Day Six: Mama

Part Two:

Head Gamemaker:

Lavender's POV:

"That was absolutely splendid," President Raven chimed over the telephone.

"I know, ratings have never been higher! Literally everyone was watching it! Not to mention the amount of people who are replaying it or observing the buildup to the event," I sang as my fingers flew across the keyboard.

Valhalla created Hunger Games history. The Capitol had seen an array of things, but exacting revenge by creating a lose-lose situation where the victim has to pick his, hypothetically speaking, poison. And then giving him the poison he didn't want.

It was pure brilliance.

However, it has seemed to backfire on her. Many of the females of the Capitol were in infatuated with the love triangle. That being said, everyone who loved Jordana hates Valhalla. Everyone who loves Asita is rooting for her even more vigorously.

Everyone who wanted Apollo with either Asita or Jordana, which is most of the Capitol, wants Valhalla's head on a pike. She ruined Apollo's chances for love, which ruins the Capitol's little soap opera. Ironically, by creating Hunger Games history, Valhalla has made herself the most unpopular tribute. All of her sponsors are gone and now she must survive these games on her own.

"I wish that the excitement could continue," Raven sighed, "but nothing would compare to what happened."

"A few things could still happen, but that will be the highlight of the day," I agreed.

"Well, to get back to my point, I just wanted to congratulate you on a job well done. I knew that you would be an amazing Head Gamemaker."

I rolled my eyes as I replied, "Thank you, President Raven."

Without any response, I heard the click of a phone and she was gone. I set my phone down and sighed. I was in my private office going through paperwork. I usually did not leave my post once the games began. In fact, I limited myself to two hours of sleep per day. It was possible with some chemical and medicinal help.

However, the President had called me and I also had to deal with some press. That being said, I could not handle both from the confines of the extremely public Control Room.

Instead of returning to my post, however, I took a minute to relax. Although I loved my job, during the actual games I never had time to think. By think, I mean think thoughts that didn't involve death and destruction. Despite what people said about me, I wasn't crazy. Did I enjoy the Hunger Games? Yes, I loved them. Did I have a taste for the darker side? Yes, that much was obvious from my position. Did I hate the Districts? Yes, they were barbaric societies that were just as bad as us!

Still, it wasn't like I enjoyed murder. I did it because it was necessary. I murdered the previous Head Gamemaker so that I could take over his position. It was necessary for my career progression. I murdered tributes because it was my job and the Capitol thrived upon it. I thoroughly enjoyed the planning and scheming, but the actual death I could live without.

The only reason these thoughts were floating through my mind was simply because of one idiotic reporter's question.

Is it true you collect the blood from each fallen tribute?

Did he really think that I was such a demented creature that I would collect such a thing?! Was I really such a monster that people believed I had a sick obsession with the blood of my 'victims'?

I slowly grabbed the key I kept between my breasts and pulled it out. I silently got up and walked over to my liquor cabinet. I opened it and took out several bottles of expensive alcohol. I slid the false back down and put my key into the keyhole. The hidden safe swung open and I reached inside.

I kept my things inside my safe. Many of them were important documents, some were hidden messages. My searching hand clasped around the object it desired. I dropped into a cross legged position and looked upon it.

It was the only picture I dared keep of my family.

I gazed at a young Lavender as she naively smiled, surrounded by her family. Her father had his hand placed upon her shoulder while her mother held a small baby named Glese. Her older sister had a coy smile on her face as she stared right into the camera's lense.

Sometimes it felt like she was mocking me.

Of course, back then my name was Imogen. Little Imogen. Little Imogen loved to play with dolls. Little Imogen loved flowers and plants. Little Imogen never thought she would be an orphan by age thirteen.

I felt my eyes begin to sting as I looked down at the picture. Little Imogen was never considered a monster. Far from it, she was actually considered kind.

My father was a politician. He hoped to one day be President since the President at the time was getting old and frail. My mother was a simple flower shop owner who shared her knowledge with both of her daughters. She probably would have taught it to my younger brother Glese if she had not died four years after this picture was taken.

As soon as that thought passed through my mind the memories came flooding back. Rebel protestors were running rampant through the streets. My mother locked the shop and she and I were huddled behind the counter. I heard the breaking of glass as someone screamed Die bitch!

My father, along with other politicians, made several statements supporting the Hunger Games, practically damning everyone who protested against it.

The smell of fire and smoke was everywhere. My mother ushered me out, and she screamed as a falling piece of metal clanged around us. I didn't stop running until I made it safely out of the burning building.

When I looked behind me, however, there my mama was, lying in a pool of blood. I saw a rebel running from the scene with a gun in his hand.

"Lavender?"

"What!" I barked as I shoved the picture back into the safe. I slammed it shut and put the bottles of liquor back where they belonged. I dropped the key back into my cleavage and felt complete and utter surprise when I felt a tear hit the back of my hand.

"Are yo-"

"What the hell do you want," I growled as I furiously wiped the tears from my eyes.

"It's about a tribute… Jacqie found Lucian."

District Seven:

Jacqie's POV:

"I still can't believe that worked!" Camilla laughed as she dug her teeth into an apple.

"It was a brilliant plan," Lucian smirked as he sharpened his axe.

"Of course it was! Now we're in the clear!" Camilla reasoned, "Leith and Apollo will be chasing Valhalla, Valhalla will still be wreaking havoc on other tributes, and who the hell cares what Asita does! We are now officially under the radar! No one is going to purposefully come after us until much later!"

I had to stifle a laugh as I watched them. My grip tightened on my axe as I tried to formulate on a plan. I stumbled upon these two dining on a sponsor gift several minutes ago. For their efforts, on whatever they did, they were sent what appeared to be six or seven apples.

They were in a large room that appeared to be meant for packaging goods. I saw conveyor belts everywhere, along with boxes full of glass vials.

I continued to slide against the wall, closer and closer to Lucian.

I had to get my revenge. I had to avenge my father and myself!

I knew that he was stronger than me. I knew Camilla was faster than me. I knew the odds weighed heavily against me, but there was one thing I knew I had that they did not.

I had the ability to be quiet, hide, and move around stealthily. Plus, as of now, I had the element of surprise.

"Damn right! That means we can just fool around with the weaker tributes and have a good time," he grinned ear to ear.

"Sure… Or we could, I don't know, relax a bit and not worry about other tributes," Camilla sighed.

I now slowly began to slide closer to Lucian. He was the closest and the least perceptive.

"Now, where is the fun in that?" Lucian smirked as he leaned closer to Camilla.

"I just think we deserve a break, that's all," Camilla pointed out.

Just a little closer. My axe hovered slightly over the ground. Just five more feet…

"There are no breaks. Isn't that right, Jacqie?"

Every muscle in my body locked up as he heard him say my name. His head slowly turned, like the second hand on a clock, and he stared at me with his dark eyes.

I launched myself backwards and slammed into the wall. I scurried to my feet and held my axe in front of me, shaking.

Lucian stood up with a wolfish smile on his face. Camilla looked completely surprised.

It seems that I misjudged who was perceptive and who wasn't…

"I am so glad you joined us," Lucian smiled, "I was so not looking forward to hunting you down again."

"You're a monster," I growled.

Camilla stood up, but Lucian held his hand up.

"This is my fight, not yours."

Camilla, obviously not wanting to argue with a psychopath, nodded and started to gather their supplies.

"This time, I'm not going to make the mistake of letting you live long enough to escape," Lucian grinned.

"You should be ashamed of yourself," I mumbled as I continued to shake. I had to get a grip!

"Why is that, Jacqie?" he laughed loudly.

"Because your parents must hate ever giving birth to you."

The laugh died in his throat and every trace of humor left his face.

"You don't know them, so shut up!" he snarled.

"Oh but I do!" I chimed, realizing I struck a nerve, "Mr. and Mrs. Valcoor. The Valcoors are a long standing and fairly wealthy family. Obviously, they spoiled you rotten. Still, I know you're smart enough that you never showed them this side of you back home. You never wanted to worry about them despising you. However, Lucian, there is one detail you've forced from the thought process of your little brain. This is national television! They, along with all of their friends, know what a monster you are! And now even your own parents don't love you."

Lucian let out a furious roar and charged me. The shaky feeling came back, but I forced myself to sprint to the right. I ran into the rows of conveyor belts and bobbed in and out. I could hear his loud footsteps behind me, but eventually they got farther and farther away.

"Come out, you rat!" Lucian howled as he brought his axe down into a machine.

I steeled myself as I saw the lever at the end of the room. I began to crawl towards it, squeezing in between boxes. I could hear Lucian bringing his axe down upon boxes and more metallic objects.

Lucian was right about one thing. I was acting like a rat. I ran, cowered, and scavenged. I was afraid to die, which meant I never took any risks.

But now I was taking the ultimate risk. I was going to take down this psycho, even if it took my life. I lunged at the lever and pulled it down. I heard the loud sound of machines powering up and conveyor belts began to move. Some moved at a rapid pace while others slowly tugged along.

Lucian was standing thirty feet away with the darkest scowl I have ever seen. His axe was shaking in his hand as he glared at me. I felt as if I was looking into the eyes of the devil himself.

"I've been waiting for this for way to long," I screeched.

Lucian's POV:

Jacqie jumped on top of a conveyor belt and began to move to my left. I leaped onto the one in front of me and began to travel to my left.

"You beat me, cut me, starved me, tortured me, and scarred me," Jacqie screamed, shaking, "You are a monster!"

She leapt to another conveyor belt and traveled towards me at an alarming pace.

I let out a snarl and lunged at her. She side stepped my attack and swung her axe at me. I ducked and then we were separated again by the two separate conveyor belts.

I jumped onto the same belt and ran towards her. My only mission was to kill her! No one talks about my parents like that and gets away alive! No one!

She swiped at me with her axe but I simply blocked it with my own. I kicked her in the thigh but she barely flinched. She sent a right hook my way and hit me square in the temple.

I fell to the ground and my head slammed against the conveyor belt.

I heard her squeal as she fell and I soon followed her. The conveyor belt had ended and now we were both sprawled on the ground.

Before she could gather herself, I grabbed her ankle and twisted as hard as I could.

I heard the snap of something and she let out a scream. Without skipping a beat, she sent the same foot that I had let go into my face.

The taste of blood immediately hit my mouth as I saw a tooth fall out.

She scrambled out of my reach and stood up on one leg. She swung at me with her axe but I easily dodged it. I launched myself at her and dug my shoulder into her. She fell to the ground and I balanced myself against a metal beam.

She swiftly grabbed my wrist that was dangling and did the same thing to me that I had done to her.

Grab and twist.

I felt the bones break in my left wrist and I let out a groan of pain mixed with pleasure.

Her eyes widened at my sound but she simply kicked me in the knee so I would come tumbling down beside her.

She grabbed me by the throat and she straddled me. She slammed my head against the ground and screamed, "I hate you! Your parents hate you! Everyone hates you!"

Every time she said hate my head would bounce on the ground.

"Leave my parents out of this!" I choked out.

"Why?" she screamed as she grappled for her axe, "You killed one of mine!"

Right when her hand found the handle I started to struggle. My hands were trapped under her body, and the lack of oxygen began to affect my thinking.

I heard a scream and saw Cami had Jacqie by the hair. She threw Jacqie to the ground as she snarled, "You are not going to kill him!"

Cami then kicked Jacqie as hard as she could in the pelvis and walked away.

"I said this was my fight!" I yelled after her.

"It is! I was just making sure you were alive to finish it," Cami called back as she returned to her spot at the other side of the room.

I stood up shakily and walked over to Jacqie. I felt completely shaken by the fact that Jacqie had almost killed me. If Cami hadn't intervened…

As soon as I was next to her, Jacqie's eyes popped open and she grabbed my broken wrist. I let out a howl of plain and simple pain. I then grabbed her wrist with my other hand and yanked her upwards.

She let out a small shriek but I let go of her wrist and wrapped one hand around her neck. I lifted her up in the air by her throat. She grabbed at my hand and used her one good foot to kick me as hard as she could in the thigh.

"It doesn't feel so nice to be choked, does it?" I growled.

She then dropped both her hands and one of them enclosed around something in her belt. She pulled out a knife and rammed it into my shoulder.

I dropped her immediately, and yelled an obscenity.

As I pulled the knife out I was shocked to realize it was my knife. She somehow managed to get it out of my belt and into her own during our fight.

By the time I had collected myself she was leaning against one of the metal pillars, axe in hand.

"Will you just die already?!" I screeched as I charged her.

She swung her axe at me and I blocked it with my own. My head was throbbing with pain and I had a hard time focusing.

Without even thinking, I grabbed the handle of her axe and ripped it out of her hand. I then grabbed the front of her face and rammed it into the wall behind her. I heard a crack and she fell to the ground. I expected to hear a cannon shot, but there was not a single sound.

Suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my leg and looked down. Jacqie had her teeth sunk into my calf and had a fierce look in her eyes.

I simply brought my axe down and sunk it right into her side. She let out a scream and I grabbed her by the head.

"Just. Die!" I screamed as I repeatedly bashed her skull into the wall.

It was only Cami grabbing my hand and prying it away from her skull that made me realize she was truly dead.

"Are you sure she's dead?!" I howled as I collapsed to the ground.

"I'm sure, I heard the cannon," Cami soothed as she pulled some first aid supplies out of her backpack.

"It could have been for someone else!" I heard myself yell, almost fearfully, as I gazed at Jacqie's corpse. I half expected her to spring up and attack again.

"I'm sure, now sit still."

I could feel myself slowly drifting away, and fear seized my heart.

"I'm… I'm fading away Cami! I'm dying!" I screamed irrationally.

"No, you just have a concussion," Cami replied harshly as she treated my shoulder.

I felt the hot tears sting my eyes as I wrapped my arms around Cami's waist. She froze, but I simply put my head in her lap.

"Don't… don't let me die. Please, Cami, don't let me die."

Her entire body was rigid, but she slowly began to smooth my hair.

"I won't. I promise."

"Don't let me die." I whispered as I felt myself slowly fading away.

Don't die… Don't die… Mama… Please don't hate me, Mama…

District Nine:

Ace's POV:

"I'm tired," I complained behind Ruth as we walked down another corridor.

"What was our rule about not speaking to each other unless necessary?" Ruth asked, annoyed.

"This is necessary! I'm tired!" I whined as my feet throbbed to prove my point.

A cannon shot rang through the arena and both of us stopped and froze.

"Well, I bet they were tired too," she continued, referring to whomever the cannon sounded for, "and now they're dead. So keep walking and shut up."

I let out an audible groan and continued to walk. So far, this 'alliance' with Ruth had been torture. She would never rest and would never take a break of any kind. She was constantly on the move, which meant I was constantly on the move. I had finally hit my breaking point around an hour ago and had been complaining ever since. She mostly ignored me, but had so far spoken to me on three occasions. I thought that by complaining she would be so annoyed that she would give up, but that was yet to be the case.

Most people would probably be afraid that my complaints would shatter what we had left of this fragile alliance. I, however, could care less as long as I got to rest my darn feet!

The silence was beginning to kill me from the inside out.

"Ruth," I began before another part of my brain died from boredom, "What do you like to do with your free time?"

"What happened to th-"

"I know, I know, the rule where we never got personal. Just answer the question," I replied impatiently.

She was quiet for a few moments. I prepared myself to restate the question when she whispered, "I don't know, I guess I trained."

"Trained?" I questioned loudly.

She shushed me and nodded. "I trained for the Hunger Games. Well, as well as you can train in District Twelve."

"That's ironic," I laughed, "I trained too! Well, except I was training to be a ninja."

I took a deep breath and she interrupted my, likely to be, rant, "You want to be a ninja? Like, black suit, jumping out of bushes?"

"Of course," I replied, dead serious.

I heard her stifle a giggle and I couldn't help but smile. I knew it sounded silly… In fact, it was silly. Even though I was serious about it, I was glad I at least make her smile.

I managed to skip beside Ruth and I smiled. Ruth's smile vanished as soon as I was in sight and she just looked peeved again.

In all honesty, after Lyric, I didn't believe any alliance would work. I personally thought it was a waste of my time since only one person could win. Still, after five days of being cutthroat, serious, and a bit of a bitch, I was ready to have some fun. I didn't want to be Ruth's friend. All I wanted was some friendly conversation. Just a couple hours of real relaxation.

'What else did you do besides training?"

"Besides?"

"Yeah," I continued, "You know, hang out with friends and such? I spent a lot of time reading or just hanging out with my older sister."

Ruth flinched on the last word and spat out, "I just trained."

"Rea-"

"I stopped talking to almost all of my friends and I didn't have a sister to spend time with," she hissed.

I suddenly remembered how close she was with her district partner and realized I struck a sore nerve.

Before I could even try to amend what had happened, there was a large crash from above. A muttation burst out of the air vent and leapt towards us.

Ruth sidestepped and I sprinted backwards. The muttation was a rat, of all things. However, it was the size of a large dog, had large fangs, and I could see the venom dripping onto the floor.

It made a wild leap towards me again and I dove to the ground. It spun around and Ruth charged it with her double sided sword. She made a stab at it and it hopped out of danger's way. I stood up and whipped my knife out.

The rat jumped right at Ruth but she simply kneeled down, but kept the sword raised in the air. The rat flew right above the tip of the sword and it cut a small line across its belly. I swiftly threw my knife into the rat's skull, and it fell to the ground. I wretched my knife out of it and Ruth kicked it to make sure it was truly dead.

"So, what's your favorite food?"

Ruth looked at me like I was crazy as she said, "Excuse me?"

"I asked what your favorite food was," I said with a smile.

"You are unbearable," she groaned as she walked past the muttation and me.

"Fine! What's your favorite color!" I called after her as I chased her.

She continued to ignore me.

"Favorite animal?"

District Two:

Jordana's POV:

The blackness was ebbing in and out. I could feel organs beating and fluctuating. Sometimes things were painfully clear and other times all I could see was fuzz. There was a time I knew I could hear Apollo. Right after that time I felt a deep, low pain spring through my body.

I had no idea how long I was lost. Suddenly, the striking clarity came back and I could feel a large prick. I let out a guttural sound as I thought of the needle Valhalla had placed in my neck. Surely she had come back to finish me off. She was waiting until I was at my weakest to end it all for good.

However, once the needle was removed I began to feel a soft, warm feeling envelop me. I could practically hear my heartbeat slowing and my organs healing. The burning fire that had turned into a smoldering ember was completely squashed out. I could actually feel my lungs and was aware that my breathing was slowing down. At first, I thought I was dying. That, finally, the organs had overworked themselves and were now slowing themselves down, preparing for death.

However, when I could feel someone's hand on my arm I knew I wasn't dying. If I was dying, I would lose all sense of feeling. I wouldn't see fuzz or be painfully aware. I would just slowly ooze out of reality.

"Apollo?" I whispered. I couldn't open my eyes but I could hear the gasp.

"Jordana! You're okay! Did it work! Are you feeling better?"

I could hear Apollo practically yelling with disbelief, excitement, and anticipation. Apollo, who was usually so quiet and laid-back, was almost shaking with excitement. This new side to him was so starling that I would've said something if it wasn't for the fact I had bigger things to worry about.

Such as, you know, my life.

"I… I don't know…" I murmured.

"I was so worried," he whispered, so closely I could feel his warm breath tickle my ear, "I had no idea what to do, so I left. I knew I was coming back, but the only thing I could think of was that I had to find the special item. I didn't know if it could help, but I had no choice."

He took in a shaky breath and continued, "Then I found it! It was inside a simple room. I had two choices. I could either pick a Capitol made poison or a Capitol made cure. It makes sense since we're on the sixth floor. District Six is the one that manufactures medicine. So, obviously, I picked the cure and then had to get out of the room before it filled up with poisonous gas. It wasn't as difficult as it sounds, I promise."

"That was… brave…" I murmured.

"No, not really," I could just see him in my mind blushing, "But then I heard a cannon and I thought for sure it was yours! I ran back just picturing the poison had gotten you or some other tribute had found you and finished what was started."

There was a beat of silence before he whispered, "I thought I lost you…"

I forced my eyes open and stared at him. His eye patch was gone and I could see his blind eye. It was lifeless and watery. It even oozed a little bit, but it wasn't awful to look at. He was six or seven inches away and I could still feel his breath on my face.

I looked down and gasped when I saw I was surrounded by blood. I could see bloody bandages wrapped around my stomach. Apollo looked down and a dark wrinkle appeared on his forehead.

"I tried to wrap it up the best I could."

He slowly unwrapped the bandages and grimaced.

"The medicine seemed to help heal the wound a little, but it is still pretty deep. I think you'll be able to move normally without breaking it open, but any sudden movement could tear it again."

He slowly helped me lean up against the wall behind me and I stared at the wound.

"What happened…"

"Asita happened," he growled.

I felt my eyes widen slightly in shock. Asita did that to me? I was completely shocked because I never thought Asita had the capability of doing that. I always thought she was weaker than that.

I was about to ask why when the reason popped into my brain. Apollo chose me. One thing I knew about Asita was that she was quick to anger and extremely jealous. Now that I thought about it, it doesn't surprise me at all she would do that. Stab a person who she is furious with when they can't fight back. Asita would do such a dishonorable and slightly underhanded thing.

"I'm going to get her for what she did," he muttered.

At first, I felt a rush of joy because he wanted to avenge me. Then, when I looked upon his face, I knew he wasn't thinking of me at all. He wanted to punish her for making him out to be a fool. For using him.

"One thing at a time, though," he smiled casually.

Just like that, vengeful and furious Apollo was gone. Here was the Apollo I loved. Kind, calm, and collected.

"Yeah, we need to get to the next floor," I responded.

He slung three backpacks over his shoulder, grabbed my axes, and began to help me up.

"Where is everyone?" I asked, realizing we were the only ones here.

"They left. The Career alliance is over," he spat, almost bitterly.

"And they took almost all of the supplies," I muttered.

"Yep. Valhalla, Asita, Cami, and Lucian have the rest of them. They're set for a while. They left Leith, you, and me to starve."

"Where is Leith?"

"He left as well. He was always a solo player anyways."

He slung one of my arms over his shoulder and I was surprised he could carry all of the weight. I never knew he was this strong.

In this fleeting moment I realized something very important about myself. I underestimated everyone. I thought Apollo was too weak. I thought Asita didn't have the drive to hurt someone. I thought Cami was too reliant on us. I didn't think Lucian was intelligent enough to make any sort of hidden alliance. I thought Leith was too quiet to be a killer, and I thought Valhalla didn't have the guts to betray us.

Right when my epiphany struck of just how judgmental I could be, the pain struck. My muscles and system was weak from the poison, but it was my stomach that felt like someone had sewn hot coals in it. I let out a hiss and Apollo immediately took more of my weight. The pain lessened, but it did not vanish completely.

"Is that better?"

"Yes… thank you."

Before we began to move, I murmured, "I also want to thank you for something else."

"What?"

"For not leaving me."

He looked into my eyes with a hint of joy mixed with grief, "What are friends for?."

District Six:

Adam's POV:

"I don't think I ever want to leave this floor," Charlotte smiled.

We had just found a tiny dumbwaiter and managed to get ourselves to the seventh floor.

We had thought maybe it would be a lumber manufacturing floor or, perhaps, some sort of woodshop.

Instead, it was a conservatory. Plants flourished all around us. I had even seen several birds flying around. It was really nice. The entire seventh floor was one big forest. Some parts had a tropical feel, others were more swamp-like. We had found a section that was more like the forest that surrounds District Ten. Plenty of pine trees and nice, green grass. Charlotte had already found several berries she would eat back home and we were currently collecting even more.

"This is even more of a safe haven than the last floor," she continued.

"Well, what should we have expected? We would eventually need food and water. It isn't exactly a renewable resource in a high-end underground laboratory."

Charlotte laughed and continued to pick more berries.

"Hey," I began, "Do you ever worry what life will be like if you don't get back home?"

"No, not really," she smiled.

"So, you just assume you're going to get back alive?"

"No, I don't do that either."

She stopped what she was doing and scrunched up her face a bit.

"How do I explain it… It's more than just taking one day at a time."

She continued to think as I collected more berries.

"Here's how I see it. There is nothing I can do once I'm dead. So why should I worry about something that is completely out of my control? Once I'm dead, I'll be dead and they'll have to deal with the fallout."

She then started to collect berries again, and there was a stretch of silence between us, something that was uncommon.

"That's pretty harsh," I muttered.

"It's reality. There is a difference between being an optimist and being an idiot."

I glanced over at her and realized she said this with a smile. I also noticed that this was the most relaxed she had been since we had entered the arena. I assumed it was the fact she was in a familiar environment again. It was easy for her to unwind now. Whereas I had never been surrounded by nature and I could feel myself tensing up every minute.

"I'm just glad you know your way around the outdoors. Otherwise I might end up eating poison ivy or something."

Charlotte burst out into giggles and even began to start crying. I smiled and, for the millionth time, thanked God for having Charlotte as an ally. I didn't think I could stand being in an alliance where I couldn't joke around.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure you don't make a fool out of yourself on national television," Charlotte smiled after a minute of laughing.

"I think you've already failed at that objective," I winked.

The rest of the evening went by smoothly. We found a small pool of pure water and refilled our empty bottles and bellies. We set up a small camp and sat laughing and joking around.

The anthem rang and I looked up at the sky. The only face that was shown was the girl from District Seven, Jacqie, and I couldn't help but feel a little sad. She seemed like a really nice girl.

"I talked to her in training once," Charlotte began, "she seemed really determined."

"I know, I tried to hit on her once. She slapped me pretty hard."

Charlotte laughed, but stopped when she realized she was laughing at a story involving a dead girl.

"It's okay to laugh," I muttered, "I know when I die I want people to laugh when they remember me."

Most girls would've said 'Oh no! You won't die! We'll make it out of this.'

But, instead, Charlotte said, "Yeah… me too."

Here we were, sitting on our bums, contemplating our deaths. I should have felt depressed, but it seemed almost normal with Charlotte. Almost like it was all a joke and everyone would turn out fine.

"Go to sleep. I'll take the first shift," I smiled.

Charlotte didn't even argue and just lay down.

She fell asleep quickly and I just listened to her even breathing for a while.

Midnight struck and no cannons, which meant everyone made it to the seventh floor. I wondered if a tribute was only thirty feet away, blissfully unaware we were in the vicinity. I wondered if someone was watching us right now. I wondered what the Gamemakers had planned for us.

But mostly, I wondered if my Mama would be okay once I was gone…

Hey guys, early update :D

I really hope you guys liked this chapter! It was interesting to write, especially since i wrote this entire thing in a room full of people and loud noises. Anyways, there are some eulogies i forgot to do! Well, one actually.

Thomas- I loved you! Seriously, you were defintly one of the tribtues i loved just because of how normal you were! Sadly, your death was needed for plot development.

Jacqie- What can i say besides the fact you were one of the most interesting tribute i received! You were a challenge to write and I enjoyed every second of it. Sadly, Lucian won the Lucian/Jacqie show down, but it was incredibly hard deciding who was going to come out on top. You will be missed.

So, tell me what you think! Leave a nice, long review ;) Also, my new SYOT is up on my page! So go and submit! Please :D