Artemis woke up to streams of sunlight beaming across her face. She pitifully sighed as she put an arm over her eyes. Was it morning already? It had been almost eight days since the Reaping occurred, and her best friend, Peeta, had been forcefully taken away.
Things weren't exactly the same without him. Her talks with Beau were more stressed than usual, walking through town seemed lonely, she even caught herself absentmindedly strolling over to the bakery from time to time.
The events on television weren't exactly always exciting, the first week they had been training for the games. Doing interviews. Those were basically to get anyone in the Capitol to give him an advantage in the arena.
He had confessed his undying love to Katniss on live television which made Artemis laugh a bit. She had always remembered him calling her cute but, never telling them he had an unclaimed love for her.
They gave the tributes their scores for the arena. Peeta rightfully earned a score of eight. She was in total shambles as the games started. She didn't want to watch them in fear that Peeta was going to get killed in the bloodbath. Surprisingly he didn't. He ran away. That was smart. Yesterday was the second day of the games. He had joined a group from District One and Two. Peeta was still alive. But, for how much longer?
Her stomach gurgled angrily.
Artemis built up enough energy to push herself out of bed and walk down stairs to her parents. She strolled into the kitchen to find her mother spreading her homemade ham on top of a piece of bread. The bread must have just been delivered from the Mellark's since the loaf looked New as opposed to the one they had been eating. Peeta's father had to have dropped it off. Out of pity or because her father requested an order she didn't know. She didn't want to ask just in case.
"Good morning, sweetheart." Serena chirped greeting her daughter with a smile. Usually Artemis would fake one back, but she hadn't had the energy to do so since Reaping Day. Instead she just placed an elbow on the table and looked at the outside world through the kitchen window.
Serena threw a concerned look at Torq. They noticed how depressed she had been for the past few days. They just didn't know how to approach it. Torq shrugged towards Serena, crossing his was over to his daughter, and numbly rubbed Artemis's back in comfort as he handed her a piece of bread. "You know you can talk to us." He urged as he walked over to the counter to pour hot water in his cup.
Artemis sighed as she chewed on the piece of bread looking as if she were going to talk. Then, came a long exasperated sigh from across the room. Artemis rolled her eyes.
Katherine's constant whining was in full play this morning as she woke up to find out that breakfast was once again just a piece of bread. She scrunched up her nose in disgust at the offering. "Can't we barter?" She whined. She picked up the piece with two fingers like it was diseased.
Torq rolled his eyes from the counter where he was stirring a mix of herbs as tea in the hot water. "Katherine, we've tried, it's just no one wants to buy or trade us right now for our wood carvings or fire logs. It's the middle of summer." Torq explained to her once again. It had been the third time this week he's had to explain himself.
The family had hit hard times since the games started about a week ago. No Katniss means no meat for the Hammond's and no meat for the Hammond's means no meat for the Cross's. "Well how'd we make a living last summer?" She questioned.
Torq let out a lengthy sigh as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Serena placed her hands on his arm to calm him down, then gave a meek look towards Katherine. She was always the more considerate and patient one. "Davet would give us special prices for his meat because of how much he'd barter for illegal game. Now that the person he used to buy from is gone, his prices have risen, we haven't been able to afford it. He's barely had enough food for Beau and Carina..." Serena explained to Katherine with a sympathetic look.
Katniss being Davet's illegal game partner, of course his prices launched up when he was barely getting enough game.
Katherine broke off a piece of the crust off of the bread and shoved it in her mouth. She looked to be deep in thought as she slowly savored the grain. "Well can't we go forge or something?" Katherine suggested, placing her hands in her lap as she sat at the dining room table. Naga, who had joined the quietly at the table, deemed this idea worthy enough to look up at her twin from her book. She placed both elbows on the table while staring at Katherine, searching for sincerity.
It was always hard to tell if Katherine was actually having an intelligent thought or not.
Artemis snorted a little in a scoffing manner, earning a displeased growl from Torq as she leaned against the kitchen sink. "There's a meadow by the school. You can forge there if there's anything there." Torq complied, crossing his arms.
A certain smell wafted through the open kitchen window, making her stomach gurgle. It was the Hammond's shop, it smelt prominently of chicken. Artemis instantly rubbed her stomach at the thought of chicken, they hadn't been able to eat a full meal in four days, just bread and butter. Katherine was sure to go insane easily, she was already getting on everyone's nerves.
"I highly doubt anything will be in the meadow. That's the place where everyone forges during lunch." Naga stated before nuzzling her face back in her book. Katherine's determined face turned into dismay at her twins words. The realization hit her a little too hard. She wasn't ready to starve completely.
Serena noticed this and took her daughters long, dark hair in between her hands, weaving intricate patterns with it to relax her. "It was a good thought." Serena whispered. She slowly raked her fingers at the roots of Katherine's hair.
Torq leaned next to Artemis, cocking his eyebrow up at his eldest child. He eyed her and then Katherine. Artemis got where this was going, she shook her head back and forth. "No." She stated in a deadly voice. "She's you're sister."
"It's a waste of time."
"You'd be doing a good thing."
"I don't do good things."
Torq glared at Artemis. She was stubborn, she took after him in that aspect. Artemis read her father's eyes very carefully, they were challenging her. They almost said, "Watch me". "Katherine, that's a good idea. Your sisters will accompany you to the meadow." Torq instructed, his eyes never leaving Artemis's.
She groaned and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms as she watched Katherine's expression change. Naga was also disheartened by the news. It didn't seem probable to find anything down there so why were they sending them away?
As they finished gathering up some clothes to hold any berries in, and headed out the door, Torq held his arm out in front of Artemis to stop her. "Make sure they're safe. Don't wander off to far. And if you get into any trouble, whatsoever, take this." He handed her a small pocket knife with a polished wooden handle.
She rubbed her thumb along the handle with a questioning brow. "It's to protect yourself, if you get into any trouble and you feel the need to defend yourself. Don't use it on your sisters. And don't come back until the afternoon is almost over. I'm trying to make a deal with the Hammond's and I don't need you guys to ruin it." Artemis stared at her father for a moment, questioning why he was going to talk to the Hammond's. They weren't going to lower their prices. Finally she nodded once and followed behind her sisters out the door.
She had finally caught up to them while Katherine was in the middle of a conversation. "Well, I heard that Daxton was trying to kiss Vera by the steps of the school." She gossiped to Naga who merely let out a small chuckle. "Vera wouldn't kiss Daxton. She knows that's Alix's property." Artemis rolled her eyes. Schoolyard drama.
"Do you think Katniss has a chance of winning the games, Artemis?" Katherine asked her, catching Artemis by surprise. Wrong question to ask. Artemis had to think about how Katniss was a skilled hunter, shooting nearly all of the Mellark's squirrels in the eye. She felt bad that she knew Katniss was surly going to beat Peeta. "Eh, I don't know, maybe. But the last time anyone from Twelve won was almost twenty five years ago."
Haymitch Abernathy. The town drunkard. The only victor of Twelve. "Besides don't you feel a little bad talking about Katniss winning? I mean, she's great and all but, we're closer to the Mellark's than the Everdeen's. Why aren't you rooting for him?" She asked her siblings. Katherine almost scoffed at her idea.
"Katniss is way smarter than Peeta." Katherine snickered a tiny bit. "She is right," Naga spoke up. "Peeta may be built stockier and he may be able to hold his own but, he won't last on his power alone." Artemis began to get flustered with the idea of her friend not coming back from the games. It was every year a person she knew would go and die, it had virtually no effect on her. This year it was different. Peeta was her friend. She wanted him to come back. Her small friend group wouldn't be the same without him. "Are we even talking about the same Peeta? He's compassionate and kind-"
"And that'll get him killed in the arena." Naga interrupted. "It's a miracle he's lasted this long." Artemis pursed her mouth shut. She didn't want to say anything that would get her or her sisters in trouble.
They had finally reached the schoolyard by the time the conversation had ended. Thank goodness.
Artemis plopped down, crossing her legs like a pretzel and began picking up plants, inspecting them for any signs of berries. Berry picking bored her, there was nothing here. She wove tiny white flowers together, making them into a small crown before placing them on her head.
She stared at her sisters, Naga had begun reading in the shade of a tree, Katherine was still busy trying to forge. Artemis looked up towards the cloudless sky, lying down on her back. She slung her right arm over her eyes and slowly drifted off into a nap.
The relaxation of the nap didn't last long. Katherine stomped over to Artemis, nudging her sister with her foot. "Are you done napping? I found a few berries, no thanks to you two." She explained as she slung the small, white sack over her shoulder. Artemis noticed how small her bag was still. "How many?" She yawned.
Katherine pursed her lips together. "Seven." She muttered out disheartened. Her older sister raised up onto her elbows while squinting at her. "That's not even a handful. And you checked everywhere?"
"I checked this whole yard. Someone recently must've forged."
"Let's just cut our losses and go home." Naga said, closing her book. "It was better off that way anyways."
Artemis looked towards the outer perimeter of the schoolyard, nothing but dirt and fence. The fence. The woods beyond the fence. There would be food out there, no one dared to go out there. She fumbled with the small knife within her pocket. She could score a squirrel with it. Maybe.
"What about out there?" She asked Katherine, gesturing with her chin towards the fence. Katherine raised her brows up in surprise. "What? Are you asking me to commit suicide?"
Artemis pushed herself off the ground, her eyes not leaving the sight of the woods. "No, I'm asking you to survive."
Katherine rolled her eyes. "Survive? That thing is electrified twenty-four seven and even if it wasn't do you know how many things could kill us in there?" She stated with a sigh. "It's not electrified twenty-four seven. If you actually listened to some kids in school you'd know that it's usually turned off so we can have electricity at night." Naga stated. "Do you know when the power is off?" Artemis questioned her younger sister. Naga shook her head in denial. "I never asked. I didn't think about it until now."
Artemis looked back towards the fence. It was dangerous but, worth a shot. "I guess we'll just have to find out." She said in a snide voice, pacing towards the fence.
"Artemis, you better not." Katherine hastily scolded her sister. Artemis rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah? And what are you gonna do if I did it?" She challenged, arching her brow in the process. Katherine placed a hand on her hip before throwing a scowl her way. "I'll tell dad!" She promptly stated. Her blue eyes remained on her older sibling who had started to shove a small pocket knife in her pocket.
"Tell dad." She mumbled out. Naga, who had had enough of the constant, stood up from the green meadow gazing at her older sister. "Artemis, perhaps Katherine is right. You shouldn't go out there. It's dangerous." Naga plead to her, earning an respectful gaze from Artemis.
Artemis huffed out a sigh before rubbing the back of her neck. "I understand that it's dangerous out there but, it's also dangerous here. I can't just stand idly by and watch our family starve." Artemis stared up at the sun in the sky, not a cloud in sight. It was early in the afternoon by the looks of it.
Her head snapped back to the twins who had been waiting for more of a response. "Naga, if anything happens to me promise me you won't go to Darius's place. He's a crooked man who won't give you the money." Naga sunk in the words that Artemis had said before pushing up her glasses on the bridge of her nose and nodding once.
Katherine let out a frustrated groan. She knew that once Naga had given in to Artemis's plan there was no going back.
Artemis turned to head towards the fence, her heartbeat racing. She was going into the woods with just a pocket knife. Something in her wanted to say she was crazy - no wait that was just Katherine screaming it from a distance.
Finally, she reached the large fence that was supposed to be throbbing with electricity. How was she going to know that it wasn't electrified? She looked towards the palm of her right hand, beginning to sweat with anticipation. Too dangerous. There must be something else.
To the side of her there were several rocks buried within the dirt. She took an oval shaped one in her hand, running her fingers along the side of it. If it bounced off it was electrified, she wouldn't go in. If it didn't, the woods would have to find another way to kill her.
She quickly threw the rock at it, anticipating that it would bounce off. It didn't. It merely fell to the ground after hitting it. "That doesn't prove anything." Katherine shouted towards her. "I guess that means the power's off, now doesn't it?" Artemis argued back. She turned towards the fence once again, this time extending her hand. Nervously, and tremendously shaking Artemis outstretched her arm, aiming for the fence.
Katherine quickly turned around, covering her ears anxiously. "I can't watch." She whispered to her twin who was intent on watching.
Artemis knew at any point she could turn back. But she'd be turning back to a life of starvation. If she fled to the woods to hunt like Katniss then she wouldn't have to depend on someone catching illegal game for the Davet's to eat. She slowly counted through her shaky breaths. "One...Two..." Artemis quickly shoved her hand towards the fence shouting, "Three!" expecting the worse.
Instead of flying backwards, surly burnt to a crisp, Artemis stood there, perfectly intact. She peered over her shoulder to see Naga gripping at her chest in relief, Katherine was still turned around and was embracing for the moment that she turned around to see a toasted Artemis.
"I'll be back by sundown." She shouted towards Naga, who gave her the thumbs up before she ducked through the gap in the fence.
Artemis had never seen a place like the woods before. It was so open. No people, no end to it. The only sounds coming from inside it was the sounds of chirping birds and the wind between the trees. It was almost as if she had found peace.
She pulled out the small pocket knife that her father had given her before she had left. He said that it was in case there was any trouble in town but, she never knew of anyone being of any conflict in town besides the occasional rowdy drunk in the Hobb.
Usually that rowdy drunk was Haymitch and he's away in the Capitol. Perhaps he had known this was what she was going to do. He was preparing her.
What was she to do with this though? Throw it at a squirrel? She was too inexperienced to do the kind of hunting that Katniss seemed to be doing in the games.
The games. Peeta.
A sudden pang of loneliness hit her as she thought of the last time she had spoken to him. His words rang in her head. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone." Artemis snorted as she remembered one of his last words. If only he saw her now.
She wished that there was a way she could afford to give him a parachute to let him know that at least she hoped he'd survive. No one else seemed to be rooting for him. Peeta is smart and can be resourceful. Just not as resourceful as Katniss, who had lived in the Seam her whole life. Surviving was second nature to her. It wasn't second nature to Peeta, his second nature was kindness.
It most certainly wasn't Artemis's second nature either, she had been wandering in the woods for almost an hour and all she could do was think about how much she'd appreciate her friendship with Peeta a little more if he made it through the games.
"Don't." A voice rang out, startling Artemis and making her jump. She placed a hand over her heart as she tried to calm down. The only clear thought running through her head to coax herself wasn't very clear. If it was a peacekeeper she was dead, but if it was another civilian they were dead.
She held her hands up by her sides, and dropped the knife, biting her bottom lip. "I don't want any trouble." She blurted out, as she slowly turned around. Her eyes fell upon a strange, yet somehow familiar man who had a bow in his hand and a quiver on his back.
She recognized him to be the boy who carried Katniss's sister away from the stage during the reaping. He had a very anxious yet, bored look to his grey eyes as they studied her. "Give me your hand." He instructed as he carefully walked over to her, looking at the ground to mind his footing.
Artemis perked a brow up in question as she stared at his extended hand. "Why?" Her tone was unamused as she glared at the boy who feverishly waved his extended hand out to her.
"You're in the middle of a trap. Let me help you out before you get hurt."
Artemis didn't budge, she continued to stare at him judging whether he was being honest or not.
"Listen, I'm not usually this nice but, I'm willing to help you. Take my hand or get hurt or worse." He exasperated. Artemis huffed out a sigh before grabbing his calloused hand and following his every step for about three feet. As he released her hand she gruffly rubbed it off against her jacket, before watching him pick up a large stick.
"If that was just some cheap tactic to hold my hand-" The boy threw the stick a few inches from where he had stopped her, it landed on a wire which launched it straight up into the air and let it dangle there.
Artemis stared at the large snare with her mouth slightly ajar. It wasn't that impressive, a basic snare just built for animals like deer or wild dogs, but if she had stepped on it she would've been stuck, with everything falling out of her pockets.
"Thanks, I guess." She mumbled.
The boy stared at her for a moment then placed his hand on his hips. "What're you doing out here? Don't you know it's dangerous?" He asked. She eyed him up and down. Surveying him. "I don't believe I should be explaining myself to a perfect stranger." She said defensively.
That was a lie. She had a brief memory of him at school. They were in the same grade. The cock of his brow that he held in disbelief showed that he knew she was lying and that he knew of her too.
Artemis sighed. "Will you stop staring at me if I tell you?"
He huffed out an exasperated sigh and calmly nodded his head. "Well, Katniss got reaped and Davet lost most of his meat so his prices have skyrocketed. My family's been starving so, here I am." She peered over towards the snare boy who had a frown perched upon his face.
"Don't you hate that? Your family starving?" He wondered, trying to relate to her. "Yeah. I mean I guess. This is one of the first times. My sister has never complained more in her life. Got on my nerves. Had to do something." Artemis scoffed, the boy slightly smiled. "The name's Gale." He said, sticking out his hand for her again. "I know, Artemis Cross." She shook his hand. "I know." He repeated.
An awkward moment of staring at each other passed by before Gale cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. Artemis blushed with embarrassment. "Great, well now that that's settled." She shoved her hands in her pockets and started to descend down the small, steep, rocky hill behind her.
Gale slightly shook his head as he watched her stumble across the rocks. He started laying out his options.
One: He could sit here and watch her stumble and possibly fall and injure herself or worse. It could provide entertainment.
Two: He knew of her harassing personality towards some of the kids at school. He could do something mean to scare her. By why would he do that? He has no quarrel with her.
Three: He could actually help her. She was aimlessly walking around the woods near the end of the afternoon. Once it gets dusk she could be in potential danger with the wild animals out here.
"Where are you going?" He inquired, as he sat down on a rock near the edge of the hill watching her continue down. Artemis let out a low annoyed growl and rolled her eyes before peering up at the hunter. "Wherever my gut takes me." She replied, jumping over a rock and making herself become unbalanced. She caught herself against another rock before pushing herself upwards again.
She heard a low, distinct chuckle come from above her. "Got something to say?" She growled. "You're heading deeper into the forest near sundown. Do you even know what awaits you in there?"
"I don't know. Death, hopefully. Maybe it'll be fast. I don't know, Gale. Enlighten me." Gale slid down the steep slope towards her before taking her hand and leading her towards a stable spot to stand. "Are you usually this suicidal?" He questioned.
Artemis shrugged. "Depends."
"Do you even know how to hunt?"
"No but, does it matter? I just want some berries. Maybe try to catch a squirrel."
Gale crossed his arms in question. "How are you going to catch a squirrel-" Artemis weld out the pocket knife that was hidden in her pocket.
Gale stared at it for a moment. He looked puzzled as if he was trying to piece something together. He put his hand up to his chin, lightly grasping while letting out a humming noise.
Artemis soon became annoyed with his indecisive nature. "I'm sorry but, that little thing isn't going to do you justice out here." He blurted out while pointing to the knife. "What!" Artemis ground her teeth together in anger.
Gale nodded his head while taking the knife out of her hands. He ran his thumb along the edge of the blade. "Plus it's dull." He pointed out before giving the pocket knife back to Artemis.
"You might as well just jump on a squirrel and gnaw on it to death if you think that thing is going to help you." He watched as she stuck her bottom lip out in a pout while swaying back and forth. Gale gave her a dead stare. "Would that act-"
"No. That wouldn't work." He interrupted pursing his lips together. "Why would you even think that'd work?" He asked turning away towards the assent they had tumbled down into.
Artemis quickly trailed behind him. "I don't know. You seem like a woodsy guy. I figured you'd know. Maybe from experience." Artemis leered. Gale rolled his eyes. "You don't get it." He snapped. "You're not from the Seam, being "woodsy" isn't something most people want to be but, they have to, to survive."
Artemis took a step back in surprise. No one has ever snapped at her for being sarcastic to the point where she was at a loss of words. She had stuck something inside of him that she hasn't witnessed at school. She felt bad. And it wasn't too often she felt this way. "I-I'm sorry." She hesitantly stated.
Gale perked an eyebrow up in question at this. An apology from the school bully? Was this pity? He could see that she did have honest intentions on the apology.
He knew what it was like to be in her shoes. To go one moment being somewhat fine and then having nothing. He could tell she wasn't the backbone of the family, her father most definitely was, but she was trying.
It reminded him of himself when he had first gone through his first hardship. Now, he was taking pity on her.
The bully had character.
Gale's lips turned into a small smirk for moment when Artemis wasn't looking. He coughed gaining her attention. "You know, Katniss is usually my hunting partner and since she's gone and your family's starving which has forced you to come out here, why don't I teach you how to hunt and you can at least keep me company?" Gale offered with a brow perked up interest.
Artemis scanned over his features, he was definitely from the Seam, his eyes were a cloudy grey but they held his word. She pursed her lips as she decided.
The pros of this was that she wasn't going to be lonely, she was more than likely to get more food, and she was going to learn how to hunt. The cons were he may steal from her and he may eat her out to the peacekeepers.
However, he did say he used to be hunting partners with Katniss and she was trustworthy enough to her.
"Deal. But this is only until Katniss gets back." Artemis clarified with pointing her finger towards his face. Gale's lips turned into a frown again, his brows furrowing as he gestured with his head for her to walk with him.
"Do you think she'll actually come back?" He asked as they trudged through the forest. Artemis realized she had hit a soft spot with him, she immediately tensed up. "I don't know," She shrugged. "She's...strong. I think she may have a chance." Gale sighed out as he looked towards the leaves on the tree branches. "Chances don't mean anything."