Raze Hirohito (15) D6F

In any biome, there was bound to be at least one fun thing to do. I had had a long couple of days, fighting wolves, hunger, and thirst, and I decided I needed a break. I was going to find the fun thing in my biome, which would be difficult on a mountain but far from impossible, and do it. Some people might see that outlook as optomistic, but it wasn't. I was tired and bored, and I needed something to do to get my mind off of how much my Arena stank.

I wanted to roll down the mountain and see how dizzy I got after rolling that far, but even I knew that was a bad idea. There were random cracks, edges, and sudden holes scattered across the mountain, and I was bound to hit one of them if I rolled down. I could roll down for a short distance, but there was no way I would be able to stop on a dime in the ice. I had to actually walk around to find my interesting thing, which an acceptable idea. It was just also an annoying one, since walking anywhere on a mountain filled my shoes with snow that made my feet cold and melted to leave them wet.

Now that's a good reason to get wet. In front of me, down from a ledge I was standing on, there was a spring. The Gamemakers couldn't have known someone like I was going to get Reaped, but I did. I stripped off some of my clothing, leaving on a bra and underwear. I didn't want my clothes completely soaked, but I didn't want to give the Capitol a show. A bra and underwear was practically a bikini, so it worked. Then I ran for the edge of my ledge and dove into the water.


Fletcher Kozlowski (18) D6M

So cold. It was so cold. I was climbing again after a long night. One cannon had gone off. One less person between me and the crown. I wasn't sure how much that mattered anymore. My fiancee had sent me some water, but I didn't want water. It was ice cold water. It also had a note and a small picture of her, but that hardly did anything for me. It was supposed to boost my spirits, but all it did was remind me of what I was missing because of the stupid Games. I was still cold. I was still tired. I still wanted everything to hurry up. It wasn't hard to die. Everyone could just lie down for a while too long and suddenly their breathing would slow and they would die. I didn't understand why tributes wouldn't just do that. It was easy. It was painless. It was everything I didn't have.

I was surprised so few people were dying. It was so cold, everyone should have been freezing to death. My fingers was just getting stiffer and stiffer, and each step was a huge effort. I was in pain each time I tried to move my fingers to grasp something, so much pain I almost stopped using my hands. I should have used them for support, but it hurt so much I didn't want to. Even my face was getting stiffer. I couldn't fake a smile if I was incapable of smiling.

My skin wasn't even the right color. It was turning blue and black. It hurt to touch, it hurt to move. I got annoyed with how much it hurt, and in my frustration, when I wasn't thinking exactly right, I tried to rip it off. Much to my surprise, it sloughed off with ease. I started bleeding, but my blood froze on my hand, forcing a quick replacement for a clot. That hurt even more than the skin on it hurt. My legs hurt more, and I stopped moving. I fell on the ground, slowly accepting my fate. I was in a mountain Arena, and the Gamemakers knew what they were doing. They were going to get their cold reward, whether or not it hurt someone else.


Marlin Hasvak (18) D4M

I was cut up, bruised, and broken from my fight with Luna. To make matters worse, I had killed her. She tried to kill me, I repeatedly tried to reassure myself, but it never worked. I came into the Games expecting to kill, and I was getting what I wanted. It only hurt more to know that it was exactly what I had been trained to expect and achieve. I fought for the right to kill Luna, the lighthearted, happy girl who wasn't even supposed to be a Career. She didn't want it any more than I did, but she was the one that was dead.

The only good thing that came of the split was the endless supplies I seemed to have. Annika had backed off once I killed Luna, probably because I could do a lot of damage, even if I was more injured than she was. She would win a fight against me in the state I was in, but it wouldn't be worth the effort. I would be able to damage her to the point where she may as well be dead, because she would hardly be able to bandage herself up. I would die, but she wouldn't be far behind. She wouldn't be able to fight. I could take any other tribute, and I knew it, but I didn't want to. I just wanted to get bandaged up and fix myself, then return home.

Serena hardly seemed worth the effort of the Games I was going through. I loved my sister like life itself, but she was dead. There was no point in dying for someone that would never know the better. I couldn't even bring her the pride she deserved. I was going to win, and I would be given glory. Nobody would even remember Serena if I won. I got all the way to the top seven, just to learn that it was all worthless. My only reason to keep going was my own fear of death, and that was what everyone else had.


8th Place: Fletcher Kozlowski - Gangrene

Fletcher was a fun character to write. He had a good, interesting backstory, good strengths, and fine weaknesses. I liked his personality. I just didn't see him as a Victor, and I haven't seen Snowstar anywhere. S/he may not be alive. Gangrene is kinda a terrible way to go, to be entirely honest, but I wanted it to happen to someone. Fletcher was so cold because as he went up the atmosphere thinned, like Gabriel and Falia were once warned of. Good job, Fletcher. Thank you to Snowstar for Fletcher, who was a well-rounded character for me to write.

We're down to seven now, and I am thinning down choices for Victor in my mind. However, I want someone you like as well as me. Could y'all mention somewhere in your reviews another like/dislike chart for just these seven? It won't be the only thing I pick off of, but it'll give me an idea of who definitely shouldn't win and stuff.