Chapter Three
Lightning
It was her mother, she realized.
Not… not Ricotta Benoit. Someone else.
What was her name…?
She lie there, at the base of the mountainside, and the rain and the pain and the misery boiled deep within her. Within… within…
What was her name?
She felt weak. She felt miserable. She couldn't move, she couldn't feel Mother's hand, only the cold rain and the cold grass. There she was, dying, she was…
What were their names?!
Lightning struck. Thunder cracked. The wagon lie stiff and splintered, and the passengers were gone and dead and lifeless.
The thought perked a tear to her… to… to… to O… to Bones's eye.
Mother was dead.
Father was dead.
They were gone. She could not feel her Mother's hand holding her anymore. Her blanket was cold and wet.
And her screams were drowned out by the thunderclap.
As it always was, the beginning was chaos. Too much to interpret, too much to see. Heart rates, fear, panic, and anxiety ran rampant as the start of another Games blazed forward, a cannon firing like a clap of thunder every time blood spilled onto the deck of the ship.
Wake Atlantic, leader of the Careers, understood this well. He grinned from ear to ear as he realized, that this gimmick, unintentionally, was made for Four.
The Ocean? Ha! They practically rigged it in his favor. Four, the fishing and boating district, being given an oceanic arena? It was just too perfect!
The mania of the Games already was getting to him, but he didn't realize, or perhaps purposefully ignored that as he blitzed toward the center of the massive deck, taking a sword from the weapons stash. He cackled, eyes wide, blood pumping.
Kill or be killed, kill or be killed…
That's how it always went. That's how it had to go.
(Whether he liked it or not.)
A boy from Nine stepped near the pile, just a small thing hoping for a stroke of luck. With a stab, he ended his life with ease, throwing his body overboard in the process. The bang of a cannon rang out.
First blood.
"ALLIES!" he cried. Four other heads popped out of the madness at the sound of his voice. A kid, the boy from Three, came running past, and quickly, he sliced his side open. Another crack of a cannon.
And then another.
Glancing behind him, he could see the girl from Three. Bloodied and impaled with a knife, she dropped the one she was about to stick in his back before her time on this earth was abruptly ended, then clattered to the floor.
(The sight made him sick, he felt sick, but did his best to ignore that.)
"You need to watch your back better," said the girl's killer– his ally, Rosegold, from District One. She stepped over the body, grimacing, but sheathing her own blade to her belt, "You almost died, idiot."
After a moment of heavy breathing, he elected to… ignore the bodies; letting his heart decelerate, and nodded at her. They had no time for sentimentality. "Let's get everyone off this ship but us, OK? It'll be a quick Games this year, I don't think anybody else here knows how to run a ship!"
But instead of applauding him, Rosegold slapped him on the back of the head.
"Hey–! What was–"
"What about your district partner, dumbass?!"
Oh.
Oh, right. Them.
Of course, usually, this would be a short Games, with the ones better at sailing on the same team. But this time, no girl decided to step up to the plate, leaving some useless guppy, Wix, he believed their name was, in her place. And while useless, they'd probably know… how to…
Oh shit.
"...we gotta kill 'em before they escape!"
And he shot off, grabbing a harpoon from the pile.
Wix, on the other side of the ship, was in a panic. In they breathed, out they breathed, as they bolted to the astern as fast as their legs would carry them. They were supposed to get out, as soon as possible, they knew.
But "in" was on a ship, and "out" was the merciless sea. To get Ziggy, Bones, and Willows to reconfigure, they had to get on the same boat, meaning that all of their plans were just made completely useless. Who knows where they were, who knows what foolish ideas they were carrying out? They had to find them. They had to find Ziggy.
They were towards the astern of the ship, the big wooden boat. The sails, big and white, were closed, as they observed as they climbed up a ladder to a higher vantage point. Smaller ships surrounded them, and Wix looked out to the main deck.
It was utter insanity.
Kids were jumping off the side, making a maddening swim to the boats. But Wix could tell, oh they could tell that all of those kids jumping were jumping straight to their graves, and the thought threatened to pull up their breakfast. The boats were all ever so slightly different, and Wix could tell, just from here, that most of them were traps. That one would sink immediately. That one had broken sails. That one would capsize with the slightest shift in waves.
And the sea… the sea was so cold, so aggressive here. They watched a little girl, the one from… Twelve, maybe? They watched her hop onto one of the broken ships, only for it to start filling with water. A sudden wave came and it capsized, just as they predicted. And a few moments later…
BOOM!
Wix's blood ran cold.
Hastily, as their breath was running ragged, and their feet told them that they had to get moving right now, they looked at the ships arrayed in front of them, trying to find one that didn't look like it would kill their friends. No. No. Definitely not. No. No. No No. N– oh wait. That one, the one right in front of the bow of the ship they were currently on– it looked stable, it looked firm. There was a motor attached to the back, which was unorthodox for this type of ship, but it would get them far away from this riotous bloodbath.
But–! Their allies! They had to find them first!
Surveying the crowd, they fell to their knees, trying to find the three in the world's most intense game of "I Spy." But then, miraculously, they spotted her. At the side, sporting a pink backpack she must've stolen from the supply pile, was a girl with tanned skin and a black pixie cut. It was her; it was Ziggy!
Wix couldn't stop themself, they ran straight forward, feet and heart pounding in unison.
"Ziggy!" they shouted, "Ziggy I'm h–!"
But a force, a dark blur, slammed into their side, sending them tumbling onto their back with a nasty THUD!
Just in time for a harpoon to stab itself into the side of a pillar… where they were just standing.
"W–" they tried to say, but then they noticed the girl standing over them, the girl who just tackled them, who saved their life–
"Hi there.~" she cooed, wearing a smirk much too cocky for an event like this, "The name's Pengu, Pengu Pelosis. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance!"
Still pinned down, they managed to stammer out a few words.
"Y– you saved my life!"
"That's right!~" Pengu said, but while it seemed earnest, there was a hint of… mischief in it. She rolled to the side, off of him, and effortlessly managed to get on one knee, holding out her palm to them.
"Now you're gonna help me, honey bunches!"
They sat up, adjusting their now crooked spectacles, and stared at her. They didn't have to wonder why she was doing this, they were from Four, and she (correctly) assumed that they knew their way around a boat. She wanted them to help her.
They were a valuable asset.
"Uh, thank you," they said, scrambling up to their feet, "But, uh, I've already got allies–"
"I know!" she exclaimed, beaming, "And aren't they just the sweetest little bunch? But I think you'll like me too. I have my uses, sweet pea."
"But what about–"
"We'll get your friends, sweetness, don't worry about it~"
And she took them by the hand, twirled them, and leaned them backward on one leg. "So c'mon now, honey, what'll it be? I know I'm just a dancer from Eleven, but hey, I'm still worth something, what do you say?"
…she broke them. "I…"
There was a bump, and commotion by the side of the ship. Pengu's face fell.
"Hold on," she said, and Wix, for the second time, smashed into the floor as she dropped them. She was… she was going too fast for them to keep up.
Wix leaned up, clutching their head, only to see Pengu glance down the ladder and sneer. "It's the Careers, kiddo, they've come for you. Wait there."
Oh.
Oh, they should have seen this coming–
And just like that, the girl from Two came bursting forth from a ladder. From the lower deck, Wake was shouting something akin to a kill order about them, but the blood was rushing too fast through their body for them to make anything out.
She brandished a spear, and without warning, came charging at them.
On reflex, they rolled to the side as the spear came crashing into the floor, breaking the board. Despite this, the girl was able to pull it out with ease, and speared again.
But this time, it didn't come out.
Taking the moment, Wix, in a full-blown panic, tackled her to the floor, leaving the spear stuck in the board. They pinned her down, and while she squirmed, Wix tried to think of something, anything that could–
She screamed, and a cannon fired.
Wake's harpoon, once lodged into the pillar, now sprouted from the girl's throat. Pengu stood over it.
The girl. . .
was .
A death. A murder. And it was from Pengu Pelosis. Who was protecting them. Who was…
Grinning as it happened.
"C'mon, silly goose, we don't have time to waste if you want your friends to be OK!"
Their breath was caught in their throat. Tears threatened to overtake their vision, even as Pengu tugged a few times, pulling the spear out from the floorboard.
"H…" Wix said, voice barely audible, "Have you no shame?"
"Of course I do."
Her face fell, voice lowering as a serious, tired look crossed her.
"...but neither of us have time for that, so what'll it be?"
Their heart beat in its chest, but they had no time to stand around.
Wordlessly, they nodded.
…
Another cannon fired. And Bones could only see red.
Blood rushed everywhere, even over the body of the boy from Twelve. Her hands were covered in it. She stared, teeth growled, eyes frenzied, blood pumping, like some wild animal. She couldn't comprehend it.
One moment, the horn fired. The next, the boy took up a club.
The next, he aimed for Willows Cross, the boy from District Ten. Her ally. Her friend.
The next, she lunged forward.
And now, the boy from Twelve was dead.
She held the club, uncomprehendingly. She didn't understand. She didn't understand.
"B- Bones!" cried Willows, but she couldn't hear, "Bones, c'mon! We gotta get out of here!"
But she could only stare. Willows tugged at her sleeve, but she didn't move. She couldn't. Her mind couldn't process the events and couldn't process which events were to occur next.
"Please!" he cried. He was crying when it happened. Crying in fear…
They were always crying…
"Bones, p–!"
"YOU TWO, MOVE IT!"
The voice suddenly snapped her out of it, and she took a deep breath, looking at her surroundings. The sounds all came back and she gasped for breath.
That was Ziggy's voice.
She bolted up to the two, taking them both by the collars. "C'mon, move it! We gotta get Wix and get outta here, now!"
But Bones couldn't speak. Willows, however, could.
"But we don't know where they are!"
"I know, flower boy!" she shouted back. At that moment, an arrow shot forward, and quickly she leaned back, and it whizzed just past her head. The Careers– they were coming this way! "That's why we're looking!"
Bones still held the boy's blub, in her hands. Wix, Ziggy, and Willows… all of them felt so far away at this moment. There was only that boy, eyes once full of life, until she took her claws and sliced his throat…
Suddenly, Ziggy clapped her hands together, then pointed over to the back, and there, in all their glory, was Wix Jehnova, bolting towards them. "Bingo!"
Followed by…
Undertaken purely by shock, Bones found her way to speak again. "Hey, ain't that Pengu that Wix's with?!"
Ziggy eyed her. "Who?!"
"It is!" Bones exclaimed, breaking free, "Hey, Pengu! Whatcha doin' with Wix?!"
"Bones, what are you doing?!"
But Wix, bolting to their allies, got there and grabbed the girl before she could answer. "Hi everyone!"
A long breath. Ziggy grabbed their arm, then suspiciously eyed the newcomer. Her smile and demeanor were threatening, but she held a spear and still hadn't done anything…
"Bones, Wix, who the hell is–"
"No time to explain!" Wix interrupted, pulling Ziggy close, "We've got no time! We have to go, now!"
They pointed to the back, and beside the Two boy and his arrow, stood the menacing figure of Wake, with murder in his eyes, and blood across his face. He twirled a harpoon, attached to a rope, and he was steadily approaching them. Approaching fast, too fast.
"So," Wix began, tugging Bones along by her collar, "long story short, we're jumping overboard to that ship over there–" they pointed directly in front of them, "–and also this is Pengu and she saved my life and wants to come to and no questions asked because we have to go now–"
They said that all in one breath, and continued running, Bones in tow. Then sprinted, followed by Pengu (who blew a kiss at Ziggy), who then grabbed Willows.
And Ziggy was too stunned and confused to question it.
Wix was the first to jump, holding a shell-shocked Bones in their arms, they simply let themselves fall, and since the ship was directly below them, they both landed simply with a massive THUD!
And their glasses clattered to the floor however, one frame… shattered.
Uh-oh.
They didn't have time to even take stock of that, however, as they raised their hands as if to catch Pengu, who jumped next. It wasn't a long jump, per se, but it certainly hurt to land, even if she stuck the landing, spear in tow. Then Willows came after her. And Ziggy, too.
They had made it. The five of them managed to get on the ship.
But they were not out of the woods yet.
Bones, getting up from her lying position on the floor, rubbed her head. In the back, Ziggy and Wix were panicking, and Pengu (why was she here, even?) sat on the edge of the ship, observing them.
"How do we get this thing to move?!"
Wix, wearing their broken glasses, banged on the front of the big wheel on the front of the odd contraption. "I– I don't know! These controls are unlike anything I've ever seen–"
"Well figure it out!"
She pointed above them, and Bones could see that gang, those Careers, were ganging up on the side. The leader was readying one of those metallic blades…
"Um…." Wix stammered, panic in their voice as they glanced forward, "Why are there even buttons on this— OH!"
They flipped some sort of switch, and all of a sudden, big, white sheets unraveled from the ship's pillars, and the engine cackled to life.
The whole boat lurched forward.
Only to stop, immediately after.
Bones was thrown to the side, and Pengu almost fell out of the ship entirely. Willows went flying forward, causing their flower vase to shatter against the floor. In a panic, he snatched the white chrysanthemum up as Pengu got to her feet.
"Hey, what's the big idea?!"
Bones could see it, however. And she shuddered, the horrible feeling in her gut continuing to stir. Wake had thrown a metal contraption, no, harpoon, she thought she heard at some point, into the back of the boat. In a hurry, Wix turned off the engine. From the top of the big boat, Wake glared down.
"You're mine, Jehnova!"
He picked up another harpoon, and that was when Bones then, and only then, panicked.
No freezing. No fighting. Only flight.
That rope was preventing that.
And the harpoon was keeping it in, so… there had to be some way to remove it, right? Her eyes went down to the club. Then back to the harpoon. She steeled herself, taking a deep breath.
Just one good whack oughta do it. Just one…
Quickly, without thinking, she took the Twelve boy's club and crashed it into the boat, where the harpoon was lodged. And she beat it. Again, and again, and again, until–
CRASH!
A chunk of the ship came blasting off, dislodging the harpoon. She whirled back to Wix, who was grasping at the controls. "LET'S GO!"
Wix, breathless for a second, gave a thumbs up and pounded the switch once more. The whole boat vibrated as it cackled with energy once more.
(Bones tried not to think about how uncomfortable it made her feel, how unnatural the sensation was.)
But above her, Wake still held another harpoon. He sneered, and Bones, involuntarily, let out a gasp.
And he threw it down…
Time stopped as it came hurdling down. Who would be stricken down first? Which one of her friends, her allies, would be the first to die?
At dangerous speeds, it came cascading down. At lethal speeds. At speeds too fast to dodge away from.
He was aiming for Wix.
But, in Wake's panic to kill them, the harpoon missed.
And struck true into Willows Cross's leg.
But only their leg.
The child still lived on.
And with the boy's scream, the engine began to do the same. The ship began to glide across the water, away from the Careers, away from the horrors of the bloodbath.
But no relief came from it. Not for Bones.
Because when she glanced down at her fingers, the Twelve boy's blood coated it.
"AAAAAAAAA!"
Willows was crying, and Bones didn't know how to stop it.
The crew, save for Wix, who was steering them as far away from the Career's megaship as they possibly could, all looked over at him, unsure of what to do. The device, cruel as it was, thankfully hadn't gone through the leg, but it certainly still hurt. Bones glanced over at the horizon (the unending horizon of terrifying, infinite blue), and only felt relief (and abstract horror) at how small that ship seemed to be. They were cruising now, and the ship was like a speck of dust in the distance…
And everyone was alive… and well… mostly.
(None of them wanted to think about the fact that two of their own were already murderers.)
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Can you simmer down that racket?!" Pengu shouted, fiddling with her spear, "None of us have anything to help you with!"
"That's a heartless thing to say." Ziggy sneered, looking up from Willows's wound for just a moment, with malice in her words, thick as molasses. Bones wasn't sure why. While Pengu's comment certainly made Bones's blood boil, just a little, Pengu had been nothing but kind to them thus far. Why did it seem like she hated their new friend?
"Why are you even here, Pelosis?"
She shrugged innocently, but Bones saw that it was full of mischief. Just like when Husky or Furr did it…
(No no, don't go there. She has to die eventually, and you shouldn't be thinking of her so fondly.)
But she did, and Bones stared at the waves, trying to process this when Pengu spoke again.
"I saved your partner's life, Zig-Zig," she said, a grin plastered on her cheeks, "You oughta be grateful!" But Ziggy was unperturbed.
"You just wanted a boat driver."
"So what if I did? Death doesn't sound very nice this time of year–"
Willows screamed again, causing everyone, especially Bones to flinch. She turned away, a breath caught in her esophagus. And through broken glasses, Wix piped up from the back. From over there, they seemed to have missed the whole conversation.
"Ziggs! Did check your bag? You might have some bandages in there!"
Bones perked up. Oh! Oh, of course!
Before Ziggy could riffle through it, Bones bounded over to the other side of the boat, snatching up the backpack and unzipping it, giggling and rubbing her hands as she did like some sort of wild raccoon.
Not entirely inaccurate, as the Capitol would say.
(That thought made her feel… off.)
"Let's see…" Bones said, "We got some… uh… box!"
She pulled out a box with a brightly colored label. She couldn't recognize it, but Pengu made a sound of approval from her spot on the edge.
"Oh, little crackers… nice….~"
"OK…" Ziggy observed. Willows was on the ground, clutching their wilting flower with a death grip, and Ziggy had to put all of her efforts into making sure that the kid survived.
Because…
She looked at him carefully, and just… no. Willows wouldn't die, he just wouldn't…
He was her responsibility now. He couldn't die, not on her watch. Damn Wix, that beautiful bastard. If they didn't bring Willows and Bones into her life, she'd have never thought about those two. But now she'd feel irrevocably guilty if any harm befell them.
She watched as Bones pulled out another thing from her backpack. Some big metal cylinder… with a twisty thing on top!
And twist it she did. Inside was…
"Water?"
"Wait, seriously?" asked Wix, from up on their perch, "Ziggy how did you know, that's incredible!"
"I didn't know!"
"...I don't get it," Bones admitted. In her best attempts at ignoring Willows's screams, being unable to… well, handle that, she glanced from side to side, looking at the water surrounding her.
(She tried to ignore how caged she felt by it. There was nowhere to wander, nowhere to run but this little wooden contraption. On all sides it suffocated her, the murky depths of a crystal blue ocean. She couldn't hide. She couldn't escape. Around her was a horrifying, unending nothing.)
"There's water all around us, ain't there?"
"Well, yeah…" drawled Wix, "but it's salty. You can't drink it, believe me. It tastes gross, too much might kill you."
"...huh," Bones said (feeling more suffocated than ever). Carefully, she slid the cap back onto the top.
"What else do we have in that bag of tricks, Wild Child?" cooed Pengu, leaning over to peek in the bag. Bones, for a moment, was taken aback by the name, but shrugged and continued digging. Ziggy sighed but elected to ignore it. She didn't have the mental energy required to deal with someone like her, not when Willows was crying.
Meanwhile, she watched as Bones pulled out… a very odd contraption. A weird pole thing, with a string and a hook on it. Bones cocked her head, and Ziggy understood the sentiment. What was that thing?
But Wix, lovely Wix, however, was more than interested in it.
"It's a fishing pole!" they exclaimed, and at once, they came down from the wheel, snatching it up. In excitement, they held it up to the sun, grinning with glee.
Bones raised her hand. "What does that do?"
"I too would like to know," said Pengu. She waltzed over to Willows for a second. He was still crying, which was getting a tad obnoxious, so crouching down, she held his hand and stroked it a little. He calmed down a little, glancing up at her grin. This was just what… what her Mother did when she was sad.
(She missed her. She hoped she would get to see her again soon.)
Meanwhile, Bones cocked her head at the strange pole, while Wix spoke about it with elated glee. "We can get fish from the ocean with this, everyone, isn't that swell! We won't have to worry about food as long as we've got this!"
"Oh hey, neato!" Pengu said, sitting back on the edge of the seat, crossing a leg over the other, "This bag's great! Bones, what else do you have for us in there?"
As Wix set the fishing pole down, she pulled the bag back on her lap and stuck her tongue out as she reached inside. But she only felt…
"...nothin'."
"W–" Pengu stuttered, "So that's it then? No bandages for flower boy?"
Bones stared at it, but that didn't change a thing. All that stared back up at her was that pink bottom, and nothing else There wasn't anything else in the bag. Her heart pounded in her chest.
Bones felt… wrong, because of this. This felt wrong, awful. She felt… she felt…
She couldn't do anything. Her friend was crying, with an awful blade pierced into his leg, and she couldn't do anything about it.
She was powerless.
Helpless.
Just like that night, out on the mountainside, when Mother died.
She shuttered.
No, no… that… no! She couldn't be focused on mysteries and histories right now! Not on that dream she's had for who knows how long, not on nothing! She had nothing she could do! Her friend was in pain, and there was nothing she could do!
But what, was a bandage just gonna fall out of the s–
Wait a second.
"Hey y'all!" she exclaimed, "Uh, my mentor told me about this whole, uh, this whole shindig!"
Ziggy narrowed her eyes. "...what?"
"Y'know," Bones huffed, "the gift thing? Where the people watching us give us things? Can't we get a bandage from them?"
"The sponsorships," Ziggy whispered. Then she exclaimed. "The sponsorships! That's right– hey! Sponsors! We could use some help!"
…
"What're ya doin'?"
"Well, I don't know how to summon them! Do you?"
"You look ridiculous," said Pengu, cross-legged as she observed Willows, "Don't go to sleep now honey, m'kay?"
Willows, still breathing heavily, weakly moaned. "...m'kay…"
Ziggy glared over her, but before any commotion could come out of it, Wix chimed in, if only to cheer her up. "I don't know, I think you're doing a great job, Ziggs!"
"Thanks…"
But none of this, Bones thought, was helping Willows. She turned upwards.
"HEY!" Bones shouted at the sky. The rest turned to her, but she ignored it. Would they give her gifts, this early in the Games? She didn't know. She didn't care. She just needed to have this.
"HEY!" Still nothing. She clenched her fists. Thought back to what her mentor had said. To what Io had said…
They always called her "Wild Child," didn't they? No matter what she did, she wasn't civilized to them. So when she screamed, she must've not had been feral enough for them…
(Why did she have to be?)
"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE–"
"OK, hush up!" Pengu screamed, plugging her ears, "It's clearly not working!"
There was a beeping noise. Everyone looked skyward.
Another, distinctly different kind of twisty cylinder came down from the clouds, although no one was sure from where specifically. A piece of white cloth was attached to the top with string, allowing it to gently float down, right onto the deck of the ship.
Pengu blinked, tapping it gently with her spear, just to test if it was real. It was.
"...I stand corrected."
Nighttime.
Bones couldn't watch it, she couldn't stand the sight of any more blood from her friend. She wasn't unfamiliar with it, of course. She lived in the woods for as long as she could remember before the Benoits took her in; she was accustomed to it.
But something about this was… different.
Regardless, it was over with, now. The harpoon was out, the wound was cleaned, thanks to Ziggy and Pengu, and all bandaged up. The little container still sat there, unassumingly.
(Bones couldn't watch it. She had to cover her ears as her friend screamed.)
But it was nighttime now. An astounding five more cannons had gone off since they left the megaship, and a big reel showed up on a screen in the sky at some point. At a different time, with a different context, she would've marveled at how they did that, how that was possible.
But from what Ziggy said, those were the faces of the people who died. All fresh deaths. All gone…
Half of the tributes were already dead.
(She couldn't watch as the face of the Twelve boy passed.)
So now, the five sat together on deck. Wix, in their "genius," as Ziggy called it, was sticking crackers to the fishing poll, and now the five were feasting on fish. Bones had never eaten a fish before.
It was OK, she supposed.
And it was a quiet night. The stars glittered in the night sky, and at a different time, with a different context, she would've marveled at how they did that.
But stars had lost their luster to her, because her conscious wasn't sound.
What was Mama doin', back at home, without her? Did she watch the screen, and weep at her baby becoming a killer? What about Papa? What about Brando? What did he think about this? Did he go about his day, as he always had, feeding the chickie-poos as if nothing was wrong? And what about Moona? Was her baby alright? What's their name?
What about Annabella? What about her? What was she doing, right now? Watching her and Willows, still crying? Was she alright up there, wherever she was?
What about…
What about…
She didn't know…
…
… …
… … … …
A clap, and in the darkness, it was Pengu who spoke up first. It was the first sound that rang out since Wix turned the motor off, and Bones was almost startled by it.
"OK!" she said, and while it was hard to make out, she could tell Pengu was grinning, "This is all rather chummy, but I'm a bit bored now. So why don't we play an icebreaker or two, get to know each other a bit better?"
Ziggy huffed, and it turned into a groan of annoyance. Bones didn't understand; why did she seem to hate whenever Pengu spoke? "No. How about we just decide who's taking watch and going to sleep? I don't wanna listen to you anymore."
Pengu huffed right back, putting her hands on her hips "Well. That's not very polite."
"I'm not a polite kind of girl."
"Ah, come on, Ziggs," Wix said, cuddled into her side and laying on her chest, "It's been a tough day, and she's just trying to lighten the mood. Come off it, will you?"
A beat. Then, Ziggy relented. "OK, fine. One quick little icebreaker, but only because you wanted it, 'ix. If she annoys me again though, I'm shoving her off the side."
"I'm just gonna ignore that." Pengu muttered, then became more animated again, "Anyways, who wants to start?!"
"Wait, wait wait wait!" Bones cried, shaking her hands, "What in tarnation are y'all talkin' about?"
"What, an icebreaker?" Wix said, "It's just… you tell everyone a bit about yourself, that's all."
"I don't get it."
"Well," they said, then sat up, "It's a bit hard to explain, so here, I'll go first. Hi, I'm… uh, Wix Jehnova. I'm seventeen, I live on the District Four coast with my father, a fisherman, hence how I know how to, well, fish. But I suppose everyone in District Four fishes, so, uh… oh, and I love dogs! And that's it! See how easy that is?"
Bones observed, then whistled. "OK then… seems easy enough I 'spose…"
Pengu chuckled. "See, you get it! Now, who's next… you! The flower boy!"
Willows turned left and right, as if there were other people in this spot of the ocean besides the five of them, then pointed at himself. Pengu nodded, and Bones huddled her knees to her chest as she watched him. Willows gulped.
"Well, uh… alright, I guess... I'm Willows, Willows Cross. I'm from District Ten… uh… I guess I like flowers a lot… heh. I have this garden, back at home, where I grow all sorts of them. Like this 'mum here."
He held up his flower. "I like flowers, I like them a lot. And… uh… that's all, yeah."
"Well, that's fun!" Pengu said, clapping, "Did you have roses?"
Willows squirmed a tad, clearly uncomfortable with the attention. Even Bones, who didn't understand much of anything could see that. "Well, yeah…"
"Oooooooooooooooooo, I love those!" Pengu said. "I–
"Oi!" shouted Ziggy, "Lay off the kid, he doesn't like this game either." Pengu bristled.
"Well alright then… why don't you go next?"
"Pass."
"Oh come on, you've just gotta!"
"She said pass, Pengu," Wix interrupted, in hopes of stopping the two from arguing. They cuddled back into Ziggy's side, "Besides, her life's a bit sad. You might not wanna hear about it."
There was a beat, but it was Pengu who relented this time, with a sigh. Bones watched the whole exchange with a lens of confusion. She had never met anybody like these people before…
But at the same time, they all seemed so familiar…
"Fine," Pengu said, "I'll just go next. I'm Pengu Pelosis, sixteen years old from Eleven. I'm a dancer! Well, self-taught. They don't have dance classes back in Eleven, isn't that sad? Well anyways, yeah, it's fun! I live with my mum and my pa, which I do hope I'll be seeing again, once this is all over…"
"Says who you will?" Ziggy said, cynicism in their voice thick enough to cut with a knife. Pengu shrugged.
"What? I could! So could any of you!"
Ziggy grumbled, but it wasn't comprehensive.
"Anyways," Pengu continued, "What about you, Bones?"
…
… …
… … … …
…
Something felt… wrong.
Usually, Bones would be thrilled at the opportunity to talk about her family. But…
She didn't know what was wrong with her. It just felt off. Incorrect, wrong. It felt terrible, and that just was…
She couldn't describe why she wasn't speaking, but only one phrase came to mind.
So could any of you!
Any of them.
Not all of them, just one. Meaning… meaning that these people would have to go, sooner or later.
…
…she wanted to sleep. She didn't want to focus on this anymore.
"...I don't wanna play this game no more."
"Oh, come on~"
"I don't wanna, and you can't make me!"
She growled that last line out, and decided to tune the rest of the conversation away.
Any of them…
Would it be her?
She didn't know. All she knew is that she drifted away into pleasant, dreamless sleep. Today was awful. She didn't want to discuss it.
"LAND HO!"
Those were the first words that awaited Bones when she woke up.
She rubbed her eyes, groaning as she stood up. She was still on this boat, and she still stared out to an empty sea… But she wasn't being rocked back and forth anymore, and she didn't hear a motor going. That meant that they weren't floating. What did that mean then?
Well, "land ho" seemed to imply that…
She glanced behind her.
And there, in all its beauty, was land.
Bones gasped, and elation filled her up like a balloon. Immediately, she began gleefully laughing. She leaped off the side and jovially stepped onto the sandy beach, then started kicking it up, laughing all the while. It was real– it was real! She stood on real, dry ground; she was safe again!
(For a moment, she could ignore how it was painful for Willows to move, or how inevitable it was that soon one of them would have to die. For now, she could rejoice on the banks of an island, carefree from the horrible grasps of the arena, and the Gamemakers, and that cruel Capitol who rejoiced in their suffering...)
Back on the boat, Pengu rubbed her eyes, yawning, having been awoken from blissful slumber by Wix, and prevented from returning to it by the Wild Child over there. Oh, the sacrifices she must make to stay alive… she groaned, stretching, popping out her back. But still, she felt so tired.
Pengu wasn't a morning person.
"Well good morning to you too, starshine…"
As the morning sun forced its way into her eyelids, she observed their rickety little boat, and saw that she was the only one on it, apparently. Even Willows was up and moving, looking at the island. And Pengu observed it too, head cocked. It was stereotypical for an island in an ocean, as she's heard. Big palm trees… sand… and that was all she knew!
Oh, and a big mountain further down.
Cool…?
She then turned her focus to her allies, who were frolicking on the beach without a care. Bones was twirling on the sand, Willows watching her, taking a small swig out of their shared water bottle. Pengu doubted there was much left since between the five of them it went quick, so they were gonna have to get some more soon, which made her grateful that they were over here, actually. There was bound to be some sort of pond or stream that they could drink from, right?
She hoped so.
And Wix was discussing matters with Ziggy. Probably about their supplies…
…
…she sighed.
In truth, Pengu considered ditching them, for a moment. After all, the island was a place where she could reconvene and such. She could get food and supplies here, meaning that she wouldn't need the little chaos crew anymore. She wouldn't have to deal with the Wild Child, or that deadweight flower boy, or that insufferable teenage girl…
But no, the Gamemakers wouldn't like that. They enjoyed drama and friendships, and in general, things that made audiences swoon and gasp. Sure, a betrayal scene would wow them and such, but there was no way she won a match against these four. And just running away and avoiding conflict would get her punished too; the audience would begin to hate her, and the Gamemakers would quickly strike her down. Meaning that, until she found a way to get rid of them, Pengu was stuck with these oddballs…
Why did it have to be a water arena?
It was no wonder that half of the kids died on day one. She doubted that this arena would even go more than three days. There weren't enough interesting landmarks in an endless sea, and it was just so particular. In what world would the majority of these kids know how to use a boat? She could count the number of people who could in here on one hand. Wix could, they were from District Four. It was the only reason she tried to gain Bones's and their trust; it would mean that she wouldn't immediately get thrown overboard.
(Not that her little plan with Bones worked anyways. She hadn't spoken with her since the little icebreaker last night. The girl almost appeared to forget about her.)
Then there was Wake, and possibly the other District Six kid, because that was the transportation district, wasn't it?
And it was likely that that was where the last three kids were. After all, there were the lucky, lucky five of them, the four careers (the fifth of which she stabbed; she put a harpoon straight in her throat, killed, destroyed, ended), and… three more. She thought back to the death reel. That would make the… the other Six, the Five boy, and the Eleven boy– her…district partner… still alive, right?
That left three teams. Not much at all, the Gamemakers must've wanted a quick Games this year…
(Maybe they were as tired as she was.)
…she just, she wanted to go home.
Pengu was just exhausted, and it was only day two.
"So, what's the big idea then, leaving me behind?" she shouted. The words were meant to have annoyance behind them, but she wasn't really feeling it this morning, and it was more of a blank statement. All four turned to her, and it was Bones, the weird little girl that spoke up first.
"You'd wake up eventually," she pointed out, "and ya looked like you'd be mad if we woke ya up?"
"Who told you that?"
"Nothin'," she said, "'s just a lucky guess. You sleep like my brothers! They loved their beauty rest…"
Bones chuckled, but Pengu could tell that something was off about it. There was a hint of tension, hidden in every one of them. That was natural, of course, given the circumstances. But Bones felt like she was more on edge than most.
She sounded nervous, which was… unlike her.
But it was obvious why. Her hands weren't fully cleaned off, there was still red on it. That… must've been a lot for a twelve-year-old's conscious, feral or not.
…what was she saying? It didn't matter whether or not the girl was alright, what mattered was staying alive. If the girl wanted it off, she could've just stuck her hands into the giant sea that they inhabited. Ah, water… and only then did she happen to notice how dry her mouth was.
"...Willows, honey?" she crooned, pointing to the canteen in his hands, "can I have that, real quick?"
Willows, the (sweet) deadweight boy, at least had the common decency to look ashamed "There isn't any more."
"Of course not," that came out harsher than intended, "look, there's probably a spring or something on this island. Take a look for it?"
She didn't wait for an answer, yanking the canteen from Willows's hands, and walking into the woods.
"Hey!" that was Bones, this time, "What're ya doin'?! You can't just push him 'round like that, that's rude!"
Who was she to talk about being rude?
"Look," Pengu said, holding up her hands in defense, "I'm sorry, just– c'mon! I'm thirsty, and we need something, after all. Where's your sense of adventure?"
She looked somewhat satisfied with that answer, but still turned aside, muttering to herself, "Don't mean ya can just…"
"Bones."
That was from Wix. Maybe they'd be more on her side, they seemed to be more sensible. Manners were the least of the crew's concerns here. It was a thought that she didn't expect herself to have, but once again, not a morning person. Willows wasn't even defending himself, instead looking at his feet, resigned.
How had he even lived this long?
"She's right, y'know," Wix said. Their voice was soft, speaking to the girl. Why was that?
"Yeah yeah…" Bones muttered. She sighed and pulled Willows along. He was limping, and Pengu was once again considering just ditching them. They would be so slow with him following along…
But Bones, suddenly, snatched the canteen from her hand.
"No bein' rude, Pengu," she spat, although not all that maliciously. Pengu could tell these sorts of things, this was more on the petty side if anything.
She shrugged. Saying otherwise would be hypocritical of her. And she hated hypocrites more than anything.
Bones marched into the forest, Willows in tow. Pengu rubbed her eyes a bit, yawning again as Wix and Ziggy came past her too. Then her eyes popped back open, and she arched a brow.
"Wait, is Bones here leading us?"
From further ahead, the girl shouted. "I LIVED IN THE WOODS, OF COURSE I'M LEADING!"
Wix shrugged, smiling dopily as they glanced back at her. She actually found herself blushing a little. Goodness, she could see why Ziggy fell so hard for them, they're super cute. But were they still wearing those broken glasses? Could Wix even see out of those?
"Just go with it," they said to her, then kept walking. They then reached out to Ziggy's hand, and Ziggy squeezed it right back. Oh, it was so sappy that it was almost disgusting.
But regardless, she decided to press on. Sure, yeah, it made sense, Pengu got it. Wild Child knew her way through the woods, most likely. She could find some water…
Watching from a camera, ever so delicately hidden away in a tree, the Gamemakers observed the alliance. They were so interesting, so sweet. Somehow, five tributes came together, all at once, to form such a large alliance. Good for ratings, good for the plotline…
But despite that, the Gamemakers knew that they made a big mistake making this arena oceanic. It was so sparse, so limited, resulting in there only being three teams, and they were ending so soon. So they'd have to make this bombastic, bloody, and bold, or else…
The Head Gamemaker shuddered in his chair, clutching his neck. They all knew what had to be done.
So, the current of the water was manipulated; the strings were pulled.
And another boat reached the banks of the island, just a few minutes later.
For the first time since she stepped foot in the Capitol, Bones was comfortable. There was grass beneath her feet again, and trees surrounding her on good, dry land. It was different from what she was used to, with taller and barer trees, and odd, colorful fruit that she had never seen before in her short, short life, but for the first time, she felt at peace again.
She was prowling again, prancing through the odd forest with the same stealth she had back in her own woods. They were looking for some good, fresh water, and she knew a thing or two about how to find that. The rest of the pack continued behind her, but she was leading the charge. She didn't feel powerless here. She didn't feel suffocated. She felt free.
It all came so quickly, so naturally. She followed the noises, as she did back then, all so faint, but precise. There was a creek nearby, for sure. Grinning, she began to skip off towards it.
Like she was right back at home.
(But at the same time, no, she wasn't. This wasn't home. Home was District Ten, home was the front porch. Home was where she could play tag with her siblings in the woods. Home was where she could drink lemonade when their crops and money were bountiful in the summertime, and when she could throw snowballs and laugh as Mama and 'Pops watched in the wintertime. This wasn't home. It would never be.)
She slowed down at this. In the distance, there were more noises, that off… of her crew, maybe?
She'd be more concerned, but the thoughts came back again, and everything else was drowned out.
(Home was where her Mother and Father would sing her to sleep, tucking her into bed. It was where they could lay together and read bedtime stories until the three of them collapsed on the couch together. Home was where they'd take out the thick blankets as they waited for Auntie A to arrive in the wintertime, where they'd bake cookies together once she did then eat all the dough before they put it in the oven. Where Mother pushed her on the tire swing, and Father kissed her forehead as he left to tend the sheep for the day. Home was where they could sit on the porch swing and watch the sun rise in the east.)
She stopped, halting in her place, then shook her head. No, this wasn't the time for that. Not here, not now, not ever would she pay those thoughts any mind.
All her life, she was plagued by these… these visions, these memories that were so distant and far away. But they weren't real. She lived in the woods all her life, there was nothing before that. She was feral, gone and done away, nothing else, nothing before that, right? That's what she's been told, over and over again…
Brando asked if she had a mommy or a daddy. They all did, all the Benoits. But she said no. No, because she didn't, no, because there was nothing more to her life. It started with a flash of lightning and a clap of thunder, and she was kneeling there in the rain. She had nothing else. She simply… was.
She gritted her teeth at the thought, but she wasn't sure why. Beside her, Willows had seemed to catch up to her, as she held him in the front this whole time. The sound of the others was faint as well, approaching steadily. He was holding that flower, that wilting flower, furrowing his brows with concern, and cocking his head at her. Hobbling, he walked over, careful to not put too much pressure on his harpooned leg. The weapon hung low on his belt and jangled as Willows reached out his hand to touch her face.
"B- Bones?" he asked, cupping his hand to her face, "Are you… are you alright?"
"Fine," she replied automatically, but it was distant and far away, and something in her gut told her otherwise. Why? Of course she was alright.
"Then why are you crying?"
…huh?
Pulling away from the caress, the girl reached up to touch her face. After feeling a trace of wetness, she pulled down her left hand (shaking, ever so slightly). And he was right.
Why was… what was she crying for?
(But deep down, she knew. She knew why. The faces, so far away, unreachable. Every pleasant memory filled her with a longing she knew was impossible to satisfy, regardless of what she did. Because… she didn't know why that was. But she knew that she wouldn't be able to stop.)
And that's when she noticed the mountain.
Wix, on the other hand, couldn't see, not very well.
The ocean here was very flat, without a lot of anger that it had back at home. Of course, that was different at the beginning, but there wasn't so much as a storm since the beginning. Hence why they didn't ask Ziggy to take over for them. Sure, she'd probably know a thing or two about sailing, being from the transportation district, but Wix was better, and they didn't want to seem… well, useless.
Because the broken lens was making it very difficult for their vision.
When Bones ran off, so did Ziggy and Pengu. Wix was close behind, but they were blurry, and Wix was slow. Not that Ziggy would let them out of her sight, not on a dangerous arena island, after all. But they were still lagging, ever so slightly. Just enough to miss the conversation, just enough for the other two to have confidence that they'll eventually catch up.
Pengu was huffing, breathing heavily. Ziggy eyed this, slight disgust coursing through them. She didn't really have all that much endurance, did she?
With her obnoxiously smooth voice, she spoke again after snapping upwards and flipping her curls out of her eyes. "She's really quite… excitable, isn't she?"
Ziggy instantly shot a glare at her, retorting back. Maybe she was just waiting for an excuse to tear into her but so what? So would anybody. "Shut up, Pelosis. You haven't done a damn thing but be annoying since this whole thing started."
She held up her hands in defense, but it was anything but genuine. "I didn't say anything! Why do you hate me so much?"
"I know your type, Pengu," she said, saying her name with a pop that reverberated with venom, "You use people, people like Wix Jehnove like tools, and then act all innocent about it. It's annoying, and it's toxic."
"Oh, I see how it is.." she said, waving a hand, "Someone like me was part of your tragic backstory, wasn't it? Well, why don't you just kick me off the team then, pretty girl?"
Ziggy sighed. She had considered, but… "'ix would get mad at me."
Pengu appeared to accept this, shrugging. But, of course, she just had to continue.
"What's with you two anyways?" she prodded, "You act like you've been seeing each other for weeks, but like, you've only just met last week."
"None of your business, Pelosis, get off my back."
"Aw, come on!~"
And they continued to bicker, Wix scoffed with amusement, feeling their way through the trees. They were both a bit cute when they argued, they thought. And then Wix sighed. They wished that they didn't convince Ziggy that they could see alright, it made this a lot harder to navigate through this jungle…
But it was easier for the other three who had landed on this island just a few minutes before.
Bones, meanwhile, was still staring up at the sky, face full of an unknown emotion that neither knew how to interpret. Willows was still standing there, face full of concern, but he was unsure what to do. He had been unsure what to do since the Games started. He had just been… thrown from place to place, lucky to have anybody who cared for him at all. Wix and Ziggy and Bones… and even Pengu… without them, he'd just be…
Dead.
But he felt dead, regardless of that fact.
Here he was, just leeching off of those four, not giving anything back. He ruined everything. Wasted their sponsorship because he couldn't dodge out of the way of a harpoon. Drank the last of their water, and now, he broke Bones.
He was just useless, stupid deadweight.
"Bones!" he cried. She hadn't moved since she found out she was crying. Why was she crying? He put his hands on her shoulders, gripping and shaking them, even dropping his white chrysanthemum in a full-blown panic, shouting her name even more. But still, nothing.
And Bones, oh Bones… staring at the mountainside.
It had been a long time since she's seen a mountain…
District Ten was flat, but in some places, she's heard, there were mountains…
And the last time she saw a mountain…
Crashing, screaming, tears; the wheels came loose like a derailed train as the rock gave way beneath them. Down to the forest floor they clattered, cast away into a sea of greenery as the force of the wild consumed two more lives, and stranded a third.
"Bones!" Willows cried, "Bones, please– speak to me!"
But she wouldn't. She was locked in a trance.
Perhaps, if she wasn't, she would've noticed the sounds of others, the feeling that they were watched.
And, perhaps then Willows wouldn't be with her, panicking over gaining her attention.
Perhaps Pengu and Ziggy wouldn't have been bickering with each other, perhaps Ziggy wouldn't have taken her eye off of Wix, if only for a moment, and noticed the shadow creeping up on them.
Perhaps if things turned out differently, Wix wouldn't have had shattered glasses and would have seen the Eleven boy standing near them, brandishing blades.
Perhaps, without this series of unfortunate events, a cannon wouldn't have fired, cracking loud enough for Bones to snap out of it and for Pengu and Ziggy to cover their ears, for viewers at home, safe in their beds to wake from their bored slumber, as Wix fell to the ground, dead.
And perhaps the horrors that awaited them would've played out differently.