Retta Coppen/D7F/17:

I've been wandering aimlessly in the dense forest for ages and I know that I need food immediately. My stomach has been making very unusual sounds and I feel dizzy. Even water would do. I never expected for Maddie to kill Jean like that. It was so unexpected. They could have been stalking us for hours, waiting for the time to come. But it looks like I'm on my own now.

I hear cranks and screeches, almost like I'm in a factory. I scan the wooded area to see nothing, not even any animals. Something is up.. The screeches suddenly get loud and I have to cover my ears from the noise. I look up into the night sky to see the one particular artificial cloud beginning to sway. At the bottom of the flat cardboard box, two small flaps swing open and I see something fall straight out. Then I notice that it's going to hit me.

I take a few steps back, knowing the spot that it's going to hit on the ground, and I see what it is. It's definitely not a sponsor item, nor any sort of item. Just as he's about to hit the ground, the rope tied through his stomach and leading up through the trap door jerks to a stop, leaving him dangling a few feet above the ground. It's Jean.

I let out a gasp as I see the stained rope begin to drip of blood. His arms hanging, his expressionless face with his eyes closed; this is a horrific sight. I try to back away from the floating body, but I still try to remain a close enough distance to see him. I always hated Jean, but even this is cruel. He got pushed out the window to his doom, and this is how they treat him.

What's the point of this? To taunt me? To show that they're in control? No matter what the answer is, it shouldn't have led to this. My thoughts are interrupted when I see the rope beginning to move, bouncing and flailing him around in the air. I watch in horror as every jump of the rope sends him a bit into the air and back down, a horrible squelching sound of guts follows each time. He almost looks like a puppet...

I clasp my hands around my mouth before I start to scream, but the rope is almost instantly reeled back up into the cloud and he disappears inside, the trap doors shutting behind him.

I walk over to the space where he was floating and I wipe the tears from my eyes, making the pool of blood more clear now. I'm not one to cry, I guess that confirms that I do have a heart. Somewhat.

The walk through the woods helps clear my brain of all the horrible thoughts. Anytime Jean pops back into my head, I pinch myself for good measure. Am I the weakest of the bunch? Is that why they did it to me? By the time I'm stable again, my arms are covered in small red marks from the pain I inflicted to myself.

This only makes me even more determined to win. If I get out, I'll finally have a normal life. I'll be free. And once I'm free, I won't hold back on trash talking publicly to the Capitol, even if there's consequences.

Roscoe Tarpan/D10M/17:

"Retta will surely die out there on her own," explains Maddie. "Are you sure?", I ask, clearly disagreeing with her, "She seems pretty tough and determined. I wouldn't be surprised if she kills every single one of us." Maddie turns and stares at me with her devilish brown eyes. "She will die!".

"Smoke," I whisper as I point at the grey ash puffing out over the treetops. Maddie is finally quiet. "We don't have any weapons though," she whispers back. "I don't think we should go-"

"We're going!", she screams. "But as you just said, we don't have any weapons," I whisper. "I killed Jean without a weapon. I can do it again." Maddie and I creep through the woods, slowly getting closer towards the smoke. That's when I see a small, fairy tale-like cottage sitting out in a small clearing. "Don't get relieved yet," I whisper, "there could be someone inside."

We tiptoe over to the wooden door and slowly push it open. The dusty door creaks and a small mouse sprint out, runs between our feet, and then runs off into the woods. Maddie squeals but I cup my hand around her mouth. Then I pull back and whisper "Shush!". We slowly walk into the house to see a small wooden desk, a lit fire place full of logs, some sort of stove, a shelf filled with books and bottles of neon liquids and a bubbling cauldron.

"Be careful," I say, now loud and clear as Maddie stumbles over the bumpy surface. "This is almost like a fairy tale," I say. We walk over to the shelf and we both pick up a bottle each. "Should we drink some?", she asks. I look at her with utter shock. "Are you kidding me? It looks poisonous!". She slams the bottle back onto the shelf. "Fine. I was only asking."

We walk over to the active cauldron and we see a green gooey liquid inside, topped off with a mysterious smoke pouring out and onto the floor. "Don't even ask to try it," I say before Maddie gets the chance. We investigate the stove and find nothing, but then we both see two apples carefully placed in the middle of the wooden desk.

"These weren't here when we walked in," says Maddie. She's right. "It's only an apple. We can't get poisoned," she continues. She then picks up the two and puts one in my free hand. "We haven't had any sort of food since we were in the Capitol. We'll starve if we don't have something," she says. I stare at the apple in disbelief. She's not serious, is she? They weren't here when we walked in. Why is she going to eat one? It could be a trick.

She grabs the apple from my hand and takes a small bite out of it. "See," she says, sending out a few chunks of apple onto the floor, "perfectly safe." She puts the apple back into my hand and takes a bite out of her own. Then I hear an odd crunch. We make eye contact and I can tell from her bulging eyes that there's something wrong. Then the bright red apple skin crumbles off, revealing that it's actually black and shriveled.

She doesn't take the apple out of her mouth, instead she remains frozen, all but her eyes that continue to roam around. Her face begins to turn purple and she falls straight to the ground, pulling me down too. I smack my face on the uneven stone flooring and I immediately scream Maddie's name. I get up on my knees and I pull up her head from the ground. I see that her face is completely purple and then I hear the cannon. She's gone.

I lift her up onto the wooden table and I continue calling out her name. "Maddie! Wake up!", I scream. I refuse to let her go just yet. "Maddie!". I see a glistening gold key drop down from a hatch on the roof and land on her stomach. I pull it from her body and I read the white card tied to it. "One was good, one was bad. But there's more still to come, don't get sad."

This can't be happening. I know exactly what's going on. I don't even need to see what else lurks in this arena to know what it's based on. The thorn Cornucopia, the tower and the long golden hair, and now the poisoned apple; the arena is a twisted fairy tale, but only one can live and get out. Only one will get their happily ever after.

So, the truth has been revealed... This is all an evil fairy tale! What do you guys think of the poisoned apple? I thought it was a pretty interesting way to die considering the theme. I really hope that you enjoyed this chapter, and if you did, please favorite, follow and review the story! I've made another new poll because another tribute has died, and you BETTER VOTE OR YOU SHALL ALL DIE MWUAHAHA. You can vote three times.

Poor poor Maddie... Another one bites the dust! Stay tuned for the next chapter! Who will live? Who will die? What is next in this fairy tale arena?! You have to read to find out! And now for my signature sign off: Thank you so much for reading, byeeeeeee :)