****************************************************************************************************Hey Everybody! Long time no update! I missed you all so incredibly much! The musical is over…which means the start of every other day updates! I'm pretty excited to start writing for you guys again! Thanks for sticking with me through the break! I Love you guys so much and want to thank every single one of you for the support on this story! I have decided to stay with this fanfiction for now. I hope you enjoy the update!

I bend down next to her and before I can open my mouth she puts her finger to my lips. "It's my turn to talk. Can I tell you something Cato?..." I nod intently and she smirks, at what enthusiasm I have left, through my burning rage….what was so important that Clove is talking to me in her free will? Is it possible she has feelings for me too? "Cato…I liked you." "I like you too Clover…Wait…" Liked? As in used to? And no longer? Her mouth drops and she tucks a strand of her wavy dark hair behind her ear and holds her jaw rigidly. "Cato…I-I-I don't know what to say…" I rise to my feet and place my hands on the back of my neck and walk around and try to keep my anger inside of my head. She liked me? How doesn't she like me? I'm Cato! I'm going to win the seventy fourth…hunger games…

"Clover is it because of the hunger games? I-I won't volunteer."

"The problem here is because of your big mouth…I have to volunteer."

"My big mouth? You're the little imp that flaunted you knife skills. Sorry I had a crush on you and wanted to be on your father's good side."

"You already were…my father was ready to disown me as it was! You are nothing but an arrogant, selfish, vain…jerk! You had to go screw up my life! Didn't you?"

Clove is on her tip toes and getting right into my face…God she's beautiful…

"I don't know what the heck I ever saw in you Cato. You will be the first one to die when we're in those games. I can promise you that!" Her lips are perfectly pinkish red. When I see her spit the words at me a fire not only of fury, but desire to call Clove mine, rises in me. I act in the moment and take my hands and enclose her face.

I press my lips against hers with force and she doesn't resist for a moment or two but when I open my eyes to look at her perfect face I am greeted with a knee into a place that I never imagined to be hit by her at this moment. Then she raises her hand and slaps it against my cheek bone. It stings for a while but it's nothing worse than a fly. The real pain came from the feelings I had for this girl. The feeling I had never felt. And finding out she doesn't want me. It broke the kindness or something like that in me.

"Don't you ever touch me again... Do you hear me Cato? Never again!" And that's when I'm positive that I am ready for the games. That is when I find that fire that will allow me to win these games. She doesn't love you. She never will. You will be a tribute.

***********************************Clove's POV****************************************

I wipe my lips and stomp out of his house. I pause at the door and snap my head back around. "Watch your back in those games. And don't you dare think that because we are both from two that I will ally with you. I will cut your face and throat open just as easily as every other tribute in the games! You better hope that you can get some extra training in…reaping is in a week…" Before I slam the door behind me, Cato yells out something that I Know can't be true. "Then I refuse to volunteer for the games Clover!" His face was confused and looked completely different for a moment. I head to the training academy. I hear the echo of other prospective tributes. I head straight for the knife station. There are four other girls that I know were battling it out for who would volunteer. I grab the eighteen year old by her ponytail and slam her onto the ground. She is much larger than me but with my newly found fire towards Cato, I have no trouble pinning her down. "Get off me Clove! What do you think you're doing?" I lower my face towards hers and spit in it. "Who is the one on top and wielding a knife? The sweat is forming on the girl's face.

"That's what I thought! You listen to me Lily. And you listen well. I will be the victor of the seventy fourth hunger games. I will bring victory to our district. You will not volunteer. You will not have your father, the mayor; pull any special advantages for you. Do you hear me?"

"You're only fifteen. Why would I listen to you?"

"My father is the head of this training academy. You will never be allowed to volunteer…your career dreams will be flattened if I give you a bad rep with my father. And if you volunteer after I do….lets just say…things will happen…"

I toss my knife into the air and catch it and slam it down only millimeters away from her face and neck. I put on my most angelic face and press the knife to her throat. "Are we clear?" Lily shakes her head quickly and chokes out a couple words "I swear I won't volunteer!"

"Okay. Good." I climb off of her stomach and turn around to all the other girls.

"Anybody else want to try to volunteer for this year's hunger games?" I smirk as their legs tremble in fear. For prospective tributes they are all sissies. I toss the knife up, open my pocket and it falls in obediently, and I walk away without so much as a scratch. I let out a weird laugh and walk back home. I open the front door and my father is charging towards me. I hold up some papers, they are qualification forms for me to be a career for my father to check. He stops in his tracks and looks the papers over. He gives me a sickening smile and pats my shoulder.

"Feeling ready Clove?"

"Yes, sir. I am ready for reaping. I am ready to be a career."

************************************The Day of The Reaping*****************************

I curl my hair with the machine my father bought me for my "shining moment" and take a look at myself in the mirror. I have on a yellow dress that comes down a few inches above my knees. I have on my brother's tribute jacket and what he used to call his lucky boots. I have my hair pulled back into a ponytail, and the curls hang down and give me a girly look. The combination of my brother's gear and the dress give me a sexy, yet tough look. I nod in approval and walk into the living room. My father isn't a man of words. Instead he pats me on the back and locks me into a hug.

"Ready to volunteer, daughter?"

"I am. I am ready to kill them. I will come home. I will bring pride to our family, where my brother left off."

He nods proudly and pats my back. I walk out the front door and go to sign into the reaping. I haven't spoken to Cato since the fight. While it may have seen spiteful in the moment. It had to happen at some time. Better now than for all of Panem. I hate him and realize he's the enemy but deep down I know that I will be hoping for another tribute to finish him off. I couldn't ever do it myself. I know somewhere in my shattered little heart, there is a love for Cato that will not fade.

"Next." I hold my hand out as they verify my blood even though I'm unmistakable, since my father owns the academy. The pain of the finger prick startles me and I walk forward and suck on my finger until it stops tingling. I glance around at all the other girls and they snap their heads away from me, as I stare at them all. I smirk and take my place with the fifteen year olds. I seek out Cato, he's in the front of all the guys, typical Cato. His eyes catch mine for only a second before I look down. The last thing I want is to look furious in my moment. I take in a deep breath and watch what I know must be our escort. He has bright neon green hair and a yellow suit on. It has ruffles on the jacket and it makes me laugh. The shade of yellow is more mustard than my dress which is more of a metallic gold. I ignore most of the little ritual and movie…or whatever you want to call it.

"We're going to start with our first brave young lady." His meaty hand reaches around the glass bowl and snags a slip of paper… "Sage Brosworth." I laugh at the name and right as I see the twig like girl's expression, I take pity on her and relieve her. Here goes nothing…. I straighten my shoulders and walk proudly up to the stage and raise my eyebrows "I volunteer as tribute." I am on the stage by the last syllable; I look out to the crowds of children and teens. Stupid Cato catches my eye his eyes soften when they catch mine. I turn away and stare back at the escort who won't take his eyes off of me. "Well! Want to pick the male tribute before the games start?" He shakes his head and walks over to the bowl for the boy names and pulls out a slip quickly. "Ray Lowsworth." I watch as a boy who is no older than twelve is separated from the crowd. His knees are knocking and I can see the sweat coming through his shirt. He is very small for his age…he looks like he's nine or so. I feel my lip quiver and it's then that I realize that I'll be killing twenty three children. They won't all be as small as he is…but still we're all just kids.

He is about to take his first step towards the stage, when everybody's attention is turned to the booming voice from the boy area. "I volunteer as tribute…on behalf of Ray!" Cato stumbles forward and pushes the boy back to the area where the parents are watching. Cato doesn't wait for approval as he climbs the stairs to the stage. He mouths something to me… "I'm sorry." He extends his hand out for me and I shake it politely. His eyes have hardened since last time I saw him and I begin to worry for my life. The escort takes our hand and raises them in the air. "I give you our tributes of district two! Clove and Cato!" I feel myself being pushed, I keep my eyes closed. I don't want to even look at Cato right now.

I take my seat on the train, it's bright in here…and everything is very…metallic. "What do we not even get to say goodbye?" I bang on the door that everybody disappeared through. "They seem to think Careers don't have anybody in their lives but their weapon of choice…" I snap my head around and I see Cato sitting stiffly in a chair. I walk over towards him and we catch glances once more.

"I'm sorry that I'm here with you Clove. I couldn't let that kid come to the games. He wasn't anywhere near ready." You only have a little bit of time left in your life now that Cato is competing… the least you can do is love for a little while.

"That was really sweet of you Cato." "Clove. Shut up. I'm tired of the emotions. We're both in these games. One of us will be the one to go home. I don't care who it is. Can we just keep it on an ally level?"

His eyes are reflecting true frustration. I nod quickly and watch him disappear into one of the train cars…

****************************************************************************************************Hey Guys! What did you think about today's chapter? Hate it? Love it? I am pretty happy with it! Do you like the direction I'm taking this fanfiction or would you rather see something else added in? How do you guys feel about Cato and Clove in this story? Anything you want to see in the next chapter? Did you like seeing Cato volunteer for the boy? Leave me some reviews below! The more reviews I get on this chapter the quicker I will update! Let me know if you want to see me write more for this fanfiction! Love you guys!

~Freezethemoment