It had taken them an hour to find a suitable place to make camp. A secluded cave close to the river, the entrance was hidden by a large rock. The opening was only a few feet wide, leading into a large rocky cavern. Still, it was too easy to get in for his liking. He had spotted it, which means the others could as well. Katniss had left to hunt, with promises to stay close. He was already restless from the separation, watching Rue carefully out of the corner of his eye, his ears listening intently for the sound of cannon. The younger girl was kneeling next to him, gathering large sheets of moss and sticks. He stood over her, hand on the hilt of his sword, eyes scanning the forest intently.
"Why are you different from the others?" Rue's soft voice suddenly broke the silence. Every time she spoke, it felt like a melody. The question was so forward, so blunt; it took him aback.
"What do you mean?" He cocked his head at the young girl.
"I mean that you're supposed to be a career. They're usually not nice like you are." She smiled down at the moss she was prying from a rock.
"I am a career; I just fell in love with Katniss." He played off the question. Suddenly, Rue's observant eyes on him made him nervous.
"Hmm, that's true." She stood from the kneeling position, finally looking up to meet his eyes. Her big brown eyes bore into his, barely even five feet tall looking up at him. But he felt as if the girl was looking right through him. "But that's not what I am talking about." She gave him a knowing look.
How is it that a 12-year-old girl who barely knows me can see right through me?
"You were nice to me on the very first day of training. You smiled at me. Being in love with Katniss isn't a good enough excuse." Her melodic voice cut through him like a knife.
What am I supposed to say? The truth is too dangerous, too rebellious to admit.
"Did you know I have a little sister?" He smiled at the little girl, walking back towards the cave.
"Like Katniss?" She jumped up on a log next to him, balancing as she walked along.
"Yes, I haven't seen her in a very long time. But I think, I feel like she might have grown up to be a lot like you." The girl next to him paused, the added high of the log brought her up to stand nearly at eye level with him.
"What's her name?" She looked at the older boy, a strange look on her face.
"Alice." He answered, the image of her popped in his mind. He hoped she was watching now, he hoped she knew that her brother never forgot about her.
"That's a pretty name, you must miss her very much." The young girl smiled sympathetically at him. If only Rue knew, how he had missed his family. How many nights he had spent laying awake, wondering how his mother and sister were doing? If they had enough money, if they were safe, if Alice had in fact grown up to be like Rue?
"Yes" he answered honestly, looking down to where Rue's tiny boots stood on the log, "I do."
"I am sure she misses you too." Rue said encouragingly.
How strange… this innocent, young girl in the middle of a death trap, and she is the one comforting me.
"She was very young the last time I saw her, I don't think she remembers me very much." He explained.
"You don't forget your family, even when you can't see them." The wise sentiment from the young girl was shocking. She had no idea how her kind words affected him. He smiled at her, offering a hand to help her down from the log. She hopped down gracefully, returning his smile as she landed right in front of him.
"I do hope you're right." He answered her. She giggled softly, giving him the sly, knowing look that he had come to associate with her.
"Of course I am, silly." and with that, she turned and continued walking. He stood, shocked, with the smile still plastered on his face. It was so strange, to encounter someone like Rue. He had never met someone who maintained such positivity in the hellish world they survived in. He stumbled after her, mind reeling in awe of her.
Just like Katniss, Rue was the kind of person who always left you a bit better than they found you.
"So," he said, finally snapping out of his haze and jogging ahead to meet the girl at their cave, "Are you gonna help me camouflage this or what?"
The young girl just smiled at him and got to work. They built a covering out of a smaller rock, filling in the gaps with sticks and leaves. They even dressed up the larger rock so the two blended together. Just as they were finishing up, Katniss returned.
"That actually looks really good." She praised them, walking towards Cato. Just as always, he was relieved to see her return to him unharmed. He pulled her in his arms, allowing the fire to burn away the tension he hadn't realized was so tight.
"It was all Rue; I take no credit." He pulled away, placing a kiss on her temple before starting to gather their supplies.
"Did you catch anything?" Rue asked, placing her small backpack on her back. Cato pushed their makeshift cover out of the way to allow the two girls inside the cave. Dusk was falling rapidly now; in a few minutes the arena would be completely dark. Marvel and Clove would be leaving for their hunt any minute now.
"Yes, I cooked it a while away, so the smoke smell doesn't linger around here." She slipped into the cave, holding out her hand to the younger girl to help her down the rocks.
"You promised you would stay close." He scowled at Katniss, rearranging the rocks and moss of conceal them after he stepped in behind them.
"Close is relative. I didn't go that far." She shrugged, placing her bow and arrow on the ground next to her.
He scoffed at her defiance and joined her on the floor. They ate mostly in comfortable silence. A trio of people who should have never met, who would never in a hundred years be expected to form a comradery. Yet there they sat, once tiny moment of peace in the midst of hell.
Night fell soon after. Just as the last rays of light slipped through the small cracks of the rocks, he volunteered to take watch. Rue watched him intently as he rummaged through his pack to dig out the compressed sleeping bags he brought. She was timid now, awe in her gaze. He had only brought two, he didn't expect more company than him and Katniss. He was pondering this as Katniss spoke up.
"I lost my sleeping bag in the fire; it fell from my pack as I was running." She explained.
"Good thing I brought you one." He smiled and handed her the rolled-up fabric. Rue was trying not to look hopeful, averting her gaze.
"Catch" he threw the remaining bag towards her. She caught it, the same awe entering her eyes for a moment before she looked at him worriedly.
"What about you?" Her dark brows were furrowed as she looked at the older boys.
"Don't worry about me kid, I'll share with Katniss." He smirked, raising an eyebrow towards the older girl.
"Pig." She mouthed back, scowling at him. He laughed and made his way towards the entrance. He chose a spot in a grove of rock right next to the narrow pathway, placing himself directly in the way of anyone who tried to enter.
The two girls had chosen their spot and gotten settled when Katniss called to him. "Wake me up in a few hours."
"Of course, honey." He made his voice high pitched and sweet, feigning the banter of a long-time married couple. Rue's soft giggle echoed across the cave, covering the sounds of Katniss' cursing.
The two girls spoke for a while, whispering so he couldn't make out what they were saying. Judging by their giggles, they were probably talking about him. He was sure they were probably doing it on purpose, he smiled at their happiness, the bond they seemed to have almost immediately. He hoped that Alice was like Rue; that Katniss would share the same connection with her. Perhaps Alice and Prim would be friends. A vision popped in his mind of the three girls sitting in a circle and giggling with one another. Rue's melodical laughter, Prim's shy innocence, an older version of Alice a combination of the two girls. His heart broke as he realized it could never happen. It would never be possible.
Silence had fallen in the cave a while ago, when he heard shuffling towards him from where the girls slept. He expected to see Katniss but was surprised to find Rue's timid eyes. She looked so young, standing there hopefully with her sleeping bag bunched in one hand. It reminded him of Alice, who would escape from her crib when she was older and toddle into his room, blanket in hand.
"What's the matter?" He asked her, a gentleness in his voice he hadn't realized he was still capable of.
"I can't sleep. It's- it's very cold back there. I was wondering if it might be warmer over here." She was nervous as she spoke to him.
Of course, it won't be, this is where the cold air is coming from.
"Here." He took the sleeping bag from her hand, pressing himself into the side of the grove he laid it out next to him. His body and the rock would shield her from the cold breeze. She slipped in at once, settling into the bag next to him. She was quiet for a few moments, her small frame still shivering while being wrapped in the heat. It dawned on him then why she had come over here.
"C'mon" he motioned to her, holding out his arm and leaning back. She moved quickly, curling into his side, her cold hands wrapping around his body. She calmed quickly then, falling asleep softly with her head of curls resting on his shoulder. He sat still the entire time, worried that he would wake her. He fought the urge to smile that Rue trusted him, that she had looked to him for comfort. It had been so long since he felt like a big brother. He thought he would forget how; that this gentle side of him was lost somewhere in the walls of the Academy, that it had died with those he killed. But there he was, feeling the same way he did when Alice would toddle into his room all those years ago. The memory of his own little sister, and the reality of the young girl curled into his side consumed his thoughts as he listened intently to the silent forest. It was dawn when he finally felt himself doze off, the first rays of sunlight peeking through the cracks as he slipped into sleep.
In the morning, a tear would roll down Katniss' cheek as she found the two of them. She would stare for a long time, a bittersweet happiness filling her. Slowly but surely, Cato Hadley was revealing to Panem exactly who he was.