Day Three, Afternoon

Willow Horvat, District 11, 13

For a whole minute, the world was still.

I expected a reaction. I just kind of threw out one of the biggest secrets in the arena out in the open for the Capitol to eat up. I mean, this revelation was Final Eight worthy - it would undoubtedly ensure Delilah eventually died, too. I liked Delilah, but she had to die in order for me to live. Guilt and sickness built up inside me. I expected the dawn of silence, but I expected something to follow: something big, a cannon, a party. Something.

And it seemed as if nothing seemed to happen. We were surrounded by a stunned silence. Tear was unmoving, as if she didn't quite know what to say. Maybe there was a furore in the Capitol, but I wasn't quite there to witness it.

Eventually, Tear shrugged.

"Cool," she said.

"Y-You're not shocked, or surprised?" I said, scuttling after her as she walked away.

"Well yeah, I always thought something was shady about the Eleven boy," Tear said. "He - She - seemed way too badass to be someone dying with a heart defect," she shrugged. "But of all the things I suspected, the fact he was a she wasn't one of them. Yeah, I'm surprised. It just doesn't bother me much. I guess the thing I'm happiest about is you just whistleblew her big secret, the Capitol won't take kindly to her. It's definitely one competitor out the way."

"That's why I did it," I said, my voice feeling quiet.

"I understand. Still, you're brutal, that was done so quickly into the Games..." she chuckled, almost nervously. "Remind me not to trust you too much." She took another swig of water before stuffing the bottle into her backpack. "Still, feel bad for her family."

"So do I..." I said. "Y-You said it yourself, though, we have no other option but to do these bad things..."

"I don't mean because they've lost their daughter," Tear told me. We walked forward silently, I think she was trying to find a way to word her sentence: "I mean, you know, the Capitol isn't going to just kill Delilah and call it quits. They're going to be punished, too."

My heart lurched. I had to force myself to walk forwards in sync with Tear. I never quite thought of it like that... I knew I had to kill people, I took action to get rid of Delilah. I'd never stopped and thought about how it would affect her family. They would definitely be executed, or at least one of them would. That was really awful. I wasn't killing one person, my words expanded outside the arena.

Delilah, as Nate, told me he had a sister, mother and father. Which meant that there was a brother, mother and father back home. They'd all die, right? So the consequence of what I had done wouldn't kill one person. I'd have the blood of four people soaking my hands. Would I have really done all of that if I thought about the other people affected?

... Probably. Yes.

Tear seemed to sense something was up. I felt ill, glaring at the soily floor of the greenhouse.

"Hey, kid?" I glanced up at her. She smiled, a little sympathetically. "Don't feel bad about it. You're just doing what you have to do. I know I'd do it. We'd all do it, if we were in your shoes."

"I guess," I said, miserably.

We spent about another hour searching, nothing said between us. I was more determined to save Luke now than ever - I'd done my share of killing for today. If I helped someone, it'd make me feel a bit better. It'd tip the balance in favour of me again.

Tear was searching a table full of plotted plants, so deciding to make myself useful, I searched the one adjacent. I shoved away useless bluebells and more exotic flowers. I was still thinking about Lia. I thought she'd have died already. Wouldn't there have been an instant execution? Maybe not... She was a dead person walking, at least. I paused, glancing up and noticing it.

It was standing alone, which made me feel stupid because it was obviously designed to stand out. Tear happened to notice it at the same time as me. A modest, green looking flower, the label beneath it plated in gold and telling us all we needed to be told. It was the Hoven Flower. Behind it was a much larger flower, it wilted and kind of reminded me of a human jaw.

"I'll get it," I told Tear, moving towards it. Tear didn't react, I moved towards it and she was silent and still behind me. I turned, noticing she had paused in fear. I followed her gaze - it was directed to the greenhouse doors, the ones leading away from here. Ivy was beginning to creep around them. Its vines blocked the light from coming inside, and that was only in a split second. Nothing natural grew that fast.

"Willow..." Tear's tone shook, her breath was baited. "Run..."

This time, the whole world did seem to sprint into action. Desperately wanting to save Luke, I jumped forward and heard the sounds of vines slapping the floor where I once stood. I barely had time to notice they had tried to snag me. Tear also prepared to leap into motion, but some kind of projectile fired towards her and exploded into her face. The pollen spread around her and she remained motionless and frozen.

I screamed, not knowing if that meant she'd die or not. Another projectile was shot towards me. It soared above my head, smashing through the greenhouse wall. I realised that the terrifying looking plant I noticed earlier was the very thing firing these projectiles - and at the bottom, supporting it, was a forest of vines. The vines that blocked the door. The vines that were trying to catch me.

Tear looked around, dazed. The split second I spent observing her cost me my freedom - I felt one of the vines grip me around the ankles and pulled me to the ground. I screamed like a girl as I desperately tried to grab my hatchet. The vines seemed to grow longer and longer, wrapping themselves around my ankles and starting to weave around me like a cocoon.

I swung my hatchet at it, watching it easily split the thing in two. Another vine slithered towards me, but I ruthlessly cleaved it as well. I sprinted towards the Hoven Flower, tearing it out of the soil and watching the dirt leak from its roots as I unrooted it. I turned to run again, but something struck me in the head hard.

The pain was followed by the feeling of drowsiness. Pollen spread through the air like a smog, and I felt my muscles lock more intensely with every intake of breath. Though I couldn't turn to witness it, I heard my hatchet clatter on the floor uselessly along with the Hoven Flower. I froze, standing still uselessly and feeling vines snake around my ankles. I was pulled through the ground and dragged along the earthy floor. My mind was too hazy to acknowledge what was happening, but then I saw the plant open wide and terror flared inside me.

My paralysed face couldn't convey that terror, though. Whatever that plant could fire, it was some kind of paralytic. Whoever inhaled it would be unable to move.

The plants' petals eagerly unfolded. The vines were strong enough to lift me about a meter in the air. Like a cow being shipped off to an abattoir, I hung, feeling myself swing a little before it stuffed me into itself; within the flower was a gaping hole, and I didn't want to know what was underneath.

I was too chubby to be fully forced inside, but my head saw the stomach of the flower - it was just green tissue lumped together. But I managed to scream when I saw the liquidy contents and the human skulls and bones within, all slowly dissolving in stomach acid. The feeling suddenly returned and I kicked my legs desperately, thrashing and screaming as the plant struggled to force me into its acidic stomach. I didn't want to be eaten by a plant! I didn't want to join all those bones! I continued kicking and screaming, tears leaking out of my eyes.

And then the plant gave a shriek, or something similar to a shriek.. The edge of a blade slit through the plants stomach, freezing before it rammed into my face. My eyes opened wide with fear and I felt the vines around my legs relax. The blade was yanked out of the plant and I felt someone tug on my legs. Fresh air hit me face as I slumped against the floor, looking into Tear's eyes. She seemed uninjured, looking as strong as ever with a blade in each hand and a graveyard of dead vines behind her.

The large plant that had tried to kill us slumped onto the floor, knocking pots away. They all smashed, bathing in acid that seeped out of the plants' torn up greenery. I was gasping for air.

"What was that that hit me?" Tear asked, confused.

"Something paralysing. Must've been short term," I asked, scanning the floor for my hatchet and Luke's antidote - they both lay next to each other and I crawled towards them. My dress, or the remainder of it, was smeared with dirt.

"Wasn't anything too bad," Tear sighed. I didn't agree. "Lets get out of here pronto, before some other freaky plant tries to kill us."

Iopian Endovnier, District 11 Victor

My eyes immediately pulled away from the screen as a dirt-smeared Willow and Tear forced their way out of the greenhouses. Willow had almost died and that was in itself a minor heart attack, but she had a strong ally. Once the paralysis faded from Tear she fought the plant like a warrior, and easily won. But Willow was safe, thank god.

But still... damn you Willow. Damn you.

I told her to do whatever she had to do in order to survive - but I was not expecting that. I didn't even know she knew Delilah was... Delilah. While this was a bad thing, and I needed to ensure Delilah's family had gotten away like I planned, there were small benefits. Lia would die, but the sponsor money I was getting was tremendous. Some of it was sympathy money for Lia, some of it was money sent by people who were now convinced Willow had a chance. It was pretty amazing.

Cameras didn't just show the Hunger Games - outside, in the Capitol streets, there was more commotion than in the arena. People were celebrating. One-hundred had been arrested for misconduct after the massive revelations.

"Do you think this could be the best Hunger Games since the Victor Games?" A woman with a microphone asked a man, who was visibly drunk.

"Hell yes! It's already the best! I am loving it!" He tore his shirt off, wrapping it around his head and running around like a headless chicken. He was shrieking something pro-Capitol. It would be amusing, but it was more disturbing, especially since I knew the media and my fellow mentors and escorts' eyes were all on me. Beside me, Lillian McNicks was looking at me like I was a freak of nature. Luster, as usual, was nowhere to be seen.

With this money, I could spoinsor Willow something. But what? She was well equipped. Maybe I could build up all my funds. That seemed reasonable enough. As well as basically executing Lia, Willow ensured that whatever penny of sponsor money we got was claimed by her. After all, this revelation automatically meant that she had the higher chance of winning. Lia was on screen, unaware that the whole Capitol knew as she walked around aimlessly with Lexie.

They were both virtually weaponless. Maybe I could help in some way...

I picked up the phone. "Enarife?"

"Iopian! I was hoping to hear your voice! Now, we're good friends and I just wanted to know a little bit about this big surprise..."

"No comment," I mumbled. "But please, ensure Delilah gets a collection of throwing knives. I checked the price list, they're about a million credits, I have nine million."

"Delilah? Iopian, dear, are you sure you want to-"

"I said sponsor it to her," I growled.

"Oh... Oh... Okay. Do you want to sponsor a note to accompany it. Fifty-thousand credits a word?"

"Yeah."

"What do you want it to say?"

"Sorry."

"I said 'What do you want'-"

"Sorry, Enarife. Make sure it says sorry."

I hung the phone up back onto the line, watching the digits on the screen in front of me dwindle. That made sure I smiled a little. With knives, Lia could probably do a little bit better. I didn't feel too guilty about spending a bit of money on her anyway, as the sponsor money I had spent was already beginning to replenish itself.

Knowing it was time, but feeling sick at the prospect of hearing the news, I stood up and made my way out of the room. As I exited, Jynx entered, holding a glass of champagne.

"Shouldn't you be protecting your tributes, and not drinking?" I said resentfully to her as I passed.

"At least my tributes will survive, following Capitol rules and all," I froze in fury, turning around. I always had a rivalry with Jynx, but it was moments like this where I realised how disgusting a human being she was. She insprected her purple coloured nails, grinning. "Don't be sad, Iopian! Delilah will die, but my god, she'll be memorable."

"I have to go," I said bitterly, turning.

"Why? Going behind the Capitol's back?" I turned around, facing Jynx again. I intended to shout something nasty, but I saw that her features had softened slightly. I think I even saw sympathy as she glanced at me. "You won't be long, right? If you want, I'll keep an eye out on your tributes. I don't really have anything else to do."

"Yeah. That'd be appreciated," I smiled lightly.

After squeezing myself into an elevator of excited paparazzi and threatening to sue them if they followed me, I made my way out of the underground Gamemaker laboratories and far up, where the deolated District Eleven District quarters used to be. The corridor was dead and empty, nice and clean thanks to hard working Avoxes. I rushed down it, rushing into the debugged living quarters. I made my way towards one of the draws, forcing it open and taking out a small cellular phone.

Rebel groups had ensured there were alternative signals that we could use to communicate away from government surveillance. I personally ensured I was one of the few that had access to this. I dialled in a familiar number, hearing the bleeping of a line a few times before a familiar voice come through:

"Iopian?"

"Hey Amphitrite. Don't worry, we're not bugged."

"Oh, I wanted to get in tough, didn't know how though..." She sounded hesitant. "They're here. We shipped the Fauves from District Eleven to District Four yesterday because we suspected the secret services already knew that they'd been conned, they had to stay under tonnes of fruit though. We bribed a lot of people, we shot a Peacekeeper who saw us take them away in District Eleven, but they're here and safe. How's Delilah?"

"Not safe at all," I said. "Glad they're safe, are you giving them a new identity?"

"It'll take a shit load of bribery but eventually, yeah," she said. That was the end of our conversation; in the Capitol, you didn't have much time to talk. I wished her farewell quickly and then clicked a button, ending the phone call. I stood there in silence, trying to comprehend how this was all happening. Willow exposed Lia. Lia was going to die. But I had completed my promise; I saved her family.

"Who were you on the phone to?"

I turned around to face Tobias, who was draped in his famous golden robes. His face seemed stern. I kind of liked Tobias; he was alright as far as Gamemakers go, but I knew he was the President's puppet too. In the Capitol, everyone was. Every movement he made was probably ordered from the President.

"Family," I said, a little coldly. "I miss them."

"I miss mine too," Tobias said. "But we have duties to fulfill while we're here, Iopian."

"Yeah," I cleared my throat. "Sorry." I wondered what he was doing here.

As if to answer my question, Tobias spoke up. "So Nathan Fauve isn't a Nathan at all, right? Delilah..." He stepped through the threshold, deep in thought. "Pretty name." His eyes trailed up towards me. "Nobody has ever gone into the Games pretending to be a different gender before... in the one hundred and ninetieth Games, someone came in and pretended to be his twin brother, and that stirred up a storm and got them both killed. But that wasn't as dramatic... Wonder how she did it... All those stylists... all those moments she could have been caught. Making it to day three uncaught is a pretty good attempt, I must say."

"Did you know all this time?" I said.

"No," Tobias paused. "Maybe those higher up-" I didn't know there was a higher up than Tobias, but the Capitol had an extremely deadly spy agency. "-Maybe they knew. But I didn't. Did you?"

"No," I lied.

"Then you have nothing to worry about," Tobias said. "But Iopian... the consequences of this whole thing... It's exciting for the audience but it gives off a vibe of.,.. defiance." His eyes glanced deeply into mine. "You do know this has massive political implications?"

"Count your lucky stars. You're not a politician."

"In Panem, everyone is a politician in some way or another."

I turned around. Checkmate on Tobias' behalf. "I can't say what will happen, Iopian. We'll be fine, I suppose, but people in the Capitol are being arrested left, right and centre. I don't know, I have a bad feeling about this. I just came to you to say that if you have anything to say, it's best said now to clear the air..."

"Will Lia die?"

"Eventually... But not straight away. As I said, this is the drama of the century. We're going to milk it as much as possible."

"Then I have nothing to say," I was glancing at a picture hung up on the wall. It was an old painting, about two hundred years old, a depiction of the Districts all happily bowing around a smiling, giant President. This giant was looking overjoyed, holding out handfuls of food for them to enjoy. My eyes were locked on it for a while. I heard Tobias leave, but halted him. "And Tobias?"

"Yeah?"

"I've won the Hunger Games before..." I paused. "Almost four years ago... Almost... Feels like yesterday," I sighed. "I know how to play the Games, Harte. And you may construct them, but I can play a game. And you can't." I turned and faced him. "So don't play nice Gamemaker. You're not on the nice side. Your very thickly veiled threats don't mean anything to me. I don't want anything to do with the Delilah Fauve drama, it happened, so just kill her and forget it. But don't try pointing very subtle fingers. Because, if I have to, I'll break them."

Tobias glanced at me once. I didn't know if it was sympathy or anger. Without a word, he left. I was alone. And I had no idea what I was going to do now... Maybe I'd just need to accept this was another year where I'd have to see two kids I'd grown to care about die.

Carlie Compton, District 10, 17

I was starting to grow paranoid. There hadn't been a death in three days - which was a lot. After short bloodbaths, they usually killed a new tributes by the first night, average bloodbaths garnered a death by day two. This was a big Bloodbath - I was expecting a death yesterday, but that didn't happen. That meant that somebody had to die soon... What if it was me? The feeling of worry coursed around me, inducing erraticness. Sebastian was out, trying to see if he could hunt any animals so we didn't take from the short stock of food we had, so it was just me and Trojan alone and vulnerable.

I didn't know what I felt about Trojan, too. He was tied up there and silent all this time. I hoped I could manipulate him somehow, but he was so unresponsive I was beginning to doubt it. Looked like I couldn't use him to get Seb's gun off him like I planned. He was skilled, but what use was he tied up? I began pacing the room, going around the circular perimeter over and over again.

Across the room, I heard Trojan speak.

"Something up?"

I was so shocked. He couldn't have spoke? But his voice echoed around the room. He definitely asked me if something was up. Seeing that is the opportunity of the year, I moved towards Trojan and sat on the piano stool I had thrown at his head only yesterday.

"Just worried for Seb," I said. "Day three... it's been so long without a death and he's just out there! I'm worryin'."

"He has a gun," Trojan said, deliberately not making any attempt at eye contact. "He'll be fine."

"Yeah..." I paused. I moved closer to Trojan, smiling sweetly at him. He seemed to reciprocate a little bit more. Hoping it would win his attention, I also put my hand on his thigh as I spoke close to him. "But, you see, not just am I scared for him. I'm scared of that gun. You'll never know it, but I saw Seb with Aurochs, he was our ally who died in the Bloodbath," I explained. "And Aurochs was the sweetest ally ever, but, y'see, Seb was jealous of Aurochs. Aurochs was stronger, more handsome," I sighed. "There was just this weird power play. I saw Seb in the Bloodbath. He tripped Aurochs up, made sure Aurochs never got out of there alive. And since I saw that, I don't trust him."

"Seb doesn't seem that way." I wondered if Trojan could ever speak a sentence which possessed more than five letters.

"No, he's a good actor," I started feeling nervous again. I knew Seb was the sweetest, most lovely guy I'd ever met. If we met in other circumstances, he could be like the brother I never had. But I had to do this. I had to make sure Seb and Trojan both died so I could survive. I knew that if I had a gun my chances of winning would increase by a tonne. "He... Just... He knows that his facade can win people over, but don't trust him for a minute. Not to mention the Gamemakers will throw us into disaster unless there's blood!" I went to hold Trojan's hands, before I realised they were tied. "And you could be free! Isn't that what you want?"

Trojan smiled warmly at me. I smiled back, excitedly.

"So..." Trojan said. "Does he know you're a backstabbing, manipulative bitch?"

Shock contorted my face. "Sorry?"

"You're talking about how he's this actor, but y'see, I can read people very well," Trojan looked me in the eyes for once with a triumphant grin. "I have a knack for working out the real from the fake. Seb is nice. Too nice. He'll die soon enough. But you... Maybe you're sweet, but this game is just one big soap opera to you, isn't it?" He sneered. "You're telling me he's the fake one because you want to convince me to kill him... I have to say... that is beautifully ironic."

I stood up, screaming. "Don't make me kill you!"

"How would you explain that all to Seb?"

"Say you tried to escape!"

"How would I have gotten out of these ropes?"

Paranoia and fear both gripped me. I kept Trojan, and he was threatening to ruin everything. I picked up the piano stool and before Trojan could react I smashed it over his head. The effect was immediate; he slammed down onto the floor, groaning. Screaming with rage, feeling tears slip down my face, I continued smacking the stool into his back, beating him continuously. Everytime Trojan almost leant back up, I'd send him back down into the floor.

Eventually, he lay there, bordering on unconsciousness.

"Seb won't see your bruises, don't think I broke anything either." I laughed, setting the stool onto the floor and sitting down. I glared at him. "I'm going to be real to you now, Trojan." He looked up at me; his face was untainted, though I'd bet by tomorrow his back would be painted a totally different shade. I sat down on the stool, looking down at him with fury. "You see, little District Three boy, I will be real with you. I have things back at home that I need to sort out. I have people I love more than the sun and moon. And I'm not letting anything get in my way, okay?"

"Whatever," he said, shaking as red-tinted saliva pooled out onto the floor beneath him.

I smirked.

Just in time, the large double doors opened. I turned around defensively, relieved to see Sebastian was there. His smile always seemed to lighten up the room, and he practically skipped in with his gun in one hand and with three dead chickens seized collectively ny the neck in the other. Much better than a killer Career.

"Oh wow, I didn't expect that!" I clapped excitedly. As if nothing had happened, Trojan had managed to slump himself against one of the columns again. He looked pained, but Seb didn't really spare him a look.

"Yep, all in the same courtyard," he frowned, introspecting for a second.

"What's up?"

"Before I entered the Games, I vowed to never eat meat," Seb admitted. "I... I love animals. A lot. Killing them hurt. I don't want to imagine what killing a human is like for one single second."

"But me and you, we'll do anything it takes to survive," I said, stroking my hand across his and smiling. Sebastian was useful, when I thought about it. And I did really like him. Assuming Trojan kept his mouth shut, maybe I could happily keep him around just that little bit longer.

Still, day three was ticking on...

And they'd want blood by the end of it.

Better Seb's than mine, right?

Magnus Carmine, District 5, 17

I didn't sleep last night.

Pain burned through my back as I staggered around the corridors, supplies hanging off my arm as I desperately searched for Leda. I had searched for a lifetime and she still wasn't there. Gamemakers did enjoy splitting allies up, and the result wasn't good. Usually, when allies decided to temporarily split up (or were forced to do so), they wouldn't meet each other again. Despite the tiredness that coursed through me, I staggered around frantically in search for Leda.

I opened a door and there she was. She was hiding, but Leda was really stupid at it. Her body was behind a blue curtain which was the same colour as her dress; it trailed down, caressing the floor. Her short stature and frizzy hair told me that it was her.

"How do you survive without me?" I rolled my eyes, closing the door behind me. Sadly, it didn't have a lock.

Leda swept the curtain away, giggling. "You know, believe it or not, I have my tricks." Her eyes met mine. "So how did you survive? That mutt seemed scary."

"It was. I have my tricks too. I also got a flashlight," I smiled. I staggered over to the bed, shocked at how weak I had become. I was still bleeding, and I was definitely drowsy. My body slumped, slamming into the warmth of the bed. Leda hurried towards me, looking extremely concerned.

"What the?" She saw the tears in my shirt and the red blood. "What the fuck happened?"

"The mutt decided it'd be fun to launch me through a glass door," I sighed, sitting up slightly.

"Well..." Leda smiled, opening what appeared to be a medicine kit. I didn't even know we had one. "That explains why your sponsors gave you a medical pack."

"Why did my sponsors give my gift to you?"

"Don't be asking silly questions," Leda said, rolling her eyes. "And take off your shirt. I have to patch you up."

I slipped off the jacket I had been wearing and proceeded to unbutton the stark orange shirt the Gamemakers had given me. As I let it slip to the floor, Leda opened the medical pack, sifting through supplies. She took one glance at my back and her eyes opened with shock upon seeing my injuries.

"What? Impressed by my muscles?" I smirked. When you were in prison and had nothing to do but workout, you kind of got quite big.

"Don't be stupid, I don't even like muscles anyway," Leda sighed. I felt a jab of pain. The first thing I noticed about Leda was that her hands felt cold and metallic as they roamed my back. Sharp stabs of pain shot through me as they pulled out small pieces of blood covered glass, letting them sprinkle onto the floor.

"Do you even like men?"

"No, not really," Leda said. "Truth be known, I don't really get crushes."

"So you just have no sexuality?" I said, skeptically.

"Yeah, you kind of learn to desensitise yourself when boys don't even look at you because they think you're annoying and ugly. My family love me, but back at the District I guess I don't really have friends."

I felt immense sympathy for Leda. I didn't know her life was like that.

"I like you," I said. I hoped that made her smile, though I couldn't see her. I winced as Leda slipped a particularly large piece of glass from between my flesh. "I didn't know you were good at first aid."

"In District Five, first aid training is compulsory in schools," Leda explained. Made sense, considering it had close ties to the science and pharmaceutical industries. "Most of my lessons were practical, because I wasn't deemed clever enough to learn maths and the like, so I spend most of my days learning how to clean ink stains or performing CPR on a dummy." She glanced at my back. "Your back is pretty torn up, but it won't stop you too much. Nothing I can't fix."

"Yeah..." I paused. "What is school like?" I never got to experience life outside like Leda did, so I guess I could get that information from her. I had always been isolated from society. My parents did it then, the government are doing it now.

"Oh, you know, dull as shit," she smiled. "But very close knit. People from other Districts always remark how beehive like Five is, because we all live together in the same apartments and stuff. Thought you'd know that even before prison, were you one of the richies who got a house to yourself?" I smiled lightly, not answering her question. "My school was only two floors below my apartment, and I went with all my neighbours, though some of them got taken to a school down the street because they'd shown exceptional ability or something."

Before I could speak, I let out a large, shocked cry. Pain spread through my back like fire, leaving me twitching as I felt liquid seep into all my wounds. It didn't subside, and lurked. It felt as if the flame continued to burn within me. Trying to keep my expression stable, I gripped tightly onto my legs and tried to not show any signs of weakness. I felt Leda begin to wrap bandages around me, looping them around my body casually as if she hadn't just put me under intense agony.

"You know, for someone who sounds so proud of his muscles, you're a bit of a baby," she said. "It was only disinfectant."

"Aren't you supposed to apply it with cotton or something, instead of just splashing it on me?" I snarled.

"Yeah. Too long, and that worked just as well, though a lot of it ended up on the bed, so I'll be sleeping in the room next door," she said, looping bandages around until they covered my whole stomach and the lower half of my back. She smiled, making sure they were stable. "There, done. You'll be much better now."

"Great," I smiled. "Thanks, Leda."

"No problem. It's nice to be a help for once. Do you need to sleep?"

"Yes."

"Oh, okay," she stood up and moved towards the doorway with a mischievous smile. "By the way, your sponsors decided that you could do with a bulletproof vest..." My eyes opened wide with shock. That would be a help in the arena. "But I took the liberty of wearing it!"

I couldn't muster the strength when I heard her rush out of the room, slamming next room's door behind her for all to hear. Leda had to be more careful. She also had to get used to the fact that we have to sleep closer together soon, considering that we had a bunch of Careers chasing after us and no one has died yet. But we'd be okay – we had a lot of sponsors, we had first aid, and now we had a bulletproof vest, which gave one of us an advantage over the gun wielders. Reassured and tired, I closed my eyes and drifted off silently.

Luke Diorite, District 12, 17

I was in the dining room when I heard it.

I was sitting down, staring at the blue, frothing poison that I had identified earlier. My thoughts had managed to clear, but I was almost obliterated on painkillers. I had time to reflect that my death was slowly approaching unless Willow and Tear got here fast. Blood was silently flowing out of my nose and onto my lap. Then I heard it.

It was a footstep; quiet and cunning, yet it had stepped on an unfortunately creaky floorboard right outside. I stiffened. What if it was Tear or Willow? But this was the Games. I couldn't be too sure. I paused before I called out for them, not wanting to give myself away. The footsteps trailed away from the dining room, probably following the trail of blood I had carelessly left to trail into the pantry. I had been more careful and continuously mopped up the blood that leaked from my orifices, leaving nasty stains all along my sleeve. Thankfully, it had left a false trail and bided me some time.

Knowing I didn't have a chance of running away from anybody, my eyes darted away from the tempting corridor and around the dining table. If I wasn't so clouded by the medication, I'd be terrified. This could mean that Tear and Willow would die if they came back and the person was still there. It could mean I could die. My life suddenly felt on the line, and there were so many ways to push me off said line. My heart slowly started to beat faster as I realised the dining room I was in had very few hiding spaces. Eventually, I settled on an amateur hiding spot, sliding myself under the table.

A few seconds later, clear footsteps filled the room. I saw the feet; blue heeled shoes. There was dark trailing hair and whenever the person walked, a set of knives would jingle musically on her hips. I knew for certain it was the Two girl. Shit. Suddenly fear started to fill me. Having tributes come here was bad enough, but Careers? I knew that I had to wait for the Careers to leave and hope they weren't lingering around, or get out of here fast and stop Tear and Willow before they basically wandered into a trap.

I gripped onto my heart, which seemed to beat fast. Though I barely felt pain, a sense of tiredness also nagged in the back of my mind whilst blood started flowing out of my nose and mouth heavily, leaving the nasty taste of iron on my tongue. This was getting bad. It felt as if everything was collapsing around me.

Thankfully, the Two girl left the room, not even checking under the table. Had the Careers split up? Where were the others? Did they cleverly decide to scatter themselves around the palace, or did the deal end early? I barely had any time to ponder. The Two girl seemed to meet up with someone in the corridor outside, as I heard another male voice - I think I recognised it as the One boy's. Their voices chattered quickly and somewhat tensely, fading as they apparently walked down the corridor.

I meekly curled into a ball, blood forming a tiny puddle around me. That was a lucky escape, but I still felt unsure. It was almost as if Tear and Willow could walk into the Careers any second. I had almost forgotten they were a threat.

I waited around for a good ten minutes, noticing how pale I had gotten, probably out of blood loss. I eventually found the courage to slide out from my hiding spot, peering out into the corridor where the two Careers had been earlier. There seemed to be nobody there. The coast was clear.

I sucked in as much breath as I could, my knees feeling weak as I made my way across the corridor and into the kitchen. I needed to get a knife, some kind of weapon, and hang around the doorways. I think the Careers had left, but if they hadn't if I took them by surprised and stabbed their throats open, I could maybe whittle them down one by one. After all, they were obviously scattered. Trying to be as subtle as possible, I made my way through the kitchen doorway, barely having time to react when two large hands gripped me by my shirt.

I fought, but my attacker was ten times stronger. I kicked and screamed as I felt my feet being lifted off the ground, my back being shoved harshly against the wall.

"Ah, I thought I smelt a rat," the glinting eyes of the Four girl pierced mine directly. She looked ecstatic. My breath seemed to have frozen. "Didn't I say stealth was key, Jericho?"

She was extremely tall - I was average male height and Honora still towered over me. The Two boy with her, Jericho, looked almost as bulky and scary though.

"Yeah," he said, almost meekly.

"I have been waiting a long, long time for this," we were beside a kitchen counter. I cursed myself for being so stupid; they were probably expecting me, considering Honora had left a knife, a terrifying axe and a pistol on the counter besides us. Honora eventually managed to settle on the pistol. She brushed it against my jaw excitedly. "I've been thirsting for death, I finally get it." I glared at her silently, not showing any sign of weakness. "I don't think the Gamemakers really needed me to do anything. What happened to you, Twelve? A little accident?"

"No," I finally said. "This-"

I coughed into her face, making sure that the blood splattered into her eyes. Honora stepped back slightly, shocked. I felt my body plummet as her grip relaxed, gripping the knife and trying to shove it into her chest. It buried into her chest, but I didn't feel flesh or blood, only something sturdy. As I held in a scream, Jericho launched towards me like a juggernaut and him, Honora and I ended our struggle on the floor as his force sent all of sprawling. Numbed from the pain by strong painkillers, I clumsily managed to get myself to my feet before the other two.

For a microsecond, I considered grabbing for the gun in Honora's hand. Instead, I sped out of the doorway, turning a sharp corner and grabbing for any doors. Most of them were locked.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," I said to myself. The Careers should be chasing me by now. Where were they? I continued running, slowed by a creeping sense of pain and tiredness. Eventually, I opened the wooden door that led to the basement where we found Willow earlier. I rushed into the room, shoving the door behind me and twisting the lock.

As I rushed down the small set of wooden stairs, the first thing I realised about the room was how cold it was. I previously felt hot and sweaty, but my condensed breath now made me feel different. The sweat that coated me almost threatened to freeze over. I did a quick scan of the room - nothing had changed. There was the snapped dumbwaiter which led up to the kitchens. Could've been a mode of escaping, but I was too big for it anyway. There was nothing else besides stone walls, floors and a ceiling, many barrels of ale and shelves which were stacked with wine bottles.

Hiding was the only thing I could do. But I was so dead, wasn't I? I wish I had a way of telling Tear and Willow to stay away. I wish I didn't go into the kitchen, into their trap. They had spread out rather cleverly. A million thoughts rushed through my mind as I searched for somewhere to hide desperately, considering hiding behind the beer barrel. Eventually, I settled on tucking myself behind a shelf full of red wine. If a Career searched for me, I could hopefully shove the shelf onto them.

"Peek-a-boo!" A malicious voice said behind me.

I barely had time to react, but I felt arms try to wrap themselves around my neck. Whoever it was, I was stronger, despite my sickness. I forced my body back desperately, hearing a silver knife clatter to the stone floor as I smashed the District One boy, Pullox, into the shelf of wine. Glass smashed around him and he slumped, barely having time to react as I tilted the shelf and watched numerous wine bottles rain on him. I had to get out of here. My time was running out, and the noise I made obviously told the other Careers where I was.

The sound of smashed wine bottles ringing through my ears, I barely had time to look at the groaning One boy before I darted across the room and rushed up the stairs. I was way too slow and sick to run away, but what other options did I have? I desperately fiddled with the lock to the door, shoving it open and preparing to burst out of the room.

However, I only managed to get a glimpse of an axe swinging in my direction.

Lorelei Draven, District 2, 17

Honora was about to burst through the door when, coincidentally, it opened for her. As soon as she saw the Twelve boy, his olive, Seam skin drained of colour due to terror, she swung the axe in his direction harshly. The boy opened his mouth in shock, the axe slicing between his lips.

The aftermath was gruesome: his jaw and the body beneath immediately flopped down like a bag of meat, accompanied with a waterfall of blood that trickled down the stairs whilst his body tumbled. I watched with horror as it flowed and melded with the spilt rivers of wine on the opposite side of the room. Both fluids had thinly flooded the cellar as a cannon fired.

With horror, I looked at Honora, who was still holding the axe handle. My gaze trailed to the blade, which had pinned the upper half of the Twelve boy's face to the wall. Blood trickled down the wall and his eyes were opened wide in terror.

"Brilliant!" Honora said triumphantly, tearing the axe away and tilting it. The head (or three quarters of it) slipped to the floor, joining the rest of the corpse. "A kill! And an epic one! That's three kills for me now!"

I wanted to say anything, but something jolted in my stomach as horror filled me. I keeled over, turning away from the stench of death and feeling my stomach tighten in on itself violently as I vomited. This was all so wrong, all so brutal. I tried to remain standing as I felt my mouth and nostrils burn. As if nothing happened, I faced Honora again.

"Don't be a wuss," she scolded.

"It wasn't that, it was-" I lied. I almost told her it was morning sickness. I stared at Honora's face blankly for a second. "It was nothing."

"Hm," was all she had to say.

She withdrew a walkie talkie. I had suggested using them as a way to check on Pullox when we had split up, but Honora evolved it into a tactic; we knew someone was around the kitchen, because there were the crumbs above and there was a kitchen beneath. Clever to be where all the food was, right? We spread around the kitchen area and communicated with walkie talkies, eventually singling in and trapping the tribute so that there was certain death.

Honora and Jericho managed to snag him briefly, but somehow he had squeezed out of their clutches. She told Pullox and I to get him, but evidently Pullox had failed too. Jericho was searching the dining room and Honora and I both rushed towards the cellar after we heard some kind of commotion. That was when he had opened the door and literally ran into a swinging axe. A pretty grim ending, I have to admit.

"Jericho-" she said as static crackled. "Get out of the dining area, we got him. We're by the cellar."

"I heard the cannon."

"Yeah," Honora concluded, slipping the walkie talkie away. She stared into the damp cellar. "You okay, Pullox?"

Pullox seemed to appear out of the shadows so effortlessly. The way he could disappear at will seemed so terrifying. He wiped glass out of his hair and my mouth opened when I thought he was covered in blood; every inch of his white shirt was soaked and crimson. Even his hair was tinted red. But it was merely wine. Looks like his altercation didn't end well.

"I'll survive," Pullox said, trying to push anger out of his tone. "I didn't bargain to have such a big drink during the Games, though," he smiled after his attempt at humour. "How are you?"

"So and so," Honora shrugged, looking at the corpse. "He put up a fight. I know he had a high training score, but guys, we had a perfect strategy. What went wrong?"

I heard Jericho's heavy footsteps behind me.

"Just a stroke of bad luck," Jericho said. He smiled at me warmly, and I returned it. He looked a little sick, and considering the dining room stank of rotting food, I could understand why.

"I'll have to contest that," Pullox frowned. "A stroke of bad luck doesn't get a shelf of wine tipped on you. No doubt tomorrow will be painful for me."

Honora laughed at Pullox's misery. She seemed to have a knack for finding pain funny, something she and he shared in common. I didn't trust Pullox and I don't think I liked him either, but I didn't even know who the real Pullox was. I just knew he was as bloodthirsty as Honora, but he was a lot more fake about it.

"Next time, don't try to piggyback the victim," she said, intuitively knowing what went wrong. "I know you like messing with people just as much as I do, but we've both learnt a lesson today. Go for the kill immediately. Sharp and swift, okay?"

We all nodded. I knew that this was an alliance that would boil over, I knew this alliance would inevitably end in blood, but despite the clash of strong personalities, Honora's domineering presence and the constant hiccoughs that disrupted our plans, I had to admit we worked really well together. Too bad this alliance was on a very unpredictable timer.

... Sigh. This chapter was so brutal. Are you bloodthirsty fiends happy now?!

On another note, I'm asked quite often from people who speak other languages if they're allowed to translate it. The answer to that is simple: yeah, go ahead, just make sure my name is on it, especially if you're using it to make money. I don't know why I'm including this here because people will still read the 1st and 2nd fic and PM/review requests, but go ahead.

~Toxic

Capitol Commentator Question: When will the next death take place do you think? Who will it be?

Interview Question: I think we're safe enough to put spoilers in the review section now regarding the Mockingjay movie (part I). What did you all think? I really enjoyed it, I think it was actually better than the book, and Julianne Moore as President Coin? Ding ding ding.