A/N: God I love the Hunger Games. It's almost an illness.

The Trial Games.

It's Cisqua. The bossy, self-pronounced student president. I can hardly recognise her with all the dirt over her usually flawless face, and her auburn hair now strangely wiry. The only thing that hasn't changed is her hazel eyes- and even they're wide in fear.

It only takes a moment for me to realise that she's not going to stab a hidden knife in my guts, and soon her rigid body relaxes as she realises I'm not either. Instead, the two of us lay in silence as the voices around us become clearer.

"-she's not up here," a boy's voice hisses. "All the doors are locked too, and I'm pretty sure she doesn't have the keys."

"Valera does." Another boy pipes up. "That's why that other block's all closed up!"

"Shut up Lock," comes a deeper voice. "Don't go making unnecessary noise."

There's silence, but more footsteps as the group of three boys continue to inspect the block. A long time passes without anyone saying anything, until-

"-you reckon she ran out the other side?"

"Sin or Recklo would have caught her." The gruff voice answers. "-besides, in the off chance she got away, odds are Crux would finish her off."

My body goes stiff upon hearing his name again. Everyone seemed aware of Crux's change for the worse- like it was common knowledge. I still couldn't really believe it. Nor did I want to.

"-hey Battler-" there's a flump, and I assume Lock's chosen to sit down. "Why's it that Crux didn't want to team up with us?"

"-how would I know?" the other boy mumbles. "Just be glad he didn't fire that crossbow on our asses, he's got damn scary aim..."

"I think he's going after someone in particular." The deep voiced boy says suddenly. "He was sort of following that Maya girl when the alarm went off."

Cisqua's eyes snap towards me, and I clench mine tightly shut. So it hadn't been a coincidence that Crux had come into the same block as me. It explained why he had called out 'little girl' without even seeing me, but it didn't frighten me any less.

"-I wonder if he killed her or not?" Lock sounds bored. "I wish we'd camped out in a classroom- I don't even know who else died yet."

"-what does it matter?" Battler snapped. "We're alive, and we've got Sin and we have the weapons- so anyone can bloody die however they bloody well like-"

"Calm down," The deeper voiced one sounds further away. "We better get back; they'll wonder why we're taking so long."

The troop of footsteps disappear gradually through the block's entrance, but not before Lock whines loudly;

"Wish we got the food though- I'm starving-"

Cisqua and I don't say anything. When the three boys finally vanish, Cisqua and I sit up- staring blankly at one another with nothing to say.
I wonder if I look half as exhausted as she does. I have been falling down and lying in the dirt quite a bit since yesterday- so I guess I should.

Then, without warning, Cisqua slaps me across the face and I fall backwards in shock, my cheek stinging. I grab my little tin lunch box to swing up at her, ready for an assault- when I notice as she's begun to weep silently. I stop myself and watch as she cries with those hazel eyes open and scared, tears pouring down her face.

"-Maya," Her hands clench the dirt beneath her. "You sc-scared me so much... b-but I-I'm s-so sorry... I-I left her to die- Sp-Sparkle she... she..."

She continues to sit upright and cry quietly. My cheek still smarts from her random strike, but I don't feel angry in the slightest. Instead, I fight my own tears and wrap my arms around the girl I had never once considered a friend until now.

"It's okay, I saw-" I whisper as Cisqua chokes. "He..." I clench my eyes tightly shut to stem the tears, and distract myself from thinking about who 'he' was. "He would have killed you too... there was nothing you could do..."

Minutes of holding the crying girl pass with no interruption. She clutches my blouse tightly and her tears stain the fabric with remnants of mascara. I can't truly grasp the feeling, but the block where we sit feels strangely tranquil- the most at ease I've felt since entering the arena.

"-Maya, is it true?" Cisqua asks, her tears stopping slowly. "I-I heard that Crux is looking for you and Holden."

My stomach lurches. Holden? Crux wants to kill Holden too?

"I don't know, I only just got away-" I stammer.

"-you got away?" Cisqua looks mortified. "Maya, if Crux was trying to kill you- you wouldn't get away."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I'm alive aren't I?" A stab of annoyance hurts my ego at her words. "-I hit him with my lunch box so-"

But I stop talking for a moment to re-evaluate the situation. Crux had killed three people, and from my past experience from watching his schoolyard fights- he got up quickly when knocked down. When he wanted to hurt someone for what they said, he barely stayed down. That fact hadn't occurred to me until now.

"...maybe I dazed him?" My voice is breathless from the realisation. "You... think?"

Crux could've killed me, easily. He could've shot me while I ran- and he's not a bad runner, he could've chased me if he had wanted to. So why hadn't he?
A poignant sense of hope begins to well up inside me, but I quickly push it down. None of this changed what I'd seen- or that he had been willing to kill me when I was under his weight.

"-you see!?"

"Huh?" Reality comes back to me as Cisqua stares at me incredulously. "I'm sorry, I wasn't... I didn't-?"

"I think the reason why Crux didn't kill you is because, deep down, he still thinks of you as a friend!" Cisqua's hurried whispers are more like gasps. "Don't you think so? That's why he could kill those other people so readily, but not you."

I can do little more than stare at her. I'd spent the last day assuring myself that our friendship was dead, and to bring it up again like it was Lazarus seemed ridiculous.

"-okay, Maya- I want to... I want to team up, only if it's okay with you."

I'm taken aback by her sudden offer. Team up? The thought hadn't occurred to me yet, even with the group of boys and Lola and Tilly's alliance working against me. Something inside still nagged that this game was a solo mission.

"-you don't have to!" Cisqua waves her arms as she whispers. "It's just I realised that you don't have anyone with you, and we might stand more a chance together..."

She looks miserable, like she already knows I doubt the idea. Looking at the previously arrogant girl, I smile weakly, and find myself giving her a half-hearted shrug.

"Why not..?"

I'm pushed into the dirt by Cisqua's hug. She whispers an endless stream of "thank you" as I suppress a tiny laugh, the first I've had since being kidnapped from District Thirteen.
As she pulls away, her eyes are now a glimmer with endless possibilities- all hatching at once.

"-we should find Holden." Cisqua looks almost excited. "I saw him running with his sister past here when the first bell went- so I'm positive they're at the Performance Hall."

"Performance Hall?"

I almost snorted from how ridiculous it sounds, but I realise it's the structure beyond the quadrangle I couldn't see. So that means this arena is made up of four blocks, a canteen, the football field, the quadrangle and a performance hall...

"We can't really go now," Cisqua sighs. "The sun's rising, and we'd be seen for sure... I wish we had the keys to these doors..."

Those keys again. I remember the boys mentioning that Valera had them- and I'm almost dead certain she stole them from Kendra- because that's how they opened that room without smashing the door.

Wait.

"-do you have any weapons?" I blurt out so suddenly that Cisqua jolts.

"No," she raises her eyebrows. "Maya, you aren't actually thinking of going on the offensive are you?"

"-no, I'm not-" I look around the block as Cisqua waits for the real answer. "It's just if we had something sharp and heavy, like an axe or something- we might be able to knock these doors in and find those 'treasures' Snow talked about."

Cisqua twitches from the mention of Snow's name, but her face lights up. Rummaging inside her skirt pocket, she reveals a thick, soiled key.

"This was in the dirt here, but it doesn't fit any of these doors." She hands it to me, and then points in the direction of the first block. "-but I think it matches the lock on the Gardener's shed by the football field."

Great. The one advantage we have- and it's practically a death trap. The Gardener's shed was guaranteed to be filled with potential weapons- but to get there would mean being in plain sight of everyone. I don't like the chances we have against the boys in the quadrangle- or the fact that Crux might finish the job and actually shoot me.

"It's the only chance we have." Cisqua must be able to read minds. "-but only one of us should go... and if you don't want to, I'm willing to make a run for it."

I'm a terrible person. I actually want to agree and send Cisqua to her premature death- just because I'm terrified that I'd be seen if I went. However, instead of agreeing- I decide that more musing is needed.

"-maybe we could cause some kind of diversion..." I look at her for approval. "What we need is one us to make a lot of noise to distract those guys- and the other one runs for the shed..."

Almost immediately, Cisqua's eyes lock onto my lunchbox and a grin widens across her face. My stomach churns as I realise I'm to do the run, and the dirty key in my hand feels very hot. She nods at me and takes the tin box from my hands.

"I'll make the noise, you get the toys."

Well at least the plan rhymes.