Adron.

In the morning, the bird call came again. It drove me east, I knew that, but apart from that, I was just focused of keeping away from the call. I was cut up about Jolissa, and running in fear and the mix was not pleasant in my mind. It pursued me, keeping up its piercing call ringing in my eardrums, keeping my feet splashing through the water. I swung a left, and it was suddenly right in front of my, calling from right round the corner. I skidded to a stop, and it came again, closer.

I was filled with a sudden anger. Why shouldn't I go left if I wanted to? Why should I be herded by this creatures cry? I continued forwards, and the call become louder, more intense. I gritted my teeth and continued on.

This is foolish. If you meet this mutt, and it kills you, that Jolissa would have died in vain. I told myself. I wanted to go back, but it was too late now, the creature's call were coming from just behind a tree up ahead. A small sparrow hopped out from behind the bushes. It jumped onto a branch, opened it's mouth and let out the fearful noise.

I was confused, but wary. Why would the Gamemakers make a little single bird sound so terrifying?

The bird gave one last cry and flew off. That was it. I was free from the noise, free to wander wherever I dared.

It was mid-morning before I saw someone. It was the dark girl from District 11. She was limping, and looking distracted, glancing behind her in a worried sort of way. She was injured, I could see that, and that would make taking her out easier. Not very nice, but easier. She had made it this far, at least. I move silently through the reeds, getting closer and closer to the girl, and Jolissa popped up in my mind.

For you, I thought and leaped towards the girl, sword drawn. She didn't hear me, but started talking to someone behind her. I glanced at the person, wondering if it was the missing tribute, and lost the balance in my leap completely. I landed in the water, crashing in the mud and getting my jacket filthy inside and out.

Both of the girls in the area looked at me in surprise.

"Adron?" Said Jolissa.

I scrambled backwards, panicked.

"You're dead." I tell her, waving my sword in my direction.

This must be the Gamemakers pulling some sort of trick on me.

"No, she's not dimwit." Said the other girl.

"No, she is. I saw it. Yesterday, the guy from 5 speared her. I killed him. She's dead."

The girl from 9 started laughing. I glared at her.

"What's so funny?" I snarled.

"Sorry. It's not really funny, I guess. It's just that you must have seen Shanae get killed."

"Who's Shanare?" I say, anger ringing in my voice. I was recovering from my fall now, and starting to get up.

"Shanae. She's from District 9. She had similar features to your sister. Did you check her face?" she asked.

Confusion started building up in me, followed by memories. The district 9 girl behind up in the chariot rides, looking like Jolissa, her in training. The girl yesterday, with the same hair as Jolissa, but no, I had not checked her face. Could it really be-?

I collapsed into the mud and water again, a huge weight seeming t lift o gym shoulders. Jolissa was alive! I had not killed her!

Both her and the other girl came over to me and helped me up, placing me on a stray log.

"Jolissa." I said. She looked at me.

"I'm sorry for leaving you. I won't do it again." I said.

She nodded.

"It's ok. You didn't really do anything wrong, just followed the plan. You know, me dying. If I was surviving, I wouldn't have wanted to be the one to kill you either."

"I'm Cadalyn, by the way." The other girl broke in.

I looked at her.

"What are you doing with my sister?" I ask her.

"Huh. She was right about the vine in the face. Anyway, you sister save my life last night and I haven't been able to shake her off all morning."

Jolissa rolled her eyes.

"It's not like that-" She began.

"Whatever." I say. "At least you're alive."

"Didn't you see the tributes in the sky last night?" Cadalyn asked me.

"Whatever. I didn't want to look." I say.

Now that the situation is clear to me, I'm feeling rather stupid. Why didn't I check it was actually Jolissa? Why did I not look in the sky?

I made a face.

"Wow. I was stupid."

"You can say that again." Says Cadalyn. I glare at her. She shrugs, smiling. I relent in glaring, but do not return her friendliness.

Where on earth did Jolissa pick this one up?

"Right. Anyway, it's a good think we're together, because we're actually probably the only alliance left in the games, and the others are all careers, so we're probably going to have some trouble with them on our own."

"Why? You beat one at the Cornucopia." Said Cadalyn.

"He was an arrogant sod who let his big head get in the way of his senses. Besides, he didn't know I had a second weapon, so it's not like I took him out by skill." I reply.

She shrugs.

"You still beat him. That counts for something."

I shake my head and ignore her.

"Well, the day's still young. What do you say we do?"

We didn't do anything much, and apparently neither did the Careers, because about halfway through the evening, a voice rung out through the forest.

"Good evening, tributes. Well done for having survived so far! There are only six of you left now, and though the river seems to be moving a bit slow now, this is a warning that tomorrow, at about this time, something's going to happen. You'll see what it is then, but you may not want to. Happy Hunger Games!"

I closed my eyes. Usually when something like that was announced, it meant something that only one tribute would survive. We had one more day. One more day until the games were over.

That night, despite the splashing of the leeches, there was a sort of silence over us. We had set up camp in a grove of roots; a small, enclosed, but dry space that meant no climbing. I was scratched and tired, but Jolissa had a bad hip wound and Cadalyn had various bandages over her body, though I was not sure where she had got the wounds from.

It was dark, and there was only a sliver of moonlight shining through the tightly knit branches, woven into patterns over our little camp. It was quite soft under here because of all the moss and plants growing, and it trapped heat better than you would have thought. Jolissa went into a corner and soon fell asleep, her soft breathing filling our ears and ending the silence.

I looked to my side where a flicker of movement had caught my attention, but it was only Cadalyn, her face shining and beached in the silvery moonlight that had caught her face. She was looking out rather sadly. She turned, now facing where Jolissa was asleep in the dark.

She caught me staring at her a few moments later. A smile crossed her face, made almost eerie by the fact her face was half in the shadows now.

"She's a sweet kid." She told me. I nodded.

"Sweet doesn't usually make it this far into the games." She continued.

"Sweet doesn't usually win the games either, but that's my plan."

"What, you? Sorry, but 'sweet' isn't what I'd describe you as. Serious, Solo- Sexy, maybe. But not sweet." She said. I wasn't sure how to respond to that, so I just ignored it and carried on.

"No. Not me. I'm going to make her win."

Cadalyn looked at me, eyebrows raised.

"There's a reason sweet doesn't make it. She couldn't even leave me to die, let alone stab someone with a knife."

"I know. I'm going to get down to the last two, and then go into the alligator pit, or leeches, or something."

"Sound like I'm not going to make it that far." Cadalyn said.

I looked at her, serious.

"Don't you see, though? She's the only one left who can actually win the games. When you kill- When I've killed, you lose a bit of yourself. Something she still has. I thought I wanted to win this, but when I thought she was dead- well the only thing that kept me going was vengeance, and then when I found her- I didn't want her to die again. If I win, I'm always going to be riddled with guilt about the people I've killed, especially her, but if I let her win, I'll win too."

Cadalyn was silent for a bit after I had spoken, and when she did respond it was laden with sadness.

"That's a really sweet thing to do. I can see where you're coming from. You see, I would do that too, but I've got a kid back home. Not mine; my sister's and he's already lost one of his moms." She said. She was not meeting my eye, looking down. Her voice was trembling, and I caught a tear rolling down her cheek.

"I- I do wonder though." She said, her voice growing stronger. "What kind of mum I'd be. One who was more scared than him, one who had killed people? I wouldn't want a mum like that." She said.

"Hey, I'm not asking you to give up. I wouldn't do that to you." I told her. We both knew what I'd left unspoken; that I might be the one to bring her down.

"Here. I'll split with you tomorrow morning. We'll leave the outcome up to chance."

"You can keep the dagger she gave you." I said.

Cadalyn smiled.

"She just handed it right over." She said.

I snorted, and then stopped, realizing how loud I had been. I continued quieter.

"I knew it."

"Does she know?" Asked Cadalyn.

"Know what?"

"That you changed your mind about living."

I didn't respond.

"You're not going to tell her."

It wasn't a question.

"She would try and stop me. Maybe someday, if this is on camera, she'll realize that I was planning to all along. You hear that, Jo?" I say.

She stirs in her sleep, mumbling something.

We don't talk after that, but Cadalyn moves over until she's sitting beside me.

"One, or both of us is going to die tomorrow." She says, slipping her fingers though mine. They're soft and smooth, and warm my hands up.

"Do you mind snuggling with me?"

"No." I say, and she leans over and rests her head on my shoulder.

"Were you serious before? About thinking I'm sexy?" I ask her.

"Nope. You're the ugliest person I've ever met." She tells me. I smile in the dark, and unhook my finger to wrap my arm around her. She movers her head so it's on my chest.

A pang goes through me as I realize what she said before it true. One; or preferably in my case- both of us are going to be dead come this time tomorrow.

"I hope I don't have to kill you." I tell her.

"How romantic." She mutters back. I laugh, once quietly, and her smile catches a glimpse of moonlight.

We fall asleep like that, her head on my chest, my arm around her shoulder. The most comforting thing about it was that this was not Lori. Lori had never snuggled like this with me, peacefully and warmly. She was always sharp and demanding, or cold and complaining. Nothing about Cadalyn's softness on my chest was anything like Lori had ever been.

Before I slipped into a peaceful sleep, the thought crossed my mind that she may be watching us right now. That made me smile before I was falling into a deep, deceivingly comfortable. Not matter my mood before I slept, the people I had killed always came back to haunt me when I closed my eyes.