Gladiators -- Clato

-Double Meanings-

hey y'all so sorry for the delay i've had the worst writers block ever, but im going to have the next chapter out by tomorrow. enjoy!
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We hunt into the next day. Peeta lags behind us, looking unhappy, although Marvel has taken a liking to him and talks to him animatedly.

I fall into step with Glimmer behind Cato, trudging through the woods. The canopy shades us from the sun somewhat, but it's still very hot. Sweat beads at my forehead.

"I swear," Glimmer mutters, swiping at her face. "Marvel, hand me the water bottle, will you?"

Marvel reaches into his pack and tosses the bottle to Glimmer, who opens it and takes three long gulps. She holds it to me, and I nod respectfully, taking my share and throwing it back to Marvel.

"Can I have some?" Peeta asks weakly.

"You had some in the morning," Glimmer snaps.

"Oh, come on. We can let him have a little," Marvel grins.

I roll my eyes, but throw Marvel a slight smile. "Enjoying your new pet?"

"Very much. I taught him a new dance."

I pause for a moment and look back at the two of them. Marvel elbows Peeta in the ribs playfully and he starts to prance around in a circle, looking distraught and terrified.

"Very impressive," I say.

"Guys, focus," Cato grunts tersely from a few meters ahead.

"Oh, please, Cato. We've been walking half the
day and haven't found anyone. Can't we rest?" the exasperated words fly out of me before I can think about them, and Cato turns back to look at me sharply.

I know he can't say anything to me. He wouldn't. As much as he hates to admit it, Cato does see me as his equal. He won't argue with me in front of the group .

"Fine," He mutters. "Glim, Marvel. You two stay here. Clove, let's go get water."

I open my mouth to say something, but shut it quickly. He would not ask me to come with him for nothing. Dipping my head, I pick up the backpack that holds the water bottles and iodine tablets and follow Cato.

We circle back around in the opposite direction we came, back to the lake. We've stuck close to the water source until now, so the trek shouldn't be too long.

"You've got some confidence," Cato says as we stalk through the trees together.

"What, you're pissed that I made a suggestion?" I grumble, pushing a tree branch out of my face.

"Don't be stupid," he says angrily. "You know how fragile this alliance is. Tension could be the death of us."

"You think they're a threat?" I wonder. "I mean, Marvel, maybe-"

"Everyone is a threat," He murmurs. "You and I, though, we need to stick together." He pauses to look me in the eye, and I hold his gaze, speckled by the canopy shadows.

There's an unspoken feeling that passes between the two of us in that moment. Cato and I, no matter what happens in the arena, are bound by our Districts, our desire to win, and our commitment to each other.

I smile. "Ok, boss," I joke.

Cato shakes his head, although his eyes shine with humor.

We reach the lake shortly, and I kneel to fill the bottles while Cato stands guard. I realize with a jolt that our iodine tablets are running low, and make a note to grab some from the Cornucopia later. Once i've got four bottles of purified water, I place them into the backpack and sling it over my shoulders.

"Done?" he asks. 

"Yeah." I turn away from the lake and back to Cato. "We better get back."

As we trek back down the forest slope, we don't say much to each other. I mean, even if there was something we wanted to tell the other, with all the cameras on us it would be near impossible.

"You're a good leader," I say to him. I hope he can find the masked meaning in my words, the fact that really I want to tell him his strength and resilience only makes me want him more.

"You're a good sidekick," he remarks, and I shove his shoulder playfully.

It feels good to be away from the others for a while, just Cato and I. For a moment I imagine that we're the last two left, with the arena all to ourselves.

The happy thought quickly turned pales into something much uglier, and I no longer have any incentive to speak. The truth is, if we are the last two left, one has to kill the other.

Could I, if the time came? Of course. Would I want to, however? That's a whole other thing. I steal a glance at Cato, imagining the two of us locked into a bloody battle to the death.

I'm grateful for the silence now.

We move back through the forest and find the group the way we left them.

Glimmer jumps up and runs to Cato with a smile on her face. She throws her arms around him in a hug and he holds her tightly, a warm smile on his face.

She looks so happy, I almost feel sorry for her. I mean, sooner or later she'll be dead and Cato won't spare her a second thought. But I suppose she knows this as well.

I tear my eyes away from the two of them and instead focus on Marvel, Peeta, and Marina. They're sitting together on the ground, Marina whittling a stick and Marvel messing around with Peeta.

"Wonder where they're going," Marina mutters as she tips her head to Glimmer and Cato trotting off together.

"probably to-"

"Shut up, Marvel," I hiss.

Peeta glances at me, then at Marvel, who shrugs and hands him a piece of jerky.

"If you keep feeding him like that we won't have any food left for ourselves," I mutter to the lanky boy.

"He's pretty funny, see. He's been telling me his, uh..." He grins. "Stories about being a baker in twelve."

"Joy," I say flatly.

Marvel then tells us a story about his father. "He works at the diamond factory, see. It's not fancy. Oh, not like Glimmer," He makes an exaggerated face. "Her family could literally buy the entire district if they wanted to."

"What a prick," Marina chuckles.

"And you, Clove? What did your family do?" Marvel's voice is good-natured, but my stomach immediately drops at his words.

And for the first time in what feels like years, I'm remembering the day my mother died.