Authors' Note: I suddenly realized that we forgot the disclaimer. We do not own Hunger Games or Catching Fire or any of the characters. Happy reading! (And Review, please )

Chapter 6: The Arena, Allies, and All That

Josie – The Arena

It would be beautiful if it wasn't the Games. Lush forests filled with pines, oaks, and these strange tall trees I've never seen before. Bushes full of berries and small brush over the entire forest floor. A waterfall in the distance that thunders down into a river. There's another river right behind me. There must be a lake where the two meet, somewhere below me in the trees. And we're up high, on a small mountain made of granite and fallen logs. My dark green jacket and comfortable pants make sense now. My long hair is braided on my head. My token is my mother's diamond engagement ring, passed down over generations.
The twenty-four tributes are positioned around the Cornucopia on this small mountain. There is no easy way down on my side...except for the river behind me that my ears tell me lead to another waterfall – not as impressive as the one in the distance, but dangerous all the same.
The countdown is almost over. I can't see Ash, but Seaweed is two people to my left and Collette is three people down my right. Directly to my right is Glam from District One.

And in front of me, a trident. I want to rush for that weapon as soon as the countdown is over, but I know I can't. What I SHOULD do is run for the backpack near the edge and get off this exposed rock. I see Glam bare her teeth and I notice that they're sharpened. Her nails are pointed too. She decides to ignore me and her eyes focus on a set of knives near Collette. Collette looks at Glam; a look of terror flits across her face. Glam smiles at her - it's a smile that says, "You're dead."
Hell, no.

When the games begin; I'm ready. When that countdown reaches zero, something inside me snaps and I react with more fierceness than ever before. When that countdown reaches zero, I don't go for the trident nor the backpack. I run at Glam.

She isn't expecting it. As the bloodbath begins, I contribute. I hate myself for it later; but something snapped and all I could think was stay alive, keep Collette alive. I run at Glam so quickly, with so much force that she has no chance to think. My speed and her surprise carry us to the edge of the waterfall right behind me. I push her down and hear her scream, her body thrashing in the water.

She can't swim.

She hits her head on a rock and the cannon sounds. It lasted about two seconds.
I run back for a backpack and then get off that rock. I don't get a weapon. I don't see Collette or Ash or Seaweed. I may be crying. I feel someone's eyes on me and someone might have called my name. I trip and tumble into the river; but in the water, I am safe.

Ash – The Arena

The Cornucopia stands in front of me, with all twenty-four of us standing around it. I scan the people, not worrying about the countdown, or my surroundings – I'm looking for Collette and Jo. I can't see them; they are probably on the other side of the Cornucopia, so I focus in on the countdown.

Three seconds.

A knife not too far away catches my eye. It's hidden in the grass and I hope none of the other tributes see it.

Time runs out and bolt to the knife as fast as I can. I grasp it in my hand and look up as I see the boy from Ten charging at me. I raise my knife to hold off his attack when a spear lodges itself in his shoulder and he goes down.

I back up until my back hits the Cornucopia, then I start walking along it to the back as I watch other tributes running and fighting. I kick something and crouch down, not looking cause there is a fight about thirty feet from me. I reach out and feel a backpack. I quickly look down, find the strap and throw it over my shoulders. I continue around the Cornucopia and spot a club-looking thing that I've never seen before. It's a club, but has a ball on the end and sharp, one inch spikes sticking out all over it. I pick it up by the handle – the only area without spikes – then turn to see the girl from Eleven come running around the corner and into the surrounding woods with two careers in hot pursuit. I don't think as I take off after them.

It isn't long till they catch the girl from Eleven in a clearing. One of the careers, both are boys, is on top of her, making her scream. I don't think as I sprint at him and tackle him to the ground, off the girl. We fight for dominance, rolling on the ground, trying to get on each other; our hands locked on each other's upper arms – no room to reach for weapons.

I try to keep tabs of the girl and the other career boy, but they disappear into the thicket around us. I focus on fighting the boy on top of me.

I finally roll and scramble, standing up and quickly shuffling away from him.

The clearing and surrounding area is empty of the girl and the other career, and my club thing at my feet. I pick it up and wield it, trying to look like I know how to use it. He pulls a sword out of a scabbard around his waist. Then he charges at me. He swings his sword at my hip and I jump out of the way. Then I swing my club, no target in mind.

I mean, I've never used one – ever – so I was just kind of winging it. Literally. I narrowly miss, then step back out of his range.

I keep stepping back to avoid his swinging sword and soon we are out of the little clearing and into the thicker woods, with trees all around us.

I see a branch behind him and decide to take initiative. I charge at him, surprising him into a somewhat shock, but only for a second. Just as I am almost upon him, he reacts and thrusts his sword forward. But I am already a step ahead. I am spinning off to his right and I continue forward towards my branch. I jump up and grab the branch and pull myself up.

But not quick enough, for he had turned as soon as I passed him and had swung behind him, but only to hit air. He realizes what I am doing and charges. My body is out of his range but he swings his sword at my feet and manages to hit just above my ankle.

I keep climbing, till I am about fifteen feet above the other tribute.

He starts taunting me as soon as he recovers. "Is the little boy from the poor District of Twelve scared? Is he too scared to play with his friends?" his voice and face turn hard as he screams, "Come down and be a man!"

I just stare at him.

"What? The little boy scared that he might die? Is he scared that he won't be able to protect his wimpy, little sister?" Again with the baby talk.

"Too scared your sister is dead?" he screams, starting to laugh now. "Don't worry we're taking care of her. Now come down so I can take care of you too!"

Come on! I think.

I'm not a super good climber, but in District Twelve, if you don't climb trees as a kid, you basically don't have a childhood. So I climb a couple branches higher and look back down at him.

Finally, he jumps up and grabs onto the branch I had used, and pulls himself up. I positioned myself right above him.

Once he is standing on that branch, he looks up at me. "Come on brother boy, don't you know how to be a man and fight for your family? Why aren't you with sister dear?" he looks away and tries finding different branches to pull himself up.

I take the opportunity to find a gap in the branches and drop my club on him. It grazes his right ear then hit his shoulder and rolls off his back, but not before a couple large spikes dig into his skin. Also as it rolls off I see a chunk of skin from his shoulder blade area come off with it. He screams out and grabs his bloodied ear, then he looks up at me and screams, "I'll kill you!"

then starts to climb the tree, higher.

I realize he will take too long to reach me, so I pull out my knife and climb down to him on the opposite side of the trunk.

He doesn't seen me for he is so concentrated on getting up the tree, so I say, "Boo!" as I stick my head around the trunk.

He jumps like a little girl, loses his footing and slips down a branch till his hands catch the branch right in front of me.

I don't think as I slash his knuckles.

He screams out again and falls the rest of the way out of the tree. He lands on his feet, but I hear a loud POP! and a crunch and he falls into his back and lies there screaming.

Ouch, a twenty foot fall out of a tree is not fun.

I quickly climb down to the lowest branch and jump the eight feet to the ground and somersault to reduce the impact on my legs and feet.

Then I walk over to the screaming boy and slit his throat, like I was taught in the training area.

Before he is totally gone I say in his ear, "I'm so sorry, I never wanted to kill anyone. I'm just trying to save my sister."

A second later he stops trying to breathe and his body goes motionless. I close his eyelids, grab his sword, unbuckle his scabbard from around his waist, find my club, and then take off at a run in the direction I think the cornucopia was in.

Finnick – the "Game-Room"

I hate the game-room.

The damn game-room is a circular room reserved for the mentors. It has twenty-four screens spaced along the walls and three large screens in the center of the room that show the Capitol's stations. The other twenty-four screens are meant to show each of the tributes. When one dies, his or her screen goes black. It's linked to their trackers...sometimes mentors know someone is dead before the cannon sounds. I have to admit, it's pretty well designed. No matter where you stand in the room you can see one of the central TVs. My favorite feature is that the smaller TVs have headphones so that you can tune out Cesar Flickerman's irritating voice and still keep track of your tribute…or their enemies.

But being in that room is almost as bad as being in the arena. The screens show death on every side.

Now, I think Snow does it to punish the previous victors. Now I think Snow does everything to punish the victors. I'm about as paranoid as Haymitch who has a knife in his pants…but then again, I've carried a weapon since my games so I understand.

At least I'm not Johanna Mason – she openly carries an ax most days. Like today, she's stroking it like a cat or something as she watches her two tributes join up with the career pack.

Josie is currently in the river. So she's safe…for now.

Thank God she survived the blood bath.

Why the hell did she attack Glam? I mean, I saw that Glam was looking at Collette but she would have gone for the knives first and that little girl would have ran away…maybe. My heart twinges with guilt. Okay, probably not.

But as much as I sympathize with the Faunen kids, I can't think about too much, because if I start rooting for those two, I won't focus on helping Josie survive. So I have to remain as detached as possible.

Yeah, fat chance.

A commotion takes place on Seaweed's screen and I quickly switch headphones. It's not like Josie is doing much in the river.

Seaweed is – for some inexplicable reason – fighting off the boy from Eleven who is trying to kill this small kid from Five or Six or….Three? I think Three because Beetee is glaring at the side of my head.

I take off one of the headphones and meet his gaze, a bit confused.

"Did they make an alliance?" I ask the previous victor from Three. Beetee's all right. A bit old, but he's nice.

"Not that I recall," he replies. "But Spark chose to sulk in his room for most of training."

I nod and look back. The boy from Eleven has run off, limping, and Seaweed is telling Spark something about rigging the lights during training. I lose most of the conversation because Haymitch starts to shout.

Ash – The Arena

After reorienting myself four times, I finally make it to the clearing where it had all started. I scan the area; there are no tributes or supplies in sight, but then again, I can't see the mouth of the Cornucopia. So there very well could be tributes in there, and I'm not going to go looking out in the open.

I remember hearing a river before the time went out, and concentrate on listening for it. I can hear it in the distance so I assume that it is on the other side of the Cornucopia.

I start to make my way around the Cornucopia, trying to stay hidden, yet be able to see the area.

I make my way like this until I can see the entrance of the Cornucopia. There is a boy sitting at the entrance, talking, but I can't see to whom or hear what he is saying, for now I can hear the river better, a lot better.

From the mouth of the Cornucopia you can see about three hundred feet of the bank of the river.

I stand up where I am, thinking I am hidden, but then I see someone dash across that opening and my heart sinks. I recognize Coley at once and she is looking at me while running. She is trying to make it to cover before the careers see her from the mouth.

I grip my club, waiting for the situation to go in either direction.

And it turns for the worse.

The careers spot her and grab their weapons and start sprinting towards her while shouting different things.

I take off towards Coley. I meet her about thirty feet from the edge of the clearing and throw the sword, which is in the scabbard, into her arms, then pull her in the direction of the river, which I deem the safest option. The pack of five chasing us is about seventy-five feet away when we reach the river. I hear a whoosh; then a spear imbeds itself into the ground of the bank in between Coley and me.

I grab the spear and we turn to look back. They are about thirty feet away and three cock their arms to throw spears but I turn again and tackle Coley around the waist and into the river.

The current immediately sweeps us away and I fight to get to the surface. My body slams into a rock and I fight with one arm to grab a hold of it. I finally find a groove, grab on and pulled Coley and me up. I pull Coley up, checking my surroundings for the careers, but realize that we had been swept away quite a distance so the careers now can't see us. Then I notice a spear floating past and I grab it, unluckily, by the spearhead and it sinks into my hand but I hold on and pull it up and say, "Hold onto this Coley." I throw it in her direction and go to grab a second one that I see going by.

When I had grab it I turn back to Coley to notice the spear I had thrown at her by her head, then I notice the spear lodged right beneath her ribs before she slips off the rock and into the water.

"NOOO!" I scream as I scramble to grab her, but her wet hand slips out of my grasp and she goes under the water.

I stand up and search for her body, but don't jump in. I realize that I am standing on a rock in the middle of rapids. I grab the two spears and the sword, which somehow is still on the rock, then start jumping from rock to visible rock. I finally make it to the shore and start making my way to where the lake must be. I figure that since Jo is from the fishing district, she will be most comfortable near water.

I stumble, not caring how loud I am. Tears are streaming down my face.

Coley.

My baby sister and best friend. Gone. Just like that. I have to stop for a minute as sobs wrack my body. I wipe furiously at the tears on my face but they don't stop. I don't even get to say goodbye. Her body is just gone. Never for me to see it again.

I don't know how I make it, but I finally stumble upon the lake and to my surprise and pleasure, Jo, who is standing shin deep in the water.