Part V
Cat looked around Faiths room. It was almost exactly the same as her own. Faith slipped her locket off and dumped it on her bed, going to the corner of her room where she had taken knives from the dining room. She threw one at Cat, gently, so she could catch it easily.
Cat fumbled the catch, almost dropping it, but managing to catch the right end.
Faith drew a target on the wall. "Okay I didn't see you completely yesterday... so I don't know how good you are, but practice. And, if you do get good at it and want to seem innocent I... I won't tell anyone." She sighed and sat on her bed.
"Really?" Cat said, looking at Faith. Could she trust her? She was a diehard careerer...but something about her made Cat trust her. Faith nodded and picked up the chain for the locket in-between her fingers, swinging it back and forth.
"Faith..." Cat looked at her cautiously, "Can I trust you? Really?"
She looked up to meet Cat's gaze. "I suppose that's up to you."
Cat held the knife tightly in her hand. She twisted round lightning fast and threw it at the target. It slammed into the centre up to the hilt. Faith's gaze followed the knife, she was surprised but barely showed it, her eyes only widening slightly. She got up and grabbed the knife and turned to smile at her, suddenly throwing the knife at her shoulder to test her reactions. Cat snatched it out of the air by the hilt. Faith smiled. "Good." she grabbed two of the counter, but made it look like she only grabbed one. She threw one lightening fast then the other a mili-second after, getting ready to dive to knock her over if she didn't move.
Cat deflect the first blade with the knife she held clenched in her hand, and grabbed the second, throwing it back at Faith. Faith crouched down like a cat, the blade wedging in the wall behind her. "Is knives all?"
Cat smiled innocently. "You'll just have to wait and see."
Her lip curled up in a grin and she threw the knife again, with much more power than before. Cat dropped to the floor in a crouch, reaching up an arm and grabbing it out of the air. Faith grinned, and waited seeing as Cat had all three knives. Cat threw the first two simultaneously at Faith, before throwing the last one almost seconds after the rest.
Falling into the splits she caught two at the same time, quickly jumping up and kicking powerfully at the last, sending it up and off course.
Cat grinned at her. "Nice."
She grinned. "Years of practice pays off."
"Well, if we're going to be fancy..." Cat said grinning at Faith and waiting for her to throw.
She threw a knife at her with a flick of her wrist, then threw the second before the first, barely a second after. Cat twisted herself into the air, slamming the first knife away with her foot, flipping upside down and grabbing the second between her teeth, and catching the last in her free hand. She fell back to the floor, landed on her feet, and took the knife out of her mouth. "Ew! That tastes yucky!"
Faith laughed and tensed herself for the next throw. Cat threw them quickly, one at her head, one at her chest, and one at her stomach. She ducked to avoid the head. Caught the one at her chest at the blade between two fingers, then spun it round so she was holding the handle, knocking the last knife off past, immediately she threw the knife she was holding at her head lightening fast, grabbing the other two she throw the parallel at both shoulders.
Cat simple ducked to the ground, rolling onto her back and kicking two of the knife so they spun in the air, before catching them in both hands. The third slammed into the wall behind her, and she leapt up, throwing the two knives at Faith before grabbing the knife out of the wall behind her. Faith caught them both between through fingers; she threw one with spin, and then powered much more strength into throwing the next.
Cat caught the spinning knife in her left hand, and deflected the last one with the two she held in her hand. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
Faith stopped and nodded to her bathroom quickly. "Coming!" She called
Cat slid in there, hiding behind the door, still gripping a knife in each hand. Faith pulled the final knife from the wall, throwing it onto her bed and opening the door. She sighed when she saw it was her father. She glared at him. "What do you want?" She hissed at him.
Cat shivered at Faiths tone of voice; it was cold enough to freeze the sun. She wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of Faiths wrath.
Faith's father ignored her just strolled into the room and looked at Faith for a moment. "I presume you know your approach." He said. Faith just glared at her father. "Which means, really tomorrow for you isn't needed much." He continued in a cool voice.
"Get lost." Faith growled.
Cat listened curiously. Faith's mentor, for she assumed that's what he was, seemed like a bit of an arse.
"Faith, you are walking on very thin ice. I suggest you move to wear you are safer." His voice was still cool but his eyes burned into hers. "Remember what your sister and mo-"
"Father. Three words." She cut him off her voice a thousand times cooler than his, shoving him in the chest so he stepped back into the doorway. "Leave me alone." She paused for a second. "And don't you dare mention them." She slammed the door.
Cat stood frozen behind the door. What had happened to Faiths sister and mother? And what kind of father would talk to his daughter that way? Sympathy for Faith flooded through her. What kind of loveless life had she known?
Faith fell back onto her bed, almost forgetting that Cat was there again she scooped up the chain to her locket, just staring at it with cold calculating eyes. Cat heard the door slam, and peered around the edge of the bathroom door, to see Faith lying on her bed, staring at a locket.
"Faith?"
Faith's eyes flickered to Cat for a second before moving back to the locket. Cat hesitated, unsure what to do. She walked over to Faith, and put a tentative hand on her shoulder. Faith flinched slightly and dropped the locket and stood up.
Cat stepped back as she stood up, biting her lip. "Did you want me to go?"
Faith looked at her for a second. "That's up to you."
Cat caught sight of the clock on the wall. "Oh, Crap! They'll be televising our scores in about 5 minutes!"
Faith blinked and looked up at the clock. "Yeah. You better get back. They'll be wondering where you are."
"I'll make sure to cry when I get a 1!" Cat said, grinning, before throwing the knives to Faith, and turning to walk out the door. Faith smiled faintly, caught the knives and watched her go. If only I wasn't a career. She thought dryly.
Cat walked quickly through the corridors of the District 1 floor. She got into the lift, and went up to her floor, slipping into her bedroom and shutting the door behind her. She quickly changed into a blue cotton dress and tied her hair back with a matching ribbon. She checked in the mirror. She looked like she'd been crying. Good. She stepped out of her bedroom door and began to walk towards the sitting room.
Faith slipped her hair out from the ponytail, letting the curls fall around her shoulders, then she headed to the living room and sat in an armchair, everyone else was there, including her father who Faith ignored.
Cat sat quietly on one of the plush sofas, hands clenched together, making hem tremble. Everyone shot her sympathetic glances, except her mentor, who winked.
Faith heard the anthem and turned her gaze to the screen. It was boy girl so she was second. She got 10, which was fine by her. With a faint smirk she watched the rest of the scores.
The other boy from 4 got an 8. Cat held her breath as her picture flashed up on screen, her score underneath it. Catherine Neuvya: 2. She managed to control the small smile threatening to spread across her lips, and instead burst into tears. "I'm useless!" she wailed, "I don't want to die! I just want to go home!"
Faith watched as Cat's score flashed across the screen and wasn't particularly surprised. When the scores finished Faith went to return to her room. District One boy blocked her way.
"We can't have her." He growled. Faith glared at him with cool eyes, knowing who he was talking about.
"But we can." She replied sweetly. "And, we will." She batted her eyelashes and took a step toward him; he held his ground, remaining at the same spot. "And, if you don't want to be with the careers... I can assure you we will hunt you down. And, we will kill you."
-x-
Cat's mentor led her into her room with her arm around her, pretending to comfort her. The minute the door closed behind them, she hugged her. "Nice going!"
"Thanks!" Cat said, smiling. "And I'm in with the careerers. Only one of them knows that I can actually fight, the rest are still fooled."
"Which one?"
"Faith."
"You trusted FAITH?"
-x-
The boy glared at her. "The careers won't follow you."
Faith laughed and within a second the boy was pinned to the wall, the knife she'd slipped in her belt at her neck. "Oh, I think they will." She whispered. Releasing him she walked in to her room and shut the door.
-x-
"I've decided to trust her." Cat looked straight at her mentor. "I know it's dangerous. If at any point you think she's going to betray me, send me something. D4 bread. To tip me off."
"O.K..."
-x-
Faith took another shower, knowing tomorrow would be boring. She knew her approach. And her district representative couldn't teach her anything either. She sighed and slipped her locket back on, sinking onto her bed.
-x-
Cat jumped into bed, her wet hair wrapped in a big fluffy towel. Tomorrow was the interviews- and the day after that, the games themselves. Nerves built up inside her, making her toss and turn, finding it almost impossible to slee- zzzzzzzzzzzzz.
-x-
Acacia May snuck to bed. She'd got a 6, which she supposed was okay. Nobody had really noticed her yet, which she didn't really mind. With a shrug she went to bed, wondering how she was going to play the interviews.
-x-
Faith fell asleep easily, as she always did, one hand clutching her locket.
-x-
Orchid Lang lay in bed, smiling to herself. She was pleased with the 10 she'd got. 11 would have been better, but she didn't want to make herself too much of a target. She clutched the knife in her hand as she drifted off. Always be prepared, that's what her mother had taught her. Because if you're not prepared, you die.