From the Perspective of Iggy Griffiths
Finnick begins, "Well, did you see the girl who was… who was already dead? Well, she was the tribute from my home. Her name is Terra Combe and we used to be fishing buddies. She wasn't the best fighter so Rupalia, Valencia, and Phox killed her. Rupalia Rowtien is from District Two. She is, sorry was, sixteen. She has a little sister who's named Omeena Rowtien who is ten. Valencia was the girl with the bow and arrow. We were friends when I was an ally with the Careers. Valencia and me would joke around with Terra. Valencia was from One. Phox was from Two with Rupalia. I don't really know much about who he was. He was more the kind of guy who would take his emotions out by killing people. We were premature allies because of our Career Districts. " He nods tightly. This is a lot to take in so I sit silently for a while. Finnick's mouth is a tight line.
I stare at the world. I still can't believe I can see. The arena is beautiful. It's deadly, but beautiful. The fake sun is setting and the lake glistens like glass. The giant basket, or Cornucopia as Finnick says, shines gold against the orange sunset. It looks a bit like how a tiger looks, not like I have ever seen a tiger, but I think it would look like the sunset. Finnick is wading through on the shore of the lake. I recline on a rock and close my eyes. Finnick's feet barely make a sound moving through the water and the air is warm. I drift off to sleep.
"Hey Ig, Iggy wake up, man" Finnick is nudging me awake. I rub my eyes and sit up. The sky is dark and the stars are out. The stars are not in the right formation I notice, probably because the Gamemakers couldn't replicate them. Finnick hands me a piece of fish. I stare at him. Is he crazy? He didn't cook this! "Don't worry. It's cooked, I'm not crazy." He reminds of Angel right then. I bite into it and I can't help but suck in a breath. It is hot and burns my tongue, but it tastes so good. It tastes really good compared to the trash I usually eat with Max and the Flock. I shove the piece of food into my mouth and close my eyes because of the heat. Finnick laughs at my expression. His laugh is melodious and brings a smile to my face. I begin to laugh and our voices mingle together. After all of the terror and sadness, laughing is a relief.
"Wait" Finnick says randomly. His eyes are wide and his face is full of fear. I gulp down my laughter and tense up. His bright eyes lock on me, and his hand moves to his trident. I glance around trying to see what he saw. I can't see anything so I listen. The arena sounds normal, but I keep listening. There! A branch breaks and I turn. What the…? I hear hissing and a snake tail being dragged across the ground. The tail sounds huge, too big to be a snake. I shudder in thought of what the animal might look like. I imagine it something like a freak I saw at the School.
"Mutts. We have to move." Finnick says, his voice barely a whisper. He crouches and disappears into the forest. I follow him in between the foliage. Finnick moves like a cat and I know that if I was still blind, I wouldn't be able to follow him. CRASH! One of the animals bursts though the trees. I scream. Finnick screams too. He pulls on my arm and begins to run. His arms pump by his sides and I dart after him. We run and run and run. I begin to feel my breath shorten. A low branch hits Finnick in the head and he stumbles. I run into him and we collapse over each other. I can only hear our breathing, heavy and ragged. We freeze in the dark and listen to the sounds of the beasts.
"What were those?" I gasp out. My face is hot and I feel sweaty even though a wind chills my bones.
Finnick's face is white against the dark of the night. "Those are called mutts." He doesn't say any more.
He probably thinks I already know what a "mutt" is, but I don't, aside from the dog. I begin to voice my questions, "What's a mutt? Like the dog? We have a mutt. My family, I mean. I don't think that's-" He cuts me off by shoving his hand over my mouth. A twig snaps near us and Finnick bolts up. He takes off again and I follow behind him. I can hear them chasing after us, hissing.
"Mutts are muttations. The Gamemakers probably made these to herd the tributes together." Finnick shouts to me. I nod curtly and think, the Gamemakers made these. The Gamemakers are like White Coats, only it's okay for them to hurt kids. Society is fine with it.
Finnick halts at the end of the woods. The peninsula is surrounded by black water and it looks ominous. The Cornucopia stands on the neck of land. The world looks more dangerous now than it did earlier. I can hear the mutts hissing as they close in on their prey. Finnick and I are their prey. "We go on three." Finnick orders, "one…" I tense "two…" I can hear them crashing through the undergrowth, my blood runs cold. "THREE!" Finnick barks. I leap forward, distancing myself from the beasts. Finnick is climbing the Cornucopia. He can't climb with a trident in his hands and he drops it. He scrambles up the ridges with ease. I snap open my wings and surge forward. I swoop over the ground and snatch his trident off of the grass. I fly to Finnick and hand him his trident. He gives me a look of thankfulness. In a second his expression changes to shock. I feel pain all over and I get pulled to the ground.