I wrote this whilst camping in Wales. I hope you like it xD If you have any suggestions or want to suggest a tribute idea or anything, then feel free!

Xyris's P.O.V

Zeph approaches me slowly, lowering the bloodied hammer he used to end Six's life. He's still smiling, but the whole image reminds me of an animal stalking its prey. I step back slightly. The Zeph from before the Games wouldn't have killed anyone before trying to figure something out logically.

A flicker of something crosses his face... Hurt? Remorse?

Then the boy's cannon fires and my fellow tribute jumps sky-high, shock painting his face a blush of deep red. I can't help but laugh, which makes him grin, less sheepishly than before.

"So I guess you found me after all." I say.

"Actually, I wasn't expecting to find you here..." He trails off, looking around the site and shaking his head. "Did you really make a camp here?"

"Oh, no!" I reply hastily. "This isn't my camp! I came across it by chance. Found a medical kit, too." I hold up the pack and Zeph's eyes widen slightly. "What?" I say, walking towards him cautiously.

"Xyris..." He asks slowly. "Do you know whose camp this is?"

I frown slightly, wondering what he means.
"No..."
Then it hits me.
"Oh, crap, this isn't a Career camp, is it?" I grab my backpack, slinging it around my shoulder, ready to bolt in case they return.

"Worse than Careers." Zeph replies, looking out for something in the trees. I nervously run my hands through my hair.

"I thought it had been abandoned... A cannon fired nearby this morning and I thought-"

"No," Zeph answers quickly, "That was Brooke. You'll meet her. But we need to go." He begins to walk away. "I'll explain everything when we get back to the camp."
We walk out of the clearing in silence. Zeph takes me through a winding route of the forest, and I am left to my thoughts.
Who is 'Brooke'? Did Zeph make an alliance? And they killed the person whose cannon woke me up. Why are they killing people? They're acting like...

Like...

We reach what must be Zeph's camp. And that's when I see her. Sat next to a small tent, spinning a trident absentmindedly in her hands. The number '4' printed on the back of her jacket.

I realise now why Zeph is acting so much like a Career.

It takes a while for me to take in everything Zeph says.
That he unwillingly joined the Career pack, and got to stock up on stuff from the Cornucopia. That Brooke had been injured badly by the female tribute from Six at the bloodbath, and they had both left the Careers in the mountains. I feel slightly panicked when he tells me that the camp I discovered belonged to the two tributes from Six, who had attacked a Career, and they were just leaving when I came across the clearing. Apparently, they'd forgotten their first aid kit, and the boy was going back to retrieve it when he found me.

"He would have killed you." Zeph adds, sitting down next to me on a tree log.

"It's weird." Brooke says, "Six don't usually produce such..." She winces at the bandages wrapped around her left leg, and for a second I feel a bit sorry for her.
But then I remember who she is, a Career, who would probably inflict the same wound or worse on us given the chance. Zeph doesn't see this though, and tries to help her clean the wound with water from a bottle he retrieves from the tent.
I sit and observe the two, seeing how reluctant Brooke is to accept help. She insists on doing it herself. I guess it makes sense, really. If Brooke wants to kill us, then she won't want to owe us any favours.

"Oh!" Zeph suddenly exclaims, jumping up as if he's been electrically shocked. "I almost forgot." He looks down at me, grinning slightly, and reaches into the tent.
When he produces a pristine sword, I can't help but gasp a little.

"For you." He says warmly, offering me handle.

"...Why?" I reply. "How...?"

"Found it at the Cornucopia, remember?" He replies. "I saw it and thought of you." I take the weapon slowly, feeling how heavy it is.

Brooke pipes up;
"Wait, that was for her?" And Zeph nods. I remember telling him about my private training session in the Capitol, and I'm surprised and a little pleased that he remembers. "You can use a sword?"Brooke asks me, cocking her head to one side, like a dog does when they see something curious.

"A bit." I lie. Of course, I'd never had any experience with a any weapons until I was reaped, but she doesn't know that.

"Cool." She returns to her work, weaving a net of some kind out of grass blades. I look towards Zeph, and he looks away when our eyes meet. I remember before we went into the arena, when I refused to make eye contact with him. The tables sure have turned now.

I decide to survey the area around the camp, and Zeph agrees, assuring me it's safe. I travel alone, with the sword tucked through my belt. It feels heavy and gives me a bit of a limp at first, but I'm thankful that I don't have to travel un-armed anymore. And with news of this District Six girl being out to kill everyone, I could use some protection just in case.

The camp is cleverly placed, almost as good as my old tree hideout. It is down a steep hill, and concealed by masses of trees, so that anyone viewing the valley from above would not be able to spot a thing.
I climb the hill, with a water bottle that has been topped up by Zeph. I smile to myself. Another perk of allying with a genius is that he can find water sources easily, and we are currently camping next to a spring that has been formed by the valley.

Well, by the Gamemakers, but whatever.

Once I reach the top of the hill, I check for nearby tributes. When I'm that no one is nearby, I look over the landscape. The opposing wall of land is a steep mountain, which rules out any assault from that side. Further down to the right of me, the hill forms into a cliff, leaving only this hill area as the only means of entering the valley area. This makes guarding the camp a lot easier.

I take a swig of water and begin to make my way back down the hill. The arena is pretty this year. There have been years in the past when the stage for the Games have been barren wastelands, or plain grassy meadows, but this year the arena thrives with beautiful flowers, and deep green forestry.
I delve further down and find a sparkling stream, the water crystal clear and shimmering in the sunshine. A part of me wonders what the catch is, though, maybe the stream is poisoned or something, so I don't touch it. I'll leave it to Zeph to find safe stuff.

I'm about halfway down the hill, when I spot a bird perched on a branch. A 'mockingjay', I think it's called. Some kind of muttation-gone-wrong, or so the teachers from Three tell us. I've read about them before, but since Three is so industrialised I've never come across one in real life. I do know, however, that they can mimic song patterns, so I take in a breath and-

BOOM!

The cannon fire makes the bird flit away, along with others whose wings I hear frantically beating. It takes me a few moments to pinpoint the sound of the cannon coming from somewhere down the hill, and the fear can barely resonate before-

BOOM!

The second cannon makes me jump more than the first.

Brooke.

Zeph.

I can feel myself running, my mind going into autopilot. If I can catch whoever killed them fast enough, I can stop them.

The nightmares from the previous night float around my mind, distorting any sense of composure within me. Zeph's face contorting in pain and fear.

I'm at the bottom of the hill now, thrashing through the greenery with my nails, desperately trying to find the camp. I eventually break through the trees into the camp, expecting to find carnage but instead... Silence.

I pull out my sword slowly, holding it up defensively in my hand. I reach the tent and yank open the flimsy door; expecting to see the killer inside looting our goods.

Nothing.

I hear footsteps from the opposite side of the camp, and begin to follow them, leaping over the log I'd sat on before and surprising myself my not tripping up.
The footsteps get closer and I sprint after them, sword held in my hand. A part of my mind realises I left my water bottle in the tent, but I ignore the urge to turn back as I press forward.

A figure suddenly impacts me from the side, and I let out some form of angry yelp, flipping over and preparing to attack the assailant.

But it's Zeph.

And he looks about a shocked as I am.

He reaches forward and lifts me off the floor, holding onto my shoulders and staring right into my eyes.

"Xyris!" He exclaims, his voice relieved, "I thought you'd died."

"What?" I ask, confused at his logic. "The cannon came from the valley. Where you were. I was on the hill-" I am cut off by a sob from the back of my throat, which annoys me. I always end up crying when I get too stressed.

"I-I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" Zeph asks uneasily, unsure of what to do. He awkwardly pulls me into a hug. I don't wrap my arms around him or anything, which would be weird, but instead I say,

"No. I thought you'd died. I-It came from down here..."

Brooke appears from when Zeph tackled me from, limping, with her trident held expertly from her arm.

"It must have been from the mountains," She says firmly. "Where the Careers went."
Zeph is still latched onto me, and I have to un hook myself from him to think.

Yes, if a cannon fired from behind the mountain, I'd think it was from the valley since I was so high up.

"Brooke and I went to find food," Zeph carefully recalls, "We went East. You went South, up the hill. So when we heard the cannon, we assumed it was from our camp, when in fact it was North. I thought you'd come back and they'd found you..."

"...Then we heard the second cannon," Brooke adds, seeing that Zeph has gone into his focused state of mind, like before the Games. "We thought you'd taken someone down with you." She smiles, and points at my sword, which I still haven't put away.

We walk back to the camp, slowly to compensate for Brooke's leg. We realise that it is starting to get dark, and decide to have something to eat.
Zeph produces some crackers, and Brooke prepares some berries that she assures us are safe. Zeph isn't convinced, and neither am I, so we make her eat some just to make sure.

"You really don't trust me, do you?" She laughs, chomping down on the berries. "See? Not deeeaaaadd." She opens her mouth to prove the berries have been eaten, and Zeph nods in approval.

"I owe you anyway, Brains." Brooke adds, pointing a cracker at Zeph. He looks at me, cringing slightly at the nickname, and I shake my head whilst giggling. How bizarre. A Career owing somebody from Three.
After we've eaten, we assign duties for the night. Brooke insists on guarding the tent.
"Your leg-" Zeph begins, but Brooke cuts him off, retorting about how he wouldn't be able to hurt a fly. I'm just about to pipe up about the boy from Six, when she turns to me.

"You should sleep in the tent," She asserts. "What with Zeph tackling you, I think you deserve a lie down."

"I'm fine." I reply, even though my arm aches a little. "Zeph didn't hurt me. But thank you." She smiles, and spins the trident in her hand.
"I'm guarding." She grins at Zeph, to which he rolls his eyes.

When darkness falls, we all sit on the log and look to the sky, to see who died today.

I think it's fair to say that we all gasp in horror and shock, as the first face to appear is the boy from One.
Brooke even gives a confused 'What?' when the next face is the girl from Two.
The boy from Six and the girl from Eight, whom Brooke must have killed, flash across the sky, then darkness. There is a moment of pure, shocked silence, when all that can be heard is the occasional sounds of wildlife across the arena.

"Six."

I look to Zeph, confused as to what he means. But then Brooke moves her wounded leg slightly and it dawns on me.

"You think she killed them both?" I ask.

"Yes." Is all he says, leaning forward in thought.

"It's a good job we left when we had the chance!" Brooke says, still staring up at the sky in shock.
He doesn't reply, and instead turns to enter the tent. I look at Brooke and ask,

"Are you okay?"

She shrugs and looks down at the floor.

"Sol and Kellie were alright." She replies, a little sadly. "And they were lethal too. It's weird." I nod, and add,
"Six must have had training like you guys."
"Yeah. She's probably the reason they aren't out hunting yet."
That feels somewhat chilling. I look down at Brooke's leg, seeing how bad it is. She spots me staring and says,
"I know what you're thinking. That I'm only here because I'm injured. And if you'd asked me this morning, I would have agreed. But Zeph is alright, y'know, better than the Careers. He's smart, like you, and doesn't give up."
I'm not sure why she's telling me this, but I nod. Yes, Zeph is a good ally.
"Um, I'm going to go in now, Brooke." I say, standing up.
"Oh, okay. G'night." She looks down and begins to weave grass again.

The air is humid tonight, making the small tent stuffy and uncomfortable. Zeph lies on his back, with his hands interlocked and resting on his front. He stares up at the roof of the tent and stays un-moving; reminding me of a corpse at those weird funerals we have in Three, where you have to place a rose on an open-casket. If it weren't for the steady rise and fall of his chest, or the occasional blink, he'd look pretty dead.

The dim light from outside casts eerie shadows across his face, and make his dark pupils look black. I sit down next to him, staring at his odd, spiky hair. He seems to sense my stare on him and whispers,

"Go to sleep, Xyris."

I curl up into a ball, facing away from him. And all of a sudden I'm very thankful to have him here in the arena with me, as I'm sure that without him I'd be dead by now.

I whisper, "Thank you for saving me."

He doesn't reply.