Forbearance • A Cato Hadley Story

2.25

Livia and Cato carefully pulled the Morphling girl into the salty water, laying her down so she could face the not so real sky above them, though she instead switched her focus between the couple. The pair holding onto the woman took a squat beside her in the water. The blonde could feel the blood covered woman tighten her grip on her shoulder as she heaved frantically, gasping for air. The woman's eyes remained wide as she slowly realized that she wouldn't make it.

It was unfortunate but the creature that had attacked her had done too much damage for her wounds to heal themselves. Even if it wasn't as severe any injuries obtained in the arena would quickly become infected and kill her. The young girl moved her right hand and softly stroked the woman's head for some sort of distraction. Her breathing had slowed down slightly but she was clearly still fighting for some sort of breath.

Cato suddenly started speaking to the woman in his arms as he nodded for Livia to continue stroking the woman's head. "Hey, hey. It's okay. It's okay. Shh. Shh. Shh. Hey, do you wanna see something? Look up. Look. Look at that." he cooed softly. Hesitantly, the Morphlings gaze redirected to the beautiful sunrise above them. Seconds after she saw the sky above her breathing began slowing and she started growing more and more silent.

But Cato continued to try and distract her and keep her mind away from the fact that these were her last moments. It was hard for Livia to watch the woman die in front of her. She didn't even know who the woman was but she felt partially guilty for the woman's death. After all, she had come out of hiding seemingly to protect her and Cato. It didn't make sense but that was what it looked like. "It's incredible, isn't it? All those colors. Don't worry about anything else. I'll be right here with you. It's okay. It's okay." he whispered.

The woman finally let out one last shaky breath, her eyes still looking straight up above her. She was gone. The teen slowly let go of the woman who had supposedly sacrificed herself to save the couple and stood up as a single tear slipped down her cheek. She truly felt horrible. Cato then placed the Morphling sibling in the water just as a cannon went off, confirming her passing, and stood beside Livia where they watched her lifeless body float in front of them.

A matter of minutes after, a hovercraft came through and flew right above the three. The wind coming from the craft blew over the water, creating ripples around them. The couple quickly ran closer to the shore and watched as a carrier dropped down from the craft and pulled the body of the poor woman from the water, lifting her inside and taking her away. "She sacrificed herself for me and I don't even know her name." the boy said softly, his eyes not leaving the hovercraft.

The blonde looked at her significant other curiously. Though it seemed like she had hopped in front of the boy so he didn't have to take the blow, there was no saying that she had done it for him. For all they knew she could have been coming out of hiding to attack them. But it was so dark at the time that there was really no telling whether or not she was trying to protect him. "You think she sacrificed herself?" the girl asked, furrowing her eyebrows slightly.

It wasn't like they could just ask now. The stranger was gone. "Looked like it." he told her confidently. None of this made sense to the girl. She assumed that someone's first reaction to seeing someone being attacked in the games would be to attack them when they're at their weakest. Not try to protect them. The point of being in the games was to win. To get home. For the so-called winner to return to their family.

Not to sacrifice themselves so someone they don't even know could win. "That doesn't make any sense." she thought aloud. And it didn't. Or at least it didn't to her or Cato. Comfortingly, the muscular boy wrapped an arm around the shaking girl beside him. It was an unfortunate thing to watch and experience. Finnick and Lennox ended up catching some fish for the four of them to eat, being that they hadn't eaten in days. As they sat and ate by the tree line, most of the morning was quiet. No one exactly knew what to say following the recent events.