3: Intruders

Katniss' Pov

We arrive at the camp. Rue asleep on my back. Peeta tired and neglecting rest until the fight of getting to camp is over. He falls down on the cool moist surface of the earth. I take Rue carefully off my back and place her on the now laid out sleeping bag to continue her quiet slumber. I need sleep. I have been nonstop without sleep for about two days in counting. I help Peeta up and some-what drag him to the sleeping bag and put him next to Rue. Then I start a fire and sit with my bow and arrow by my side. I am waiting for someone to awake to ask them if they would stay up so I can get some sleep.

I will not ask Peeta. That would be mean. He is already dosing off and I don't want to wake him and make him stay up after he is so close to sleep. I stay up watching the flames. Grow, shrink, and then grow again.

"Hey" Peeta says making me jump. I look over my shoulder to see that he is awake and waiting for a response. "Hey. Did I wake you?" I ask him. "Not at all…. Did you get any sleep at all?" he asks. "No I wasn't going to fall asleep while you too were because someone could hurt us or take our tools. So I waited till one of you woke up that way I could get some sleep while the other person can watch over camp." I say causally. "Alright…why don't you get some sleep…you look tired and ill stay up and watch camp." He says while moving toward me so we could switch places. I move around him to get to the sleeping bag. Beside Rue. I lay. She looks just like Prim when she sleeps. "Thanks" I say to Peeta as he sits by the fire putting sticks in to keep it going. "No problem now go to sleep Katniss I have everything under control here"

"Ok well if you're really sure that that's ok well then…" I yawn as I say this and then I also fall soundlessly asleep. Without finishing my sentence

"KATNISS!!!" Rue screams I awake and I have to blink twice just to see what was going on. I see Rue in a headlock Peeta tied to a tree and me surrounded by two other tributes pointing weapons around me. I know I can not win this fight. However, I have to try, just try Katniss try do not go down with out a fight. I think to myself. I grab my bow and arrow knowing for a fact that there already set.

I shoot both people surrounding me, quickly retrieve all my arrows, and start to reset when a boy who I think is from district 3 says, "you shoot one more person and the little girl gets it! Or would you rather have your friend Peeta get it? Your choice." I slowly move back from my sixth arrow that I meant to retrieve but I have the five of them. This is good. I can kill both of them. The boy from district 3 and a red headed girl I call Fox face. I look at Rue and see the fear and pain in her eyes. She looks up and then down and I nod understanding what that means. She wants me to kill the intruders, but she also means that if I do not kill the people in time, she will sacrifice herself for Peeta and I.

I can not let that happen. Even if it's ok with Rue, I can not let her die. She has been a best friend of mine since basically the beginning of the games. And I have already saved her life once more and I am not afraid to do it again.

I slowly reach for my bow and arrow. I know its already loaded. I suddenly remember that my dad taught me when I was little how to put two arrows in the bow and only being able to shoot one at a time. I do the trick and take both of them out. There cannons fire right after another. They are dead. The intruding is over.

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Rue's POV

BANG!!! BANG!!! BANG!!! I am startled awake from the sounds. Crap, I feel asleep! Poor Katniss. I immediately feel guilty for falling asleep. But then I realize that something is just not right. I look to my left and there I see them. Four dark figures surround Peeta, Katniss and I. take in a giant breath to scream but as soon as I do one intruder realize the same thing and puts the knife to my throat and then saying in the deepest voice I have probably ever heard "you scream you die. You understand?" I nod and then he looks over to another figure and nods.

I finally am able to see Peeta near a fire. He looks into my eyes and I see fear in his cold hard eyes. They tie him up to the tree nearest the fire. I do not say anything but at least they have some heart by putting him by the warmth. I do not say anything because im afraid if I open my mouth then they might move him to a different tree with no warmth at all.

"Get up" the boy I think named Benny says. I look over to him and point to myself he nods. I stand. He pulls me over to him and then says "you think you and your friends are tough correct?" I say nothing afraid of the price I might have to pay for my answer. "ANSWER ME!!" he says loudly while shaking me back and forth like a rag doll. I start to get a headache. "fine don't answer me ill just get an answer out of your friend there." he points his now opened knife to Katniss he nods to his friend or group member whatever they call there selves and the person moves over to Katniss and I see the dark figure open a knife and start to put it to Katniss' neck.

"KATNISS!!!" I scream and then I am immediately put in a headlock by Benny. "Shut up you or ill silence you forever. You hear me?" I nod and I see that Katniss is awake and looking at all of what is going on. She reaches for her bow and arrow -already set- and then Benny threatens her with my life and Peeta's. I know what I must do I must sacrifice myself for Katniss and Peeta to live and finish the games. I have went through this game for a long time now and I have put up a great fight so if I die tonight then I will die in honor. So I look at Katniss, she looks back at me, and then I move my eyes up and down. Meaning if she kills them or someone else she can let me die and I will not be mad at her. And her and Peeta can go and win the games for me. She nods in understanding, but I know that it will kill her to loose me. Just the same, if I loose Katniss then I will be a mess throughout the rest of the games or my life.

Then suddenly I see Katniss reach for her bow and then before I know it everybody except Peeta and Katniss drops dead around me. I scream but it is lost with in the sound of the four cannons going off. I run to Katniss, scared to death by all the dead people around us. I run into her arms crying uncontrollably. "Its ok Rue, everything's going to be ok. Sshhhh its ok im here Rue im here everything's ok." Katniss says while rubbing my back trying to sooth me. She reminds me of my mom. Which makes me suddenly miss home a lot more then I already have.

I keep crying trying to let it all out before something else happens. With Katniss still soothing me like my mother I eventually calm down and yet again fall soundlessly asleep.

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Thanks for reading. Please review this chapter to let me know how you like it and how I can improve this story for the next chapter. If you would also like. Give me suggestions on what you would like to see happen later in the story. Thanks again and please don't forget to review.