Know Your Enemy - Chapter 12


Although the cave was undoubtedly a perfect hideout for the two of them, this was not the case for the heavy carcass they carried. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get what remained of the deer's body to fit through its narrow mouth. They had attempted carrying it, pushing it, forcing it, sliding it and rolling it, all without success. Nothing seemed to work. It really didn't help that the late-afternoon sun was swelteringly hot. They were both flushed and sweating heavily by the time they decided to give up.

"This isn't going to fit." Cato huffed, clearly frustrated as he kicked the deer in the side with the toe of his boot. Fresh blood bubbled up from the open wound that tore through the flesh there and splattered out over the soft brown leather. "What do we do now?"

"I know it isn't." Peeta rolled his eyes at the other boy because yes, they had established that hours ago. As for what to do with the deer, he didn't know. It wasn't like they could just ditch the thing outside of the cave – no, a huge dead animal conveniently just abandoned outside in the open would be far too much of a giveaway to any other tributes passing by. They couldn't afford to be obvious anymore.

It seemed Cato had come to the same conclusion, angrily lashing out at the deer again. He kicked it repeatedly, cursing under his breath. This time, the sound of its ribs cracking and breaking under the force of the attack could be heard. Peeta cringed. "Ease up, would you?" he asked the other boy sharply. "It's already dead, there's no need to mutilate it further."

"Oh, is it bothering you? Sorry." Running a hand through his sweaty hair, he took a step back from the animal and studied it pensively. "Alright, I have an idea. How about you go ahead and set up our stuff while I stay out here and cut off the rest of the meat we can use? We can store that in the cave, and then you can help me move whatever's left of it away from here."

"Okay." Surprised at this easy solution, Peeta nodded. "Yeah, that sounds good to me."

Practically beaming with childish pride that his suggestion had been helpful, Cato pulled out his knife and crouched down low over the deer. Even though he had other things to do, Peeta lingered outside for a minute, watching as the boy's expression slowly sunk into one of deep concentration as he worked. His eyebrows knitted together across his forehead, nose creasing slightly in between them and the tip of his pink tongue peeked out from between his lips.

Blinking rapidly, he hurriedly tore his gaze away before the other boy could look up at catch him staring. Reaching down to pick up their backpack and his sword, he had to struggle with himself not to glance back as he ducked into the cave.


The cave was cool and shady, conveniently sheltered from the scorching heat outside. Peeta sighed in relief, quickly shaking the sticky material of his t-shirt away from the damp skin on his torso. The cold air around him felt so nice against his chest that he was half tempted to strip his shirt off entirely. He didn't though, conscious of the fact that about half of Panem was probably watching him right now. That, and the fact he didn't want Cato to walk in on him half-naked, which could be potentially awkward.

Unpacking their supplies only took a few minutes. He rolled the sleeping bag out against the floor of the cave, unraveling it so that it was more like a rug pushed up against one of the cave's stone walls than anything else. Slinging his jacket down on top of it, he sat down on the uneven floor and arranged the swords and the knives in a neat row, angled carefully so that they all pointed away from him.

It was weird to think that to some people, weapons looked scary and dangerous. Hell, a few weeks ago he had been one of them. Now he only saw the sharp sliver blades as comforting, knowing that they were one of the few things that could protect him here. They were just as likely to save his life as they were to take it. He couldn't help but feel grateful for that.

"Hey, Peeta, are you done in there?" The other boy interrupted his thoughts loudly, his bright blond head suddenly peeking around the entrance to the cave. It seemed to take a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dark of the cave and settle on Peeta, but when they did his small smile doubled in size. "I've just finished with the deer," he announced proudly. "I could kind of use your help shifting it, though. Have you got a minute?"

"That was quick? But sure, of course I'll help. I just finished up anyway." He hastily pushed himself back upright, frowning at the way the dirt and gravel cling to his sweat-slicked palms. Rubbing them clean on his trouser leg, he made his way back outside.

Cato was hunched over the deer. It was barely recognizable anymore, hollowed out entirely by countless strokes of the boy's knife. Beside him lay several thick red pieces of meat, still dripping in parts with fresh blood. Not exactly a pleasant sight, so instead Peeta stared at the ivory planes boy's back, studying the way his muscles rippled as he moved intently.

It wasn't until his gaze had climbed halfway up his spine, counting out each of the vertebra that protruded out of the dip between his sharp shoulder blades, that what he was looking at actually registered with him. The other boy had taken his shirt off.

The next thing that registered was the fact that Cato had been speaking that whole time, apparently oblivious to Peeta's distraction. Even though he struggled desperately to make himself focus, he only caught the last few words. "…that you could get the legs, right?"

"Wait, what?" He blurted out stupidly. "Cato, why are you topless?"

"I was kind of hot," he replied simply, waving a dismissive hand over his shoulder like it was nothing. It wasn't until after a few seconds of silence from Peeta's end that he even realised that something was amiss, and he glanced back at his friend curiously. The half-smile he wore instantly died on his lips as he took in the other boy's startled expression. Then he froze in place, a deep red blush blossoming across his cheeks.

"Oh God, I'm sorry." He flailed around somewhat frantically in an attempt to simultaneously cover himself up and duck his body out of Peeta's sight. "I didn't realise that this would… I didn't think this would bother you, I'm sorry. I'll just, uh. Let me find my shirt and I'll put it back on. Oh god. I'm so, so sorry."

"No!" The other boy replied, maybe a little too enthusiastically. He cleared his throat. "I mean, uh. No. You don't have to do that, it's fine. Really, it's fine. I don't mind you being like that or anything. I was just surprised, that's all."

Cato paused, bright blue eyes blown wide with shock, cheeks still flushed. Cocking his head to one side, he stared at Peeta anxiously. "Oh right, okay then." He sounded unconvinced, voice smaller than usual and far less certain. "Are you sure you don't mind? I'll put my shirt back on if you think it's weird. I don't want to make you uncomfortable or anything."

"Calm down, Cato. I already told you I don't mind." Rolling his eyes, Peeta reached out and flicked the boy in the forehead, breaking the awkward tension before it had a chance to really settle in between them. The other boy jerked back, the familiar scowl returning to his face.

"Did you just flick me?" he asked, incredulous.

"Nope, I don't think so." He shook his head adamantly before wavering slightly, pretending to puzzle over it. "At least, not that I can recall." Cato growled beside him, a sure sign that he was getting irritated. "Hey, enough of that." Peeta scolded lightly, laughing as he reached down and ruffled the boy's hair playfully. "We have work to do, remember? Now what was that about me and the legs?"

Still pouting slightly, the boy quickly repeated his former instructions. Peeta forced himself to actually listen this time, nodding in all the right places and pointedly not allowing his eyes wander anywhere lower than Cato's neck. That being said, it was a very nice neck.

As they lifted up the deer's body for the last time, carrying it off into the trees, he took a moment to appreciate the fact that he was managing the hind legs while the other steered the way up front. From here, Peeta had a perfect view of the way Cato's muscles shifted under his skin as he walked, the deeply carved dips and paths across his back flattening out into smooth planes as they contracted and then relaxed.

Last time he'd seen the boy's skin exposed like this, it had been blistered and swollen by the tracker jacker stings. Looking at him now, taking in his flawless cream complexion, he almost wouldn't have believed that the skin there had ever been marked and damaged at all.

Not that he was staring, or anything.


It was touching on nightfall when they arrived back at the cave, dusk settling thickly into the air around them. They had buried the deer in a thicket of branches and brambles about half an hour's walk from their new camp, tucked away and obscured by the forest. As time wore on, the searing heat had relented and cooled a little.

Peeta was almost disappointed when, as soon as they returned, the other boy began to shrug himself back into his t-shirt. Thinking fast, he placed a hand on the small of Cato's back, effectively stopping him in his tracks.

"I don't think you should do that," he muttered lowly, so quiet he was sure that the cameras wouldn't be able to pick up the sound. "Keep it off, the sponsors will love it."

"What?" Cato whispered back, shirt still tangled around his neck. "What do you mean?"

"Well, do you remember that really good looking guy a few years ago who got like a million parachutes a day or something because everyone loved him so much?" Peeta asked, thinking fast. The other boy nodded back, still looking confused. "Well, maybe they'll appreciate something nice to look at. There are only a few of us left, and Foxface and Thresh aren't exactly a sight for sore eyes."

"Oh." There was a slight pause before he continued. Peeta felt inexplicably nervous. "Does this mean you think I'm good looking?" Cato murmured, looking genuinely curious.

He had half expected the boy to deny it, but he didn't. "That isn't the point," Peeta replied instead, fighting off his blush. "C'mon, get that thing back off."

"Someone's a little overeager," Cato smirked, tugging the material back over his head then tossing it aside carelessly. It landed in the dirt several paces away. "I'm not the only one with a top that can come off, though." Reaching out, his fingers caught the hem of the other boy's shirt. "They'll love it even more if it's both of us, right?"

"What? No!" Peeta's eyes widened as he frantically tried to beat the boy's hands away. That wasn't part of his plan at all. "Hey, don't do that," he practically squeaked when Cato began to lift his shirt, revealing the flat stomach underneath. "They won't want to look at me!"

"Oh, I beg to differ." The other grinned back at him, yanking the material higher. "Arms up, Mellark," he instructed as the tips of his fingers skimmed across bare flesh, tracing a burning hot path into Peeta's skin. Ignoring him, the boy just shook his head rapidly, still spluttering protests. Cato rolled his eyes. "Shut up. You're not getting out of this. Now, we can either do this the easy way or the hard way."

"What's the hard way?" Peeta shot back, challenging.

Cato smiled back sweetly. "I'll rip your shirt right off you." At this, he gave the material an experimental tug, assessing how strong it was. Not very, he quickly concluded. "I'll tear it to pieces and then you'll have to wander around shirtless for the rest of this damn competition."

"Make me walk around topless until I die?" Peeta pretended to be scandalized, not noticing the way the other boy flinched at these words. "No way, you wouldn't do that to me."

"Oh yeah?" Cato quirked an eyebrow up at him. "Watch me." This time he pulled at the material in earnest, not stopping until he heard a satisfying rip that left a large tear running across Peeta's chest. The other boy sighed, irritated.

"Alright, alright. You win." He huffed, then lifted his arms just enough that Cato could remove his shirt entirely. "You weren't meant to actually rip it though, you idiot."

"Sorry, I get a bit carried away sometimes, I guess." The boy smiled sheepishly, and Peeta watched as he let the t-shirt drop to the ground at their feet. Only then did he realise just how close to two of them were standing, chests bare, the toes of their boots practically touching.

Wondering if he should take a step back before it got too awkward, he glanced up at Cato, trying to figure out what he was thinking. Of course, he was pretty surprised to find that the boy's piercing blue gaze was wandering intently across his chest and stomach. First his eyes traced the ridges of Peeta's shallow abs, and then his hands did.

He jerked back, trying to get away from the touch because it felt too soft, too comforting and way too intimate. He hadn't been expecting it. Just seconds later, the other's hands came to rest on the sharp dips of his hips, holding him firmly in place. "Don't." Cato said quietly, shaking his head. "Don't do that."

"Cato," he breathed. It sounded like a warning. "Cato, stop."

The boy blinked, his steady stare slowly travelling up to meet the other. His face was closer than before, eyes more intense and glowing a million different shades of clear crystal blue. They flickered down, traced the gentle curve of Peeta's soft pink lips, then up again. Every move he made was so measured and deliberate.

"What are you do–" he tried to ask, but Cato shushed him. The pair were even closer now, so close that their noses bumped gently together. Then one of them (and neither would admit to making the first move if you asked them) tilted their head just slightly and closed the small distance between them. Lips met, warm and willing.

Slowly, tentatively they moved against each other. It wasn't like before, all those days ago when they had kissed for the first time. Now it was careful. Intentional. The soft pressure of their kiss made it harder for Peeta to think, and his arms curled their way around Cato's neck without his permission – he'd meant to push the other boy away, but only ended up pulling him in closer.

Humming his approval, Cato's tight grip on the boy's hips loosened so that his hands could wander lightly across soft skin and sharp bones, making him squirm. Peeta grew increasingly clumsy and nervous as their kiss deepened, tense and rigid until the other boy whispered to him that he should relax, that it was okay. It was okay.

Then came the soft beeping sound from above, a familiar sound that would have been greeted with relief and elation at any other point in this arena. Not now, though. Right now it was just ruining the moment.

Cato pulled away a little to glance up at it and Peeta, who had been so determined to end their kiss before, mewled pathetically at the loss of contact before he could stop himself. The other boy grinned at him, then at the parachute that dangled precariously from a tree branch a couple of metres away from where the pair stood. It was a gift from their sponsors.

Frowning at this (and partially at the fact that Cato had just darted away from him to collect their latest donation), Peeta puzzled over why anyone in the Capitol would choose to send them help at this particular moment. They didn't need help. They already had warm shelter, water close at hand and about half a deer's worth of meat left to combat their hunger. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing else they needed.

Returning to his side, Cato cracked open the small silver box he held between his palms to reveal some sort of cake… thing. It was iced pink and molded into the shape of a heart. Peeta blinked at it, then blushed. Beside him, the other boy laughed.

"I think they like it when we kiss," he informed his friend before smacking a wet kiss to the boy's cheek. "Maybe we should make a habit of it." He cocked his head to the side, shooting a playful wink over Peeta's shoulder towards the camera that was, no doubt, focused on them.

"Maybe we shouldn't." Hurt, Peeta shoved the other away with a fierce glare. This wasn't just some thing they were putting on for the cameras. At least, it wasn't to him, and if that's all it was to Cato then he should've at least had the decency to explain that before he went ahead and kissed him. Before things got so complicated and confusing.

"What?" Cato looked suitably surprised at this. "Hey, no. Don't get mad at me, I didn't mean it like that. Can you at least try to stop taking things the wrong way?" His arm came back up to clutch at Peeta's waist again, holding him close like he was afraid that he would lose him.

Mainly because he was still somewhat in shock and more than a little confused, Peeta snarled back at him that really, there was no other way he could've taken it. The comment hadn't exactly been cryptic. Shaking himself free of Cato's grasp, he stomped off into the cave and hoped that the other had enough sense not to follow him.

Bemused, Cato shook his head and tried to figure out exactly what had just happened. Peeta, he decided after a few moments of deliberation, was either really fucking weird or bipolar. He stuck around when Cato insulted and belittled him, came back no matter how far he tried to throw him, flat-out refused to be shaken off but the one time Cato tries to be nice to him, to show him that he actually cares about him, he gets annoyed and storms off.

Really fucking weird.


He'd had about an hour to cool off before Cato came crawling through the mouth of the cave, eyes gentle and hair messy. "Hey," he called out to Peeta, who sat upright against one of the jagged walls, not even looking around to acknowledge him. "Oh, so you still aren't done acting like a dick yet? That's just great."

Peeta just frowned deeply (and probably far too intently) at an innocent rock hanging down from the cave's ceiling, resolutely ignoring the other boy. Cato huffed. He wasn't really in the mood for this. Figuring out the best approach was the straightforward one, without his bullshit or bravado, he sat down close beside Peeta. He was just a little too close on purpose, just to see whether the boy would flinch away when their bare arms brushed against each other. For some irrational reason or other, he was still surprised and slightly disappointed when exactly happened. It was like being back to square one.

They were quiet at first, sitting side-by-side without exchanging a single word. Peeta was debating whether or not it would be too childish to shuffle away further, put more distance between them, when suddenly a warm hand came up and cupped itself around his jaw and turned his head, forcing him to meet Cato's eyes.

The older boy was wearing that sincere look of his again, the one that he didn't show for the cameras or the sponsors or the people watching in the Capitol. No, not for them. That look was just for Peeta, and it made him feel uncomfortably warm inside, nervous, like someone had poured searing hot water on his stomach and he was just waiting for the pain to kick in.

"I don't understand you." Cato told him simply. "I don't want to argue, Peeta, not now. I'm sick of that. Just… just tell me what you need me to say to make this better again and I'll say it. Tell me what you want from me so I can fix this."

"Why did you kiss me?" he blurted out, and that wasn't what he meant to say at all. He wished that he could snatch the words back as soon as they left his mouth, retract them from the air around him and choke them down again. Blushing, he tried to look away but Cato's steady hand and close proximity wouldn't let him.

"That's a really stupid question," the other boy replied shortly. He sounded exasperated, annoyed and maybe just the tiniest bit affectionate. "I kissed you because I wanted to."

"Oh," Peeta started. "I thought—"

"I know what you thought." Cato interrupted. "I just don't know why you thought it." Then he leaned in again and pressed a chaste kiss to the corner of Peeta's mouth. The small frown on the boy's lips instantly faded nothing. "Let's get some sleep, yeah?"

"Yeah." That idea sounded appealing enough to Peeta, so he nodded his agreement. Then he remembered with a jolt that they were fighting to the death in this arena, not a pair of boy scouts on camping trip. It wouldn't be safe for them to just sleep here. "Should I stay up and take watch, or…?"

"No, I think we're okay. If anyone else knew where the cave was, I'm pretty sure they'd be sleeping in it. We're safe here." Wrapping a warm hand around Peeta's wrist, Cato pulled the boy over to where their one singular sleeping bag was spread out. He wriggled his way under the thick material, hissing as a particularly sharp rock jabbed him in the back. Then he turned to look back at the other expectantly. "C'mon, let's get some sleep."

Chewing his lip indecisively, Peeta only hesitated for a few seconds before deciding that there was really no use in pretending lthat he didn't want to share the sleeping bag and joining Cato. The other boy's arm was back around his waist in an instant, like it belonged there, the other arm reaching up to act as a pillow beneath his head. There were a few quiet moments, both waiting with bated breath for the other to snap back to reality, to realise just what they were doing and push them away. It never happened.

Instead, Cato inched that little bit closer, his hand settling comfortably across the small curve of Peeta's lower abdomen. He shuffled slightly, enough so that his heartbeat, solid and steady, now thumped gently against the smooth skin of the other boy's back. Another subtle shift and his chin hooked had its way over a shoulder blade, each soft exhale as he breathed spilling out across Peeta's cheek.

Grateful that he had his back turned to the other boy, Peeta couldn't help but smile at the way Cato handled him so carefully, like he was as fragile as glass. Like he would shatter and fall apart any second.

It could have been a minute until he fell asleep. It could have been an hour. He wasn't sure. All he was aware of was the warmth, the comfort that came with lying in someone else's arms. For the first time since they'd entered the arena, Peeta felt safe.


A/N: Hello everyone and, as ever, thank you all for reading! Sorry it's been so long since we updated, we're (still) super busy with exams and we (somewhat moronically) decided to start writing another story, too. We're aiming to update both of them once a week, which is about as often as we can manage right now. If you can find the time, please leave us reviews to let us know what you think. We love hearing from you, and feedback makes writing this so much more fun! Have a nice week, and hopefully we'll see you again soon.