You are awaken by Rose gently shaking your shoulder, and you crawl out of the bag, blinking the remains of sleep away as she rolls it up into a small, practical bundle. You both eat a handful of berries, take another sip of water, and then you're on your way.
The plan is simple- find a water source, make a camp, wait for the people to attack- because it's bound to happen, you scored a fucking twelve- and then kill them.
See? Easy.
You sigh. You sometimes wish you could force your brain into a more realistic approach, but decide it would be too depressing.
Rose seems to know what she's doing, so you just lag behind, Katana in hand, ears listening to any noise that doesn't come from the pair of you.
"I think we're close." Rose finally says.
"Yeah?"
"Yes." She crouches, still focused on the distant spot.
You study her for a second. "Care to explain what you're doing?"
"I saw a rabbit." She explains, dusting of her trousers. "But there's a chance that it just got frightened by our footsteps and is not going towards a water source."
"Do we follow?"
"We don't have many other options." Rose shrugs, and you're moving again.
You end up finding the water, and the completely ironic celebratory dance you do might be recorded on camera, but will still be denied until the end of time. You both drink a bottle each, taking long, desperate gulps, and then spend a couple of minutes sprawled on the fine sand.
"We should get going." You finally say. Rose is on her feet immediately. "Do we find a clearing, or-"
"A clearing?" She ponders over it for a moment. "Well, we are trying to get people to attack."
You grin, and she helps you up-
Everything happens within a second- one moment, you are entering the forest, and the other, you are laying on your back, breath knocked out of your lungs, and you gasp desperately as the grinning, painted face of the district Eight tribute looms over you. You make a panicked grab for your katana, but it's nowhere to be seen, and then he's holding your hand and twisting and oh god he's going to break it-
And just like that, the weight is gone, and you are left there, gasping for air, and you stumble up to your feet and stare as the usually relaxed juggalo screams, arms scratching at his shoulder, and you notice a small throwing knife lodged in between his shoulder blades. Rose is standing a few feet behind, still unnoticed, and she meets your eye, and gestures for you to run, and that's when Gamzee Makara turns around, and with a blood curling snarls rushes at her-
She is taken unaware. They both fall to the ground, and her knife is knocked out of her reach, and he is holding both of her wrists and her eyes are wide in panic and shiiiiit.
Your katana is laying a few feet away. You grab it, and launch yourself at the slouched, lanky form, and Gamzee cries out the moment your blade touches his skin, and you watch the thick violet liquid seep through his ruined shirt, and then he's in your face, and he looks so much like a wounded animal that you almost flinch away, but your fighting instincts kick in and you slash at his face, and you know the blood has gotten into his eyes because he stumbles back, and oh god his screams don't even sound human, and he's scampering away, and you stand there for a moment, breathing heavy, until a canon fires out and your heart stops.
Rose.
It's her. It has to be her, because both of her arms are fucking broken, and her throat is bleeding, and her eyes are staring off into the distance, and you know you should get yourself as far away as possible but it's Rose-
"No." Your katana is dropped and forgotten. Bro is probably having a fit. "No, no, no, no, no no no no no-"
Your throat is raw by the time you reach her body, and you cup her blood smeared cheeks, and try to will life back into her body, but it doesn't work, because it can't, and you can feel salty tears on your lower lip and you know you are crying and oh my god he killed her Rose is dead oh god oh god oh god.
"Oh god." You manage to get out, voice hoarse and shaking, and you lean over her, pressing your forehead to hers, and scream, and then there are helicopter sounds over you, and somebody is shouting your name.
"No." You whisper.
"Dave Strder." The voice is robotic and loud. "Please remove yourself from the body."
"No."
"Dave Strider, this is the last warning." You hear, but you can't make yourself leave Rose alone, so you just shake your head furiously, still clinging onto her stiffening corpse.
"Dave Strider-"
"Strider!" The other voice is not an artificial one- it's the district Eleven tribute- and then there are warm fingers on your wrists, unwrapping your fingers from Rose's body, and you are being led away, and you slump against the shorter form, and there are still tears in your eyes.
You don't know how long you've been walking when you're pushed inside a tent, and you hear loud, upset whispering, before someone pushes your chin up and removes your shades. That makes you snap out of your trance-like state, and you reach up to hold them in place, and that's when you notice Karkat Vantas face mere inches away from yours, and you flinch back.
"Oh thank god, he's up and rocking." He groans, leaning back.
"What-" You look around. It's a small, waterproof tent. To your left, Terezi, from district Ten, is fast asleep. "Why am I here?"
"Because you glued yourself to LaLonde's body in the least incestuous way possible and you wouldn't move and you were being an idiot." Vantas replies, arms crossed against his chest defensively.
"Yeah, but-" You look around. Your sword is nowhere to be seen. "Why didn't you kill me?"
"Fuck me if I know." He snarls. That's when the blind girl wakes up.
"KK?" She yawns. "Why is Dave in here with us?"
You consider asking how she knows you're here, but decide against it.
"He doesn't know." You reply for him. She grins.
"I smell tears." She reaches up and touches your cheek, and then sucks on her finger. "Ah, yes, I was right."
You furiously wipe then away.
"His district partner died." Karkat replies. Your stomach clenches uncomfortably.
"Where's my sword?" You manage to rasp our, feeling a new wave of tears come up.
"Sollux has it." He is looking at you, suddenly wary. You press your lips together.
"Are you going to kill me any time soon, or-"
"Don't be silly, you're our ally now!" She grins, pulling the blanket up over her shoulders. "Isn't that right, KK?"
Karkat looks taken aback. "I- no-"
"It's either that or we really need to kill him." She shrugs. "Your choice."
That seems to do it. He stumbles out of the tent, with a promise to be right back, and then you're left alone with the freaky blind girl.
"So." You clear your throat.
"You smell like face paint too." Terezi adds. You decide to drop the conversation.
***rip***
The three of you sit in an awkward silence, you picking at your sleeves, giving Sollux subtle glances, the aforementioned making a point of looking at everything but you. Aradia looks positively done with the both of you, and is the one to initiate conversation after five minutes of juvenile brooding.
"Would you stop that?" She snaps. You both look at her, taken aback.
"We are in the Games." She goes on, voice sharp, eyes angry. "We are fighting for our lives. So could you please stop acting like overgrown five year olds and help us figure out what to do with the catatonic Dave Strider in our tent?"
Sollux and you both look down, and Aradia lets out an angry huff before standing up and pulling you both to your feet.
"Heads up, tongues untied, do the talking!" She yells before dropping you back to your respective seats- well, you are just sitting on the floor, but still. She can be very scary at times, and you quickly start talking.
"He was crying over his sister and was unarmed and I just couldn't kill him I'm sorry okay." You let out in a single breath, and then press your lips together, avoiding both of their eyes.
"It's ok, KK." Sollux finally sighs, leaning back. "I could have killed him as well. But-"
"You do realise we can't keep doing this." Aradia says, but her voice is wary and sad and you know she doesn't want to kill people either. "Taking pity on the other tributes."
You both mutter an 'I know'. She sighs.
"What do we do now?" She asks, picking at the ground. You shrug.
"The smart thing to do is to kill him." Sollux' voice is quiet. You nod.
"I don't want to, though."
"Neither do I." You whisper, and Aradia makes a sound of agreement.
Before you get to say another word- or, more likely, break into another awkward silence- a silver parachute lands on the ground next to you, and you all share a look before fumbling for it. Aradia is the first to make it, and she cracks the packet open, and smiles widely.
"I think we're keeping him." She says, extending the package.
It's throwing stars, but they're shaped like hearts, and there's exactly thirteen of them.
"Prince of hearts." Sollux mutters. "That's what they called Dirk Strider, after he won the games." The back story is not the one you like to think about- in an intense fight down with the final remaining tribute, he had sliced at her chest before she managed to unarm him, and then proceeded, in an act of final desperation, to shove his forearm into her torso and rip her heart out. She died with a gasp, and he remained there, holding the bloody organ, before dropping it in terror and being pulled out of the arena. The nickname was given to him by the Ampora, and everyone knows he hates it, and the fact that he used it to convey the message shows he is as desperate as he was a year ago. Sollux studies the shurikens.
"I got more weaponry." He finally says. "I suppose Strider is getting his shitty sword back."
***hhh***
You are awaken by hushed whispers, and you roll over to your side, feeling the ground for your shades. You can't find them, so you crack one eye open, and notice the Vantas guy arguing over something-probably you- with the Terezi girl, both still unaware of your presence.
"Uh-oh, the prince junior is awake." She grins, and Karkat spins around, frowning.
"Morning, princess." He scowls, before helping you put on your shades. "You won't see a thing with them, but, fuck it, not my problem."
You mumble a 'thanks' before placing them back in place. Your stomach rumbles, and Terezi cackles.
"Karkat, feed the guest."
Both of you speak in the same time. "You don't have to-" "I don't want to-"
You stop, and he gives you a look, before sighing and going for the back pack.
"Your brother is our most generous sponsor so far." He explains, fumbling around its' contents. "So if feeding you gets us weaponry, we're fucking doing it."
You blink, confused. "Dirk can't send you gifts, he's a mentor."
"I got the impression Striders don't much care about the rules." He is still not looking up. Terezi looks amused.
"The volunteering this was never officially banned." You snarl. He rolls his eyes.
"Apologies, it wasn't banned, it's perfectly okay to remind the Panem of the fucking mockery that was Katniss Everdeen, how about blow up another couple of districts it's not like we're practically extinct."
You press your lips together and don't acknowledge his remark. "How do you know the package was from Dirk?"
"It was thirteen heart shaped shurikens." He shrugs.
"It could've been anyone."
"Yeah, but-" He pauses. "Yeah."
"Maybe it's your little boyfriend." Terezi grins. You roll your eyes.
"John is piss poor." You sit up straighter. "And not my boyfriend."
Karkat is just offering you some dry crackers (you are so hungry you don't even care) when the district Eleven girl pops in, grinning wildly.
"Strider's fans have sent us breakfast!"
You end up feasting on some scrambled eggs- you can't exactly save them for later- and, to your absolute delight, a bottle of apple juice."
You practically moan after the first sip, and Sollux rises an eyebrow.
"Still think it's neither Dirk nor John?" Karkat asks as you replace the cap.
"Could be anyone, man." You shrug. "When I get a smuppet or a shitty plush bunny, I'll know."
Your sword is returned to you after the breakfast, and you stare at it as the awkwardness descends around you.
"So, uh." You mumble. "I'll be going now?" They've already explained they weren't going to kill you, not right now- eggs and weapons, man, it'd be plain rude by this point- but you know you can't stick with them, because at one point, someone will have to die.
"I guess." Sollux shrugs. "Unless, you want to, I don't know, form an alliance?"
You look up. His face is serious enough. Aradia gives you a small smile and a nod. Karkat glares at Sollux, but doesn't protest.
"It's not like I have many other options." You shrug. Aradia's grin grows.
"Terezi!" She yells, retreating to the tent. "We've got Strider on our team!"
The three of you remain standing, awkwardness still there.
"Alright, we're in the cahoots now, but let me just lay down some ground rules." Karkat speaks up first, voice fast and angry. "You don't go off on your own, you don't attract attention, you don't be a little shit-"
"KK." Sollux interrupts. "Shut up."
You relax a little, and give Karkat a little smirk.
"Didn't know you'd get so possessive so soon." You joke, giving him a hair ruffle before retreating to the tent.
***ooo***
-you are now Jane-
Feferi wakes you up with a small nudge, and you sit up, running fingers through your short hair. She offers you a plate of fried bacon, and you smile wider- forming an alliance with royalty was the best decision ever.
"Thanks." You smile shyly, still intimidated by her, even after you've technically saved her life- you ran into her camp on the first morning, and quickly hid behind the tree, and it wasn't until you noticed her shaking shoulders and a fistful of small, black berries that you've realised what she was doing.
"Stop!" You had screamed, and you're still not sure why, but she was startled enough to drop all of the nightlock. You then ran to her side and grabbed her wrists and made her explain what she was doing, and she broke down there, crying about the district four boy and how she wasn't able to save him and how she doesn't want to kill people.
She suggested an alliance once she was calm enough, and if the princess wanted to form a team with you, well, you weren't going to refuse.
She is a princess, that is obvious enough- despite the fact that the sponsors already gifted her with a big, comfy, weather proofed tent, an elaborate first aid kit, enough food to go on for a week and a steady income of water, she still struggles sometimes- you piped in with your small bundle of clean socks and a climbing rope, and she thanked you with a wide grin.
As you eat, you think back on your options. Sticking with Feferi seems like a good idea- she has food, she has shelter, and she has demonstrated herself to be a good fighter. You are not helpless either, but so far no one has offered to sponsor you, and breaking off an alliance with Feferi Peixes herself was not going to score you many brownie points either. But then again, sticking with her meant keeping her alive at all costs, and consequently sacrificing yourself to let her win- whoever was to kill the princess was to kiss his or hers chances of winning goodbye, and you knew no one was going to do it willingly (well, maybe your district partner would, but you weren't going to think about him right now). Not to mention that the idea of killing Feferi was becoming more and more nauseating with each moment you've spent together- she was so nice and so pleasant to talk to and she had helped you so much and she honestly cared. The most reasonable course of action at this point was to break the alliance off and leave, before you became too attached to her.
Feferi seemed to have noticed you were upset, because soon she was at your side, studying your face with cautious eyes.
"Jane, are you alright?" She asked, frowning. You gave her a small smile and nodded.
"Just a bit nervous." You shrugged. She accepted the explanation and went back to her food.
***ooo***
"Sollux?"
You look up, and sure enough, Strider is there, looming over your sleeping form. You scowl, rolling over to the side.
"Fuck off, asshole." You mutter. "I'm sleeping."
"You're obviously not." He doesn't move, and you groan. "Come on, if I wanted to get cussed at, I'd have just stayed with Karkat."
"And why aren't you with Karkat?" You snap at him. "It's your turn to keep watch."
"I just wanted to discuss something, and Karkat kept growling at me every time I tried to speak." He shrugs. You think about telling him he might want to lay off the flirtatious teases for a while, but decide against it- the last thing you need is for the Capitol to start shipping this new aspiring Katniss Everdeen and your best friend- what happened with Mellark and the Mockingjay should never have to happen again.
"What is it?" You groan, sitting up. Aradia is asleep to your side, messy hair covering her face, while Terezi is curled up to the far left, small smile on her lips- at least someone is having good dreams.
"We're boring." He states, without a hint of sarcasm. You raise an eyebrow.
"I mean, us, the tributes. No one is getting killed-" So no canons were to be heard during your nap, great. "The Capitol will grow bored soon."
You sigh. "Oh."
"Yeah."
"Well." You drop back to your make-do bed. "All of our food is all packed up and ready to go, we'll have to ditch the tent but there's not much to be done about that, and we all just have to keep ourselves armed at all times."
He nods. "That's what we were doing so far."
"Yeah, well." You growl, pushing him out. "We're doing all we can."
***ooo***
"You're back already?"
Dave ignores your remark, instead settling down next to you, katana in his hands. You yourself are holding your ridiculously huge sickle- it's the size of your upper body, and you have to use both arms to wield it, but it makes you look intimidating enough so you deal with it. You are both nervous- things have been awfully quiet- and everyone knows that means the Game Makers are going to get involved soon. And seeing as you're the biggest group there is- well, ten tributes are currently alive, and there's five of you, and the Juggalo guy seems to be working on his own, so- you will most likely be the ones to suffer the eventual blow.
The thoughts are overwhelming and panicking is the last thing you need, so instead you keep picking on Dave.
"I thought my prayers for silence have finally been heard, but no." You go on. "What is it that Sollux does that makes you leave him alone?"
"Dude, am I talking?" Dave snaps, and you look down, because, fuck, he's right.
"Sorry." You mumble. He sighs.
"It's okay." He removes his shades to rub at his eyes, and you are surprised to see how tired they look. (Well his district partner was just violently murdered so you don't know what you expected but it is still a surprise and he looked so different on that chariot and you are an idiot). "We both need to calm down."
"Agreed." You lean onto the numb end of your sickle and sigh. He doesn't put his shades back on, and instead leans back, staring into the sky.
"What's up with the sudden eye exhibitionism?" You ask, and mentally slap yourself, because fuck, he really looks like he's about to cry and you're not helping. But he just cocks his head to the side and smirks, and you look away, lips pressed in a thin line.
"You mind?"
"Strider, the day I begin to care about the state of your eyes will be the day we both win the games." You reply, still not looking at him, and you hear him shift closer.
"Well, now that' you're offering," He's so close you can feel his warmth. "I do need my friendly baker."
You shove him away- he laughs, up on his feet immediately- and you know your face is bright red.
"You just keep asking for it." You snarl. With a sigh, he dusts off his trousers, and sits back down.
"Like half of the Panem is not already comparing me to Katniss Everdeen." He winks at the nearest camera. "But it's bullshit. Capitol and I are in the cahoots."
You don't give him another look- the way he manages to flirt with the entire nation is positively ridiculous and you still honestly wish he'd focus on the nation and leave you alone.
No such luck, though, as he leans at your side, and you feel strands of his hair tickling your cheek. You pull away, blushing furiously, and he gives you a look before sniggering.
"You're like, a little ball of anger." He comments. "Adorable."
"Shut up." You're still blushing. He's about to retort, when you hear a sound coming from the forest, and you plaster your hand over his mouth, effectively shushing him. The noise repeats, and you feel him tense, and then you're both gripping your weapons, glaring at the noise.
Here it goes again. Definitely footsteps.
"Wake them up." You hiss at Dave, who complies, retreating into the tent. You pull your sickle up, focusing on the sound of approaching footsteps. The person doesn't seem to bother with being quiet, and it scares you even more.
"Well look at the cute little motherfucker." It takes you a second to place the voice- it belongs to the district eight tribute, Gamzee Makara, the one with all the disturbing stares and stoned giggling- but he doesn't seem to be stoned now (surprise, he's in the goddamn arena) and his eyes have lost their happy-go-lucky attitude, and there is something animal like in the way he moves, and you find yourself stumbling back before you remember you're armed.
"It's a pity." He goes on, voice raspy, eyes excited. "That I won't get to keep your pretty little head once I'm done with you."
Well that's just plain disturbing. You rise up your sickle and force yourself to stand still. Gamzee just grins- there's no cackling, no giggling, nothing that would connect him with the guy from the interviews. If this is how he behaved in front of the Game Makers, it's no surprise he's scored eleven.
"You found yourself a little toy." He notices. "How motherfucking adorable."
There's movement behind you, and Dave is by your side, holding up a sword. Gamzee scowls at him.
"You are the motherfucker with the sword." His arm flies to his scratched, blood-smeared face. "It hurt."
"Yeah, well." Dave's voice is thick with anger, and shit, the weird-as-fuck conversation made you completely forget the fact that it was the Clown that killed Lalonde. You place a hand on Dave's shoulder, willing him to stand back. "I can make it hurt more."
Gamzee hisses- hisses- at him. "I don't like you."
"It's mutual, sugar." Dave's shoulders are tense, and you pull him back. You are scared to remove your eyes from the Juggalo, and honestly hope the rest of your team is getting the fuck away.
"KK." Sollux calls after you. "What do we-"
"I attack." Strider cuts him off. "You run."
"No." Both you and Sollux speak at the same time. Terezi awkwardly clears her throat.
"Oh, let him be." Gamzee grins, reaching for the throwing knives hooked around his waist. "I want to see if the pretty boy can bite."
"No biting, sorry." Dave snarls back. "But maybe they let me keep your heart, courtesy a-la-Strider, what do you think?"
"Dave, calm down." Aradia hisses. "You're angry and-"
"I won't calm down!" Dave's voice almost cracks. "He's killed Rose!"
"And he'll kill you if you attack him now." Sollux says matter-of-factly. "You are too angry to think straight."
Dave is still tense, but he knows you're right, so he lowers his sword into a more defensive position. You release a breath you didn't know you were holding.
"Makara, you're outnumbered." Sollux goes on. "Back off."
Gamzee studies you all for a moment, and then- to everyone's surprise- actually retreats.
You give Sollux an impressed look, and he shrugs, unable to hide his grin.
*A/N* Well, this was traumatic.
How many characters do I have to kill before you're impressed enough to leave a review? Let the games begin.