All I can see is an ocean of blood.

All I can hear are screams begging for mercy.

All I can feel is hatred.

All I can taste is blood.

All I can smell are roses.

In the midst of battle, I see a familiar blonde head bobbing up and down as he runs towards the woods. But something seems to be holding him back.

Peeta stops halfway, and sprints back towards the Cornucopia.

What is this boy doing?

As he runs back, I can see Vailea inside the horn, grabbing an array of knives as she approaches the male tribute from District Seven and slits his throat. He barely had the chance to scream.

She smiles malevolently, and stabs him once, twice, three times more, as if he wasn't dead already, before kicking him off to the side.

It makes me sick. I have now realized how evil and merciless my female tribute is. How could I have forgotten about her? Surely she will do anything that she can to get home, to avenger Tristan's death, to kill Peeta.

I watch as she kills off three more tributes by either slitting their throat or cutting open their limbs. I want to vomit. But I know that I can't leave, not without knowing that Peeta's safe from the bloodbath.

Where is he? I lost him after I focussed my attention on Vailea.

Then I see it.

A blonde boy, lying on the grass, in a pool of blood.

I look at Haymitch, and he is passive, almost as if he doesn't care, but I know that he does.

I can feel my hot tears brimming in my eyes, clouding my vision. No, he is not dead. I refuse to accept it. He can't be. He can't. He can't. He can't.

But he is.

I bring my head down to my hands, and let the tears fall, I failed. I failed to achieve what I planned, I failed in saving him.

The boy with the bread, has burned to a crisp because of my own fire. President Snow got what he wanted, Peeta tortured, and in the beginning, dead. But I know that he will have an uprising on his hands because he let this boy die. He will pay for this, and I will make sure to be the one to make him suffer.

Then I hear the scream of the little girl from District Eleven.

This snaps me back to my senses, Peeta isn't the only one here that needs to get home, there are children here who are innocent, just being forced to play soldiers in a game of chance and luck.

She is being held down by the girl from District One, Glimmer her name is. She is tracing her face with a knife and is laughing at the young girl's tears. Such an evil persona, hidden by such a pretty face. But her beauty is fake.

Little Rue is crying, her tears are progressively being stained by her blood. Glimmer teases Rue by dangling the knife in her face and saying, "Mommy had a little lamb, who was killed in the slaughter."

My stomach twists by how repulsive this scene is. And now, Glimmer is no longer beautiful.

Suddenly, in a quick flash, Glimmer is ripped off of Rue and in her place, lies a familiar face.

Peeta.

He's alive! The other boy must've been another tribute! My heart soars with relief, but instant guilt follows it, I was celebrating the death of an innocent boy, somewhere, a family is in grief.

Peeta begins to help Rue to her feet, but Glimmer approaches them from behind with her knife in hand, insanity clouds over in her eyes, hatred for the boy with the bread.

I cross my fingers and beg silently, Peeta look behind you.

As if he heard me, he turns around and tackles Glimmer to the ground, they're on the grass struggling, both of them wanting control. Peeta shouts at Rue to go, to get away from the Cornucopia. The ferocity in his voice is overwhelming, as he struggles on the ground. Rue seems to hesitate, not wanting to leave the boy who saved her life, I think he has a knack for saving lives.

But she runs, she continuously stumbles and falls, but she manages to hide in the sanctuary of the woods.

However Glimmer and Peeta continue to struggle, until a moment of vulnerability on Glimmer's side gives Peeta the edge to immobilize her. He snatches the knife that was thrown from her hand when she tackled him and he stands over her. He's in the perfect position to kill her, to be one step closer to returning home.

But instead, he turns on his heels and runs into the woods.

"Why did he do that?" I ask Haymitch.

He gives me a knowing smile and shakes his head, "He's too good, too pure, it might just be his downfall."

I know that this is true, if he doesn't kill anyone, he won't deliver a good show, which means no sponsors, and it completely defeats the purpose of the Games.

I see him trek through the woods, only armed with a knife with no supplies, but I constantly find myself wondering why he turned back.

"Why do you think he turned back Haymitch?"

"He told me that he formed a bond with that little girl, and he promised to protect her at all costs, they aren't allies, he just said that if she needs him and he is available, he'll help her out. And I guessed that he stayed true to his word."

I nod my head, maybe if he kept his promise to Rue, he'll keep his promise to me, that he'll come back.

But my heart aches at the thought that Peeta coming home means that this little girl would have to be dead.

He escaped his first obstacle, the bloodbath, but even when he's out of it I still keep an eye on it, because Vailea is still there, fighting.

Hours go by, and Peeta is still walking. He is looking progressively dehydrated, he slows with every step that he takes. His eyes are beginning to droop with fatigue, but he keeps going.

The initial bloodbath is now over, and there are fourteen cannons that boom in the air. This is a record, the numbers for a bloodbath aren't usually this big. But then I remember that the Careers this year are big, buff and strong.

The Careers are making camp, laughing because of the kills that they made, the crimes that they committed which are acceptable in this society.

Then I see someone that I didn't expect accompanying them. Vailea.

This was her plan. It's perfect. Obviously the Careers are mad at District Twelve for stealing the show, and even more mad at Peeta for blowing the interviews out of proportion. And since Vailea is vicious, I bet it didn't take much for them to agree for her as an ally. I bet she even made a deal of helping them find 'Loverboy.'

I take a glimpse of Glimmer and I find red marks streaking across her face down to her neck, it must be when Peeta and her were fighting. I then look at the screen that shows Peeta and I too notice similar marks adorning his body, but I also notice a number of bruises that Glimmer didn't fancy.

Night falls, and Peeta hasn't found water yet, but he settles in a shrub of bushes, camouflaging himself in them. It's amazing, I can't see him at all.

I can hear the sponsor tablet ring.

The sponsor tablet is given to each District, two per District. They're supposed to alert us when a new sponsor decides to take upon our District and it also accounts for the amount of money that they are worth during the duration of the Games. It can either increase or decrease depending on whether a sponsor withdraws or not.

The night anthem plays and I can see the girl from District Three, both from Four, the boy from Five, both from Six, the boy from Seven that Vailea killed and the girl, both from Eight, both from Nine and I notice that the blonde boy that I saw is from District Nine and both from Ten.

And to think, these fourteen kids were alive this morning.

I can see Peeta shift in his sleep, but the thing is, he isn't sleeping. I can still see his blue eyes staring at the sky, as if trying to get the images of the deceased etched into his mind.

I can barely hear him whisper to the sky, "I'm so sorry."

I stay awake watching Peeta sleep and Vailea hunt for tributes. I do not get a wink of sleep, nor do I intend too. I refuse to miss a second of these Games, it is necessary that I know what is happening.

Peeta gets a restless sleep, he dozes off once in a while only to wake back up.

Soon he gives up and watches the sky once again.

The night drags on, it seems endless. Haymitch is asleep on the little bed at the back of the room. Effie has gone back home for the night.

I think about the tributes that died, and I realize that all of the tributes of Johanna and Finnick are gone. They won't have anything to do so I know that they'll be visiting me. I know of another person that will want me to visit, President Snow. He will surely talk to me about lying in front of the nation saying that Peeta and I knew each other before. But it wasn't an entire lie. The thing is, I was never liked before, not as a tribute, not as a mentor, before Peeta came along. But still, he is what put me on the map, and surely, they will believe him over me.

I hear rustling and twigs cracking near Peeta's shrub of bushes.

My heart stops when I realize that Vailea and the Careers are barely a meter away from Peeta.

Ohhh nooo! Do I smell trouble brewing? ;) Well we'll find out next chapter! I altered a couple of deaths, I know it's different, but hey! It is a new set of Games! :D