It was going to happen today; he could feel it. The air around him changed, being so stifling where it was hard to breathe. It took longer than it should for him to realize what was happening. There was only dehydration and malnutrition to blame, the lack of sleep didn't help either. The volcano was going to erupt, if there was any question about it, the rumbling from underneath his feet gave it away. Grabbing his backpack, he started to run towards the base. Why did he climb so far up? He knew the answer, he thought it would be a while for Tiva to get the strength to climb it. But she's had a day's rest. The gamemakers would want their victor, the Capital were not patient.

By tonight he would either be dead or a victor. He just hoped he didn't kill her. Maybe she would succumb to the elements. Or maybe he would, he had only eaten enough that would get a rabbit by and not even a day's worth. He knew what most of the kids from the Seam thought, just because he was Town that he had never gone hungry. While that was true for most kids from Town, but they didn't have his mother. Between the ages of five and eleven, his mother had a rule. If he messed up or burned bread, he wouldn't have food for as long as she deemed his offence was worth. The longest was supposed to be a full week. He couldn't move and started losing consciousness a day before his week was up. His mother said he was faking; it was the only time he remembered his dad sticking up for him. His dad wasn't a bad man, just scared. Divorce really wasn't a thing in the districts, but if a couple separated it was a fact the mothers would get custody, no matter how abusive or neglectful she was. One night he heard his dad tell his oldest brother that he would leave her as soon as his last son had his last Reaping. Well, that was now. There would be no more Reaping's for Peeta Mellerk, good or bad.

So, he knew his limit of how long he could go without food or much water. His brain was sluggish, something he forgotten was important. Shaking his head and went on. Just as he got back to the Cornucopia everything went black.

His eyes went from looking at his screen and Peeta falling to the ground to look at the main screen. He expected Tiva to be near him, maybe have thrown something at him. But she was still deep in the swamp. The swamp started to rise around her, so that was their plan to get them together. The creatures in the swamp had doubled their numbers, it would be hard for her to get out without being bitten.

"Haymitch," Effie gasped pointing at his screen.

Peeta was up again, he was only out for seconds. What had happened? Standing on unsteady legs, he made his way to the Cornucopia. Every once in a while, he would stop. "He's getting there."

"Why didn't she stay at the Cornucopia after the rest were dead?" Effie asked.

"None of them stayed there, we can see things and hear things, but something felt off with the place where one felt safer on a volcano and the other in an alligator ridden swamp." He remembered his own games, something he drank to forget. You get a feeling of the arena, something that viewers will never understand.

Tiva seemed not to be moving very fast, she had also lost a lot of weight. She had gotten sponsors but this late in the game things were too expensive. That made him realize that Peeta ran out of water yesterday.

He reached the Cornucopia first, smiling as he put the bag in it. On the way out he found two bags that were dropped by dead tributes. Opening one, he pulled out some jerky, a bottle of water and matches. The other bag he didn't open, he just gently threw it in the Cornucopia to join his other discarded bag. Why hadn't any of the tributes gotten these? It was out in the open sure, but it would up their chances to have them. Tiva was about to come through the tree line.

While not great at hearing people sneaking up on him, she was limping and breathing hard. He sat down with his back to the Cornucopia and just watched her limp towards him.

When she was close enough, she started to speak. "I have to give it to you, Twelve, I didn't think you would make it a day."

"You made sure I did. Sorry I didn't thank you before now."

"I wouldn't be thanking me right now. Only one of us can get out of here alive."

"True, very true."

"Are you sure you're only thirteen?"

"In Twelve no one gets to be a kid for long. As soon as you're useful, you're to get working. Isn't it like that in Ten?"

"Mostly. Don't look at me with those big blue eyes. You're my little brother's age. Do you think that this makes me any happier than you?"

"No, I know it doesn't. The only people who ever want to be here are Careers. I think every one of them honestly believes they'll win. That stuff has been drilled into them, I feel sorry for the ones who came before ours and the ones to come after."

"I don't feel sorry for them. I hate them all, making us play their games. How anyone could think this was a game is beyond me," she ranted. The gamemakers and Snow wouldn't like that.

"So how are we going to do this?" he asked.

"Well, let's eat before we fight, I don't want to win while you're passed out on the ground."

He guessed he looked as bad as he felt. Or maybe she saw him pass out.

"I have some jerky and water but that's it."

"I see some bags in there, I'll get them."

Something was sloshing around in his brain; it came to him a little too late. "STOP! DON'T GO IN THERE! DON'T OPEN ANYTHING!"

He heard the bag being unzipped so he made a run for it, he wasn't fast enough, and the Cornucopia exploded just after he saw the volcano erupt. Pain was all that he felt where he had fallen. His legs felt on fire. When the cannon rang out, he knew for sure he was dead.

The last cannon sounded and now they had their victor. There was no doubt who it was. There was nothing left of Tiva besides pieces of her.

"What happened? Effie asked, clutching her neckless.

"Peeta."

"What? He wasn't near her."

"Did you hear him trying to stop her. Whatever he's been carrying around did that. For him not to open it and carry it around. He had to know what it was and was waiting to use it. I didn't think he had it in him."

"But he tried to stop her."

"Then maybe it was luck, the boy hasn't stopped carrying it around this whole game until the showdown." It also meant the Capital could spin it if he hadn't intended the bag to kill her. They would say it was his plan and he was so vicious in his killing.

Prim was crying holding their mother, sometimes the deaths were too graphic for her. Usually, she would bury Prim's face into her side. But because she was beside their mom she wasn't fast enough. It took few moments for it to register that Peeta won. The hovercraft came and grabbed him, his body still not moving, she wondered what would happen if he died. No, the Capital would do everything they could to save him.

"Hey, kiddo," Haymitch said when the boy's eyes slowly opened.

The explosion had done a lot of damage, after the doctors healed the life-threatening injuries, they worked to do the cosmetic. Peeta had been scarred and burned but the Capital polished him up like new. The boy had looked younger and smaller in the large bed. He wasn't the smallest tribute he had by far, but he was the only one that made it out. There was a twelve-year-old girl twenty years ago that he thought had a better chance, she was Seam and a tough little thing. She was tiny but fast and had wicked ax skills, he thought they were heavier than her.

If you count the explosion, Peeta had the goriest kill in the games. If you don't, he didn't kill anyone through the games. He would have to speak to Peeta on the roof before his interview, the boy would have to say the kill was his plan. That they only reason he called out to her was because he wasn't far away enough.

It wasn't good not to kill anyone in the games. The victors from Six didn't get addicted to Morphling all by themselves. Snow made the Capital doctors send plenty of it to them. That would take care of itself. Annie Cresta came out of the arena with no kills, but she was already around the bend. Snow let her be, for what reason he didn't know. He did know the man kept a close eye on her, waiting to see if it was all an act. It wasn't.

"Am I dead?"

"No, kiddo, you're the victor." It wasn't a prize.

Peeta tried to sit up, but Haymitch stopped him easily with a hand on his chest. "What about Tiva?"

"She died. Let's not talk about it right now, not with anyone. We'll talk about how your interview will go after you're released."

The boy looked confused his eyes becoming cloudy when they were clear just a moment ago; he had some damage to his brain, but the doctors said they didn't expect any lasting effects. That wasn't all that comforting, they had been wrong before.

"My head fills fumy," Peeta said, his eyes showed his fear.

"You wait here, I'll speak to the doctors."

He walked outside and found Dr. Valien, she looked up at him with surprise.

"Yes?"

"The youngest Victor in history of the Hunger Games isn't speaking right. You'll have to give him the best treatment, not just say that it's probably fine. President Snow will want his interview to be perfect. You can't have a Victor with damage to his brain that effects his speaking. Hands, legs, and arms are a different story, stick a fake one on and everything's good. Have a babbling, brain damaged Victor will be no use to President Snow."

As much as he hated having to say that he needed to be healed completely before the interview, he had too. Once Snow knew Peeta would be no use to him, the boy would have a terrible accident maybe his family too. Snow never cared if it was the Victors fault when something happened to them, without them being useful they were expendable. The reason he had lasted so long even after his family was murdered was, they needed a victor from Twelve, how long before they realize he's been used up a long time ago. He never had to be sold, they had already killed his family. But he was too popular for them to kill right out. He was a Quarter Quell victor, the only living one…at least for the next four years. He had a bad feeling about it, he would need another victor to be with him. Peeta may be young, but he won the games with almost no help from him and only two donations. Haymitch thought it was all dumb luck though, but maybe it would rub off on the next tributes.

"It'll take a while. Have President Snow informed that the interview would have to be put off a few days."

"I'll do what I can but he's a very…persistent man."