dnf, but it's hunger games

-eight

my legs pound on the lush grass, my numb fingers hooking under the strap of the satchel. things rattle and clash together inside. i'm guessing there's loot.

i immediately dive for the nearest and strongest tree branch, climbing for my life (literally) and crouching down low at the top to keep my location hidden. all the commotion is happening at the cornucopia, where i can already hear screams and sounds of metal against metal.

eventually, a cannon goes off. i don't know who it is, and i don't bother to check the ground below me for signs of life. instead, i use the opportunity to scan the area for animals, berries, fruits, even a water source if i'm lucky.

my mind jumps back to the satchel in my grip. i open it to find a pair of gloves with a weird mesh layering them, a bundle of serated knives, a water filter and a small pack of jerky.

the sun beats down on my back, not indifferent from the heat in the treetops of 11. it makes me wonder if the other tributes are worried about the sun.

two more cannons ring out in the air. as i shuffle down the tree, one more goes off, and when i start sprinting and pass the stretch of land to get to more forest, i see it.

the bloodbath.

the cornucopia is littered with broken weapons and bodies, the grass slick with blood. i count more than 7 bodies before i'm off and running again.

my mouth is already dry and papery. my teeth feel painful, and my eyes and stomach ache like i just got beat up. if i don't find a proper source of food and water soon, i might perish.

i run through the list of tribute's names in my head again and again until i can recite it off my tongue. my hands are sweaty, but i don't think anybody could take my grip off of the leather satchel if they tried.

the forest cuts and slashes paths around me. small patches of measly weeds clump up around the bases of the huge, thick trees surrounding me, giving me shade and coverage.

i stop. i lean against a tree. i take a couple gulping breaths, then push myself off again and keep trekking. this cycle continues for the next hour or so.

maybe i shouldn't have travelled this far away from good loot.

i brush away the thought and sigh. the initial bloodbath is probably long over by now, as i count 4 cannon shots in the sky above me.

a good chunk of the tributes. dead.

i saw them, not even that long ago. we all sat in front of big cameras and plastered on shiny smiles and talked like we were friends.

this dreadful thought is swiped away from me when i hear a scream to my left.

this is when i pick myself up again and keep walking.

~~~

i keep track of the time with the sun.

at about mid afternoon, maybe 3 or 4, i come to find a squat little pond. not big enough to properly bathe in, but i can easily scoop up some water into my water filter and wait for the crap to settle.

while i wait for my now-full bottle to sift out the water, i scale a tree and scope out the area. i've never been skilled with hunting, but the knives jingling in my bag remind me that i could probably take down some smaller animals or eat the innards of the softer trees.

i decide to do this now. it's disgusting and unfulfilling, but it's still food that surrounds me. it could be only me and Tommy that know about this source of food.

i take a longer blade and curve it down the side of a thick tree. it cracks off to reveal the paler tree inside, letting my knife easily scoop a handful out of it and chew on it.

it tastes like cushioned lettuce, tasteless and oddly damp.

i collect the water and take a sip to test it. it's clear, not a flake in sight, and i grin in approval at the Capitol technology.

and then, barely a second after, footsteps from my left. where i came through to get here.

it sounds like two pairs, and considering that i barely have enough weapons to kill a deer, i decide to pack away my things. i quickly grab a handful of leaves and sprinkle it haphazardly across my footsteps in the mud around the pool of water.

then i'm darting up the nearest, tallest tree until i reach a branch on the top of the tree line and perch there. the branch holds steady beneath my weight for the time being.

below me, two people come into view. a tall, muscular boy with long, pink hair; Technoblade, and his girl counterpart, Puffy. they scan around the area for a couple seconds before powering through more of the scrub.

i squeeze the branch, bracing for their footsteps to fade away.

"shit! i dropped something, i'll be right there." the girl exclaims, jogging back in my direction. i hear a distant grunt, which i assume is techno's reluctant acknowledgment.

i peek through the leaves to try and get a view of her. it looks like she's bent over, trying to search for something, but her hands seem to just be waving around.

"i'm leaving a raw rabbit here, i'm hoping you know how to start a fire. i'll kill you if you follow me." she says aloud.

wait, what?

she's giving me food, for no reason. how'd she even know i was up here?

before i can voice my thoughts, shes striding off with a rabbit in her place.

i could sit here and question why she did it, ponder the safety of the rabbit and how long i should wait to make sure nobody followed behind those two, but my stomach growls too loudly for me to comb through those thoughts.