Edited 1/10/15

Chapter 14

Katniss springs up into a sitting position, water droplets flying off of her hair. The forest seems to go into an eerie silence. The mockingjays' songs cease; there are no footsteps of small animals, nor is there wind rustling the leaves.

Standing up, she looks around franticly, hoping to see Cato walking towards her but with no such luck.

Time moves slowly as she rushes back into the cave for her bow and arrows. She hurriedly swings the sheath over her shoulder, knocking some arrows on the ground in the process. Sighing in frustration, she swipes the couple arrows off the cave floor and shoves them back in.

As much as she despised him for everything he is and is born into, she uncharacteristically needs him. He keeps her sane in this cage she has been locked in with other savage beasts. And although she still constantly thinks about how he could have been playing her the entire time, he saved her life more than once in this hellhole. If he wanted her dead she would have been by now. Right?

Climbing out of the cave as quickly as she can, she tries to find some footprints that might lead her to where he would be. She needs to know where he is. Even if he doesn't see saving her life means that she owes him, she sees it that way and would like to repay him as much as possible before his times runs out. She doesn't want a repeat of what happened between her and Peeta. She should have said something to him after he threw her the burnt bread but she didn't. Now there is nothing she could do to fix that. Maybe if she had just gone up to him and said thank you she wouldn't be feeling this guilty for his death that she couldn't prevent.

After a little bit of searching, she is sure she found his footprints heading off to the left of the cave. She begins to follow them on high alert. The forest has come back to life like nothing big had just happened. She may or may not have just lost her ally and the animals just go back to normal. These thought irk her more than it probably should.

She stops dead in her tracks when she hears some branches snap. Looking behind her, she tries to find the source of where the sound came from. Her eyes dart over every inch of the area around her. When she can't find an answer to her question, she skeptically writes it off as a small animal crawling around or some illusion her panicked brain made.

Slowly making her way back to following the footprints, she listens closely to her surroundings. At first there is nothing, but then more twigs snap and land in front of her. There is a small, quiet squeal followed by a thud. It took her another short moment to figure out that the squeal had come from the little girl from District 11.

She is staring up at Katniss with her big, frightened, chocolate eyes. Her hair is wild, curling together in a curly mess. Most of her skin is smudged with dirt. There are dark bags under her eyes. Her clothes are wrinkled and covered in mud. There is a small black pack hanging loosely on her shoulders. Katniss didn't spend much time around Rue during training, but it was easy to notice the pounds she has lost. She's sure she has dropped weight as well, but it is the hunger games after all. It's practically unheard of for anyone who makes it into the final eight to not change. Mentally and physically.

Katniss takes a step forward, holding her hands to let the girl from eleven know she meant no harm. Unfortunately, the little girl cowers backwards, not ready to take such risks.

"It's okay, Rue," Katniss entreats softly. "I promise not to hurt you." Apparently, this is the right thing to say, because when Katniss steps forward, Rue doesn't move back farther. Katniss bends down, smiling kind-heartedly for the first time in what seems like forever. Rue looks down at her lap shyly, unsure of how to react. Eventually, though, she reciprocates the gesture.

Katniss reaches out, then, with only a moment's hesitation, Rue grabs her outstretched hand. Her hand is warm, and Katniss holds it as if not to break the fragile thing. They are her leaves and without them she would die.

"He isn't dead, you know." Rue whispers as if not to startle Katniss. "It was the girl from five." She opens her mouth like she is going to say more, but then closes it again. Her statement reminds her of her sweet sister waiting for her back home. Prim always seems to know what's going on through her brain. Others weren't kidding when they said she was wiser than her years.

Katniss looks over at her, offering a smile of thanks but doesn't say anything. Although, she does wonder how she knew she was looking for "him".

"Come on, I have some food back at the cave we are staying at." Katniss can practically hear Gale screaming curses her direction. Being her best friend, he's probably already noticed the resemblance between her sister and Rue. She could literally be the end of her.

Rue stands up, but inhales a sharp breath when she takes a step.

"Are you alright?" Katniss asks worriedly. Rue is bent over, all of her weight pushed onto one leg. With eyes squeezed tight, she takes a few deep breaths.

"I'll be fine, it just hurts a bit." She puts on a brave face and begins to walk, limping only a little.

Great, Katniss thinks bitterly. She's already injured. No expert, but there probably isn't a medicine to mend a twisted ankle.

On the way back, Katniss keeps sneaking peaks at Rue. The whole in her chest has gotten smaller. It isn't filled, but it's enough to notice the difference. Rue reminds her of home, of Prim.

When they arrive at the cave, Cato is pacing in front of the mouth of the cave. His eyes find hers almost immediately. Sprinting over, he places his hands on her shoulders.

"Where were you?"

Taking a step back, she answers almost calmly, "I could ask you the same thing." All worry from before has been completely erased from her mind. The only emotion left is what seems to be resentment. He can leave whenever he pleases without telling her a thing while he thinks she like his pet of some sort. Ever since she her father died in that mine accident, she's taken care of not only herself but her mother and sister as well. She didn't need some guy she just met to boss her around all of a sudden.

His eyebrows go down into a scowl. The left side of his mouth twitches before he tensely opens his mouth. Then, his eyes move to watch something over her shoulders.

Katniss turns around to find a frightened Rue half standing behind a tree. Her tiny fingers grip the bark, and her eyes are watering up.

Turning back, Katniss crosses her arms over her chest. "I invited her into the alliance."

His piercing blue eyes seem to slash through her neck when she says this. "Well tell her to leave," he growls murderously. "It isn't like she can actually help us with anything. She'll only bring us down."

"Obviously she can do something. She survived this long, didn't she?" Katniss whispers back fervently. "So, no. I won't tell coerce her to leave."

"You can't save her! She isn't a stray you can pick off the streets and take care of. She has to die in order for one of us to win." Katniss notices how he says "us" instead of "me". At the moment, he isn't the arrogant beast that wants nothing more than to win; he is a considerate person who is willing to believe that someone else could actually win.

Katniss stares down at her feet, taking in a deep breath to calm her anger. Then, looking him in the eyes and says quietly but one-hundred percent serious, "I want her to stay. If you don't want her to be with us, then you can leave."

There is a tense moment where neither breathes nor moves a muscle. Their eyes are locked on each other's.

Cato takes another look at Rue. "Fine." He sends one last glare at the two girls before retreating back to the cave.