Disclaimer: The Hunger Games is not mine.

Note: New poll on my profile. Now that the choices have narrowed somewhat, the question is, "Who do you think will make it to the final four?" But read the chapter first because otherwise you could deduce who dies in this chapter from who isn't included in the poll.

Please note that this poll will be most helpful to me if you actually vote for four tributes. In the final eight poll, there were quite a few people who didn't vote for eight, and at least two who only voted for one. While I realize that there may be one tribute in particular you would really like to see in the final four, please take the time to tell me who else you think will make it, too.

I do have my final four picked, but they might change if everyone either guesses all of them correctly or doesn't guess any of them. As usual, I'm aiming for somewhere between believable and unexpected. Thanks.

Day Two
In Desperate Hours

Glenn Chester
District Ten Mentor

The Gamemakers had learned a lot since his Games.

Glenn had hidden in a swamp the entire time, as far away from the fighting as he could get. No one had thought to flood his area of the arena. No one had sent eagles to chase him towards the other tributes. No one had forced him into a cave where any step could send tributes tumbling down into the darkness below.

He had never expected to find himself wishing Gamemaker Rexon was still alive.

Glenn shook his head as Libby and the others ran into yet another dead end in the dark. There was a path just to their right, but it was too dark in the caves for them to see it. And behind them in the dark trailed Angus, always a safe distance behind them, armed with his knife and a pair of night vision glasses from his sponsors, waiting for his opportunity. Probably waiting until they stopped for the night. The boy was injured, limping, and knew better than to attack three of them at once. But it was only a matter of time before they would have to stop and rest.

And Glenn was helpless to stop it. He had spoken to several sponsors, but none of them had been willing to contribute enough to buy anything useful. Not that he was terribly surprised. There were always sponsors who liked an underdog, but when that underdog was an overweight, motherly girl caring for two younger tributes and being trailed by a thirteen-year-old killer … it was a bit harder to scrape anything together.

"Glenn?" asked a voice. Glenn quickly whirled around to see Aron, with Lander behind him. "We need to talk. Without our help, it's only a matter of time before the three of them tumble off a ledge somewhere. Lander and I have scraped together nearly enough sponsors to give them a little help, but we need a bit more. Do you know anyone who might be willing to pitch in?"

Glenn stared. Did this mean they were allies? Well, if the tributes could form alliances, then they could, too, he supposed. Pool their sponsors. Work together. It sounded like something Aron would think of, but he was surprised Lander had bought into it. "You, too?" he asked.

Lander nodded. "Why not? I've got crowds of sponsors wanting to send something to Zione, but he doesn't need anything – not yet. They're well-armed, well-stocked – better to wait until they actually need the help. Nicoline, on the other hand … well, they need it now."

Glenn nodded. "All right. Let's see what we can do."

Ella Halliwell, 17
District Four Female

She wasn't a monster.

As the hovercraft returned to the sky, taking Lordez's body with it, Ella at last turned around. A few of the trees still stood where Lordez had died, their branches drifting slowly towards Ella. Waiting.

Ella held up her hand. The trees stopped. Completely stopped. Nothing. Not even a gentle rustling as the wind whispered through the leaves. To anyone else, the silence may have seemed eerie, but Ella found herself smiling. Almost laughing.

For the first time since entering the arena, she wasn't afraid.

She dropped her arm, and one of the trees obediently bent down, allowing Ella to climb up into its branches. Another sweep of her arm, and the tree straightened out again, lifting her up. Up, up into the air.

She knew she should be terrified, but she also knew, somehow, that she was safe. Safer than she'd ever been – inside the arena or out. The trees wouldn't hurt her. They would protect her. Never mind the other tributes – these were her allies.

She could stay here forever.

Laughing now, she called another tree closer to her with a wave of her arm. Then another. Then another. They wove their branches together, forming a makeshift floor. Higher branches draped themselves over her head, a ceiling of wood and leaves, but open enough to allow the sun through.

Grinning, Ella climbed atop the roof of her new home, then higher and higher into the branches, until, at last, she was looking out over the arena. She could see everything. The mountains. The water that had nearly reached the slopes on the western side. A lake to the east of the mountains, near where the Cornucopia lay. A single mountain to the far southeast.

Far away from everything else.

Ella pointed. "Let's go there."

Immediately, there was a rumbling noise, and Ella stared as she realized her command had been heeded not only by the tree she was in, nor only by the ones nearby, but by the entire forest. Every tree, it seemed, was uprooting itself, preparing to march east.

Mags had been right.

It seemed like ages ago that the two of them had sat together on the train, careening toward what she had thought would be her death in the Capitol. "Think of the Games like water," Mags had said. "What does the ocean do to rocks? It wears them down. Tears them apart eventually. Because they're strong. Because they don't change with the tide. So you're not a rock. That's okay. You don't want to be."

She wasn't a rock. She never had been. She was something even better. Something that thrived on water, something that drew its strength from that force that wore away at rocks and mountains.

She was a tree.

Zione Brink, 18
District Eight Male

"Moving trees?" Zione asked skeptically.

Sher nodded, out of breath. "I tried to save her – really, I did. But the girl, Ella, she was … she was controlling the trees. I barely got out of there alive."

Kiona shook her head. "Sher, that is the single most ridiculous thing I've ever heard."

Brie nodded in agreement, but Sterling was pointing off to the south. "Then that's probably going to be the single most ridiculous thing you've ever seen. Look!"

Zione looked. Something was moving in the distance, off to the south. After a moment, he realized it was the forest. The whole forest. Zione snatched a pair of binoculars from the Cornucopia. Sure enough, the black mass to the south that looked like creeping ants from a distance was made up of trees. Every tree, marching off to the east. He handed the binoculars to Kiona, who, after a moment, passed them around.

Moving trees.

"Okay, then," Zione nodded. "I think it's safe to say we believe you now, Sher. And I don't think the forest is going to be a safe place to retreat to in a tough spot."

Sher nodded. "I take it from your soaking wet clothes that the swamp isn't our best bet, either."

Zione shook his head. "Dead bodies that grab you and try to pull you under the water – not our best option."

Sher giggled a little. "Animated corpses? And you didn't believe me about the trees?"

Zione shrugged. "Touché."

"Look at yourselves!" Sterling interrupted, aghast. "Lordez is dead! Sher could have died! You two almost got killed by dead bodies! And for what? So we could find a 'strategic place to retreat to'?" He turned on Zione and Kiona. "You two need to stop playing soldiers! This is life and death! From now on, we should just stay here, where it's safe."

Zione shook his head. The boy actually thought it was safe here. "And what about you? You wanted to go back to the forest. If we'd done that, where would we be now? Now you want to stay here at the Cornucopia?"

Sterling looked away, subdued. Zione silently scolded himself for snapping at the boy. That wouldn't help anyone. "I'm sorry," he said at last. "You're right; Lordez is dead. Any of us could have died. Any of us can still die – and, eventually, some of us will. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to prevent it as long as possible. From now on, we'll stay together."

Sterling nodded, satisfied, but Brie shook her head. "Look, this doesn't mean you two shouldn't take some time alone if you want it. But the next time you two want to go on a date, don't feel like you have to send everyone else on a dangerous wild goose chase to cover it up – just go. Although, if I were you, I'd pick somewhere a bit more romantic than a swamp."

Zione stared. Was that what everyone thought? That he and Kiona were a couple? Well, that was better than them knowing the truth, but, still, it was ridiculous. Of course he had wanted to spend some time with Kiona, but that hadn't been the reason he had suggested splitting up to explore the arena.

Had it?

No. No, of course not. They needed somewhere safe to go if things started to go wrong. But none of them had found anything, and Lordez had been killed. The forest wasn't safe. Neither was the swamp.

"It's the arena," Sher shrugged. "There's nowhere romantic. There's nowhere safe. So maybe we should stop trying to find somewhere safer and just stick with what we've got – before anyone else gets killed."

Zione nodded. "Okay. We stay here. We stay together. And we wait."

But how long could they wait before danger simply found them, instead?

Libby Hall, 15
District Ten Female

Libby hated the dark.

But it became clear rather quickly that Nicoline and Pike hated it even more. Their hands felt so small, cold and trembling, as they clung to Libby's. And she held on just as tightly, knowing that any step could lead them tumbling over a ledge into whatever lay below.

Suddenly, there was a soft, pinging noise, and a flashing light high above their heads. A parachute! How they had managed to get it into the caves, Libby wasn't sure – maybe there were hidden openings somewhere. But there must be some mistake. The package that landed at her feet couldn't possibly be meant for them. Maybe they had accidentally sent her something that had been meant for Wulfric, or sent Nicoline a gift meant for Zione.

Pike let go of Libby's hand long enough to reach down and pick up the package. He handed it to Libby, and she fumbled in the dark, trying to open it, while the two younger children clung to her arms. Inside was a pair of what felt like glasses. Curious, she put them on.

She could see! She looked down at Nicoline and Pike, and she could actually see their faces! "They let you see in the dark," she whispered, shocked.

"Wow!" Pike exclaimed. "For us?"

"We're the only ones here," Nicoline shrugged. "I guess they're ours."

Ours. Us. Libby scolded herself as she realized that, although she could now see, her companions were still in the dark. "Here," she said, handing the glasses to Nicoline, who had seemed the most frightened earlier. "We'll take turns. You'll lead us first. Let's get out of here."

On they went in the dark, but no longer quite as cautiously. No longer running into dead ends. No longer tripping whenever the ground began to slope or became uneven. They took turns leading, each trusting the others. Each forgetting their danger for a while.

"Thank you, Glenn," Libby said with a smile.

"And Aron," Pike added.

"And Lander," Nicoline agreed hesitantly. "I never thought we'd get sponsors. Pike and I are so young, and you're…"

Libby knew what the little girl had been about to say. She was fat. Overweight. But, somehow, it didn't matter anymore. Because there was something else she was, too.

Alive.

And so were they. "Well, I guess somebody finally realized that if we've lasted this long, there must be more to us than meets the eye," Libby said, squeezing Nicoline's hand gently. "I'd take either one of you over an army of bloodthirsty killers."

"Me, too," Nicoline agreed. "I wouldn't want to be in a dark cave with allies I didn't trust."

"Not quite so dark anymore," Pike said suddenly. "Look up there!"

Staring into the darkness ahead, Libby could see it, too – a faint light in the distance. But not daylight. As Nicoline led them on, they entered a larger chamber, lit by a shaft of light – moonlight, not sunlight – coming from a gap in the rocks above them. Libby laughed out loud, staring in wonder at the space around them, filled with what looked like pillars. As if this had once been a city, deep beneath the mountains.

Of course, it hadn't, but the Gamemakers had gone through an awful lot of trouble to make it look like one. To their left lay a large, round structure that may have been meant to look like a well. Pike dropped a pebble in, and, after a few seconds, there was a splash. If only they had some rope and a bucket…

She hadn't realized quite how thirsty she was. It was probably too much to hope for that the sponsors might send some food or water, as well. They would have to make do with whatever they could find.

After searching for a while, they managed to find some mushroom-like plants growing on one of the cave walls. The three of them were a bit hesitant at first – they might be poisonous, after all – but, finally, hunger won out, and they sat down to eat. The plants made the turtle from the night before look like a seven-course Capitol dinner, but it was something.

Suddenly, the Capitol anthem began to play, and Libby looked up. Through the gap in the rocks high above them, they could see the Capitol seal – and then a face. Just one, the girl from Eleven.

"Lordez. She was one of Zione's allies," Nicoline said quietly.

Libby wrapped her arm around the younger girl. "But Zione's still alive. He's probably fine."

Nicoline nodded. "And Wuflric, too."

Pike looked away, and Libby immediately regretted saying anything. Of the three of them, he was the only one whose district partner had died. She put her arm around the little boy and held him and Nicoline close. "And us. We're still here. Still alive." She smiled. "Here's as good a spot to stay as any. Let's get some sleep."

"Should someone stay awake to keep watch?" Pike asked.

Libby shrugged. "I doubt there's anyone else down here. Everyone but us and Wulfric probably crossed the mountains the first day."

"We should still stay alert," Nicoline said cautiously. "I didn't want to say anything earlier – didn't want to scare you. But I thought I saw something – maybe someone – going into one of the caves near us. Maybe it was nothing, maybe it was the light playing tricks, but … well, even if there aren't any other tributes, there could be other things down here. Animals. Mutts."

Libby nodded. "Okay. You two get some sleep. I'll keep watch." She took the pair of glasses from Nicoline and put them on.

Pike didn't have to be told twice to get some sleep, but Nicoline hesitated a moment before lying down. "Wake me when you get tired, okay?"

Libby nodded. "I will."

Soon, the two younger tributes were asleep. Libby smiled, glancing around the chamber. This wasn't so bad. If she had to get trapped in a dark, forbidding cave, these two were good company. Kind. Gentle. Trusting.

Smiling, Libby realized she was in no hurry to leave the mountains. Whatever was waiting for them once they reached the other side, it wouldn't be good. Here, they were safe. If only they could stay there, safe, forever.

If only.

Angus Spencer, 13
District One Male

Angus briefly considered simply sleeping through the night – and letting them do the same.

He was tired. He was hungry. His leg ached. He'd been following the three of them all day, silent, barefoot so as to make less noise. He could probably follow them the next day, too, without being noticed at all.

But the next day might bring them to the end of the mountains. And that was something he didn't want. He didn't want them escaping the mountains, only to be killed by someone else. These three were his. The audience would be expecting it; that was why they had sent him the glasses. They wanted him to be able to make his move. They wanted more blood.

And they would get it.

The two younger ones were already asleep, and the older, larger girl was beginning to nod. She was still managing to keep herself awake, but she wasn't alert. She never saw him. Slowly, carefully, he crept up behind her. He drew his knife.

He would have to be quick. He couldn't take his time, as he had with Mars. Couldn't give her the chance to cry out and wake her companions. Quickly, he clapped a hand over her mouth and drew the knife across her throat. It was quick.

But not quick enough. In the split second before she was gone, she thrashed a bit, and the noise woke the others. Angus had been ready for that, but he hadn't counted on Libby's body sinking backwards against him. She was heavy! It took him a moment to shake off the weight, and, in that instant, the other two were on him. The boy knocked the knife from his hand, and the girl pinned him against the ground. His head hit the ground hard. He struggled to throw her off, but the boy hurried over to help her. His head struck the rock below him again. His vision was starting to blur.

Libby's cannon sounded.

"What do we do, Pike?" the girl asked, and Angus realized that the boy was holding a knife. His knife. Angus struggled to shake off the dizziness that was starting to overwhelm him long enough to fight back.

"I don't know, Nicoline," was the last thing he heard before he lost consciousness.

Sher Haimish, 17
District Eleven Male

Come and play.

There were thirteen likely scenarios for what could happen once he met with Harakuise. Harakuise had been the one to send the message, of course; Sher was certain of that much. The boy was clever – next to him, probably the cleverest one in the arena, especially now that Lordez was gone.

Not that that was saying much, not when everyone else was so dull. It hadn't even been hard for him to sneak away from the Cornucopia with a backpack of supplies; he'd simply volunteered to take the first watch, waited until everyone else had fallen asleep, and left. Now he was following the mountains to the north, and had nearly reached the marsh.

Thirteen scenarios, each of which he could turn to his advantage. Which was why there had been no doubt in his mind about coming; there was no danger. Not really. Harakuise didn't want to kill him. He wanted to use him to kill the rest of his alliance. And the younger boy was just gullible enough to think he would be able to manipulate Sher into helping him from the inside.

The moon was just beginning to sink behind the mountains as Sher reached the marsh. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!" he called, grinning broadly.

Harakuise stepped out of the shadows. "I see you got my message."

"Too good to pass up. I assume Aldo and Equinox are lurking somewhere nearby."

"They are, but I doubt they'd step in to save my life – not really the type. I assume you're armed."

Sher pulled a knife from his belt and tossed it to Harakuise, who caught it by the hilt. "Not anymore."

Harakuise took a few steps closer. "That's awfully trusting of you."

"Call it a show of good faith. You don't want to kill me – not yet. You need me."

"Do I?"

"You need someone inside the alliance. Two days you've been out here, and I see you haven't managed to find much food. Good choice melting the ice for fresh water, but you can only live on water and worms for so long. So you'll need this." He tossed his backpack on the ground between them.

Harakuise nodded. "Of course. But now that I've got it, what do I need you for?"

Sher smiled. "Several possibilities – thirteen, to be exact."

"And you've thought through them all."

"Of course, and so have you."

Harakuise nodded. "Off you go, then."

"You want me to tell you what you already know?"

"No, I want you to prove that you've thought of everything. You can't resist, can you – showing off. So, thirteen scenarios."

Sher nodded. "First possibility: We go and attack the alliance right now. There are more weapons in that bag, it would be four on four, and we'd have the element of surprise. We'd have a fair chance, but it's still stupid."

"Yes, it is. Chances are, at least one of them has woken up by now and realized you were gone."

"Oh, they know I'm gone. Brie was awake when I left. She already suspects I wasn't telling the truth about Lordez; she's a bit more perceptive than the others when it comes to emotions."

"And she just let you go?"

"What else was she supposed to do? Follow me? No, she's too smart for that. Kill me? She doesn't have it in her. Tell the others? What good would it do? I could always say I was heading off on my own – Zione was willing to let Sterling and Brie go without a fuss, so there's no reason to think he would try to stop me."

"So much for scenario one," Harakuise concluded.

"Indeed," Sher agreed. "Second option: I go back to the alliance, and, at some point in the near future, lead them into a trap."

"They'd never follow you."

"I could come up with something."

"Nobody could be that clever."

"I could."

Harakuise eyed him curiously for a moment. "Assuming that's true, where would you lead them?"

"Somewhere in the mountains. It's the only reasonable option. Zione and Kiona won't want to return to the marsh, and Ella's in the forest with some very unfriendly trees. The rest of the arena is just open desert, aside from that volcano to the southeast."

"Volcano?"

Sher nodded. "Probably just looks like a mountain from here, doesn't it. Trust me, it's a volcano. So the mountains are the best place for an ambush."

"So you, me, Aldo, and Equinox, in a straight-up fight against four strong eighteen-year-olds. Doesn't sound like the best option."

"It's not."

"Then how about we skip the next ten scenarios and jump right to number thirteen."

"Number thirteen is patience. I've brought enough supplies to last you a while. You wait while I manipulate my alliance into tearing itself apart from the inside. There's already tension; Sterling and Brie think it was idiotic to split up; they blame Zione for Lordez's death. Zione and Kiona have started to realize that Sterling and Brie don't have what it takes to kill if it ever comes down to an actual fight. Given enough time, they'll turn on each other. When they do, you and your allies close in for the kill. And if your allies are wounded or killed in the battle – well, all the better."

"You still haven't addressed the final problem."

"The final problem?"

Harakuise nodded, circling closer to Sher. "Once it's done – once both of our alliances are dead and gone – and assuming we can plot the deaths of every other tribute in the arena … when it comes down to the two of us, then what?"

Sher shrugged. "Then I kill you."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. You don't stand a chance; I'm much cleverer than you. You probably hadn't even thought of each of those scenarios; you just wanted me to spill every possible plan so you could pick the one you think would work out best for you. But none of them do. You need me, but, in the end, I'll win." He took a few steps closer to Harakuise. "But you're just egotistical enough to believe that I'm wrong."

The younger boy came even closer until he was practically in Sher's face. "No," he said quietly. "You're right."

Sher felt a sharp pain in his stomach, and looked down to see Harakuise remove his knife. Bewildered, Sher slumped back against the edge of the mountain. "Why…?"

Harakuise tossed the knife to one side and crouched down beside Sher. "Because you're right. You're clever – too clever. I didn't realize just how clever until now. You would have won, in the end. And we can't have that." He shook his head. "If this were a mere mental contest, Sher, you would win. Every time. But it's also a battle of will, a contest of ruthlessness. And that's where I have you beat."

Sher coughed, the taste of blood filling his mouth. "So you admit … you just killed a better mind."

To his credit, Harakuise didn't look away. "I concede that."

Sher nodded weakly. "Then I win."

And he smiled.

Harakuise Swallot, 14
District Five Male

Such a waste.

Harakuise shook his head as the cannon fired. Then he closed Sher's eyes and took a few steps back, eyeing his fallen opponent. Aldo and Equinox would arrive soon enough. He'd told them to keep their distance, but now the danger was gone.

The danger. He was convinced now that Sher would have eventually been his most dangerous enemy. Now that danger was gone, and, on top of that, they had supplies. Weapons. Whatever else Sher had packed in his backpack. He should be gloating. Or at least satisfied.

But it was such a waste. Such a terrible waste.

He'd seen deaths before, of course. Ordered deaths. Rebels. Their allies. Their accomplices. Traitors, all of them. Criminals. Unimportant. Ordinary. No one who he would have considered his equal.

Or his superior.

He wasn't sure whether it was fitting or ironic that his first kill – the first whose life he had taken personally – was a mind superior to his own.

In a different world – a world without the Hunger Games – the two of them could have been … what was the right word? Coworkers? Comrades? Allies?

Friends, even?

They would have been unstoppable.

But only in a world without the Hunger Games. A world without the rebellion. A world where the Capitol had remained unchallenged by traitors and cowards.

A world that could never be.

Harakuise wiped the blood from his knife as Aldo and Equinox scrambled down from the mountains. "Why did you do that?" Equinox demanded. "He could have helped us."

Harakuise shook his head. "He already did. There's food in the pack, and maybe weapons, as well. But he couldn't be trusted. He was too much of a danger."

"Him?" Equinox asked skeptically. "What was he going to do? Make a tower out of some pebbles and blow it over on us?"

Harakuise fought back an urge to slap the older boy. Instead, he smiled a little. "Something like that. But it doesn't matter now." He shook his head. "Let's clear out so they can collect the body."

Equinox took the backpack, and he and Aldo headed back to the north. Harakuise lingered for a moment. "Thank you, Sher," he said at last, tucking the knife in his belt. "I owe you."

The audience wouldn't make anything of it. They would assume he was thanking Sher for the knife. But it was deeper than that. Sher had given him something even better – a reminder of what he was fighting for. A reminder of the horror the rebellion had wrought – brilliant minds snuffed out before their time, all that wasted potential. And now he owed it to Sher to see that such horror would never happen again. That there would never – never – be another rebellion.

But to do that, he needed to get home. He needed to win.

Harakuise turned and followed his allies, more determined than ever. He would do it. He would win. He would go home. But Sher had won, too, because Harakuise knew, in that moment, that he would never forget the first life he took. A better mind. A better life.

Such a waste. Such a terrible, terrible waste.

Alistern Elbridge
Bartender

Alistern poured Ivy another drink.

"That one's on me," Jade offered, settling down beside her. "And I'll have the same."

Ivy glared at Jade. In the half hour since Sher's death, no one had approached her. They knew better. Ivy always took her tributes' deaths hard, and now she had lost both in one day. "What are you drinking for?" she growled. "Both of yours are still alive."

Jade shook his head. "Not for long. As long as Angus is unconscious, Pike and Nicoline can put off killing him, but once he comes around, they'll have no choice."

Ivy rolled her eyes. "They haven't got it in them. They'll head off any moment now, try to put as much distance as possible between them and him before he wakes up, hoping that he won't come after them in the dark – now that they've got both pairs of glasses and his knife. But you'll be able to scrape up enough sponsors to get him another – he's had three kills, after all; they'll love that. He'll be on them in no time."

Jade shrugged. "I hope you're right. But I think the boy will kill him."

Alistern shook his head. "You're both wrong – the girl's gonna kill him. Any moment now. She's even more afraid than the boy is."

Ivy turned on him. "What do you know about being afraid?"

Alistern shrugged. "Nothing, I suppose."

It was a lie, of course. He had known his fair share of fear during the rebellion – on the front lines, no less. But none of the victors knew that.

"Nothing about fear," Alistern repeated. "But a bit about recognizing a killer. Picking a winner. I was right about you, after all – both of you." Of the victors, he'd correctly picked half: Vester, Ivy, Jade, and Mags.

"And this year?" Jade asked.

Alistern shook his head. "My streak's over; I bet on Sher."

Ivy looked up, shocked. "You did? Why?"

Alistern shrugged. "He was clever. He had a good plan. Unfortunately, he also had a big mouth." He poured himself a drink.

Ivy rolled her eyes. "Better luck next year."

Alistern nodded. "You, too."

"In desperate hours, gentleness may be repaid with death."