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"Where's Ramsey?!" Finnick found himself in a panic, spinning in circles in search of the small blonde.
Still nothing.
"No, no, no."
He shut his eyes, taking in every sound that he could. The crashing waves made it hard to hear anything above their roar.
Katniss looked on with curious eyes, wondering how someone could possibly want to find Ramsey. Shouldn't she be the one they're hiding from? If Finnick was an ally in the arena, and had proof of it, and he trusted Ramsey, then could she trust her too?
No!
She was a killer.
But wasn't everyone here?
"Finnick, maybe-" Mags tried to calm him, her eyes full of pity.
"No, Mags, no. She should be with us, she knows..." He trailed off and ripped himself out of the water and onto the runway, begging just to see a glimpse of her.
Had more cannons gone off?
He found himself having a hard time even remembering if he had heard any other than the victor who had taken on Peeta. It was all blurring together. Suddenly all he could hear was the pounding of his heart as his eyes scrambled around the arena.
A cannon went off. His stomach was in his throat, the color drained from his face.
He was running in an instant. He didn't even have a certain destination or any explanation whatsoever but he was running. Down a runway and onto the beach, his head rearing from side to side and his lungs already straining.
And then he wasn't running anymore.
He was crashing into something and toppling onto the sand in a big heave of fabric and limbs and labored breathing.
"Ramsey! My God, Ramsey."
And then he had her in his arms, wrapped up so tightly the small body could hardly regain her breath.
Finnick pulled back to look at her, his ocean blues analyzing every little detail.
She had blood everywhere and her eyes held such insanity he felt a chill race down his spine.
His eyes widened and she wriggled away from his grasp, jumping to her feet and awaiting him to follow suit. He shuffled up, his eyes never leaving Ramsey.
"What happened?" He cocked an eyebrow.
She sighed and looked past him, "Where's Katniss?"
"What happened?"
"Where is Katniss?"
"She's fine, Ramsey, dammit, what happened?"
Finally she met his eyes once more, the gray orbs cold and hard. Her lips molded into a thin line and she glared up at him.
They stood in eerie silence before she sighed and ran a hand through the tuft of hair atop her head, attempting to slick it down once again.
A thin cut curled around her left eye, the faint remnants of blood dripping from it. A wider gash stained her hairline red, this much more prominent and angry. The blood coming from this dared to dribble in a thin line down the left side of her face. Her cheek on that same side showed a scrape grazing up her jaw and onto her cheek, small droplets of blood peeking out at this point too. Her small hands stained red and one knuckle on her right hand even cracked.
"Where were you? Who did this?"
At this point Katniss, Mags, and Peeta cautiously approached Finnick and Ramsey, Mags' eyes constantly darting around to scope for danger.
"It doesn't matter, we can't waste time. We have to get out of plain sight, it's too dangerous." Ramsey stuck her eyes to the ground and attempted to shove by Finnick. He grasped her forearm and turned her back towards him, denying her attempt to drop the topic. Someone had done some damage on her and he was livid.
"Ramsey, I'll die standing right here. Tell me now and we'll move."
She groaned in aggravation once, ripping her arm from his hold.
"It was Seeder, okay? She attacked me when I took off of my pedestal."
Ramsey couldn't make eye contact, she was ashamed.
"Seeder? But she's, I don't understand."
"She tried to drown me. She held me under. These things are flotation devices, by the way." She pointed to the belts looped around each of them, chuckling bitterly.
Finnick found no humor.
"I made it to the runway and she tackled me. And, you know." She gestured to her face, her rage building.
"Was she the cannon?"
Ramsey slowly nodded, her eyes wandering to meet those of Katniss Everdeen. The two stared at one another, their faces blank.
"Now let's go." Ramsey grit her teeth and headed towards the meandering group. Finnick stood a moment more, his lips pursed in thought. He had to regain himself. Katniss was the face of the rebellion, she had to be kept safe. How could he let himself get so caught up? That was an amateur mistake, this was the Hunger Games, for christ's sake. He had to keep it together.
"C'mon, Mags, hop on." He lowered himself to her and their attention was snapped towards the Cornucopia.
There stood the victors from District One and Two, lethal and bloodthirsty, and ready to advance on them.
"To the jungle, hurry." Ramsey's voice was barely audible though everyone moved forward at once. Ramsey led them, agile and quick, her small feet easily springing from one spot to another.
Her eyes scanned through the jungle, her mind fighting the horrifying flashbacks that threatened to overcome her. Her arena in her games was a jungle. Not exactly like this one, but close enough that the heat of it brought forth bile in the back of her throat.
Finnick, with Mags steady on his back, ushered Katniss and Peeta forward. He needed to make sure they were protected.
Katniss stared at the back of Ramsey's head as they trekked through the dense jungle. Her low hanging ponytail flipping back and forth with her nimble motions. Katniss could kill her, just like that. Reach forward and snap her neck, shoot her close range in the back of the head with an arrow. It would be so easy.
She shook her head. Those were disgusting thoughts. And then Finnick would most likely kill her and Peeta for taking out his "beloved" and that would completely defeat her whole purpose. She needed to get Peeta out. And doing something completely rash like that on the first day would surely ruin it all.
They hurried through the jungle with Ramsey at the point until sweat poured from their bodies and their breathing grew heavy.
"Okay, hold up! Hold up." Finnick called out, deeming they were far enough in to be safe for the moment and already feeling Mags' weight on him.
The bugs were relentless, their buzzing being overwhelming and downright sickening. They dared to land on the five victors, though were quickly batted away. Hundreds of noises assaulted their ears, birds and bugs and jungle wildlife. The humidity was immense, the sweat gushing down their skin. It was nothing they had ever felt before, albeit Ramsey who had been in an arena like this not too long ago.
The previously dried blood on her face down ran in streams with the sweat. Her hairline was damp, turning the typically blonde hair into a murky brown. Mags' curls stuck to her face, the elderly woman already questioning her ability to carry on.
They sat down on the mossy earth in attempt to steady their breathing.
Finnick couldn't help the way his eyes found Ramsey with ease. Katniss and Peeta were safe right now, giving him the leeway he needed to make sure Ramsey was too.
Her ponytail sagged far more than it had been positioned prior to the beginning of the games. Her eyes jerked from side to side, devoid of any tranquility. He had seen that look before, while watching her victory games. She was ferrel.
And then her eyes snapped shut, her hands coming to grasp the edges of her own face. She shook her head to herself slowly, her eyes squeezing even tighter shut.
He cocked an eyebrow at her and soon enough her eyelids peeled open once more, a different emotion filling them. Struggle. She was fighting to keep herself together. He hadn't even thought about it before then: her arena was a humid jungle. She was fighting the flashbacks.
A pang of sympathy rattled throughout his body, his desire to be closer to her to comfort her was overwhelming.
Katniss and Peeta were whispering with one another, their voices barely audible whispers in the wind. Mags was preoccupied with a plant she was identifying and Finnick took the opportunity. He stealthily maneuvered himself towards her, her head snapping in his direction sharply.
Ramsey raised a quizzical eyebrow, the blood from her wounds washing around her face with the sweat.
"Here, we really should clean those-"
"Don't touch me."
She caught him completely off guard, his hand stopping mid-air.
With that she turned away, pulling her own hand close to herself to examine the split knuckle. Up until that point she hadn't even taken the time to see what damage had been done.
Seeder attacking her was 100% unexpected and unprovoked. It was only moments after her farewell with Johanna and her departure towards the cornucopia when the larger woman's body overthrew her small one. A strong hand had intensely pressed down on the back of her head, holding the blonde's face underneath the water. She had felt her whole body coil with rage, lashing out against Seeder. Ramsey had escaped from her grasp and only managed to make it to the runways of rock before she was struck from behind again, this time taking her down. The rocks scraped across her face, tearing her soft flesh instantly. She rolled to her back to identify her attacker, only to find Seeder staring down at her with rage in her eyes and her hands crashing down onto Ramsey's face. Ramsey was small, smaller than most. Seeder had her outsized on all aspects, she was taller, wider, stronger. She could easily overthrow the smaller girl and Ramsey knew it, her mind blanking out as the fear and adrenaline had taken over. Seeder only managed to smash her fist into her pale face once or twice before Ramsey took control. They had struggled on the rocks for what felt like hours before Ramsey found herself rattling Seeder's head against the rocks- a cannon blowing off.
Ramsey couldn't stay there. She couldn't look at what she had done.
There was no smile after this kill.
She fled from the scene and found herself crashing into Finnick not moments later.
She hadn't even realized when she had been bleeding.
"God it's hot. We've gotta find fresh water." Peeta panted out, attempting to tame his dripping hair.
Everyone's eyes snapped to him and Katniss sighed, pushing her own hair away from her face. They faced one another, no one knowing exactly what to do.
Boom
Boom
Boom
Three cannons.
Mags sighed and her eyes found the ground once more, Katniss and Peeta looking to one another with wide eyes.
Finnick chuckled, "Well I guess we're not holding hands anymore." Ramsey had a hard time suppressing the giggles that threatened to erupt. Noticing her amusement further encouraged Finnick's laughter.
Katniss' eyes shot to him with fury.
"You think that's funny?"
Ramsey rolled her eyes at the younger girl, how could she be so foolish as to not realize these deaths were for and because of her?
"Every time that cannon goes off, it's music to my ears. I don't care about any of them."
Ramsey was unable to contain the sniggers the flew from her lips following his response, Finnick's smirk facing Katniss head-on.
Peeta and Mags watched on carefully as the three stared one another down: to one side Ramsey and Finnick with giggles and smirking, and to the other side Katniss with only fierceness. She was livid with them.
"Let's keep moving!" Peeta hated moments like that, he knew that tensions were already rising and they weren't even an hour in.
He could only imagine what might happen between Katniss and Ramsey if things went too far. All he knew was that the outcome wouldn't be pretty.
Finnick looked to Ramsey with a grin once more before helping Mags onto his back. Ramsey allowed for Katniss to take the lead, the small blonde following loosely behind Finnick and Mags. She knew that she could navigate through such an arena 10x better than Katniss would ever dream to, but she was playing nice. She knew the revolution depended on this sixteen year old.
How ridiculous was that? The hopes of a whole country were totally reliant on a teenage girl. Absolutely ridiculous.
Ramsey internally eye rolled.
They continued on for what felt like hours, the sweat continuing to flow out, the humidity increasing and their patience decreasing. Peeta took the lead at one point, using a sword to swipe through the vines of the jungle and clear the way. Katniss, unable to decide who she trusted less, found herself behind Finnick and Mags yet in front of Ramsey.
She took note of the fact that Ramsey's dainty footsteps behind her were totally inaudible. She was as silent as death. Every now and then Katniss even found herself turning back to check if Ramsey was even still there. And she was. Every time, ready to meet Katniss with a blank stare. At one point she noticed the small knife carefully tucked into Ramsey's belt and she couldn't help the sick feeling that formed in her stomach. She hadn't seen that before.
Katniss allowed her eyes to wander the arena as Peeta trudged onwards. No one spoke as they moved and the only sounds that could be heard from a distance was the distinct swipe of the sword as it tore through more vines.
She brought her eyes back to Peeta, watching as he clipped a bundle of greenery out of his way. Something about where they were headed wasn't right. It was too bright, too shiny. She wracked her mind, thinking what it could possibly be.
But by the time she realized it and screamed out his name, it was too late.
Peeta hit the forcefield and was flung back through the air ten feet, completely wiping out Mags and Finnick. Katniss jumped backwards, catching her foot on a root. Before she could fall, Ramsey's small hands flung out to grasp her forearms, steadying the younger girl.
"Peeta!" Katniss wailed, Ramsey's eyebrows shooting up in surprise.
He lay completely limp on the forest floor and Katniss was by his side in a flash, flipping his body so he lay facing upwards. Her hands cupped his charred cheeks and her face flew into panic.
"He's not breathing! He's not breathing, he's not breathing." Her words were repetitive and frenzied, she was losing control.
Ramsey watched on, frozen. She had never expected such a reaction and she was left completely clueless as to what to do. A cannon hadn't gone off, right? He was still alive, he had to be. If they lost him, Katniss would have no reason for living. What if she died too? What would become of the rebellion? The rebels would never come for her and Finnick and Beetee and Wiress and Johanna. They would be stuck there and forced to kill each other. That couldn't happen.
Finnick was on his feet and hurrying towards Katniss and Peeta, shoving Katniss out of his way to go to work to save him.
In an instant Katniss had her hands on her bow and arrow, seconds from pulling it on Finnick- having no idea of his intentions.
"Don't you dare!" Ramsey's anger flashed and her hand was on her knife, entirely ready to end it right there.
But why? She didn't know Finnick, why would she risk killing the face of the rebellion to save him?
Katniss looked to Ramsey briefly, realizing where her hand was. She was too worried about Peeta to care about the lunatic at that moment though and her attention was quickly back on him and Finnick.
"Peeta, Peeta, Peeta..." She breathed out, shimmying closer as Finnick continued to try and resuscitate him.
It felt like years as Finnick swore and pushed on saving Peeta. Katniss mumbled and cried as he did so, her heart pounding. Still no cannons.
Mags' careful eyes wandered to Ramsey, observing how the small blonde was handling herself. She watched on with inquisitive eyes though Mags was unable to even guess what was going on in her head. Her gray eyes were stormy and her hand still gripped the handle of her knife protectively.
And then Peeta sucked in a sharp breath and his eyes lazily opened and Katniss was on him in an instant, repeating his name and whispering thanks for his survival.
Finnick moved back quickly to allow the two their moment and plopped himself onto the ground, worn out from his efforts. Ramsey's eyes followed him, staring at him as he regained his composure.
As he looked up to find her eyes on him he couldn't help the rustle in his stomach. Something about how she looked at him could've brought him to his knees, yet she would never know her effect she had.
She slowly nodded to him once, a sort of 'well done' in reference to saving Katniss' whole reason for carrying on.
"Be careful, there's a forcefield up there." Peeta's voice grew and Katniss laughed through her tears at him, pulling his face close to her and gratefully kissing his lips.
Ramsey giggled and Finnick grinned up at her, the sound of it magical.
"You were dead!" Katniss continued on sobbing uncontrollably, Peeta attempting to soothe her to no avail.
"Katniss?" He was really worried about her.
Just as Ramsey began to question the young girl's sanity, Finnick found the words to make it seem better.
"It's okay. It's just her hormones."
Katniss' eyes shot to him, her eyebrows reaching her hairline.
Ramsey brought her hands to her mouth, the giggles escaping before she could stop them.
"From the baby." Finnick shrugged, his eyes wandering over to Ramsey again.
Her giggles turned into laughter as Katniss objected briefly, only before returning to her sobs and therefore proving his point even further.
He laughed with Ramsey, watching her in admiration. Even coated in sweat and her own blood she was flawless and her laughter filled his ears like a song he'd love to hear over and over again.
