Lottie Parker POV

Marley and Ava helped as I unwound layer after layer of blanket strips from my throat and under my shirt. Thing about throwing knives is, they're not very long. The blade is maybe two inches. It's hard to move with that much blanket wound around yourself, but it's not impossible. Once you get going, momentum goes a long way.

Daisy Stem POV

It was nice of a sponsor to send me a sling. I wasn't sure I could go up against Tributes with bows and swords and stuff, but I could maybe catch some food. I prowled the edge of the woods, hoping for a deer, or more realistically, a rabbit.

Instead, I found birds. Two huge birds appeared in the sky and I slung a rock at one. It squawked and the two of them dove at me. I dodged out of the way and they ripped huge chunks out of the ground. I tried to dart into the woods and one bit my shirt and tugged me down. I kicked the underside of its beak and it fell back in a flurry of wings.

Two more landed, and they clustered around me. They hissed and pecked at me as I tried to shoo them off. One grabbed my foot and tried to take off. Of course I was too heavy, but it gave the others an idea. They each seized one of my limbs and pushed off, carrying me into the air.

"Hey!" I yelled as they lifted me high above the ground. I didn't want to struggle and get dropped, but I also didn't want to go higher and then get dropped.

"I don't taste good!" I pleaded, but the birds were not convinced. It looked like I wasn't going to get that ice cream store after all.

But wait... I'd already been resurrected once. It could happen again. Maybe next time I'd win. Then I could eat all the ice cream in Panem. This time didn't work out, but at least I got to fly.

Diamond Kai POV

It was the endame. With that cannon a minute ago, only six of us were left. Any of us could win at any time. It might not even take another day. Something kept making horrible noises in the woods, at at night we could see a glow. The Gamemakers were driving us closer together. The Arena was getting smaller, and we wouldn't be able to avoid each other even if we wanted.

I proved myself right when I almost fell on top of Whyte. I was peeking into the front door of one building and he popped into the frame of the rear entrance. We locked eyes, and there was no other option. We ran at each other.

Whyte was taller than I was, but I was better trained. We parried and dodged each others' strikes, wincing when shockwaves ran up our arms. I stomped on his foot and pushed him back when he bent over. He fell onto his back and I raised my sword, but I stopped.

What if he was someone's brother? Was there someone just like me watching him at home, already crying for their little brother? I wasn't just taking his live. I was ripping him away from everyone who loved him. I was putting them through the same pain that broke my heart just four days earlier. My arm wavered, and that was all it took.

Whyte pushed his sword up through me. It punched through my torso and propped me up. As he got back up, I slid down the blade and to the floor. It wasn't necessarily a mortal wound. One stab hardly ever killed someone. Whyte might have had to strike again if I'd wanted to live, but I didn't. Rapture would have wanted me to live, but if I'd proven anything in the Games, it was that I was selfish. I just wanted to see him again.

Marley Xander POV

With those cannons, there were only five of us left. Three of them were me and my friends. We sat in our bunker and I spoke what was on all of our minds.

"Almost there. I can't believe we all made it this far," I said. Except Olivine. No one wanted to say the next part.

"What if it gets down to three?" Lottie said. We all looked more serious than we'd been since the Bloodbath.

"I'm not killing anyone. I'd rather die," Ava said. Neither of us had expected anything different.

"I don't think even Red is worth killing you two," I said.

"I've been dead before. No big deal," Lottie said.

"So what, we just don't fight?" Ava asked. Lottie shrugged.

"I guess so," I said. "The Gamemakers can pick a Victor somehow." Lottie and I must have been thinking the same thing. We didn't know about each other, but Ava would kill herself to make sure one of us won. We'd have to keep an eye on her.

"Whatever happens, we're friends forever," Lottie said. "If one of you ends up killing me, I won't be mad."

"Yeah. I won't haunt you or anything, I promise," I said. Ava smiled at the morbid humor of it all. Maybe we were about to kill each other, but it was nothing personal. We'd still be friends.

7th place: Daisy Stem- dropped by mutts

I got the count wrong somewhere. Oops! If Daisy had been super popular she could have won, but her chances were diminished since she's my sister's and all. IF, next time my sister submits, she uses a dummy account, she'll have a better chance because I usually get two or three Tributes from people I don't recognize and I won't know which is hers. Everyone liked Daisy, which was cool. She took things as they came, even when she died. Kind of like Mario dies and he just goes "Mamma Mia!" and he's fine a minute later. Thanks sis for Daisy. Everyone likes your Tributes.

6th place: Diamond Kai- Stabbed by Whyte

A lot of people were bored by Diamond. I had a profile for her in my mind, but it was hard to express in writing. She was more mature than most Careers. She thought ahead more and went deeper into the implications of her actions. She loved Rapture like a real sister would, and that brought her wisdom. She saw what she was doing to other people and it affected her. I liked Diamond more than most people seemed to. In a normal Games she would have had more time to develop, but this one went by so fast it passed her by. Thanks Jms2 for letting us use Diamond again.

Akari didn't see Lottie's armor because a lot was under her shirt and her perception was impaired from being half dead and then entirely dead.