Katniss clapped her hands over her mouth, shocked at what she did. It might have looked like she was scolding herself for screaming out his name, attracting tributes to her presence. But Heather knew that Katniss was debating herself. Peeta was now her ally and whatever harsh feelings she had towards him would have to go. Especially in her case as she was one of the star-crossed lovers from District 12.
The star-crossed lovers. The angle that Peeta had been playing with had paid off big time. Suddenly, Katniss looked up at the sky and smiled. Heather couldn't tell what this was about.
The rule change, Heather could laugh at that. It wasn't true. It was fake. Just a trap to get Katniss and Peeta together so the audience could fawn over them. Heather was sure that as soon as they were the remaining tributes, the gamemakers were going to change the rule so only one victor could come out.
"No," Heather said. "This can't be true."
Haymitch and Finnick looked at her, trying to see if she was in shock. But, she wasn't. Her eyes were determined as they angrily stared at the screen. Every time she would get her hopes up about things working out, she would only be let down each time. She was sick and tired of feeling like that. She was done being broken.
Before either man could say anything, Heather stood up and ran to her room.
Haymitch stopped Finnick from getting up, "I'll talk to her."
In her room, Heather was contemplating how she could handle Peeta and Katniss being together, knowing that one of them wasn't to make it. All those times, she preached to Katniss about self-control and grabbing a hold of her emotion when Heather herself was nothing short of a hypocrite.
Then she thought of Cato and Clove, who were the other pair to pass for the rule change. They were strong and dangerous, but they didn't have the audience's side like Peeta and Katniss did so that was a good thing.
Her thinking was interrupted as Haymitch entered the room. For a moment, he stared at her from where he stood up near the threshold before he made his way to her bed.
"Hey," he said.
"Hey," she said back.
"You don't like the rule change?" Haymitch sat at her bed.
"It's that I don't like it. I just don't believe it," Heather told him. "They're eventually going to change it."
"Maybe," he agreed. "But remember, the games are all about what the audience wants. If Katniss and Peeta put a good show on, there's a chance the rule isn't going to change."
"Snow isn't going to allow it," Heather pointed out. "And if they both do win, Snow will put them on his radar."
They frowned at each other. Death was better than to be on President Snow's bad side. Ironically, being on his good side wasn't better either. Haymitch couldn't argue with her as her fear was valid and most likely to become true. He finally decided to go about this in a different manner.
"We still need to be there for them," he stroked her hair.
Heather turned away, "Of course. I never said we shouldn't."
Haymitch looked at her with his heart heavy in his chest. Many times, he wished to be able to take the pain away from Heather and this was one of these moments. All he wanted for her is happiness and security but in this world, these two things were hard to obtain.
"Can you leave?" Heather turned to face the other side of the room. "I'm tired."
"I love you."
But Heather didn't turn and kept ignoring him. This was the first time where she didn't say it back. With a heavier heart, Haymitch left her.
The door slightly creaked as someone opened it. Heather was already awake so the sound didn't bother her but she was in no mood to see anyone. She guessed that it was Finnick since Haymitch already tried to talk to her last night.
"Go away, Finn," Heather said. "I don't want to talk with you."
"Why in the world would you think that I'm Odair?"
Heather's ears perked up as she heard Cashmere's confident voice. Pushing her hair away from her face, Heather turned to face her friend. She squinted at her in confusion.
"Cash? What are you doing here?"
"Uh, to be with you?" Cashmere said as if the answer was obvious. "Rendwick already left and I didn't have the heart to stay in an apartment all alone," she sat in a chair near the bed. "Plus, I figured you needed a break seeing as how you were spending all this time alone with Abernathy and Odair."
Normally, Heather would defend Haymitch and Finnick but she just wasn't up for it. "Oh, well, thanks. I'm just going to stay here for a while if you don't mind."
"Unlucky for you, I do mind. What's up with you, Heather? Aren't you happy about the rule change?" Cashmere frowned.
"What rule change, Cash?!" Heather cried as she narrowed her eyes angrily at her. "You know as well as I do that they're going to go back to the way it was. Snow isn't going to stand for this. Unlike the Capitol citizens, he doesn't forget what the games are for. He doesn't forget that the Hunger Games is a national punishment and not a reality show!"
Heather's chest heaved as she breathed from yelling out the words at her friend. Both women were glaring intensely at each other, each not willing to back down.
"So what?!" Cashmere spat the words at her face. "Since when did something like this stop you before? You knew that Snow was the president but that didn't stop you from slapping him in the face, did it?!" Heather's face fell. "Things can change, Heather, but only if we fight for it. And from what I've seen, it doesn't look like Katniss nor Peeta will stand for something like this. So, go put on your big girls pants and come join us in the sitting room."
Shoulders slumped, Heather turned away from her friend so she couldn't see the defeated look on her face. Realizing that she was complying, Cashmere sighed and left the room. But that didn't mean she gave up. Oh no, if Heather didn't show her face by lunchtime, Cashmere was going to drag her by force. She would even tie her up if the need arises.
Meanwhile, Heather sat still and took in the silence of her room. Cashmere was right. The concern of getting hurt never stopped Heather from doing what she thought was right. But the thing was, she didn't think that supporting Katniss and Peeta as if they were going to win together was the right thing. Sure, they'd never know it, but what if one of them won and started to figure it out. They would undoubtedly shut her out and she didn't want that.
Just then, Heather remembered how her father used to lecture her when she'd overthink things and link them to the future. He'd tell her that she needed to live in the present and let her future self figure it out.
That's what she needed to do, live in the present.
With that in mind, Heather tentatively got out of bed. After sniffing herself, Heather decided to take a shower.
When she later joined the others in the sitting room, Heather kept looking down and avoided Cashmere and Haymitch. She was going to talk to them but not now. She didn't have the energy to do so.
In the end, Heather ended up sitting next to Finnick and pulled her leg up, putting her chin on top of her bare knees.
"You hungry?" Finnick asked. It was then that she knew she made the right decision. No doubt, Finnick wasn't going to talk to her about last night.
"Maybe later."
Katniss was in the spot where she last saw Peeta. She stood there for a few minutes, looking for clues as to where he could be. Katniss then lit a fire. Heather was confused for a second before she realized that she was trying to make a ruse for her enemies so she could track Peeta without having to be constantly vigilant.
Heather could hear her heart pounding as Katniss got close to where Peeta was. The area was filled with muddy banks covered in tangled water plants, leading to large rocks. Katniss was about to depart when she caught a glimpse of a dried bloody streak going down the curve of a boulder. Heather felt herself get more and more excited as Katniss neared Peeta's location.
Hugging the rocks, Katniss moved slowly in the direction of the blood, searching for him. She found a few more bloodstains, but no sign of life. Since there was no other way to reach out for him, Katniss called out his name in a hushed voice. "Peeta! Peeta!"
When he didn't answer, much to Heather's disdain, she ruled out the fact that he wasn't here and climbed back down to the stream. Her foot had just broken the surface of the water when a voice spoke out.
"You here to finish me off, sweetheart?" the voice asked, hoarse and weak. Heather slightly chuckled at hearing him use Haymitch's nickname for Katniss.
Katniss turned around, her head whipping to all sides, trying to find the source of the voice. However since he camouflaged himself, she couldn't see him.
"Wait, where is he?" Cashmere asked since she never saw Peeta camouflage himself.
"Wait and see," Finnick said. Cashmere scoffed, not satisfied with the answer.
"Peeta?" she whispered. "Where are you?" There was no answer. "Peeta?" she walked along the bank.
"Well, don't step on me," Peeta spoke again.
Katniss jumped, startled at the sourceless voice. Finally, he revealed himself. His eyes opened, unmistakably blue in the brown mud and green leaves. Katniss gasped at this realization. Peeta laughed at her expressions and Heather laughed as well.
"Oh," Cashmere exclaimed with wide eyes.
"Close your eyes again," Katniss ordered. He did as told, and his mouth closed too, completely disappearing into his disguise. His face and arms were so artfully disguised to be invisible. Katniss kneeled beside him. "I guess all those hours decorating cakes paid off."
"Yes, frosting. The final defence of the dying," there was a smile in his voice.
"You're not going to die," Katniss told him firmly.
"Says who?" He said raggedly.
"Says me. We're on the same team now, you know."
His eyes opened. "So, I heard. Nice of you to find what's left of me."
Katniss pulled out my water bottle and gave him a drink. "Did Cato cut you?"
"Left leg. Up high," he answered.
"Let's get you in the stream, wash you off so I can see what kind of wounds you've got," Katniss decided.
"Lean down a minute first," he said. "Need to tell you something." Katniss leaned over and put her ear, the good one, to his lips. The camera couldn't pick on what he said but it must've been something good since Katniss jerked her head back and laughed.
"Thanks, I'll keep it in mind."
The stream wasn't far, only two feet away. However, it was hard since he was unable to move an inch on his own. Katniss tried to drag him, but sharp cries of pain escaped him. Not to mention, the mud and plants stuck on him. Finally, Katniss was able to break him from it.
"Look, Peeta, I'm going to roll you into the stream. It's very shallow here, okay?" Katniss told him in advance.
"Excellent."
She crouched down beside him. "On three," Katniss started. "One, two, three!" She only managed one full roll before stopping because of the horrible sound he's making. Heather winced at the sound.
"Okay, change of plans. I'm not going to put you all the way in."
"No more rolling?"
"That's all done. Let's get you cleaned up. Keep an eye on the woods for me, okay?"
Katniss remained still, thinking about what to do. She then took out her water bottles, propping them against the rocks in the stream while pouring the third over Peeta's body. After a while, his clothes began to show. Katniss unzipped his jacket, unbuttoned his shirt and relieved them off him. His undershirt was so plastered into his wounds that Katniss had to cut it away with a knife and drenched him again to loosen it.
He was badly bruised with a long burn across his chest and three tracker jacker stings. Not being able to help it, Heather began to think about how she would fix him up. There were so many things to take into account when handling these injuries. Not to mention, the wound on his leg. The risk of blood poisoning and infection was high up on the list. Heather prayed that Katniss paid attention to her mother and Prim when they treated others so she would be able to handle this.
Katniss sat him up against a boulder and washed the dirt from his hair and skin. His flesh was very pale in the sunlight and he no longer looked strong and stocky. She treated his stings and applied the leaves to them. While he dried in the sun, she washed his filthy shirt and jacket and spread them over the boulders. Then Katniss applied the burn cream to his chest. She pulled out some pills from the first-aid kit. Heather recognized him as pills that control one's temperature. She guessed that Peeta had a fever.
"Swallow these," Katniss ordered him, and he obediently took the medicine. "You must be hungry."
"Not really. It's funny, I haven't been hungry for days," Peeta said. When she offered him groosling, he wrinkled his nose at it and turned away. That was all the confirmation Heather needed to diagnose his fever.
"Peeta, we need to get some food in you," Katniss insisted.
"It'll just come right back up," he argued. Still, Katniss managed to get him to eat a few bits of dried apple. "Thanks. I'm much better, really. Can I sleep now, Katniss?"
"Soon," she said. "I need to look at your leg first."
Katniss removed his boots, socks, and then very slowly tore his pants off of him. There was a tear made in the fabric over his thigh but it was nothing compared to what lied underneath. The deep inflamed gash oozed out both blood and pus and the swelling of the leg was indescribable. Katniss looked shocked and sick at the sight of this but calmed herself down.
Heather wanted to look up and see what expressions were displayed on the faces of the others but she forced herself to watch the screen. Still, she could feel the slight tremble from Finnick as she sat by his side.
"Pretty awful, huh?" Peeta said, watching her closely.
"So-so." she shrugged like it was no big deal. "You should see some of the people they bring my mother from the mines. First thing is to clean it well."
Katniss cleaned his wound. The rest of his lower body has fared pretty well, just one tracker jacker sting and a few small burns that she treated quickly. Though she was confused about how to treat the gash on his leg. Heather was tempted to write her instructions on how to but she wasn't certain if it was against the rules.
"Why don't we give it some air and then. " Katniss trailed off, unsure.
"And then you'll patch it up?" Peeta asked.
"That's right," she confirmed. "In the meantime, you eat these." She put a few dried pear halves in his hand. On her way back to the stream, she nearly tripped on something. Curious, Katniss crouched down and picked up the cane Heather sent to Peeta a few days ago.
"Did they send this to you?" Katniss asked.
"Yea, Heather did," Heather smiled at that.
"Did she send you any other food?"
"Some dried fruits but I already finished those."
Katniss nodded. She washed the cane from mud and handed it over to him before returning her attention to his dirty clothes.
When Peeta's clothes were flattened out and drying, Katniss examined the contents of the first-aid kit. After looking at them, she still looked lost. Obviously, there was nothing helpful there for her to treat Peeta's leg with. Before she could even get up and get the computer, Finnick suddenly held her firmly. Money became more sacred at this point as the games continued. Wisely, Heather didn't fight back
"We're going to have to experiment some," Katniss admitted. She started with the tracker jacker leaves. Within minutes of pressing the handful of chewed-up green stuff into the wound, pus began running down the side of his leg.
"Katniss?" Peeta said, making her look at him.
He mouthed some words and Katniss burst out laughing.
"Something wrong?" he asked a little too innocently.
"I-I'm no good at this. I'm not my mother. I've no idea what I'm doing and I hate pus," she confessed.
"How do you hunt?"
"Trust me. Killing things is much easier than this," she said. "Although for all I know, I am killing you."
"Can you speed it up a little?"
"No. Shut up and eat your pears."
After three applications and what seemed like a bucket of pus, the wound looked better and the swelling had gone down.
"What next, Dr. Everdeen?" Peeta asked.
"Maybe I'll put some of the burn ointment on it. I think it helps with an infection anyway. And wrap it up?" Katniss still seemed unsure. She did what she said and covered his wound in a clean white bandage. She pulled out Rue's backpack. "Here, cover yourself with this and I'll wash your shorts."
"Oh, I don't care if you see me," Peeta said.
"You're just like the rest of my family," Katniss sighed tiredly. "I care, all right?"
Suddenly, Heather felt some pain down in her uterus, making her whimper in a low voice. Thankfully, Haymitch and Cashmere didn't hear it.
Finnick turned to her in concern. "You okay?"
"Just some cramps," Heather winced at the pain then slowly laid down with her head on Finnick's lap. She got comfortable before turning to the screen again and watched Peeta's undershorts splash into the current.
"You know, you're kind of squeamish for such a lethal person," Peeta said as she beat the shorts clean between two rocks. Katniss ignored him. Eventually, Peeta dozed off while his clothes dried out. Katniss didn't wake him up so Heather took it as a sign that nothing will happen anytime soon so she got up and went to change her period pad.
Just as she got out of the bathroom, her stomach grumbled in hunger. Weirdly enough, even her tongue was craving for some kind of taste. However, before she could go eat, she noticed her tangled hair in the mirror and decided to fix it. She could vividly picture Effie's horrified reaction if she saw her like this.
Later when her hair finally didn't resemble a tumbleweed, Heather left her room. She went to see if Haymitch was in his room but he wasn't. Just as she was about to leave the room, he came.
At the sight of her, Haymitch stopped walking and stared.
Heather lowered her eyes to where her fingers fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. "Hi."
"Hi," she heard him say.
The room returned to a state of silence as neither said anything afterwards. Heather mentally groaned, she usually wasn't afraid of confrontation but today was a different case. She had hurt Haymitch with her behaviour yesterday. Knowing that made her feel so bad as she never thought that she would be the one to do that to him. Heather wanted to be the one to comfort him, not the one who hurt him.
"Um, I'm sorry about last night," Heather said timidly. "I didn't mean to hurt you."
"It's alright," he assured her.
"No, it's not," Heather closed her eyes before looking up at him with sombre eyes. "My behaviour was childish and I was being unreasonable."
"And I'm okay with that, as long as it doesn't happen often," Haymitch came up to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "You're stressed and I get that."
Heather put her head on his chest and felt him wrap his arms around her. "I'm sorry."
Haymitch didn't say anything and just kissed her on the forehead. Unfortunately, the moment was interrupted when Heather's stomach grumbled as it reminded her once again of how empty it is.
By late afternoon, Katniss woke Peeta up. Heather watched her gently shake his shoulder as she sat next to Cashmere. Heather had apologized to her earlier when they ate lunch together. Finnick was in his room, taking a nap, while Haymitch was sitting alone in an armchair. "Peeta, we've got to go now."
"Go?" He was confused. "Go where?"
"Away from here. Downstream maybe. Somewhere we can hide you until you're stronger," Katniss said. She helped him dress and pull him upright then handed him the cane. "Come on. You can do this."
They walked for about half an hour before they stopped. Not only because Peeta was tired but also since Katniss didn't know where they could be spending their time. She surveyed the area before deciding to settle in a cave.
Once they reached the cave, Katniss covered the floor with a layer of pine needles, unrolled her sleeping bag, and tucked Peeta into it. She made him swallow a couple of pills and some water into him when he was not noticing, but he refused to eat even the fruit. Katniss tried to conceal them but anyone could tell that the blind she made was man-made. She tore it down in frustration.
"Katniss," Peeta suddenly spoke. "Thanks for finding me."
"You would have found me if you could," Katniss said.
"Yes. Look, if I don't make it back - " he began. Heather's heart fell at the thought of that.
"Don't talk like that. I didn't drain all that pus for nothing," Katniss stopped him.
"I know. But just in case I don't - " he tried to continue.
"No, Peeta, I don't even want to discuss it," Katniss placed her fingers on his lips to quiet him.
"But I - " he insisted.
Out of nowhere, Katniss leaned forward and kissed him, stopping his words. Since she was always awkward and liked to act weird at seeing public displays of affection between lovers, Heather reached her hands and covered Cashmere's eyes. Unfortunately, because of that, Heather wasn't able to catch the thoughtful look on Haymitch's place as he was coming up with a plan.
"Heather," Cashmere went to remove her hands off of her and gave her a look.
"I'm not sorry," Heather stared blankly at her then looked back to the screen.
Katniss pulled away, "You're not going to die. I forbid it. All right?"
"All right," he whispered.
From the corner of her eye, Heather saw Haymitch take the computer. "What are you doing?" she narrowed her eyes, suspicion clear in her voice.
"I'm sending food to them," Haymitch simply answered, never looking up from the computer's screen.
"Why?"
Cashmere watched them curiously. As she wasn't aware of Haymitch's habit of waiting for the last minute, she was confused about why Heather was questioning him.
"You don't trust me?"
This time, he looked up at her.
"Not when it comes to this," Heather said instantly.
Haymitch exhaled. Thankfully, he already prepared for this and came up with a valid answer. "Peeta is hurt so Katniss can't leave him to go hunting. Even if she did, Peeta has a fever so he lacks appetite. Therefore, it's better if I send them a broth which is digestible and easy to heat up."
Heather frowned. His answer was legit but something still didn't feel right. However, at the same time, Heather didn't want to behave irrationally like yesterday. "That seems reasonable."
The pot of hot broth arrived in the evening just as Katniss stepped out. Her fingers quickly undid the tie on the parachute, as soon as she had it in hand. By now, Finnick had woken up and Heather filled him in on everything that happened as he sat next to her.
"Peeta!" Katniss called out, speaking in a tone that Heather never heard from Katniss before. He was dozed off again. Katniss kissed him awake, startling him. Then he smiled as if he'd be happy to lie there gazing at her forever.
Finnick stared at this, shocked. "Whoa, when did this happen?"
"A few hours ago, didn't I tell you about this?" Heather said.
"Yea, but if I remember correctly, your actual words were 'they were getting along'," Finnick held his fingers up in air quotations.
Cashmere snorted as she burst into laughter and even Haymitch stifled a smile. Heather ferociously blushed as she crossed her arms and looked away from them.
Peeta looked relieved, though it seemed more for the fact that Katniss was happy rather than for the broth itself. Since he had a lack of appetite from his fever, it took an hour of coaxing, begging, threatening, and kissing, but finally, he finished the pot then settled down and slept.
Haymitch almost felt sorry for Katniss as he dealt with the same thing when he took care of a sick Heather three years ago.
Heather heard a loud yawn coming from Cashmere. She turned around to see her friend rubbing her eyes sleepily.
"You should go get some sleep," Heather told him.
"I'm okay."
"That wasn't a suggestion," Heather gave her a look then turned to Haymitch. "You too. Finnick and I are going to stay up for a little while. We'll wake you if something comes up."
Cashmere didn't like the idea but obliged. Surprisingly, Haymitch listened and didn't put up a fight.
Heather leaned in on Finnick as they both watched Katniss. She checked his forehead and then dampened a strip of bandage, placing it on his forehead.
Never one to like silence, Finnick started talking. "So, how's the little guy?"
"Luke?" Heather turned to him. "He's fine. I think he's missing me. I've never been apart from him for this long."
Finnick nodded, he didn't know what else to talk about that wasn't insensitive or just not the right place. Unable to contain it, he said, "I'm bored."
Heather wanted to give him a look but she couldn't bring herself to be mad at him as she was tired of being worried all the time.
Avoiding his eyes, Heather said in a low voice, "There are board games in the drawers."
"Mmmhmm."
Heather snuggled her head closer to the soft pillow under her head. She felt an arm around her waist and immediately thought that it was Haymitch. But it couldn't be since the arm was more muscular. Slowly opening her heavy eyelids, Heather was able to confirm that the person lying beside her was Finnick.
They had stayed up late into the night, keeping a watch on the events going on in the arena. At some point, they played some board games when nothing unordinary was going on.
Still feeling heavy from sleep, Heather didn't want to lift herself from the bed and instead, turned to look at the time. It was 4 o'clock in the afternoon. Instantly, Heather got up which was a bad move since she was hit with a wave of tiredness. The urge to fall back to sleep was huge but Heather continued to push herself to get out of the bed and stand up. Eventually, she made her way to the bathroom to take a nice long shower to freshen up.
Afterwards, when she was walking to the sitting room, Heather began to hear the voice of Peeta.
"Besides, I like watching you sleep. You don't scowl. Improves your looks a lot."
Heather giggled at the remark as she knew it to be true about Katniss. Cashmere caught sight of her and put on a teasing smile. "Morning, sleepyhead."
Heather mumbled something intelligent under her breath then spoke in a clear voice, "Can you get me some food?"
Cashmere nodded and got up to go to the kitchen. Heather stretched her arms right in front of her before sitting next to Haymitch.
"Had a good sleep?" he asked her.
"Yeah," Heather leaned against his arm. "Anything happened?"
He shook his head. Heather was about to say something else but she saw Katniss unwrapping Peeta's leg.
It was worse, much worse. There was no more pus in sight, but the swelling increased and red streaks started to crawl up his leg. Heather mentally searched for a reason for this before settling down on blood poisoning. Unchecked, it would kill him for sure. The only way to treat it was to get strong anti-infection drugs from the Capitol.
"We don't have enough money," Haymitch told Heather before she could even think about sending him the drug.
Groaning, Heather put her head in her hands. How were they going to solve this?
She later got her answer in the evening when the sound of the trumpets suddenly echoed through the arena once again. Claudius Templesmith was inviting the tributes to a feast. Since they weren't low on food, Katniss didn't need to go to it. However, her mind changed when he said, "Now hold on. Some of you may already be declining my invitation. But this is no ordinary feast. Each of you needs something desperately."
Peeta's leg, Heather could practically tell that this was what Katniss was thinking in her mind.
"Each of you will find something in a backpack, marked with your district number, at the Cornucopia at dawn. Think hard about refusing to show up. For some of you, this will be your last chance," Claudius said.
Haymitch looked intently at Heather. He wasn't really surprised at the feast as he figured since nothing was happening and some tributes were facing trouble. However, he was bewildered by the fact that Heather wasn't against Katniss going.
"I think Katniss should do it," she said but she didn't look too happy about this prospect.
"Are you sure?" Cashmere beat him to the question.
"No, but Peeta's going to die if she doesn't. Besides, I trust Katniss to do this."
Unfortunately, Peeta didn't share the same enthusiasm as Heather. "You're not risking your life for me."
"Who said I was?" Katniss defected his claim.
"So, you're not going?"
"Of course, I'm not going. Give me some credit. Do you think I'm running straight into some free-for-all against Cato and Clove and Thresh? Don't be stupid," Katniss said, helping him back to bed. Heather could immediately tell that she was lying. "I'll let them fight it out, we'll see who's in the sky tomorrow night and work out a plan from there."
"You're such a bad liar, Katniss. I don't know how you've survived this long." He began to mimic her. "I knew that goat would be a little gold mine. You're a little cooler though. Of course, I'm not going." He shook his head. "Never gamble at cards. You'll lose your last coin."
Her face became flushed. "All right, I am going, and you can't stop me!"
"I can follow you. At least part way. I may not make it to the Cornucopia, but if I'm yelling your name, I bet someone can find me. And then I'll be dead for sure," he threatened. Heather frowned at the thought of this happening.
"You won't get a hundred yards from here on that leg," Katniss said.
"Then I'll drag myself," Peeta said. "You go and I'm going, too."
"What am I supposed to do? Sit here and watch you die?"
"I won't die. I promise. If you promise not to go."
"Then you have to do what I say. Drink your water, wake me when I tell you, and eat every bite of the soup no matter how disgusting it is!" Katniss snapped at him.
"Agreed. Is it ready?"
"Wait here," Katniss told him, then went to retrieve the pot of soup.
Peeta ate without complaint, even scraping out the pot to show his enthusiasm. He also rambled on about how delicious it is.
Once again, Haymitch took the computer. Heather was about to ask him what he was doing but he spoke first. "Say, Heather, don't you think we should help sweetheart?"
Heather sent him a questioning look then turned to the screen and the picture of a sleep syrup vial. Immediately, Heather figured out the plan. Still, there could be a chance that it could go wrong since it was a common medicine in District 12 and Peeta could easily recognize it.
"What are you guys sending this time?" Cashmere asked, glaring at Haymitch. Just because she was okay with their relationship didn't mean that she liked it.
"Sleep syrup," Heather answered.
"You're going to make Katniss drug Peeta?!" Finnick asked in a dramatic voice.
"Sleep syrup is not a drug and you already know that, Finn," Heather gave him a scolding look.
As she went to the stream to wash up, Katniss was lost in thought that she nearly missed the parachute floating right by her. Then she sprang after it, yanking it from the water, tearing off the silver fabric to retrieve the vial.
Afterwards, Katniss put the sweet syrup with mashed up berries so the taste won't be as noticeable and add some mint leaves for good measure. Then she headed back up to the cave. "I've brought you a treat. I found a new patch of berries a little farther downstream."
Peeta ate it without hesitation. When he swallowed, he frowned slightly. "They're very sweet."
"Yes, they're sugar berries. My mother makes jam from them. Haven't you ever had them before?" Katniss said, poking the next spoonful in his mouth.
"No," he said, puzzled. "But they taste familiar. Sugar berries?"
"Well, you can't get them in the market much, they only grow wild," Katniss said. Another mouthful went down.
"They're sweet as syrup," he took the last spoonful. "Syrup." His eyes widened as he realized the truth. Katniss clamped her hand over his mouth and nose hard, forcing him to swallow instead of spit. He tried to make himself vomit the stuff up, but it was too late, he's already losing consciousness.
Katniss sat back on her heels and looked at him with a mixture of sadness and satisfaction. She wiped away a stain on his chin. "Who can't lie, Peeta?" she said.
"Why do I feel like Katniss was trying to impersonate a villain from some kid show?"
"It's just your imagination, Finn."
The next day, an hour before dawn, Heather tried to get a good look at Katniss. Unfortunately, that wasn't really possible as the camera couldn't get a good shot of her since she was mostly concealed. Heather and her friends had slept early the other day so they could wake up in advance to the opening of the feast.
Heather sipped from her latte drink while the others were all drinking regular bitter coffee. She couldn't handle the bitter taste of it and it was something that Haymitch teased her about till this day.
As time passed by, the sky turned a misty morning gray and Heather was able to spot some tributes. Namely, Clove and Thresh. There was still no sign of Cato and Emma, the girl from District 5. Heather wondered more about Emma as she had proved previously on several occasions that she was a mighty smart opponent who shouldn't be taken lightly. Eventually, morning arrived but the feast didn't make any appearance.
Just as the first ray of sun glinted off the gold Cornucopia, there was a disturbance on the plain. The ground before the mouth of the horn split in two and a round table with a snowy white cloth rose into the arena. On the table were four backpacks, two large black ones with the numbers 2 and 11, a medium-size green one with the number 5, and a tiny orange one marked with a 12.
The table had just clicked into place when a figure darted out of the Cornucopia, snagged the green backpack, and ran off.
Heather blinked in surprise at this.
"Did-did she just do what I think she did?" Finnick asked.
"Yup, that sneaking little girl," Cashmere muttered in a low but clear voice.
Even Haymitch was astonished at this risky and clever act. The rest of them were still poised around the plain, sizing up the situation, and she already got hers. She trapped them too because no one would want to chase her down, not while their own pack could get stolen by the others. Emma must have purposefully left the other packs alone, knowing that to steal one without her number would definitely bring on a pursuer.
Katniss must've also been impressed by this because she sprinted for the table a little late. Heather knew what was coming before it happened as a knife came whizzing towards her. Haymitch looked at Heather to check on her but she was staying silent, quietly taking in what's happening.
Katniss was able to deflect it with the bow. She turned and sent an arrow straight at Clove. She dodged it, but the point punctured her upper arm. Unfortunately, she threw with the other arm, but it was enough to slow her down a few moments, having to pull the arrow from her arm and taking in the severity of the wound.
Katniss didn't stop, positioning the next arrow automatically as she moved to the table.
She grabbed the tiny orange backpack and yanked it up on her arm. She turned when a second knife hit her in the forehead. It sliced above her eyebrow, opening a gash that sent blood running down her face which blinded her eye. Katniss gasped and staggered backwards.
Still, Heather kept her eyes on the screen. It pained her to see Katniss like this but she had to have faith in her. Either way, for better or worse, she wasn't going to look away until this was over. The others seemed to be like her as they also continued watching with bated breath without their eyes faltering.
Katniss clumsily sent an arrow in the general direction on Clove and missed. Clove then slammed into her, knocking on her back. She pinned her shoulders to the ground with her knees. Heather knew that Clove wasn't going to kill her immediately as she seemed like the type to taunt her victims before ending them in cold blood. She hoped that something, anything that could save Katniss will happen during that time.
"Where's your boyfriend, District Twelve? Still hanging on?" she asked, tauntingly.
"He's out there now. Hunting Cato," Katniss lied, snarling at her. Then she screamed at the top of my lungs. "Peeta!"
Clove jammed her fist into her windpipe, effectively cutting off her voice. But her head was whipping from side to side, she was at least considering the lie.
"Liar," she concluded with a grin. "He's nearly dead. Cato knows where he cut him. You've probably got him strapped up in some tree while you try to keep his heart going. What's in the pretty little backpack? That medicine for Lover Boy? Too bad he'll never get it."
Clove opened her jacket. It was lined with an array of knives. It threw Heather back in time as she had a similar jacket back in her arena. She carefully selected an almost dainty-looking number with a cruel, curved blade. Yep, Heather was right about her type. "I promised Cato if he let me have you, I'd give the audience a good show."
Clearly, she had no idea what a good show was.
Katniss struggled now in an effort to get her off, but it was no use. Her lock on her was too tight.
"Forget it, District Twelve. We're going to kill you. Just like we did your pathetic little ally. What was her name? The one who hopped around in the trees? Rue? Well, first Rue, then you, and then I think we'll just let nature take care of Lover Boy. How does that sound?" Clove asked. "Now, where to start?"
She carelessly wiped away the blood from Katniss's wound with her jacket sleeve. For a moment, she surveyed her face, tilting it from side to side as wondering what pattern to carve on her skin. Katniss tried to bite her hand, but she grabbed the hair on the top of her head, forcing Katniss back to the ground.
"I think. " she almost purred. "I think we'll start with your mouth."
Katniss clamped her teeth together as Clove teasingly traces the outline of her lips with the tip of the blade. Heather clenched her fists tightly, almost drawing blood from her palms. The feeling of helplessness and the guilt that came with it returned but ten times stronger than before.
Katniss stared her down, furious at the comment about Rue. She was determined to die without losing dignity.
"Yes, I don't think you'll have much use for your lips anymore. Want to blow Lover Boy one last kiss?" Clove said, Katniss spat a mouthful of blood and saliva at her face. She flushed with rage. "All right then. Let's get started."
Heather was suddenly drawn into the great form of Thresh. Although he was big, Thresh was able to quietly sneak up on them and yank Clove from where she was trapping Katniss. Clove screamed, dangling a foot off the ground, imprisoned in Thresh's arms. Katniss gasped in shock, but he paid no mind to her. Heather sighed in relief as Katniss was okay.
For now, there was no telling what Thresh was going to do to her after he's done with Clove.
He flipped Clove around and flung her onto the ground. He shouted, making Heather jump. She never heard his voice rise above a mutter. "What'd you do to that little girl? You kill her?!"
Clove was scrambling backward on all fours, like a frantic insect, too shocked to even call for Cato. "No! No, it wasn't me!"
"You said her name. I heard you. You kill her?" A wave of rage crossed his features. "You cut her up like you were going to cut up this girl here?"
"No! No, I - " Thresh held a stone, about the size of a small loaf. Clove saw it and lost it. "Cato!" she screeched. "Cato!"
"Clove!" Cato answered, but he was too far away.
Thresh brought the rock down hard against Clove's temple. It didn't bleed but made a dent in her skull. Clove moaned lowly, laying on the ground. She was beyond help now as she would die in a few moments
Thresh whirled around on Katniss, the rock raised. It was no good to run, and her bow was empty. Surprisingly, he didn't kill her, but asked, "What'd she mean? About Rue being your ally?"
"I - I - we teamed up. Blew up the supplies. I tried to save her, I did. But he got there first. District One," Katniss explained in one breath, motivating to speak quickly by fear.
"And you killed him?" he demanded.
"Yes. I killed him. And buried her in flowers," Katniss said. "And I sang her to sleep."
Tears appeared in her eyes, she looked to be overwhelmed by the recent events. Honestly, who wouldn't?
"To sleep?" Thresh repeated gruffly.
"To death. I sang until she died," Katniss corrected. "Your district. they sent me bread." Her hand reached up to wipe my nose. "Do it fast, okay, Thresh?"
Conflicting emotions showed Thresh's face. He lowered the rock and pointed at her, almost accusingly. "Just this one time, I let you go. For the little girl. You and me, we're even then. No more owed. You understand?"
Katniss nodded frantically.
"And you thought her alliance with Rue wouldn't benefit her," Heather whispered to Haymitch. He wisely didn't answer.
"Clove!" Cato nearly reached them. Heather could tell by the pain in his voice that he was seeing her on the ground.
"You better run now, Fire Girl," Thresh said.
Wasting no time, Katniss got up and ran away. When she reached the woods, she looked back for a moment. Thresh and both large backpacks were gone. Cato kneeled beside Clove, spear in hand, and begged her to stay with him.
Katniss crashed into the trees, repeatedly wiping away the blood that's pouring into her eye. After a few minutes, a cannon was fired. Katniss loaded her bow, in case Cato came after her. Though there was a low chance of that since Thresh had Cato's backpack that contained the thing he needed desperately and will probably go after him.
Still, Katniss didn't slow down, even when she reached the stream. She plunged right in and pulled off some socks that she was using as gloves. She pressed them into her forehead, trying to staunch the flow of blood, but they became soaked in minutes.
Luckily, she made it back to the cave, which was camouflaged by Katniss earlier before she left, and squeezed through the rocks. In the dappled light, She took off the little orange backpack from her arm and dumped the contents on the ground. A slim box containing one hypodermic needle. Without hesitating, Katniss jammed the needle into Peeta's arm and slowly pressed down on the plunger.
Heather wished that she could say she was finally relieved but seconds later, Katniss collapsed.