A/N: Let the games begin!
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Nate bolted from the platform and raced towards the bag closest to the woods. He knocked out the boy trying to claim his bag and sped away, putting the bag on his shoulders. He looked towards the Cornucopia for a moment and balked. Maggie ran towards it. She even beat everybody else there. She had managed to get her hands on a backpack and was already headed towards the woods when the others got there. Nate smiled as the blonde disappeared into the woods and looked towards his arrows again. Sophie had them in her hands and was already twirling knives she had found on the way. Nate growled at that and started heading towards her. He stopped the moment a knife almost clipped his nose and imbedded itself in a nearby tree. He looked back and noticed James had some knives too. Nate grimaced and immediately plucked out the knife thrown towards him. He ducked into the trees and felt something imbed itself in his pack. He grinned. He had another knife.
The boy from District Twelve moved deeper through the forest in a diagonal fashion to get out of the way. He had to find food and water. He could wait until later to search through his pack. He needed to separate himself far enough away from the Cornucopia. There was always a blood bath during the first day of the games. It was an unofficial rule. The more bodies dead on the first day, the less you had to kill later on.
Nate continued running for an hour before he finally stopped. He had successfully avoided the traps the game makers had put into the woods and was now far enough away from the Cornucopia to start working on survival. Water was now on the top of his list of things to find. The young boy found a rock and carefully set to work on finding out what he had for survival.
The pack contained a water bottle and the necessary iodine to treat it. That was good. There was a pair of sunglasses that did nothing to block the sun and nice windbreaker. A sleeping bag built for all types of weather was in there as well. It even had some dried fruit and nuts. The only thing he needed now was water and he would be set. The only set back now? His pack was orange and stuck out like a sore thumb. He shrugged. He would have to worry about that when mud was available. In order for that he needed water.
The boy from District Twelve took in his sights and focused on remembering the many ways to find water. He looked to his right and found nothing but trees and leaves. He looked to his left and found pretty much the same thing. He looked behind him and saw nothing that would help him locate his essential element. He looked straight ahead and blinked. There was an incline up ahead. It was suddenly and only people who traveled through the woods and hunted wood have seen it immediately. He grinned. Water flowed downhill and he was currently at the bottom of the hill. He was close. All he had to do was decide which direction.
Nate moved close to the hill and observed the blades of grass. He looked to his left and then he looked to his right. He observed the coloring a bit more scrutinously and groaned. He wasn't close enough to water to visibly see the difference and one wrong turn would be horrible news. He had to make a decision based on other signs. Great, this wouldn't turn out bad.
Oddly enough, it didn't. Nate had easily found a game trail towards the right of the hill. Nobody attacked him and it didn't take him as long as anticipated. The water was going to be the tricky part. He didn't know how far away it was from the hill and it was the one thing he wanted most. The heat from the sun had increased drastically every hour for the past five hours. If he didn't find water by nightfall he was as close to dead as he could be. His fatigue was getting to him too. Sweat from the heat, sweat from running, sweat from worrying about finding water; they were all contributing factors that were making him far more dehydrated than he needed to be. If one of the other tributes decided to pick him off, he'd be done in if they had a drink of water. Somehow Nate was certain that wasn't going to happen. The blood bath at the Cornucopia was a good distraction and all.
Nate felt his foot sink without his permission and felt the sweat increase because of it. He looked down and sighed in relief. His right foot had found water. The boy quickly yanked his foot out and bent down to take a sip. His hand pulled up short only centimeters from the pond. He looked around for any signs of predators lurking nearby then studied the pond. To an ordinary observer it was just a bit of freestanding water. To somebody who hunts for a living, it was a trap. There were no sounds emitting from the pond, no forms of bubbles, no movement whatsoever. There were leaves floating around and animal tracks weren't anywhere near it. The water even looked black. That meant only one thing. It was dead water.
Nate immediately jumped back from the pond and woke his mind up a bit. Dead water carried diseases and little to no oxygen. He learned this lesson early on in his hunting career. He had found a fallen bird. It had been baby mockingjay, coincidentally. It had fallen from its nest and broken its wing. The boy from District Twelve had scooped it up out of pity. His mother had just died and he found all things dying to be quite sad. He was going to save the bird, so he immediately thought about cleaning it off so it wouldn't attract prey. The boy had found a tiny pond not too far away and carefully set the tiny bird down. He scooped up some of the water without a second thought and gave it to the bird. The bird drank and as the boy started wiping its feathers it began to convulse. The bird's twitched and snapped and then suddenly stopped. Nate had tried to figure out why but the bird was perfectly silent. The boy cried when he realized the bird was dead and immediately went to bury it in the yard. The next day Nate had gotten sick and nearly died. Adrianne had made him take her to the source of water he drank from and he did. That was the day he learned what standing water could do if you weren't careful.
Nate smiled at his new discovery. This would come in handy when his enemies came by. The boy quickly ripped a small section of his shirt and carefully dipped it into the water. He dripped a few drops of iodine on the soaked cloth and immediately started using it to cool himself off. Standing ponds were bad to drink, yes, but they were great for cooling down, and they told you how close you were to drinkable water. The boy grinned from ear to ear. He was on the right path.
The boy started walking with more pep in his step. He was close and that was all he needed to know. Water was the most important thing in surviving the games. Once he found it, he would go from most likely to die to the most threatening tribute in the games. He was so close he could practically taste it. The trees and plants even looked greener. Hell, he thought he could even hear it. He could.
Nate's eyes grew wide in relief as he raced towards the source of running water bounding through the hills. He quickly jumped into the air and squealed like a little boy the moment the water was in sight. It wasn't a dangerous lake or pond where he would have to look for underwater predators. It was a stream. It was a wonderful, magnificent, gushing, moving, bubbling, beautiful stream. The boy quickly looked around for predators and then immediately got to work filling his water bottle. He dropped in the required amount of iodine and proceeded to smother his pack in mud while he waited. He gently sipped his water after the half hour was up and felt like a king. He found water. He found the only thing in the world he needed to survive the games. He was now the force to be reckoned with.
Now all he needed was food and a good night's rest. The boy looked up and thought about how far away from the stream he wanted to be. He quickly filled his water bottle again and decided he would take a chance by staying only a few feet away. It was safest to keep the stream in sight. Game would travel around it and he would always be near a water source. The tribute quickly set a trap nearby and hid his tracks very carefully. He pulled up towards the tree he decided to sleep in and began to climb. He quickly went to work on securing himself and the sleeping bag to the tree and waited. He carefully ate the dried fruit and took careful sips of his water. The sun was setting on the first day and the music of the games began.
Nate stared up at the sky in interest. The music stopped and the Capitol crest went up. It was time for the first few flashes of the dead to appear for all to see. The girl from District Five was the first image to appear on the screen. That meant none of the tributes in the first four districts died. Sophie, James and Marcus were still available to wreak havoc on his plans. Both tributes from District Six didn't make it through the blood bath of the day. Neither did the boy from District Seven and the girl from District Eight. District Nine lost both of their tributes today as well. And the little girl from District Eleven appeared in the sky. The Capitol crest flashed again and stars filled the sky. Eight, only eight tributes had died on the first day and Maggie was not one of them. His ally was still alive. That was all he needed to know. Tomorrow he would search for her. Tonight he would sleep.
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Maggie carefully watched the Careers from her hiding spot in the trees. Nobody could see her and that was why she had chosen it. She was high up in the trees well beyond where any of them could touch her, though she was certain Sophie had noticed her at least once during the day.
After the initial blood bath, the troupe of Careers had immediately set to work on setting traps and protecting their food. The girl from District Three was smart enough to dig up the mines used to keep the tributes from getting a head start. She had used this to convince the Careers to let her in their alliance. They did and immediately set to work on helping her organize the proper way to make the bombs hidden. They then worked on setting up camp and were just waiting until the sun rose again to finish with their bomb contraptions.
Maggie smiled at their little plan. It would only work for so long before they screwed up. Besides, the girl knew exactly where everything was and she had plans. She had originally tried to steal the arrows at the Cornucopia but Sophie had been faster than she expected. Maggie had to run into the woods and settle for the supplies and knives she had. The group of Careers and other poor saps helping them had no idea she had hidden so close to the lake. Sophie, James and Marcus had left with a couple of their pawns for a small hunting party. They wouldn't be back for a while so Maggie was free to observe the proceedings for as long as she wanted. James and Marcus had both already started fighting over Sophie just like Nate had planned. Unfortunately Sophie intervened by explaining her plan for getting rid of Nate. They listened and decided baiting him would be more interesting than deciding who would get Sophie. Maggie sighed at the strategy. She had really hoped Sophie was going to join them instead. Oh well, Maggie was going to do everything in her power to keep Nate alive. She had a plan.
It was the perfect plan. She was going to steal food off of them while she waited for Nate. Then Nate would come and lead her to the other source of water. They would hunt game and gather some plants and not have to worry about the other tributes for a while. She just needed to get his arrows.
Now where did Sophie put them?
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Nate awoke at dawn to a canon firing off. He opened his eyes and twisted around to see if the death happened anywhere near him. There were no people nearby and no signs of life anywhere. The boy sighed in relief and started to observe his tree high surroundings. The twig he had used to alert him of his trap was gone. The boy smiled at this news. He was hoping for some breakfast. He quickly gathered his things and untied himself from the tree. He put his sleeping bag into the pack and waited. He saw no signs of life around him and quickly climbed down his camping spot. He quietly walked towards the trap in hope for a rabbit.
There was a body swinging in the trees exactly where Nate had set his trap. The boy held back a gasp as he took note of the figure he had killed. It was the boy from District Five circling around the tree. His eyes were blessedly shut but there was no mistaking that he was dead. The trap snapped his neck.
Nate stared at the body and allowed his mind to think of how it happened. The trap was meant for a rabbit or other portion of small game. Even if the boy had stepped on the trap it shouldn't have killed him. It would have snapped his ankle, sure but it wouldn't have killed him. So why was the boy swinging lifeless on the rope. The answer came to Nate far too quickly than it should have. The boy from District Five had fallen into the trap. The ground near it had many rocks and the leaves showed signs of a slip. The boy from District Five had been walking through the woods without being careful where he stepped. He was doomed the moment he started walking from wherever it was he had been. It wasn't really Nate's fault the boy had expired. If anything, he would have died a slower and much more painful death. At least this one was fast.
Nate cut the boy down from his trap and gently placed him on the ground. All sounds of birdlife stopped and a hovercraft appeared in the sky. The boy from District Twelve waved towards the peacekeepers and quickly made his escape. Nobody needed to know that he took the boy's pack.
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Nate wandered around the forest in search of his ally. His stomach growled and rumbled in distress and the boy immediately moved behind a tree to keep a cover in case somebody heard it. In the other tribute's pack he had found some biscuits that he immediately ate for breakfast, and that was a good six hours ago. He found another windbreaker and an extra sleeping bag in there too. The other tribute's pack had been a mixture of greens, blacks, and greys to begin with so the boy from District Twelve traded out his stuff and placed them in the better camouflaged one. He even had an extra knife. But food was becoming the most important thought of the day. If he was going to survive in the game much longer he needed to find a weapon to hunt food. He wouldn't admit it out loud but he was frightened of setting another trap. The District Five boy's death was an accident but it was his trap that did most of the work. Nate didn't want to set anymore unless they were absolutely necessary, and he had his bow and arrows.
A loud snap of a few twigs alerted the boy to more people. Nate immediately looked around for a tree big enough for him and climbed it. He was sitting comfortably on the branch of an oak when the source of noise appeared. It was a small hunting party composed of four Careers and the one remaining tribute of District Eight. Sophie was among them.
Nate watched in amusement as they all quickly organized themselves into a nice little camp. They had plenty of weapons for skewering unsuspecting tributes and enough food to last their campaign a few days. Marcus and James were working on building a fire. Well, they were arguing about building a fire, neither one of them actually seemed inclined on actually doing it. They were too busy trying to be the better man in Sophie's eyes and that was his doing. Sophie wouldn't be able to control both of them when one was always going after the other. The boy from District Twelve had to clap his hands over his mouth to keep from laughing at their squabbles. The boys from District Two and Eight were busy keeping guard. Sophie was ignoring the squabbling alpha males and walking around in search of something. She paused for a moment around where Nate had only just gotten rid of his tracks. She looked around and dropped to her knees for closer inspection. She shrugged and moved behind a tree close by. She must have needed a bathroom break. She was the only girl in their hunting party after all. That was probably to ensure her safety too. If anything that would have gone against Sophie's plan. She would be more effective at the camp where she could do the most damage. Nate turned away from where she disappeared to and watched her allies closely. The fire was finally started and the guards were getting restless. They all looked like they couldn't stand each other's presence, but the moment Sophie came back into the clearing they were all smiles instead of the merciless growls from before.
Nate stared at the beautiful girl from District One in surprise. He had never expected this kind of twist. She was good. She was very good. She had managed to successfully fool most of the male tributes for the other districts into trusting her. She might have even got some of the females. The young man from District Twelve chuckled at this new information. He was right about his greatest opponent from the get go. Now was his chance to be rid of her once and for all.
"Boys," Sophie chimed towards the small group with just the right touch of worry in her voice, "I think I heard something in the woods not too far from here. Could one of you be a dear and check it out?"
There was a tiny argument over who should go and Nate rolled his eyes. They were tripping over each other to help her and had no idea just what kind of danger they were in. Marcus and the boys from District Two and Eight were finally chosen to check things out. Nate prepared his knife for the moment when the kill would be in position. The group of boys left the clearing and her fellow tribute from District One was the only person left with her. The knife began to rise into the air when an odd crack startled everybody both seen and unseen. The crack wasn't normal. That crack meant something was hunting.
Nate looked around his tree in the hopes of finding a way out. He wasn't going to take the chance that the thing hunting wasn't a muttation. Muttations, mutts as they were fondly called by most of the citizens of Panem, were known as being one of the game makers' favorite toys during the games. They were always vicious and did everything in their power kill off more tributes. The boy quickly looked towards the bottom of his tree for an escape. And that's when he saw it. The bow and arrows, his bow and arrows, were sitting just out of sight of camp. He distinctly remembered Sophie was the one who stole that away from the Cornucopia specifically to hinder him. Then it hit him. The flattered boys striving to help her were useless in the things she didn't know. They were targets. He was the ally.
Nate couldn't understand it. He was the one who caught onto her game and embarrassed her. He was the only one who saw through everything she was up to and challenged her on it. Why would she want him as an ally? It didn't make sense. But it did. He was the only one competing at her level. All the rest were too busy figuring out how to survive the first day while he and she were figuring out how to survive the whole thing. Even her fellow tribute was nothing compared to her. James was trained for battle but he wasn't trained for survival. Sophie was the first tribute in her district not replaced by a volunteer because they all wanted to see what she had spent her life doing. It was the perfect plan.
"Alright," Nate sighed at what he was about to do. "I guess we'll be allies." he somersaulted off the branch just in time. The beast on the prowl landed in the middle of the clearing just behind James. It was a mixture of a lynx and a bear. It probably had some other kinds of cat in it but those were the dominant features. The guy from district one had no idea what was behind him. Obviously the girl knew what she was doing when she chose her ally.
"Hey!" Nate called out at the top of his voice while he rolled over his bow and arrows to pick them up. "Want to play with me instead?"
"What?" James turned around to attack the other tribute when he finally took notice of the big animal behind him. "Damn!"
"Follow me!" Nate proposed with a quick arrow whizzing towards the creature's hide. The arrow bounced off as if the thing was made of rubber. That was new, but it got the creature's attention. It was now heading straight for the guy with the arrows. Me and my big mouth, Nate thought in anger as he started zipping through the woods with the mutt skipping behind. It was playing with him, great.
"Hey, big guy!" Sophie hollered from up above. How did she even get up there? "Having fun?"
"Any time now, Sophie!" Nate called back as he picked up pace just a little bit more.
"Boo!" Sophie retorted as she quickly leapt onto the creatures back and used her knife to kindly slip its head off. She lightly used its tumbling dead weight as a graceful way to the ground. She looked like a ballerina successfully completing the last scene of a big number. "I see you got my message."
"Stealing the bow and arrows was a nice touch," Nate nodded at the comment.
"Let's make it official," Sophie extended her hand with a charming smile they both knew wouldn't work. "Allies, then?"
"Allies," Nate agreed with a gruff squeeze of her hand. They both knew he would win if she betrayed him any time soon. It was the best strategy they could make at this stage of the games.
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A/N II: What I said about standing ponds is actually true. If you see a pond of standing water that looks black and has no tributary streams or bubbles in it stay away. Dead ponds grow germs and cause you to vomit and other nasty things. Too much of it can kill you but if you are suffering from heat exhaustion it is safe to use as a cooling agent on your skin. Even with Iodine its deadly so use as little as possible and don't drink. Believe it or not this information made me freak out when Katniss fell into a pond after she burnt her leg. I was all, "Oh crap she's in a standing pond and she's going to get sick and die that way!" I was very happy she didn't.