The Fifty First Annual Hunger Games
Introduction
The Second Quarter Quell was not a Games to forget; with 48 tributes and plenty of twists and turns, it had been one of the most thrilling Games in history. Many people were curious to see how Cyndala would follow up her masterpiece, and they were surprised when Cyndala released her sole clip. It seemed as if she was breaking her one hundred percent natural rule as to not have a disappointing Games following the Quell. The nation saw a clip of a shadowy hallway that looked almost out of a hospital, with a ghostly figure looming in the corner for a second before the clip ended. This video confused many people but also excited them with the concept of a nightmarish arena. Meanwhile, Coriolanus Snow continued to rule the roost in Panem. The Quarter Quell had taken much life out of the Districts; while Haymitch's underdog win had refreshed them, losing double the amount of kids had still taken its toll. No major uprisings or issues plagued the Districts this year, and Snow mostly sat back and relaxed in the Capitol. The Careers were a pretty normal pack this year, reverting to the normal 6 Career model after the insanity of last year's triple pack. The female from 1 was shier than most but was extremely beautiful and talented with a bow, while the male was great with a broadsword. He was also one of the first openly gay tributes. District 2 produced two cold blooded killers; the female was young at 16 but had definitely earned her early promotion into the games with her insane knife throwing skills, while the male was District 2's mainstay, the uber muscular sword fighter. 4 this year definitely had produced the best batch however. The female was a stunning, dark skinned girl who was one of the fastest tributes the Games had ever seen, and was skilled with a variety of long ranged weapons as well as a dagger; she was the early favorite. Meanwhile the male from 4 was strong and brutishly attractive, and great with a trident, and the two 4 tributes worked well together. Many of the Outliers this year seemed quieter and more forgettable, although there were a few exceptions; Ray from 11 was almost seven feet tall, handsome, muscular, and charismatic. The total package, he'd managed an 8 and was the underdog favorite before the Games began. Another memorable Outlier was Sasha from 6, the tomboy daughter of District 6 royalty who was much tougher than the rest of her rich family. Her strength and the deep pockets of her family ensured she would be able to go far if she survived the Bloodbath. The last standout was a sad one; a boy with a severe mental disability, Jonny from 8, had been Reaped. He didn't understand the Games much and was blissfully unaware of what was about to happen. The rest of the Outliers scored between 6 and 2 and were largely shy and quieter than usual. There were no volunteers besides the Careers. Here are the tributes:
District 1: Kodaline Evitt, 17 (9) 8-1 and Porcelain Veiche, 18 (10) 7-1
District 2: Lilith Ascuro, 16 (10) 6-1 and Rockson Ebert, 18 (11) 4-1
District 3: Itsuki Tannen, 16 (5) 32-1 and Pass Jargonsen, 18 (6) 24-1
District 4: Danube Luongo, 18 (11) 3-1 and Indus Channel, 18 (10) 6-1
District 5: Shyanna Lowell, 16 (5) 35-1 and Drew Dinning, 16 (5) 36-1
District 6: Sasha Cleroux, 18 (7) 16-1 and Chrysler Camara, 17 (6) 22-1
District 7: Milly Bardell, 13 (4) 46-1 and Beecher Ward, 14 (5) 38-1
District 8: Kimbie Townsend, 15 (5) 37-1 and Jonny Merple, 18 (2) 68-1
District 9: Gaelynn Lane, 16 (4) 42-1 and Sheaf Prescott, 13 (4) 46-1
District 10: Kathlin Haslett, 18 (6) 21-1 and Topher Gonzalez, 12 (3) 55-1
District 11: Poundcake Mellon, 14 (6) 28-1 and Ray Drummard, 17 (8) 12-1
District 12: Justine Karbonara, 16 (5) 39-1 and Geoff Dempster, 16 (4) 42-1
HGBA Odds: 22% on Danube, 19% on Rockson, 16% on Indus, 12% on Lilith, 10% on Porcelain, 9% on Kodaline, 5% on Ray, 2% on Sasha, 1% or less on Itsuki, Pass, Shyanna, Drew, Chrysler, Milly, Beecher, Kimbie, Jonny, Gaelynn, Sheaf, Kathlin, Topher, Poundcake, Justine, and Geoff.
The Games
The 24 tributes rose onto their pedestals, all decked out in teal hospital gowns like they'd all just been admitted into the emergency room. They stood at the center of a giant building: an abandoned psychiatric hospital. They were in the central cafeteria, a wide, round room filled with tables and chairs that were rusting and tossed about. The Cornucopia, constructed out of cement, sat in the center of the room, and it wasn't as full as usual. Water was especially lacking. Spindling off of the central cafeteria were dozens of hallways that lead to various rooms for things from operations to sleeping to exercise. The two main hallways out of the cafeteria lead to the North Wing and the South Wing, and it was here that the rooms were filled with the most useful supplies and things were most accessible. Everything was overgrown, with many windows broken and trees and other plants growing inside of the building. However, all of the windows were so filled with foliage, and all the doors to the outside locked, that you could not get outside of the building. Wild animals like rabid raccoons and cockroaches also found a home in the arena. This creepy overgrown mental hospital, filled with various sharp tools and shadowy corners, was not complete without some truly haunting mutts. Ghostly apparitions of the past inmates of the mental hospital could be found all over the various wings of the hospital. Some were silent, some were screamers, and some were annoyances, but they were all designed to make the tributes go mad and break down. At the Cornucopia, the only weapons were swords, knives, two bows, and a few spears. Due to their creepy surroundings and the fact that it was an indoor arena, many tributes decided to run into the fray for supplies. There would be 10 deaths at this year's Bloodbath due to the close quarters, many tributes running in, and the fair skills of the Career team.
5, 4, 3, 2, 1.
Two tributes ran straight away after the gong: Pass from District 3 and Beecher from District 7 both decided not to risk it, rather taking their chances with what they would be able to find in the arena. Pass ran down the North Wing while Beecher ran down the South Wing, and the other 22 tributes rushed towards the Cornucopia as the opening slaughter began.
Danube from 4 lead the opening sprint by a long shot, even over the other Careers, due to her immense speed. She quickly grabbed up a bow from the ground, nocked an arrow, and began firing on the oncoming Outliers around her. Her first arrow missed Justine from 12 as she scrambled out of the way, but her second arrow dug itself into Justine's District partner, who was running near her. Geoff sputtered as he fell to his knees, quickly dying from the arrow embedded in his neck.
Geoff Dempster, District 12 Male; 24th, Killed by Danube, Bloodbath
Meanwhile, the other Careers took up the weapons they could find. Porcelain and Rockson both grabbed matching swords that were laying together at the mouth of the Horn, while Kodaline took the other bow, Lilith grabbed a few throwing knives, and Indus settled for a spear. As Indus stooped for his spear, the bullish, over confident boy from 6 rushed at him with a serrated dagger. Indus swiftly dodged the boy's attack and thrust his spear upwards with ease, punching a hole through Chrysler's chest and ending him.
Chrysler Camara, District 6 Male; 23rd, Killed by Indus, Bloodbath
As Chrysler fell, Danube and Kodaline met up and worked together to use their bow and arrows to trap tributes. After slaughtering Geoff, Danube had focused on attacking his District partner again, and Justine already had an arrow sticking from her right shoulder as she tried to run away with her ally Gaelynn, who was a distance ahead. Kodaline released an arrow that smacked into the back of her neck and put District 12 out of the Games.
Justine Karbonara, District 12 Female; 22nd, Killed by Kodaline, Bloodbath
In distress, Justine's ally Gaelynn paused for a few moments as she watched her friend fall. This was all the time that Rockson needed, and he swiftly sprinted towards her from behind. Before Gaelynn could scramble out of the way, Rockson's sword was already mid swing towards her side. The blade hacked deep into her side, and she wailed as she fell to the ground. Rockson quickly polished her off with a blow to the throat before looking for his next victim.
Gaelynn Lane, District 9 Female; 21st, Killed by Rockson, Bloodbath
Danube and Kodaline's arrows were by far the most deadly weapon in such close quarters, and would make a majority of the Bloodbath kills. They spotted their next target, the stunningly handsome Ray from 11, the Outlier favorite. They knew they had to try and take him down. They both fired arrows at him at the same time. Ray noticed their aim before they fired, and in a rush he picked up the nearest tribute, little Topher from District 10. The boy wailed as both arrows slammed into his abdomen, and Ray broke his neck with his bare hands to end his suffering before dashing out of range of the girls' arrows.
Topher Gonzalez, District 10 Male; 20th, Killed by Danube, Kodaline, and Ray, Bloodbath
Meanwhile, the duo from District 5 had unintentionally teamed up after being a pedestal apart at the beginning of the Games. Both running away with a full pack, the muscly Kathlin, the butcher's daughter, from District 10 ran at them with a large cleaving knife. She attacked Shyanna first, cutting a little into the girl's left shoulder as she screamed. However, Drew pushed her off balance and he and Shyanna sprinted away from the Bloodbath. As Kathlin tried to get back on her feet, she felt a spear puncture her back, and a second later the tip poked out of her stomach. She swiftly died after Indus pulled his spear out of her.
Kathlin Haslett, District 10 Female; 19th, Killed by Indus, Bloodbath
Nearby, the girl from 3, Itsuki, whimpered as one of Kodaline's arrows scraped across her left thigh as she tried to run with a pack over each shoulder. She realized she wouldn't be able to carry both, and threw one down while propelling herself forward. The volley of arrows had stopped being directed at her, and she soon realized why as she looked back to see Rockson two strides behind her. She threw the other pack at him desperately, but he swatted it out of the air and closed the gap between them into two easy strides. Itsuki screamed shrilly as Rockson dug his blade into her stomach with two heavy chops, sliding to floor as the life quickly fled out of her.
Itsuki Tannen, District 3 Female; 18th, Killed by Rockson, Bloodbath
Over by the Cornucopia, little Milly from 7 was breathing hard as tears streamed down her face. One of Danube's arrows was buried in her lower abdomen, and her shirt was soaked in blood. Shuddering violently as she leaned against the Horn, trying to staunch the blood flow, she was completely defenseless when Porcelain spotted her. He loped over and polished her off, stabbing his sword into her chest.
Milly Bardell, District 7 Female; 17th, Killed by Danube and Porcelain, Bloodbath
The feisty Lilith from 2 had been pursuing Sasha from 6 for much of the Bloodbath, trying to take down one of the stronger Outliers while the others picked off the weaklings. However, Sasha had found a shield on the side of the Cornucopia and used it to deflect Lilith's attacks long enough for her to escape down one of the smaller hallways. Lilith decided to not give chase, memorizing which hallway Sasha had gone down before turning back to the fray. She spotted a little boy huddled in the mouth of the Horn with a small dagger in his left fist, trying to find a way to escape without being noticed. Lilith sprung towards him, and he noticed a few moments before the throwing knife left her hand. Sheaf tried to dodge the weapon to the best of his ability, but he just ended up getting it deep in his back. Mewling in pain, Sheaf crumpled to the ground, trying to drag himself farther into the Horn for safety. Lilith reached him and finished him by stabbing another throwing knife into his throat repeatedly until he stopped breathing.
Sheaf Prescott, District 9 Male; 16th, Killed by Lilith, Bloodbath
As Lilith stood from finishing off little Sheaf, she realized that most of the other tributes had scattered. Danube fired a final arrow after a smaller girl scampering down the North Wing hallway, but it barely missed and the girl escaped unscathed. However, one non Career remained in the cafeteria, and all six of the bloodthirsty killers paused when they spotted him.
Jonny was sitting on his platform, paying no mind to the death and blood that was spattered all about him. Instead he was focused on some thought inside his head, smiling and giggling softly. All six Careers slowly approached him, and he barely noticed. Kodaline, the most emotional of the group, wiped a tear out of her eye and hugged the boy, comforting him, as Danube steeled herself, dagger in hand, and walked around behind him. She buried the blade in the back of his neck, and he was dead in moments, not even knowing what had hit him. The entire pack was silent for a while after killing the disabled boy, pushing the thought of killing someone so innocent out of their minds before they were ready to go on the prowl.
Jonny Merple, District 8 Male; 15th, Killed by Danube, Bloodbath
After Jonny was polished off, the six strong Career pack started to go through the supplies left at the Cornucopia and organized their rations as there wasn't much food or water in the Cornucopia. They correctly guessed that Cyndala wanted some of the tributes to go insane from hunger or dehydration in the mental hospital arena, and that was the reason there were so little supplies. They decided to rest for the night, and wait until day to go hunting since they weren't ready to risk what might be lurking out at night. Pass from District 3 had gone down the North Wing without any supplies, and he locked himself in a men's bathroom. He turned on the sink expecting to find fresh water, but all that came out was green gunk. Disgusted, he curled up on the tile floor of the bathroom and tried to sleep. Drew and Shyanna had not planned to ally before the Games, but now they found themselves together with two packs, huddled inside an operation room. Their packs had some food, water, rope, and tarp, but they used some of the sharp tools in the operation room as weapons, specifically scalpels. Sasha had barely escaped Lilith, and she fell asleep soon after finding a small closet to rest in that fit herself, her shield, and the jug of water she'd grabbed. Beecher had left the Bloodbath with nothing, and he walked all the way to the very end of the South Wing, where he found himself inside a large room filled with switches and boards. Unbeknownst to him, these controlled the lights and other factors inside of the psychiatric hospital. Kimbie from 8 had barely dodged one of Danube's arrows. Scared out of her mind, she found a room not far into the North Wing where there were a few cots and not much else. She buried herself under the covers of one of the cots after eating over half of the food she'd gotten in nerves, fitfully trying to sleep. Poundcake from 11 was breathing very heavily by the time she found a room to stay in. Overweight and only 14 years old, she was surprised to have survived the Bloodbath. She locked herself in a supply room. All she had was a Bowie knife, some packets of dried fruit, and some iodine capsules. Too tired to make sense of the chemicals and such in her room, she passed out swiftly. Ray had managed to grab a sword and a pack with some food, but he had no water. He hunkered down in a room at the beginning of one of the smaller hallways very close to the cafeteria. He hoped to go ransack the Horn when the Careers were gone hunting for water and more weaponry. Things were pretty peaceful as evening turned to night in the abandoned psychiatric hospital.
Late that night, however, all of the tributes that had managed to fall asleep were awoken by the bloodcurdling screams of one of the hospital's former residents. It was just down the hall from where Poundcake was sleeping, and the girl awoke squealing loud and high; however her screams mixed with the wraith's and went largely unnoticed. This first ghost was not a killer, just a screamer. She looked like a frail woman with bloodshot eyes and a maniacal grin on her face as she screamed at the top of her lungs over and over again. She drifted all throughout the arena, shrieking until the "day" rolled around (with no sun and just the clinical florescent lights of the hospital, it's hard to tell day and night apart). At dawn, she dissipated after floating into the cafeteria, spooking the Careers before her removal.
Day 2 had some action in it. Most of the tributes stayed in their spots. However, Pass from 3 left the bathroom in search of a better room, but just ended up returning to the bathroom in fear after being spooked by a rabid raccoon in one of the rooms he opened. The main event happened as most of the Career pack went on the prowl. They left Kodaline to guard the Cornucopia while the others went off. Most of them wanted to go down the main wings and hunt down the tributes who were poorly hiding. However, Lilith remembered seeing the strong Sasha go down one of the smaller side hallways and lead the pack towards there.
Speaking of Sasha, she was busy going through all the sponsor gifts her wealthy family had managed to send her. She now had her favorite weapon, a machete, along with a steaming hot case of mashed potatoes, her favorite food. Another sponsor gift twinkled through the ceiling and landed on the tile outside of her little closet. She peeped outside of the door to grab it, cracking open the case to reveal a spoon for her mashed potatoes and a cryptic note from her Mentor Mercedes warning her about the impending arrival of the Career pack. Sasha realized what Mercedes was telling her, but it was already too late. As Sasha climbed out of her closet, shield and machete in hand, one of Danube's arrows soared over her shoulder.
Sasha began to dash away, holding out her shield behind her the best she could to deflect arrows and thrown knives. However, one of Danube's arrows managed to clip her heel, making her go even slower. Lilith asked the others to let her have this kill and finish the job she'd tried to start back in the Bloodbath. The other Careers fell back a step as Lilith bounded towards Sasha eagerly.
Sasha turned to fight, knowing that the hallway was almost up and running would not save her. She swung her shield at Lilith, and actually sent the girl tumbling. Lilith screeched as Sasha lifted her machete and brought it down on Lilith's knee, sawing into her right leg. Lilith wept and tried to get to her feet, but another blow from Sasha to the abdomen made her collapse back to the floor. The other Careers were now sprinting towards Sasha and Lilith as Sasha delivered the death blow to Lilith's throat, ending the young Career with a swipe of her blade.
Lilith Ascuro, District 2 Female; 14th, Killed by Sasha, Day 2
Another of Danube's arrows hit Sasha, embedding in her shoulder. Grunting, she fled into the nearest room and locked herself inside, barricading the doorway with as much furniture as she could before the Careers arrived. Having successfully fortified the room, the Careers tried their best but they made very little headway into breaking in. In the end they left Porcelain and Rockson to guard the room in case she left while Danube and Indus sped back to the Horn to gather supplies to help them break through.
The hijacking of Sasha's room would have to wait until Day 3, as evening fell and more ghosts began to haunt the psychiatric hospital. Rockson and Porcelain retreated to the Horn after fending off two screamers, not wanting to risk their lives just to see if a stubborn 6 girl would leave her room any time soon. They knew she would not and planned to return in the morning. Most of the other tributes weathered the apparitions well except for Kimbie. Stuck in a bunk room where inmates had once slept, she was haunted my a pudgy, scary man who stood in the corner of the room and said nothing, just staring. He scared Kimbie immensely and drove her to tears as she hid under the covers of her chosen cot, begging him to go away.
The next Day, Day 3, the Careers were left with a dilemma. Some of them wanted to go hunting for other tributes, while others of them thought they should focus on Sasha. This was because she had already felled one of them and was possibly the most dangerous tribute in the Games with her influx of sponsor gifts. In the end, they decided to split the difference. Porcelain didn't really care what they did so he stayed to guard the Cornucopia. Meanwhile, Danube and Rockson went to hunt while Indus and Kodaline guarded the door into Sasha's room, waiting for her to emerge.
Indus and Kodaline's efforts were fruitless; the breaking they tried to do to the door didn't do much, and Sasha couldn't even leave the room now if she wanted to due to how much destruction cluttered the only doorway in. However she was confident that she would be able to stay alive in the room for weeks with her supply of sponsor gifts from her rich family and many new fans after the Lilith kill. It seemed like things were at a standstill with her.
However, Danube and Rockson had better luck. Danube, armed with her bow, guarded them while Rockson checked each room in the North Wing. Soon enough, they arrived at a men's bathroom that had the door locked. Suspicious, Rockson used the pommel of his sword to break off the handle, and he quietly eased the door open. Tiptoeing inside, he found Pass asleep on the tile, having gotten too tired to keep awake and diligent. Rockson kicked the boy in the side, waking him up long enough for him to witness Rockson's blade arcing down towards his neck. Pass gargled and spasmed for several seconds before he fell still, twitching a little until his cannon rang.
Pass Jargonsen, District 3 Male; 13th, Killed by Rockson, Day 3
After that kill, Danube and Rockson both headed back to the Cornucopia for the day to rest. The remaining Outliers didn't do much the rest of the day, to be honest. Drew and Shyanna spent their time sharpening the tools they'd found in the operation room and preparing themselves to defend against any invaders. Drew tried flirting with Shyanna; she was pretty and his age. He was growing a crush on her. However, Shyanna felt bothered by this and still didn't trust Drew much at all, and tried to keep him at a distance. Sasha of course was trapped in her room, safe for the time being from the Careers' advances. Beecher starting playing around with the control board he found in the room he was in, and realized he could shut off the lights in different parts of the arena from his room. Kimbie enjoyed the daytime, as her haunter only appeared at "night" and she was safe from his terrors for now. Poundcake started to explore the supply room she was in, disgusted by the pungent smell of many of the chemicals, and finding things like colored powders and hygiene items like soap and toothbrushes. Meanwhile, Ray had postponed his attack on the Cornucopia to give him time to rest up and also make it later in the Games so the Careers would be less alert, giving him a better chance of successfully attacking.
That night, even more ghostly apparitions plagued the mental hospital. Most of the tribute sealed themselves away from them. However, Kimbie's stalker appeared now two feet from her bed, staring intently at her, and he had a friend, a disjointed woman who giggled every so softly from the other side of her cot. Weeping and moaning, Kimbie urged the spirits to leave but they did not do so. By the time the morning of Day 4 arrived and the ghosts were gone, Kimbie looked half crazed and unable to get out of the cot.
Day 4 passed without many events. Most of the tributes stayed where they were. Drew and Shyanna poked out of the operation room they'd been hiding in to look around for some more food and water. They didn't find any after about a half hour and returned to the room they'd chosen as their campsite, not wanting to risk staying out too much. The pack was on the prowl after all. The pack kept Kodaline and Indus stationed beside Sasha's door, Porcelain at the Cornucopia, and Rockson and Danube out hunting. Nothing came of their efforts on the fourth day.
However, at night, the ghosts came on stronger than ever. As the time shifted to Day 5, things became grim in Kimbie's little cot room. The number of apparitions in her room had tripled, and now six monstrosities crowded around her little cot, half of them staring intently at her and the other three giggling softly and creepily. It was about two hours into Day 5, around 2 am on the outside, that Kimbie finally broke. She leaped to her feet, pressing through the apparitions, but they swarmed around her, smothering her. Screaming, Kimbie took out the only thing remotely like a weapon she'd gotten in her pack; a bottle opener. Kimbie jammed the sharp tip of it into her wrist repeatedly, sobbing as the ghosts continued to torment her. An hour later Kimbie finally bled out, having killed herself to escape the demons.
Kimbie Townsend, District 8 Female; 12th, Suicide, Day 5
By the time morning rolled around, many of the tributes were starting to get restless. Despite someone having died early in the morning, the Careers were getting worried about not making enough kills yet. Tensions started to rise in the pack, and specifically Indus and Rockson started to grate on each other's nerves. Tributes like Poundcake and Beecher were getting sick of staying in one place but were too scared to attempt relocating to a different sector of the arena. Sasha was also annoyed with being trapped in her room, and was contemplating a way of breaking out without having to face whatever Careers were stationed outside of her room. Ray also wanted to make his move badly; he was starting to run low on supplies, and knew it was only a matter of time before he was discovered anyway due to his close proximity to the Horn. There hadn't been a good moment yet, and he was on the lookout for one.
However, all of these anxieties and nerves paled in respect to what happened to Shyanna and Drew during the day on Day 5. The two had begun grating since the beginning of the Games after the Bloodbath had ended. Drew had yet to notice Shyanna becoming extremely irritated by him though. In fact, he was falling head over heels in love with the snippy girl. No girl had ever spent this much time with him in his entire life and he was getting intoxicated by the experience, even though it was during a death match. His poor girl skills lead him to not realize that not only did Shyanna dislike him, she wasn't interested in him romantically at all. He was convinced that she was falling just as hard as him and was excited.
In the afternoon, Drew couldn't wait any longer and decided to make his move, convinced that Shyanna wanted him. He leaned over to her after a conversation about home back in District 5 that had softened the mood. He pressed his lips against hers, and pushed her against the ground. Eyes wide, Shyanna tried to push him off of her, but he thought she was pulling him closer and deepened the kiss.
In desperation, Shyanna tried to pound on Drew's back to tell him what he was doing wasn't right. One blow was particularly hard, and Drew grunted, standing up and backing away from Shyanna as she shouted at him, infuriated by his advances without asking. She said she had no interest in him and that he needed to leave immediately. Tears pooled in Drew's eyes, and then anger flared in his heart. They split the supplies silently, and Drew stalked out of the room, fuming.
Moments after the door clicked behind Drew, Shyanna heard a scuffle outside. Unluckily for Drew, the Careers were exploring the middle section of the South Wing where the room he and Shyanna had been in was located. The moment that Rockson spotted him, Drew turned to run, foolishly running back into the room where Shyanna and himself had been staying. Shyanna had already locked herself and her pack in the supply closet, burying herself in lab coats and other things. Drew looked around wildly, and moments later the door burst open and Danube leaped towards him, dagger in hand. He squealed as Danube carved her knife into his gut, and finished him off with a sharp blow to the temple.
Drew Dinning, District 5 Male; 11th, Killed by Danube, Day 5
After Drew's cannon fired, Rockson and Danube checked the room for other occupants, knowing that Drew had teamed up with Shyanna at the Bloodbath. They opened various drawers and looked under things. However, the door to the supply closet was in the shadows and they skipped over it accidentally. Danube and Rockson returned to the Horn after their successful kill, and Shyanna didn't crawl out of her hiding place until she heard the Anthem playing. She saw Drew's face projected on the ceiling and scowled. No tears from her; they had been friends, but Drew had done this to himself in her eyes. She planned to relocate in the morning, and returned to the supply closet to sleep as safely as possible.
Day 6 dawned on the arena, and the ghosts flooded away like they always did in the mornings. There were fewer of them after Kimbie's suicide, but soon enough they would begin to build up again. The Careers went about their routine. Danube and Rockson forged off down one of the smaller, side hallways to see if anyone was hiding there, while Kodaline and Indus had decided to rest outside of Sasha's door at this point, awaiting her emerging. They hadn't left it in almost two days now. Meanwhile Porcelain was once again stuck with guard duty at the Cornucopia. While he was getting bored he was fine with it as long as being the middle man kept the pack together. At this point he was the hinge holding together both halves of the pack.
Not a ton happened for the first half of the day. Danube and Rockson found no new victims, and Indus and Kodaline were as bored as ever guarding the room Sasha was barricaded inside. Porcelain organized the pack's rations for the fifteenth time in extreme boredom at the Horn. Shyanna decided to move spots, leaving behind the operation room in the South Wing that she and Drew had stayed in since the beginning of the Games, and where he had been slain the day before. She quickly dashed down the South Wing's main corridor until she reached the end, and she ducked inside of this room. Full on control panels that controlled the lights and such, it was also the room where Beecher from 7 was residing. The boy heard her coming and locked himself inside of a cabinet underneath some of the panels, quivering in fear. He had found some food and water in the control room but was almost out, and he was desperate for more. He planned his next course of action while Shyanna got comfortable in the control room, locking the door and barricading it. She didn't know that Beecher was also living in there yet. Meanwhile, Poundcake was being pretty sedentary. However, she was starting to form a plan for how she might travel the arena, and her Mentor Seeder caught onto what she was trying to do. Poundcake received a meager sponsor gift of two makeup brushes, and this confused most people, but Poundcake was thrilled by the gift and finished her planning.
Ray had been waiting for a while, letting the precious time slip by as he waited for the optimal moment to attack the Horn and ransack it for supplies. Now, on Day 6, his supplies were nearly non existent, and he was starting to get especially thirsty. He wasn't sure if now was the best moment to attack, but he couldn't wait any longer. Making sure the other Careers were still out doing their rounds, and that Porcelain was distracted organizing rations, Ray slipped out of his room. Sword drawn, Ray crept across the cafeteria until he was a couple of feet behind Porcelain. His shoe squeaked on the tile. Ray cursed silently as Porcelain quickly turned, reaching for his own sword. Ray made the first move, stabbing forward. His sword dug into Porcelain's shoulder, and the 1 boy yelled at the top of his lungs to attract his allies. Porcelain used his other arm to fend off Ray, waiting for his allies to come provide support. Danube and Rockson were too far away, but Indus and Kodaline heard Porcelain's cries for help and both immediately abandoned Sasha's room, running to aid him.
As backup neared, Porcelain tried to keep Ray at bay, but his wounded arm was his primary sword arm, and it was bleeding profusely. While he got a few small gashes on Ray's arms, he wasn't able to land anything major on Ray until Ray dug his sword into Porcelain's gut. Gasping in pain, Porcelain used his last ounces of energy to jerk forward and bury his blade in Ray's side. Ray groaned and watched as Porcelain let go of the sword stuck in the 11 boy's side, sliding to the ground in a bloody heap. Porcelain's cannon rang moments later as a frightened Ray tried to figure out what to do.
Porcelain Veiche, District 1 Male; 10th, Killed by Ray, Day 6
Ray grunted as he pulled the sword from his side, and he quickly popped open a med kit and wrapped the wound in a whole roll of gauze. Satisfied that the wound was properly covered, he filled up two packs with food and water and began to make a run for it. However, he had forgotten about Porcelain's screams for help, and didn't realize how swift reinforcements would be. The moment that Kodaline spotted her beloved District partner (Porcelain was a close friend of hers) slain, and Ray walking away from the scene, she screeched in anger. Ray turned just in time to see Kodaline raise her bow and fire an arrow at him.
The arrowhead dug right between Ray's eyes. The big, muscular boy stumbled around dumbly for a few moments before falling to his knees. His hands weakly picked at the arrow sprouting from his forehead but he could do nothing to save himself as his damaged brain began to shut down. Kodaline ran to Porcelain's side, holding back tears as she checked her friend's vitals, finding him truly dead. Screaming again, she kicked Ray's side, and he moaned weakly at that. She continued to kick him furiously until he was dead. Within a minute, Ray's cannon rang, and revenge had been brought about for Porcelain's death.
Ray Drummard, District 11 Male; 9th, Killed by Kodaline, Day 6
That left the Top 8: Kodaline Evitt from District 1, Rockson Ebert from District 2, Danube Luongo from District 4, Indus Channel from District 4, Shyanna Lowell from District 5, Sasha Cleroux from District 6, Beecher Ward from District 7, and Poundcake Mellon from District 11.
The moment that Indus and Kodaline dashed off to go aid Porcelain, Sasha noticed that they were gone and took this as her opportunity to escape. While she could survive in the room she was becoming tired of being trapped there and knew it was only a matter of time until the Gamemakers forced her out anyway. She'd rather move on her own time when there weren't two trained killers waiting outside for her. She'd removed a lot of the pieces of furniture barricading the door without the Careers noticing. She removed a few more and slipped out, closing the door behind her. She left some of the furniture there to make it seem like she was still trapped inside. Then she sprinted over to a room a little farther down the hall, planning to surprise attack the Careers from behind when the time was right.
Danube and Rockson returned to find Kodaline grieving lightly over Porcelain's death, quickly putting herself back together, and Indus awkwardly attempting to comfort her. Neither of the two hunters were very sad but they expressed clinical condolences before curling up within the Horn to rest, worn out from days of hunting. Kodaline and Indus returned to Sasha's door to guard it, not realizing that she had left it already, while Rockson and Danube kept guard of the Cornucopia.
That night, the ghosts came more forcefully. The Careers were unfazed by them; they'd all faced much worse in their preparations at their Academies. Sasha also remained relatively unbothered by the influx of ghosts, putting in noise cancelling headphones her family sent as her millionth sponsor gift so she wouldn't have to listen to them. Poundcake was spooked by several of them and sometimes let out a few little yelps, but she managed to keep herself mostly under control. Over in the control room, Shyanna managed to ignore them and drift off to sleep. However, Beecher was terrified, quivering as a ghost slipped into his cramped cabinet and cooed at him with its misshapen mouth. He managed to stay quiet though, knowing a single peep and he would be discovered by Shyanna.
The next morning, things were pretty tame and relaxed. Indus and Kodaline were getting bored as hell and decided to give Sasha one more day before they'd break down the doors with everything they had to get her out and kill her once and for all. They still hadn't realized she was farther down the hall, lurking and waiting for her moment. In fact, Sasha continued to lay in wait, not planning to move quite yet. Rockson and Danube were tuckered out from days of hunting and decided to rest in the Horn for the day instead of continuing to stalk for prey. Poundcake was as still as ever, waiting for the perfect night to pull off her plan. Things were not as calm or unchanging in the control room of the South Wing, however.
Shyanna began exploring the various cabinets for supplies around noon. She had enough food and water to last her a few more days, but she was getting bored and wanted to know if there was any food to be found. Beecher's minimal supply was in his cabinet with him, but she did manage to find some cans of tuna in a cupboard that Beecher had neglected to check. After finding that, she fiddled with Beecher's cabinet. However, it would not open, as he was holding it shut from inside. Within the cabinet, Beecher was freaking out, not knowing what to do. Shyanna gave the doors one last forceful tug, and Beecher lost his grip. The doors slammed open, and Shyanna gasped upon seeing Beecher, pulling out her dagger and pointing it at him. He put his hands up and fell to his knees on the carpet in front of his now open cabinet, trying not to cry.
"How long have you been in there?" Shyanna asked with a note of fear in her voice.
"I've be-been here since the star-start of the Games," Beecher warbled out, a tear spilling out of his eye.
"Stop crying," Shyanna ordered, biting her lip. "There's four Careers left, we need to work together if we wanna survive."
She slowly put her dagger down, and Beecher was so relieved to not have been gutted that he grinned and hugged Shyanna tightly. Spooked by this sudden movement, Shyanna shoved the frail boy off of her. Then they both laughed just a little, and over the rest of the day they got to know each other and became more relaxed with one another. By the end of the day, they started to think about ways to take down the Careers.
The night of Day 7, there weren't as many ghosts as the night before. Poundcake was getting impatient; a vast flood of ghosts was key to her plan, and she was out of food and almost out of water at this point. While she was accustomed to not eating daily back in 11 sometimes, it was still tough to deal with the hunger pangs and she was getting anxious to pull off her trick, to see if it would work or not.
On the morning of Day 8, Indus and Kodaline decided it was time to end this whole shenanigan of waiting for Sasha to come out. With the help of Rockson, they tore down the door. Danube called out to Rockson, saying she'd heard someone going by (in fact it had just been a raccoon mutt). Danube and Rockson went to investigate the sound, thinking it was one of the other Outliers, while Kodaline and Indus finished breaking down the furniture barricading the room. They stepped inside the bare room to find no one inside.
"Where the hell is she?" Indus asked after looking in a supply closet, turning back to Kodaline.
Kodaline did not respond, eyes open wide as she looked down at the machete that had been stabbed through her back and was sticking out through her stomach. She blubbered uselessly as Sasha withdrew the weapon from her gut, crumpling to the floor as her blood flooded across the tile. Sasha turned to flee, and Indus gave chase, knowing his friend Kodaline was beyond saving at this point. Kodaline twitched and soon her cannon fired as Indus tried to track down the wily 6 girl in retribution.
Kodaline Evitt, District 1 Female; 8th, Killed by Sasha, Day 8
Sasha was pretty fit for a rich girl from 6, but lugging a bloody machete, a full pack, and a shield, she was no match for a furious Indus who was only carrying his lightweight spear. She threw her shield back at him so she could run faster and hopefully to slow him down. However, Indus easily dodged the thrown shield and sped up, only feet from her now. She also shrugged off her pack in hopes of running away. Indus dodged that too and closed the space between them as they skidded into the cafeteria. Sasha turned to defend herself, but Indus was already stabbing forward with his spear. Before she could deflect with her machete, the spearhead was already slicing deep into her chest. Sasha wailed as she backpedaling, falling onto her butt off of Indus's weapon. Her eyes were open wide as Indus stabbed downward into her gut twice, polishing her off with a grimace on his handsome face.
Sasha Cleroux, District 6 Female; 7th, Killed by Indus, Day 8
Danube and Rockson returned from their wild goose chase after the "tribute" (aka raccoon mutt) to find a seething Indus draw his spear from a dead Sasha's abdomen. He told them of what had happened. They both feigned surprise and sadness, and Indus bought it for a bit. However, they were both excited. Since the pack had been so split with its different duties, they had bonded drastically. Danube and Rockson were rather close, and Kodaline and Indus had also been close. At this point Danube was closer to Rockson than her District partner, and they were pleased that they had a numbers advantage over Indus now.
As it became later on Day 8, Indus realized why Rockson and Danube had become much cheerier soon after they discovered Kodaline dead. Indus took the first guard shift, and while he thought Rockson and Danube were sleeping, he silently packed a bag with lots of food and water, and slung it over his shoulder. As he was creeping away with his full pack and spear, deserting the pack without any violence, Rockson got up and confronted him about what he was doing.
What ensued was a ten minute verbal fight as the two clashed. They hadn't gotten along well since the pre-Games, and now all that tension and angst was coming to a head as they both blew off steam, screaming at each other. In the end, Indus shoved Rockson to the ground and then began to jog away, abandoning the pack once and for all. Moments later, however, he stopped in his tracks as he felt an arrow puncture the back of his neck, digging deep. He turned as he fell to the ground to see Danube standing at the mouth of the Horn with her bow. She truly was more loyal to Rockson, and now that Indus had decided to desert, she had decided to kill off her District partner. While uncommon, there wasn't any rule against it and Danube smugly smiled at Rockson, helping him up as Indus's cannon rang.
Indus Channel, District 4 Male; 6th, Killed by Danube, Day 8
That night, the three remaining Outliers were extremely pleased to see the strongest Outlier and two Careers in the sky. That night, as it turned into Day 9, the ghosts came in torrents. Flooding every orifice of the building, they were everywhere. Beecher and Shyanna hid from them and huddled together, doing their best to ignore them. Danube and Rockson were a little irritated by all of the ghosts streaming through the cafeteria and through the Horn, but not much else. However, Poundcake saw this as her opportunity.
She took out the colored powders she'd found and the brushes Seeder had sent her days earlier, and began to layer the whitish and yellowish powders all over her skin. Within an hour, she was pure white with tinges of sickly yellow, and looked a lot like some of the ghosts prowling through the halls. She took a deep breath and then abandoned her room, dashing as fast as she could towards the Horn in a cloud of ghosts. Her plan was to take as many supplies as possible, and possibly even attack a Career if the moment was right and she wouldn't risk death.
Poundcake swirled with the cohort of ghosts until they emerged into the central cafeteria. Rockson was asleep inside, while Danube sleepily stood guard at the mouth of the Horn with her bow strung, hanging by her side. Poundcake twirled around behind the Horn, where she found some jerky packets. She stuffed those in her pockets, and was about to pick up a jug of water and make a break for it when she tripped over a broken crate. The loud crashing sound sent Danube alert, and she woke up Rockson and stiffly jogged around to the back of the Horn. Poundcake had abandoned her food and water, picking up a dagger and hiding under the broken crate, hoping she wouldn't be spotted. Danube began kicking over things, and soon enough she kicked over the crate Poundcake was under.
Poundcake leaped to her feet, and sobbing she stabbed her dagger towards Danube. Shocked, the 4 girl watched as the long, serrated blade embedded itself to the hilt in her side. Gasping, Danube dropped her bow since they were at too close of a range to use it effectively. However she had no other weapon, and she fell to her knees, unable to keep upright anymore. Groaning, Danube tried to pull the dagger out, but she was too weak. Moments later, her cannon fired.
Danube Luongo, District 4 Female; 5th, Killed by Poundcake, Day 9
As Poundcake turned to flee the crime scene, she smacked into a muscular chest. Rockson, finally awake after hearing Danube's death scream and then her cannon, had come around the other side to intercept whatever was coming that way. He was shocked to see Danube dead, and Poundcake tried to sidestep him. However, he wasn't that distracted. He punched her in the chest, sending her sprawling onto the floor. Poundcake screamed as Rockson leaped onto her, sword raised above her head. The blade soared down and sliced deep into her skull, killing her instantly.
Poundcake Mellon, District 11 Female; 4th, Killed by Rockson, Day 9
Shaking from the adrenaline and from the nerves and minimal grief of losing his close ally Dnaube, Rockson staggered into the Cornucopia and made himself sleep, plotting to go finish off the Games tomorrow and hunt down the other two Outliers. Knowing both had scored low, he anticipated the job being pretty easy, but he wasn't going to get overconfident. Especially not after seeing Danube, who'd scored higher than him, get killed by a pudgy 14 year old from 11.
Shyanna and Beecher were awoken by the two cannons in the early morning, and they both grinned at each other, both praying it was both Careers but knowing that was unlikely. But they knew at least one of the Careers was now out of the running, and that made their plan even easier to pull off. They awaited the morning to come, and then they would make their final move.
As the ghosts flooded away on the morning of Day 9, Beecher and Shyanna began to put their plan into motion. They had discovered something that would help them immensely inside one of the control boards that had a cover over it. It was a screen with dozens of little screens on it, showing various places all throughout the arena. Each hallway and many of the bigger rooms were monitored here. They could see Rockson waking up in the Horn, having a breakfast of dried fruit packets and water, and then stretching before the big hunt would begin. Now, it was time for the plan to come together.
Rockson did some more stretching before picking up his sword. He also put a dagger in his shoe in case he needed another weapon, and strapped a canteen to his waist because he didn't plan on coming back to the Horn and wanted to have some water if the hunt took a while. Once he was all ready to go, he pumped himself up and then began to head towards the South Wing, which he and Danube hadn't explored as much as the North Wing. He was right in his suspicions of the other two tributes left hiding in this area of the arena, and he was dead set on finding them.
However, suddenly all of the lights in the cafeteria shut off, plunging the room into darkness. Freaked out, Rockson began to look around wildly. He heard nothing; it was just pitch black. Regaining his composure, he stumbled back to the Horn and began to rummage around for night vision goggles that he thought he'd seen in one of the packs. As he was searching, he heard a loud clatter near the mouth of the Cornucopia. He immediately perked up and abandoned his mission of finding the goggles, slowly creeping out of the Horn to look for the intruder.
Suddenly, he felt something slamming into his back. He yelled throatily as Shyanna landed on his back and used the force to push the much bigger man to the floor. She'd set off with her dagger the moment after Beecher confirmed that Rockson was in the cafeteria still. When she'd arrived, Beecher had turned off the lights so she wouldn't be spotted, and then she quietly climbed onto the Horn and ambushed the male from 2.
As they crashed to the ground, Rockson tried to scramble to his feet, but Shyanna was already stabbing her dagger as much as she could into his back. Groaning, he threw her off of him, but not before she landed one last blow deep into his side. Shyanna was slammed against the wall of the Horn, and was rather dazed for a moment, and her right shoulder felt hurt. However, her pain was nothing compared to Rockson's. He was peppered with cuts and gashes from Shyanna's dagger, and he moaned and flopped around on the tile as blood gushed out in a pool around him. About five minutes later, Rockson fell still, having lost too much blood.
Rockson Ebert, District 2 Male; 3rd, Killed by Shyanna, Day 9
Now only allies Beecher and Shyanna were left in the Games. Shyanna took a few minutes to steady herself. She didn't know that her shoulder was dislocated, but her right arm was dangling weirdly. She was right handed and had been using her right hand all this time to stab people with daggers and such, so she knew this would put her at a disadvantage. Meanwhile, in the control room, Beecher was quaking with nerves. However, he didn't turn any of the lights back on. Actually, he turned them all off, making it harder for Shyanna to find her way and hopefully disorient her enough for him to be able to kill her.
Shyanna, however, knew there was a reason Rockson had went looking for something in the Horn the moment the lights shut off. She searched for a solid ten minutes until she did find a pair of night vision goggles. They'd been thrown into a corner of the Horn along with some other useless supplies; the lights never shut off in the building, so why would they be useful? However, they were useful now. Shyanna strapped them onto her face, and she could see very well. She grabbed a new dagger, leaving her old one deep in Rockson's side. This one was very long, and had a smooth, razor sharp edge.
Back in the control room, Beecher had realized he might have made a few mistakes. First off, he had no weapon. He found some sharp scissors in one of the drawers and managed to break them apart so he had two decently sharp blades, but they were very poor weapons. Also, he realized that neither would he be able to traverse in the pitch black hallways. He would have to stay in the control room, where Shyanna was already heading. Realizing he was losing his advantage over her, he began to panic and left the control room, running down the hallway as quickly as he could in search of Shyanna. However he couldn't see much in the darkness, and soon he became even more frightened and anxious as he searched wildly for her.
Meanwhile, Shyanna was walking slowly and quietly down the South Wing. She could hear nearby movement and slowed even more, peering into the darkness to see what was making the noise; Beecher or a mutt? With her night vision goggles, she soon could clearly see Beecher bounding down the hallway, head whipping around wildly as he looked for her. Shyanna took a deep breath and did not move, dagger raised, waiting for Beecher to approach her.
He saw her when he was only a foot away from her. He tried to turn away in utter fear, but Shyanna was already striking with her long dagger. She wasn't very good with it, especially using her left hand. She got a decent gash on his collarbone but it wasn't anywhere near mortal. Beecher squealed at the cut and began to run away, but Shyanna launched herself at him, wanting to end this all now. He kicked and screamed underneath her, bruising her, and she stabbed him again, this time deep in the shoulder. Blubbering, Beecher tried to use one of his scissor knives to stab Shyanna in the side, but it just left a small cut and not much else. If anything the little cut infuriated Shyanna further, and she finished Beecher with a hard stab to the throat. The 7 boy was still in moments underneath her, his cannon ringing loudly throughout the desert psychiatric hospital.
Beecher Ward, District 7 Male; 2nd, Killed by Shyanna, Day 9
"Shyanna Lowell of District 5, you are the Victor of the Fifty First Hunger Games!" Claudius and Caesar screamed into the arena with glee as the victorious trumpets sang behind their voices. Shyanna lifted herself off of Beecher, coated in blood, and smiled shyly at the cameras, already desperately trying to shoving the gory, graphic images of her Games out of her mind.
Aftermath
District 5 loved having yet another Victor. Now having 6 Victors, they actually were even with District 4 and had confirmed that they were in fact the strongest non-Career District. Shyanna was also not that bad of a Victor. Quite the underdog, she'd had a roller coaster of a Games, from her experiences with Drew to her friendship with Beecher to murdering both Rockson and then Beecher int he finale. Her Games was rather entertaining, and it was a favorite of many horror fans. Shyanna loved the fame and attention, and was one of the most involved Outliers in the Capitol, a full supporter of whatever they did, not a rebel at all. She used her wealth and privilege from winning to integrate into Capitol society, and she would get extensive plastic surgery throughout her life to keep looking young. She wasn't very popular with most of the other Victors, as she was too Career-like for the most of the Outliers, and too Outlier for most of the Careers, but she didn't mind it, instead running around the Capitol socialite circles. She was a decent Mentor when she wanted to do it, but she didn't prefer doing it.
Shyanna would live to age 85, dying from breast cancer around the time of 120th Hunger Games. She would marry a rich Capitolite tycoon, and they would have three children before they would get divorced around the 70th Hunger Games. After that, she would date but never remarry.
The payouts on her victory were stellar, as about .49% bet on her.
Her Victory Tour was alright. She was a little too attention seeking and pushed the Capitol agenda a little too much for many Districts' tastes. However District 2 didn't mind her, and she gave a heartfelt speech in 7 about Beecher that made up for her lacking performances on the rest of the trip.
Fun Fact: From the Final 10 all the way up until the Final 2, whoever made the last kill was the next one to die. (Ray killed Porcelain, then Ray was killed by Kodaline, then Kodaline with killed by Sasha, then Sasha was killed by Indus, then Indus was killed by Danube, then Danube was killed by Poundcake, then Poundcake was killed by Rockson, and then Rockson was killed by Shyanna). If Beecher had won and killed Shyanna, the pattern would've completed.
Victor's News
Shyanna moves into the Victor's Village of District 5, in the house next door to Surge's home.
Nefertiti gets engaged to a man named Gleam Strouss.
List of Victors
District 1 (7 Victors): Guild Tonneroy (6), Salandra Valour (11), Clermont Lackrey (15), Mascara Curler (22), Ivelisse Horner (31), Zion Alvarra (40), Nefertiti Kouri (47)
District 2 (10 Victors): Noor Tuskararus (4), Romulus Armidale (19), Fitore Renoro (21), Florianna Urnston (27), Tarquinius Isselhardt (30), Januaria Shale (36), Gnaeus Deccum (37), Brutus Asesino (44), Caelinia Thatcher (Unofficial Aux. 46), Lyme Harriott (49)
District 3 (4 Victors): Chaplin Nastaro (7), Calculata Fenceley (26), Beetee Latier (33), Wiress Furuya (46)
District 4 (6 Victors): Kelan Thather (1), Mags Flanagan (11), Bex Martin (16), Dorsal Rance (24), Flotsam Bresten (34), Syren Calanthe (43)
District 5 (6 Victors): Tugra Ertra (3), Irmentrude Marley (8), Fox Rennolls (29), Porter Tripp (38), Surge Tomlin (42), Shyanna Lowell (51)
District 6 (3 Victors): Greason Trails (10), Mercedes Benson (28), Indigo Arnett (41)
District 7 (3 Victors): Ishania Patel (5), Grover Elms (20), Pomona McCrea (32)
District 8 (2 Victors): Woof Parsons (23), Organza White (35)
District 9 (3 Victors): Dillon Tripp (2), Deana Mitchellson (18), Enzo Faithlen (48)
District 10 (3 Victors): Barcelona Sepias (13), Jaguar Crusoe (17), Elaine Canterbury (Aux. 46)
District 11 (4 Victors): Vissarion Chamantel (9), Freeha Indepp (14), Seeder Howell (39), Chaff Abwenza (45)
District 12 (2 Victors): Venice Grammar (25), Haymitch Abernathy (50)
A/N: Hey guys! I am SO SO SO SO SO incredibly sorry about this story not being updated in so long. I can make excuses about life and all that jazz, but I just feel bad that I haven't been able to get anything out till now. I hope you really enjoyed this chapter! Shyanna was a fun one to write, and I liked this arena, it was different from a lot of the others. Poundcake was also one of my faves 3
Also, just so you know, Shyanna was the District 5 Female from the 75th Games, just to give you some perspective on her.
What did you guys think of this Games? Also, do you like how I changed the list of Victors? I thought the other one was getting way too clunky.
Once again, I am so sorry about the wait and I hope that this chapter was a good one!
Until Next Time,
Tracee
