Pearls and Perils ・❥・Finnick Odair x Reader

Chapter 11

My eyes flutter open. I sit up immediately and notice a kink in my neck. Sleeping in a cave using a rock as a pillow isn't the most comfortable. My mouth is dry, very dry. My stomach growls. I know I have to go to the coast. I throw my backpack over my shoulder and grab my trident. I begin my descent down the mountain, feeling extra exposed being at a higher angle. I'm cautious of the uneven surfaces, one wrong step and my ankle is broken. I breathe a sigh of relief when I reach flat land.  I'm now appreciative of how close I decided to stay to the ocean, walking for miles right now would seem nearly impossible. I reach the rocky coast. The violent crashing of waves is actually comforting to me. I open up my backpack to get the water bottle, equipped with some high tech capitol filtration system that can make any water drinkable. Once filtrated, I gulp down the whole thing. I refill it, and put it in my backpack. I examine the water, the waves are too big. It's not likely there are any fish and even if there were, they would be impossible to catch with a trident.

I wander further down the coast, somewhat concerned about how calm I am. I walk for about a mile until I reach a place where the water is still. I kick off the hiking boots and place them on a large rock. The sensation of my feet in the sand gives me an overwhelming sense of home. The feeling makes my heart ache. I continue into the water until the water reaches just above my knee. I notice a small school of fish about 7 feet away from me. I patiently wait for them to make their way towards me, staying as still as possible. My trident hovering above the water, the fish are now within an arm's reach. I take my opportunity and plunge my trident into the water, perfectly spearing a fish. Satisfied, I walk to my backpack and place the fish in a compartment separate from everything else in the bag.

I go back into the water to repeat the process, deciding that two fish will be enough for at least a little while. I stand patiently, eyes scanning the water for any sign of fish. I'm so focused that I don't notice my surroundings until I hear splashing behind me and turn around to see a girl running full force at me. My reaction time is just a hair too slow as she tackles me into the water. I wince as my leg is sliced by a sharp rock. I kick at her and pull my head above water. My eyes widen as I realize I lost my trident in the process of her tackling me. My head snaps left and right looking for it, but before I know it the girl is back up and coming at me with a knife wielded above her head. I stop her by grabbing her wrist, gripping onto it harder than ever. I kick her in the stomach and use my free hand to disarm her. Without even thinking, I plunge the knife into the top of her head. She stands, half alive, her eyes reaching into my soul. There's a gut wrenching and indescribable look people get on their faces when they know they're about to die. A wave of nausea rushes over me. I pull the knife out and she falls face first in the water. I can't find the strength to move my feet as her blood disperses from the top of her head into the water. Blood from the gash on my leg streaming into the water.  The cannon sounds. I leave the girl there, her lifeless body floating. I look for my trident, it has to be around here somewhere. I find it easily as the metallic gold shines in the water. I'm sitting on the shore when the hovercraft drops down to retrieve the girl's body. My leg feels like it's burning. I roll up my wetsuit to assess the damage. Yikes.  I still have the girl's knife. I take off my jacket and cut off the sleeves. I secure the makeshift bandage in a knot, hoping that it will at least stop the bleeding.

I think about staying there, by the sea. But it's too obvious, of course the district 4 girl would want to stay right by the shore. I might as well invite the careers to come kill me. I gather my things and decide on heading back to my cave for now. During my walk back I wonder why I feel such immense guilt for killing the girl. She attacked me, it was self defense and I know that. But I can't help but feel like a cold hearted killer. Maybe it's because deep down I know we're all just kids. We all just wanted to go home and would do anything to make that happen.

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I get back to the cave and begin to cut into my seabass. I imagine myself back home, eating shitty raw fish with Cora is a much more pleasant experience than eating shitty raw fish alone in a dark cave. Whilst eating two more cannons boom. 13 tributes left. I eat about half the fish and decide to save the rest. I open my backpack and smile at the ropes. I take them out and begin knotting. I'll set up the same trap that I showed the game makers. I take my time with it however, making sure it's perfect. As I work on it the day fades into night. I pause my knot tying when I hear the anthem playing. I poke my head out of the cave to see the fallen projected into the sky. The first one catches me off guard, the male from district 2. I'm genuinely curious as to how he died, it must've been some sort of freak accident. Next is the district 12 male. And finally, her face flashes in the sky. The girl who attacked me, and who I killed, was from district 10. Just seeing her face unsettles me. I feel guilty that I don't even know her name. The projection ends there, only three dead today. A positive: Micah's still alive. A negative: Ronan's still alive. I thank god I've managed to not come into contact with the careers yet, but I know they gamemakers will practically force it as more and more of us die off.

I'm freezing. The nights are brutally cold, especially now that I don't have my jacket. The feeling becomes unbearable, but I can't risk something like a fire because that would draw too much attention. I look at the small camera in the corner of my cave.

"Hey Finnick and company, it's freezing. A coat sure does sound nice right now." I joke. I play up my charismatic and bubbly persona I've created for the capitol. But really, I need that jacket.

A few minutes pass and a beeping sound grows louder. In the pitch black darkness, I can make out a blinking light and a parachute. It drops at the entrance to my cave. I spring up and rush to it. Sure enough, it's a jacket. In the pocket is a small slip of paper, it reads:

Stay warm.
-Finn

I'm slightly embarrassed at how giddy I get from reading the simple message. I slip the jacket on and feel immediate warmth. It's even nicer than the one every tribute was given. I secure the note in one of the jacket pockets. I find the camera and say thank you, though I do feel a little silly doing it. I curl up in a ball, attempting to make the hard rock I'm sleeping on as comfortable as possible. I try to clear my mind and rest for the night.