Chapter 18: "Born Again"

"You know... this place makes me wonder...
Which would be worse - to live as a monster...
or to die as a good man?"

~ 'Shutter Island'

He saw her standing in front of the mirror with her stylist fussing around her, making sure every detail was perfect and that her presentation was stunning; little did she know, to Cato she always looked perfect. And she did not need anyone to make her look amazing. He couldn't let her know that, of course. He knew she'd eat him alive for trying to compliment her. Clove didn't communicate very well with people. That was probably why her stylist wore such a distressed look on his face. She had probably already given him a foretaste of how dangerously mad she can get.

"How's it hanging?" Cato decided to ask and she looked up and returned his amused stare with a glare of her own.

"Very funny, Hawks," she barked, transferring her glare onto her stylist who quickly realized it was time to back away. He quickly excused himself and left the two tributes alone. "You sure like getting on my nerves, don't you?"

He laughed shamelessly. Because she was definitely right. "I don't always mean to, but it doesn't make a difference."

"What are you talking about?" she snapped, putting her hands on her hips, her eyes demanding answers.

"I mean that you always get angry anyway, no matter what I do." he explained briefly with a shrug of his shoulders and a shy-ish smile.

"It's not my fault you're so annoying," Clove hissed before turning her back on him to take a glance of herself in the mirror.

"You look fine," he tried calming her, taking a few steps forward. "It could be much worse, you should come downstairs and see all those dorks in their stupid district signature outfits. They look ridiculous. You and I look pretty hot, all gold and soldiery."

"Did you just say we look hot?" she frowned and he just shrugged again.

"That's what I'd go with," he said, looking at her reflection. "let's go downstairs so you can see why."

Clove let out a tired breath, letting him know she really did not feel up to the stupid ceremony. But he understood; he didn't either.

"Fine, let's go. But you better be right or I'll have your ass," she mock threatened him (or seriously threatened him?) before making her way out of the room without waiting for him. He watched her go, facing the mirror with a small smile still dancing on his lips.

"Cato?"

A distant voice made it into his ears, but he couldn't focus at all. Ever since they parted ways with Clove and Katniss, his mind was on his partner the entire time and his thoughts were so intense he wasn't paying attention to where he was going and whether it was the right way. He even forgot about his companion for quite a while and he was only reminded when he heard her voice behind him again, quiet but confident;

"Are you still there?"

Cato shook his head and looked at the little girl over his shoulder. "Huh?"

Rue smirked. "Did you hear anything I just said?"

He furrowed his eyebrows, pretending that he wasn't listening on purpose. "I've been quite occupied thinking about our plan, trying to make sure we won't mess this up."

"We won't," Rue assured him and he raised his eyebrows, surprised with how self-confident she seemed all of a sudden. That was definitely a new side to her. Who would have thought? "Katniss and Clove will not either."

"Didn't realize that you were able to predict the future," Cato snorted, slowing down a bit so she could catch up.

"Oh, I can't," she played along, smiling up at him. "But I am pretty good at reading minds."

He stared down at her, quite taken aback by her attitude and how open she was with him. She had managed to shock him quite a bit before. Back when she had returned after he had told everyone to leave when Clove was on the verge of joining all the other fallen tributes. But he remembered sensing some fear in the air even though no one had forced her to go back. This time, it was again just the two of them but there was nothing in the air. Her eyes were fear-free and smiling, and she almost seemed like she was enjoying his company.

"Is that why you're here still?" he asked, looking away. "Since day 1 you've been reading my mind and that's how you knew you were safe?"

"Kind of, yeah," she said before letting out a cute giggle. Cato couldn't help but smile down at her.

"What's so funny?"

"Have you ever kissed her before?" Rue asked, making him speed up again so that she had to jog to keep up with him. He did not see that coming.

"Why?" he breathed, refusing to look her in the eyes.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I just can tell where your head has been all this time and I can't blame you,"

"What do you mean?" he glanced at her, actually curious.

"Well," she said like she was about to explain something really obvious to someone really not with it. "Let's just say I like observing people. You two have something really powerful going on between you."

"Now how can you know anything about that?" Cato snorted again, ignoring her panting, choosing to keep his fast pace.

"It's all in the eyes, Cato," she explained. "Besides, you were ready to sacrifice yourself so she could live. Twice. That says a lot. Even if you don't,"

"Maybe I'm just really confident about my skills. Maybe I knew I'd be fine. Ever thought of that?"

"I did consider that, actually," she continued using that annoyingly smug tone of voice. "You could have been confident enough to think you could defeat all those wolves and you did, in fact, survive, so that would make sense. But you couldn't have known that the mutts would just leave you and Clove alone when you guys fell off that tree. You held onto her, anyway. Even though you knew that all you had to do to save yourself was to let her fall."

"Look, kid, I'm pretty heavy, that branch would have snapped anyway," he dismissed her remarks with a wave of a hand. "I was just playing a hero for the cameras."

"And what about that time you told Clove that she was the reason you survived the wolf attack? How the thoughts of her helped you recover?"

"I was trying to gain some sponsors," Cato snapped, losing patience with how good of an observer she was. And how much she was able to overhear. And with himself, too. Who was he trying to fool? After all, he had openly admitted to his feelings before and there was no going around it. He was probably just irritated that Rue seemed to have caught all those, in his mind, subtle details. Or maybe he was still trying to play the game the way they expected him to. Pretend that he had not changed. Trying to make it seem like he was not dying inside out of fear for Clove. What for, though? What was the point?

"And what about the kiss?"

He stopped walking abruptly and Rue did, too, looking up at him innocently. Unafraid. He couldn't decide whether he liked her that way. Maybe he was better off with everyone being scared of him. Life was definitely much harder when they weren't. "Where are you going with this?"

"Nowhere really," Rue said with a shrug. "I don't have to try and convince you, it's Clove that has been the oblivious one. Which is why I asked had you ever kissed her before today."

"I haven't." he hissed, almost... embarrassed. "Okay? She would have quite literally cut me up. Back then anyway,"

"So this was the very first time?"

"Yes."

"Now I see," she drawled, making him huff with annoyance.

"See what?"

"Now I see why we've been walking in the wrong direction for over half an hour."

His blood froze in his veins as he looked around frantically. "Are you kidding me!?" Why in the world had she not said anything until now?

But then Rue laughed, making him seriously question his previous choices in the arena, as he sent her a deadly glare. "I am, actually," she smirked. "We're good."

"I don't like you very much right now," Cato snapped at her as he continued to walk again.

"Did you ever?" she laughed, following him. He decided to keep quiet. Even though it really didn't matter anymore how much out of character his answer would be. He had been out of character for most of the Games. And he wasn't planning on making it out of here. He wasn't sure why he had been trying to save his face. As all those thoughts began overwhelming his mind once more, he felt his legs slowing down again, making Rue send him a concerned glance. "What's wrong?"

He stared at her, his eyes narrowed and soft. Rue watched him, half-curiously, half-carefully, as if she was not so sure anymore that she could read his mind so well. After a long and awkward minute of silence-

"She's all I have left,"

His raspy answer made Rue relax as she realized he was not about to attack her for prying. He was just ready to admit to her how he felt, loud and clear. One more time. "I don't have anything waiting for me back there. No family, no real friends. No dream job." Cato said, clenching his fists to stop his hands from shaking. "She's all I got." he looked down, swallowing hard. "She's the only real thing I've ever come close to having. And she has no idea-"

"I think you're wrong," Rue cut him off, her voice soft and comforting. "I think she knows now."

Cato glanced up and into the little girl's dark eyes, trying to read her mind now. Clove was no open book. But was Rue right? Was it really possible to tell that Clove was now well aware of how he felt about her? He didn't want to die without making sure she knew. If he did, there would be nothing left of him. It would be as if he had never existed. Like his life had never mattered to anyone.

Having noticed how torn he still was, Rue reached around him and patted his back gently. "She knows," she whispered. "I saw how devastated she was when we thought you died. I saw the way she looked at you before she took off with Katniss. She knows, Cato."

He carried on staring at the kid for a little while before his face broke into a semi-crooked smile. He didn't care how ridiculous he might have seemed to the Game Makers or his district, talking to a 12-year-old from District 11 about his feelings for Clove. He was long past caring. He was going to die in this arena. Rue's words were what might have gotten him ready to embrace that fact. His death. He needed to hear that. And he was glad it came from Rue. Because she had proved time and again that she was the purest one in the Games. She was the one who never lied. She was loyal and kind. She was everything that Cato almost regretted he couldn't be. And she made him feel like a human being again. She no longer saw him as a monster. A puppet in the hands of the Capitol that would do whatever they pleased. She saw him as just a guy who had feelings for a girl.

"I guess I did have a point, after all," Rue whispered and he frowned when he saw her eyes grow sadder and more distant.

"What's that?" he asked and she sent him a sad smile.

"I was trying to say that I will understand if you choose to turn on me to save Clove," she said, glancing down, almost afraid to look at him. "And I want you to know that I won't blame you. No one should,"

Cato stood there, shocked to the core, but for once in his life, he didn't have to think twice. There were no demons within him he had to fight against to make this choice. It was clear to him what he thought and what he was going to say. And so squatting down, he placed his big hands on Rue's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "You are a really brave girl," he told her. "That's a quality that people in my district value more than anything. My whole life I used to think that a tribute without confidence, strength, and ability to kill in cold blood wasn't worth anything. It wasn't until I met you guys that I realized how wrong I had been."

Rue's eyes watered involuntarily as she listened to his words, her heart perking up at the realization how much Cato had changed. How much better of a person he had turned into. And how much it had to mean to people in her district.

"But you showed me what real strength is," Cato continued. "I will never have the chance to be even half as good and strong as you already are at such a young age. But it's nice to know that thanks to you, perhaps I would be able to learn."

It was nice not to care about anyone's reaction. Cato realized now more than ever how much lighter he felt when he didn't have to mind his words, gestures, even facial expressions. He just didn't care anymore. He knew everyone was watching and he knew what it meant if he was to survive the Games. But he just... didn't care. And thus, his words continued to slip through his lips with such ease he almost smiled:

"Having said that, I need you to know you have my word that I will not hurt you," he vowed, squeezing her arms gently as if to show how much he meant that. "But you are right; I can't promise you that I won't choose to save her instead of you. It's something I won't be able to help."

He expected for her eyes to grow anxious, as he confessed that. He was sure she would let those tears go and maybe even beg him not to let her die. But apparently, he didn't know nearly enough about this little girl, because she actually did the exact opposite and he did not see that coming; she smiled.

"I know that you'll choose her," she whispered. "I would do the same."

Cato snickered. "You too would choose to save Clove instead of me?" he asked her, quite amused. But Rue shook her head.

"I would also choose the person that I love."

His arms went numb as soon as those words left her mouth. As he let go of her, he felt his smile slowly fading, but he never looked away from those dark eyes of hers. It wasn't the words themselves that put him into this odd, senseless state; it was the feeling they gave him. This intense adrenaline rush that went through his body and made his heart start beating faster.

"You do love her-" Rue whispered softly, "don't you?"

What do you say to that? What would a normal, everyday person say? A person that grew up knowing what love, feelings, and empathy were? What would those people say? Cato had no idea. He was not able to come up with a single answer to those questions. He had no clue what normal people would say. But he knew what he would say;

"Yeah," he whispered back, his lips forming the softest smile he didn't know he was capable of until this day. "I love her."

"Ready for our first training?"

Clove glared at him; how did he dare doubt that? "Of course I am," she snapped, as they both entered the training room. She took a quick look around and her bad mood seemed to have worsened as soon as she caught a glimpse of District 12's Katniss at the survival station. "Figures," she snorted as the thought of her enemy's suit literally on fire the night before crossed her mind. "Funny how much you can hate someone's guts."

Cato laughed, getting ahead of her as they joined the others. Katniss and Peeta both stared at them for a little while before the woman, whom Cato presumed was their training supervisor, began to talk:

"In two weeks, 23 of you will be dead," she announced, making a chill run down through Cato's spine, as he glanced at Clove who looked anything but anxious. "One of you will be alive. Who that is, depends on how well you pay attention over the next four days, particularly to what I'm about to say."

Cato had to try really hard not to snort at that comment; it didn't fucking matter what she was about to say. He didn't need to ask anyone to know that every single kid in this room had been following the Games since they could remember and if by now they weren't sure how to play this game, then they were dead already. Who cared what this lady was going to tell them?

"First, no fighting with the other Tributes," she warned with a glare. "You'll have plenty of time for that in the Arena."

Well, that was a given. Cato saw Clove smirk evilly out of the corner of his eye. He forced his lips to form a dark smile, as well, just so he didn't look soft compared to the one hundred pounds of pure focus and indifference next to him.

"There are four compulsory exercises. The rest will be individual training. My advice is: don't ignore the survival skills. Everybody wants to grab a sword, but most of you will die from natural causes."

At least the Careers didn't really have to concern themselves with that. They were lethal enough to scare everyone else so starting a fire and loud chit-chats were something they always felt safe doing. Cato would never admit it, but he was not very good when it came to basic survival skills; he was never very good at starting a stupid fire. But he knew Clove was skilled when it came to that, so he wasn't worried.

"10% from infection, 20% from dehydration. Exposure can kill as easily as a knife."

As soon as she was done with her speech, they were divided into four groups and lined up to train at separate stations. Clove stopped right behind Katniss, as they waited together for their turn. Before long they heard Cato's furious scream echo around the room.

"Where's my knife, huh!?"

Clove glanced to the side and saw him getting in the smaller boy's face, he was the tribute from 6. She wasn't the only one staring, either; Cato had managed to bring everyone's attention to them. A few Peacekeepers began to make their way to stop him from killing that kid right there and then. She raised her eyebrows, shaking her head at Cato's incapacity to hold back. She planned on keeping her cool for as long as possible, although she couldn't guarantee that she wouldn't jump someone for taking one of her knives.

"I didn't touch your knife." District 6 boy first tried to assure him calmly, but he soon would realize it wouldn't help much.

"I put my knife right there!"

"Don't touch me, I didn't touch your knife!" the kid yelled back now, as he saw Peacekeepers close their distance with where they stood, pulling Cato away.

"Yes, you took my knife!" he roared again, making District 6 shudder in fear.

"I didn't touch your knife!" the boy insisted so stubbornly Clove was sure he wasn't joking around.

"You took my knife, you liar!" Cato carried on, making Clove roll her eyes. "He took my knife!"

"Get off me! I'm just sitting here!"

"I'll finish you right now, kid! Actually, better yet, I'll wait for the Arena. You're the first one I get, so watch your back! You know who you're messing with, kid!"

"Everybody, back in line!" one of the trainers ordered. "Go back in line right now!"

Clove took her eyes off of the scene Cato was causing and landed them on Thresh next who was looking up with an amused smirk on his face. She furrowed her eyebrows, before following his stare and she was shocked to see the little girl from District 11, resting on the net high above their heads. In her little hand, there was Cato's precious knife. Clove couldn't help but smirk at the fact she had managed to fool Cato and send him into a rage burst so easily.

She let out a sigh and took a step forward in line, silently deciding on keeping that little secret to herself.

It was rather unbelievable to Clove how much things had changed and how rapid that change was. Everything she so strongly believed in before seemed so meaningless now. She was almost shocked that she could have ever had that kind of mindset. How easy was it to manipulate people into thinking like soulless, heartless killing machines? To have them longing to hurt others for the sake of someone's entertainment?

"Were you always friends?" Katniss asked out of the blue, making her snap out her thoughts.

Clove snickered. "Who, me and Cato? Nope," she replied without hesitation. "Or maybe it was just me that didn't consider him a friend; I just thought of him as my training partner. I actually was certain they would send us both to the Games."

"Really?" the brunette asked, frowning. "But I thought that you guys volunteer on your own?"

Clove looked away so fast her neck made a weird sound. She knew she was not supposed to let that slip. But then again, on the other hand, what did it matter? She was not going to get out of the arena. There was no way the Game Makers were going to let her live. She herself did not want to live either.

Katniss must have got the hint because she just nodded her head in understanding and Clove found herself actually curious as to what was going through her head. Clove knew that there was no way Katniss could have known much about district 2, other than the fact that kids there were illegally trained for the Games, which made the entire outcome that much more unfair. It was why everyone hated Careers so badly. She couldn't have known that it was not that simple. That it was not just their fucked up nature and their will to murder innocent lives. It was a contest. It was out of their control. It was what their lives focused on. And nobody asked their permission. "But how come you didn't stop training with him then? If you knew there was a good chance both of you would go in the arena?"

Clove swallowed hard, clenching her small fists tight because she did not know the answer to that question. It was something that had been bothering her since she first realized she was capable of missing Cato's presence. It was something that hit her when she learned she cared about what happens to Thresh. About what did happen to him. The memory of his dark, warm eyes and how protective he was of her and Rue made her feel even worse about her previous persona she was so stubborn to play out; first to get in the arena, then to somehow deal with the stupid rule change. After that, acting like she didn't give one damn got harder and harder until she couldn't pretend anymore. Not after she thought Cato had been killed. And then Thresh...

"Clove,"

She heard Katniss' voice from a far distance and she squeezed her eyes tight.

"Clove, are you listening?"

She shook her head at the sound of Enobaria's harsh voice, as she looked up from her dinner plate. "Yeah," she nodded even though she hadn't registered a word the woman said.

"So you're saying District 11 for sure?" Cato asked all of a sudden as if to save Clove from Enobaria's anger.

"Definitely," Brutus mumbled with a mouth full of whatever it was he was chewing. "He's almost as big as you, he must be good, even though he's from 11,"

Clove glanced at Cato, curious whether that comment had bothered him, but he just nodded, agreeing with his mentor. "Right," he said, looking at her. "Who else are you considering?"

She stared at him for a little while before glancing at Enobaria. "How about the girl from District 4?" she offered. "She could come in handy,"

"Good idea," Cato said before anyone else could open their mouths. "We should ask her,"

"Ok, so boy from 11 and girl from 4," Enobaria summed up, before taking a hearty swig from her wine glass. "Now let's discuss District 1,"

"What the hell for?" Clove snapped, making her mentor narrow her eyes at her dangerously.

"If you stop being an idiot for one second, I'll tell you," she bit back. Cato raised his eyebrows and Brutus smirked stupidly, continuing to devour his dinner without much interest. "Not sure if you've noticed but you don't seem to be well liked around here, especially when it comes to District 1,"

"Like I care," she snorted. "I'm not here to make friends,"

"Clove, don't be ridiculous, that's obvious," Enobaria snapped, losing patience with her attitude. "But do you really want to give them any more reasons to kill you?"

"She isn't doing anything," Cato defended her, causing Clove to frown. "they're both quite simply idiots."

"Glimmer has a very influential father who will definitely try his hardest to somehow gain sponsors for his precious daughter. Same goes for Marvel, it's typical for Careers from 1. I wouldn't fuck with them if I were you,"

"They're still idiots," Cato barked, glaring at her. "They don't know who they're dealin' with but I am damn well gonna make sure that they will soon find out,"

"I'm trying to help you, Cato," Enobaria said in a tired voice. "Mess with them and you're going to regret it. Just relax. Make them think there is nothing to be scared of,"

"There is a whole damn lot to be scared of," he responded, insulted.

"Cato, this is your life at stake that we are talking here, get it through your thick skull, boy!" she barked, showing her golden fangs. "You won't gain any sponsors with this kind of attitude, but be my guest if you wanna die before you get to kill anyone."

"Alright, we'll play it cool, relax," Clove assured her, digging the fork into her food. "It's not like it'll be hard to fool them,"

"Arrogance is lethal, Clove," Brutus finally decided to pitch in. "Too little of it is dangerous, too much of it is like a death wish. There's a certain balance that you gotta find in order for it to be effective the way you want it to be. Otherwise, it's better to play it safe."

"That's kinda funny coming from you," Clove remarked, referring to how Brutus himself had chosen to go about the Games when he was one of the tributes. He had definitely not played it anything close to safe.

"Well I'm speaking from experience," he shrugged, not really caring for her rude comment. "I was lucky. Who knows if odds will be in your favor, as well?"

Clove glanced at Cato who looked like he was trying super hard not to lose his cool. But he stayed put, breathing deeply and glaring at Brutus. What kind of mentor was he? Cato couldn't help but envision Brutus witnessing their death on the big screen without batting an eye, his only interest being food on his plate.

"Our point is that you're still just kids," Enobaria said. surprisingly enough with a hint of humanity in her normally careless, cold voice. "Brutus and I have already been where you are going. We've been there and we both got out. I would imagine that you two want the same and to get there - it'd be wise to pay attention to what we're saying."

Clove sat back, pushing her plate as far away from her as she could, as she had completely lost her appetite. She crossed her arms over her chest and focused her narrowed eyes on her mentors. "I just think that things you say don't add up. You're telling us not to be like you and use different techniques, but you won thanks to how arrogant and confident you were, and because you were not afraid of others and you made it clear how dangerous you were," she tried to reason with them. "How does all of that make sense?"

"As I already mentioned, Clove," Brutus growled, now slightly bothered. "We were also lucky. We were good but lucky. What saved me and Enobaria could very easily kill you. But do as you wish, just don't go beggin' us for sponsors while you're in the arena bleeding out because you were too stubborn to listen to us,"

"I don't beg," Clove responded with a glare, making Brutus shake his head with a tired sigh.

"There's a very thin line between courage and stupidity," Enobaria hissed. "Mark my words."

Cato didn't want to say it, but Brutus and Enobaria were actually trying to help them; or at least pretending. Either way, he understood where they were coming from. All it took was one example; Johanna Mason. She won by making everyone think she was weak and wasn't worth focusing on. The truth was - she was lethal and ruthless. She killed her way to the top and won the crown and her life. But the thing was this only worked for Johanna because she wasn't a Career. Everyone knows how deadly tributes from 1 and 2 always are. However, letting Glimmer and Marvel take the lead didn't sound like such a bad idea, just to mess with their heads. Deep inside though, Cato knew Clove would never agree with this plan; she was too proud to let the other two take the wheel.

"Cade made that mistake and he's dead now,"

A shockwave ran through his entire body along with his name. How dared he? "What did you just say?" Cato asked, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.

Brutus exchanged glances with Enobaria, who also seemed quite surprised that he had decided to play that card. "Look, boy, I mean no disrespect, but he was killed because he messed with the wrong people, you don't wanna do that-"

"Shut up about my brother, you don't know shit," Cato said through gritted teeth, getting on his feet. "Cade should have won the Games, and you know that. I know you do."

Enobaria looked down but said nothing. Neither did Brutus. They just watched Cato storm away to his room without a word. Clove stared at them both for a little while, her eyebrows raised. She then shrugged, as if to herself, and continued to eat her dinner.

She briefly thought about following Cato, either as a sign of loyalty or to try and somehow cheer him up maybe... But that wasn't really her style. Or her concern.

After all, she didn't really care too much.

"Clove,"

She shook her thoughts away and glanced at Katniss. "What?"

"Are you okay? You looked like you were about to be sick,"

Clove licked her dry lips and gave her a tight nod in response. She actually was starting to feel quite sick. She couldn't explain how she felt if she tried. It is quite confusing to find yourself turning into a completely different person within days. There were times she wouldn't bat an eye while watching someone die. She used to feel so incredibly emotionless and cold and it never worried her before. Now? As Thresh's smiling face crossed her mind followed by Cato's, she found it extremely hard to breathe. It was almost unbearable for her to continue with their plan while she didn't know whether Cato was still alive or not. "It's not whether I wanted to go in the arena with Cato or not," Clove replied Katniss's previous question. "I just didn't care,"

Clove felt Katniss's eyes on her the entire time and she could almost hear the other girl's thoughts. She couldn't blame her for probably judging her. It was almost disgusting to her when she thought about it now; the way she used to behave and think. She felt repulsed.

"I didn't care..." she whispered under her breath to herself as if she just realized how terrible of a person she used to be. No matter how badly she wished she could turn back time. It was not an option. She knew she shouldn't blame herself too hard; it wasn't her fault - the way she had been brought up. For all they knew it could have been the other way around; it could have been Katniss. She had never chosen such fate for herself. And the minute she realized she could do something about it, the minute she realized she did have a say... it was too late.

Don't let them define who you are, Thresh had said. Not again.

And damn her if she was not going to keep that promise to him. All she felt for Thresh was so much more intense because she knew that it was him that gave her a push in the right direction. It was him that changed her. Not Cato. Not the rule change. Not Rue. Not the boy from 4 whom she watched take his last breath with Katniss crying by his side. It was Thresh.

"I had never had to mourn anyone's death before," Clove said, unable to stop those words from slipping from her mouth. "Before the arena, I didn't know what it meant to care about someone and to grieve when they're no longer with me,"

Katniss watched her, half-curious and half-shocked. She knew that Clove had to let things out; if not now, then when? One of them was most likely about to die within the next hour or two. So she listened. "You will see Cato again, Clove," she assured her. "Our plan will work."

Clove ran a hand through her hair and shook her head. "I'm not talking about Cato," she whispered inaudibly and Katniss was hit with the truth the other girl had been trying to hide from the rest of the world ever since it happened.

Thresh. Katniss thought to herself. She was talking about Thresh.

"Yo, 11!" Cato yelled after the other guy who was busy walking away from the training room at a fast pace. Clove stood next to him, her eyebrows raised and her arms crossed over her chest as if nothing could scare her, as if she was above it all.

Thresh stopped walking at once but didn't turn around immediately. Cato sent Clove a questioning glance and she just nodded her head, silently agreeing to approach the guy. As they came to a stop, inches away from Thresh, he must have sensed their glaring eyes on him because he spun around and crossed his arms in the same fashion Clove had hers crossed before.

"We have an offer for you," Cato announced, as confident as ever. Thresh didn't look very impressed, nor intimidated by them. "We want you to join our pack. You will be our ally,"

There was no question mark. Cato didn't tend to end his "offers" with question marks. That was because he never got rejected by others. Except when they were 5 foot 3 and their name was Clove. But that was the only exception he was able to tolerate.

Thresh just stood there, tall and strong, glaring. Cato furrowed his eyebrows, waiting for him to respond, as he glanced from him to Clove. After a little while, he could swear he felt Clove shift awkwardly under the other guy's intense gaze. A weird feeling seized through his body, so he decided to make Thresh focus on him once more. "Okay, so we train together and talk through our tactics during lunch. We will see you tomorrow morning."

They both turned around and were about to leave Thresh be when his deep voice echoed down the hallway and it was the first time they heard him speak;

"Not interested,"

Cato and Clove froze and exchanged surprised glances before turning to look at District 11's tribute.

"Excuse me?" Cato demanded with a sarcastic smirk spreading on his face as if he thought the other was just screwing with them.

"I said," Thresh barked, "Not interested. Not today, not tomorrow. Not ever,"

Clove snorted, making the two guys look at her - Cato's soft blue eyes being the exact opposite of the dark glare Thresh gave her. She didn't really notice the difference; she wasn't even looking at them. She was too busy laughing up Thresh's stupidity.

"Fine," Cato growled. "Hope you know that you'll regret this."

Thresh sized him up, nothing but hatred curving his features. "I would rather die than have anything to do with either one of you."

Cato laughed a sinister laugh and Clove backed him up with a smirk of her own. "Well, that's a given. You dying. No worries."

Thresh showed no intention of responding anymore. He landed his deep brown eyes on Clove one more time, on the smirk her face still held, before leaving them alone and walking away into the darkness of the hallways.

Cato shook his head, almost disappointed. As embarrassing as it might have been to have someone decline his alliance, he shrugged it off. "We're gonna have to take him down in the Bloodbath. As soon as possible."

Clove agreed with a simple nod and they both decided to walk back to District 2 floor in silence. Cato didn't want to mention how he didn't like the way Thresh had watched her. The look he gave her, so full of hate like he was born to despise her. He chose to make a mental note to watch out for Clove the second that gong goes off. He had not expected for Thresh to jump at his offer, but he was quite certain the other guy would agree. Now, he really had no idea what to expect from him and he was not going to risk underestimating him. He was not going to let him get to Clove.

He glanced at her as they rode the elevator; she stood there, arms crossed over her chest as she often did, but there was no sign of confusion or fear on her beautiful face. As far as he knew, she didn't even notice anything odd about Thresh's behavior towards her. But he certainly did. He wasn't paranoid.

Thresh was preparing to take her down. And he was not going to let him.

"Clove," he whispered to her and she rose an eyebrow at him quizzically.

"What?"

"Clove," Katniss brought her back to the arena once again. She let out a deep breath and choked all of her unwanted tears back. They had important work to do. She had to pull it together. "He was a really good guy," the brunette carried on, making Clove want to stab her.

"I don't want to talk about him," she said through gritted teeth, stopping abruptly and rubbing the palms of her hands against her eyes furiously. "He's gone. He died. I still feel his blood on my hands and I still see his dead wide open eyes. He died. He's gone. So shut up about it,"

Katniss stood there, nothing but understanding making its way onto her face. They'd lost Thresh. A great fighter. A good person. A loyal ally. The first person that Clove had actually grown to like and respect, aside from Cato.

"I'm sorry,"

Clove let out a humorless laugh, pressing the back of her hand to her forehead now, furious and confused at the same time. She didn't want to admit it... but she missed him. Especially now when Cato wasn't with her and she had no way of knowing whether she would see him again. She missed Thresh. His courage. His loyalty. His presence. The way he made her feel things she didn't know she was able to experience.

"Yeah," she sighed, looking at Katniss, her eyes red and teary. "So am I,"

"Alright, kid," Cato smiled down at Rue. "No fear, yeah?"

She nodded with a faint smile of her own, but he could tell that she was terrified on the inside. He couldn't blame her. This was it. This was the big finale. This was them either succeeding or failing. The problem was that the outcome didn't even matter because even if their plan worked, they would have to face their fate when it's just the four of them left in the arena. What then? Who will snap first? Will anyone? What will the Game Makers do if no one reaches for their weapon?

"Remember that as soon we have their attention, we need to split. Okay?" Cato reminded her just to make sure she had not forgotten, that she wouldn't let fear consume her and make her follow him instead. "It's really important that we split. Some of them will have to follow you but don't stray too far from me and we'll be okay. Run a zig zag between the trees. They'll miss, trust me,"

"I trust you,"

Cato froze. Rue's words, spoken so confidently, echoing in his bewildered mind. He would have never in a million years thought he would one day feel so responsible for someone's life. He did feel responsible for Cade's death because it was his affection for Clove that led his brother to break the rules. And he did feel responsible for Clove having been picked to volunteer because he could have taken Cade's advice and stopped training with her.

But this? This 12-year-old, innocent child that seemed to look up to him so much? To a Career that used to be more than ready to murder her mercilessly to win pride for his district? For whatever it was worth. This little girl that now trusted him with her life?

What if this plan doesn't work? What if she's not fast enough? Their plan was fragile. Many things could go wrong. Cato and Rue were supposed to lure the intruders, people that should have never been involved in the Games, away from the city (where they suspected their base had been all along) and into the forest, then into the open field where their trap was ready to blow them into pieces. And where Katniss and Clove were going to be ready up on a hill to make sure none of them get away or get to hurt their allies.

And.. what then? They had no idea. All they knew was that if they managed to kill all those kids from 2, more surprises from the Capitol would continue to chase them and eventually kill three of them. But they would not turn on each other. They had agreed to stick together until they can't help each other anymore. Because they were no longer tributes from different districts. They were no longer pieces in their game. They were allies

His thoughts were disturbed by a cannon. They both shuddered at the sound and with hearts in their throats looked up to the sky, even though the Capitol had stopped showing the faces of fallen tributes days ago. All the courage seemed to have left them both at the same time, panic replacing it.

"No," Cato choked out, his hands trembling as he clenched them into fists. His face pale as the worst imaginable picture crossed his mind. Rue sent him a devastated look, silently asking him what it meant and what they were to do now. But he wasn't thinking of that. He couldn't think straight. All the air left his lungs, his heart beating in his chest more wildly than ever.

Turning on his heels and almost losing his balance, a terrible yell cut through the silence;

"CLOVE!"

A/N: Every time I update, I am struck with how fast time flies, it's not even funny. Can't believe another year has passed since I last posted a chapter here. As always, I am sorry. Still not close to abandoning this fic, but with work and school at the same time, things I actually enjoy doing are something that needs to be put off, unfortunately. I've recently completed my exams so it leaves me with just work for the rest of the summer, no more classes and exams for now. Thus, I will try and finish by October before next school year starts. :) Should be two more chapters, I want to wrap it all up at 20 chapters. I have some bits and pieces prepped and waiting to be put together so it shouldn't be that long. My apologies again and I hope someone out there is still interested in reading my story till the end. You guys are the best and I really hope you enjoyed it!

I dedicate this chapter to the "Guest" who reviewed "Dystopia" a few weeks ago, asking me to update this story. Thanks for inspiring me to wrap this up! :)