Hey guys! Here's the next part! And if you're lucky, you may get another chapter tonight! :D Yay for writing most of the day!
I hope you guys like it!
And just a huge shout out to my bestest FF friend, Drawing . Addict! She's been helping me work out where the future of this fic lies, and helping me work out the kinks in my ideas! Most of what will happen from here until the end of the fic is because of her hard work and ideas, so thank you so much D.A! :D You're amazing! :D
And without further ado, here's the next chapter!
Haymitch
Effie and I woke up on the day of the Games feeling sick. Her from nerves, and me from all the wine I drunk last night.
Effie goes off to get prepped, and I dress quickly, not particularly caring about what I look like. I look down to the Victor's Square, and see that it's already filling up with Capitol citizens that want to get first-hand reactions of the mentors to their tributes' deaths. It's sick.
Effie and I eat in silence, and then go down to the Square. Chaff instantly is next to me, and he slips a glass into my hands, ushering the waitress forward to pour whiskey for us. Effie glares at me, but I shrug her off. It's Game day, she can't deny me this drink.
As ten o'clock approaches, we take our seats. I end up between Chaff and Talia, both who are looking nervous, but Talia looks almost suicidal. I place my hand on her leg in reassurance, and she smiles weakly at me.
Once all of the mentors are crowded around the great screen in front of us, Caesar Flickerman and Claudius Templesmith appear on the screen, telling us that it's only five minutes until the beginning of the Games. My eyes find Effie's, from where she's sitting with the other escorts, and we share a small smile of reassurance.
The Capitol people behind me are screaming as Flickerman and Templesmith count down the final minute until the tributes are raised, and then we finally see them. The people scream even more as the kids come up into the arena, which we can now see is a forest. Good, she'll be fine in the woods. I find both of the kids in the circle, and see that they're not very far apart. As the final minute counts down, I can tell that Katniss is thinking about running to the Cornucopia. She's staring at that bow like it's a part of her own soul that she wants back.
No, don't go for it! Do what I told you! Do not go for the Cornucopia, Katniss!
The cameras zoom in on each of the tributes as the seconds pass by. I feel Talia shake beside me, so I clasp her hand to calm her down. It doesn't work, but she squeezes back.
And then, the gong sounds. Peeta's off, running into the Cornucopia. It was like we planned; he'd go in strong and get some weapons; but he'd tell Katniss that she shouldn't go in, to protect her. But Katniss is stumbling forward, confused, but then she grabs the bread and plastic before her. Then, she spots a backpack near her and goes for it. What is wrong with her? Why didn't she listen to me?
I hear a scream from the girl next to me, and my eyes flash over to another part of the screen, where the boy from Two is hacking away at Orion, killing him slowly and painfully. I half expect her to fall into my arms, but she goes the other way, into Odair's arms. I look at him, and he wraps his arms around her, rocking her, never taking his eyes off the screen.
I go back to Katniss again, who is grappling with the boy from Nine for the backpack. Something silver catches my eye, not before it cuts into the boy's back. He goes down, fallen pray to the girl from Two and her expert knife-throwing abilities. And she's aiming for Katniss now.
"Run girl!" I can't help but yell, and I hear Effie's raised voice joining my own. And she does as we say; she runs for the woods, but not before the girl has launched another knife. For one fleeting second, I think that she's dead, but Katniss surprises me. She lifts her backpack up to her head and manages to lodge the knife in there. It's an impressive recovery.
Peeta also manages to get out, but not without sustaining some bruises and a hurt leg. He manages to cut down the girl from 7 and the boy from 4; the latter impresses me. But it gets me a glare from Finnick, which mars his pretty face.
After those horrifying first minutes of the Games, I slump down in my chair, and finally look over at Talia, who's still crying into Finnick's shoulder. I feel horrible for her, she just lost her brother as well as her tribute. I pat her on the shoulder, and she looks up at me, tears fresh in her eyes.
"Did she make it? Katniss?" She whispers.
"Yeah, she did." I'm confused, why would she want to know about Katniss?
"Good."
With that, Talia gets up and walks out of the Square, and surprisingly, the Peacekeepers let her pass. At least they have some respect for the grieving.
The Capitol citizens carry on roaring as the battle rages at the Cornucopia, with the Career tributes cutting down at least ten of the lesser tributes. Cato, from Two, repulsed me the most. He was a killing machine; he would go a long way in this. His partner wasn't bad either, with her knife-throwing skills. The pair from One weren't that special, but the boy could throw spears with good accuracy. The girl was normal, she wasn't particularly gifted, like her peers.
Once the bloodbath had stopped, the cameras took in the tributes finding their footing in the arena. It showed them making camps, getting water and food, all of that stuff. Katniss seemed to flourish in the arena, using all her skills from back home to her advantage. Peeta was managing, he had found a water source, and found some food, and was now looking for the Careers.
I moved over and sat next to Effie, not before going to the bar for some wine.
"They're doing okay, aren't they?" I said, after a while.
"Yes. It didn't look like it at first, but they're doing fine." Effie took the bottle from my hand and took a swig from it, much to my surprise. And then she had another gulp. And another.
"Jeez, Eff, leave some for me." I snarled, snatching the bottle away.
"I'm thirsty." She mumbled.
"Then go get your own drink." I said, and was confused when she huffed. Effie never huffed.
"Fine then, I will!" With that, she stalked off, leaving me completely dumbfounded. What was that? She seemed completely normal five seconds ago, but then she completely turned on me.
I watched as night fell in the arena. Peeta had managed to find the Career pack and was working out how to approach them. Katniss, meanwhile, was none the wiser.
Peeta decided to just walk up to the Careers and talk his way into the pack. He had a silver tongue, and could charm anyone. I hoped that his silver tongue would work against the Careers.
"Hey, look, it's Lover Boy!" The girl from One crooned. She got up and came terrifyingly close to him with her bow and arrows.
The other Careers got up and surrounded Peeta, flaunting their weapons in a deadly fashion. I was seriously scared for him.
"What are you doing here, Twelve?" Cato asked, drawing his sword over Peeta's chest mockingly.
"I want to join your pack." Peeta said simply, and the Careers looked at each other, deliberating.
"Why's that?" Cato asked.
"Because I know where Katniss is. You want Katniss, right? I'll take you to her." Peeta looked upset as he said this, but the Careers didn't pick up on that.
Behind me, the crowd started mumbling about betrayal and the star-crossed lovers being doomed. I, on the other hand, was focused on Peeta.
I remembered our conversation the other night.
"I don't want to lead them to her! They'll kill her!" Peeta had screamed.
"I know that, boy! You'll say that you'll lead them to her, when in reality, you'll lead them away from her! Isn't that what you want? A chance for her to live? You know her strengths, exploit them to their disadvantage." I had told him, angrily.
Watching the screen now, I could tell that what I had said had sunk in. Cato and the others made a silent nod to each other, and then turned back to Peeta.
"Fine, Lover Boy. Take us to her."
And with that, Peeta became a Career. He was the first kid from Twelve to be a Career member since way before I won. I think my own mentor, Balthazar Fiennes, joined the Careers, and then double-crossed them.
As night fell, the fallen tributes illuminated the sky for the first time. Eleven dead in the first day. An average amount. Still left were Katniss, Peeta, the five Careers, the boy from Three, the girl from Five, the girl from Eight, the boy from Ten, and both of Chaff's kids. Thirteen left to play.
Suddenly, the cameras focus on someone who is trying to start a fire. At night! What an idiot! I hear Cecelia's cry, as the cameras zoom in on the girl from Eight's face. Stupid! That'll attract the Careers like moths to the flame! And to my absolute horror, Eight's camp was only a few hundred metres away from where Katniss was hiding in a tree. If the Careers spotted the fire, they'd be led right to Katniss' doorstep! I give a glare over to Cecelia, who is sitting with Talia. They both give me a look of apology, and Talia whispers "sorry". They know that their girl is going to die. I just hope mine doesn't.
Effie slips back beside me, and stares in horror as the Careers draw closer to the camps. Our hands rest on the seat between us, our fingers lightly touching. It's as much as we can get away with here, but it's reassuring to know that she's feeling the same. I will have to ask her about earlier later.
Suddenly, they've spotted it. The Careers run, hooting and crying out, followed by Peeta, who looks wary of taking someone out. The Careers burst into the girl's camp, waking her from her sleep. Honestly, sleeping by a fire at night! How stupid can you get?
"Please! Please don't kill me!" She squealed, in vain, as Cato stabs her with his sword, producing an agonizing scream from the girl. I hear a sob from behind me, and I know that Cecelia is mourning her tribute's death.
"Twelve down, eleven to go!" The boy from One, Marvel, I think he was, called, which gained another round of cheers.
Once they check the girl for supplies, they start moving. I pray that they'll pass Katniss, but they don't. They stop about ten metres from her, and I see her freeze. She can clearly see them now, and I know that she's as worried as I am about her. I hear small raspy breaths coming from Effie, and when I turn to look at her, I see that she's petrified.
"Shouldn't we have heard a cannon by now?" One girl, Glimmer, says.
"I'd say yes. Nothing to prevent them from going in immediately." Cato's partner, Clove, replies.
"Unless she isn't dead." Glimmer puts in, which gets a snarl from Cato.
"She's dead. I stuck her myself." He clenched his fists fiercely.
"Then where's the cannon?" Marvel asks, sticking up for his partner.
"Someone should go back. Make sure the job's done." The girl from Four, Aquaria, interjects.
"Yeah, we don't want to track her down twice." Glimmer says.
"I said she's dead!" Cato snarls again.
An argument breaks out, during which Peeta decides to stay quiet. The Careers look ready to rip each other apart when he finally silences them.
"We're wasting time! I'll go and finish her and let's move on!" He growls, which gets a look from Cato.
From her vantage point, I can tell that Katniss has recognised Peeta's voice. Betrayal fills her eyes, and she tips sideways in her shock. Thank God she belted herself in, or she would have fallen out. She hung there, suspended by the belt, facing the ground. Effie squealed when she tipped, and clung onto my hand for reassurance.
"Go on, then, Lover Boy. See for yourself." Cato gestures to Peeta to go back; to both mine and Effie's relief, they didn't hear Katniss' mistake. Peeta leaves to find the girl, and I feel daggers being glared into my back. Cecelia obviously dislikes my tribute killing her own. I don't look around; this is the Hunger Games, it's every kid for themselves, Cecelia should know that by now.
Peeta goes back to the girl, who is shaking with pain and exhaustion. He kneels down beside her, pulls out his knife, and whispers "I'm sorry" to her, before stabbing her again. The girl barely grunts this time, and the cannon goes off quickly.
Back with the Careers, they're deliberating on whether to kill Peeta, but what Cato says hits me the most. "Besides, he's our best chance of finding her."
Great, he's bought it. Cato is the leader of this group, that is easy to see, and if he believes that Peeta is good to keep, then Peeta's going to stay alive for a lot longer.
They talk about Katniss for a bit, saying about how she was simple-minded, spinning around in her dress. It reminds me of what I told Katniss, that she looked silly and forgettable in her interview. Her only redeeming qualities were her eleven and Peeta's affection for her.
Peeta returns, and they move on, leaving Katniss to fight another day. The crowd behind me goes wild with chatter, whereas before they were frozen with excitement.
"Oh my gosh! She heard them! She knows that he's with them! Oh the drama!" One woman squeals.
"That poor girl, finding out that her lover is against her!" A man drawls.
On screen too, Flickerman and Templesmith are discussing Peeta and Katniss' behaviour, commenting that the star-crossed love of these two people seems to be getting more and more complicated.
Perfect, they're all buying it. I give Effie a grin, and she smirks back.
By this time, Katniss has begun to move again. She comes out from under the bushes, and gives a knowing smirk to the camera, not unlike the ones that Effie and I just shared. I wasn't sure how to react to that; I guess she was just playing them along.
Now that she has escaped the Careers, Effie and I return to the apartment. We sit together, not daring to sleep in case something bad happens and our tributes need sponsors. The biggest threat to Katniss now is her lack of water, and as the day goes on, I can tell that she's getting really dehydrated. Night falls and morning rises without Katniss finding water, and now she's getting really dehydrated. She's almost delusional, stumbling around trying to find water. But suddenly, I can see it! A lake, about half a mile away from her in the direction that she's been going! Keep going, girl.
But the delusions have got the best of her. She lifts her head to the sky and speaks "water" as if that'll convince me to give her some. I was glad at that moment that I wasn't in the Square; the amount of people clamouring around me would have been unbearable.
Keep going! I implore her, and I think that my message rings clear in her head. There would only be one good reason why I would withhold water, because she's almost found it!
"Haymitch, I don't think she's going to make it. Maybe you should send her something." Effie pipes in, but I don't reply.
"Haymitch, please! Do something!" Effie shrieks suddenly, making my jump out of my skin.
"Eff, she's almost there! What is wrong with you?" I shoot up, looking down into her glaring eyes.
"What's wrong is you're going to let her die! She's dying, Haymitch! Get her some water!" Effie gets up and glares at me, anger burning in her eyes. What is wrong with her? What is with these mood swings?
"Effie, look, she's almost there." I try and calm her down, but it doesn't work. She stalks away again, leaving me alone in the apartment.
But I'm not alone for long. Cinna comes in to find me, a look of despair on his face.
"If you're here to tell me that I should send her water, she's almost there! I'm not going to waste sponsors' money for that." I shrug, grabbing a drink and taking a gulp.
"I wasn't going to say that. I just wanted company." He sat down beside me, and we watched the screen together. We watch as the hours slowly pass, and Katniss is inching closer to the lake, but closer to death. It was a matter of waiting and seeing which would claim her first.
But eventually, she flopped down into the mud beside the lake, and I started shouting at her when she didn't move again.
"You're there, you stupid girl! You're there!"
Cinna had to hold me down to stop me from ripping the television off the wall in anger. I'm glad that he did, because Katniss eventually registered that mud meant water, and she managed to refrain from drinking the water long enough to purify it. Over the next few hours, she drank at least four litres of water, which was a relief to Cinna and me. She couldn't afford to be dehydrated again, it was a miracle that she wasn't killed.
Effie came back just as Cinna was leaving, after the anthem played in the arena. They smiled at each other as they passed each other.
I was wary around Effie. I didn't know what she was feeling and I didn't want to anger her again.
"Haymitch... I'm sorry that I shouted at you. She got there in the end. I... I don't know what's wrong with me, I keep having these mood swings, and I feel slightly sick. I thought it was nerves, but it's carried on during the day. That's why I shouted at you. I just feel rough, that's all. I'm sorry." She looked really sorry, so I decided to take pity on her.
I enveloped her in my arms and just held her for a bit. She sighed and melted into my arms.
"Well, I hope you feel better soon. For my sake." I teased, and she slapped my chest lightly.
We didn't sleep again that night, just watching as Katniss got better again after her recent dance with death. I made coffee, endless cups, and watched as Effie downed them. She said that she didn't want to drink alcohol, as she might get drunk. It didn't stop me though.
Despite all the coffee, and her own willpower, Effie slowly sunk into a peaceful sleep beside me, leaving me trapped under her body. I didn't mind, though, as Effie sleeping was one of the sweetest things I had ever seen. She always lost at least twenty years when she slept, looking like a little child.
I watched in silence as night fell and dawn came up without an incident. But then, I saw it.
About a five hundred metres from where Katniss was sleeping, a fire had erupted and was engulfing the trees. I willed her to wake up; I would not have her burnt by those stupid Gamemakers! Obviously Crane did that to push Katniss back to the other tributes.
Effie woke up in the wake of my anger, and saw what was happening.
"Oh no!" She cried.
"Yeah, your Crane seems to have an agenda on his hands." I snarled, wary of the recording systems around us.
We watch as Katniss and the other tributes scramble to get away from the fire. The Careers are camped around the Cornucopia, but they can see that the fire isn't simply a tribute's fire. They know that something's up, and they're waiting for their next victim to stumble out.
Katniss scrambles away from the fire, but I can tell that she's exhausted. She is reduced even to throwing up what little food that she has; intoxicated by the harmful smoke.
Effie and I sit on the edge of our seats, praying for Katniss to get away alive.
As if the Gamemakers heard our prayer, they ramp the attack up a notch, with fireballs. The Capitol audience will love this, it'll add a bit of excitement to the boring day.
Katniss manages to dodge most of the fireballs, but she makes a mistake when she pauses to reach for her singed hair. The next fireball catches her off guard, and she barely manages to get away, but not before she sustains a burn to her right calf. Effie and I both wince, feeling her pain as she yelps and screams, trying to put the flame on her trousers out. I hold Effie's hand, trying to reassure her, but I'm not even sure anymore. Can our Girl on Fire survive the attack with the very thing that she is supposed to be? I wasn't sure.
Thankfully, the attack stops, and she finds a lake of water. I can tell that she's in excruciating pain, and my heart goes out to her.
"Eff, I think it's time we break out the sponsor list."
Dun dun duun! Next chapter should be up soon!
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