Chapter Nine

Rue's point of view

I wake up the same way that I... That I what? I was obviously still alive. It's apparent that I'm still on earth, and not in some afterlife. But how is that possible?

Amyway, I wake up the same way that I fell asleep. I guess that's what I did. Slowly, then all at once, and with a lot of bright light right in my face. Then, I become increasingly aware of the stinging and cramping in my stomach. But this time, there's no blood. This time, I feel safe. Maybe I'm still in the arena, though... But if I am, it means that Katniss is here, and that she saved me!

"Katniss?" I whisper. As I do, I try to push myself up. The pressure and cramping around my abdomen flares up, making it hard to breathe. "Katniss, where are you?"

No answer. Looking around, it's obvious that I'm not in the arena anymore. Everything is too sterile and quiet. I've never been anywhere like this place before...

Soon, a pair of eyes slips into my field of vision. "No, dear, I'm sorry, but she isn't here." A slightly older woman, maybe in her early fifties, slips into my field of vision. She has a round face and large brown eyes, both common traits in people from District Ten.

"I'm like you," she goes on to say. "I was in the games, but lost. My name is Francesca Wakley. I was in the games when I was about your age, in the thirty-fourth. A little over ten years previous to that, there was an experiment going on in District Three. With me so far?" I nod, and she continues.

"District Thirteen was still around, just underground, not known even to most of the Capitol. Those trackers whey put in you? They contained special electrodes that kept you alive. Then, we brought you here. Welcome to District Thirteen."

"Wait... How long will I be here? When can I go home? My family needs me..."

Francesca kneels down next to where in lying and pushes my hair back. "I know. I know. But we will keep an eye on them as best we can, I promise you, okay? Can you trust me?"

Out of everyone I've met so far, I trust her second most, after Katniss. Which reminds me... "How's Katniss doing? Is she in there still? And what about Thresh?" I add, thinking of my classmate's cousin, who was in with me.

"Katniss is there, but she's doing okay. It's down to the final four. She and her district partner can win together, I'll get you call caught up with that rule change. But Districts Five and Two are still in the running."

"And Thresh? I guess he's here? What happened to him?"

She nods. "He's here. Actually, he was one of the easiest to revive. He was bitten by a moderately poisonous snake a few nights ago, but thanks to the tracker technologies, we were able to keep a reading on his vital signs. Unlike most of you, brain and heart activity stayed mostly stable. We got him up and back to mostly normal within hours."

That brings on several questions. "How is he now? Can I see him? What did you do to me?"

"Later. I'll let Thresh in and explain all that later. But you need to rest now." I let her lay me back down entirely flat, and feel the piercing in my stomach dull down to a dull achy cramp while I drift off to sleep...