The Hunger Games - PRIM EDITION

Chapter 12 - Much Better

*Prim's POV*

The boom of a cannon wakes me up, and my eyes shoot open immediately. I try to sit up, but I am lay beneath a bush, which is concealing me from the pink colour of sunrise in the sky. It takes me a few moments to get my bearings and remember that I am in the arena, awaiting my death. I can see my breath in front of me, and my fingers and toes are numb with the cold.

I stretch out as far as I can in my limited space, and wiggle my fingers and toes to get the circulation back in them. I will need to make a move soon. If there has already been a death, then it means that the careers are already out, and hunting people down.

I grab my only possession, which is my one knife, and as quietly as I can, I slither out of my little hiding place. I pause to listen for any signs of people and then stand up, and look around me. As far as I can see, there is no one around, so I start my day by hunting for water.

I take a random guess at where the big lake could be, and start to walk in that direction. I walk in silence for about an hour, and as I walk my mouth gets dryer and my stomach gets hungrier. I long for food, and even more for water. It seems that the more I go on, the hungrier and thirstier I feel. The journey goes on and on with no disturbances apart from the twittering of birds and one or two bangs from the cannon. The careers must be hunting, but I haven't heard or seen any signs of human life so far, so I can relax a bit.

I sit down of a nearby rock to take a break, half of the hope draining out of me. I'm never going to survive this thing I tell myself miserably. All of a sudden, I spot something in the distance; a small bush, covered from top to bottom with berries.

My heart lifts as I scramble over to the bush, my eyes focussed solely on the little blue berries. However all hope is completely shattered when I arrive at the bush.

Nightlock. I step away from the poisonous berries feeling disappointed. I need to carry on going. Water is my main priority right now.

I turn around glumly, and head out in the same direction as before. It is just I am walking along through a fairly over-grown part of the forest when I hear it: the faint trickle of water ahead. I pick up my pace, and listen closely. As I walk on, the sound gets louder, and before I know it, I am standing by a river of clear and fresh water. My heart almost skips a beat with happiness.

I use all of my strength to stop myself from running straight at the river, but I do manage to stay back and check to make sure the coast is clear. After scanning the riverbank, I run quickly and quietly to the water.

Overwhelmed with relief, I kneel in the shallows of the river and scoop the water up in my hands, gulping it down hastily. The liquid feels cool and refreshing going down my throat, and I have to force myself to stop for a minute, not wanting to drink too much in one go.

During my second drink, I become completely oblivious to my surroundings, and am startled when I look up to see movement further along the river bank.

A small girl with fiery red hair emerges from a small cave about three hundred yards away, and I recognise her as the female tribute from district five. I freeze to the spot, scared to make any movement or sound, because as far as I can see, she hasn't spotted me yet. She doesn't see me for a few minutes, but suddenly, her head shoots up, and she looks directly at me.

There's five seconds of silence, in which we just stare at each other as I dread what is going to happen next. Suddenly, she makes a move, grabbing a sword to her right, and then charging towards me.

It takes me a moment to react before I grab my knife and leg it into the trees. It seems that this girl is a fast runner, because by the time I am in the forest, I can hear her footsteps splashing through the shallow river.