Ariadne Whitlock-18 (District 4 Female)

"There you are!" I say, my voice knifing through the cool, misty morning air as I slip out of the inn and rush over to my allies as they stumble into the square with water dripping off their bodies. "I was starting to worry. There were three canons last night."

"We know," growls Alfonso, his eyes puffy and bloodshot as he pushes past me and stomps off towards the inn. "We heard them."

"What crawled up your ass and died?" I ask, my voice low and curious as Helena and SB slowly shuffle towards me with the same tired, bloodshot eyes as Alfonso.

"Just ignore him. He's pissed that SB's got a kill, and he doesn't."

"You got a kill?" I ask, my voice tinged with shock and jealousy as I turn to look at her with a massive shit-eating grin on my face. "Like, an actual kill?"

"I did," she mumbles, her voice laced with exhaustion and regret as she hands Helena her blood-stained ax before slowly making her way towards the inn with a defeated look on her tired face. "And no, I don't want to talk about it."

"Ok," I whisper, my voice tinged with annoyance as I watch her disappear into the inn without another word. "What the hell's her problem?"

"I'm not sure. She's been like that since we found her.

"Just give her some space. She'll come around eventually."

"And if she doesn't?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

"Fair enough," I mumble, making a mental note to avoid asking SB about her kill before turning my full attention to Helena as she starts towards the inn with a weak little smile on her lips and an apple in her hand.

"Where'd you get that?" I ask, a curious look on my face as I fall in step beside her.

"Alfonso and I found a barrel full of them while we were looking for SB. You want it?"

"Sure," I say, a little too quickly as I try and fail to hide my excitement as she tosses it to me without looking.

"Here you go."

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it," she mumbles, her eyes bleeding exhaustion as she stumbles up the stairs and into the inn before dropping everything she has in her hands on the floor and plopping down next to Alfonso and SB with an exhausted groan.

"So, how'd last night go?" she asks, her tone low and muffled as she forces herself to sit up and look at me despite wanting nothing more than curl up in a ball and join the others in la-la land.

"I'll tell you about it when you wake up," I say, my voice soft and low as I close and lock the front door before carefully hopping over Alfonso's outstretched legs and sitting down on the little purple couch next to the stairs.

"No, you can tell me now," she mumbles, her eyes pleading with me not to even as her voice all but commanded me to do so. "You know, if you want."

Well, if she insists. ...

"In that case, I had a great night," I say, my voice light, playful, and dripping with sarcasm. "I spent most of it sorting through the metric shit ton of useless crap we got from the bloodbath.

"And when I was finally done with that, I got to explore the square for a few minutes before it started to rain.

"FYI, the bookstore and the dress shop are a bust, but I did find some interesting stuff in the bakery and the apothecary.

"You?"

"Where do I start?" she says, her voice low and annoyed as she sits there and punches the crap out of a pillow. "It was a long, cold, miserable night. And that was before this one started hitting on me," she says, rolling her eyes and nodding at Alfonso.

"He didn't."

"Oh, but he did."

"What'd you do?"

"What do you think? I put him in his place," she says, a triumphant twinkle burning in her tired eyes. "And it was amazing."

"Tell me about it," I say, my voice low and excited as I lean forward expectantly. "And don't leave anything out."

~FIVE MINUTES LATER~

"I can't believe I missed it," I whine, a playful smile on my face as I stare down at his sleeping form while he snores softly. "But I'm glad someone finally put him in his place.

"That being said, I would have preferred you save the place putting for later and spent last night coming up with a plan.

"I'm not a huge fan of the whole go with the flow thing."

"Well, then I guess this is your lucky day. Because we — and by we, I mean me and SB — did come up with a plan."

"Oh, thank god," I giggle, my overly dramatic response drawing an amused eye roll from my ally as a relieved sigh slips past my lips.

"What'd you guys come up with?"

"Well, for starters, Alfonso, SB, and I are going to ... we're going to take a ... a little nap," she says, her voice suddenly low and laced with exhaustion.

"The rest ... the rest isn't important right now. I'll fill you in when I wake up."

"Aww, is Helena tired?" I ask, a playful twinkle in my eye as I lean back on the couch and smile down at her.

"No, I'm exhausted."

"I can see that. How long do you want me to let you guys sleep. ..?

"Helena?

"Helena?!"

"Huh?" she asks, her voice low and groggy as she snaps her head back up and tries her hardest to pretend she wasn't just asleep.

"How long do you want me to let you guys sleep?" I ask, the juice from my apple dribbling down my chin as I rip a chunk out of its crisp, green flesh.

"Just long enough to take the edge off."

"Sounds good," I laugh, wiping the juice off my chin with the back of my hand. "Nighty night, Helena."

"Good night, Ariadne," she mumbles, her voice getting softer by the second as she curls up in a little ball and drifts off to sleep while I sit here and try to think of a way to kill a couple hours.

"Well, I guess this is as good a time as any to finish sorting through the first aid supplies," I mumble, rolling my eyes in mock annoyance as I reluctantly slide off the couch and tip-toe over to the little pile of supplies on the far side of the room. "The things I'm willing to do for my allies."

Bellatrix Harvey-18 (District 2 Female)

I've never felt so pathetic in my entire life. That's not a word I use lightly, and I've never used it to describe myself, but it's the only one that fits.

What happened yesterday was pathetic. It was one self-inflicted disaster after another. And I have no one to blame but myself. I don't want to. But I don't have a choice.

I'm just glad my mom isn't alive to see me like this.

Because I don't think I would have been able to live with myself if she was. I'm having enough trouble dealing with it as it is. And Cornelia and Shimmer aren't helping.

Though, to be fair, Cornelia did try. She might have done a shit job of it by insisting that I talk about what happened and how it made me feel — which was one, none of her business, and two, never going to happen. But she did try. Right up to the moment I slapped her.

Though, in my defense, I told her I'd do it if she didn't shut up. And, when she ignored me and asked how I felt for the billionth time, I had no choice but to keep my promise. So, I did.

And it felt amazing.

I slapped her so hard I could see my handprint throbbing on her cheek. And the way she stood there with tears in her eyes and a hurt look etched on her stupid face before running out of the room like a baby made me feel all warm and tingly.

But, more importantly, it worked.

She got the message. And she hasn't bothered me since.

Neither has Shimmer. Though, in his defense, he's smart enough to know better.

I've nearly killed him twice already. Once during the bloodbath, when I was in control of my emotions. And then, a little while later, when I was losing control. So he's probably afraid I'll finish the job now that I've flipped my shit — as he so eloquently put it.

And he should be afraid. Because he's dangerously close to being more trouble than he's worth. And as soon as he is, I will kill him.

So him ignoring me makes sense. But not Cornelia.

Even with the threat of being slapped again hanging over her head — and I did tell her I'd do it again if she didn't leave me alone — she should have come back to check on me. Especially since she doesn't think I'm in my right mind.

But she hasn't. And I can't figure out why.

Well, I guess there's only one way to find out. And, after a brief moment of hesitation, I force myself to my feet, tiptoe over to the door, and crack it ever so slightly so I can spy on her like I did my mom and dad when I was a kid.

And what I hear makes my blood boil.

"I can't take this anymore," growls Shimmer, his voice dripping with anger and impatience. "How much longer are we gonna sit here?"

"As long as we have to," mumbles Cornelia, her voice soft and hoarse. "We need to give Bellatrix more time to process what happened yesterday."

"And how much more time does she need? A few hours? A few days? Is she ever going to be ok?"

"I don't know," she admits, her voice low and defensive, "I've never dealt with something like this before."

"That's not an acceptable answer, Cornelia."

"Well, that's too bad, Shimmer. Because it's the one you're getting."

"Then maybe it's time for us to cut our losses."

"We're not abandoning her, Shimmer."

"We might not have a choice."

"I said, we're not abandoning her, Shimmer. End of discussion."

"Fine! Then you need to go in there and tell her to pull her head out of her ass and start acting like a career. Because I'm done waiting for her to do it on her own."

"She's trying, Shimmer."

"Well, then she needs to try harder. Because this is pathetic."

"You're the one who's pathetic, Shimmer," I growl, my face twisted in a mask of anger as I throw the door open with a disgusted grunt. "You smug son of a bitch."

"Aw, what's the matter, Bell? Don't like being called pathetic?" he asks, a smug, condescending smirk on his lips. "Does the truth hurt your poor little feelings?"

I don't answer him right away. I don't trust myself not to snap at him if I do.

Instead, I stand here and glare at him, my lips pulled back in a disgusted sneer, as I try and fail to calm myself down enough to respond.

Yes, he deserves every terrible thing I want to do to him and a whole lot more. But I can't kill him, not as long as Alfonso and Helena are still out there.

I still need him. I have to remember that. And I can't let him goad me into making a mistake like I did yesterday.

"Leave her alone, Shimmer," snaps Cornelia, her voice firm and commanding despite the fear and angst oozing out of every pour of her body.

"Why should I?" he asks, his tone soft and mocking. "Why should I baby the crazy bitch who tried to kill me yesterday?"

"For the same reason, you didn't slit my throat when you had the chance," I growl through gritted teeth. "Because we still need each other.

"Don't we?" I ask, my eyes darting around the room in search of a weapon on the off chance he says no.

"That depends. Are you gonna make yourself useful and start acting like a career?"

"I am, Shimmer, are you?" I ask, pouring every ounce of confidence and swagger I can muster into my words as I stand here and glare defiantly into his cold, unnerving eyes.

"Of course, I am," he laughs. "But talk is cheap, Bellatrix. Especially when it comes from someone as pathetic as you."

"Then I guess I'll have to let my actions do the talking instead. Won't I?"

"I guess you will," he whispers, his tone low and menacing. "And there's no better time to start than right now.

"So, go grab your shit, and let's go. I'm itching to get out of here and have some fun."

Ashton 'Ash' Drysden-13 (District 11 Male)

I can't believe Ash is gone. When I went to sleep last night, she was alive; she may have been tired and sad, but she was alive. And now she's not.

She's dead. And I don't know how to handle that. Let alone everything else.

What am I supposed to do now? How do I keep myself alive? How do I keep Cassis alive? How am I supposed to handle all of this by myself?

I mean, the logical part of me knows the answer to all those questions. I have to do the same thing I would have done had Ash not killed herself. I have to keep going. If I don't, I'll die. And I don't want to die.

But I don't know if I'm strong enough to just let this go either. And that scares me.

"I don't want to be here anymore. I want to go home."

"What did you say?" asks Cassis, his soft, sad voice snapping me back to reality as I sit here and play with Ash's little purple rock.

"What did who say?" I ask, a look of genuine confusion on my sad, snot-covered face.

"You, Ashton. What did you say?"

"Oh. ... I don't know," I lie, my voice shaking with every word. "I was just thinking out loud."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Ok. ...

"In that case, I think it's time for us to go."

"Why?"

"Because we can't stay here anymore. It's not safe."

"There's no place in the arena that's safe," I remind him, my voice barely above a whisper, my eyes glued to the cold, lifeless pools of darkness that used to be Ash's eyes as a fresh batch of tears starts to trickle down my cheeks.

"That doesn't mean we should just sit here and wait to die, though," he says, his voice quivering with every word as he fights back the urge to cry. "Does it?"

I don't ... I don't know how to answer that question. I know what I should say, but I don't know if I can bring myself to say it. Because the truth is, I've already kind of given up.

But I can't tell Cassis that. And I know it.

The last thing he needs to hear is that I've given up. Especially since he's counting on me to be the new leader of our alliance.

So I do the only thing I can think of. I pretend.

I force myself to look up at him with a smile on my face and a confident twinkle in my eye and pretend that I haven't given up.

"Of course not," I say, pouring every ounce of confidence and positive energy I have into my words as I lean over and slip Ash's little rock back into her hand before closing it and laying it on top of her chest. "It just means we have to be more careful. Especially since it's just the two of us now."

"Oh," he says, his body relaxing slightly as all of the tension and angst he had been holding on to slowly drains out of his body. "That makes sense.

"You know, for a second, I thought you ... but you didn't."

"Of course, I didn't," I say, silently picking up on his unspoken fears as I push myself back to my feet and pull him in for what I hope is a warm and reassuring hug. "And I never will. Not as long as you're still alive."

"Do you really mean that?" he asks, a small dusting of tears bubbling up in the corners of his eyes.

"I do," I say, my voice calm and confident as he buries his face in my chest and starts to sob softly.

"Thank you, Ashton."

"You don't have to thank me for this, Cass.

"I'm your ally. I'm supposed to look out for you.

"More importantly, it's what Ash would have wanted me to do," I say, my eyes drifting down to her face for the last time as I let Cass slip from my grasp before starting towards the door of our little hiding place. "But we'll have time to worry about that later. Right now, I think it's time for us to take your advice and find a new place to hide. Don't you?"

Pallas Eve Arguatha-18 (District 8 Female)

So I know this sounds crazy, and I feel crazy for even thinking it, but I'm actually enjoying this. Being in the arena isn't nearly as terrible as I expected it to be. And that's all because of Liz.

She makes being trapped in this hell bearable. And I don't think I would have been able to make it through the last few hours, let alone the whole day, without her. And I don't say that lightly.

But the truth is, this is the first time since my sister died that I've been genuinely happy. And it took being sent to hell for that to happen. And I think that's kind of special.

It's also completely insane. Like, the craziest thing in the history of the world, insane. And I know that. But I don't care.

I'm going to be dead in a couple of days anyway. So, I might as well enjoy this little bit of happiness before I join my sister in the afterlife. I think I've earned that.

"You look happy," whispers Liz, a sly, knowing smile on her face as she bends down and carefully dips her empty canteen into the water to fill it.

"I am," I admit, a smile of my own spreading across my face as I jog over to join her by the edge of the little fountain in the middle of the square we're in. "Does that surprise you?"

"A little," she admits, her voice light and playful as she pulls her canteen out of the fountain and sets it down next to her before dropping a water purification tablet into it. "Most people don't enjoy being in the arena."

"That's because none of them had you as an ally," I remind her, my voice dropping half an octave as I slide down on the ledge next to her and dip my canteen into the fountain.

"I am pretty amazing," she laughs, the playful smile on her lips slithering up to her eyes as she tosses me the bottle of purification tablets.

"And incredibly humble," I joke.

"Well, nobody's perfect."

"Maybe not, but you're pretty close," I say, the words slipping past my lips before I can stop them and turning my face a humiliating shade of red. "Did I say that out loud?"

"Oh, you did," she laughs, her cheeks reddening slightly as she quickly screws the cap back on her canteen and slips it into her pocket before leaning in and giving me a quick peck on the cheek. "And I appreciate the compliment."

"Don't mention it," I mumble, my face somehow getting even redder than it already was as I sit here and stare down at my canteen as the water from the fountain slowly trickles into its previously empty confines.

"Oh, but I have to. How else am I supposed to make you blush?"

I don't know how to respond to that without embarrassing myself, so I force myself not to say anything at all. Instead, I focus all of my attention on the monumental task of filling my canteen while Liz pokes around the square for a few seconds. And by the time she gets back, I'm finally ready to go.

"So, what's the plan?" I ask, slipping my canteen into my pocket before sliding off the ledge I've been sitting on and starting towards her.

"I'm not sure yet," she admits, a worried look on her beautiful face. "We have a couple options, but none of them are good."

"Ok. Which one is the least bad?"

"That's a good question," she mumbles, her eyes drifting from one side of the horizon to the other as she tries to make up her mind. "What do you think?"

"I'm not sure either. But if I had to guess, I'd say that one," I say, nodding in the direction of a small bridge that leads to an ornate gate flanked by a pair of massive dragon statues.

"Aah, you want to explore the castle? How romantic," she coos, a playful smile on her lips as she leans in and gives me a quick peck on the lips. "I love it."

"You're impossible," I laugh, rolling my eyes as I return her kiss with one of my own.

"And you love it," she says, a coy twinkle in her eyes as she laces her fingers through mine and gives my hand a reassuring little squeeze. "Now, let's go see if we can find something in that castle to help us win the Hunger Games."

Numerius Andronica (District 3 Escort)

Well, I did it. I had to call in every favor I had. And a few that I didn't. But I managed to scrape together enough money to send Oz a sponsor gift. And I've never felt so dirty.

Some of the things I did to get him this money will haunt me for the rest of my life. But it was the only way. And my pride and self-respect are a small price to pay to help my tribute.

I just hope my cousin Callidus appreciates it.

"You're back," he says, a concerned look on his face as he bolts up off the couch and scampers over to the door to greet me. "How'd it go?"

"How do you think it went?" I growl, my voice low and angry as I look up at him and show off the bite marks covering my neck and shoulders.

"What did he do to you?" he asks, his eyes darting from one bruise to the next as I carefully remove my jacket and toss it to an avox before hobbling over to the couch and plopping down on it with a pained groan.

"Trust me, you don't want to know."

"That bad, huh?"

"That bad and worse," I admit, my body screaming at me in anger as I try and fail to get comfortable on the couch before giving up and forcing myself to stand back up. "But at least it's over.

"How's Oz doing?"

"It's tough to say. The vitals we're getting from his tracker says he's fine, but that doesn't mean Bennett didn't fracture his skull."

"Well, let's hope that's not the case," I mumble, the marks on my neck throbbing in step with the beating of my heart as I stand here and fight back the urge to cry. "I'd hate to think that I did what I did for nothing."

"I'll bet. So, did you send Oz his gift yet?" he asks, doing his best to change the topic for me without making it obvious that's what he's trying to do.

"I did," I mumble, my eyes drifting down to the datapad in my hand that shows his gift has just entered the arena. "He should be getting it here in a few minutes.

"And since it's on its way, I'm gonna go take a nap.

"Will you be ok without me for a few hours?"

"I'm sure I'll manage," he jokes, a forced smile on his face as he plops down on the couch with a huff before leaning in towards the screen and shooing me away.

"I'm sure you will," I mumble, the pain in my neck and shoulders reaching a fever pitch as I casually toss him the datapad before hobbling off towards my room with tears streaming down my cheeks.

"Num?!"

"What?"

"I'm sorry you had to do this."

"It's not your fault."

"Yes, it is. And I'm gonna find a way to make it up to you. I promise."

"Don't make a girl a promise ... if you know, you can't keep it, Callidus," I mumble, my eyes drifting off his face and over to the vidscreen for a few seconds as Oz's gift slowly flutters into view and down towards him and his allies. "And for the love of God, please don't do anything stupid.

"Just make sure this leads to the greater good."

A/N: Hello everyone, it's been a while :) I hope you've all been well. I want to start by apologizing for how long this update took. I never intended for there to be a month-long lull in the schedule, but life had other ideas. I can't promise this won't happen again, high risk pregnancies can be a tricky business and my Fiancée and the twins will always come first. But I promise you I'll get this story done and hopefully it'll be good enough to serve as the launching pad for the two others I've got planned. But that's a concern for the future. Right now, I'm much more interested in hearing what everyone thinks of this update? So, please leave a review and let me know and thank you again for being so amazing :D