Chapter 2

The next few hours were uneventful. Peeta's condition didn't change and the arena remained silent. No cannons. No tributes barging into the cave. Nothing.

Reluctantly, I stood up and began to prepare for the feast. There were still a few hours before dawn, but I could not afford to be late, not when Peeta's life was hanging by a thread. Maybe Cato and Clove were already there…

A part of me wants to stay with Peeta. If I die, then he'll be alone. He'd run out of food and water in the next day or two and I certainly couldn't imagine him getting up on his own to collect water from the stream. The pain in his leg would be to unbearable and he'll be left to starve. Maybe his wound will kill him before that, or perhaps Cato will find him and finish him off.

Both Peeta and I know what he's capable of, especially Peeta. I don't think that Cato or any of the Careers were taught to kill in a clean and effective manner. I can't even imagine what they were taught back home and I highly doubt they had anything that resembled a normal upbringing. They don't just want to kill, they want to cause as much pain and suffering as they can until their victims takes their final breath. The worst way to go. My father always taught me that a good hunter makes the kill as quick and as clean as possible. Right in they eye, he always used to say, and it would be lights out. No pain, no agonizing last breaths, nothing.

It's time to go. At this hour, I'm thankful for the night vision glasses that I had obtained at the Cornucopia. Anti-infection medicine would have been preferable but I don't think such medicine would have been found in the mountain of supplies. Without the glasses, I don't know how I'd make it through the forest without running into a tree, or another tribute. I could easily slip and injury myself and then there'd be no hope for Peeta.

I step out into the night. The air is cold and my breaths make small white clouds that disappear into the night sky. The glasses are truly remarkable. We don't have access to this sort of high-tech stuff back at the Seam and so I've never had the opportunity to see the forest at night. Not until now. Everything seems strangely different. It's like the plants and the trees have turned into stone. Still and silent, as though all life has been drained from them. The Gamemakers are in control of the wind. Perhaps this is their way of staging the calm before the storm.

A part of me is concerned that my left ear will affect my ability to make it through the forest safely. I needed to be careful. The explosion likely caused permanent damage. If I was back home with this sort of injury I'd have to live with it for the rest of my life, but this is something that the Capitol could easily fix. If I make it out of here, I'll be rich enough to pay someone to fix my hearing. I'll have enough money to buy anything I want.

I trek at a quick pace. Walking would waste too much time and running might give me away if I'm not careful-

BOOM!

The sound of the cannon causes me to come to a sudden halt. My first thought is of Peeta, bled white, being collected by the hovercraft. No longer here. Heading back home to his family in a wooden box. I grasp the nearest tree for support in an attempt to lull the furious beating of my heart. It can't be him. His leg is bad but not bad enough to kill him yet. He still had time… Seconds seemed like an eternity, but the face that finally appeared in the sky was not Peeta's, but that of a young girl with amber eyes and sleek red hair. Foxface.

I didn't expect the cannon to go off at this point. It's still dark, which would make it extremely difficult for the tributes to navigate their way around the arena and wipe out another tribute. Unless they had night vision glasses.

I wouldn't be surprised if that was the case with Foxface. She was good. I mean, she made it this far, probably without even making a single kill. I don't think she possessed any combat skills, but her cleverness was enough to get here this far into the games. She was probably told by her mentor to hide out somewhere safe while we all butchered each other in the process. But if she came face to face with Cato or Clove, or even Thresh, I don't think she would have stood a chance. I'm not sure if I stand a chance against them, either.

I continue on a path that I know well. It would be too risky to try out any new routes and it wasn't long before I caught sight of the Cornucopia in the distance. As I moved in closer my fear increased ever so slightly when I saw nothing out of the ordinary. The same giant golden horn-shaped cone with a curved tail lay before me. And no feast. I scan my surroundings, wondering if the other tributes have arrived. Thankfully, I can't spot any of them yet.

Just as the first rays of sunlight hit the Cornucopia, something begins to happen. The ground in front of the mouth of the Cornucopia begins to move, splitting into two, creating a large circular hole in the ground. Seconds later, a round table covered with a snowy white cloth emerges from the earth. A table fit for a feast. And on the table were four backpacks, each marked with a number. Each of the backpacks varied in size and shape and the one that I was after looked smaller than the palm of my hand.

The moment the table stopped rising, a large figure emerged from the Cornucopia. I immediately recognise it to be Thresh. Stunned by his sudden appearance, I watch in awe as he snatches his backpack and disappears into the forest. I couldn't believe my eyes. He must've been waiting there all night while Cato and Clove were preparing for the feast. He probably knew that they weren't going to pursue him before the feast, not without their backpacks. I admire him for it and at the same time I'm furious at myself for not thinking of the same plan.

Cato and Clove were nowhere in sight and so without hesitation, I began sprinting towards the table. There was no time to waste. I could sense the threat of danger immediately, but I keep running as fast as my legs could carry me. They seemed to move on their own accord. I could feel my heart pounding against my chest. I felt alive, exhilarated, fearful and hopeful all at once.

I miraculously make it to the table unscathed and quickly grasp the backpack. Attached to it was a piece of paper with writing on it but just before I was able to make out what the note said, a knife impales itself into my right hand.

I scream out in pain and the backpack falls onto the ground. Blood oozes out of my palm and in the corner of my eye I catch a glimpse of Clove charging towards me. I stagger backwards and somehow manage to yank out the knife imbedded into my flesh. Just before Clove was about to send another knife towards me, I sent an arrow straight towards her heart.

The moment the arrow left my hands I knew that I had missed the fatal shot. Rather than piercing her heart, the arrow hit her lower right arm. This gave me the opportunity to grab my backpack off the ground while Clove – momentarily startled by the hit – pulled the arrow out of her arm. Just as I was about to draw another arrow, a second knife slices my forehead. Clove threw just as accurately with her left and as she did her right. Had I been two inches to my right the knife would have pierced my eye and then I'd be done for.

I feel warm liquid running down from my forehead, now searing with pain, and before I knew it I was being tackled to the ground. I fall hard onto by back which knocks the air out of me. I struggle to breathe whilst trying to struggle out of Clove's grasp. She's strong and much heavier than I am, and my injuries aren't helping me much, either.

With one hand she pins both of my arms up above my head whilst sitting on the lower half of my body. This is it, I think to myself. I wont be able to save Peeta after all. He's gonna die because of me. I hope that for Prim and Gale's sake that Clove makes it quick. But I know her. She'll want to prolong this for as long as possible. She'll want to give the audience a show.

"Where's lover boy, Twelve?" she asked.

"He's hunting Cato," I snarl. Clove grins at me. She doesn't buy it.

"You can't fool me. I saw Cato cut lover boy's leg. I'm surprised he made it this far," she said, grabbing a large knife from her jacket then bringing it down towards my throat.

"Do you think you were going to make it out of here alive? I'm going to kill you just like we killed that pathetic little girl. She never stood a chance against us. I wish I killed her. She would've been fun to play around with."

Rage surges within me at the mention of Rue and I struggle harder to free myself from Clove's firm grasp. "She was just a little girl and you animals killed her!"

"Yes, and now I'm going to kill you, and then Cato's gonna take care of that boy from District 11. As for lover boy, I think we might just let nature take care of him. It'll be fun watching him bleed to death."

"Peeta!" I yell, hoping to distract her. But it doesn't work.

Blood from the wound on my forehead drips down into my eye, blurring my vision. Just when I thought that I had run out of ideas, I work up a mouthful of saliva and spit it into her face. She presses down on the knife against my throat, drawing blood which I can now feel running down my neck. "Try that again, and I'll make sure that Cato brings lover boy here so you can watch him die yourself. Then when he's finished, I'm gonna slice those pretty little lips off," she said, tracing my mouth with her knife. "After that I'll do the ears… your nose…and then your eyes…. You'll be sent back home in pieces after I'm through with you, Twelve."

I brace myself for the agony I'm about to endure but just when I feel the tip of her blade begin to slice my lip, a cannon goes off in the distance. Clove instantly draws back her blade every so slightly, clearly startled by the echoing sound. This giving me the opportunity to quickly wriggle my uninjured hand from her grip and hit her right in the nose.

The blow isn't hard due to the numbness of my arms, but it's to enough to cause her to loosen her grip on me. My quiver lay right beside me and in it three arrows. This time, I was quicker than Clove. I snatched an arrow with my good hand and jammed it right into her jugular vein before she had the chance to restrain me. Her eyes widened in shock. She clutched her throat as blood began to pour from her wound and onto my torso. I then seized the knife that she was only seconds away from torturing me with and I impaled it into her heart. I pushed her heavy body off me and a second later, the cannon went off.

I was so preoccupied by the thought of killing someone that I almost didn't hear the second cannon go off moments later. Was I imagining it?

My legs are weak. Everything is blurry. The ringing sound in my ear wont stop, either. Medicine. That's what I came here for. I need to go back to the cave.

I look into the sky, shielding my eyes from the scorching sun. Amid shock and pain I was experiencing, both from my hand and the wound on my face, I am able to catch sight of a girl with dark hair. Moments later, Thresh appears in the sky, soon to be reunited with Rue back in District 11. Then the images fade, never to be seen again.

I look around. Cato was no where where to be seen. I turn towards the large circular table and spot a large backpack marked with the number 2. I try to make sense of everything. Cato probably ran after Thresh, leaving Clove with the task of seizing the backpack.

He can't be far…

I stand up and collect my bow and arrows, Peeta's medicine and Clove's knife – it might come in handy later. I also decide take Cato's backpack with me. The contents inside might be useful to me and if it fell into Cato's hands, Peeta and I might not stand a chance against him.

I ran as fast as I possibly could. My head is searing with pain and my biggest fear is that I'll collapse from blood loss before I am able to reach Peeta. I'm still wearing his jacket and the heat is beginning to become unbearable. I'm drenched in sweat and blood. Clove's blood, making it difficult to breathe. I needed to breathe…and run…

I finally catch sight of the cave in the distance. I'm almost there. The whole district must be cheering for me. The girl from the Seam that fought off a Career. The girl who's now going to save Pe-

Suddenly there was a strange sucking sensation inside of my chest. I could no longer run. I could no longer move my arms or legs. Time seemed to stop and so did my ability to breathe. My surroundings suddenly morphed into a blur and I could no longer see the cave clearly. The sound of another cannon echoed around me until I was consumed by the sound completely. Another cannon? That can't be right. Thresh is dead. Foxface is dead. Clove is dead – which leaves Cato and-

Peeta.

It was like being submerged beneath a pool of water. All I could hear was the sound of my own ragged breaths. I wanted to scream out to him but no sound would come out of my mouth. All I could taste was blood. Mechanical and musty, mingled with the saltiness of my own tears.

But then I saw him on the other side of the stream, running towards me. My heart leapt with joy. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. He's charging towards me at a speed that I not even I could match. Every leapt towards me was smooth and effortless. So graceful…so strong...

I turn towards the sky where the crest appears. Seconds later it morphs into the face of a boy with blond hair and blue eyes. The eyes. Something is different about them. They're warm and gentle, like his smile. The boy's ashy blond hair falls in waves over his forehead. He's beautiful. So beautiful… It was like looking at an angel. His face was radiant like the sun and flowers in the Meadow, or maybe it was the sunlight playing tricks on me. I couldn't tell.

The boy is still running towards me; his figure growing larger and larger with each step. The ringing in my ears subsides ever so slightly and my vision becomes more defined. As a regain my senses, I look towards the cave. I'm so close. I just need to keep running – no matter what. I needed to get to Peeta.

Suddenly, a hovercraft appears out of thin air. The massive machine flies right above the cave, which then splits into two.

"PEETA! Wait! NO! NO! NO!" I shout. I shout so loudly that my throat burns. Tears are streaming down my face. This can't be happening. I speed towards the gave. The wind from the hovercraft almost knocks me over. And then I see him being lifted in to the air. Almost as if he were asleep and the hovercraft was merely carrying him home to his bed.

I collapse to the ground and weep. Peeta disappears into the hovercraft, never to be seen again.

I'm so consumed by grief and shock that it takes me a few moments to notice Cato standing a few steps behind me.

"Looks like it's just the two of us, Twelve."

A/N: In the books, Clove is described as strong and brawny, yet in the films she is depicted with more of a child-like physique. Her strength and robust figure is something that I wanted to incorporate into this fic in order to emphasise the difference between the Careers and those who come from poorer districts.