Author Games: World Seasons

Task Six - Six Shades of Snow - Halloween Tribute

Jack Oliver Lantern:

"You know, sleeping like that will hurt your back." My eyes snap open, and I look around, searching for the source of the words. The voice sounds so familiar, if only I could find who said it..

Laughter rang through my ears, a faint noise that resembled bells. "It's just me, Jacky. Don't get yourself so worked up." I whipped my head towards the sound.

"Bram? What are you doing here?" I asked, struggling to stand. My legs felt like lead, impossible to move.

He set a comforting hand on my shoulder. "I'm here, kiddo. Don't fret." Despite the situation, I laugh. Bram always used the word fret. Mom taught it to him when he was six, and he has to use it in every conversation.

"You can't be here, Bram. If the Gamemakers see you-" He cut me off with a wave of his hand.

"Look around, Jacky. It is peaceful. Nothing is going to harm us." He was right. We were in a meadow, where the sunlight shone brilliantly. Flowers in every color surrounded us. It was beautiful.

I glanced at Bram, who was smirking lightly. "Why are you here?" I asked him, hoping he would answer me.

Shaking his head, he lifted a flower out of the ground, the petals bright, fiery red. . "I am not a fan of red. Much to warm. Reminds me of fire."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you saying?" I questioned, confused.

"You know how to make a fire, right kid?" I shook my head, puzzled. Why would anyone need to make a fire? The warmth was surrounding me.

Bram stood, sighing. "I've got to go, little buddy." Shaking my head, I reached out to grab his arm, but there was nothing there.

*****************

Sweat covered my body, and I gasped for air. "Hello?" I called out, half expecting my brother to be standing there in front of me. After a few minutes, I finally allowed myself to accept it was a dream. Bram wasn't really here

A shiver coursed through my body, and I became aware of the snow that surrounded me. I occurred to me that I had I hadn't even noticed it. It came out of the sky quickly, coating my vision a blinding white. My ripped clothes do nothing to keep the snow from touching me. I winced as it touched the deep cut that covered my right arm.

Another body trembling shiver took over me, and I realized there was only one thing I could do. I had to find warmth. Without it, I would freeze to death, and I worked much too hard to go down without a fight.

"You know, Bram, you could have at least told me how to make a fire." I mumbled to myself grudgingly. My tattered clothes were doing nothing to protect me from the vicious winds, which cut through me like blades.

The first thing that popped into my mind was simple. "See, Jack, you're just going to make a fire." Pausing, I cursed. "Oh, wait, you have no matches for that kind of a blaze." I continued walking, it taking me a few minutes for the connection to be made.

Bolting towards the Tree in the center of the Arena, I ignored the screaming pain coming from my arm. It was impossible to see even a foot in front of yourself, but I kept running.

Even in the darkness, eight lights twinkle in the distance. Eight lights for the eight Tributes. I wonder if I am the only one who realized the connection in the lights. All the pretty lights. If there was one thing I needed, it was for my light to continue shining until the very end.

The bodies were removed, the snow burying the blood stained grass. Clenching my fists, I realized this was my last hope. But now it was gone. Without Blaze, I was done for.

Something brown catches my eye, and I scramble towards it, clawing through the snow until the backpack is completely visable. The color is simple, but my hands shake as I open it. It has to be Blaze's. If it isn't, I was surely dead.

The first thing I see in the bag are two jars of unknown contents. I don't dare open them. Next is the bottle of gasoline, nestled in between a few throwing knives. Shaking my head, I dump the bag over, forcing everything in it to tumble out into the snow.

"Come on. Come on." Shuffling through the contents, I finally find them. There are five of them, and I assumed Blaze never had a chance to use them. Jumping up in excitement, I store the matches back into the bag, shielding them from the snow. Grabbing my scythe, I easily take massive branches from the Christmas Tree, which I lay out in the snow carefully. I attempted to clear away the snow, but it was impossible to find grass.

Once satisfied with the way the branches were assembled, I slid a match out of the bag, smirking. Lighting it, I gently put the flame on the pine needles. A snowflake attacked the match, and it tumbled to the ground, useless.

Cursing, I lit another one, but block it from the snow. Eventually, I succeed, and the branches go up in flames. The fire would go out soon enough, but I had enough branches and matches to last me until we got our next task.

Besides, the Gamemakers had to be getting tired of this too, right?