Chapter 3

Previously on The Hunger:

"Why are you here?" Cato calls out, his voice easily making its way across the meadow. He rolls his shoulders, unfurling away from the Cornucopia. He takes a step towards the Careers, attempting to mingle an air of confidence into his perception. This comes off as arrogance though, making Glimmer lift her bow to her shoulder again, her eyes shooting daggers towards him. The boy clears her throat, his eyes twitching from Glimmer with her bow to Cato, who's obviously the appointed leader of the Careers. He straightens his back, endeavouring to make his expression as fierce as possible. He will not be denied. He just hopes they see that.

"I'm here to join you." Peeta calls, his voice silencing the Careers instantly.

And then all Hell broke loose.

-x-x-x-x-

Peeta's knew it was a stupid idea to come to the Careers. He knew it was simply moronic to attempt a real conversation with them. If he had thought about it properly, maybe he would have realised they were going to kill him the second they saw him enter the clearing. But of course, the stupid kid that he was, was thinking with his heart; he was thinking for Katniss.

Because the only way to protect her was to be with her biggest threat. Katniss was strong, stronger than anyone he's ever met; stronger than anyone in the Games, with the exception of the Careers. This was exactly why he had to get in with them. He had to follow them around, make sure that they keep away from his love; he had to keep Katniss, at all costs.

And he was not doing this for Cato; he refused to acknowledge the tiny voice in the back of his mind, the voice that steadily grew the longer he was around the taller blonde. He refused to listen to its argument, when it whispered just how Cato's muscles would ripple beneath his own body as they move in sync, pleasure cursing through each of their bodies. Peeta bites down on his tongue, repressing a shudder as he remembers where he is. No, he's here for Katniss and only Katniss. Katniss is the only person he wants, she's the only person he's ever wanted.

Then why, when he simply glances at Cato, do shivers of longing dance along his spine and light his skin into a radiant blush?

The boy pushes his enquires into the back of his mind as he steps forward from the Cornucopia. He's been standing there for the past ten seconds but he's not a moron; he's sure that the Careers have heard him. His stomach twists awkwardly when he sees the blonde he lusts after standing before him. Before he can say or do anything he might regret though, the other one, the girl from 1, lifts a silver bow and is about to point it towards the baker's son before another voice calls across the clearing.

"Glimmer." Cato murmurs. It's a quiet sound, but it's enough to send shivers rippling down Peeta's spine. He hears the authority behind the words and the girl, Glimmer, obviously does too. Her expression twists with hatred as her eyes narrow on Peeta, but she leaves the bow to hand at her waist. Peeta sucks in a deep, slow breath, hoping it to be as subtle as possible. He doesn't want the Careers to see his nerves; he doesn't want them to know how much he doesn't want to be here right now.

"Why are you here?" Cato calls, wary intrigue growing in his expressions. Peeta rolls his shoulders back, hoping to appear as confident as possible. Apparently his confidence comes off as arrogance though because Glimmer lifts her bow to her shoulder, tugging on the string. The silver glints in the sun, flashing directly in Peeta's line of sight. The blonde clears his throat gruffly, fear twisting into his blood stream. He glances up, his eyes falling between Cato and Glimmer. It's obvious that his blonde (his? Where did that come from?) is the leader of the group, but Glimmer seems to be Peeta's biggest threat currently. The artist settles his eyes on the taller of the blondes, his expression finally succeeding in his attempts to appear confident.

"I'm here to join you." He calls. The Careers go silent and for a tense moment, nothing happens.

And then all Hell breaks loose.

Glimmer is the first to react. A sharp scream builds in her throat as she pulls back on her bow. Expert fingers twirl against the silver and Peeta crouches in a lucky and completely instinctive duck just as the already-prepared bow whistles over his head. His stomach drops and his eyes widen, the realisation of just how idiotic this plan was finally settling in.

Peeta's ears are filled with screams, each of them saying similar things.

"He's here for her!"

"You think we'd actually believe you?"

"Now why would we ever want you with us?"

Peeta twists his body in awkward positions, his body turning him into a human pretzel as bows, knives and spears whistle against him. Once or twice a knife even nicks his skin, slicing his arms shallowly. Blood drips into the grass beneath him, joining the bodies of the other dead tributes from the blood bath. The Careers obviously haven't left the clearing yet, meaning there's been no chance for hovercrafts to come in and dispose of the bodies.

In all of the madness, the only person to remain somewhat calm is Cato. The blonde's eyes have glazed over slightly, but if you looked closely enough you could see the fear that nestled into the very back of his mind. His ears block out the battle going on around him, tuning him into white noise. Everything in his line of vision is blurred, all but Peeta and the flashes of scarlet that pepper his skin. It isn't until Clove throws a dagger alarmingly close to Peeta, slicing into his cheek and starting a waterfall of blood is it that Cato reacts.

"Enough!" the blonde screams, his voice echoing throughout the clearing. Glimmer and Clove hiss in unison and keep a strong grip on their weapons, but they cease fire anyway. Peeta, with his hand bloody and hugging his wounded cheek, flashes his sky-blue eyes towards the head Career, shock clearly visible in his expression.

Cato's face crumples into a scowl and his eyes narrow on his fellow Careers. Despite what everyone thinks he does not like the spotlight. He doesn't like having all eyes on him just so he can speak. He's perfectly fine with fighting in front of people as an example, but he strongly dislikes speaking. Cato glances around, his crystal eyes twirling from Glimmer to Clove. His nose wrinkles impulsively as he takes in the two girls but he curls two fingers towards himself, gesturing that they come closer. The two frown but they follow as he unofficially has asked.

Everything stays silent and perfectly still apart from Cato's two biggest admirers gliding across the clearing. The girl from district 4, the boy from district 3 and Marvel keep their eyes narrowed on Peeta. Marvel's grip on his spear is shocking and slightly terrifying. It's enough to make Peeta's eyes move from staring at Cato to the spear, fear cursing through him. Would Cato say anything if Marvel were about to kill him? Would Marvel be punished for defying their leader? Is there anything to stop Marvel from throwing the spear right through his broad chest? Peeta supresses a shiver, longing to look away from the spear but he simply can't. It's like seeing a bad car accident; it repulses you but at the same time you just can't look away.

Clove and Glimmer reach Cato on the edge of the clearing. Clove has her arms crossed over her chest, her expression crumpled like that of a child who hasn't gotten the toy that they had wanted. Glimmer's eyes follow Cato's body, attempting to read his body language and understand why he didn't let them kill the baker's son. He hadn't objected when they killed the eleven other tributes earlier that day, the ones that still lay dead at their feet, their blood dripping from their bodies and seeping into the mud. Cato's eyes are on Peeta, assuring himself that his other Careers wouldn't dare so much as touch Peeta while he's distracted. Once he's positive that the blonde is safe from harm his gaze turns on the two girls who pine for his affection.

"Are you two complete and utter idiots?" He spits, venom dripping from his tongue and his eyes narrowing on them. Glimmer shifts her weight uncomfortably under the glare of her lover, but Clove simply straightens her back further, tossing her nose in the air with pride. A low growl grows in Cato's chest that causes Glimmer to take an involuntary step back. "He'll know where she is. He actually wants to work with us." He rolls his eyes, shaking his head. Blonde locks flop into his eyes but he quickly tosses them back, annoyance growing in him. Cato makes sure his hair is always immaculately styled, even now while he's in the Games.

"But Cato," Clove begins, arching a sharp eyebrow as her dark eyes connect with the icy stare of Cato's blue ones. "How are we supposed to believe that? I'm not saying you're wrong so don't look at me like that. I'm just asking how we know that the kid isn't just playing with us. For all we know, he's here on her orders, specifically to spy on us." Cato presses his lips together, frustration growing when she doesn't see the obvious answer.

"He's here alone, Clove." Cato remarks, drawing a long eye roll from the heavily muscled blonde. "If he was here with ulterior motives he wouldn't have been stupid enough to come alone. He knows that we can kill him, that his life is at risk every moment that he's here. I don't care how much the kid apparently loves that skitch, there's no way he'd be out here risking getting killed gruesomely for her. Plus she's not the type of person to ask anyone to risk their life for her. She's too proud for that." Cato's eyes narrow at their idiocy and he shakes his head.

"What if she's hiding then, genius? Then what?" Clove's eyes narrow sharply on him, huffing quietly. She hates being proven wrong more than she hates anything else in the world; even worse than she hates the Girl on Fire.

"Use some initiative. Again, she wouldn't let anyone risk their life for her and of course I don't think lover boy would be all that delighted about letting his girlfriend get too close to her biggest threat in the Game." The boy's expression turns into a dark scowl then his lips twist into an amused smirk. "But Clove, didn't you say she didn't get away with any weapons? Are you scared of, what, her bare nails? Her teeth? Her overwhelming strength?" He chuckles quietly, obviously trying to spite the girl. It works, her eyes flashing darkly before she hisses at him. She opens her mouth to retort but Glimmer instantly steps in, sick of their bickering.

"Fine. But why would we want lover boy with us anyway, Cato? Sure he's gone some muscle, but it'd be more worth it to just kill him now and make sure he doesn't get his hands on an axe or something else easy to manoeuvre so long as you have the strength."

"He can lead us to her. Imagine how it would look if lover boy tore the Girl on Fire apart himself, his fingertips dripping with her blood?" The blonde's eyes flash dangerously, a sick arousal growing in the pit of his stomach at the image. Peeta's eyes would glass over momentarily before giving himself in to the darkness. He would take Katniss in his arms, asking for comfort. He would proclaim that the Careers had hurt him, that they were after her. He'd beg for one final embrace before they both see the hooded eyes of death. The girl would comply, fear shaking her to her bones as she wraps her arms around his. Peeta would press his lips to her ear gently, whispering that he loves her just for the camera, before plunging a sword into her back. The silly girl would gasp with shock and pain, her eyes flashing open as she pushes the one that she thought loved her away. Peeta would chuckle slowly, his fingers gripped tightly around the sword he jammed into his love's back. Blood would coat the skin at his hands as he pushes her to the ground, her blood seeping into the ground beneath her. Fear and confusion would gloss her features as the boy reaches down, his bloody fingers wrapping around her neck with the intention of crushing her windpipe, ending the life of the Girl on Fire forever.

Cato shudders faintly, his grin growing. He understands that it's wrong, that he shouldn't long for it, but oh he does. The image burned into his mind, Peeta gloriously dark with his former love's blood dripping from his fingers and pattering against his strong thighs, it sends shivers up along Cato's spine. The idea of Peeta fulfilling such a wicked fate makes his member twitch, longing to take the other blonde as his own.

"I guess." Glimmer murmurs softly, waking Cato from his perverted daydream. "So we accept him? We treat him as our own? And then we force him to end her life? How…entertaining." The blonde's lips twist into a sick smirk, her eyes flashing with a growing excitement. Cato grins and Clove simply can't help it. Her lips twitch impulsively into a dark grin.

Cato represses the sigh that grows in his chest as her turns to face Peeta. Relief rushes through his body that he simply can't stand. Sure, he wants the boy, but he's never felt this protective, not over anyone. He's never lusted over someone so much. With everyone else Cato has been even remotely attracted to he's never cared for the person themselves. With Peeta… Cato would feel at a loss if he ever lost him. He wouldn't know what to do next, knowing that he never got the chance to be close to the blonde. Knowing that he never got the chance to feel their bodies pressed against each other, their heart thrumming in passionate synchronisation, he'd fall into a black abyss, nowhere to go next.

The other blonde shifts awkwardly under the glare of his crystal eyes. Cato's lips twist into an impulsive smirk as he steps forward, arrogance radiating from his aura causing everyone in the clearing to shiver. Peeta, though he feels fear rippling through him, is the calmest member in the clearing. He stands upright, his eyes boring into the steely blue orbs directly across from the clearing. Everything in the clearing is silent and everyone stares towards Cato, the muscular blonde internally squirming under the weight of everyone's gaze.

"Welcome to the jungle." Cato calls, his voice reverberating throughout the clearing. A shadow falls upon his sculptured face as his eyes bore against Peeta's body.

-x-x-x-x-

AU: Thanks so much to everyone who's been reviewing! This is my first time writing Hunger Games fanfic and I'm glad to feel a real connection to the story. I've decided that I'm going to update once weakly with this and another one of my fanfics. (If you're a Morganville Vampires fan please check out Second Life, Second Death) Updating should be a lot more structured now and I'm going to get a chapter up every weekend. If all goes to plan a new chapter of The Hunger should come out every Saturday, usually at night but sometimes earlier if I've pre-written it. Please keep reading, I'm sure you'll love it :D

So even though this chapter is kind of average in length it doesn't really tae all that long in real time, for which I apologise. But next time we'll skip straight to where the Careers kill the girl who lights the fire near Katniss. Not really sure what else happens after that. If anyone has any ideas would you please either post them in a review or PM me? I'd appreciate it c: