CHAPTER FOURTEEN
As I surface, I cough a little, but I continue on. I swim towards the shore and pull myself up, letting go of the strings of my hood. My clothes are wet, but the sun and the walking I am going to do will dry them off in no time. After walking for a little while, the heat becomes unbearable for me so I take off my jacket and tie it around my waist. I haven't had a chance to explore this part of the arena yet, and it really is beautiful. After half an hour of walking, I find what I am looking for, patches of fruit growing in beautiful green bushes. I am tempted to go and eat what looks to be a grape, but I make sure to open it and see its insides first. It's blood red, so it must be poisoned. I fling it away as far as I can, drink some water from my bottle, and continue walking. After fifteen minutes, I've managed to gather various nuts, as well as berries and fruit that I made sure to check for poisoning.
I am heading back when I hear a branch break. Uh-oh, this means trouble. I whip around, and I think of what to do. The fruit would leave a trail if I ran with it, the juices would spill. Plus the basket's pretty heavy and heavy weight might just turn me into dead weight. I only have one option: up. I scan my surroundings, and that's when I notice that I am standing in a somewhat empty field. I hear another branch crack, and my instincts tell me that they are about ten seconds away. I drop the basket and run to the trees that I see, which is about thirty yards, and then I climb up the tree in rocket speed, until I reach a fork in the tree where I shouldn't be noticed. As a precaution, I draw out three knives and calculate if the distance to the next tree. Thank goodness the trees interlay, so I should be able to jump from tree to tree without worry. So at least I can escape my pursuers. My pursuers! I completely forgot! I look down and see Sapphire coming into view, with her bow at hand. Luna notices my basket and runs toward it, giddy at the fact that food could be in it. She checks the food for poison then hands it around the group while the Careers all feast on the fruit I worked, and walked, so hard to collect. Part of me scolds myself for not bringing some fruit with me. I could be stuck here all night.
The Careers play around with their weapons, throwing them into trees and animals. Once I see Radius and the boy from One starting to pitch up a tent and make a campfire, I realize just how late it is. The sun is setting, I notice. I need to get out. Once dusk comes, the Careers will start hunting tributes, and I will surely be killed if I don't get out of here before dark. That leaves about thirty minutes to escape. I gulp. I'm going to have to waste one of my knives. I take it, and angle it at a way so that it will hit Sapphire, but she won't die. I promised myself I wouldn't kill, but as the Games rage on, I'm not so sure…but I have to hurt a tribute, and honestly, all the careers are stupid, aside from Sapphire, so if I hit her, she probably would take the attention of all the other Careers, and no one would try to find me. "I'm sorry," I whisper to myself and Sapphire before I take a deep breath and throw my knife. It hits the target. Sapphire shrieks and falls to the ground, and all the Careers gather around her and start panicking. This is my cue, I think, and I need to take it now, before Sapphire decides to try and hunt me down. I jump into the next tree, and then the next, with making minimal noise. I smile at my cleverness, but inside I feel guilty. I aimed that knife to hit Sapphire's ribs so one would break. It's not something I'm honestly proud of, but I guess I am doing whatever it takes to live. I promise myself that I will not kill, even if I have to die. All of a sudden Azalea's demise comes into my head, and I focus on jumping in the trees to take my mind off Azalea. I blink back a tear as I jump.
I reach the waterfall just after darkness settles in. I jump out of the tree, even further injuring my leg, and I give a sharp cry of pain. I then cover my mouth and run as fast as I can towards the waterfall. I stop, pull on my hood, and dive into the water. Once I surface, Annabelle sees me and screams while pulling me out of the water and hugging me. I smile weakly, and Claire runs toward me. "I thought you were just going out to collect fruit? What took you so long?" she says. "Let me get dry, then I'll tell you." I reply. I change into a spare pair of clothes, hang out my current clothes to dry, and then I tell them all that happened, start to finish. Annabelle is just shocked, and Claire shakes her head. "You are going to have to kill if you want to go home, you know….." Claire says, her gaze focused on the water falling. I sigh. She doesn't want to talk about it, and I know I don't want to hear it, but it is the truth….
…The anthem of Panem starts to play, and we end up looking at the Capitol seal the whole time, meaning that no tributes have died today. I smile inside, because no one had to die, but on the outside, I keep my face void of emotions. I know that people, including me, will have to die. I don't know who I want to win, and I think about who should, not who will, win, as I drift off to sleep.