12.
12 faces in the sky. More than I thought there'd be, but I can't decide if that's a good thing or a bad thing. I don't want to look but I find it near impossible to look away. First there's the monster from 2 that Boyd killed. But in her photo she looks like a completely normal girl, and I wonder if maybe she was as much. The games make people crazy, they say. This means that both tributes from 1 survived. Then there are both tributes from 3, Viper and Data. Data was a younger girl while Viper's stylist had his hair dyed purple for his chariot ride. He was a short fuse, anyways, so this just made things worse.
"He was always insulting and criticizing the Capitol. It's no surprise he's gone early." Boyd says knowingly. He sits next to me, hands folded, looking up at the sky with careful eyes. I shiver at the thought that the Capitol would have killed him purposely to silence him forever. Because I believe it. Because I know Boyd is probably right.
I look on. The next tribute we see is the boy from 6, then both from 7. Then Royce and Crewe's faces stare down at me and my head feels heavy on my shoulders. They were supposed to be my allies. They were friends, for a day. I know it's silly and pointless to make friends during the games, but-
"I saw Lukas from Four kill her." Boyd says quietly of Crewe. I swallow and nod and don't ask why. Because in training Lukas had always been smashing dummies with a mace.
I look up quickly to catch the 4 final tributes: the girl from 10, both from 11 and the tough looking girl from 12. The Capitol Seal takes their place and Claudius Templesmith's booming voice echoes through the arena. "Rest up, tributes! You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow. Good night, sleep tight!"
All is quiet again, save for a harmony of chirping crickets. Boyd and I sit in a small dug out burrow on the side of a hill or dune of some sort. All we've seen so far is rather hilly land covered in tall, whispy strands of grass. A cool, salty breeze passes across my lips as I slowly turn to face Boyd.
"So who's left?" I say quietly, my voice oddly calm. Boyd leans back a little, eyes still staring up at the stars. "The Alpha tributes. They're a big group this year, pretty diverse too. The girl from One with the dumb name is a good archer. She's good looking which will gurantee her some sponsors too. The boy from Two favors the knife. The two from Four-I don't know if the boy is much as a threat of the girl. He's dumb, but strong. She's smart and stealthy. Then they've got Ore from Twelve, the boxer. He's sort of the fan favorite. Then the girl from Six, and I don't really know why they have her."
"Okay-" I feel strange interrupting him, because this is more than he's ever spoken since 'rescuing me'. "That leaves the boy from 1, who isn't in the big group, us, both from 8 . . ."
"And the boy from 10." Boyd finishes. "Prime from 1 was allied with the girl from 8. He ditched the Careers, and if I had to guess would probably be their prime target."
"Is that all, professor?" I smile a little, finding it funny how much he knows. His eyebrows arch together, his lips a thin line. "What do you mean?"
"I mean you sure know a lot about the other tributes," His stern expression is a little intimidating but I find the courage to go on, "You watched them all really well, I guess."
Boyd shrugs. "It's smart to get to know your competition." Is all he says.
I stare into his dull gray eyes as the wind tickles my nose: "So what's there to know about me?"
He blinks, raising an eyebrow and I realize I've finally surprised him. "You're quick. Good at climbing. But careless. You don't pay enough attention to what's happening in the moment until it's too late."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I snap, more fiercly than I expected as my right hand balls up in a fist. I discover within the moment that my face is hot and probably bright red, and embarrassed I quickly turn my head away. "Don't answer that" I state swiftly, curling up in the grass and shutting my eyes. I hear Boyd shift in his place and all he says is, "ok", but I think I catch a bit of humor in his tone.
Ugh. I don't even know why I've stuck around. I'll admit it; it's mostly because I'd rather be with Boyd than be by myself. But we'll see how long that's going to last. He'll probably stick with me until we're down to the finale ones and then I'll just be easy prey for him to pick off with his spear.
My thoughts make me curious and I clear my throat. "Boyd." It's the first time I've actually spoken his name and it feels less alien and strange than I thought it would.
"Mhm?"
"Did you kill anyone else at the bloodbath?"
No answer. Second time I've surprised him. Two in one day is pretty impressive.
"I killed Royce." He answers quietly, and I'm grateful I can't see his face.
This chapter is called Morning, even though it's night :P Mourning/morning, you understand, hopefully.
Next time we'll be introduced to another character, we'll find out more about Boyd's strategy and about what happened to Keavy's originally planned allies, Crewe and Royce from District 9.
Please review, thank you very much for reading!