A Dangerous Game

Chapter Seven: The Sun In The Sky

By mid-afternoon, the three were simply too exhausted to continue. With the comfort of knowing that there was probably a reasonable amount of distance between them and the other tributes, they stopped on top of a hillside. From this vantage point they could see all around them, but could not be seen themselves due to the thick tree coverage.

Blaine collapsed on the ground next to his sister. "What do you have in that backpack?" he asked Kurt.

Kurt sat down on the grass, glad to be off his feet. He set his swords on the ground, swinging the backpack onto his lap. "Let me see. A water bottle…" he lifted it to his lips, then shook it, a very annoyed look on his face, "it's empty."

Blaine groaned. "That's useful."

"A pocket knife, a blanket… I'm not sure what this is but it stinks," he flipped over the packet, looking at the label, "ah jerky, alright. Dried fruit and matches."

"Something at least," Blaine said, twisting the grass around his fingers.

Chelsea had her back to a tree, her chin resting on her knees, "I'm thirsty."

"I know," Blaine said gently, "We'll find water, I promise." The sun was high in the sky, and despite being in the shade of trees, it was unnaturally warm. Kurt looked especially effected, sweat thickly covering his pale skin. He had his head resting between his knees and looked somewhat nauseous. "You okay?" Blaine looked at him worriedly.

Kurt gave him a small smile, "It's just really warm, I'm not used to it. It's never warm in District Eight." He sighed, "We should get moving again." He got up reluctantly, and as Blaine noticed, unsteadily.

"You're sure you're going to be okay?"

"I'm fine, Blaine!" Kurt snapped, instantly regretting it. "I'm sorry," he said, taking Blaine's hand and squeezing it gently, "I'm just tired... and stressed."

Heat seemed to radiate up from the ground, and the longer they walked the more it became obvious that Kurt was not as well as he claimed. He was trailing along behind the others, and eventually, Blaine and Chelsea had to slow to his pace. "Blaine, I feel dizzy," it was barely more than a whisper, Kurt's voice dry.

Blaine stopped, by his side in an instant. He placed a hand on Kurt's forehead; it hot and his skin was slick with sweat. Kurt grabbed onto Blaine's arm using it to steady himself. "Sit down for a while," Blaine said, easing Kurt onto the ground. Kurt nodded, instantly regretting it as it made the pounding in his head slightly more noticeable. "We can't stay here for long, but you can rest for a while, alright?"

Kurt made a quiet sound of agreement in the back of his throat.

After about ten minutes, Blaine was becoming increasingly uneasy. He was convinced that every little sound was a tribute about to attack them. "We have to keep moving," he got up, trying to pull Kurt to his feet.

"I can't, I don't want to move." Kurt whined.

"No, come on." Kurt groaned as Blaine helped him to his feet. Kurt leaned on Blaine, his arm around his shoulders. By the time the sun was setting, lighting the sky a colorful array of red and yellow, Blaine was practically carrying him. The effort of supporting Kurt along with carrying the weight of the backpack, combined with the heat and lack of water, was starting to get to Blaine. Chelsea seemed to be fairing best, although repeatedly complaining about being thirsty.

They were following a path alongside a mountain, when Kurt tripped, slipping from Blaine's arms. "I can't go any further," he said weakly.

"Alright," Blaine said, kneeling next to him and rubbing his back lovingly, "I think I saw a cave a while back, do you think you could make it there?"

"I think so…" Kurt murmured, grabbing onto Blaine shirt to pull himself to his feet. Every movement he made left his muscles feeling like he had just run a marathon. The cave Blaine had noticed was about a ten minute walk back. The three stumbled inside, refreshed by the cool shade. The little light that remained in the sky was enough to see that the cave was about ten feet deep, and thankfully not the lair of any unsavory creatures.

Kurt sighed as he laid back on the cold stone. Blaine would have snuggled in next to him, but knowing that the last thing Kurt needed was extra body heat, he settled for lying about a foot away. He rested his hand on Kurt's chest, comforted by the feel of Kurt's heart beating.

Chelsea claimed the backpack, using it as a pillow and spreading the blanket on the floor. She curled up on the blanket like a cat, falling asleep almost instantly.

Blaine stayed awake long enough to see the faces of the fallen tributes be projected into the sky, both out of respect and to know who remained. After Panem's anthem, the faces were shown in order of their Districts. The first to be shown was Sugar Motta from District One. Then Jacob from Five. The next face was the young girl from District Six.

"What's her name?" Kurt whispered. Blaine looked over at him, having thought that he was fast asleep.

"Sunshine, I think," Blaine said. He brushed Kurt's hair off his forehead, "You should be sleeping."

"I will." Kurt assured him, "Lay with me?"

"It will be too warm."

"Please?"

Needing no more encouragement, Blaine moved over. Kurt rested his head on Blaine's chest, sighing.

Sunshine's face vanished and was replaced by Matt Rutherford's, then Rory and Artie. The Capitol's crest hung in the sky for a moment, accompanied by insultingly cheerful notes, and then vanished, sending the night into darkness.

Kurt smiled, "Rachel's okay. She made it through the bloodbath."

"We could have allied with her," Blaine yawned.

Kurt paused for a moment, "We agreed not to, we didn't want to see each other's deaths."

Blaine was silent for a few minutes, "I see."

"You're different," Kurt explained, looking up at Blaine, "I couldn't imagine not spending every moment I can with you."

Blaine smiled, kissing Kurt gently. "I love you."

"I love you, too."