Flashes of Gold

Chapter Twelve | Down the Mountainside

There is a certain beauty that thuds it's way into lonely hearts. It wavers through the windows the branches form and dips into the crevices of the roots. It is carried upon the soft swell of a songbird's lullaby and is concreted in the delicate way the breeze shifts through overgrown grass. For me, it is a beauty that is transient and always moving, like the rush of emotion from a face that is slowly blurring from my perfect memory.

I can remember neither the exact planes of his cheekbones nor the captured flashes of gold that the sunlight steals from his hair. I cannot see the affection dwelling within darkened eyes nor the tiny hint of a smile edging off of stoic lips. What I can see is the back of Samuel Hayes' head as he trudges along in front of me.

My hands are bundled up in the loose pockets at my side, but there isn't any reason for them to be, for my fingers are still frigid and feel like ice has seized them. My face, usually arranged in a mass of determination, is set similarly as I stare fixedly ahead. I can feel my sword dangling at my side, but it offers me little comfort. There is nothing that can relax my taut muscles or calm my frayed nerves; nothing except escaping from the invisible ties that keep me bound to this sorry group of Careers.

We've been walking all day, and the sun is only just beginning to set. I can't feel my legs because the cold has long since gotten to them. Earlier that day, we were ambushed by a crazy tribute who seemed to have been waiting to die in the snow. When he saw us, he ran at us sloppily and met the end of Samuel's knife. However, Sam didn't get away completely unscathed and the dead tribute managed to cut him a bit before Sam got the upper hand.

This is ultimately good for me, but I have no idea what my plans are for ditching the Career Pack so the knowledge of Sam's injury is useless at the moment. I just keep walking, eyes darting ahead of me while I try to keep my company in mind. I'm slightly behind the group, so I can study them without them knowing. I look for weaknesses, observe the way they walk. I like to think I'm doing something productive by trying to know my enemies, but at the end of the day, I feel as caged and helpless as ever.

"You should get that cleaned," I nod at Samuel's bleeding stomach. We've found a mountain stream a few hours prior and followed it down here. Our camp is snuggled into the side of the mountain, as we're still making our downward trek into the forest below. Luckily, the weather has gotten slightly warmer and the water isn't frozen, so we can refresh ourselves,

Sam is sitting with his back against a tree, looking at the sky. For a minute, I think he's going to ignore my words, but then he says, "Hmm. You should clean your leg."

I scoff, but don't respond. The infection has been spreading with every passing day and I'm getting worried that by the time this is all over, I won't be able to use it at all. The medicine from the Careers don't seem to help much, though I've tried everything. All I can do is wait it out and pretend that it doesn't bother me, because I don't want to give the Careers that satisfaction.

I spread out my leg and copy Sam's position against a different tree. The other boy tends to the fire, which he managed to strike up a few minutes prior.

I watch the others fall asleep and keep my eyes resolutely open, unable to allow any vulnerability whilst around them. But even after my endeavors, I slip into my nightmares a few hours later, finding no peace in sleep.

The morning light comes as a mixed blessing. I'm happy to wake before the other two, which gives me time to tend to my leg and eat. There's this strange, ominous feel to the air that prompts me to hurry. I've been with the Careers for two days now, and its two days too much.

I take the time to wash out my hair in the stream before the others awake, because I feel so dirty and grimy. I take off my shirt and pants and slip into the water wearing my underwear. Though I have no soap and the water is absolutely frigid, it still feels nice to get a bit of the dirt out of my skin.

I don't linger long because I want to be ready to move before the Careers are. When I get out fifteen minutes later and put my dirty clothes back on, the sleeping tributes are starting to stir.

Sam is on his feet by the time I enter the clearing. There's an untrusting look in his eyes, and when he speaks, he practically barks out, "Where've you been?"
But I just raise a brow at him and shrug, "Taking a bath." My answer doesn't seem to placate him and his anger is rather frightening to me. I try to keep my cool as he wakes up his other friend, but the fright has turned to churning worry and even a bit of realization, and I can't help but lose the calm façade.

"I think we've let you live for long enough," Samuel tells me, eyes burning into mine and daring me to move. I do, swinging my hand to grip the hilt of my sword…only to find the place where it hangs is empty, and I'm clutching at nothing.

I jerk my eyes to my side and realize that I must have left it at the stream. I'm furious at myself. That was my only weapon and now I've foolishly lost it. The other Career is tossing Samuel his knives and has gained a dangerous edge to his gaze. As they slowly walk towards me, I'm struck with that stupid fight or flight thing and again, I lean toward the latter.

I fly off in the opposite direction, eyes wide as I maneuver through the trees. It's a downward descent that has me tripping every few feet, but I'm doing better than the other two, who are cursing and stumbling twice as much as me. This is a wooded area, without a whole lot of snow, and I'm used to the plunging tree branches and the twisting, gnarled roots.

My feet pound beneath me, matching the erratic beat of my heart as I tilt downwards. I almost feel as though I'm really flying, because each step I take makes me tumble into the air before landing back on the soles of my feet.

The terrain is intense and wild, rocky and woody at the same time. There are little cliffs that suddenly appear and force me to jump them. Its dangerous. I fall more than once, tumbling down a few yards before I can surge back onto my feet. Try as I might, however, I can't seem to shake my two followers. Every second wasted glancing behind makes me more worried about what will happen when we come to the bottom of the mountain.

We're nearly there when suddenly, someone shouts from behind me. I hear Sam's voice call the boys name and I can't help but look back. It's only for a fraction of a second, but it's enough to see the flailing arms of the Career as he trips and plummets down. The momentum of his body overcomes even my speed and I have to jerk out of the way to allow his passage. It's just in time, because I've reached another little cliff and I have to force myself into a stumbling halt as I watch the boy hurtle off the edge of it. He probably could have made it, but he didn't stop. I cringed as I listened to his descent, knowing there is no way he could cushion his fall.

For a moment, I forget all about Samuel Hayes. But then I'm twirling around, gasping at the stitch in my side from all the running, and looking up into the panting face of my enemy…who is both furious and vengeful.

So I guess I owe you guys an apology for not updating in what seems like forever XD I'm sorry! After I got my new laptop, I sorta lost inspiration to write this. But I'm back on track now and I'll be updating more frequently. I'm hoping to update at LEAST once a week but it'll probably be more than that cause I want to finish this story. I've also been working on a new HaymitchXOC story if any of you are interested :D

Ok...onto the reviews

IDeamtOfHim: no, you're not going crazy...or well, maybe you are now since I fail at updating lol But I'm glad you liked chapter 11 and hope you haven't given up on me

FoxxyNekos: Glad you like the story! I'll let this much slip: Wren will definitely survive. How could I kill her off before writing her reunion scene with Evon? lol

ImmortalDarkness101: So for some reason, I can't write fanfiction unless I'm in my room...xD I updated on the office computer but since I seem to be mentally troubled I couldn't make myself write haha

Haryuku Flavors: Thanks! Actually, the main reason I started writing this was because I wanted to try out present tense. I'm happy my writing style doesn't suck as a result lol

Luli Cullen: Don't worry! XD Now that I've updated I'll definitely be more inspired to keep going~ Thanks for the review

And thanks to everyone else who reviewed that I might have missed! Thanks for reading~