My eyes open the next morning to the faint sound of sawing. I look around for the source, but don't see anything. Everyone else is still asleep, including Glimmer, our supposed guard. I roll my eyes and sit up, letting out a large yawn as I do. The sawing picks up and my ears register a new sound, a very faint buzzing. Morning is just breaking, but it's overcast, limiting our light a bit.
I look up into the trees with their windows of grey sky and spot Katniss. She's not asleep. She's up and sawing through a branch with a knife I didn't even know she had. Well, that explains one noise. I follow the length of the branch before my jaw falls off. Dangling from the edge of the branch like some hideous ornament is a gargantuan wasps' nest…and it's hanging directly above us. My eyes flip back to Katniss, who's swatting wasps away and almost through the branch. I hear a crack, just like the one before Cato fell, and the branch falls. It's then that my brain starts working again and I scramble to my feet, fortunately remembering to grab my spear.
I'm taking my first stride out of the campground when I hear the nest break open behind me and the tranquil sounds of the morning vanish. Screaming, both male and female, takes their place along with the buzzing of the furious insects, already seeking out their enemies. I hear frantic calls of "To the lake!" and feet pounding behind me. I'm way ahead by then, but apparently not enough. I feel the first sting on my arm and it's then that I know these aren't ordinary wasps. These are tracker jackers. No normal wasp has a sting that burns and aches like this. I feel another one on the back of my neck, but keep running. My vision's getting hazy and I begin to stumble, but I know that if I fall down, I'll never get up again.
The buzzing is getting louder and louder when the lake comes into view. I put on a final burst of speed, desperate to out-distance the wasps to the safety of the water. I drop my spear on the bank and dive in gracelessly. I hear a few splashes behind me, probably my fellow careers, but I don't dare resurface. I hold my breath and squeeze my eyes shut, trying to ignore the searing pain in my arm and neck. My lungs burn, desperate for air, but I hold on. Nobody can survive more than a few tracker jacker stings and I've already got two.
When I feel myself slipping unconscious, I burst out of the water and take and desperate gulp of air. I crawl wearily onto the bank and look around. My vision's shaky, but I can make out Peeta, stumbling out of the water and back into the woods. Where the hell is he going? Cato must be thinking the same thing because he follows him, holding a sword he must've had the quick thinking to save from our campsite.
Then it hits me. They're going back to kill Katniss. Seized with new purpose, I grab my spear and hurry after them. I'm just reaching the trees when I hear two cannon shots. Oh shit. I might've already failed my friend. If Peeta did it, he's done. I don't care what Cato says. If that weasel killed her, his time has come.
I stumble back in the direction we came…at least I think I am. The trees are all shifting around me, mixing together like watercolors with too much water. I blink my eyes and try to refocus. I can't give in to hallucinations. Not yet. In this haze, I spot a corpse on the ground. My breath hitches when I see who it is. Brooke. She doesn't look the same now, covered in swollen, oozing stings and her limbs contorted. My friend is dead. My friend who I didn't even think to warn because I was so busy saving myself. My friend who must've desperately tried to escape on her still injured leg. I suppress my tears and kneel down to close Brooke's eyes. She deserves better than that, but I can't stay. One of my remaining friends needs my help.
I stumble back towards our clearing, using my spear as more of a walking stick than I weapon. Then I see something I'm not sure is a hallucination or not. Katniss is swaying drunkenly, sporting a few stings herself and trying to pry the bow and quiver from what looks like Glimmer's corpse. Suddenly Peeta runs into the scene. Instead of killing her, like I expected, her starts prodding her and ordering her to get away.
What the fuck?
I feel nauseous and more confused than ever. Is Peeta protecting Katniss now? When the hell did that start? Or was that always his plan? Was he just working with us so that he could protect Katniss when the time came? Suddenly what seemed black and white ten minutes ago is a muddled grey area.
I hear an angry sound off to the right. Apparently Peeta does too because he pales and shoves Katniss away. Surging through the brush, sword in hand and more pissed off than ever, is Cato.
"You fucking traitor!" he slurs at Peeta, furious but clearly affected by the stings, "We took you in! We looked after you and this is how you repay us?!"
They circle each other, ready to fight but not moving very gracefully. Katniss has already vanished.
"You were gonna kill her! I did what I had to do!" Peeta defends, holding his knife up as a pitiful defense against Cato's sword.
I shake my head again, trying to reconcile my concepts of Peeta. Apparently there's two Peetas: the spineless, self-serving snake and the devoted protector. But which one is real?
"Well I hope it was worth it! You're gonna die now and nobody, not even your little girlfriend, is going to remember you!" Cato sneers before springing into action. Peeta's reflexes are too slow and even when he's pumped full of tracker jacker venom, Cato's still pretty effective. He gives Peeta a wicked slash across his thigh. He lets out an agonized cry as the blood begins flowing, mixing with the dirt on the ground.
Peeta tries to scamper away, but Cato drives his foot down onto his injured leg. He towers over the boy, sword in hand and grin more evil than ever. He raises the sword and, without thinking, I act. I surge into the clearing and thrust my spear at Cato, which catches his arm. I was aiming for his head, but evidently my aim is off, curtesy of the tracker jackers. He lets out a yell, a mixture of pain and fury, and turns toward me, eyes burning.
"You?!" he sputters.
His foot leaves Peeta's chest, who looks as confused as I am but takes the opportunity to slip away, leaving a trail of blood behind him.
"I thought there was one traitor here! Turns out I'm fucking surrounded by them!" he fumes.
I can't even answer. I don't know what to say. I don't even know why I saved Peeta, but my foggy mind vaguely connects it to Katniss.
Without another word, Cato springs toward me, slashing at me with his bloodstained sword. I jump back, dodging the best I can and realizing the mistake I've made. A spear isn't meant for close-quarters combat…but a sword is. If it wasn't for the tracker jackers, I'd probably be dead by now. He's riddled by multiple stings and slower than he was in training…but still deadly. I block one slash on the shaft of my spear, but he isn't finished. He rakes it back the opposite direction and manages to catch my stomach. I wince and stumble back. It isn't deep, certainly not enough to be lethal, but it stings and I can feel my shirt sticking to the blood.
I see Cato advancing on me, the look in his eyes predatory. I know then I've gotta run. If I stay I'm dead. I swing the hilt of my spear out and get lucky, catching Cato across the face. He staggers back and I take that opportunity to run. I run the best I can but stumble thanks to the stings. I can hear Cato crashing through the forest behind me, giving chase. For the first time, genuine fear seizes me. I know I can't fight Cato but I don't know if I'll be able to escape. The river soon comes into view and I know I've got to cross it, mutts or no mutts. Still clutching my spear, I fling myself into the water and begin swimming. I shut my mouth to avoid swallowing water and try to fend of unconsciousness as I flail through the cool water.
With relief unlike any I've ever felt before, my hands reach the opposite bank and I clamber up. I look back to see Cato swimming after me…but something's following him. I see that familiar lizard mutt swim up and seize Cato's leg in its powerful jaws. He lets out another furious cry and begins hacking away at the creature with his sword.
I don't wait around to see the rest. I disappear into the woods, which are now wilder than ever. The colors keep shifting and I see a flock of bright pink birds run by, trailing each other like train-cars and casting suspicious glances my way. The sky turns into a mirror that shatters, sparkling pieces of glass falling back to earth. I panic and re-cross the river at a shallow point, although it's orange now and full of fish that jump up before sprouting wings and flying away. I don't know where anything is. The woods on this side of the river should be familiar, but they aren't. All I see are shifting tree trunks that suddenly turn to snakes that coil back to strike me. I fall to the ground, twisting, confused and trying to make sense of what I'm seeing. Nothing comes. Dark, black ants crawl all over my body. I scream and try to shake them off but can't. The last thing I see is my spear slithering away from my side before the ants black out my eyes and I slip into unconsciousness.
My dreams are terrible. Or perhaps they're not even dreams. They may just be more hallucinations from the tracker jacker venom. Virtually every bad thing that has ever happened in my life comes to haunt me, from my father losing his hand to the helpless kids I've slaughtered since I got in here. I see Brooke and Glimmer's contorted, sting-ridden bodies staring back at me, telling me I'm not far behind them, that I won't escape justice. It's a miracle I didn't have a heart attack in my sleep.
I groan the moment I wake up. My body is sore everywhere, especially on my stings and my wound. I blink my eyes to clear away the cobwebs. It's daytime now and I can feel the warm sunshine on my face and hands, except the area bound by rope.
Wait, rope?! I sit up and pull my hands into my lap, confirming my worst fears. My hands are tied, along with my feet, effectively immobilizing me. I look to my left and spot my jacket lying on a log, along with my spear. Other than that, I'm alone, lying on the forest floor in the cover of some bright green ferns. So somebody's holding me captive. It's obviously not the careers. They'd kill me on sight after what I pulled. But who else would spare my life if they found me unconscious?
I lift up my shirt and inspect my wound, surprised to find it wrapped in clean white gauze. The sting on my arm is curiously covered by a leaf and I can feel one on the back of my neck. I can't remove the one on my neck at all, but I can use my teeth to get the other one off my arm.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," says a soft voice behind me.
I freeze mid-bite and turn to see Rue standing behind me, watching me like I'm a caged lion.
"They're drawing out the venom from your stings," she says, pointing to my arm.
I can't believe this. I'm being held captive by a twelve-year-old…and twelve-year-old that tended my injuries instead of killing me like pretty much anyone else would've. But why? Why on earth would she protect me while I was vulnerable? I'm a huge threat to her. I'm a Career for fuck's sake.
"H-how long have I been out?" I ask. Probably only a few hours.
"Two days," Rue says.
My eyes widen at that. Two days?! I've been lying here, passed out on the ground and completely vulnerable, for two whole days?! Anyone could've come walking along, finished me off and that would've been it. I'd be dead and there'd be nobody left to help my family. I start taking deeper and deeper breaths in an attempt to calm myself, repeating the mantra in my head that I'm still alive.
"You alright?" Rue asks.
"Yeah…I'm okay," I manage weakly, gasping like a sick man would.
"Here. Drink this," she says, offering me a bottle of water. I should probably decline it, but I'm suddenly aware of how thirsty I am and I no longer care. I seize the bottle like a wild animal and begin gulping it down, stray water running down my filthy shirt and onto the ground. Rue looks like she's about to say something when someone lets out a pained moan somewhere beyond the ferns, grabbing the attention of us both.
I'm confused but Rue seems to understand. "Wait here," she says before disappearing through the brush.
Wait here? Tied up and completely vulnerable? Hell no. Rue may have moved my spear away but she apparently forgot to check my boot, where my fire-starter knife is still wedged. I scrunch myself up like an accordion and pull it free. Once it's out, I make quick work of my bonds and am free at last. Part of me wants to just grab my spear and take off before Thresh or whoever else she's in cahoots with shows up. But…another part of me wants to know what Rue's up to and why she'd bother saving me in the first place. I decide on the latter. Now that I'm free, she's absolutely no threat but I bring my spear anyway. If those mutts taught me anything it's that you never know when you're going to run into trouble.
I can't spot Rue among the undergrowth, even with my height advantage. I'm about to call out to her when another moan points me in the right direction. I follow it and am shocked at the sight. In a slight depression concealed by the ferns sits Rue…changing the leaf-bandages of an unconscious Katniss Everdeen.
Rue must sense my presence because she turns and her eyes widen at the sight of me free. Her gaze flickers back and forth from Katniss to me and I can see the internal war going on: save Katniss or save herself.
"H-how'd you get free?" she asks, inching back and starting to tremble.
"I had a knife on me," I answer vaguely.
Rue swallows and still looks terrified, which ultimately breaks me down.
"Relax. I'm not gonna hurt you," I say, dropping my spear and holding my empty hands up for emphasis, "You did me a big favor and I just want some information."
"Okay…" Rue says, watching me warily.
"What's all this about?" I say, motioning towards Katniss, who's still unconscious but still looks pained.
"She passed out from the tracker jacker venom. I'm just looking after her," Rue answers.
"I take it that's what you did for me as well," I say. Rue nods but it doesn't clarify anything. I get why someone from District Eleven would help Katniss, but why the hell would she help me? A District One Career?
"Why'd you help me out? I never did anything to help you," I say, a little uneasy at the fact that I owe someone else my life.
"I saw what you did for Peeta…how you took on the boy from Two. I also saw what you did for the girl from Eight. It seemed like you weren't a real Career and I…I just didn't want to see them find you," Rue says, obviously a little embarrassed at her actions.
I'm touched and grateful, but I don't really know what to say. After all, me and Rue don't really know each other. "Well…thank you," I say finally.
Katniss lets out another moan and Rue immediately drops to her side, feeling her forehead.
"More venom?" I ask.
Rue shakes her head. "No. She's got a nasty fever," she says.
"How many stings did she have?" I ask.
"Three," Rue answers tersely.
Only one more than I had…yet she's still unconscious.
"Shouldn't she be waking up soon? I had two and I'm up," I say.
"You're a lot bigger," observes Rue, "It takes way more venom to take you down than it does her."
Makes sense. I stand there awkwardly for a while, watching Rue tend to Katniss, ignoring the suspicious glances the District Eleven girl gives me every few minutes. Evidently, she was a lot more relaxed when I was tied up.
"Why are you still here?" Rue asks, finally turning to look at me, her gaze scanning me curiously.
"Uh…," I hesitate, unsure of how to proceed with this. I'm hanging around because I need to talk to Katniss…and because I feel some sort of obligation to help Rue out if I can.
"It's okay if you want to take off. This is the Hunger Games after all," Rue says flatly.
"No…uh, I know, but that's not what I want. I actually need to talk to Katniss," I say.
Rue arches an eyebrow at me. "Aside from the fact that that's probably gonna take a while, why do you need to talk to her?" she asks.
I rub the back of my neck, suddenly nervous in the presence of this kid. "Well…it's because we're allies," I say.
Now Rue looks dumbfounded. "What?" she asks.
I then tell Rue about our plan, me and Katniss'. I tell her about how we planned to find a way to take down the careers from the inside and how that plan got completely fucked when we were separated. I tell her about my pitiful attempts to locate Katniss and the fire that drove us all together.
"We ended up chasing her into that tree and…well I suppose you know what happened from there," I say, grimacing at the unpleasant memories of the tracker jacker attack.
"Dude, that is one crazy story," Rue says with a slight laugh.
"Yeah, I suppose it is," I say, returning the favor, "I guess it wasn't the best idea."
"Actually it isn't so terrible. Knocking the careers down a peg is a good way to even the odds," she says.
I chuckle. "Well, I'm afraid the bottom's fallen out of that plan. Something tells me I'm not welcome around the cornucopia anymore," I say.
"Yeah, your old allies don't seem like the forgiving types," Rue says, "You could still get back at 'em, though."
"I can still take down the other careers?" I snort incredulously. Clove and Lewis aren't dead and if Cato isn't, that's three careers I'd have to fight. Rue's obviously messing with me.
"Well, it depends," she says mildly.
"On what?" I ask.
Her small face breaks into a grin. "On whether or not you're looking for some new allies."
A/N: RIP The Original Career Alliance. Your dialogues were some of my absolute favorites and I'm sorry it had to end. Meanwhile, Marvel's passed the point of no return. He's betrayed the Careers, but has already found a new ally. As always, all reviews, follows and favorites are greatly appreciated.