A/N

We are back! After a nice surprise week away, I am back and bringing you another arena chapter! After a fairly quiet few chapters, I can't promise that things will continue that way...

Zoei 'Aida' Jones, District Five Female

It was only when she felt the bark scraping against the raw skin of her cheek that Zoei realised she had fallen asleep.

With a startled jolt, she sat bolt upright, her muscles instantly becoming rigid as she clawed back at her consciousness. The twinge in the back of her neck and the dull ache in her lower back told her that she must have slept at an awkward angle, though she was surprised that she'd managed to remain solidly planted on the branch of the tree she and Phoenix had climbed however long ago they had climbed.

How long had it been?

Zoei glanced up at the sky, but as ever, the stretch above them remained an indigo cloak of darkness, lit up only by a scattering of distant stars and the collection of moons which Zoei was still trying to wrap her head around. One thing that was different in the midnight sky was the colour of the moon. No longer a clear, white moon, like the one she was used to seeing lighting up the clear expanse of skies back in Five; instead, a pale green tinged the surface of the most prominent of the moons. It cast a more ominous glow across the arena, making the medieval landscape even eerier than it had been before.

A small shiver ran down Zoei's spine.

Stretching out her fatigued limbs, Zoei looked around the tree, finding its branches empty. Her ally was nowhere to be seen.

A slither of panic began to ripple in Zoei's heart as her eyes frantically searched the area around, her line of sight darting between trunks and branches and bushes. As panic quickly turned to fear, Zoei fumbled for her footing as she started to descend down the tree, biting her lip as she tried to prevent the negative thoughts from flooding her brain.

But Zoei was an optimist; as much as she could be. It took her the time to reach the softer ground to convince herself that Phoenix was simply exploring the area, or searching for water. There remained a bitter taste in the back of her throat, but her optimism endured.

Stepping out cautiously from the trunk of the tree, Zoei checked her surroundings. After their escape from the Careers, she was less inclined to walk and more inclined to crouch.

Hunching her body even lower than her short height reached, Zoei crept around the side of the tree; her feet light as she tread quickly from tree to tree, hoping that they could provide some form of cover. Her hands felt empty as she clutched them into fists, really regretting her decision to just run from the cornucopia without grabbing any supplies. In a desperate attempt to feel more prepared, she swiped up a sturdy looking stick, which in a pinch she could maybe jab into someone's eyes to stun them whilst she ran. It wasn't much, but perhaps it could cause enough of a distraction to allow her natural speed to bring her to safety.

As she made her way through the small forested area, Zoei's heart sank with each careful step. With every yard she progressed, she felt the weight of loneliness increasing. Zoei knew that in the Games there could only be one Victor, but she realised with a pained heart that she wasn't ready to face being alone quite so soon. As many times as she had told herself going into the Games that she shouldn't form attachments, it had been like talking to a brick wall. Of course she was going to form attachments, Zoei always did. Every time a fatherly figure entered her life, she would welcome him with open arms and close them just as quickly, wrapping them tightly around them and wishing that they'd never leave. Many of them did, and she wondered whether Tyson would eventually do the same.

Men always left. And Phoenix too, perhaps, was just the same.

A sudden snap of a twig beneath a boot sucked the air out of Zoei's lungs. She screamed, spinning around on her heels and thrusting the stick in front of her.

"Ah!" the puberty-cracked voice of Phoenix cried out, sending waves of relief through Zoei's body.

Her body acting before her mind had a chance to catch up, Zoei threw herself forwards, wrapping her arms around Phoenix's neck and burying her head into his shoulder. Her eyes felt hot as tears pricked them, and she squeezed them tightly to prevent the water from flowing.

"Whoa whoa, bruh," Phoenix stood helplessly, allowing Zoei to hug him. With slow movements he patted her back in a somewhat affectionate manner. "What's up?"

Suddenly feeling embarrassed, Zoei pulled herself together, peeling herself away from Phoenix and trying to subtly wipe her damp eyes with the back of her wrists.

She cleared her throat. "Oh, erm, nothing."

Phoenix raised an eyebrow. A deep grin emerged on his face, the dimples in his cheeks sinking inwards.

"You thought I was dead, didn't you?"

Zoei shook her head defiantly.

"Yeah you totally did."

"Actually," Zoei brushed herself off. "I thought you had abandoned me. I was just relieved that I wouldn't have to kill you myself for being such a dick."

Phoenix scoffed. "You wouldn't kill me even if I'd stabbed you first."

"You wouldn't get the chance to stab me first."

"I'm quicker than you."

"Hardly."

There were a few moments of silence before the two of them burst into a fit of giggles. Their laughter seemed to lift the tension in the green hue around them, and just for a few seconds, Zoei felt the tightness easing from her body.

"Hey, where were you anyway?" she asked.

"Oh I was looking for some water," Phoenix told her. "You seemed pretty asleep, and I thought I'd just have a little look around, try and be useful and all. I actually found this cool little spring thing not far from here –follow me and I'll show you. The water's real sweet, man."

Deciding to forgive him, Zoei smiled as she fell in behind Phoenix. He rambled on about how he had found the spring, though Zoei found her mind drifting. The thought of Cathy still weighed heavily on her mind. Though she had not yet seen her face in the sky, she still felt an immense guilt about leaving her with the boy from Ten. She could only hope that his intentions were pure, but with the darkness that had shrouded him, even Zoei's optimism could not penetrate the anxiety.

"So it's just through here," Phoenix directed them. "A lot of bushes to push through though, so try not to trip. Don't be taking that to mean I tripped though –of course I didn't."

Zoei nodded, stepping where Phoenix stepped in front of her, her legs pushing through the foliage. Her hands dangled loosely by her side, her fingers brushing gently along the waxy leaves. Zoei soon noticed that her hands were feeling a little drier than they had been before, that dryness rapidly becoming a sharp stinging pain that caused her to retract her hands and lift them towards her face. With a frown, she looked at her pale skin, where small blisters were sprouting. She could see them forming with her own eyes, patches of milky skin fast turning into red circles which rose in bumps across her hand.

As she opened her mouth to tell her ally, Phoenix suddenly froze, his head lifting higher.

"What?" Zoei whispered sharply, her eyes beginning to flick from side to side anxiously as she winced from the increasing pain in her hands.

Phoenix backed up, nearly stepping on the toes of Zoei's boots.

"Run," he whispered.

Without explanation, Phoenix shot off to the left, his agile body quick to jump between the bushes. Zoei immediately chased after him, holding her hands above the tops of the bushes as she ran from whatever Phoenix had seen.

After about a minute of running, she realised with a glance behind her shoulder that they were running from the same three Careers who had nearly crossed paths with them before.

With a heightened sense of panic, Zoei's legs propelled themselves even faster forwards. A short distance ahead of her, she saw Phoenix heading towards a thicker gathering of bushes, which rose far higher than the waist-high ones they had been walking through before. One of Zoei's fingertips gently grazed the top of a bush as she ran, and instantly she felt a blister forming.

There was something wrong with these bushes; that was certain.

"Phoenix!" she called out in desperate warning. "Don't touch the bushes!"

Phoenix either did not hear her, or was ignoring her as his path continued straight.

"Phoenix!" Zoei shouted again, and for a moment he turned his head, but his eyes widened as he saw the Careers in the distance and he quickly turned away again.

Gritting her teeth, Zoei dug into the backs of her heels, scraping any inch of energy she could muster to make her run faster. She picked up a little bit of speed, enough to begin to close the gap between her and Phoenix.

It wasn't a close enough gap to prevent him from running into the foliage, but he must have figured it out for himself as he emerged seconds later, screeching as he slapped at his face.

From the short distance away, Zoei could see red patches swelling on his cheeks, matching the ones on the backs of his hands as he swore in quick succession.

"The-the," he began, but Zoei nodded, flashing her own blistered hands.

Zoei pointed to another exit, one which seemed to lead away from the cover of the trees and bushes and towards some sort of structure. Phoenix nodded, and immediately began to race towards it.

This time, Zoei kept close behind her ally, hearing his breaths becoming ragged as he scratched at the blisters on his face. The structure that loomed ahead seemed to draw nearer faster than Zoei had imagined, though she realised that they must have been running at quite an impressive speed.

It was a large stone building, though it was not fully formed. The manufactured effects of age and weathering had crumbled half of the building away, and Zoei could see that just a few yards ahead of them, the ground stopped.

Phoenix must have noticed it too, as he skidded to a halt.

"Where do we go now?" Zoei asked, her eyes darting between Phoenix and the forest behind them.

Phoenix looked across the gap –there was a ledge on the other side.

"We can jump it," he suggested, his voice croaking.

Zoei bit her lip, uncertain. "It looks too far…"

Phoenix suddenly slammed his hands down on her shoulders.

"What other choice do we have, Aida?!"

Zoei's eyes welled with tears.

"None," she whispered.

"Then let's do this shit," said Phoenix firmly. "Remember, we aced the agility course, right?"

Right, Zoei said, though she realised as Phoenix backed up to run towards the edge that the word had not left her mouth.

With a flash of a half-believing grin, Phoenix sprinted forwards. Passing Zoei with a quick breeze, he flung himself into the air, swinging his arms and legs forwards to grab hold of the ledge. Zoei watched with her heart in her mouth as his fingers wrapped themselves around the ledge.

"See, bruh, what did I say about—"

There was a gentle rumble as Zoei watched a crack forming in the stone ledge. Like water gushing down a creek, it rushed towards where Phoenix's hands were gripped. All was still for a moment, and then the ledge crumbled.

With an empty scream, Zoei dashed forwards, her body hanging over the edge as she watched Phoenix scramble for something to hold onto as gravity took its hold on his body. Falling to her knees with a hard slam, she cried out as she watched her ally descending further and further down.

As Phoenix hit the bottom, there was no canon. There was pain in his eyes as he blinked slowly, his limbs spread out around him as he lay flat on his back.

The shrubbery had softened his fall, breaking it and preventing the impact from killing him instantly.

But Zoei would rather the plants had not been there at all, as without them, she wouldn't have watched her friend's face become engulfed with blisters. They crept up from his neck like an incoming tide, washing over every inch of his blemish-free skin until not even his eyes were visible through the swelling.

As she swallowed back the sick in her throat, Zoei swore she saw Phoenix try to speak the name Aida, before his body stilled and a canon fired.

Matthew Kwon, District Three Male

The sound of the canon slowed Matthew's pace ever so slightly as he kept up with the fast, but maintainable, speed of Beau and Peach. They had been chasing a pair of tributes for a short while, having temporarily lost their trail earlier, before Matthew had managed to pick it back up whilst they searched a small wooded area. The pair from One had seemed somewhat impressed by his tracking abilities, Peach having asked a few curious questions about how he had learnt such skills back in District Three. Matthew, as ever, had remained protective of his secrets, evading her questions with silver-tipped and meticulously crafted words to satisfy her without revealing any details he did not wish her, or the rest of Panem, to know.

"Oh, do you think that was one of them?" asked Peach as she began to break ahead a little.

"Could be anyone, there's a lot still alive," Beau replied shortly, though his eyes were keenly focused.

Holding her arm out beside her, Peach brought the pace down a notch. Matthew slowed beside Beau, trying his best to remain as part of the team despite his natural tendencies to work alone. There were inches between their arms, but even without touching and with the thin armour that lined their skin, Matthew could feel his heartrate quickening in Beau's presence.

He wasn't sure what it was about Beau that made him lose focus. Matthew had been with both boys and girls before, though never forming any attachment deeper than a physical touch. Sex was something he could take or leave; sometimes it was an easy way to pass the time when he was awaiting a mission, or a temporary distraction from the shades of grey he wandered between a life of black and white. But with Beau, Matthew felt the need to take, rather than to leave.

It concerned him.

The trees around them were becoming scarcer as a large, half-fallen building drew up ahead. Peach flashed Beau a look which was unreadable to Matthew, but one which Beau understood entirely. In perfect synchronisation, the two separated, each taking a stealthy position as they searched the area. Stood between them, Matthew shrugged and continued forwards, walking towards the edge where a crumbled ledge stood on the other side of an ambitious leap.

Squatting down, Matthew peered over the edge, his eyebrows raising as his eyes found the source of the canon. A boy, or what was left of him, lay a distance below, though his skin was entirely coated in oozing lumps and blisters. Matthew found his nose screwing up at the uncleanliness of it all; it was really quite unpleasant to look at.

Dead bodies, Matthew had seen plenty of, but his kills were always clean.

With a soft grunt, Matthew stood back up, brushing off the small particles of dirt from his trousers. He returned his knives to his belt, using his free hands to tuck back the strands of hair which had fallen across his forehead as he had run. Reaching into his small backpack, Matthew then retrieved his bottle of water, unscrewed the lid and took a large mouthful. He tipped a small amount onto his hands, quickly rinsing them as clean as he could manage.

As he turned around, he noticed that Beau had returned, his arms lowering with his circular weapons by his side.

"It's a dead end that way round," he noted, his dark eyes wandering. "Is Peach back yet?"

Matthew shook his head. "No. But I found a body."

He gestured to the edge. With a tight expression, Beau walked over, took a small glance over the edge and then backed away.

"He was one of them," Beau confirmed. "I can make out the number five on his top –his ally must have run off. Peach will probably be on her trail –we should follow."

"Or we could wait?" the words left Matthew's lips before he could realise they were spoken and not just thoughts.

Beau looked at Matthew; his heart fluttered involuntarily.

"I mean, you said it yourself, Peach is probably on the girl's trail," Matthew shrugged. "She'll likely be far ahead of us now, likely about to catch up to her. We'd only be throwing her off."

Beau's face did not change.

"Unless you're worried about her?" Matthew began to backtrack. "We could figure out which way she went, catch up with her ourselves."

"I'm not worried."

Matthew stopped speaking.

Beau cleared his throat softly. "Peach knows how to handle herself, better than anyone I know. She'll find her, and then she'll come straight back here."

"So we wait?" Matthew said, trying not to sound too relieved at the thought of time alone with Beau. It wasn't necessarily that he wanted it to be the two of them; he just felt better with fewer people around. Mixing with the Career pack was proving more uncomfortable than he'd imagined.

"Yeah," Beau replied, his gaze already drifting over to the wooded area. "I did see something over there when I passed. Looked like a fresh spring or something. We…we could get some fresh water?"

The thought of cleaning himself up was a very welcome one and Matthew nodded in agreement. Seeing Beau's adam's apple moving as he swallowed, Matthew glanced towards his feet, gesturing for Beau to lead the way.

Beau led the two of them along the edge of the wooded area, before dipping between two trees with slightly curved trunks.

"Careful not to touch the bushes," Beau warned. "I think they're poisonous. They weren't before, but I noticed a few blisters on my hands when they brushed past the leaves. And then that boy lying in the shrubs…"

"I think it's the moon," said Matthew, glancing up to the sky where a green-tinged moon hung high. "Ever since that green one came out, the plants have changed."

The corner of Beau's lips twitched. "I was thinking the same thing."

Knowing how to avoid harm, Beau wove his way through towards the springs, with Matthew close behind. They weren't too deep in before the tranquil sound of trickling water filled Matthew's ears.

They walked into a small clearing. A collection of rocks carpeted with patches of bioluminescent moss formed a natural display, with a small stream of clear water trickling between them, gathering into a circular pool below. The water was clear enough for Matthew to see the rocky bottom; it was about waist-deep.

Without caution, Matthew threw off his backpack, dropping it on the ground beside him. Reaching to his shoulders, he began to slide off his clothes, tugging the tight black suit off his arms and rolling it down to his waist. He walked to the edge of the water and then continued forwards, wading into the spring until the surface of the water grazed his hips. If he hadn't been in the arena, he would have stripped entirely, but for now just being able to rinse under his arms would be enough.

As Matthew began to splash water across his arms and chest, he noticed in his peripheral vision that Beau's eyes were wide and locked on him. Pretending not to notice, Matthew continued to rinse the dirt and sweat off his body, his skin feeling instantly grateful.

"There's no-one around," Matthew broke the silence. "This may be your only opportunity to have a quick wash. Trust me, you'll feel better for it."

He could see Beau suddenly turn his head away, embarrassed.

"I- erm," he stammered. "I'll just have a drink."

"Suit yourself," Matthew mumbled, scooping up a handful of water and tipping it over his head, running his fingers through his thick hair as he shook the beads of water away.

Once he had scrubbed his skin as best as he could manage, Matthew turned and began to wade out of the water. Beau was bent down by the side of the edge, dipping his bottle into the clear water. His eyes flicked up towards Matthew as he emerged from the spring, returning quickly to his bottle.

"Are you ok?" asked Beau quietly.

Matthew frowned. "Yes, why?"

"The wounds across your arms and chest," said Beau without looking up. "Are they from Ten?"

"Oh," Matthew glanced down at his half naked body. "Yeah, they're just scratches really, didn't cut deep."

It was true, the light armour each tribute had entered the arena wearing was fairly protective, and it had shielded Matthew's skin from what could have been far more serious wounds. They were merely flesh wounds; shallow scratches from the tips of knives which had barely drawn blood. Matthew had almost forgotten they were there at all.

"Good."

Beau finished filling his bottle and screwed the top on, slowly rising to his feet. He slid the bottle into his bag, tucking his arm through the strap and reaching to retrieve his weapons which he had carefully laid down beside him.

"We should go back for Peach," said Beau, trying to avert his eyes from Matthew's still bare chest.

"We should…" agreed Matthew, though there was a light tease to the end of his words. "Or…"

Unable to resist any longer, Matthew strode up to Beau, taking his face between his hands and pressing his lips firmly against Beau's. There was a small squeak from Beau, but he kissed Matthew back, his eyes fluttering shut seconds before Matthew's did.

The same heat that Matthew had felt in the Capitol elevator was there again as he explored Beau's mouth with his own, though this time there was a lesser sense of urgency between the two of them. They took their time, savouring each moment. Matthew softened as Beau's hands ran themselves along his bare skin, his touch gentle for a trained Career.

They kissed for some time, before Matthew broke away, brushing a strand of Beau's hair from his cutely flustered face.

Stepping back silently, Matthew pulled his top back on, swiped up his backpack and ran a hand through his slightly damp hair.

A short distance away, Beau stood, breathless.

"What…what is happening between us?" Beau finally managed to ask.

Matthew just shrugged. "We'd better go find Peach," he said.

Olivette 'Livvy' Beauchêne, District Seven Female

Rest easy, my friend,

For tonight may not be the end.

It is just the start,

As I hold your heart.

The words danced along Livvy's tongue, slipping as quiet as a whisper between her gently parted lips as she knelt in the soft ground, her hands working tirelessly as they always did. For the first time, the birds did not return her song. There were no birds here at all; just endless silence that seemed to echo helplessly around.

Livvy had known loss and she had known grief; she had no memory of her biological family, but the death of the man who became her father had filled her heart with enough sorrow for her to never wish to revisit it again. But she could not make that choice, it had been made for her. The Reaping bowl had condemned her to this path; a path filled with death, whether that be her own, or the deaths that could secure her own life. And she hated it; she detested the Capitol with every fibre of her being. There had been no need to bring the Hunger Games back, none at all. The previous five years had been hard, of course, but this was not the solution. How could forcing innocent children to kill for their own survival be a solution to anything other than the deranged, bored minds of those drowning in their own privilege?

A tear began to gather in the corner of Livvy's eye. Quickly, she wiped it away with the back of her hand, smudging some dirt across the top of her cheekbone.

Livvy missed Cameron dearly. From the short amount of time she had known him, she had seen nothing but good in the boy, and she was grateful that she had known him for the short weeks before the Reapings as well. Weeks were not enough to truly know a person and Livvy wished that she could have known Cameron better. Wherever people went when they died, Livvy hoped it was a gentle place; Cameron deserved that at least.

Despite her grief, Livvy endured. She had Logan and Lunete to think about, and she would not allow herself to become the weak link in the chain. Having been faced with the reality of the Games far too quickly, Livvy knew that she could not afford to slip up.

She was sat outside the back of the small hut they had found several hours ago, foraging for plants she recognised as having healing properties. Logan's injuries sustained from the courtyard had been minor, though left untreated could become deadly. Livvy was hopeful that her handcrafted remedies would hold off infection until the wounds were ready to close and heal themselves. So far, they seemed to be working, and that was one positive in a realm of negatives.

"Ouch," Livvy winced as she reached forward to pluck a leaf from one of the low shrubs.

Frowning, she looked closely at the plant. She was certain it wasn't one she knew to cause a sting, not like a nettle, and she swore she had plucked from the same plant before. She must have brushed against something else. Shaking it off, she went to retrieve the leaf again, but this time found her hand retracting sharply as a sharp stinging shot through the soft pads on her fingertips.

Turning over her hand, Livvy gasped as she saw her fingertips begin to swell, and a cluster of red blisters form as quickly before her own eyes.

"What…" she whispered, staring down at her hands in confusion.

With her other hand, she decided to reach to touch a different plant, and the same thing happened once again. Wincing from the pain, Livvy's mouth gaped as she tried to piece together what was going on. As she looked around her, she noticed that there was a slight green hue in the air, causing her head to tilt back as she looked up at the sky.

A green moon stood out before the others behind it.

With a sinking feeling, Livvy realised quickly that this was the Gamemakers' doing. A part of their cruel mechanics to make matters more interesting for the viewers in the Capitol. The moon must have been an indicator of a change in the arena, and it seemed as though it were the plants which were affected.

As the cogs began to turn in her mind, Livvy was seconds to realising a serious threat to her allies before the alarm was raised for her.

"Livvy!" the sound of Lunete's panicked cries tore through the air.

Scrambling to her feet, Livvy pushed through the pain as her hands brushed past the bushes in her haste.

"Logan needs help!" Lunete shouted, the loudest Livvy had ever heard the shy girl speak. "I don't know what to do!"

"It's the plants!" Livvy called out as she stumbled out of the patch of plants she had nestled herself in, her face screwing up with pain as the blisters spread across her hands. "They've become poisonous!"

As she climbed through the bushes, Livvy felt her boot snag on something. Rooted to the spot, she tried to free herself, but her foot was firmly lodged.

"Livvy help!" Lunete cried again.

"Lunete, I'm stuck!" Livvy yelled out. "What's happening to Logan?"

"He-he's having a seizure!" replied Lunete, her voice trembling. "I-I don't know what to do!"

With a sickened thought, Livvy realised that plants which had already been harvested were still affected by the arena's change, meaning that the paste she had applied to Logan's wounds was likely filtering directly into his bloodstream. The effects would be far faster than the blisters on Livvy's skin, and as she desperately tried to free her trapped leg, she began to worry that she may not make it in time to save him.

"We've got to get the paste out of Logan's wounds!" Livvy shouted. "Scrape as much out as you can –quickly! I'm coming as fast as I can!"

Livvy could not see Lunete from behind the hut, but she sensed that the girl had rushed back in to help their ally, as she heard nothing further.

Suddenly, a canon fired.

With a frustrated scream, Livvy reached down to her boot, gritting her teeth hard as her hands delved into the leafy shrubbery. It seemed as though her boot was wedged between some roots, and with enough wiggling, she managed to free herself, crying out with pain as she fell forwards and out of the bushes onto her hands and knees.

Tears streaming down her face, Livvy crawled forwards a few paces, then pushed herself up to her feet, running the last few paces towards the hut.

In the centre of the small building, Logan lay on his back, his body convulsing violently as Lunete bent over his leg. The whites of Logan's eyes were visible as his head titled backwards, and his hands were balled in tight fists by his side as his muscles contracted. But he was still alive –the canon hadn't been for him.

Silently, Lunete was hunched over, and as Livvy walked around, she saw that she was clawing frantically at Logan's leg, her fingers thickly coated in the plant-made paste. Blisters climbed Lunete's hands like ivy across a brick wall, racing up towards her wrists and likely up her arms where her black armour concealed. Her jaw was clenched tightly, though she seemed not to be in any pain as she drew more and more paste away from Logan's leg.

"Lunete, you've got to wash that off!" Livvy cried out, falling to her knees beside her. "You should have used something to scrape it out, not your fingers. Here, let me take over."

Lunete said nothing, her eyes glazed as she carried on. Her gaze could not be drawn away from Logan's wound, her hands working like a machine. Livvy could see a shimmer against Lunete's soft cheeks as tears began to dry.

"Lunete!" Livvy grabbed the girl's hands, pulling her away. Grasping the nearby bottle of water, Livvy poured it over her hands, wiping away the paste from Lunete's slender fingers. Her eyes widened as she saw the cuts around Lunete's nails, where she must have bitten or scratched the skin so hard that it had drawn blood… blood that was now mixing with the green paste.

At the same time as Livvy looked from Lunete's hands to her face, Lunete collapsed. Livvy was able to catch her ally in her arms, preventing her body from hitting the floor.

"Lunete," Livvy shook her ally as her eyes blinked rapidly. "Lunete, can you hear me?"

Lunete seemed to try to keep her eyes open, but she could not muster the strength. Livvy bit her lip hard, tasting blood in her mouth, as she felt Lunete's body begin to twitch distinctly.

"Lunete, speak to me," Livvy's eyes filled with tears. "Come on, you're alright, you're alright."

Slowly, the jolts in her slender body began to stop, and Lunete opened her doe eyes.

"Logan…" Lunete spoke with a hoarse whisper. "Is he…?"

Livvy looked over to Logan. His seizure seemed to have subsided, and the gentle rise and fall of his chest indicated that he was stable –at least, for the moment.

Livvy nodded. "He's ok. You saved him."

A small smile passed Lunete's face as her eyelids fluttered shut again.

"I'm glad…I could…save somebody…"

Her body stilled.

"Lunete?" Livvy cupped her cheek. "Lunete, don't fall asleep, please."

The canon confirmed that it was not a slumber Lunete had fallen into.

At once, all the air left Livvy's lungs. Hollow, she felt herself gasping as her sobs clogged up her throat.

Rest easy, my friend.

With Lunete still in her arms, Livvy turned her head to look at the night sky outside of the hut. A sudden rush of anger filled her heart.

"Is this entertainment?!" a scream tore from Livvy's throat. "Is it?!"

Of course, there was no answer. Only silence.

"Fuck you and your stupid Games!" she shrieked. "Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you!"

After several minutes of hurling curses towards the sky, Livvy finally broke down. What would words do but waste her breath? She knew that the Capitol cared not for her pain, nor the pain of any other tribute who sat under the same endless night sky. She was simply giving them what they wanted; a show.

But a show she would give no longer. Furiously wiping away her tears, Livvy lay Lunete's body down gently and walked outside. Standing with her arms hanging loosely by her side, Livvy made herself a promise.

No matter what the Gamemakers threw at her, she would fight it. She would fight every last one of them.

A/N

So, after a low kill count I decided to hand you a double death chapter, you're welcome. As sad as this was to write, I have been excited about this chapter for a while, and it was very fun to write. Some mechanics of the arena have been revealed with the green moon -what are your thoughts about this? And what else do the Gamemakers have up their sleeves?

Arena aside, we have lost two of our beloved tributes, both of them falling not to other tributes but to the arena. Zoei is now alone, but has Peach hot on her trail. Will Zoei escape for a third time, and if she does, how will she face the arena as a tribute alone?
Tension grows between Beau and Matt, and a second intimate moment is shared between them. Beau questions what is happening between the two of them, but Matt is unable to provide an answer. What does the future hold between these two, and Matt's future place in the Career pack?
Livvy is grieving over Cameron, as we knew from past chapters. Keeping herself busy, Livvy suddenly realises the change in the arena. Lunete is the one to save Logan, but ends up losing her own life instead. There was some hope as Lunete died knowing that she had perhaps saved someone; perhaps her soul can finally be at peace. But Livvy is now up for a fight, perhaps one she may not be able to win.

Phoenix Cameron, 17, District Five Male. Submitted by TyQuavis.
Placed 22nd. Killed by poisonous plants during the green moon.
Aw bruh, Phoenix was such a cool kid. From the moment I read his form, I loved him. Whilst dramatic backstories are very fun, it is great to have a down to earth kid. His vibes were so chilled out and he was such a breath of fresh air every time I sat down to write him. He added such a fun streak to the story, and I especially adored his quirky friendship with Zoei. The two of them together just worked so well, and I feel so sad knowing that their pairing has now come to an end. Thank you Ty for submitting Phoenix, he was fantastic and I really will miss him and his cute curls so much!

Lunete Vinter, 16, District Ten Female. Submitted by geologyisms.
Placed 21st. Killed by poisonous plants during the green moon.
Oh, Lunete, such a sweet little lamb. A lot of people really loved Lunete, and I can see why. She was so sweet, so fragile and just needed a good hug. Her life became a very sad one after the murder of her sister, and whilst she never learned the truth, perhaps now she can be reunited with Caitlin and no longer feel the fear and sadness that overcame her. In her final moments she found her courage and was able to help Logan, and knowing that she could have contributed to saving a life rather than losing another was a bittersweet ending for her. Thank you geologyisms for submitting Lunete, she was a true sweetie!

The Chart!

Tributes alive: 20

Kill Count
Riddle: I
Peach:I
Ragnar:I
Arena:II

After two deaths, next chapter will be a subplot chapter and we will be checking in on both Risa and Cascade during their time back in the Capitol. I wonder how things are going for them? I am starting to move house next week, but I'm hoping to write the chapter during the week so hopefully I won't miss another week!

Until next time!

Firefly