he whispered, reaching out to find her shoulder or arm or hopefully anything he wouldn't feel awkward touching in order to wake her up. Well and something she wouldn't seriously wound him for putting his hands on. He found her warm, soft skin and he debated whether he should explore some more to be sure he wasn't touching any inappropriate part of her body, or should he just go ahead and shake her. Apparently, he took too long to figure that out. He felt her small hand grab his surprisingly hard for someone who had just been deep into dreamland.

"What the fuck are you doing, Hawks?"

He smiled to himself, knowing she couldn't see him. He liked how she knew it was him. He'd be worried if she didn't. "I'm trying to get your ass up."

"Don't ever touch me again." she responded through gritted teeth. "Or I swear I won't hesitate to reduce your amount of blood."

He laughed quietly at her. "You must be tired, Clover. Did you hear yourself?"

"Don't fucking call me Clover, now back the hell off." she snapped, not worrying about keeping her voice down. He did as she told him and heard her fussing around a bit. She turned on the light by her bed and his eyes met her glare.

"For fuck's sake, can't you just wait for her outside next time?!" The Blonde girl that had opened the door for him that very first night hissed at them. Cato smirked. He knew she was just jealous.

"I would, but I just love waking her up so much, you see- ow!" he sent Clove a glare, rubbing his arm. "What'd you do that for?"

"You need to shut the hell up." Clove snapped, pushing past him and toward the door. His face turned from a grimace to an amused smirk when he noticed she was all ready to go, which meant she had lied down wearing her training clothes. He said nothing, though. He just followed her outside and she closed the door behind him. Then she just went and pushed him up against it with the now familiar to him fire in her dark eyes. "I mean it, Cato. If you want to keep training with me, you need to cut the bullshit. That bitch looked like she'd love to report us."

"Hey, don't worry about her, okay? She's just jealous."

"Of what? Not getting any sleep?" Clove barked, glaring him down. "Get it together." And with that she let go of him and stormed away, leaving him there with a weird look on his face. She was so clueless. But then again, it wasn't like he could actually blame her.

"Did you leave the door unlocked for me?" he decided to tease her, running after her. "that was so nice."

She rolled her eyes, unimpressed. "Yeah, I don't do nice. Wasn't me. One of my roommates did. They're sick of you knocking and waking them up every night. Which you did again, anyway."

"You almost sound like you care."

"How about I stick my knife up your ass?" Clove asked with a pretend, sweet smile.

"Okay, okay. I'm shutting up." Cato laughed. She shook her head and walked faster, getting ahead of him.

He couldn't help but smile.


Katniss and Peeta were ahead of district 11 tributes, looking rather pleased with their decision. Thresh couldn't fully blame them for wanting to leave. It didn't really matter that the rules had changed or that the Careers were a part of their alliance briefly. Cato was not exactly predictable. There was a great risk he could lose his temper and attack them any time. Or try something when they were asleep. There was a dozen of different possibilities. But still, he couldn't help but feel angry with how easy they found it to just up and leave. He wasn't angry with them, per se. More with the fact that he felt a certain way about it. He shouldn't care. Clove was a Career. Clove was a ruthless killer. Clove was heartless.

The hell she was...

"You okay?" Rue's soft voice interrupted his thoughts. He shook his head to get rid of them and sent her a soft smile, nodding. She didn't buy it. "Are you upset that we left?"

Having heard her, Peeta looked at them over his shoulder with a frown. "What's the matter?"

"You know what the matter is." Thresh growled in his deep voice, his eyes darkening.

"I really don't think I do." Peeta shot back, turning his head back around. Thresh felt fury licking his insides like flames. He walked faster to catch up with him and came side by side with the other guy.

"She's my ally." he said through gritted teeth. "She's our ally." he added, glaring at Katniss who quickly looked away.

"Yeah and she is dying." Peeta snapped. "Do you still remember where we are? Don't you understand what would have happened if we hadn't left? He would have taken great pleasure in killing us."

"And you're a hundred percent sure of that?"

"What is this about?" Peeta half-yelled, narrowing his eyes at Thresh. "Why are you sticking up for them? If the rules hadn't changed, they would killed half the tributes by now."

"But they didn't!" Thresh roared, making district 12 tributes stop walking instantly. They stared at him with wide eyes. "That's what this is about. The rules did change. And they did not kill half the tributes. It's all speculations. What gives you the right to judge them for something they would or would not have done!?"

It might not have been as shocking to them, and most probably to everyone that were watching, if those words came out of somebody else's mouth. And yet, it was the big, silent Thresh who had kept his distance from everyone in the Capitol, turned down a couple tributes who wanted to ally with him. Even Rue. Thresh who hated the Careers with a passion.

It seemed like it wasn't only Clove and Cato that had been greatly affected by the rule change.

Peeta was quiet and apparently not strong enough to hold Thresh's piercing glare. He looked down.

"Either you're absolutely blind or in denial, Mellark. Because I know you must have noticed Cato's behavior around Clove. He stayed with her while she's dying. The Cato you described would have either left her to die alone or finished her himself. So tell me; why didn't he?"

Peeta looked up, rid of that surprised and angry look his face held just a few moments ago. He almost looked ashamed. Thresh's words seemed to have gotten to him.

"I'm going back." Thresh told them. "You do what you want."

With that he turned around to ask Rue did she want to come along. But that question froze halfway through his throat. Because she was not there.

"Rue?" he looked around anxiously. Katniss and Peeta did the same, concern written all over their faces. "Rue!"

There was no way someone could have approached them and silently take her away. She was right behind him. There was no way anybody could've just appeared out of nowhere and hurt her. She would have screamed. She would have fought back.

She must have walked away. But where-

"Oh no." Thresh gasped, a wave of realization washing over him. "Shit, no."

He took off running faster than he ever did before. He knew exactly where she had gone. And judging by how quickly Katniss and Peeta started following him, they knew as well.


Cato sat down on the cold floor as far away from Clove, as he could, watching her shaking, tiny form through his bloodshot eyes. He couldn't believe that this fearless and amazingly tough girl was now so close to dying. Just like that. He had thought of her death before. As a Career, it was only natural for him to at least consider the possibility of her going in the Games and not coming back. But he had never imagined her dying this way. An infection? This was how she was going to go? It was Clove, for God's sake. She was way tougher than that.

What was even worse for him to handle was that it was like she was dying in slow motion. Right in front of him. He didn't have to examine her to know that her heart was starting to slow down. She was getting weaker with every minute passing and he couldn't do a thing. He could only stare and cuss out himself and The Capitol in his head; as if that was a good solution. But there was nothing else he could think of doing that would help her. He knew going back to the shelter would be pointless; he had checked for medicine last time they were there and found nothing. He knew wandering around was useless; antibiotics wouldn't be just randomly waiting for him to pick them up in the woods.

The only thing he dared hope for was the Game Makers allowing him a chance to save her. For whatever reason. For the purposes of a good show, perhaps. Or maybe to play with them a little longer. He had no doubt, at this point, that they knew he had a very weak spot for Clove. Cade had been right. They were trying to punish him for breaking the rules. He was never supposed to fall for anyone. He was supposed to be vicious and heartless. He was supposed to be one of their puppets. Loyal and obedient.

So why the rule change? What was that supposed to prove? From where he was sitting, it certainly looked like that decision had brought all the tributes together. His so-called allies had left, but that was not the point. The point was that by being forced to protect one another, it was almost like they were being forced to start caring for one another in a way. He surely did not care about anyone but Clove. But he was pretty sure he wasn't the only one who did.

The interaction between Thresh and Clove crossed his mind. It was clear, really. Whatever they had gone through since day one, somehow in that mess Thresh must have seen Clove in a different light which led to him getting protective of her. Cato didn't know in what way the other guy cared for his district partner. But he knew he didn't like it.

Did they think for one second that separating him and Clove was going to stop him from trying to protect her? Big mistake. Ever since he had stepped a foot on this arena, finding her was his only goal. And maybe he didn't know right away exactly what his intentions were but he sure knew now. It seemed like it didn't matter anymore, though.

Cato buried his face in his hands, squeezing his exhausted eyes shut. He was so tired. He felt like he hadn't slept for weeks. Which wasn't too far from the truth.

He opened his eyes to look at her again and as he did, an overwhelming sensation took over his body all of a sudden. Something squeezed his throat tight, as his heart began thumping in his chest painfully. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't think.

She's gonna die.

He put his hands on the back of his neck and closed his eyes tightly again, trying to shut down that voice in his head.

She's going to die.

He was going crazy; if he wasn't already. Images and memories were torturing him and there was no escape. But he still couldn't breathe. He couldn't move.

"Cato."

A little, soft voice abruptly brought him back to the inside of an abandoned building. He lifted his head quickly, knowing that voice did not, unfortunately, belong to Clove. So who-

She stood there, so small and innocent. But there was something different about her. She looked different. Maybe it was because she was staring straight in his eyes and never blinked. Never trembled. Fear that her own eyes used to be filled with at the sight of him was a history.

"What," he choked out in an awfully raspy voice. He cleared his throat awkwardly. "What are you doing here?"

Rue took a few steps forward and stopped, looking as if she wasn't exactly sure what to do next. "We're allies." she whispered. "Aren't we?"

Cato sucked in a breath at her words as if hearing her talk to him was too much. He didn't even realize that he had actually stopped breathing until his head became too dizzy to ignore. Not only did she somehow find it in herself to speak, she also had the confidence and courage to start approaching him. Her tiny body moved a few steps forward and he looked away quickly, having figured out what she was planning on doing. He didn't need that. He didn't need her.

Clove, wake up.

He heard her coming closer and closer and he had no idea why he was letting her..

Please, wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake up, wake up...

Her small, slightly trembling hand found his firm shoulder and he knew that as brave as that little girl seemed, she was still frightened. He couldn't blame her, because so was he. He was scared something would wake up in him and make him hurt her. He was scared of why he was just sitting there as if this wasn't a completely unacceptable act from his ally. He was scared of the fear itself because it was brand new to him. Sure, he had been scared before. But this was so much more real. This was something he had never experienced before.

Please.

It was over. He was done. What did it matter if he chose to break down now? He was not getting out this arena. Not if Clove lived. Not if she died. He didn't want to go on any longer. There was no point. There was no goal. There was nothing.

But she was still here. She was still breathing. He couldn't give up. He couldn't break down. He was Cato Hawks.

Rue's hand squeezed his shoulder so lightly he almost laughed. Tears welled up in his eyes but no one saw them. His eyes stayed squeezed shut, as he leaned forward and hung his head low between his knees, trying to survive. And he cried. He cried and shook on the inside. Nobody saw his tears. Nobody saw the way his body was trembling. Nobody heard a thing.


Thresh's lungs were burning and screaming for more oxygen, but he never stopped. He never slowed down.

What the hell was she thinking!?

Finally, in far distance he saw the building where all of them had spent last night. Fear seized his body, because if he was right about Rue's whereabouts then there was a great chance she was in big trouble right now. He kept going, praying to make it there before another cannon cuts through the silence.

Katniss and Peeta, both out of breath, were right behind him and he couldn't help but feel a bit relieved that he was not alone. As odd as the thought was, he really did not want to be by himself. Not after everything that's happened. Not after everything he'd been through with these people. After all that, how could he just be okay with the fact that two of them were likely about to die? He knew that they would have to die sooner or later if he was to live. And yet, he still couldn't just accept that. He couldn't just let it happen. Not if he could help it.

An image of Rue's soft, innocent features crossed his mind right before he stormed inside the building and stopped so fast it looked like he hit a glass wall.

To his relief, Rue was there. And from what he could see she was just fine. That wasn't what shocked him to the core. He heard a surprised gasp behind him and realized that Katniss and Peeta had also just got here.

His district partner had her pointing finger put on her lips, silently telling them to be quiet, as she stared at the three trbutes from her spot by the wall. Cato was right beside her. Asleep.

His head was hanging loose, chin rested on his chest. He was slightly leaning toward Rue in his uncomfortable position.

"Rue-" Thresh whispered, his eyebrows furrowed in shock and confusion. She just shook her head, those big brown eyes of hers again asking him to keep his voice down. Soon it was going to turn out it didn't matter if he stayed quiet. Before anyone had a chance to process the sight in front of them, the sound of trumpets followed by Claudius Templesmith's voice echoed around the entire arena.

"Attention, tributes!"

Cato woke up with a startle, looking anything but rested. He winced, as his hand shot up to rub his presumably sore neck. He pulled himself up into more of a sitting position and after that it only took him a second to recognize somebody else's presence in the room. His eyes darkened as he saw the three of them in the doorway. But it didn't seem like he was about to attack them or even question why they had come back. He just glanced briefly at Rue, who risked a barely noticeable small smile in response. His eyes then quickly drifted to Clove's still figure, anxiety filling them. Claudius' voice filled the air again, effectively waking him up; "There will be a feast today at noon when the sun is the highest in the sky. Now hold on. Some of you may already be declining my invitation. But this is no ordinary feast. Each team needs something desperately."

Immediately, Cato got on his feet with his fists clenched in tight balls, his chest moving rapidly, his eyes scarily bloodshot. A weird feeling itched the pit of his stomach. And what was weirder he was able to identify it; hope.

"Each team will find that something in a backpack marked with your district numbers inside the cabin that most of you had seen before. Think hard about refusing to show up. For some of you, this will be your last chance."

He sucked in a breath, because he knew exactly what they would have in that cabin where he had encountered Clove for the first time in the arena. Medicine.

A dozen thoughts went through his mind at once and he was almost about to gather his weapons and run out of the building, but he stopped himself. He met Thresh's gaze for a few seconds, thinking intensively about his next step. What were they even doing back here? They certainly didn't come back to help him or Clove. It was Rue they came for.

Deciding that he didn't have much time left, he looked away from his former allies and grabbed his backpack. He stuffed two thick blankets back inside and then made his way to where Clove was. Without so much as a word he wrapped his arms around her tiny body and swiftly picked her up, her arms hanging loosely, her face buried in his neck. Goosebumps crawled down his spine when he felt her weak breath on his skin.

"What are you doing?" Thresh managed to ask before Cato was out the door. "Hey!"

He ignored him and carried on walking down the street as fast as he could. He had to get to that cabin as fast as possible. He could tell Clove's time was quickly running out.

"Cato!" Thresh yelled after him again. Cato heard a few pairs of footsteps following him and grit his teeth, feeling rage slowly build in the pit of his stomach. "What do you think you're doing!?"
"The hell does it look like?!" he yelled back over his shoulder.

"You can't take her with you!"

"Fuck off." Cato barked as he started walking even faster. He was so sick of them. So sick of people talking to him, being around him. Leaving then coming back. He was irritated with how much harder it was to be allies with those kids than to be forced to kill them. It was harder because it had him think too much. It meant he had to protect them for his and Clove's sake. But was that all there was to it? Was he really willing to protect them before just because of the rules?

He remembered little Rue coming back for him. He remembered everything she said. He remembered how she was able to calm him down. How she was able to put him to sleep.

"I killed him!"

Cato stopped, dead in his tracks after those words had left Thresh's mouth. He found himself unintentionally squeezing Clove's leg a bit. And he waited. He just waited.

"He went after Clove while Glimmer chickened out and took off." Thresh growled, disgust hearable in his voice. "I turned around to help her. She was hurt and weak. I couldn't just leave her."

Cato turned his head to the side, letting them know he was listening to every single word. So Thresh continued: "He was about to kill her by the time I found them. You wanted to know how he died." he paused there, glancing briefly at Rue. "I pierced him through with his own sword."

Katniss and Peeta exchanged looks yet again; it seemed like that was all they needed to communicate. It seemed like they could tell what the other one was thinking just by looking at one another. Thresh tried his best not to meet Rue's eyes after his confession. He would hate to look at her and learn that she was now also scared of him. "I'll go with you." Thresh declared. "I'll go to the feast."

Cato still stood there without fully turning around or even glancing at any of them. Thresh figured he was probably debating how serious he was about cooperating with him in order to get the medicine Clove needed so badly to survive. He could also tell that the Career had figured out Thresh wasn't careless when it came to her. And he knew for sure Cato must have hated him for that. He could almost hear Cato's thoughts and all the names he probably felt tempted to call him. He was about to try and persuade him a little more to let him tag along, tell him he really could help, but someone else in their group had a better idea;

"I'll go."

Cato's head turned so fast something cracked in his neck. Because there was no way that Fire Girl was willing to risk her own life in order to save Clove. Peeta was staring at her wide-eyed as well, but his face, unlike Cato's, expressed shock and concern, rather than pleasant surprise.

"What are you-"

"I'll go with him." Katniss cut him off before he could finish. Noticing the stunned look on his face, she huffed. "Look, Thresh is right. Clove is my ally. We have to have each other's backs. If it makes you feel better, just tell yourself I'm doing this for this Goddamn rule. Besides, that backpack could contain something all of us could use. Ever thought of that?" Peeta looked down, frowning while processing her words. "Either way, I'll go with Cato, because you and Thresh need to stay and keep an eye on Rue and Clove." she told him in a tone that ended any further argument. "I'm a pretty good shot." Katniss said, turning to look at Cato who raised his eyebrows at her. "I could cover you."

"She's not 'pretty good'. She is excellent." Peeta threw in, making everyone look at him. "She can get a squirell right in the eye every time she shoots. I know cause my family buys them from her."

"Wait, you actually eat sq-" Cato stopped himself mid-sentence, knowing how ridiculous that question would have sounded, given the circumstances. He couldn't help but cringe at the thought, though. They didn't have everything they wanted in district 2, but they had plenty, especially at the Academy they had always been given three solid meals a day. They didn't taste the greatest, but at the least they didn't have to eat squirrel meat. That just made him start rethinking everything he thought he knew about the other districts. Once again, he felt almost forced to consider the possibility that everything he had been taught all his life was a big, fat life. And it wasn't a good feeling, nor was it a good timing for such thoughts.

"I'm coming with you." Katniss said with such confidence that it almost made him want to smile at her. He liked how she didn't ask him for permission. She just decided she was going to come and that was it. It was odd, but now he could sort of understand why everyone had expected so much of her. Why so many people had actually bet that she would be the survivor.

Cato glanced down at Clove's pale face and if there was a part of him that was trying to fight the idea of Fire Girl coming along, one look at his partner was enough to ignore it. He didn't say anything though. He just simply turned around and walked back toward the rest. They didn't look frightened anymore for some reason. They were not expecting an attack. They just watched him as he marched right past them and back inside the building. No one followed him for which he was actually grateful.

He gently lied her down on the floor and covered her up with blankets again, making sure she was as comfortable as possible, before leaning down. "I don't know how much fight you have left in you, partner," he whispered, knowing his allies were not going to hear anything. "but I need you to stay alive. I will be back. I promise."

Right then he realized he had never promised anything to anyone before. He got on his feet and looked at her face one last time before confidently lifting his head high. He turned around and walked back outside, where the rest hadn't moved from where they stood earlier. They all stared at him questioningly. But he looked directly at Katniss.

And after a long minute of thrilling silence:

"Let's go."


A/N: I know, it's been a long time. I apologize. And while I'm not trying to make excuses, you should know I would have updated a few weeks ago if I hadn't overwritten my file with something else again by an accident... So I had to start all over, thus it took me another month. Also, I am leaving in two weeks back home after I'd lived in the US for two years, so you can imagine that's it's not exactly the easiest time for me. Anyway, I really am sorry and I can't promise I will update within the next two or three weeks but what I can promise is that I will try my hardest. :) I will be on a train for 19 hours this week so I guess it's safe to say I will have the time, lol.

Hope all of you have been doing well and thank you so much for reading and your reviews! I also hope you enjoyed your Holidays and that 2015 has started out great for y'all!

dominicana: thank you so much! Belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you as well! Why don't you sign up on here so that we could message each other? :)

Again, thank you very much for you all reviews. I really, really appreciate them!