Katniss's mouth is open wide, staring at her mentor with a broken expression. She hugs Cato tighter to her body and buries her face against his hair. She's practically folded her body around his. Finnick has let go of Syra and has dropped down to his knees beside the two of them. He looks up at Haymitch, looking just as desperate as Katniss.
"There must be something you can do! He's not dead yet!" He yells at Haymitch. Haymitch takes a step backwards, at a complete loss of how to save this kid.
"Haymitch, please!" Katniss screams at him.
"Stop shouting at me! Just stop it, kid!" Haymitch shouts at Katniss, who jumps at the sound of his furious tone. Haymitch rubs his hands over his eyes and then, he seems to get an idea. He grabs the detachable sleeve and rips it off his arm and throws it to Finnick, repeating the same gesture with the opposite arm. "Put that on his shoulder and the other on his back. Syra, start a fire." He instructs. It takes Katniss a moment to realize his plan. Her had snaps up and she begins shaking it violently. Haymitch snarls at her.
"You asked me to do something and this it kid! I'm sorry it's not the best thing but it's the only one we can do at the moment so roll Cato on his back right now." He snaps at Katniss. She knows he's right. So she and Finnick roll the large boy on his back. Finnick still has the fabric pressed Cato's shoulder, but it's soaked through now. He shudders at the hot liquid soaking his hand.
Syra has managed to make a small fire with the dry leaves she has found. Haymitch takes Cato's sword, which Finnick had grabbed before he ran off the island. He places the tip of the sword into the fire and waits until it begins to radiate a soft glow. He turns around and looks at Katniss. "Cover your ears, sweetheart." he says softly.
He presses the hot steel against the wound in Cato's shoulder. Cato's eyes shoot open and he releases a deafening roar. He hunches into a ball, trying to stop the pain from shooting through his body. Finnick and Katniss grab his arms and pin him down while Haymitch quickly cauterized the other wound on his back. The sickening sound of hot metal against skin makes everyone shudder. The smell that accompanies it is repulsive.
Cato is gasping, but alive. He's on his hands and knees, but still manages to keep himself up. He looks up at Katniss, who is on her knees in front of him. "Are you okay?!" she asks him, desperately looking for a sign that we wasn't about to drop dead. He looks up at her and smirks.
"Sorry for scaring you, sparky." He says to her.
She smiles... But then her face grows furious. Her hand flies up and slaps him so hard he looses his balance and topples right on top of Finnick. They both groan as they land on the ground.
"Don't you ever do that to me again!" she screams at Cato and then she wheels around on her heel and begins stalking off into the jungle.
"Where are you going?" Haymitch yells after her.
"To find a fucking mango!"
That night, Katniss sits against a tree, still grumbling to herself about Cato. She knew she had absolutely no right to be mad at him, what happened was most certainly not his fault. But he scared her, he scared her a lot. And that gives her a right to be pissed at him for a while. Haymitch is fast asleep a few feet away from her, his arms wrapped around a water bottle like it was a whiskey bottle. Finnick is staring at the sky, because the image of Mags had just appeared. She feels terrible for him, but there's nothing more she can do. She turns away and finds herself looking at Cato, once again. He's asleep and Syra is sitting beside him. Her fingers hover over his chest, but then she allows herself to run her fingers through her hair.
Okay, what the hell is on the go between the two of them? She's noticed the little glances, the way the would brush up against each other. But what she's noticed the most is how Syra refers to Cato as Cayson.
She gets up and walks over to them. Syra immediately pulls her hand away and wraps it around her leg once again. She doesn't look at Katniss when she sits down.
"How are you doing, Syra?" Katniss asks quietly.
Syra shrugs before answering. "I've been better. How about you?"
"The same," she responds. There's an awkward silence before Katniss opens her mouth again. "Listen, I need to ask you something. You keep calling Cato by a different name. Um, Cayson? Can I ask why?"
Syra stiffens, refusing to meet Katniss's eyes. "He was my boyfriend. He's dead now." she spits out. What Syra said is the truth, but not the whole truth. Cayson wasn't just her boyfriend, he was her husband. They got married when they were just seventeen. They even had a little boy named Landon. Only a few months after Landon was born, Syra got reaped. She knew Cayson wanted to volunteer with her, but he couldn't leave Landon. So Cayson made her promise to return to him no matter what the cost. He made her swear. And she kept her promise. She did return, but the price of her victory was high. Almost immediately, Snow sold her into prostitution. He told her that if she didn't do every single thing the client wanted that there would be severe consequences. She knew he wouldn't be joking about something like this, despite the fact she prayed he was. However, there was on client who was so repulsive and disgusting towards her that she just couldn't do it. She ran from the building and stayed in the shower for hours; trying to scrub off the dirt the man left on her skin. When she emerged from the shower, her skin raw and bleeding, she got the news that her husband had been killed in an accident in District 9 when one if the large silver barrels that held the grain had been knocked over and he had been crushed underneath it. And when she went back, she found out that Snow had taken her baby as well. Alive or dead, she has no idea.
Syra looks down at Cato, who looks so gentle when he sleeps. Just like Cayson. He even had the same blue eyes and blond hair; it's like a spitting image.
"He's just like him, Katniss. I know he cares about you... But I'm not going to give up without a fight, girl on fire," she snarls. Katniss looks alarmed at the sudden change in her demeanor. Syra looks at her, her dark hair falling in front of her face and her eyes just a little too blue for her skin. She's glowing. "I've been in this game a hell of a lot longer than you. I will get him, mark my words! He'll be mine!" she says, laughing as she speaks.
"He'll never be yours!" Katniss snaps at her. She doesn't know if Syra is completely sane, but she hates the way she talks about Cato likes he's some sort of object.
"Oh, my darling. He already is mine. He was from the moment I laid eyes on him."
Katniss feels her blood boil, but then something grabs her hand. She looks down to see Cato staring at the two of them. He slowly sits up and wiggles out of the middle of them. He looks very nervous.
"Stop this now. None of this shit matters, do you guys understand?" he asks, his tone low and angry. Katniss nods and then rises and leaves, embarrassed that she allowed that to go that far. She hears Cato murmur something to Syra and then he gets up and follows Katniss.
"Katniss, wait-"
"Do you want to tell me what exactly is going on here? Why is she still with us?" she whispers angrily.
"Kat, there's something wrong with her. Listen she's not right in the head. I've seen it up close. It's too dangerous to leave her alone right now, because she goes insane. It's better to keep an eye on her-"
"How have you seen it up close?" she interrupts.
He lets out an annoyed sigh before answering. "Does this really fucking matter?"
"Yes! Answer me!" She snaps.
"Fine! Fine, Katniss! I slept with her, alright? I thought it would only be a one time thing but it wasn't. I didn't plan on finding her here, but we did. So there, are you happy now?"
She swallows and looks down. She feels... Shitty. Really shitty. Of course Cato would go with her instead. Of course he would.
"Talk to me, Katniss." Cato says quietly.
"Why her? Why not me..." she asks him. She's not crying, she won't cry over something so stupid. She just thought she and Cato had a special bond.
"I didn't go after her. But I went with her because I was worried and sad... I was a lot of things. You're too special to me to do something so disgusting to you. Or at least, not now... I was scared of losing you and if I did that to you I thought I definitely would. I was just confused. I still am! This shouldn't even be a topic right now! Look where we are!" He exclaims. He searches her face, to see any emotion or sign of what she's feeling, but as always, she's well hidden. He sighs and put reaches up to rub his face with his hand, but the sudden movement causes him to be painfully reminded of the wound in his shoulder. He lets out a hiss of pain and lowers it. A pair of soft hands takes his forearm and holds it still. She takes a step forward and looks up at him with those sparkling grey eyes.
"I know you're right that this shouldn't be a topic and it won't be after tonight, but I just want to tell you that... I would never leave you. Not after everything we've been through." she whispers. He sighs, relieved at her words. He leans forwards and presses a kiss to her forehead. They stay there for a while, but then decide it's time to return before Haymitch comes and hauls them back to the camp by their ears.
Finnick takes a sip of water, allowing to to swish around his dry mouth before swallowing. He has never been more happy to have water in his life. He sees that Katniss and Cato have returned. Haymitch has awoken just in time to send them a little glare, but now has rolled over and gone to sleep again. Syra is sitting beside the fire and seems to be doing something with her knife. He sits up to take a closer look, and he nearly chokes on his water. She's taken the knife and has made a series of cuts along her forearm, each one a little deeper than the one before.
"Fucking hell, Syra stop!" He shouts and runs forwards, grabbing the knife out of her now limp hand. Cato has grabbed her by the shoulders and is holding her tightly. She isn't looking at any of them, she's just staring at her feet. Haymitch has woken up again and is now grumbling about the idiot girl.
"Oh my God," Katniss moans and covers her mouth. She rips off one of her sleeves and presses it to the cuts on her arms. She glances at Cato who only shakes her head. Syra's head snaps up and she stares at Finnick.
"Can I go home? I want to go home now please." She says. She sounds like a child asking their parent.
They were right, she's not right in the head. She's lost her mind.
She starts thrashing around in Cato's arms and starts screaming, begging to go home. Finnick quickly covers her mouth, trying to muffle the screams. However, underneath his hand, he can make out a few words.
"I'm tired, Finnick. I'm so tired and I want to go home now!"
But then something loud, very loud, makes them all look up. It sounds like a loud rumble. They wait, everyone tense, even Syra has stopped crying. After a moment nothing has happened, but then something explodes through the trees. A huge, scaly creature that looks to be like a-
"Dinosaur?!" Cato blurts out.
Finnick nods. They've all learned about dinosaurs in school, but for obvious reasons no one has ever really seen one alive. But this thing definitely looks like one. Everyone is standing stock still, refusing to even breathe.
"Haymitch, what do we do?" Katniss asks him, still staring at the huge creature.
"Run!" Haymitch yells, grabbing the water bottles and then bolting down the pathway back to the beach. Finnick and Katniss run after him, followed by Cato who is still dragging Syra. But she stops, ripping her bloodied arms out of his grasp. She looks at him with bloodshot eyes and shakes her head.
"I'm tired, Cato. I'm tired. I don't want to run anymore. I'm tired," she chokes out. She grabs Cato and kisses him, but very gently this time. "Thank you for everything. Thank you for making me feel wanted again. Go now! Go!" she screams at him.
"But-"
"No! Go, please!" she screams and shoves him down the path. Katniss is waiting for him and grabs his hand, making him run the rest of the way. He only looks back once, just as the creature is stopping behind her. She has her eyes closed and she has a smile on her face. He closes his eyes before he hears the powerful sound of the creature's jaw snapping shut.