Chapter 11: The Most Beautiful Girl
After escaping the bloodbath a little too easily, Rosemary continued to run for her life, sprinting as far as her legs could carry her. She didn't realize how fast she was running, or how far she had actually gone, but all that mattered to her was getting as far away from everyone else as possible. She ran so far and so long that by the time she grew tired and her body forced her to stop, she was almost on the other side of the arena. Seeing the edge of the arena, she decided that she was a good enough distance away from anyone and allowed herself to sit down for a moment. Her legs sore and feeling like jelly, she nearly flopped onto a large boulder near the river. She rested her dual swords beside her as she opened the backpack and began searching through it, glancing at each item for a moment before placing it back inside the backpack. She found a piece of flint, a small, thin tarp, a soft, wool blanket, an apple, and a ham sandwich. She nodded in approval at the contents of her bag, satisfied with what she ended up with. Her stomach was growling with hunger, so she figured she'd eat the sandwich now while she was taking a break. She munched on her sandwich thoughtfully, as her mind reflected on her interview, training, all the way back to the reaping. She thought about how Hamish eagerly shook her hand, and then how he smiled and winked at her after her interview. Her friend Priscilla, as well as some of Hamish's friends even, claimed that Hamish had a crush on Rosemary, but she always brushed it off and dismissed their words as rumors. She never saw any signs of Hamish having any interest in her, unless she was subconsciously ignoring them. But now here they were in the arena together.
A tracker jacker's nest hung from a nearby tree while she devoured her food, not to her knowledge. Feeling better after eating, Rosemary decided to grab her stuff and keep walking to find additional food and a place to sleep. She came across a tree with unusually colored berries hanging from some of its branches, when a tracker jacker flew out from the comfort of its nest and towards the District 12 girl. Rosemary noticed the mutt's presence when it buzzed and flew around her face.
"Ack! Hey go away," Rosemary said, swatting at the tracker jacker and yelping in pain when she felt it sting her arm. "Ow!" The tracker jacker continued to hover over Rosemary's head, but she broke into a run and it flew right past her. Luckily the mutt wasn't following her, but she kept running anyway just in case, when suddenly her vision became blurred and distorted. She saw her surroundings in different colors with an animated twist before everything was replaced with a black and white fuzzy pattern that appears on a TV screen that isn't working. Rosemary could barely hear herself groan as she gradually became delirious. She didn't even bother to register the pink elephant that randomly pranced by because she knew what was happening to her. She could barely make out her own arm in front of her when she pulled out the barbed stinger, mentally cursing herself for not being observant enough to notice the tracker jacker nest. She needed to find the leaves to treat herself, and fast, but her vision was starting to blacken. Instead she dropped to the ground and passed out in a small patch of assorted wildflowers.
"Silver, are you sure this is a good idea?"
Now that the bloodbath was over, Diamond and Silver were sneaking back into the Cornucopia to claim food and a few supplies for their little camp (wherever it was going to be). With them out of the woods, the sunlight glistened on their blonde hair, producing a glare that could have blinded anyone. Cyrus was standing proudly on top of the golden structure, looking out across the arena and eagerly watching for tributes to slaughter.
"Yes. We have to do it," Silver answered, the two of them hiding behind the Cornucopia and checking to make sure the coast was clear. "We need supplies if we're going to survive in here."
"But why do I have to go in too?" Diamond whined, as the two inched closer to the mouth of the Cornucopia. "Can't I just wait back there or something?"
"No. I need you to help me grab stuff," Silver replied, rather harshly. "Besides, you'd probably do something stupid to get yourself killed."
"Hey!" Diamond cried out in protest, but Silver rolled his eyes and ignored her. The District 1 duo stood on their toes as they crept inside the Cornucopia, watching Cyrus and hoping he wasn't looking their way. They prayed that the District 4 male wouldn't notice them as they bent down and began gathering backpacks and bags of food, Silver even picking up an extra axe. After a minute or two of digging around for stuff, the siblings carefully stood up, both of them carrying armfuls of necessities and other supplies.
"Okay, I think we have enough here," Silver said, scrutinizing the items in Diamond's French-manicured hands. "This stuff should last us for a few days, and when we run out, we'll just make another trip and come back for more. Now, let's go." Diamond nodded, and the two of them gingerly stepped over other supplies as they tiptoed out of the Cornucopia, holding on tightly to their stuff.
"Hey! What do you think YOU'RE doing?!" Diamond and Silver froze in place, and slowly craned their necks to see Cyrus glaring down at them, arms crossed in a huff. The pair of siblings just as slowly turned back to each other, exchanging worried glances.
"Oh crap," Silver said, his and Diamond's mouths agape in shock. "He saw us." Sword in hand, Cyrus jumped off the Cornucopia and charged at the District 1 tributes.
"Run!" Diamond shrieked. They accidentally chucked some of their things in surprise as they took off running, screaming their heads off while Cyrus chased after them. With only two backpacks and the additional axe between them, Diamond and Silver kept running long after they escaped into the woods, though Cyrus had stopped once they disappeared behind the trees. Deciding that his control over the Cornucopia was more important for now, Cyrus let them go and returned to his spot at the top of the large structure, grinning smugly at having scared them away at least.
Meanwhile, Regan had run off to clean her blood-stained spear in the river after the bloodbath. With her weapon fresh and clean and ready for more battle, Regan returned to the Cornucopia to find Cyrus chasing away the District 1 tributes, who apparently had snuck into the Cornucopia to take more supplies. Regan hid behind a boulder outside the woods to avoid losing her own control of the area, though she giggled at the backpacks and other supplies that were lying around after Diamond and Silver dropped them. Regan had to admit - they were stupid, but they were pretty funny. She was sure both Capitol and district residents alike were finding them entertaining. She did at least. Even though Cyrus went back to hanging out on top of the Cornucopia, Regan decided to stay away from it for a little bit to avoid getting caught herself, so she leaned back against the side of the boulder and thought about her next move.
The District 1 tributes were obviously allies, and seeing them together reminded Regan of something. She needed an ally. At least while there were still quite a few tributes left in the Games. She should probably find an ally now before everyone paired off or grouped up, but who could she work with?
As much fun as the District 1 siblings were to watch, she knew their stupidity could lead her to trouble, so that wasn't a good idea. Cyrus would kill her if he saw her, so that was out as well. Regan remembered that the District 4 girl was still alive, but she dismissed her as well for being on the weaker side, thus eliminating any possibilities of a Career alliance. Regan thought about a few other tributes, only to rule them out as well, when it finally hit her.
Caius.
Caius. Of course! Who better to trust than your own district partner? Sure, he was her ex-boyfriend, but he was by himself too, so forming an alliance might help them to survive - maybe win. She just had to find him. She saw him leave the Cornucopia when the bloodbath ended, but where he went, she didn't know. She thought back to the bloodbath as she played it out in her mind. When it was over, she was hiding in the Cornucopia when she caught a quick glance of Caius before he ran off, heading east.
That's it! He went east. Perfect. Now knowing where she had to go, Regan strapped on her backpack and picked up her spear, ready to head off and look for Caius. She left her hiding spot and ran around the Cornucopia, too fast for Cyrus to spot her, before running into the woods on the east side of the arena to begin her search. Her ponytail bounced behind her with every step as she ran deeper and deeper into the forest. She darted past trees and bushes and searched every open and hidden space, eager to find Caius.
Speaking of Caius, the District 2 male was running in the heart of the woods, stumbling around in the dark due to the trees blocking off the sunlight. He could barely see where he was going, and he didn't even know where he was. He guessed that he was about halfway across the arena, judging from the distance from there back to the Cornucopia where he started. He continued running, until he felt himself lurch forward and fall. He had tripped on a log and rolled down a small hill, landing roughly on his stomach. He grunted and mumbled an "Ow", as he pressed down on the ground and pushed himself to his feet. A tad sore from the fall, Caius decided to slow his pace as he continued walking, when he saw the smallest ray of light poking out between two large bushes. Caius strolled over and pushed past the bushes, revealing…
More bushes. And trees. He was still in the forest, but the small light from the surrounding force field indicated that he had reached the edge of the arena. Caius wanted so much to try and disable the force field so he can escape the arena, but he remembered how the District 3 male attempted it the year before and was electrocuted to death as a result. So Caius decided against the idea and settled for walking along the arena's edge as a safer alternative. He probably wasn't tech-smart enough to know how to do it anyway. Caius walked a few yards west, when he heard soft breathing sounds. Caius stopped in his tracks, startled by the noise but curious about its source. He stood there motionless, listening for the sound despite the fact that it was barely audible. Caius guessed it was snoring, but to him it also sounded like panting or sighing. Either way, it meant one thing. Another tribute was nearby.
After lingering on the sidelines during the bloodbath, Caius realized that this was his chance to make his first kill in the Games. Caius had long resolved to fight it out in the arena on his own - after all, only one tribute will come out alive - so whoever it was, Caius was going to kill them on a sneak attack. The quiet sounds Caius was hearing grew louder as Caius walked a few feet, pulling out his bow and an arrow as he drew closer to whoever it was he was about to kill. The adrenaline began pumping with his blood as he took aim, his eyes darting around in search of his target. Caius slowly turned his head, and he saw a body lying motionless, save for the rising and falling of their chest, on the ground. He pointed his arrow at the sleeping tribute as he took another step forward for a closer look. However, he wasn't ready for this after all.
Lying there, sound asleep in a bed of wildflowers, was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.