Hey helloooo. Chapter 12 is up! Please read and review. Your reviews really help me to make this story even better, so thanks for all the reviews so far! Enjoy!

IMPORTANT: I won't update this story tomorrow because I got an important test coming up and it's my little brother's birthday! I promise I will upload the next chapter in two days.

"There it is," Eden sighed, "the gateway to death." The group had almost reached the Cornucopia. They had walked for hours in the meadow that stretched for miles, out in the open. Lucius had taken the small Felix on his back after the boy's feet had gotten sore. "Or to life." Lucius said. "Don't be so pessimistic." They were caught off guard by two cannon sounds. Tax and Atala could be seen at the Cornucopia with two bodies. "Shit." Lucius whispered. They came to a standstill and waited until the hovercraft picked up the bodies and Tax and Atala were gone.

"We're on a safe distance, now go." Eden said. They walked further until they reached the Cornucopia. They grabbed a few water bottles and some food; enough for the next two days. As Effie packed the bottles in her backpack, her eyes shot up at every little sound that could mean danger. Her ears weren't lying to her. Atala came up behind Lucius and Felix. "Watch out!" Effie shrieked. Lucius turned around and dodged Atala's axe. Felix immediately hid behind Octavia. Atala now made a go for Effie. She manoeuvred around Eden, grabbed Effie by the collar and pushed her against the Cornucopia, axe on her throat. "You bitch." Atala spat and grabbed Effie's throat, squeezing the air out of her, making it even harder for her to fight back.

Effie began wondering why they all wanted her dead. What had she done wrong? Her eyes grew wide at the realization; the Rebellion. The Capitolians considered her as a rebel. Truth was, Effie knew neither side wanted her. She didn't belong anywhere. She pushed against Atala's chest with all the power she possessed in order to break free from her death grip. Atala's deep brown eyes bore into Effie's bright blue ones with so much fury, Effie believed she'd never been more terrified. "Sleep tight, traitor." Atala sneered. Effie was about to give up when Lucius dragged Atala away from her, receiving a blow from the axe in the process. Lucius managed to twist her neck in such a way, that it was lethal. The cannon sounded. Effie fell to her knees, gasping for air. She heard Eden yell that they should keep an eye out for Tax.

Effie heard someone coughing and gasping for air. It was Lucius. He was lying in the grass, desperately trying to stop the wound in his stomach from bleeding. "Lucius!" Effie's voice sounded raw. She crawled to his side. "Lucius, don't die on me!" she coughed. "You saved my life!" Octavia sat down next to Effie and held Lucius hand. "We need you." Octavia said. Effie looked her in the eyes. "I'm getting help." She said. "No…" Lucius said. "Stay with me." Effie cringed and averted her eyes, biting down on her bottom lip. Eden came up to them with Felix. "What in the world happened?" He didn't need an answer, as he saw Lucius on the ground, the bloodstain in his shirt quickly getting bigger. Life was seeping out of him, literally. Effie pursed her lips, thinking deeply, and then leaned in to place a soft kiss on Lucius' lips. She felt Lucius smiling softly before she felt his last breath against her lips and heard the familiar sound of a cannon.

Octavia let go of Lucius' hand and put an arm around Effie's shoulder. Felix sat down next to them. They waited there until a hovercraft took Lucius' body away. How many tributes had died already? Twelve? She didn't want to know. This was sickening. "Let's go." Eden said. Effie nodded and stood up with Felix and Octavia, then they headed back into the woods. The next few days passed by without many problems. Five more tributes died; whether they were killed by other tributes, lack of hydration -it hadn't rained in days-, mutts or poisoned plants. Fortunately, Effie, Eden, Octavia and Felix were still alive. Alive and starving, by now. Hiding out in the woods. Peeta had sent them some bread, but it wasn't enough.

Haymitch sat on the sofa in the viewing room, watching Effie sleep. Katniss came up to him, hiding something behind her back. "Hey, Haymitch." she said, and sat down on the sofa. "I got something that might cheer you up a bit." She revealed the object she had held behind her back; Effie's golden wig. Haymitch smiled at it. "We're a team, aren't we?" Katniss said. She put the wig on Haymitch's head and burst out laughing. "You look great, darling!" Katniss laughed, trying to imitate Effie's accent. Haymitch grinned and took the wig off his head. "You know, Katniss.." he began, and took a deep breath. "I think I miss her." Katniss nodded in understanding. "So do I." Haymitch shook his head and put the wig down on the coffee table. "You don't miss her the way I do." Katniss raised her eyebrows. "What do you mean?" Haymitch pursed his lips. He wasn't used to having conversations like this. "I..." he bit his lip, deep in thought. "I love her, that is."

Katniss grinned and then averted her eyes. Since when was the floor so interesting? "Yeah, we saw that." Haymitch furrowed his eyebrows and opened his mouth to speak, but Katniss interrupted him. "We brought you the soup." She decided to tease him a little bit. "Too bad you didn't have any time to eat it." Haymitch grabbed the wig and threw it in her face teasingly. "We'll never talk about it again." "Thank you." Katniss agreed. "So… how's your job in the control room?" "Hard." Haymitch admitted. "If I'm not extremely careful, she's dead." Katniss pursed her lips. "I don't think she is her own priority. She wants to get the boy out. You know, Felix." "-and Eden and Octavia." Haymitch finished her sentence. "Sweetheart, Effie wants everybody out."

He was as right as he could be. As wounded and starving as she was, she wanted to protect the others. Knowing deep inside that she didn't have the power to do so. Every night she stared at the pictures in the sky, knowing that there were only six tributes left. Four of them were here. No one had been killed in the past two days, so she knew the gamemakers would come up with something sooner or later. Effie dreamed about Haymitch. Damn she missed him. She missed his protective arms around her, his cranky mood in the morning, even the smell of liquor. Oh, how badly she wanted to find a way to contact him. But she knew she couldn't say anything. All eyes were on her. Haymitch could get into serious trouble.

The next morning Octavia was feeling ill. She had a high fever and was rambling on and on about things Effie didn't understand. "I'm so hungry…" she kept saying. "I'm so thirsty..." They had given her the blanket to keep her warm, but the problem was; they didn't have food, nor did they have water. Eden went out to find something to eat and Felix was still sleeping peacefully. Effie kept praying for rain, and surprisingly, it came. "Oh my goodness!" Effie stood up from the ground when she felt a drop of water on her hand. Octavia hid her head under the blanket. "I'm so cold." she mumbled. "Wait here, Octavia." Effie answered. "I'm going to bring you water." She ran to an open spot in the woods, grabbed a bottle from her backpack and filled it with rainwater. When she came back, she dropped the bottle immediately. "Octavia don't eat that!" she cried out.