Day Nine:
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
I sit in silence, waiting for the sun to rise. Keeping watch really is boring, and for some reason, I always get chosen to keep watch in the early morning. Normally, I would complain, but considering that the girls are letting me hunt every day, I think I'll let this one go. Besides, now that there's only three other tributes out there, chances are, the three of us are going to split up soon. Right now, I'm fine with my alliance, but we're going to have to turn on each other eventually.
Looking over at the horizon line, I can see a tiny bit of light beginning to form. I decide to grab myself a bite to eat so that I'm all ready to go once the sun has risen. I walk over to the bags and start digging through them. The first three bags that I open don't have any food in them. In the fourth bag, however, I find a can of tomato soup. Normally, I would search for something better, but our food supply seems to be dwindling. Well, we are on day nine. Chances are, the Games will only last for about four or five more days.
Once I've downed my soup, I throw the can over the edge of our island and watch as it sinks down into the mist. I've always been curious about what lies at the bottom of the mist, but I'm sure it isn't pleasant. Now that I think of it, I haven't seen anyone die by falling over the edge. That's surprising, given the fact that these land mass island things don't have any walls. I guess the Gamemakers don't really care, though. All they want to see is death, no matter how it happens.
Looking up, I can see a bit of the sun peeking over the mist. I guess it's time to go hunting. I walk over to the girls and listen as they deeply breathe in and out. It would be so easy to just slit their throats as they sleep and induct myself to the final four. I could never bring myself to do that, though. These girls have put their trust in me. Even though they're not my favorite people in the world, they are my allies. I can't be known as the guy who won by taking the easy way out. I plan to earn my victory the right way.
Swirl Winters (D10 F 13)
I sit up, dazed and confused. Looking around, I see that I'm on the ground in the middle of the forest, my bag lying a few feet to my left. Why was I lying on the ground? With a jolt, it all comes back to me- Peyton, the bird the bag, the supplies, Peyton, my knife, his chest, the blood, Peyton, his smile, my regret, Kat, Peyton, Peyton, Peyton...
I begin to sob again. How could I be so stupid? I killed my only friend out here. I killed my ally. It's all my fault that he's dead. I try to remind myself that only one could win. Peyton had to die anyways. That thought only makes me cry harder. I've never felt so alone in my life. I doubt I even have a single sponsor anymore. The only sponsors I had before supported me out of sympathy. Now they've seen the real me. Now they see the monster that I am. I bet everyone in District Ten has turned their back on me as well. If everyone hates me, I have no reason to win.
My hand reaches into my pocket and pulls out my knife. I grasp the handle hard, and hold it out in front of me, the tip facing towards my chest. I take a deep breath. If there's no reason for me to win, I might as well end my pain and suffering now. I take a deep breath, and begin to count down to my death. Five, four, three, two, one...
My knife jerks towards my chest, but I stop it before it pierces my skin. No. I can't do this to myself. I can't let Peyton's death be in vain. I have to make it mean something. Even though I'm the one who killed him, the Capitol is really who's at fault here. If it wasn't for them, none of this would have happened. They're the ones who have to pay: the president, the Gamemakers, and everyone else who thinks the Hunger Games are just a fun little competition. I have no intention of winning the Games. I have no intention of killing any of the other tributes, even the careers. All I plan to do is screw up the Games, by whatever means possible. A smile begins to creep onto my face before I can stop it. I look up into the sky, where the Panem Seal always appears, and let out a laugh. I'll just let them decipher that however they want.
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
As we walk through the forest, I realize that I'm starting to develop a sense of direction out here. Up on my right, I can see the fallen tree with the pink mushrooms on it. A little further than that, there's the giant rock with the big crack running down the side of it. About ten minutes after we pass that, we'll reach the stream. I realize that none of that information is particularly helpful right now, but some of it will be once the careers break up. I now know exactly which direction to go to find water. I've also spotted some pretty good potential hiding spots, which should come into use once the Gamemakers decide to start throwing mutts at us.
As we continue to walk, I find myself wondering about the state of my family. I mean, I'm sure they're doing fine, but I wonder if they're actually rooting for me. Knowing my sisters, they probably don't care about my fate as long as they get camera time. I bet they were obnoxious during the family interview. I almost feel bad for the interviewer. It doesn't matter, though. As long as my sisters didn't do anything that could ruin my reputation, I'm fine.
I look over at Mason as he steps over a fallen branch that I'll have to climb under. I wonder what his family's like. He hasn't mentioned much about them, which makes me wonder if they had a loving relationship. Mason is nicer than most of the careers I've seen in previous Games, however, so I dismiss the thought. Maybe he really does miss his family, but he doesn't want to tell everyone that because it would make him seem weaker. If that is the case, I don't agree with him; love makes you stronger, not weaker.
All of a sudden, Mason freezes in front of me. Confused, I try to ask him what's going on, but he shushes me before I can. Instead, he points upward. I follow his gaze and look high up into the trees. It takes me a second, but I finally realize what he's pointing at. Sitting up in a tree, a mask of terror on her face, is the girl from District Seven.
Mapelle Green (D7 F 14)
My insides go cold as I lock eyes with the girl from District One. For a second, she looks startled, but it doesn't take long for a devilish grin to take over her face. "How you doing up there, Seven?" the girl mocks. I don't respond. "Not talking?" the girl shouts back. "Whatever. If you'd rather die silent, go ahead."
The girl loads an arrow into her bow and points it at me. Thinking fast, I duck my head behind another branch and hold my bag out in front of me. The girl fires her arrow and it thuds into my bag. The force of it nearly knocks me out of the tree, but I do my best to stay steady. "Thanks for the arrow," I call down.
The girl snickers. "What use is that arrow to you?" she asks. "You don't have a bow. You could try throwing it, but I don't think you're that stupid."
She's right, but I realize that there is something I can do. I yank the arrow out of my bag and hold each end tightly in my hands. Using all of the strength I can muster, I attempt to snap the arrow. It takes a few seconds, but a crack finally appears near the center of it. I twist the ends of the arrow around until finally, I hold half of an arrow in each hand. I throw the halves back down to the girl. "Here you go," I say, smiling. "Now you have two."
Ignoring me, the girl walks over and mutters something to the boy. He reaches into his bag, pulls out two daggers, and hands them to her. Smiling, she looks back up at me. "I'm coming for you, Seven," she says. The girl sticks one of the knives into my tree and begins to climb it, using her knives as handholds. Thinking fast, I dig into my bag, searching for something to throw at her. I pull out my pot and throw it as hard as I can at the girl.
The pot flies down and whacks the girl in the head with a sickening 'clunk.' Unfortunately, though, as the pot falls to the ground, the girl stays where she is. Looking at her forehead, I notice the giant red welt that has already formed. The girl looks dazed, but she's still conscious. "Alexandrite?" the boy calls up. "You okay?"
Alexandrite seems to zap out of a trance at his words. "Yeah, I'm fine," she says, and begins climbing again. Again, I scramble through my bag looking for something to throw. This time, I pull out a hatchet.
I look at the hatchet for a few seconds. If I throw this and miss, I'm done for. I don't have anything else to stop this girl from killing me. If I do hit her, though, she'll probably die, and I'll be safe. Could I do that, though? Could I kill someone? Weighing the options, I realize that I only have one real choice. I'm dead if I don't kill this girl. I hold up my hatchet and prepare to throw it. However, before I can, my leg suddenly screams in pain.
Thrown off balance, I drop the hatchet and look down at my wobbling legs. A spear sticks out of my right one, no doubt thrown by the boy from District Two. I had forgotten he was standing down there. Unable to regain my balance, I slip from my branch and begin tumbling to the ground. My heart falling to my stomach, I frantically jerk my hands around, trying to grasp on to a branch. Somehow, I manage to get a hold of the branch directly under the one I was on. Dangling from my sweating hands, I try to pull myself up onto the branch, but I'm too exhausted. Nine days in the Hunger Games has really taken it's toll. I can't pull myself up, and I'm still fifteen feet above the ground. There's nothing I can do.
I hear a grunting noise to my left. Looking over, I see that Alexandrite is still making her way up the tree. She's almost up to the branch I'm on. I start to shimmy across the branch, away from the tree trunk. Meanwhile, my whole body, especially my leg, continues to burn as if it's on fire. Eventually, Alexandrite gives one final heave and pulls herself up onto the branch that I'm dangling from. I try shaking the branch to make her fall but it's no use. She's strong on her feet, and every little bit of muscle I have is failing me. Alexandrite walks across the branch until she's standing directly above me. Holding her knife in her hand, she leans down to my hands. I realize what she's going to do about a millisecond before she does it. Alexandrite slashes the blade across my left hand, and I scream from the intense pain. I'm pretty sure she just cut off four of my fingers, but I'm too scared to look. I try to hold on to the branch with my left hand but it's too hard. The pain is too much. My remaining fingers slip from the branch and I plunge into darkness.
Harvest Anson (D9 F 18)
"Boom."
I jolt awake from my nap and my head smacks the top of my cave. I ignore the pain. I'm in the final five. I can't believe it. Four more cannons, just like that, and I could be walking home. I lay back down and remind myself who's left: the girl from District One, both from District Two, the girl from District Seven, and the girl from District Ten. I'm assuming one of the last two bit the dust, but I'm hoping it was one of the careers. I don't think I'm that lucky, though. If I want to prevail over the careers, I'm going to have to somehow beat them- all of them.
I peek outside to get a look at the sun. Judging by its position, there's about two hours of daylight left. I decide to go back to sleep. The Panem Anthem is loud; it'll wake me up when it goes off. After that, I think I'll go hunting for some food for a few hours. Having more energy in my system certainly won't hurt. I lay back down and almost immediately fall back asleep.
Two hours later, I smack my head against the roof of my cave again when the anthem begins playing. Rubbing my head, I crawl out to the edge of the cave and look up into sky. The face of the girl from District Seven is displayed in the sky tonight; no surprises there. She was pretty young. The anthem ends, and I notice something odd in the sky. Usually, the Panem Seal fades away when the anthem ends, but it's still there. What's going on?
"Attention, tributes! Attention, tributes!" The voice of Tristan Honeybee floods through the arena. "This is an important announcement, and it would do you well to listen. Tomorrow, beginning at noon, there will be a feast on the edge of East Island, right by the bridge that connects it with Cornucopia Island. Attendance is not mandatory, although it is... advised. Happy Hunger Games, and may the odds be ever in your favor."
I can't believe it. We're having a feast. That's great! This could be a great time to get rid of some tributes. There are three careers left, but maybe I can catch them off guard. They may not know what my strengths. I turn back into my cave and lay down. Forget hunting- I need to rest for tomorrow.
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
"A feast? Sweet!" Mason pumps his fist into the air.
"Why are you so excited?" I ask him.
"Because this means the Gamemakers are ready to end it. Sometime in the next day or two, one of us will be going home."
"One of us?" Alexandrite asks. "Do you mean one of us tributes or one of us careers?"
"One of us careers, of course!" he says a little too excitedly. "We'll go in to the feast, kill the other two, and then battle it out from there."
"So you're saying the Games are going to end tomorrow?" I ask. "What if one of the other tributes doesn't come to the feast?"
"We'll hunt them down."
"So you still want to stick together as careers?" I ask. "You don't want to split up?"
"Well just think about it," he says. "We know it's probably going to come down to three of us in the end. Why not just stick together and have a good old time until then?"
I think about that for a second. From his standpoint it does actually make sense, but Mason has no idea what's in store for him. I guess this'll work better for Alexandrite and I. He's luring himself into a false sense of security right now. As soon as he lets his guard down, we'll kill him.
"Sounds good, Mason," Alexandrite says. "How about we get some sleep and talk more about the feast tomorrow? Jessie can take first watch. You can have second so that you can get more rest in the morning. And me, I'll take third." She looks at me, and I'm almost positive that she winks, but it's too dark out to be sure.
"Okay," Mason says. "Goodnight." He walks over to the other side of the cornucopia, leaving Alexandrite and I alone.
"So what's the plan?" I ask when Mason is out of earshot.
"We're going to kill him tomorrow morning, before the feast," she says. "I'm going to set up a trap for him when I'm keeping watch. If all goes as planned, when he tries to grab some food in the morning, he'll trigger a net that will clamp onto him and hopefully push him over the edge of the island. Although, if he doesn't fall over the edge, we can do that manually."
"Cool," I say. "So what do I do?"
"Just don't dig around through the bags tomorrow morning," she says. "If you wake up before Mason does, pretend you're still sleeping."
"Okay," I say, "Just one more question- when is the alliance between the two of us over?"
"If Mason dies, at noon tomorrow."
"And if he doesn't?"
"We'll see."
"Okay," I say. "Goodnight, then. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Goodnight," Alexandrite says. As she walks over to where her sleeping bag lies, I can't help but wonder if I've actually found someone I can trust out here.
The Fallen (1):
Mapelle Green (D7 F 14)
Killed by Alexandrite. As Mapelle hung from a branch, Alexandrite slashed Mapelle's hand, causing her to fall to her death.
Remaining Tributes (5):
D1:
Alexandrite Dazzle (D1 F 17)
{Annabeth-TheTributeThatLived}
D2:
Jessie Harte (D2 F 14)
{ImSoCutee00}
Mason Riley (D2 M 18)
{Jms2}
D9:
Harvest Anson (D9 F 18)
{Semi-Dedicated Wierdo}
D10:
Swirl Winters (D10 F 13)
{feistyflame}
Kills:
Glint: Misty, Cobalt, Tadalynn, Lukas
Mason: Ryland, Peter, Nylah, Eridan
Alexandrite: Jennette, Rory, Mapelle
Jessie: Jarvis, Aria, Cheer
Sheldon: Marina, Osborn
Harvest: Sheldon, Glint
Swirl: Peyton
Alliances:
Alexandrite/Jessie/Mason
Harvest
Swirl
Sorry to all of the Mapelle lovers. Mapelle was one of my favorite tributes too, but she wasn't quite victor material. :-(
We're down to the final five! Yay! Make sure you've voted in the poll. Currently, all of the tributes are within three votes of each other, so every vote will have an impact on the result. There will most likely be one or two deaths at the feast tomorrow, so vote to save your favorite tributes. I still have not decided on a Victor!
Track just ended, which means that updates should be more frequent from now on. The Games should be over in less than five chapters. Then, there'll be a few epilogue/stats chapters, and after that, this fanfic will be done! I've already got some great ideas for my next one, so I can't wait to get that one rolling!
Thanks for reading! :-)