8th Chapter – I will never get you
The double sound of the cannon disturbs our walk again. Two more are gone.
" the Careers hit the mark again" hypothesizes Peeta.
" Yes. Not like us twiddling our thumbs!" mumbles Finnick, vexed.
" look, you are the sick one we're forced to slow down for" I remind him while he's still hung up on my neck. He looks up to the sky without replying.
" we have to wait for a miracle to happen, or an extra gift to heal, otherwise we're screwed in this condition." Says Peeta worried.
He's not completely wrong. If someone attacked us now, it would really go awry. Finnick wouldn't be able to fight back and Peeta neither, while Katniss would be too busy protecting him just as I would do with Andrew. We just have to hope we can keep a low profile.
"How many of them will be left?" Asks Katniss with her voice marked by effort.
" I have no clue" I answer her. With these days' hustle no one went to a lot of trouble to count.
" I'm fed up, I want to go away.." Andrew complains. I have to keep going, I can't let myself loose concentration. Seeing him averse breaks my heart, but I have to hold on for his own sake.
" I wonder what the purpose is this time" Katniss says, not really talking to us.
" What are you talking about?" appearently Peeta didn't catch that.
" this tomfoolery, why sending normal people among winners?"
"Everything Snow brews up doesn't make sense to me"
"Why sending back all the Victors as a punishment, and then make it easier adding inexperienced tributes?"
"It's about fear,Katniss" I reply, and then I explain better.
"This Reaping has been different, there has never been more terror than on that day. No one'd have dared to make a sound. He had the entire country under control" if only I think again about that sense of aversion I felt on that stage, I shouldn't take one more single step ever again. Up there you think you can never be a killer, but somehow circumstances change you, and you get adjusted to a way you've never imagined before.
" according to me it's just a matter of show" Intervenes Finnick.
"And who's interestend in a show like that?" I ask in a huff. I refuse to believe that there are people who would really appreciate this massacre.
"When you'll pop round to Capitol City, you'll realize that. I know those people, you'd be surprised of what they like" how emblematic he is. With his smart-aleck attitude typical of who's not interested in anything.
"it's pointless to focus on why. Night's about to fall and we have to find a very, very safe place to stay given our situation." Peeta's our voice of wisdom by now.
"I'm hungry" Andrew mutters, who's walking in a disordered way, as if he was springing. He's giving up too and it's comprehensible, he's just a child after all and the contrary would be weird, actually.
We move on the Arena's borderline, it's always the safest place, relatively speaking, at least we're exposed to frontal attacks only.
We lean Finnick and Peeta on the ground and they both moan. There's nothing but underbrush around, the wood seems quiet. Perhaps we may have a moment of relax.
"We must find something to eat" Katniss breaks the silence, she's not wrong, my stomach is rumbling louder than a summer storm and judging from their faces not just mine. Now there's a practical problem though, two invalids, a child and two ladies, so how to organize the turns?
"May I go?" Andrew in exctided by the perspective of food, I caress him on the head.
"Look, why don't you go seat next to Finnick? He might need help" at least this way I know I'll convince him not to move, I'll turn his fixation into an advantage, blondie gives me a nasty look but it doesn't even touch me at all. Katniss is scraping some leaves together in order to 'buildì a shelter, honestly I don't think it will be really helpful. Maybe we'd better put up with more important things.
"Katniss let's go find food" her gaze moves to me, to Peeta and back to me again.
" you and I can't go" I open my mouth to reply, but I realize then she's right.
"I'll go, then" appearently there's no other way, so she just nods.
"no, no wait. Where do you think you're going? You haven't enough experience, they'll find you and you'll get us killed too." Finnick, always so optimistic, tries to get in the way, I look up fuming.
"You'd have a brilliant future as a director ahead of you. The screenplay seems to be spountaneous of you" I try to get rid of him.
"has anyone a little common sense other than me?" he shakes his head gazing at the present ones, but none of them seems to care.
"I can't see what the problem is Finnick, she has to go find food not killig the Careers with bare hands"
"it would already be a problem to find the way back to us for her. Imagine entering the forest" ok, now I'm officially over.
"oh listen to me, if you haven't been so idiot to face a monster as big as a mountain alone we wouldn't be in this situation so shut up and stop getting on my nerves, preener" he disdainfully throws his trident away and stands there with his arms folded, with a a very childish attitude.
"please Keira, be careful. We'll take care of Andrew" I nervously nod and go.
I start roaming around cautiously, and it's dead around here. I actually don't know what I'm looking for, but I'd reach the other part of the arena not to let that unbearable blondie have his way. I inspect in minute detail everything that seems edible, but nothing impresses me at all, until I see two weird blue fruits similar to those berries Katniss used a year ago, so I stare at them uncertainly.
"I wouldn't do that, if I were you" the voice makes me start so much that I stumble on my own feet. I finger my hip looking for the dagger and… oh sh**t, there isn't. a second after I realize I won't need it 'cause I remember this guy, it's Vaughn.
"they seemed cute"
"yes, if you like alucinating all day"
"do you speak from personal experience?"
"I'm not proud of that, but yes" his embarassed tone makes me laugh for the very fist time after I got in this hell. Taking a more detailed look at him I'd say he's not walking on sunshine. He's pale, with big bags under his eyes and half-ripped clothes.
"Where's your brother?" I obviously won't reveal him where we're hiding. I trust Vaughn, not so much.
"He's around here, safe" he catches my being vague so he changes subject.
"I assume you were looking for something to eat" he absent-mindedly points at the berries. I nod, sighing, I'm starting feeling the tiredness too.
"I can get you some fruit, if you want" I'm about to answer they're not for me and he doesn't have to bother when a a leaves stamping distracts us and Vaughn snaps like a cheetah, ready to attack. I hold my breath, hoping that it's not an unpleasent someone or we couldn't face him easily. The noise gets louder and Vaughn throws himself towards it. But when I see a half-blond head coming out the foliage I yell at Vaughn to stop him.
"Vaughn stop!, he's with me!" Vaughn gets cristalized where he stands and Finnick tries immediately to mask his scared look.
"Who the hell is this?" he asks me with his usual superiority attitude.
"he's Vaughn, Vaughn meet Finnick"
"oh you're the one who's been beaten by a girl before the Games, it's a pleasure" I turn around sneeking, he really deserved this one.
Obviously touchy boy doesn't hold his hand.
"Vaughn's helping me find something to eat" I explain him to justify his presence.
"oh how big of him. So with the right advice he could get rid of five tributes at the same time" resentment can be cut with a knife.
"actually I was trying to prevent her from suicide"
"it's weird that somene has to save you, isn't it sweetie?" hold me up, or I'll go there to strangle him. Who the hell does he think he is?
"I'm starting to regret I stopped Vaughn you know?"
Before he can reply another defeaning noise interrupts us, this time is squeaking iron. A coupl of arrows fly along, ending close to us, too close to us. I can bet my knife it's Brutus and Enobaria probably attracted by my irresponsible scream.
We fastly look at each other and then we start running like hell. I go first, Finnick follows effortly and Vaughn watches our back. We go on tripping over the arrows that keep falling until I feel my arm aching and then burning. I'm bleeding near the elbow. It's pointless to think about it now, I must keep running. I hear a thud and turning around I see Finnick leaned on a tree, worn out. I still haven't figure out what he's doing around here.
"Finnick we have to go"
"oh really? Sorry but I stopped to admire the landscape" says sarcastically. I come close trying to take him while Vaughn reaches us.
"go! go!" we go on for a little while, but Finnick can't do it, and honestly I'm out of ideas and I have no knives.
"Get away from here, I'll hold them up"
"It's dangerous Vaughn, or better it's almost a suicide"
"Go, Keira, I can handle this" says peremptorily. We hide behind a tree while he keeps going trying to carry the pursuers along making as much noise as he can. We see them disappear in the leaves, a while after the cannon plays. I'm frozen. The first thing my mind suggests me is to run to him and see if he needs help.
As I stand up a hand grabs me by the poulse.
"it's a great idea to offer yourself on a silver dish without weapons" I will never tell him he might be right.
"he almost saved our life, Finnick, I know what gratefullness is, I'm not you" the thought he died because of me is unbearable. If I focus on that, I will crumble, I'm sure.
"do you know what gratefullness is for in here?" I feel tears coming, and my legs are giving up, I could be responsible of someone's death, altough indirectly and he just wanted to help me.
"However it's your fault, as usual" he adds a moment after. I look at him in disbelief. He did not say that.
"what? You ate those berries and you're alucinating? What the hell are you talking about?"
"everything! You weren't back so I came looking for you, that guy almost killed me and I've been almost killed again five minutes later. Now it's dark, I'm hungry and I have no clue of how to come back to Katniss and Peeta. Is that enough? " while I'm thinking about insults I accumulate the last part of his speech and suddenly my stomach is gripped by fear. For a minute I had forgotten Andrew. I need to find him.
"We have to find them"I state as I try to move. He just shakes his head.
"how?" I nervously take a look around
"I don't know. But I can't leave AndreW" I have to take a deep breath and focus, or I'll get histerical.
"you'll have to for some hours. In a while you're not going to see where you put your hands" he leans his head on the tree and I feel his gaze as I rub my face.
"He's safe with them" says more sweetly. I think so too.
"maybe more than he is with you" he always has to screw it up. I ignore him and sit on the ground too.
"So what? We should just stay here?" he sighs closing his eyes.
"no, let's move there and wait for the morning" he points at somewhere further, it looks like a little groove. I'm not sure it's a great idea, those are the most probable places for traps.
"What if Katniss and Peeta came looking for us?"
"if they have common sense, they won't and they'll wait for us. We're not all like you who think you've momentarily moved to Fantasyland " I'm out of insults so I hit him on his aching leg making him moan. The problem is I get hurt too because my arm was injured. He stands up with effort and starts moving towards the groove.
"You sure it's a good idea?"
"as sure as I was when I said that letting you go was a terrible idea"
"You won't stop untile we're here, will you?" he raises an eyebrow.
"what are you referring to?"
"your hobby for insulting me" he shrugs his shoulders.
"you know, I think I'm just your scapegoat to hide your fear and your pain"
"thanks for the medical opinion, unrequiered" I laugh histerically.
"it doesn't take psychoanalysis to figure out your cockiness is apparent, and it's just a comfortable place for hiding yourself "
"Would you mind to sit down, bandage your arm and shut up? Thank you. And then don't say I'm rude" he slips down the wall and lies down again.
"They're not going to touch Annie, you know" he gives me a murderous look but he leans his head on his knees again.
"You're doing all this, would you mind leaving me alone? I'm pretty tired. , and who knows why, I'm hungry, too."
He venomously makes it clear. But he keeps annoying me a minute later.
"why don't you scream a little more? Otherwise Brutus and Enobaria won't be able to find us." He could have really spared this one.
"you're a d**k!. I saved your life, again" adding more would be a waste of breath.
"I'm actually too good with you. I should have got rid of you a long time ago, I would have spared myself a lot of chores"
I'm about to reply when I hear a whistle coming from the bottom of the groove, amplified by the walls and it's dreadful.
It's spontaneous for me to step back, there's nothing good to expect. Meanwhile Finnick stands up and braces himself with the trident.
"Get the weapons" I would, if I had them. Probably if I tell him so, I'm screwed so I just shake mi arms. He massages his temple.
"I'll shut my mouth, it's for the best" he hisses with anger. The whistle comes back, it seems a bird. As we move a little something black flies in front of my face overshadowing my sight. Once again I let out a scream and I'm forced to screen myself out with something that turns out to be Finnick's shoulder. A blow cleaves the air and that something falls on the ground.
"It's just a bat, Snowhite" says looking smugly at me. It does seem just a bat, I wouldn't rely so much of that, in here a simple leaf can turn into a breathing-fire green dragon.
"Stop playing the Superhero, your gooseflesh was visible from Oceania"
"you're not a superhero because you're not afraid rather because you manage to ride it out and act"
"ooh, now don't go philosophical on me" he half-smiles and gets back on the ground.
"That thingy must have terrified you to push you to take refuge near me."
"it has been a spontaneous reflex, calm down it shall not happen again"
"I guess it shall, instead. Unfortunately for me." Caught in a surge of anger I try to leave the groove.
"for God's sake. Grow up!" he grabs me back by the arm making me fall and then he manages to hold me in on his shoulder. I will never get him.
Sorry for running so late, hope you like it and hope it was worth it! thanks for reading :))