Short chapter, sorry :(
Two words: School. Sucks.
Shard was awakened by a sharp prod in the side. He looked up into two calm yellow eyes.
Snarling, he leaped up. He tensed his muscled, bared his fangs. The feather from the day before lay on the ground, fragile spine crushed under his paws.
"Calm down, you idiot!" Growled the intruder. He dropped a small heap of stone onto the dusty ground. "Great Lupus, you'd think you'd be happy to get a sponsor gift!" Shard looked interested, relaxing his muscles. "It's from another Tribute's family," The wolf explained. "she's from your district. You remember Sylvia?" Shard's eyes widened. "That's her father that sent this,"
Shard dipped his head, thanking the wolf, who slipped away. He looked at the heap of stone, thinking of Sylvia.
Laine's eyes flashed under the darkening sky. At his feet were two items: a small silver trap, made of wire, designed to catch a wolf's paw in its vine-like loop, and a large pile of herbs.
He picked up the trap in his mouth. He didn't really want to use it. No, not at all. He decided to save it, use it when he needed it.
A strong gust of frigid wind ruffled his fur. He shivered. A leaf blew from the neat pile of herbs, and he watched as it danced swiftly on the breeze, spinning aimlessly like his thoughts.
He flicked his ear, thinking of the black she-wolf in the bushes. He had let her go, let her live. He shouldn't have. Careers aren't supposed to save lives. But he couldn't bear to think of the fact that he could have killed her. She had understood. He had seen it in her eyes. The small spark of understanding, the flame of sympathy. He would rather be there, wherever she was then, than safe with these Careers.
Sarahi appeared suddenly, pressing against him. She shivered.
"Laine. Its cold and it looks like rain," She said softly. "We should find a shelter."
He nodded slowly.
"Sarahi's right," Livadi growled. "Maybe we should set up a fort in the old fox den. I saw it on the way here, its barely an hour away,"
"Margo, you get the nets and fill them with the rest of the supplies. We can't leave anything behind," Sarahi ordered sharply.
"And who died and made you alpha, Sarahi?" Growled Margo, challenge lacing her tone. Sarahi snarled, shoving her face into Margo's and baring her glistening fangs. They were pearly white, except for a small splash of blood. She swept her tongue over the fang and peeled her lips back.
Livadi looked on, trying not to bristle. "We won't get anywhere by fighting, okay?" She snapped. "Just do what she tells you for now, okay, Margo?"
Margo snorted, but shuffled over and began to fill the nets with prey.
"Aamu?" voice barely a squeak, Adine tried to sit up. She looked around. She was surrounded by moist, splintering wood. It smelled of mold. A sticky paste of leaves was plastered to her shoulder. Stale bloodscent filled her nostrils, as well as the harsh, heavy scent of another wolf. Adine shivered. She was alone in the cool darkness of the morning, but she knew that someone had to be nearby. Their scent was fresh.
A large gap in the side of her shelter let a thin stream of dawnlight filter into the small space and warm her fur, just slightly. She lay her head on her paws, dizzy.
"Hey," A soft voice whispered, and suddenly something blocked the light. Adine jerked her head up, eyes wide and frantic. She started to shake uncontrollably.
"Calm down. If you move, you're shoulder wound will split again. And I might not have the proper herbs to save you again. Hold still."
Adine couldn't. She was shivering and twitching and whimpering, fear taking over and leaving a frozen feeling deep in her chest. She let out a thin wail.
"Shh. If you cry, the Careers will hear you. Now be quiet and sit still. I'll be back in an hour."
Delaney shook her head as she exited the hollow tree. She had never been good with pups. Maybe it was the fact that she had never had a mother, or at least a kind, loving one, that made her so bad at mothering. She wanted to take care of the pup. She certainly didn't want to let it die! But it was already afraid of her. She frowned as she sniffed the air. Where was Sylvia?
Sylvia was nowhere near Delaney or the Career pack. She was lost. She didn't know where she was, or how she had gotten there. When she turned, all she could see was forest. The different trees had no meaning to her. They were just trees. She was sure the wolves from Packs that were centered in forest land recognized trees. To her, though, a wolf that came from wide expanses of grassland with very few trees, just saw trees. In all directions! She looked up, craning her neck to see the sky, and a freezing… something…landed on her muzzle. She yelped, startled, but realized that it was about to rain, and hard.
She knew a lot about rain. It was hard to escape in the large expanses of meadow she lived in. But they had fire where she came from, and freezing to death was a very possible thing in these games. But, even if she had flint to start a fire with, she would be found by some careers or something.
She shuddered. This arena was simply a pool of misery.