I know it took me quite a while to publish but I had trouble deciding where to stop and etc..
If you guys are observant, you already know what will next chapter be; I've been dying to vwrite it since the beggining! :D
Anyway, enjoy!
Chapter 12
He doesn't have to tell me twice; I'm already on my feet, knives strapped in my belt. I take a look around us while the others are getting up.
"Well, look where we should start!" I smile pointing the forest.
Up above the tree tops, a light drag of smoke is floating in the sky.
"Wait; is there really someone stupid enough to set a fire by night?" Marvel asks
"I guess!" I answer enthusiastically.
Suddenly, the anthem plays, booming from everywhere at the same time and Panem's seal is shown in the clouds. We all stop, watching the face of the fallen. I smirk seeing the boy from 6, the girl from 7 and the boy from 9 I already finished with my very own hands.
"C'mon let's move on" Cato seems to have nominated himself leader of the Career pack. Well, not for me.
"Let's separate. One group approaches the campfire by the left on the other by the right." Did he really think I would let him decide of everything? Plus, my idea is great.
He looks at me, judging me but not so surprised, and then smile.
"Fine. I take Clove with me, you guy stick together" he tells the others. Anyway, Marvel is stuck to Glimmer and Naisha seems to adore her so we don't have to wonder any longer how to divide. "Do you want to come with us?" He asks Peeta. His voice sounds so much like a threat that the other stutters, visibly not at ease about going with us. "That's what I thought, you go with them"
Marvel's face is priceless as his eyes get wider from surprise and disagreement, but he doesn't dare to provoke Cato and he grumbles, probably cursing us when Peeta limps in his direction
Though we still have a hundred yards to roam all together, the groups split without even a word, just like a mutual agreement.
"Three kills on first day, unh?" Cato says. "That's impressive Sweetie"
I almost forgot what it felt like to have Cato saying such things. Our last days' exchanges were rather tense and now, once in the arena he seems to find his marks, allowing himself to play this little game again.
"Statistically, four"
I expect him to hit me, like he did with Marvel not ten minutes ago, but the opposite happens. He laughs.
"Sarcastic, lethal little Clove"
"I'm not little!" I hiss. Barely a few seconds speaking and he's already getting on my nerves. I notice we're entering the forest now, but I can still see Cato's smile shine in the dark. How could I have been glad he talked to me again?
"Then why am I able to do that?"
He catches my wrists in a gentle yet firm way and pulls me closer to him. I see him smiling and the worst is that I know I can't escape. I think about my knives, only a few inches away from my hand and so elusive. I hate feeling trapped, especially by Cato.
"See Little Lamb?"
I growl and struggle and he doesn't let me go, probably not even consider this option. Instead, he leans forward to my cheek. I shake vigorously my head to avoid the following.
"Touch me and I'll cut your hand in your sleep"
His laugh is multiplied by his proximity and despite of all my efforts, I feel his lips on my cheek. I break his hold on me and take a few meters of advantage, getting away from him.
Why did he have to ruin my perfect day?
I hate how weak he makes me feel, both mentally and physically. As much as I dislike how easily he can control me, there is always something, a nice feeling running through my veins when he behaves that way; because though I know it's all an act -it can't be anything else- I don't despise so much having him pretending he cares.
Fortunately, I am drawn out of my cheesy thoughts by the glow of a campfire; guess we just arrived at destination.
Cato lurks behind me.
"Will you dare to pretend you didn't enjoy it?" I'm glad he's muttering because the cameras are likely to be focused on us and I don't want the whole Panem to hear him.
"Not even pretending"
"You won't be able to lie to yourself for so long Little Clove"
I sigh and luckily he sees the other half of the Careers, standing a few yards away from us. They spot us too and with a nod, we run towards the fire. This tribute's already doomed; it will be funnier to watch it with a little impact.
The look on her face is unforgettable. She's so terrified when she sees Marvel and Glimmer she actually tries to run away, straight towards Cato and I. She screams as he sinks his swords through her stomach and calmly pulls it out, letting her crash on the ground, spasms shaking her body.
"I wanted to kill her" I hiss
"Maybe next time Sweetheart" he brushes my cheek with his thumb.
We depart from the corpse and stop our track in a little clearing. We sit down and just stay there for a while, sitting in circle.
"Shouldn't have we heard a cannon by now?" Naisha asks in a little voice.
Damn, she's right. The forest is still quiet from our arrival until now. Cannon should've run off.
"I'd say yes."Marvel stretches out "Nothing to prevent them from going in immediately"
"Unless she isn't dead" I point
"She's dead" Cato growls "I stuck her myself"
"Then where's the cannon?" I ask
"Someone should go back. Make sure the job's done" Glimmer suggests
"Yeah, we don't want to have to track her down twice" I mock. I can see he's angry but something tells me he would not hurt me the way he did to Marvel
"I said she's dead!" He barks.
"Poor Cato, are you upset we don't trust you killing abilities?" I tease him
"Seems like your fighting skills got a little rusty" Marvel links up
"Shut up! Do you want me to show how not rusty I am?" He shouts, getting up, hand on his sword.
"We're wasting time!" Peeta breaks the fight "I'll go finish her and let's move on!"
"Yeah, go ahead!" I sigh. Is he seriously killing this girl? Coming from him, sounds more like he's going to try and save her.
No one speaks until we're sure he can't hear us anymore. Glimmer is the first to break the silence
"Why don't we just kill him now and get over with?"
"Let him tag along. What's the harm? And he's handy with that knife" I bet Marvel only contradicted her to annoy her.
"Besides he's our best chance of finding her" I add.
"Why? You think she bought into that sappy romance stuff?" she asks
"She might have" I continue "Seem pretty simpleminded to me. Every time I think about her spinning around in that dress I want to puke."
"Wish we knew how she got that eleven" Marvel grumbles.
"Bet you Lover Boy knows" Cato says, watching the dark forest behind us where he has gone."Was she dead?" he asks when he comes back
"No. But she is now" he says as the cannon fires "Ready to move on?"
We go back to the camp where we decide who will take the first turn of duty. As I'm not really tired, I offer to stay up.
"One is not enough, someone else?" Marvels says. What an idiot. My brain is twice as big as his; I can perfectly take care of this alone.
"Fine, I'll take this turn"
All the others crawl under the tent and I sit on the ground, starting a fire.
"Are you stalking me or something?" I ask Cato as he sits next to me.
"I just thought you would fall asleep all alone"
"You know very well I was not going to"
"I guess we're all a bit shifted by this day, the rush of adrenaline due to Bloodbath and everything" he shrugs. Why does he feel the need to explain why we still haven't closed an eye at dawn? Plus, that's not what I intended to say.
"I would not have fallen asleep because it's my turn of duty and me sinking into sleep who probably have meant death for all of you"
A smile lights up his face "So, you admit you would not like to see me dead" Ho dear, not that.
"Not yet" His smile gets wider "You're still kind of useful" I scowl.
"Why don't you admit it Clove? You would miss me" He says stretching out, the grin still on his face. The worst in all of that is that he might be true; but letting him know? I'd rather die.
"Why would I miss you? You're such a pain"
"The kind of pain you like don't you?"
Now it's getting really annoying. He's bending in two so that, even as curved in as I am on my seat -majority not to have to look him in the eyes- I can see his face. I sigh as I repel him, crushing my palm on his nose. It only makes him laugh. He says he's the kind of pain I like, but I'm definitely part of the ones he adores.
"Stop acting like that, you'll make us lose sponsors" I sigh
"Who said the camera was on us?" he asks leaning forward. He doesn't seem ready to give up his little game.
"Who said it wasn't?" I return, shaking my head in the same way he did, which makes us closer.
An alarm runs in my head and I pull back. He seems surprised but he's still smiling. I can't believe we were actually that close; I can't believe I made us that close. Is my brain totally screwed or something? Must be the lack of sleep. That was dangerous, that situation was dangerous. Though I can't help but feel it is not wrong.
Is Cato really dangerous for me or should I be afraid of myself?
I'm drawn back to reality by the contact of his hand on my wrist. What he is doing?
"You almost burned your own hands" he says
He's right. While thinking I was reach for the fire's heat, my hands lingering closer and closer of the flames.
"You might just have some sleep" he suggests with a worried face.
"No"
I decide to sharp my knives and practice, turning back to him. And for once he leaves me alone. If I couldn't hear his deep breath, I'd swear he's not there. Only when my eyes close I go inside and wake Marvel up for his turn.
I'm not quite asleep when I hear Cato getting into the tent and mutter "Finally guarding down Sweetheart?"
When I wake up, it's late afternoon. I had difficulties to fall asleep though I wanted so bad to. Cato's words were there, hanging upon my head like a dead sentence sent by all the nerves of my body. He was right, I was guarding down. For a while, I almost forget we were opponents in these Games. The only thing he could be doing was trying to break me down so he could kill me. And that was not happening. From now, I …
You already promised to. And you failed
Failure was not even possible. I will have to do something about it. And quick.
I get out of the tent to find I'm the last one up. Seeing me, Cato flashes a big smile and feels the urge to inform the pack:
"She always needs help to wake up, don't you?"
"I don't" I say in a cold voice "How do you think I woke up while you were sulking?"
He frowns and I sit between Naisha and Peeta, the only place still available in the circle we form.
We start a count of the tributes left alive.
"Well" I begin "all of us already make six. That means there are six others somewhere"
"The girl from twelve obviously" Glimmer spits, reminding Lover Boy of the only reason he's still alive "I think the boy from Eleven escaped too"
"And so did her district partner" informs Naisha.
It appears she's really observant and she lists all the others tributes by herself. At the nine we already named she adds the boy from Three, the girl from Five and the boy from Ten.
"The crippled one? Why isn't he dead already?" Marvel barks.
I don't hear the answer; I'm focused on something else. A few hundreds of yards away, at the edge of the forest, I can see the thickets move. It's probably just the wind but ... No it's not the wind. The leaves are shifting the opposite way of the cold wind's blow. Watching more closely I spot a dark spot between the branches. Someone is spying on us.
Here it is!
I hope you enjoyed it, next chapter should be there sooner ;)
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