Just a short update this time, but next chapter will be much longer.

We sit together on the couch, the four of us with bated breaths. Even Emalda, who usually tries her best to just zone out at this point, is watching the screen intensely. During the first fifteen minutes of the Games the screens are automatically tuned to the main feed and we have to wait a bit to be able to track our tributes specifically. Finally Claudius and Caesar announce that it is time and turn our attention to the screen behind them, which fades from black to a counter. This is the point where the tributes are raised to the surface and they, and us watching, get a first glimpse at the arena. Or at least it has been up until now. This year the screen remains black except for the counter and the four of us share a look, wondering if it's some technical difficulty or if they are about to reveal something out of the ordinary.

Then the screen slowly lights up as countless torches catch fire inside the arena. It takes a moment to register what we are looking at and I can see the tributes blinking, trying to adjust their eyes. This change in procedures seems to have left every single one of them momentarily confused as all twenty-four tributes turn their heads in every direction, trying to make sense of their surroundings.

At first I wonder if the arena is kept in darkness to give a more dramatic opening to the Games but my husband quickly brings me out of such ideas.

"It's all inside" he says quietly.

"What?" I ask, briefly taking my eyes off the screen to look at him.

"They're underground, or indoors. There's no natural illumination because the sun can't reach where they are."

He's right. As the clock counts down on the screen Caesar Flickerman informs us that this year the arena is set entirely indoors. There is no fresh air, only what the gamemakers send in through the ventilation systems. There are no rivers or lakes or other natural sources of water, nor are there any natural sources of food. The tributes must rely on help from sponsors, or find one of the thirty small stations containing food and water. Said stations are spread out all through the giant maze.

Giant maze. Or rather, underground labyrinth.

"Jesus…" whispers Peeta, leaning forward and covering his mouth with both hands as he stares at the screen.

We get only a brief glimpse at the layout of the labyrinth before the timer reaches zero. It's enough to see that the cornucopia is located at the very centre of the maze, in the only open-spaced area. Eighteen different passageways lead away from the cornucopia area and they in turn divide into a total of fifty different corridors, each with its own special touch. As the Games progress and the numbers start to dwindle different sections will be closed off, forcing the tributes together. The tributes, of course, know nothing of this. All they know is that they are in an enclosed space lit only by the torches along the walls. At the mouth of the cornucopia there are as much supplies of food and water as there are of weapons and any tribute with good sense in his or her head will go for those supplies first hand. No doubt the stations in the tunnels will be restocked as the games progress but there's still the matter of finding them to begin with. The question is how many tributes will figure out that they are locked inside a maze and how many will think this is only a small part of the arena and that there's open ground somewhere nearby.

My hand reaches out and grabs Peeta's, pulling it away from his face. He lets me take it and I can feel that it's cold and damp. My heart is beating a mile a minute and I don't think I've felt this anxious at the start of the games since my first year as a mentor, or actually since my own year as a tribute.

The counter reaches zero. I close my eyes for a second, praying that Tommy will ignore Peeta's recommendation to run and find shelter and instead take the chance at the cornucopia. He will need supplies. He won't be able to survive in this giant labyrinth without it.

When I open my eyes the carnage has already begun. The six members of the career pack have already reached the cornucopia and the girls go for the goods while the boys use their fists and raw strength to try and ward off any other tribute who comes too close until the girls can supply them with weapons. I almost can't breathe watching Tommy duck a swing from the boy from Four and grab a bag of supplies. He turns and finds himself face to face with the girl from One. She hisses at him and moves to lunge at him but he's faster, giving her a hard kick in the stomach before throwing himself down on the ground. Those of us who are watching the games unfold on television have a clear view of the action as the cameras have automatic filters that provide enough light. The tributes aren't as fortunate and I can't imagine how terrifying it must be to fight it out at the cornucopia while barely being able to see what is happening around you.

"Come on, come on, get out of there…" mumbles Haymitch.

Tommy worms his way past a couple of crates and gets his hands on a weapon. Without stopping to check what kind of weapon it is he jumps to his feet and darts around the corner of the cornucopia.

"Yes! That's it!" I hear myself exclaiming.

By going around the corner he's disappeared into shadows, the light from the torches not quite reaching this part of the room. He's not safe yet but he's a lot less likely to be targeted. His eyes quickly dart across the room and he chooses a passageway to run down and heads in that direction. Before he can reach it the girl from Eight beats him to it and he stops in his tracks. Going down that way means running the risk of encountering her and that in turn means having to be prepared to kill her or be killed by her.

"Don't stop" I encourage quietly. "Keep going."

Peeta hasn't said a word since the gong rang but I can see from the corner of my eye how focused he is. Every nerve in his body seems tense and it's as if I can feel his anxiety. Our nephew turns and heads for another passageway but doesn't make it five yards before running smack into the boy from Three, sending them both down on the ground. Three lets out a yelp when they make contact and somehow one of the careers, I think the girl from Four, overhears them over the scuffle. Both Tommy's and Three's eyes go to the cornucopia and I feel sick to my stomach when I see that the girl is holding a sharp blade of some kind in her hand, definitely deadly but likely too small for the boys to be able to see in their dim lighting. The next second Tommy is on his feet, running for a passageway, and the girl as sent her weapon flying. It buries itself in Three's arm and he screams from pain and fear, clutching at his wound. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in. Tommy made it to a passageway. He is safe, at least for the moment.

With my nephew gaining distance from the bloodbath I finally realize that there is another tribute from Twelve. I had forgotten all about Sally and I can't even feel bad about it. I've trained her as best I could and if she survives the bloodbath I'll fight for sponsor money for her but there's nothing I can do for her right now.

I reach forward to grab the remote and switch to the channel that focuses on her but Peeta's hand on my arm stops me. His eyes are still locked on the screen even though Tommy is out of sight and won't be shown on screen for a while now unless something happens to him.

"I need to find Sally" I say gently.

Peeta doesn't answer. Haymitch's arm is around his shoulders and Emalda gives me an uncomfortable look.

"I think I saw her moments ago" she claims.

"I need to see her for myself" I argue. "I… lost track of her in the scuffle."

"No, don't" says Peeta when I reach for the remote again. His eyes don't leave the screen but his voice is begging me just as efficiently as his eyes can do sometimes. "Not yet."

"Peeta" I say gently. "Tommy is out of harm's way, at least for the moment. They're not going to show him on-screen until the bloodbath is over, you know that. Please. I need to know what…"

Before I can finish my sentence Peeta is on his feet, leaving the room in a quick stride. The rest of us watch his retreating figure and I fight the urge to get up and go after him. I want to be where he is right now. I want to hold him and for us to comfort one another. I want to care about Tommy and Tommy alone but that's a luxury I can't afford. We made a deal, that I would mentor Sally so that Tommy can have Haymitch focus on him. We can't walk away from that now when the Games have begun.

"Switch to Sally's channel, sweetheart" says Haymitch.

My hand trembles as I finally grab the remote. I enter the code that gives me access to my tribute's feed and I feel only empty when I see that Sally is stumbling down a passageway, a gash on her left cheek and a small bag of supplies flung over her shoulder. She survived. I'm happy for her and her family and friends but it's impossible to deny that it would be so much easier for me if she had died. I care about her and I wish she could get to live a long and full life but I love Tommy and if it comes down to the two of them I absolutely want him to be the survivor.

"She's okay" I say shortly and let the remote drop on the couch beside me. "I'm going to go get Peeta. He needs to be here in case…"

Unable to bring myself to finish the sentence I rise to my feet and head in the same direction Peeta went. I'm shivering and I rub my upper arms with my hands as I go. For the millionth time since Reaping Day I think to myself that these Games are going to be one long torture session.

I find Peeta in the dining room, leaning over in front of a window, his hands gripping the windowsill tightly and his forehead resting against the glass. I walk over to him and hark my throat to let him know that I'm in the room.

"You okay?"

He lifts his head up a little and glances in my direction.

"Is Sally..?"

"Alive. Small injury, scared senseless by the looks of it, but alive." I walk up to him and put my hands on his shoulder blades, feeling a stab of pain in my heart when he flinches at my touch. It's been so long since he last flinched at my touch. "You should come back to the TV room."

"I know Sally deserves as much mentor attention as Tommy" says Peeta through gritted teeth. "But if you want to watch her channel you're going to have to do it downstairs in the mentors' room. I want this TV tuned to Tommy around the clock, even when I'm out kissing sponsors' asses. It's not reasonable, I know that, but I can't relax unless I know the TV is tuned to him."

"I understand" I say softly. I run my hands up to his shoulders and place a kiss over his spine. "I want to be able to follow his feed too. I…" I want to say that I love him, to make sure Peeta knows that despite the lack of blood ties that boy is my nephew too, but for some reason it feels wrong to say it. Like I would be manipulating Peeta. Instead I tell him a much simpler truth. "When the Games begun I forgot about Sally. I didn't lose track of her. I never had track of her. It wasn't until Tommy had reached the tunnel that I…"

I trail off but I don't need to say anything else. Peeta has already turned around and I step into his embrace, sighing with relief that I can draw strength from him and that I can give him all the comfort that I can.

"I can't stop thinking of Ryean and Maggie" says Peeta.

"I know" I say, even though they haven't even crossed my mind since the Games began.

"This arena is horrid."

"One of the worst yet."

"Not only is their boy a tribute, he has to fight for his life in a claustrophobic, dark hellhole with no natural sources of food and water."

"Come" I say and pull back from his hug, taking his hand in mine. "Let's go back to the others. They might give us more information about the arena."

"Doubtful" says Peeta with a joyless laugh. "Not until the bloodbath is over and that will be a while yet."

We walk hand in hand back into the TV room where the sickening sounds of battle fill the air. When I take my seat accidentally I sit down on the remote. I grab it and hand it over to Peeta, who is right next to me.

"We need to stay tuned to the main feed for now until they've given the details about the arena" I say. "But find Tommy first. Just for a quick look."

He quickly enters the code for Tommy's channel and the screen changes from children battling each other to the death to a quiet and dreary corridor. Tommy has found a nook in the wall and is sitting there now, arms wrapped around his knees, panting and sweating and looking horrified. It's not a good idea to stop so soon but I don't comment on it. The walls seem to be made from dirt but I seem to recall the walls in Sally's tunnel being made from brick. Not that it matters much at the moment.

Tommy's eyes drift down to the weapon in his hand and they go wide as he lifts his trophy up. It's a miniature scythe, about three decimetres in length including the handle, no doubt as sharp as could be. The sight of it makes me uncomfortable and I think it's possible they're even showing this on the main feed right now because I've never seen anything like this before in the Games. Tommy's reaction is no doubt hilarious to the Capitol audience, his eyes nearly bulging out of his head. Quickly he puts the weapon down, placing it between his right thigh and the wall, keeping it hidden but still within his reach. I wonder if he'll be able to bring himself to use such a weapon. I'm not sure what lengths I'd have to be pushed to in order to do it.

With the weapon out of sight Tommy reaches for the bag of supplies he managed to snatch at the cornucopia. He opens it, reaches inside and finds a net-bag containing three small apples, a bottle of water, a pack of matches and a vacuum packed blanket which is small in his hand but will be much larger once it's out of the package. The last item in the bag is strange to say the least. A small instrument, a harmonica. Tommy stares at it and then rolls his eyes, stuffing it back in the bag but obviously thinking it's one of the stupidest finds yet. I share a look with Haymitch and Peeta, wondering what on earth the gamemakers intend it to be used for. What tribute would be stupid enough to use something like that in an arena where you can oftentimes hide in the darkness?

Tommy turns his head to look over his shoulder down the corridor in the direction he came from. He draws a deep breath and exhales through his mouth in a huff, as if to say that the game is now on. Peeta switches back to the main feed and pulls me closer as we watch the carnage unfold.