Fandom Hunger Games rp (Closed)

[SerenaStark]

Serena looked at the bag that he had presented her with and she looked through it as well. She didn't really know why he was offering it to her. She believed him when she said it but perhaps that was a little naive. She saw the items that he was talking about before handing the bag back to him. "That should be good for right now," she said as she leaned back against the tree trunk. Her eyes watched the ground carefully as she skimmed the area to ensure that they were safe.

"What do you want to do if you get out of here?" she asked as she looked at him, "I mean assuming they let one of us out. What are you going to do if you never have to go into the Arena again?" She really was interested to hear his answer simply because the Careers trained their whole lives to enter the Games. She wanted to know what really happened they were all over.
~
Gale watched in front of him as Alice started to do something. She had grabbed a branch and started to pull it back. Immediately Gale saw her intentions and as she let go of the branch he ducked out of the way before watching the tribute get slammed in the face with it. He slid to a stop next to Alice as he watched her approach the man. He looked to be in his early 30. He recognized him as one of the Careers. "District 4," he told her as he held his knife at the ready in case the man tried to make a move on either Alice or himself.

The man stayed down and Gale let out a sigh of relief. He walked over and lightly touched Alice's shoulder. "Come on," he said gently, "We should get moving so we are out of sight by the time he comes to. I'm sure if one of the Careers is here the others aren't far behind." He released his light grasp on her before following after Alice. In the last games, he would have killed the man, but not this time. He didn't want District 4 to see him as a monster. He wouldn't let the Capitol turn him into something that he wasn't.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

As Gale walked up beside her, she glanced to him when she felt his hand on her shoulder and he recognized him from District 4. She nodded lightly, before standing back up straight as she took a final glance at the tribute. He had a nasty gash on his cheek, and his nose was bleeding. He certainly wasn't going to be happy when he woke up. She agreed with Gale, knowing that if he was from 4, the other careers were likely nearby, and she quickly started to walk away again with Gale. Making their was even deeper into the depths of the jungle.

Alice didn't even considering possible locations to settle in for cover for a little while, since she didn't want to settle down anywhere near where they encountered that tribute, since not only would he eventually be waking up, and angry, but Gale was right, and the other careers were likely in the area as well. After a while though, she came to a stop by a large tree, glancing up at it before to Gale "How about here? I think it's best if we stay off the ground for the first night or two" she said, noticing a lot of vines in this particular area and hanging all around the tree and some surroundings ones, they could act as sort of curtains for them in the trees, keeping them even further hidden

~

As he let her look the contents of the bag over, he just moved to hand it on an nearby branch when she had handed it back to him. They didn't need it right now, but he supposed it would come in handy. Especially the canteen. The arena was always uncertain, and while some spots had plenty of water, they could run into days without finding any, which wouldn't be good at all. As he settled back into his spot, he heard her asking about what he wanted to do, and he glanced to her for a moment in thought, before shrugging his shoulders.

"I'm already like some idol in my district, from my previous win. I guess I never thought too deeply about it. I think I'll just enjoy the spoils of another win, though" he said with a shrug of his shoulders. Honestly, he still didn't know. Last time he won and came back from the games Cato found himself at a loss of what to do. Even though he was sure he'd never be in the games again, he still kept up with his training. It was something that kept him busy....and all he really knew what to do with his life. "What about you?" he asked as he turned the question back to her.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena listened to him quietly. She didn't want to believe that such a sad existence could be possible. She felt as though Cato's whole life had revolved around one thing and now that it was over, he appeared lost. She kept her eyes locked on his for a few moments while he spoke. It was clear by his response that he was quite unsure what he would do once all of this was over. She looked at him quietly as he turned the question back to her. She sat back and thought for a moment. "I don't really think I have a chance of getting out of here," she replied.

She knew that wasn't a very satisfying answer so she cleared her throat before speaking up once more. "I guess I would go home," she replied, "Be with my brothers for awhile. Try to see if maybe something can change for my District and for others. Perhaps start a family of my own. I've always wanted to have kids ever since I can remember. I don't really know why though." Serena managed to smile a bit when she spoke of having kids. She didn't know if she would really be that great of a mother but she knew that she would do anything and everything she could for her children and that meant giving them a better life than the one she had had to live.
~
Gale finally got her to start walking with him. He kept a sharp eye out and his knife in his hand as they walked. He didn't need any surprises or any injuries, especially not so early in the Games. He wasn't sure how many were gone already though he had heard a bit of canon fire early on during the battle at the Cornucopia. He knew as everyone else did that the faces of the dead would be displayed in the sky come night fall.

They walked for a while before finally coming to a big, sturdy tree. He looked up and nodded. This would do for now. "Looks pretty good to me," he said as he started to climb up the tree. He was careful at first as he wanted to make sure that everything was stable before Alice started to climb up. He got high enough and started to search for a sturdy branch that would take his weight. It wasn't too hard and soon he was lounging against the tree waiting for Alice to climb up next to him. The view reminded him of District 12. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

She she reached the tree and suggested it to Gale, she nodded a bit as she watched him go ahead and start climbing "Careful of the vines and moss" She said, seeing how it really did coat the tree. Looking at it, the tree looked beautiful, and it really would provide them with great coverage. It was pretty ideal, actually. But the moss and vines could also make the tree a deathtrap with one wrong footing, since it could be slick and slippery. But in the hunger games, nothing was every completely safe.

Once Gale was up a few branches so she could start climbing, she grabbed on and started to swiftly pull herself up through the branches. Climbing up beside him, she settled herself on the branches, sitting on a sturdy one with another that was slightly to her side at about where her shoulder reached, , making it like a precautionary branch that would help to catch her if she fell over or something. As she sat back against the trunk, she could see that the sun was starting to set, and she was starting to feel hungry. Hunger wasn't a new thing to her. She'd gone days before in District 12 without eating much, if anything at all. It was a pretty normal thing for people in 12. In the games though, it was kind of like a cursed blessing, since because they were used to it, it didn't affect them that much "Tomorrow we should try and find food and freshwater" she commented.

~

Cato looked to her curiously when she said she didn't think she'd get out of there "Well....with a mindset of not hurting or killing anyone, you probably won't" he pointed out, wondering if she would really keep up to her words her entire time in these games, winner or not. Of course, Cato was still confident that he was going to be the one victorious, but he didn't stay on the topic of her dying because he was in the games and such like that. He let her continue on, when she started to give an actual answer about what she would do when she got out of the games, hypothetically.

He smiled a bit when she mentioned kids and a family, and seeming to really be fond of that plan "Kids huh? I haven't thought too much about stuff like that" he said as he leaned his head back against the trunk, looking up through the gaps in the branches above his head "Probably because I'm not really made for family material. Growing, and creating life...." he shook his head a bit "I'm a skilled killer, not a creator. You said it yourself too, I'm a monster" he said with a slight smirk over at her. He wasn't offended by it really, since he knew it was true.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena looked at him when he mentioned her faulty strategy. She didn't want to hurt anyone else. She had hurt enough people. Sure this would mean she probably wouldn't get out alive, but she hoped her actions would do something to cause a chain reaction. She brushed her hair back behind her eat as she listened to him. She smiled slightly as he spoke and she shook her head. "You are a monster," she said with a smile on her lips and a shake of her head, "I suppose we all are though. I mean that is how we got here."

She looked out into the forest for a few moments before looking back at him. "Don't you ever think about escaping that lifestyle though?" she asked, "Don't you wish you could just...leave all of that behind and start something new? I guess maybe that's why I want kids so badly. It would help me forget all of the bad things I've done. I could finally care for someone else rather than kill people. I mean I came into the Arena when I was 12. I almost don't remember a time when I wasn't having nightmares about the people I've hurt or the things I've seen. I don't know...I just want to forget all of this, and act like it never happened."
~
Gale settled into his spot against the tree and nodded slightly as she spoke. She was right, especially regarding water. They would need to get to the beach and do their best to steal water from there. That could be risky though. Knowing the Careers, they were probably camped out along the shoreline waiting for tributes to be desperate or dumb enough to actually step foot on the sand. But the Games required taking risks. They would just have to be smart about it.

"It may be dangerous but we should try to go early in the morning when it is still dark out. I don't think the Capitol will do anything to us at the beach; I think they'll leave that up to the tributes," he suggested as he looked over at her, "If we go at that time they may still be asleep and we might get lucky." He still had a question buzzing around in his mind though. "Do you know how many tributes are left? I didn't think of counting the canon fire," he asked.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

Hearing Gale suggesting going to the beach in the early morning, she nodded her head a bit, knowing that if that was where they were going to be getting their water, that was the best change "We should also try and find something to carry the water around in...." she spoke before her eyes fell on the vines that were hanging all around them. She reached out, grabbing one hanging nearby as she felt it "I know some vines can hold water....I'm not sure if these would though" she said. She only knew some types of vines could, but she didn't know how to tell which ones they were.

Letting the vine fall from her hand, she sighed a bit, already feeling mentally exhausted just from being in the games again. It was like a terrible, never ending nightmare. Part of her still couldn't believe that this was happening. Honestly....it was worse than the first time. The first time she at least expected there was the possibility of her being called into the games as tribute. But this time, it was out of the blue, and the possibility of her being pulled back in again wasn't in her mind, so in that sense, it was even worse. Hearing Gale asking about the tributes, she thought for a moment, before shaking her head "I heard the cannon at least three times...but honestly I don't know. Usually the cornucopia wipes out about half of the tributes at the start....but all of us are experienced, we've all been here before...so those numbers are probably a lot lower this time."

~

Cato wasn't sure how to response to her question when she asked if she ever though of escaping, just starting new and a different life that he wanted. He sighed a bit at the question, since he really wasn't sure how to respond, and he shrugged his shoulders "Maybe it might be nice. Maybe it wouldn't. I don't really know. This is what I'm familiar with, I'm comfortable with it, and so it's fine with me. Change isn't really something I'm used to - nor are the other career districts really. I don't think there's much of a point in dwelling on things that have already been decided" he commented as he glanced back to her.

He found he wasn't getting as irritated with her as before when they first started talking to each other in the beginning of the week. He still didn't understand her...but instead of getting angry at not understanding and her being so different, at some point he found that he'd grown curious, and wanted to understand. She confused him so much, he didn't know what to make of her. As they talked, and the night got darker, the sky started to light up, and through the cracks in the tree branches he could barely make out the faces of the already fallen tributes displayed above head. Once it ended, he sighed a bit, and relaxed back in the tree "We should get some rest" he suggested.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena nodded quietly for a moment as he spoke. She understood that. Change was a scary thing to think about even for people who were as desperate as those in her District. Change always came with a price but one always had to think about whether the risks were worth taking, and in her mind, the Capitol couldn't degrade anymore even if they tried. Her attention turned to the sky as the images began to flash overhead. She counted 6 faces while the Capitol's anthem played throughout the Arena.

When it was finally over she looked over at Cato. "I think you're right," she replied as she leaned back on the trunk. She thought about whether she should actually trust Cato or not, but she figured that if he were going to hurt her, he would have tried to by now. She gave him a slight smile before closing her eyes and letting her body relax against the trunk. "Good night," she whispered to him before letting sleep wash over her.

It was still dark when something woke her up. She looked around carefully before she locked eyes with some sort of baboon-like animal that sat only inches from her branch. "Cato," she whispered softly, not daring to move as the animal eyed her.
~
Gale nodded quietly at her answer regarding the plants. "I'm sure we can find something," he said, "If not we'll just have to set up camp within walking distance of the shoreline." That wouldn't be ideal but they also couldn't afford to get dehydrated. Soon after the sky went dark and 6 tributes faces were shown in the sky. Well it was better than what Alice had thought but that meant there were still 15 tributes running around. Serena's counterpart had been in the sky but not the young woman's. That was also promising.

"We should get some rest," he said to Alice as he started to settle in for the night, "It's been a long day and we need rest to make sure we can face whatever comes tomorrow." He knew that he could trust Alice at least for now. He wouldn't hurt her and he was almost certain that she wouldn't make a move at him any time soon. He let his eyes close for a few minutes before muttering a goodnight to her.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

(Sorry for any typos or if it's short, on My phone)

Alice watched as the sky lit up with the faces of the fallen tributes. It was another reality hit that they really were powerless. Tributes were already killing each other....maybe getting the districts to unite really was a naive and failse hope. The other night at the interview when they all held hands in unity... it seemed that was all gone now. It had been a momentary hope for her that maybe they actually could do something...but she knew that was childish and naive now. She sighed a bit to herself before she and Gale relaxed for the night and tried to get some rest.

At some point Alice had been able to finally fall asleep. Probably from the over mental and physical exhaustion of that day, and the fact she was running on only a couple hours of sleep from the previous night. The next morning though she wasn't ready to wake up, and grumbled a bit when she felt a slight pressure on her "it can't be that late yet" she mumbled, thinking that Gale was trying to wake her up since they planned to go to the beach early before sunrise. After a few moments though something in her half away brain was sending if warning alarms, and her eyes snapped open. She inhaled sharply as a very....very oversized python of sorts was wrapped around it. It was wrapped around her legs and the branch that they were outstretched on, as well as around her torso and arms, leaving her unable to move. Her eyes trailed over its long and then just body, unable to even find where its tail end was. "G-....Gale...." she called out softly, as if afraid to disturb and anger the snake as her eyes darted to her side over at Gale, hoping he would wake up soon.

~

As the seemed to decide on going to sleep for the night, Cato nodded his head to her "goodnight Selena" he said with a smirk, purposely calling her by the wrong name this time. Their conversation had gotten a little serious and on the deeper side, so he figured they could at least go to sleep for the night with him sending her one more light joking remark. He watched as she closed her eyes, before he leaned back and soon did the same. The sun had only set less than an hour ago, but sleeping schedules were entirely different in the games. As he fell asleep he thought about the tributes faces shown in the sky that night. It wasn't all that many... as grin a thought it was, it would have been better if it were more, because then that meant there would be less to fight and worry about.

Shaking head to himself, he tried to clear his thoughts A bit as he closed his eyes and willed himself to finally get some sleep, knowing that tomorrow would be an even longer day than today was. He didn't know that when they woke up though they would already have to be starting their morning off with problems. He was woken up by hearing Serena calling his name. He shifted ever so slight in his sleep, before his eyes fluttered open, and instantly landed on the animal in front of Serena. His eyes widened a bit, and he just stared at it for a moment before back to Serena "don't move" he warned quietly as he glanced back to the animal, grabbing his sword for the ready as he slowly started to shift, lowering his foot to another branch so he could stand, but the second he moved the animals eyes darted right over to him and he froze, gulping nervously, but still slowly moving, gripping his sword in case it attacked. Maybe it wouldn't. Maybe they could just climb down and leave and it wouldn't care. He doubted that though...the Capitol didn't put harmless animals in the game. If that wasn't obvious enough by the animals sharp claws and teeth that could be seen.

 

[SerenaStark]

(Everything was great No worries!)
Serena was frozen in fear as she looked at the monkey. Its yellow eyes glared back at them. She tensed slightly when she heard the sound of Cato's voice, but she relaxed once she realized it was him. She didn't know what she would have done had he not woken up. She heard Cato start to move slowly but surely but the animal wasn't too happy about that. Its eyes darted quickly over to Cato and it let out a screech.

Serena looked around and saw more monkeys appearing in the tree. "Start climbing down slowly," she said gently to him as she slowly began to move her feet down to the branch below. She started to move slowly but surely down the tree as the monkeys watched the pair of tributes carefully. However, they weren't about to let them get away that easily. As she neared the bottom, the monkeys began to advance down the tree towards them. Immediately Serena jumped down and loaded an arrow into her bow and fired at two of them that had started to run at Cato.
~
Gale had quickly fallen asleep but he didn't feel as though he had slept for that long. Alice's voice filled the air and his eyes fluttered open when it hit his ears. He sat up slightly before seeing the beast that had coiled itself around Alice and looked as if it was ready to just squeeze the life right out of her. He watched the snake turned its attention to him as he attempted to go for his knife. He paused when the two made eye contact but he continued to pull for his knife, but this time he moved a bit more slowly.

He pulled the blade from his pocket before looking at Alice. "I think you made a friend," he said trying to calm his own nerves. In a flash the snake made a move at him to try and bit him but Gale quickly pushed off the tree and managed to stab it close to its neck. The snake released its grip for a moment as it wallowed in pain and Gale managed to pull Alice away from it and onto his branch. The snake recovered quickly though as it watched and hissed at them. "Come on!" Gale said quickly before starting to climb down in attempt to keep their distance from the creature.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

Alice was frozen in fear, and also the fact that she quite literally couldn't move because of the constraints that the snake had on her. When she quietly called out for Gale, she was relieved when he woke up. The snake wasn't, however, and only further tightened its grip on Alice as she winced in pain, the snake clearly not wanting to give up it's new 'friend' to Gale. Alice watched as Gale reached for his knife, and she only glared at his comment of having made a new friend "That isn't funny" she huffed dryly, before her eyes widened as the snake lunged at Gale.

When the snakes grip momentarily loosened on her, she quickly wiggled out from under the snakes body with Gale's help, and quickly started descending the tree with him as the snake's head with its vicious fangs continued to snap at them. Alice thought they were making good distance from it though, the snake wasn't as fast as them. But she guessed she should have remembered about the fact she couldn't find it's other end....because now they found it. The snakes tail end wrapped around Gale's ankle, yanking him off the branch where he now was suspended upside-down by the snake. Alice quickly grabbed her knife from her pocket, and climbed back up the branches to the level where its tail was coiled around Gale's ankle, and slashed at the body of the snake. Thankfully, it being the tail end it wasn't quite as thick as the majority of the snake's body. She quickly cut through the tail, releasing Gale's from it's grasp. She quickly ducked as the snakes head end had gotten closer, and lunged at her, and she climbed back down the branches quickly.

~

As he he held his sword tightly in one hand, and focused on slowly taking a step down, he froze when the animal glared and screeched at him. Hearing Serena's remark he narrowed his eyes at her "This isn't slow to you?" he hissed in a slight snap towards her. He went back to focusing on his motions though. Once his feet were planted firmly on the branch below him, he slowly turned, going to grab the bag he had hanging on a branch, only to freeze again. It was gone. And instead, in it's place was another monkey holding the bag. He cursed, and glared at the monkey in irritation, but decided it wasn't worth it.

As they were reaching the bottom, he saw that it wasn't going to be as easy as he was hoping, and he quickly jumped the rest of the way to the ground, seeing Selena shoot at the monkeys. He cursed a bit "Idiot" he snapped "You'll just piss them off more" he said, and seeing that attacking the monkeys had done just that, and they all started screeching and howling loudly, now not holding back as they all charged for the pair, on in particular getting really close to Serena.

"Watch out!" he called, grabbing her arm and quickly pulling her towards him, lifting up his sword to block the monkey that lunged at them. It claws still managed to find his arm though that held the sword up, gashing at his biceps and leaving for nasty gashes from each claw "Shit!" he cursed out in pain, bit just shoved the monkey away nonetheless, slicing at it and killing it before he quickly grabbed Serena's hand and started running "They're staying in the trees, lets head for the beach!" he said, hoping that if they got away from the trees, the monkeys would give up.

 

[SerenaStark]

"They're already pissed off!" Serena snapped back at him as she readied another arrow. She knew it would just a matter of time until those monkeys actually tried to attack. Sure she may have sped it up but she didn't want to give them time to get into position. She fired a few more arrows but had a hard time keeping up with the numbers. She jumped back when she saw the monkey and if Cato wouldn't have stuck his arm out, she knew those claws would have dug into her chest and killed her.

Before she could react she felt Cato's hand grab her own and pull her off to the beach. She moved quickly to keep up with him and soon they found themselves stumbling onto the beach. The landscape change sent her tumbling onto the ground towards the water. She managed to stop herself and aim an arrow just in case but the monkeys stayed put screeching at them. Serena panted slightly as she watched as the monkeys screeched a few more times before heading back into the thick of the forest. She took a moment to make sure they weren't going to come back before looking over at Cato and seeing his arm. "Damn it," she said under her breath as she moved to get a better look.
~
"I thought it was king of funny," Gale said but his face remained solemn. He tried to move as quickly as he could but suddenly he felt something tight around his ankle. "Woah!" he yelped as he felt himself being tugged back. He lost the grip of his knife as it tumbled down to the ground. "Alice!" he said but she was already ahead of him. He watched as she moved swiftly before cutting the snake's tail clean off, sending Gale tumbling to the ground. The reptile hissed loudly in pain as she did so before starting to move after them.

Gale quickly got up, ignoring the pain. He grabbed his knife up in his right hand before starting to run. He knew Alice would make up the time once she hit the ground. She was much faster than he was. "Alice! We have to head to the beach!" he called back when she hit the ground. The snake attempted to move through the tree after Alice but it was no use. The young female tribute was much faster than the snake. It wasn't long before Gale stumbled upon the sand and waited for Alice with his knife at the ready in case the beast decided to try and enter the shoreline.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

After cutting Gale free from the snake, she quickly avoided the angered reptile as she descended the tree quickly, skipping the last couple of branches and just jumping to the ground, landing with a thud on her feet before pushing herself up and quickly taking off after the direction Gale had went, having heard his call. She easily caught up with Gale, glancing back over her shoulder when she did so, and not seeing the snake. She guessed it might have stayed in the tree, because she didn't notice it following them far from it. She had a feeling they had just chosen the wrong tree to sleep in - that snake seemed to have made that tree its home, probably also preferring all the coverage it got from that tree and the neighboring ones that looked similar to it, clouded in vines.

Reaching the sand, her feet slowed to a stop as she let out a few breaths, and she started to relax until she heard some voices, and quickly grabbed Gale, tugging him back into the edge of the forest and ducking behind some shrubbery. The snake hadn't followed them, so they were safe from it, even on the edge of the forest. She glanced to Gale with a smirk "Plus one point for Alice" she whispered to the tally point system Gale had created the other day, before, she turned her attention back to the beach, peering through the leaves of the bushes and shrubs they hid behind, seeing two figures not too much further down the side of the beach, though it was still dark out, so she couldn't tell who they were from this distance. By the sound of it, it sounded like a male and female.

~

As he ran from the monkeys and he pulled Serena along with him, he let go of her hand once he felt she was keeping up and running right alongside him. He could hear the shaking of the branches as the monkeys jumped through them, chasing after them above their heads through the trees. Cato tried not to waste time looking back at them, but they needed to be wary as well, as the monkeys would swing their clawed hands down at them. After a couple minutes of running, they made it to the beach, and Finnick stumbled as his feet hit the sand that suddenly made him much slower. He stumbled forward, before quickly turned back at the monkeys, all gathered on the edge of the treeline, screeching at them. After a few minutes though, they gave up and headed back into the depths of the forest, allowing Cato to momentarily relax.

In the rush of focusing on getting away from them, he'd forgotten about his arm momentarily until he saw Serena moving closer to inspect it. He pulled away from her, walking closer to the waters edge "It's nothing" he shrugged it off as he knelt down by the edge of the water, leaning forward as he cupped the water in one hand and washed the wound over a bit, flinching and gritting his teeth in pain, but continued to clean it out nonetheless, wanting to minimize the possibility of it getting infected at all costs.

 

[SerenaStark]

"You've got to wrap that up, Cato," she said as she looked at it. It was deep and if it wasn't treated properly it could get infected and that was the last thing that they needed. She stayed put though as he didn't appear to want any help. She quieted down though when she heard running and panting on the other side of the beach. She stayed close to Cato to protect him as she loaded an arrow into the bow. She looked about the shoreline but it was still pitch black and she couldn't see much of anything.
~
Gale let out a panted laugh as she mentioned the tally marks. He took his hands off his knees and stood up right so that he could breathe a bit better. He walked over to her and held a hand out to her to help her up. "And I get one for making that creature let go of you, so I'm still in the lead," he said with a small smirk. It faded quickly though as he heard voices. Alice must have heard them as well because she turned her attention to where they were coming from. Gale readied his knife and started to head over to where the voices were coming from. It took him a moment but soon enough he saw the girl from 8 and the male from 2 were sitting. Gale kept his knife up as he eyed the boy from two. He was a bit close to them but that was only because he needed to be to be able to recognize them.

Serena quickly aimed it at him, preparing to fire a warning shot in his direction. "Put the knife down," she said as she stayed between him and Cato. She recognized him. He was the District 12 boy.

"Not while he's around," Gale said nodding to Cato, "He's nuts."

Serena looked back at Cato and then at Gale. "I can't say you're wrong, but he's not going to hurt you," she said but to make sure of that she used her foot to slide Cato's sword slightly away from him, "Now put the knife down."

 

[ChibiMonkey]

She just smiled a bit as he laughed and commented how he was still in the lead though "Fine fine. So what is it, 2 - 1?" she said, smiling a bit as she actually kind of wanted to keep this up. Not as a challenge, or competition, but it was kind of like a friendly game, and it was something that helped to take her mind off of the hell they were currently having to try and survive through. Her smile didn't last for long though, as she heard voices and saw two other figures. She went to move into hiding, but Gale seemed to think otherwise, and started cautiously approaching the unknown figures.

Alice's eyes widened a bit "Gale!" she hissed loudly, before cursing and quickly following up alongside him, holding her knife as she looked around their surroundings while approaching the figures to be sure that it wasn't a trick of sorts, or something like that. As the got closer, she recognized the girl from 8. Along with Cato. She narrowed her eyes at the male who got up, facing them, and she glanced back to Serena as she and Gale spoke to each other. Alice noticed the injure on Cato's arm as he was patching himself up, and she slowly lowered her knife "You two are awake early. Where's the rest of your career pack?" she asked, that being her main priority. She knew Cato was just like the other careers, and preferred joining up with them. So she didn't trust the fact that they weren't in sight at the moment, since it was almost certain Cato would be with them. And she especially was wary after the fact she and Gale already had an encounter with one of the careers, and certainly not on good terms after she bashed his face in with a branch. Careers loved to hold grudges.

~

Cato sighed heavily at her words telling him to wrap the wound. It was partly because he was naturally an asshole, and also partly because of the throbbing, burning pain in his arm that made him snap at her a bit "I swear if you star giving me another damn lecture right now..." he groaned, cleaning out the gashes on his upper arm, and forcing through the stinging pain that cleaning it out had brought upon him. He was focused on cleaning his wound, and also aware that Serena was keeping a watch out, so he wasn't paying attention to anything surrounding them at the moment, focusing on his wound, trusting Serena.

He just finished cleaning the blood off and the wound when he heard Serena telling someone to drop a knife. He quickly lifted his head and snapped his eyes over to the pair that had approached them, and he moved to stand up defensively, ready to attack if he had to. Serena moved his knife further away from him though while proclaiming he wouldn't hurt them, and he just scoffed a bit "You know, You'd sound a lot more believable if you believed in yourself to begin with" he said to her before glancing back to the pair from 12 "But she's right. For now, anyways" he said as he kept a wary eye on them, while also ripping off the rest of the sleeve of his uniform from where it had been ripped by the claws. He ripped it up to used as a clothe, and wrapped it above the wound tightly to keep the blood from flowing too much, and then wrapping the wound up, using his mouth as a second hand to tie it all up.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena rolled her eyes at Cato's words. She didn't get it. One moment they could have an intelligent conversation together and the next, he would hit her with a roll of sarcasm. It got a little annoying after a while. She lowered her bow and stood up carefully as she looked back at Cato. "I do believe in myself," she replied, "It's you I'm struggling with." She knew he was probably just crabby because he had to wake up so early, but still without her he would have been attacked in that tree while he slept.

She looked back at the District 12 pair before sighing slightly. "We haven't found them yet," she replied as she watched the girl look around wearily. She too had been surprised when Cato hadn't blown her off to go with the Careers but he hadn't and she should probably count her blessings. "I'm Serena from District 8 and this is Cato from District 2," she said as she looked at them.

"Ya we know who you two are," Gale said as he put his knife back in his pocket, "I'm Gale and this is Alice. Both of us are from District 12." Gale watched as Serena nodded slightly in response to them. It was clear that she knew who they were she just wasn't rude enough as Gale was to speak up about it. Gale watched as Cato got up from his crouched position and noticed his arm was all bloody and gashed. They must have really run into something to have him hurt like that. He looked at Alice for a moment before looking back at Serena and speaking up once more.

"We were interested in an alliance with you," he said a bit out of the blue before looking at Cato, "And...I guess you too." Serena smiled slightly as she looked at Cato. It was nice to watch someone keep Cato's massive ego in check. "Sure why not," she replied to Gale before looking at Cato, "That way I'll be able to talk to someone who isn't as sarcastic and rude as him."

 

[ChibiMonkey]

Alice listened as Serena explained they hadn't found them yet. Which meant they intended to look for them. Seeing that they seemed to be in the clear for the time being, and that Gale seemed comfortable putting his knife away, she did the same, putting it back in her pocket as she turned her attention back to Serena, smirking slightly in amusement at the way she spoke to Cato.

When Gale started to bring up an alliance they had planned, she nodded her head lightly when he had glanced at her. When he said Cato could be included too though, she frowned a bit "Really? I don't remember that detail" she huffed a bit as she glared back over at the blond male. She didn't trust him for an instant. This wasn't some schoolyard...she didn't see why they had to pretend to be nice to Cato and include him just because he was already with someone else that they had wanted to be with. "honestly, I'm surprised you're sticking around with him. And the other careers? After the statement you made it seems like your sticking with the people completely opposite to your ideals" she said, not really judging or accusing Serena of anything, but, Alice was just genuinely curious why someone like her would be with the careers, who were probably the ones most willing to kill and follow the capitol.

Cato just raised an eyebrow at Serena when she argued she believed herself, but not him. "If thats true you shouldn't promise things you yourself don't believe in. Or did you just accidentally kick my sword away?" he smirked at her just as he was finishing up with the injury to his arm. He turned his attention back to the two from 12 as the introduced themselves, and he smirked a bit as Gale spoke of an alliance and when including himself, he chuckled, obviously seeing the reluctance in his voice "How kind of you" he spoke sarcastically before the redhead beside him had spoken up, and he smirked at her "I agree" he said as he glanced back to Serena "This wasn't in our plan. We need to meet back up with the rest of the careers. I managed to persuade them of your skill so you could join us, but they're not going to want to make our group any bigger. Especially with tributes from 12."

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena let out a small sigh as she could feel the heat on her. There weren't that many accusations flying around but she knew that if she wanted to bring up these new ideas and try to change things there would always be people questioning her and trying to get her to slip up. She looked at Alice for a moment before nodding. "I know you know the Capitol is wrong and so does your district," she said gently, "I don't need to convince you of that. The Careers don't know what's going on because the Capitol hides things from them. It's a way of keeping us divided. I need to show those districts that I care about them too. I feel the most sorry for them, because at least we know the truth, they're being lied to."

Gale looked at her quietly and shook his head. The careers didn't care who they hurt so why didn't they just join the Capitol. The Capitol adored them and vice versa, so it was the most logical step, but the Capitol never offered them anything. "Why should we care what happens to them? We don't need Districts 1, 2, or 4. We can do this ourselves. We far outnumber the Capitol even if those 3 Districts decided to side with them. If they want to be on the losing side than why not just let them?"

"Because the Capitol has killed their children just as they have killed our's. We need them because if the people of those districts are half of the fighter that Cato is, then the Capitol doesn't stand a chance. They've had training; we haven't. We can't afford to lose anyone," she explained before looking at Cato, "And you still don't get it. There's no winner. No one walks out of here a victor. The Capitol doesn't care about the victor that's just part of the show. They want us to suffer and the only way they can get us to suffer the way we have is by saying that you have a slim chance of getting in good graces with the Capitol. And we do it because if we don't we're afraid they'll kill us. What people don't understand is they can't. They can't because they need us. We don't need them."

 

[ChibiMonkey]

Alice listened to Serena explain how the careers were the most against these ideas because they were the most ignorant. Serena spoke of how she wanted to change that, and how she wanted to get them to see just how wrong the capitol was, and to break that barrier that the capitol had put between districts like them. Alice accepted the explanation, since she did see that it was a good idea, were as Gale seemed more defensive and seemed to rather prefer just forgetting about districts like the careers, and that they were more trouble than they were worth.

Cato honestly was just growing more confused by this conversation, and in a way, it almost frustrated him. The three of them were talking about something that they all understood and agreed upon, but Cato still didn't understand any of it, and he felt left out. It was almost like they were talking in another language than him. He just crossed his arms, and glared about them "Hellooo? You all know I am standing right here still, right?" he snapped in frustration about how they talked about him and his district as though he wasn't even there to hear them.

That was when Serena turned her attention back to him again, and started to give him another lecture about how he still didn't get it. Well, that part he could agree with. He didn't get any of this. Even as she further tried to explain who the Capitol really were and their true goals and objectives, Cato just frowned a bit, shaking his head "Honestly I think all of you are crazy" he muttered, before something Alice said when she spoke up caught his attention.

Alice agreed with everything Serena was saying, and nodded her head, ignoring Cato's growing irritation - she still didn't care about him, per say. But she could understand Serena's interest in getting everyone, including him and the other careers, to see the fault in the Capitol. "I'm not going to argue with you. Actually, if anything I think you're right. While districts like ours have the fighting spirit, its districts like the careers that have the manpower for a fight. We do need them....as irritating as they are" she said turning a look to Cato when she spoke those last words, before back at Serena "Anyways....I think I can speak for both of us when I say you definitely have our support, and we'll do what we can to help you" she said as she glanced to Gale, before back at Serena again after a moment "But if you're still staying with the Careers, I think it's better if we're more of....how to put it, long distance allies? Gale and I have already had an encounter with the male from 4....I don't see them being pleased when they next see us" she said, before getting defensive when she noticed Cato react to that news.

Cato, naturally having a sort of pack mentality with the other careers, since they all vouched they were there for each other - until the end, anyways - Cato natural got a bit irritated at the sound of Alice implying something happened already between them and a Career "You what?" he snapped a bit in anger, taking a step towards her which could be seen a bit on the threatening side. Alice quickly took a step back and glared at him "Relax, pretty-boy. You didn't see any of your buddies faces in the sky last night did you?" she pointed out, trying to get him to calm down since he'd clearly seemed to think that they might have killed on of his precious careers.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena smiled slightly and shook her head at Cato's remark. "We're not crazy. We just know the truth. I will prove this to you I promise. Trust me on that," she replied as she turned her attention to Alice and Gale. It felt good to know that someone had her back. Someone who understood what was really going in the districts. She needed to find a way to prove this Cato. Her worst fear was he would win and all their hard work and sacrifice would be for nothing.

Gale nodded in agreement with Alice. "Alice is right," he chimed in, "We are standing with you and we know that you're right. Whatever we can do to help, we're going to do it." He took a minute and looked at Cato. "I really wish I were in your shoes. I wish I could have been pampered my whole life," he noted with a roll of his eyes. Gale didn't care if Cato knew that he didn't like him. The kid had an ego plain and simple, and there was no reason for him to be so high on his horse. He was no better than them. "We left your little Career friend because we don't want to hurt anybody, but trust me if this kind of thing wasn't going on, we would have gotten rid of him. You don't know what we've gone through. You're just like the Capitol. Serena may see something different in you, but in my mind, you're just like them. You kill for sport. This is just a giant ego boost for you and those other Career tributes."

Serena shook her head slightly as she put her hand on Gale's shoulder. He tensed slightly as he usually did before taking a deep breath and letting himself relax. "They are being killed just like we are. They're being lied to. This isn't their fault," she said gently, "They don't believe us and that's ok. We need to prove to them that we aren't lying. Are you willing to help us do that?"

Gale took a moment before looking at Cato. He didn't want to help this guy. He didn't deserve their help. If his people were like him, he would rather see those districts rot, but the Capitol was watching and so were the other districts. "Fine," he agreed before nodding slightly. He silently agreed that he would keep an eye on Cato though. He needed to protect Alice from people like him, and he honestly wanted to protect Serena. She needed to win these Games so she could go and start changing things. If she didn't, at least, she would still become a martyr for whoever did decide to pick up the cause.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

Cato just rolled his eyes a bit as Serena seemed like some saint of sorts, wanting to protect everyone, even the careers, where some tribute didn't care - like Gale and Alice didn't seem to. It's not that it bothered him that the two from District 12 thought nothing of him and didn't want to be associated with him or lumped into the same category, and honestly, Cato agreed with them on that. They weren't the same. District 12 were nothing compared to the careers, and certainly no where near as good, so of course they were in different categories. He considered them separate a different way than Gale and Alice did though.

Alice listened to Serena and honestly couldn't believe her - not in a bad way, though. She just didn't see how someone could be so....pure-hearted, especially after going through the games once, and now a second time. How could she remain so positive about all the districts, specifically, people like Cato? She didn't see what Serena saw in him. She saw no hope left in Cato and his fellow career tributes, and they should just be forgotten. Alice did agree......that ideally, she would like all the districts to be equal - they were equal - and so she wanted them all to work together, because she did agree with Serena in the aspect that it was all of their battle to fight the Capitol together. But still, it was hard to believe the careers would listen to reason and see the truth.

As they were talking though, it seemed some people watching didn't approve of their conspiring sort of thoughts and plans, and President Snow ordered the gamemakers to split them up. He needed to keep them from talking - not only because the Districts were watching, but also for the tributes in the games, he needed to keep them from getting to other tributes, like the careers. More than that....Snow wanted them dead. They could talk all they want, but he would prove that they were powerless, and would be crushed in an instant. Coming up with an idea, he talked to the lead game designer and maker, and they came up with a plan.

As they were talking, Cato still didn't understand Serena and where she was coming from. Why was she so determined? Honestly...even though he wasn't in agreement with their notions against the capitol, looking at it from a different perspective, he though Gale made the most sense. Why bother with people who would only bring trouble? If he was involved and cared about their plans, he would probably think more like Gale was. Speaking of trouble....as they were talking they were cut short by the sound of running accompanied by yelling and shouting, as the rest of the careers entered the clearing of the beach in a hurry, waving their limps around and Cato's eyes widened "Amber!" he called out, catching his counterpart female's attention along with the others as they slowly started to calm down realizing the bees were no longer attacking them "Cato! About time we found you" the female from District 2 huffed out in relief before seeing Serena and frowning "She's still with you?" she half groaned, not even noticing the two others there until the male from district 4 spoke up, his eyes landing on Alice.

"You! You're that bitch from yesterday!" he snapped, grabbing his weapon, and Alice's eyes widened as she saw not only the male from 4 enter the clearing - with a pretty fucked up face too, thanks to her - but also the entirety of all the career district tributes "Shit" she breathed as she grabbed her knife quickly.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena smiled slightly when she finished speaking. It made her feel good to try and change this injustice. Sure some people like Cato probably thought she was rather annoying but it needed to be said. Alice and Gale seemed to appreciate her a bit more, but Gale still didn't seem to like the idea that Cato was going to get a free pass into their district alliance after all the things that he had done to his fellow districts. She could tell that Gale thought it was wrong, but exclusion was what got them into this mess, and she wasn't going to let something spiral back out of control.

Suddenly though there were footsteps rustling through the trees and Serena loaded her weapon as Gale put his hand on his side where he kept the knife. Serena paused though when she saw the other careers step out of the forest. Oh boy. This wasn't going to be good. Gale glared at them for a moment but didn't dare to speak up. They didn't need a giant brawl on the beach because Gale was pretty sure if that happened, they wouldn't come out victorious.

Gale glared at the male tribute from 4 and took out his knife. "Stay away from her," he growled lowly as he eyed the tribute. He waited for his first move but Serena was quick to react. She aimed her arrow at the boy from 4 and glared at him. "Put the spear down," she shouted at him.

"You think you can come around here and tell me what to do?" the man snapped at her, "Besides why should I be afraid of you? You're not going to do a damn thing."

"I said I wouldn't kill you but I will harm you if you attempt to move at them, and you know as well as I do I can hit you well before you can hit me," she said quickly, "Now put it down." She looked back at Gale and Alice for a moment before looking back at the District 4 male. "You two as well. Put the knives down." This definitely wasn't going to earn her brownie points with either side but she couldn't let them hurt each other.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

When Serena caused the male who was ready to advance on them to pause in his footsteps when aimed at with a bow, Alice was a little relieved, before she glanced to Gale as if trying to telepathically communicate with him that they needed to get out of there. Even if Serena could convince the careers...it wouldn't be easy, and not in the middle of them already being heated and ready for battle. Hearing Serena to tell them to put their knifes down, her eyes widened a bit and she glared slightly "I trust you Serena, but like hell if you think I'm about to put my weapon down right now" she said as she glared over at the male from 4. Alice wasn't a physical fighter. In a close combat, her only chance was a weapon, otherwise she would be killed. She may be a skilled strategist and runner, but she was physically weak - aside from her runners legs. She wasn't going to abandon her only weapon in a situation like this.

When the rest of the careers joined them, things had happened pretty quickly, and Cato was conflicted with emotions. At first, he was relieved seeing the careers. And then the male from 4 was about to attack Alice it appeared, and Serena somehow quickly took control of the situation. Well, momentarily, and probably not in the best way. "What are you doing?" he snapped at her for pointing a weapon at someone who they were in an alliance with. Before he could do anything more though, Amber had reacted - since she was closest to him and Serena than the others because she had been the first one to notice Cato and went over to him. She glared at Serena and quickly grabbed her "what the hell are you doing pointing that thing at him! Cato!! I told you she was going to be nothing but trouble!" she snapped as she had grabbed Serena's arms and grabbed the bow out of her hands, tossing it to the side. And then from there, everything happened pretty quickly.

The second the weapon was out of Serena's hands, the male from four took his chance, charging for the two from district 12, his female counterpart following along with him to back him up as well as the female from district 1. They were just as bloodthirsty as Cato was, and more than ready to get back at district 12. A grudge to one of them was a grudge to all of them. At the same time that this all happened, Cato had also quickly acted "Let go of her, she wasn't going to shoot Amber!" he snapped angrily as he tried to get Amber off of Serena and get her to let go. Even if Serena was ready to shoot or not, Cato said it regardless, to try and calm Amber and diffuse the situation. But by the time he pried Amber off of Serena, he noticed half of the bloodthirsty careers had gone after the two from 12, and they were already gone through the treeline of the forest so he didn't even know what direction they went in "God dammit" he groaned in frustration at the whole of this situation.

Alice meanwhile was quick to move the second chaos had erupted "Lets go!" she said to Gale quickly as she began running as a few of the careers came after them, one of them of course being the male from 4 who she had seemed to thoroughly pissed off. Dumb career tribute, she cursed in her mind. he was the one that made a move on them in the first place, which resulted in her having to do something to stop him. So it was his own fault to begin with for targeting them.

 

[SerenaStark]

"I don't need you to trust me," she said, "I need you to trust each other." It didn't matter if people trust her or not. She was just the messenger. She was just the person who putting the ideas in other's heads. If none of them trusted each other, how could they expect to fight along side each other. She had diffused the situation for a split second before the girl from District 2 came barreling at her before stripping her of her bow. "No!" Serena yelped before the girl wrestled her to the ground. Once that happened: all bets were off. The male tribute from 4 began barreling after Gale and Alice.She tried to kick at the one Cato had called Amber, but it was no use. Amber was much stronger than she was.

As soon as Amber went after Serena, Gale looked at Alice rather wide-eyed. "Run!" he told her before turning on his heels and taking off. He didn't want her to wait up for him. She needed to do what she did best. Gale wasn't the fastest but boy could he throw a knife. That was his strength and if push came to shove that was what he would do.

Serena watched in horror as half of the Careers started after the pair from district 12. It infuriated her, but she did her best not to show it. Finally, Cato pulled Amber off, allowing her to get up. She backed away from the young woman as Cato tried to talk a bit of sense into her. "I wasn't going to hurt him unless he tried to make a move, and even then I wouldn't kill him. I made that perfectly clear," she snapped at Amber before gathering bow and a few arrows that had spilled out of her quiver, "You need to leave them alone! They're not doing anything wrong."

The tributes chased after the pair and though Alice was getting away they were gaining on Gale. He did his best to keep up with Alice but it was no use he simply wasn't fast enough. He got his knife from his pocket before looking back at the tributes who were racing after him. He took a deep breath before throwing his knife and nailing the district 4 tribute in the head. Immediately a canon went off. Serena stopped when she heard the canon fire.

 

[ChibiMonkey]

Alice understood what Serena was saying, but it was a little difficult to trust someone pointing a weapon at her. And just like that, in an instant chaos had erupted the second Amber tackled Serena, and Alice took off running with Gale into the forest. As she ran, she tried to think things over in her head quickly. She could probably outrun them, even if there was more than one. But she wasn't sure about Gale. And if she outran them and got away, that meant Gale would have to deal with all three of the tributes that had come after them. She knew she shouldn't be letting something like this affect her judgement....her worrying about another person could be the death of her own life, she knew this. But she was only human...and she couldn't help it. There was no way that she could leave Gale to face all three of them alone. He may be strong, and skilled with a knife...but even then, he only had a single knife. It would be hard for anyone to take on three tributes, let alone skilled and trained career ones, all three of them. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw the three gaining on Gale, and she knew she couldn't leave him. If she left, and he ended up dead, she wouldn't be able to forgive herself, and she knew that while others may not think so, it would have been the same as her killing Gale herself. And she couldn't do that.

Seeing the two females catch up on him, her eyes widened "Gale!" she called out, turning on her heel and going to help, but before she could, the male from 4 had blocked her pathway. "No way, you're all mine, you bitch" he sneered as her swung his spear at her, and she quickly dodged it, gripping her knife. The two continued like this, and while Alice wasn't strong enough to get good hits on him, she was still fast, and her speed and flexibility allowed for her to dodge just about any attack he threw at her. The male was getting irritated with this, before he finally landed a deep gash on Alice's leg causing her to cry out in pain, the male smirking "That should slow you down" he said, this allowing him just enough time to tackle her to the ground, holding his spear horizontally as he pinned her to the ground, pressing the bar of the spear down onto her to try and choke her, and Alice, with her minimal arm strength, struggling to hold it back from crushing her as she was pinned to the ground.

Something caught both of their attention though, and that was the sound of the cannon. Both of them looked over in the direction of Gale and the female from 4 and 1 that he had been fighting, only to see the one from 4 limp on the ground with a knife directly in her forehead. The angered both the remaining female, and the male from 4 on top of Alice, seeing his own female counterpart from his district killed, his eyes wide in horror. Alice used this distraction, shoving the distracted tribute off of her as she grabbed her knife, swiftly slicing it across his throat before he got the chance to recover and attack back.

~

Finally getting Amber away from Serena, he sighed in frustration as he realized the mess that had happened. The again, the games were for messes. Shaking his head, he turned back to Amber with a glare "We're supposed to be a team, how is that supposed to work if you go tackling her?!" he directed, before Amber just argued "She pointed her weapon at Derek first! She started it - plus, she isn't on any team of mine!" she argued as she turned and glared at Serena. While all of them were arguing though, their banter was silenced by the sound of a cannon going off, and Amber just smirked, not even worried it might be one of the careers, she turned her attention to Serena "See? This is the reality we're in, not some fairy-tail that we all get along. We either kill, or get killed out here" she said as she looked off in the distance of the forest where she assumed the tributes had run off into.

"It was probably that redhead, firefly" he huffed at the nickname Alice had because of her being so fast, as if she could fly, in combination with her red hair "She got what she deserved, messing up Derek's face like that" she commented as she crossed her arms, while Cato seemed to be getting irritated. "Shut up, will you? It could have been one of us" he snapped at Amber. Being around Serena was getting to him - for the better, though. Before, he would be just like Amber, confident that it wasn't one of their own that was just killed. But now...he wasn't so sure. He was starting to learn, and his vision expanding ever so slightly, realizing things he hadn't before. Amber just scoffed at him "Please, they outnumbered those two from 12. What's gotten into you anyway?" she frowned as she crossed her arms over her chest, before glaring over at Serena, knowing it was likely her doing.

 

[SerenaStark]

Serena shook ever so slightly. She ignored the bickering around her from Amber and Cato as she listened. Worst case scenario one of the District 12 tributes was still alive. It terrified her not knowing what was going on just beyond those trees. Serena looked to Cato with worry only to find Amber glaring at her. She took a slight step back as she eyed Amber. This may end up being the shortest alliance ever in the games.

Amber snickered slightly when she saw Serena glance in her direction. "Cato, how could you even let this frigid little girl influence you? She's making up stories and you're actually believing them? Come on. You really think she cares about any of us? Or that her mom was killed by a peacekeeper? She's using us to get what she wants. She's going to get you to trust her and then when the time is right she's going to stab you right in the back," Amber said as she looked at Cato before turning her attention to Serena, "I say we just kill her now."

Serena looked at Cato and shook her head. "That's not true," she said gently, "You know it's not. I don't want to win these Games. After I left my last Games I wasn't happy, because I hurt a lot of people. I can't do that again. I'm not going to hurt you, Cato. You may hurt me later, but I will not hurt you. I couldn't live with myself if I hurt you."
~
Gale heard Alice cry out and he immediately pulled his knife from the woman's skull. He was about to go on and throw the knife at the tribute 4 male but he was too late. Alice had beaten him to the punch as she slashed the young man's throat. The girl from District 1 was the last standing and Gale managed to throw his knife into her chest before she could make a move at them. Two more canons fired as Gale panted slightly.

He shook slightly as he backed up from the bodies that they had accumulated. He had broken his promise. He had sworn that like Serena he wouldn't kill anyone in the Games. Well that didn't last long. All it took was a moment of fear to break that bond. He took a moment to his thoughts before shakily getting up, gathering the leftover weapons, and running over to Alice. He checked her over gently and saw the stab wound in her leg. "Come on," he whispered before taking her in his arms and hurrying off to get her somewhere safe.

Eventually he arrived at a little cave. He set Alice down outside and gave her one of the knives before examining the inside. It was fairly ideal for the cards they had been dealt. He walked back out before carrying her inside and gently laying her down on the floor. "I'm so sorry Alice," he said gently, "I should have been able to protect you."