Day Two
Legato


Legato: Indicates that musical notes are played or sung smoothly and connected.


Squirrel Tail, 18
District Nine

It was still dark outside when she heard the howling – quiet at first, but coming steadily closer. Squirrel shuddered, hoping the dogs or wolves or whatever they were weren't heading for the three of them. They'd taken shelter in one of the restaurants, but that wouldn't be much of a hiding place if the Gamemakers wanted the mutts to find them. But surely between Malachi's death and Eddie's breakdown, they'd been through enough.

Unless…

Don't trust them. Squirrel glanced down at Fermi and Eddie, both of whom were sleeping soundly – or at least appeared to be, as far as she could tell. Maybe this was her chance to get away from them. But she would have to be quick. She could just leave them right now, of course, and hope that the mutts would finish them off, but that … that just didn't feel right. She didn't want them to die. She just didn't want them anywhere near her.

But they would have to die eventually.

But 'eventually' wasn't 'now.' Slowly, so as not to wake the others, Squirrel lifted the backpack that had their food in it and slung it over her back. Then, in one movement, she shook both Eddie and Fermi awake, then leapt to her feet. "Hurry! They're coming!" she shouted, and sprinted out the door too quickly for them to follow. Or at least, she hoped it would be too quickly for them to follow. She didn't look back. She was pretty sure she heard footsteps behind her, so at least one of them had probably followed, but she had a good head start, heading in the opposite direction of the howling.

All she had to do was keep going long enough. She was taller than them, faster than them, probably had better endurance than them. They'd lived in District Three all their lives, after all, while she had spent hers hunting in the wilderness. She had the stamina she needed to keep going after her legs were tired and wanted to quit.

She picked up speed as she took a hard right – still heading away from the howling, but now at an angle. With any luck, the other two would keep going straight – if they had followed her at all. When she finally looked behind her, she couldn't see Fermi or Eddie at all. The howling in the distance was growing fainter. She was safe. Well, safe for now, at least, and that was what mattered. That was all that mattered.


Eddie Hyde, 14
District Three

He couldn't let himself change. Not again. Not now. Eddie gasped for breath as he followed Squirrel – or at least the direction he hoped Squirrel had gone. Part of him knew, though, that it would probably be better for her if he didn't catch up. He'd killed Malachi, after all. Well, Hyde had killed Malachi, but that distinction didn't really matter to the person who ended up dead. And if he caught up, the next person to end up dead might very well be Squirrel.

And he didn't want that. He had never wanted that. He hadn't had much of a problem – or at least he'd told himself he hadn't – with Hyde killing that girl during the bloodbath. That was what you did in the bloodbath. You expected people to die. He'd been half-expecting Hyde to take over and kill someone. Maybe there was a part of him that had even been relying on it.

But Malachi … that was different. Malachi had been someone he knew. They had been … well, allies at least. Maybe even friends. Yes, he had to die eventually if Eddie wanted to go home, but that didn't mean he had to die now. Hyde hadn't had a reason to kill him. But Hyde didn't need a reason.

Eddie was so distracted, he almost didn't see the tributes up ahead, nestled against the wall of a building. Were they asleep? They looked asleep. As he turned to head in the other direction, though, one of them sprang up and took off after him. Damn it. Hyde was screaming in the back of his brain, begging to be let out, but it wasn't as if Hyde could make his body run any faster. And he didn't even have a weapon. In his panic, he'd left the sword Hyde had grabbed during the bloodbath. So Hyde wouldn't really be able to defend himself any better than he could. But maybe Hyde wouldn't be so tired…

No. Eddie gritted his teeth and kept running. He had a head start. Maybe the other boy wouldn't catch him. He turned down one street, and then another. Inside a building. Down a long, painting-lined hallway. Outside the other—

Eddie gasped as he fell, tripping down the stairs on the other side of the building. He rolled awkwardly, hands scraping the pavement, and tried to get to his feet. Pain shot up his ankle, and he fell back down. Okay. Okay, maybe he could rest for a little while. Maybe he'd lost the other boy. He didn't seem to have followed him inside. Eddie would just have to hope the other boy wouldn't figure out where he'd gone.


Sebastian Banks, 18
District Four

Sebastian shook his head as he scanned the surrounding buildings for any sign of movement. Nothing. The boy he'd been chasing had probably darted inside one of them, but he had no way of knowing which one. He would have plenty of time to hide, or maybe run out another exit, while Sebastian took the time to search each one.

Stupid. It had been stupid to chase him – especially without waking up Corin first. But he'd thought … he'd hoped he'd be able to catch the boy easily. Quickly. He'd hoped that would impress the sponsors, convince them that he and Corin had a real chance of functioning as a Career pack. But instead of treating her as part of the pack, he'd run off on his own because…

Because by the time he woke her, the boy would have been gone. That was what he'd tried to tell himself. But if he was being honest with himself, he wasn't sure whether Corin would have wanted to chase after the other boy. He wasn't sure whether she really wanted to be treated like a Career at all.

Oh, she'd done just fine during training. She'd lapped up every opportunity to learn how to fight. She'd wanted to be seen as part of the pack. But when it actually came to killing…

Of course, it wasn't as if he'd killed anyone either, he reminded himself as he turned and headed back towards where Corin was probably still sleeping. With any luck, she would never know he'd been gone. It had been his turn to keep watch, and he hadn't been gone that long. Sure, the audience would know he had tried to catch the boy, but they couldn't exactly fault him for not being fast enough. The boy'd had quite a head start.

Sebastian shook his head. The audience wouldn't care that he'd had a head start. They probably wouldn't even care that Sebastian had tried to chase after him. That didn't matter. What mattered was that he hadn't killed the other boy. It was the second day of the Games, and he was a Career who hadn't killed anyone. What would the audience think of that?


Fermi Schoenberg, 15
District Three

Fermi cocked their head as the dogs drew closer. There certainly seemed to be a lot of mutts in the arena this year, between the elephants the night before and the dogs now. The dogs didn't appear to be chasing anyone – not yet, at least. Maybe if he didn't give them a reason to chase her…

Fermi drew themself up as tall as he could and held out her hand, palm out. "Stop!" they commanded, but even he would have to admit she was a little surprised when the dogs skidded to a halt in front of them. He hadn't expected it to be that easy. Fermi grinned as the dog in front cocked its head at her, trying to figure out what to make of the command. Maybe deciding whether to attack now or…

Slowly, Fermi slid a hand into their pocket, reaching for one of his knives. Instead, her fingers found their district token – his kazoo. Fermi drew it out slowly and blew a note. The dog's ears perked up, so she blew another. Then another. Hesitantly, one of the dogs began howling along with the tune. Fermi nearly burst out laughing, but somehow managed to keep playing. As the dogs gathered around, they sat down cross-legged on the ground.

The dogs drew closer. One of them began to lick Fermi's face as she played. Still playing, Fermi scratched behind one of the dog's ears, then rubbed a second one's belly. One of the larger dogs settled down beside them, and Fermi leaned gently against its massive body. Squirrel and Eddie had no idea what they were missing.


Octavia Branshaw, 18
District Two

"So that's how you do it, huh?" Octavia asked, watching Aloe skeptically. "You just scatter the bread crumbs, the pigeons come, and the dogs kill them? That's all there is to it?"

Aloe smirked. "Thought it would be something more complicated than that?"

"Well … yes," Octavia admitted. It wasn't like the Gamemakers to make something that easy for the tributes. "There's gotta be a catch, right?"

Lucinda shrugged. "Not that we've noticed so far. Well, except for the fact that we don't really have a way to cook them. We checked the stove in the restaurant, but it doesn't work. Guess they didn't want to make things too easy."

Octavia nodded. "Tell you what, then. Aloe and I will catch some pigeons; you can go look for some firewood. With any luck, we can have some of these pigeons for lunch."

Aloe cocked her head. "Why? We have plenty of other food."

Octavia sighed. These two may have been bright enough to figure out how to befriend some dogs and catch pigeons, but they still weren't thinking like tributes. Because that will show the audience we can fend for ourselves, and don't have to rely on the food we've already got. But saying that wasn't a good way forward. After all, these two were outer-district tributes. They might even be reluctant to look like they were playing along with the Games, trying to appeal to the audience. "I just thought a little variety might be nice," Octavia said instead. "I've never had pigeon before. But if you're worried you might not like it…"

That did the trick. "I'm not worried," Aloe insisted immediately. "I just didn't think it was a good idea to send Lucinda off alone to get firewood."

Lucinda clapped Aloe on the back. "It's okay; I won't be going far." She pointed to a group of trees on the other end of the park. "Those trees look good. I'll be back before you know it."

Octavia said nothing as Lucinda hurried off. Interesting that Aloe was worried about Lucinda going off alone, but Lucinda didn't appear at all concerned about leaving Aloe alone with a Career. Of course, the dogs were still there, but still. If she wanted to kill Aloe, would they really be able to stop her?

Except … she didn't want to kill Aloe. And that was beginning to worry her.


Lucinda Tweed, 15
District Eight

It didn't take long to find enough wood. There were plenty of trees on the other side of the park, and their branches were nice and dry. Almost as if the Gamemakers had designed them to be good for firewood. They probably had. They certainly hadn't designed them for climbing; even the branches closest to the ground wouldn't be able to hold any but the smallest tributes.

Maybe Aloe. Lucinda glanced back towards the other side of the park, where Aloe and Octavia were supervising the dogs as they chased pigeons. She'd done her best to hide just how worried she was about leaving Aloe with the Career. Part of her knew that was silly. After all, if Octavia had wanted to kill them, she could have done so during the night. Maybe she was scared of how the dogs might react, or maybe…

Maybe she was just happy to have a pack – or at least something resembling a pack. After all, several of the Careers were dead – including Octavia's district partner – and the rest seemed to be rather scattered. Careers who decided to go it alone early usually didn't last very long; their whole strategy centered around being able to hunt down weaker tributes as a pack. If a single Career came across a group of outer-district tributes, they would make a prime target.

Except … except it had barely occurred to Lucinda to attack Octavia. She and Aloe could have tried to order the dogs to attack the Career, but instead they'd invited her to join them. If she'd really wanted to make sure that Octavia wouldn't hurt her or Aloe, she could have killed her in her sleep. But she hadn't, and neither had Aloe.

Lucinda shifted the firewood in her arms as she headed back towards the others. For now, teaming up with Octavia was the smart thing to do. But if she was being honest with herself, she simply hadn't wanted a fight. She hadn't wanted to kill. She still didn't. Lucinda shook her head, wondering what would happen when she had to.


Whisper Collins, 16
District Ten

"How about that building up there?" Whisper asked as he and Percy trudged through the early morning light. Neither of them had been able to get to sleep, so they'd decided to cover some ground. Percy shrugged silently, a shrug that conveyed pretty much what Whisper was thinking himself – that one building was probably as good as any other. And it would probably be good to get out of the open.

That was a strange feeling, really. He was used to the open air, used to the comforting feeling of the sun on his face, the wind rustling through the grasses of District Ten. But this was … well, different. For starters, the longer they stayed out in the open, the more likely someone was to find them – someone who wanted to kill them, which wasn't exactly a comforting thought.

Besides, none of the familiar sounds and smells of home were here. The streets smelled like smoke – but not the comforting smoke of a wood fire at the end of the day. There were birds, and other animal noises, but none of the ones that he was used to. There was nothing familiar. Nothing to remind him of home. Arti had reminded him of home, but…

But she was dead. Whisper forced back the lump in his throat as he and Percy stepped inside the building. His eyes grew wide. Immediately inside the door, he could see row after row, shelf after shelf, filled with books. Whisper took a few steps towards the nearest shelf. He'd never been an overly avid reader, but right now, he could do with the distraction. He selected one of the books and slumped down on the floor, patting the tile beside him. Percy took a seat, eyebrows furrowed. "What're you doing?"

"It's as good a way to pass the time as any," Whisper reasoned. "It isn't as if we have anything better to do. Pick one."

Percy hesitated a moment, clearly intimidated by the shelves. "I…"

"Or I could read one out loud," Whisper suggested, and a wave of relief passed over Percy's face. "Probably more fun that way, anyway," Whisper reasoned, and opened the book he'd chosen. "Once upon a time, there was an old donkey. He was unable to work anymore. His owner was going to get rid of him. But Donkey had other ideas. He wanted to go to the city of Bremen. He wanted to be a town musician…"


Corin Palmer, 14
District Four

The sun was already high in the sky when Corin woke, stretching her arms and sitting up slowly. She'd thought Sebastian would wake her earlier to take her turn watching, but maybe he'd decided to let her sleep a bit longer. They weren't exactly in much of a hurry, after all. It wasn't as if they had anywhere they needed to be. It was just the two of them, after all. Just her and—

Sebastian. Corin glanced around frantically. Where was he? He had been right here when she had gone to sleep. He wouldn't have just left, would he? Had something happened to him? But there would have been a cannon. There would be a body. And anyone who had come and attacked him would certainly have noticed her, as well.

"Sebastian!" Corin shouted before she could stop herself. "Sebastian, where are you?" No answer. Of course there was no answer. Wherever he had gone, he could be anywhere by now. Besides, he was a real Career. He would know better than to give away his position by shouting. He was probably off getting supplies or something. He would be back before she knew it.

Supplies. But where would he be going to get supplies? The cornucopia was gone. And why would he go somewhere else without telling her? Maybe he had left her a note. Corin shuffled through their supplies, but there was nothing. No sign of where Sebastian might have gone.

Corin repacked the supplies and stood up, fists clenched. She would just have to find him. He might need her help. Maybe someone had lured him away from the camp and … and what? There hadn't been a cannon, but he might be hurt, or trapped, or lost. He might need her. He did need her – maybe just as much as she needed him. Corin took a deep breath and struck out for the nearest building. He was the only ally she had left, and she wasn't about to let something happen to him. Not if she could help it.


Dario Baretti, 18
District Five

Dario had to admit, he hadn't imagined finding some of the other tributes would be this hard. He and Lark had been out hunting for at least an hour, but there didn't appear to be any sign of anyone else. Were they all hiding in the buildings? They'd checked a few, but there didn't seem to be any sign of anyone anywhere.

Maybe that was for the best. He and Lark had plenty of supplies, after all. They could probably outlast some of the other tributes, wait for them to kill each other off fighting over food or supplies. But there was a part of him that was getting restless. He'd expected the Games to be moving faster, if he was being honest with himself. He'd expected himself to be moving faster, really. He'd been expecting to fight.

He'd been expecting to kill.

There it was, really. That was what he'd thought the Games would be. That was what he'd always done, after all. That was the life he'd always known. He'd been expected to kill, and he had. But now … now it wasn't that simple.

A flicker of movement caught his eye, interrupting his thoughts. He turned to Lark, who nodded. He'd seen it, too. Someone had darted out of one of the nearby buildings and into the alleyway. Dario held a finger to his lips as the pair of them approached the mouth of the alleyway. Dario drew a knife out of his pocket.

"Lark?" came a voice from the alleyway as the pair stepped into view. "Is that you?"

Beside him, Lark froze. "Sebastian? What are you doing here?"

"Heading back that way." The Career nodded towards the other end of the alley. "I was chasing someone, but I lost them a while back."

Lark cocked his head. "Just you? Where's the rest of the pack?"

Sebastian shrugged. "It's just me and Corin now, really – and you and your friend, if you'd like to join us."

Lark turned to Dario, who shrugged. Lark seemed understandably reluctant to attack his former ally, and in any case, attacking a trained Career probably wasn't their best bet at the moment. There was a knife in Sebastian's hand, but no telling what other weapons he might have concealed somewhere. They could always wait for a better opportunity to make their move. Dario nodded casually. "Might as well."


Aloe Brittle, 13
District Twelve

"This is harder than it looks," Octavia chuckled, trying to get close enough to their fire to roast her stick of pigeon meat without getting burned.

"Yeah, we might have gotten a little carried away," Lucinda agreed. Their little fire had quickly turned into a roaring bonfire after the three of them had kept fetching more wood. Logs crackled and smoke rose, but so far, no one seemed to have noticed. Or at least, anyone who had noticed had decided that a group that didn't mind attracting attention wasn't the sort of group they wanted to attack.

"Maybe we should let it die down a little before – Ow!" Octavia took a step back as sparks flew out from the fire, one of them landing on her arm. "Before trying to cook anything," she finished, grumbling, rubbing her arm.

Almost immediately, there was a gentle pinging noise from overhead, and a parachute floated down, landing safely away from the fire. Aloe raised an eyebrow as Lucinda reached for the package, which had a number "2" on it, then tossed it to Octavia. "Looks like it's for you."

Octavia opened it, revealing a small bottle. She poured a few drops onto her arm and rubbed it in, then replaced the cap and tucked it into her pocket. She shook her head. "They really didn't have to do that."

Lucinda shrugged. "Guess there are some perks to being a Career, huh?"

Octavia nodded. Aloe said nothing. That was something she hadn't really thought about when they'd decided to let Octavia join them, but it was definitely a benefit of being allies with a Career, as well. There was plenty of the medicine left in case anything else happened, and it was good to know that the sponsors were still supporting Octavia even though she'd decided to join them. Maybe even because she'd decided to join them – because she'd taken the initiative and formed her own pack when the original one had fractured.

Aloe felt a smile creep over her face as she stared into the fire. Maybe she and Lucinda had made the right choice after all.


Fabrion Morrison, 16
District Eight

Whoever had been stupid enough to light a fire big enough to make that much smoke, they were going to regret it. Fabrion adjusted his backpack, gripped his dagger, and kept heading for the smoke that was rising into the sky, a beacon for anyone who was daring enough to follow it. Whoever had lit the fire was probably counting on the idea that no one would dare attack a group that wasn't being cautious about giving away their position.

Of course, getting closer didn't necessarily mean he had to attack them. He could find out who was there first and then make his decision. If it was a larger group, he could always turn around and head back the way he had come. But if it was a smaller group – or even one person – hoping to fool the rest of them into thinking there were more of them … well, then he would be in the perfect position to take advantage of that.

As long as no one else got there first, of course. The smoke was pretty far away – maybe even all the way on the other side of the arena, depending on how large it turned out to be. By the time he got there, someone else may very well have found them first. Maybe that would even be better, though. If there had already been a fight, someone might be injured, and he might have the chance to finish them off without taking much of a risk himself.

Fabrion looked up as a pinging sound came from above. Something landed at his feet. Fabrion grinned. The sponsors, at least, seemed to approve of his decision; the parachute at his feet was attached to a hatchet. He lifted it carefully and gave it a swing. It felt good in his hand, certainly a better weapon than the knives and scalpels he had tucked in his pockets, maybe even better than the dagger. Certainly it wouldn't hurt to have an extra weapon. "Thanks," he muttered, and kept heading towards the smoke. It certainly looked like he'd made the right choice.


Percy Allen, 12
District Six

"So, Willy, let me and you be wipers of scores out with all men – especially pipers! And, whether they pipe us free from rats or from mice, if we've promised them aught, let us keep our promise," Whisper finished with a smirk.

Percy stretched his arms, then reached for another book. "How about this one?" he asked, handing it to Whisper, who had already accumulated quite a pile.

Whisper chuckled. "Maybe we should see if there's any food around here first. We finished off the last of what I had last night."

Percy glanced around. There wasn't likely to be any food around here – not in a building that seemed to be full of books. But he didn't want to leave. He wanted to stay here and listen to story after story, not having to worry about the Games happening outside. He was … happy here, happy without having to use his pills, and he wanted more of it.

Percy looked up at Whisper. "If I find some food, can we read some more?" he asked, fiddling with his necklace.

Whisper nodded. "Of course, but—"

Before he could finish the sentence, Percy had popped a pill into his mouth and raced out the door. He just had to find some food. Just had to find someone – anyone – with food and get away and back to the library before Whisper tried to follow him. That would be easy enough, wouldn't it?

In fact, he could already hear something. It was getting darker – dark enough for the street lamps to come on, casting shadows this way and that. He could see one of those shadows moving – just a little. Something was rustling. A weapon, maybe? No, weapons didn't rustle. Percy crept closer, and he could see a tribute – one of the older girls, maybe the one from District Nine? She was pulling something out of a backpack…

Food. She had food. Percy beamed, then darted out in front of the girl. "Over here!" he called, and raced off to one side, then circled around to the other side – the side where she had left her pack. She hadn't rushed off to follow him, but she was looking in the direction he had gone. Quickly, Percy snatched up the bag and raced back towards the library. With any luck, she would have no idea where her bag had gone.

Percy slowed down a little as he reached the library. After all, it wouldn't do to let Whisper see him running that fast. To his relief, Whisper was still there when he opened the door, his eyes widening when he saw what Percy was carrying. "How did you…?"

Percy dropped the bag and opened it, revealing enough food to last the two of them quite a while. "Dinner!" he announced, beaming. "After we eat … then can you read some more?"

Whisper clapped him on the back. "Of course."


Aurora Flash, 16
District Five

It was starting to get cold outside as Aura made her way towards one of the nearby buildings, clutching her dagger tightly in case there was someone inside. She'd spent most of the day making her way from building to building, trying to get a feel for where things were and where might be a good place to spend the night. Quietly, she slid open the door and peeked inside.

There were lights inside, illuminating the walls of a long hallway that branched off in different directions, almost like a maze. A beautiful maze. The walls were lined with paintings. Here and there, she could see a sculpture along the passageways. Aura relaxed a little and adjusted her backpack. If she was going to stay somewhere for a while, this was probably as good a place as any. If she made her way down a couple of the hallways, it would take anyone quite a while to find her.

Of course, that could also mean it would take her a while to find her way out, but that wasn't really a problem. She headed down one hallway, and then another. Finally, she settled down by a large, beautiful fountain in the shape of a swan, water pouring from its mouth. There were coins in the fountain, scattered along the bottom. What was that all about?

Aura cupped her hands and took a long drink. The water was clear and cold; that was all that mattered. If it tasted a little rusty from the coins … well, it was still better than the water usually tasted back in District Five. Besides, there seemed to be plenty of it, and there was still food in her bag. She could stay here for a while.

She would just have to hope no one else had the same idea.


Baoba Pitblossom, 17
District One

"Sebastian? Sebastian!" The voice kept calling from outside the building. Baoba shook his head. It had to be a trap. Even a younger Career would know better than to start calling out for a missing ally like that. Anyone could hear her and decide to attack her.

Anyone including him.

Baoba sighed and stood up. He'd managed to find some scraps of food in the garbage bin outside the building, but he was still hungry, and he didn't have any other supplies. He certainly didn't have a weapon. Attacking a Career – even a younger Career – without a weapon seemed like a very bad idea. But following her … well, maybe there was no harm in that. Maybe she would lead him to some supplies. Maybe he would be able to swipe something while she was busy searching for Sebastian.

Slowly, cautiously, Baoba made his way out of the building. Sure enough, there was Corin, standing on one of the corners nearby, looking for her district partner. If she'd been facing his direction…

But she wasn't. And there was no sign of Sebastian. Maybe it wasn't a trap after all. But that left the fact that he still had no weapon, and she … actually, she didn't seem to be armed, either. But just because she wasn't holding a weapon didn't mean there wasn't one hidden in her pocket. And just because he couldn't see anyone else didn't mean they weren't hiding somewhere nearby.

Corin headed down the street. After a moment, Baoba followed. Nothing happened. No one jumped out at him. Corin didn't turn around and attack him. Huh. Maybe he shouldn't have been so worried after all.


Rose Thornton, 12
District Eleven

Maybe there wasn't any harm in lighting a fire after all. Rose shivered as the sun started to dip below the buildings. The smoke in the distance was finally beginning to subside, and there was no sign that anyone had attacked anyone else over there. There hadn't been any cannons since last night. And it was getting cold.

She could always go inside, of course. She'd ventured into a couple of the buildings, but it wasn't long before she had felt so … so trapped. Most of them only had one or two entrances. It would be too easy to get surrounded in there, whereas out here…

Well, staying out in the open had its drawbacks, too. Anyone could find her, especially if she lit a fire. But it also meant that there would be more places to run. Besides, there was always the slim chance that if someone did find her, it might be her friends. It might be Percy or Lucinda or Aloe. Or maybe it would be some of the Careers she'd been working with briefly. That seemed like a strange thing to hope for, but if their numbers were still as small as they had been, maybe they would still welcome her back.

Maybe. Chances were, no one would find her, especially if her fire was small. Would a few sparks really stand out amid all these street lamps? No. No, probably not. Carefully, she arranged some newspapers from a nearby stand into a roughly conical shape. Now how were you supposed to light a fire if you didn't have matches or sticks to rub together…?

Rose took the knife from her pocket and scraped it along the sidewalk. Nothing. Maybe this had been a bad idea after all. Maybe she should just forget the whole th–

Suddenly, a spark leapt from the knife as she slid it along the pavement. It caught the edge of one newspaper, and quickly spread to another. Rose dropped the knife in surprise, then covered her mouth to keep from cheering. The fire quickly engulfed one newspaper, then another. She hurried to add more to the pile. Finally, something was going right.


Lark Lucas, 18
District Twelve

Lark couldn't help wondering if maybe he was in over his head this time. Teaming up with the Careers during training had seemed like a good idea. When Dario had found him the first day of the Games, working with him had seemed like a good idea. But now that he was stuck with both Dario and Sebastian – and looking for Sebastian's other ally, on top of it – he was starting to wonder if maybe going it alone would have been a better plan.

Sebastian was nice enough, of course. He had been perfectly friendly during training. And neither he nor Dario had shown any signs of wanting to turn on him. Yet. That was the problem. Careers were always perfectly fine – right up until the moment when they weren't. They were probably trained not to give off any signs of preparing to kill you. All Sebastian would have to do was wait until the others let him keep watch, and that would be that.

Lark stood up, stretching his legs, and peered out the window. It was getting dark outside, but the street lamps were starting to come on, and farther down the street, he thought he could see something else. A light that was flickering back and forth, rather than shining. "I'm going to get some air," he muttered by way of explanation as he stepped out into the night. Neither of the others made a move to stop him.

Maybe they were even hoping he would leave.

Well, maybe he would.

Lark gripped the knife in his pocket. Maybe he had been crazy to think teaming up with anyone else was a good idea. Maybe he was better off on his own. And striking out on his own to take out someone who had been stupid enough to light a fire out here … well, the audience would probably like that. Lark nodded, gripping his knife. It was time to make his move.


Nothing new as far as the placements, but a few shifting alliances:

24th - Vicarys Flask, D6. Stomach sliced with a sword by Hyde.

23rd - Nirel Jackson, D11. Stabbed in the chest by Quint.

22nd - Opal Granite, D1. Stomach sliced with a dagger by Aurora.

21st - Quint Delgado, D2. Drowned in a fountain by Baoba.

20th - Arti Aveneuro, D10. Stabbed in the chest by Ebony.

19th - Ebony Timberough, D7. Poisoned by Rose after being sliced with an axe by Arti.

18th - Elemeno Pereira, D7. Shot with a blow-dart by Fermi.

17th - Malachi Thorne, D9. Pushed out of a bell-tower by Hyde while being attacked by bats.


District Placements:

12th - District Seven. Best Placement: 18th.


Current Alliances:

Pigeon meat roasting on an open fire: Lucinda, Aloe, & Octavia

Might as well: Dario & Sebastian

Reading books in the library: Percy & Whisper

Alone for now:

Baoba

Aurora

Fabrion

Rose

Fermi

Eddie/Hyde

Squirrel

Corin

Lark