Panem High School

Raging Fire

Gale's POV
Being in an alliance with Thresh and Rue isn't as hard as I thought. Our sleeping layout puts Rue and Katniss in a shared sleeping bag, normally in a tree, Thresh somehow disappearing into the trees, and me in another tree. The games haven't been terrible to us yet, the biggest thing to happen to us has been finding out Peeta Mellark is part of the Careers. That was a major shock to all of us, considering Peeta is practically the nicest guy around. Anyway, the search for water is what's been taking up most of our time. Since Katniss never actually got sleep last night because she was so distracted by the Careers, she's even worse off than the rest of us. It wasn't long until Katniss collapsed, the three of us crowding around her.
"Katniss!! Open your eyes!!" I exclaimed, her eyes fluttering open, but eventually shutting again.
"She needs water." Rue stated.
"I know." We all waited in a tense silence as Katniss slowly opened her mouth.
"Mud." She said, and that was it. Mud?
"Gale!! Mud!!" Rue exclaimed and pointed towards the ground next to where Katniss was laying. It was mud. Where there's mud, there's water. Rue took the flask and iodine from Katniss and ran to the pond up ahead and began to prepare the water as Thresh and I assisted Katniss to a location less out in the open. We waited roughly half an hour before giving Katniss the first gulp. She drank half the flask and handed it to me, and I finished it. Then after another half an hour, Rue and Thresh each drank half. While eating a small meal, the anthem plays and shockingly shows Valda from area 2. She was the biggest threat out of every single competitor, and she's already out. It must've been the water. Between the heat and the extertion of running and the lack of water, she must've succumbed to either dehydration or heat stroke. That's what always gets the Careers, they're so focused on being the best with their special weapon that they don't spend enough time learning survival skills. Valda was probably too unprepared when it came to her knowledge of where to find water and that's what led to her downfall. It's just sad really. After our meal, Katniss worked on camouflaging her pack, Rue dug up the roots of the pond lilies, and Thresh and I caught fish. Thresh and I didn't succeed, which is odd considering in a small body of water like this, at least one fish should've passed us by now. It's almost like there's been a natural disturbance. I went to bed thinking about what could've possibly led to the barrenness of the pond and fell asleep. In what must've been just a few hours later, I was awakened by the sound of Rue screaming for everyone to run. I was slightly confused, but the smoke beginning to burn my eyes cleared up any sort of confusion very quickly. Rue and Katniss were gone in seconds, but Thresh and I weren't as lucky. Those two are small and nimble, Thresh and I aren't. The two of us sprinted away from the fire wall chasing us, but it was gaining and I could feel the fire singeing my clothes, and soon enough it reached my skin. Thresh and I were almost in the clear, the wall seemed to be slowing down its pursuit. Then I saw a group of 5 people still asleep. I don't know how they've managed to sleep through all of this, but if they aren't awake by the time the fire consumes the area they're sleeping in, they're as good as gone. A hovercraft is waiting on hand, I'm sure, but it's pretty useless if the people it's suppose to be collecting aren't awake. I could make out one face that I recognized, Madge. Even though I knew there was no possible way I'd make it out of this while still in the game, I began to sprint over to where the five of them were sleeping.
"MADGE!! YOU GUYS!! WAKE UP!! FIRE!!" I screamed as I got closer to them. One of them woke up, a guy from 10, and ran as fast as he could, even with a bad leg. The other four woke up, but not in time. Five cannons went off and a ladder immediately descended for us to climb as the fire began to severely burn us. I assisted the other four on before myself.
"Gale, is that you?" Madge asked.
"Yes." I replied as I joined her on the ladder.
"You just saved my life."
"I know."
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Katniss's POV
After the fire wall disappeared, Rue (who was by far the least harmed) began to treat my and Thresh's burns. After the searing pain was mostly gone, I was able to think straight and noticed we were missing someone.
"Where's Gale?" I asked.
"I have no idea." Rue answered.
"So he just disappeared?"
"No, he is gone." Thresh said.
"What?"
"He is out."
"How?"
"He was beside me, but went to go help others and was caught in flames."
"Do you know if he's okay?"
"No, but a hovercraft was in the sky above where he disappeared, so the odds are in his favor." I can't believe Gale is gone, just like that. My calf burn is so bad that I'm immobilized, so Rue cleans up my jacket and cuts off my burnt hair. While she does that, Thresh collects more water from a nearby pool. Rue forces some crackers down my throat and she and Thresh have some as well. Rue neatly arranges our supplies near me and the pool, where I will have to stay the night next to. I slip my pack over my shoulders and get comfortable as Rue climbs up a tree and Thresh somehow becomes one with the nature around him. I lean on my pack, overcome by drowsiness. As I fall asleep I think to myself, If the Careers want me, let them find me. Let them find me. And find me, they do.
Peeta's POV
After I got that freshman out the Careers have been... I guess you could say friendlier. They don't trust me or anything, but it's not like they're holding me at knifepoint wherever we go. Tonight for example, all 6 of us are just sitting around a fire (Cato is apparently very confident that we are the only predators left, I don't know why) and each doing our own thing. Clove is throwing her knives at a lizard, never missing. Marvel is eating some meat strips that were in the Cornucopia after they emptied it of all supplies, chatting away with Sagara. Cato is sharpening his sword over the fire and Glimmer is sitting on his feet, which can't possibly be comfortable for either of them, ogling over him. I, obviously, was just taking it all in. The Capitol's anthem began to play and showed that 3 people I knew got out today. One from 3, Pexey, and two from 12, Madge and Gale. Once Clove got bored she came closer to the group, having been on guard and far away from the fire where the rest of us are, and began to talk strategy.
"We should probably start finding other tributes in a couple minutes, the Capitol was obviously bored, which is why the Gamemakers sent the fire wall. I'd take a fight before another forest fire any day. We should start cleaning up." Clove said, her voice still hoarse from all of the smoke intake. We weren't that harmed during the fire, Sagara got burned and Marvel's jacket is singed, but otherwise we're all good. Clove didn't fair well during the fire though. She's fine now, all of our voices are hoarse, but since she had distanced herself from the group at our last campsite, she had been much closer to the fire than the rest of us. Sagara was on guard and managed to get Clove to wake up, but after that Clove was on her own. Clove is probably the second fastest in the group, Sagara may be the tiniest bit quicker, but that advantage couldn't help her when she was choking over smoke. She had collapsed several times before finally letting Cato carry her on his back. Once everyone was treated for their injuries, she had volunteered to be on guard and sat by herself, away from the group. I think she's embarrassed about not being able to run from the fire. I also think she hates the fact that she's now in debt to Cato. Either way, this was the first time all night that she had spoken, only eating when Marvel went over to her and practically shoved a meat strip down her throat.
"Clove, I think tonight we should just take a break and regroup. I think we all need to rest." Cato said.
"Which is Cato Hadley for, we're going to sleep because I don't think Clove can handle walking yet."
"Clove, I never said that."
"You're thinking it though."
"You know what, yeah, I am thinking it. You collapsed several times earlier, you could've died. It's not the worst thing in the world to take a moment and rest."
"I've been resting, Cato. I'm fine, let's go."
"No, we're staying and that's final."
"So just because you say it, that's what we're doing?"
"Clove, I think we all agree. It's a nice night, let's just all calm down." Glimmer stated.
"Oh shut up, Glimmer." Clove snarled and stormed away.
"Clove, you can't just walk away. This is ridiculous." Cato called after her. He got up, not caring that it made Glimmer almost fall face first into the fire, and walked over to where Clove was standing. Marvel and Sagara went back to their conversation, but Glimmer and I watched Cato and Clove argue. We couldn't really hear what they were saying, even though it was a heated conversation they still whispered, but their body language showed that whatever point Cato was trying to make was not going over well with Clove. It eventually ended with Cato and Clove coming back to the fire, but Clove sat next to me and Cato sat on the ground, not facing anyone. I assume somehow they reached an agreement and Cato is now on guard. As the fire was reduced to dying embers, everyone began to go to sleep. Marvel, Sagara, and Glimmer were out first, leaving me, Clove, and Cato alone. Cato is a short distance away from where Clove and I are sitting against the same tree, but still not on top of each other.
"This is weird." I whispered, causing Clove to chuckle.
"I could see where this may be a little confusing for you." Clove replied.
"Do you guys always fight like that?"
"Depends, what do we fight like?"
"An old married couple."
"Absolutely not!! Cato is also not the reason why I'm here, sitting next to you."
"Then why are you here, if I may ask?"
"I wanted to talk to you about the whole abusive mom thing."
"What about it?"
"Well, how do you know when to fight back, and when to just let it go?"
"I stand up for myself, but I try not to push my luck. I think the best you can do, unless you don't think that you can last another moment there, is to just avoid her. The moment you leave that house, she can no longer control you."
"I just think if I win these games, then it'll all be over."
"Clove, from what I've heard, you're mom is psychologically abusing you. That means that there will always be something wrong with you. You can win the games, but once that excitement is over, she'll start saying how you need to become a Gamemaker or something else like that. Don't do something you don't want to do just because she wants you to do it. That's when she wins."
"It's just... my friends know my mom can be a little... intense. Only Cato knows how bad she's gotten, and it's just kinda difficult for me to reveal how I feel about the matter, because even though Cato really does try to help in his own way, he ends up making it worse. That's not his fault though, I know that, he just doesn't understand."
"The only people I talk to about my mom are my two older brothers. People ask, sometimes even my dad feels the need to ask, but I feel like my brothers are the only actual people who are in my position. Then there's you, who I'm sad to say is now on that short list."
"It's gotten so bad that I was so excited for the games, not so I could compete, but so I could escape my mother for a few weeks. That's not healthy, is it?"
"None of this is." Silence fell over us as I decided to get some rest, but Clove stayed up. I couldn't sleep, but I didn't want to just stare at the back of Cato's head, so I pretended to sleep, in hopes that my body would eventually let me actually sleep.
"Clove." I heard Cato whisper yell.
"What?" She asked, using the same volume level as Cato.
"Why don't you come over here?"
"Why would I do that?"
"You don't seriously trust Mellark, do you?"
"I'm fine over here, Cato. I don't need you to watch over me."
"Clove, it's much safer over here. Mellark is only going to be our ally for so long. You and I, on the other hand, made a deal, remember? I promised to protect you and you promised to protect me, so if I'm saying that you should come sleep over here, I'd take the suggestion under deep consideration." I could hear Clove being all huffy about it, but she moved anyway. I slightly opened my eyes as I watched Clove plop down next to Cato and try to fall asleep. Cato's tense figure visibly relaxed a bit as he continually glanced between Clove and the woods. I had just fallen asleep it seemed when I was awakened by Clove.
"It's time to get a move on." She whispered. It must be late afternoon, but I don't know how so much time could've possibly passed when I swear I just fell asleep and am still exhausted.
"I thought we were resting." I stated, trying my best not to come off as whiny.
"We were, now we're not." I dragged myself up and followed the group as we left our campsite. This time Cato and Clove were leading the way, putting Glimmer in the back with me.
"So, Lover Boy, who's the girl?" Glimmer asked quietly as we followed Marvel and Sagara through the woods.
"Why would I tell you?" I asked.
"Believe it or not, my friends and I aren't that evil. We're just more evil than the rest of you. I won't tell anyone, besides, I already know she's still in the games so that's narrowed it down a lot."
"Have you actually been thinking about this?"
"Of course, I can't help it, I'm a sucker for a good romance. Tell me, is it Fire Girl?" I kept looking straight ahead.
"What makes you think that?"
"Well, she's the first girl left that I thought of, besides me, Sagara, and Clove. Plus, the way you reacted just confirmed it."
"How?"
"It's all in the eyes. Why haven't you told her you like her? Too scared?"
"To be honest, I don't think she knows I even exist."
"I get that."
"Not to mention, she has this guy who she hangs out with all the time who she may have feelings for."
"I completely get how you feel."
"Says Cato's girlfriend."
"Yeah." She let out the word Yeah as a sigh, which would lead me to think that there's more to their relationship than what meets the eye. Before I could ask, Cato was yelling at us.
"Fire Girl is straight ahead, she's running. Let's go!!" Cato yelled and Glimmer and I followed the rest of them as we ran as fast as we could, considering the fire didn't exactly help our lungs. I can see Katniss, she's getting closer and closer, even though she's running. It won't be long until we have her. Suddenly, she stopped running and started to climb. She's fast, so by the time we reach the tree, she's already at least 20 feet up. We stare at each other, each person trying to find the weaknesses of the other. I could hear Cato and Sagara snarling, and Clove had a terrifying grin on her face. Katniss smiles.
"How's everything with you?" She called down cheerfully. I know she's doing this for the crowd, but it still takes me a second to understand what she just said.
"Well enough. Yourself?" Cato asked.
"It's been a bit warm for my taste. The air's better up here. Why don't you come on up?" So funny. Doesn't she realize that she's practically a goner?
"Think I will."
"Here, take this Cato." Glimmer said and tried to hand him her bow and arrows.
"No, I'll do better with my sword." I look down at my knife and begin to polish it with my shirt. You see, this is why I don't like the Careers. I just told Glimmer less than 5 minutes ago that I like, maybe even love, Katniss and here she is giving Cato a weapon to use against her. They have no sense of loyalty unless it's to each other, even then they're only loyal until they're the last ones standing. They're self-preservationists, and I can't be allies with those type of people. I tried not to meet Katniss's gaze, I could tell she was trying to catch my eye, no doubt to reveal the betrayal she feels. Glimmer backs up to where I'm standing, I had backed away from the rest of the group, as Cato begins to climb, Clove and Sagara cheering him on as Marvel kept an eye on the woods around us. Is he really on guard?
"I didn't betray you." Glimmer whispered.
"How?" I asked.
"Cato can't shoot an arrow to save his life, not like he would've taken them anyway. Not to mention, do you know how heavy he is? Whatever branch he's on he's gonna break." I did find it a little odd that they sent Cato of all people to climb a tree.
"Why did he think he could do it? Doesn't he know that he's too heavy?"
"No, the only training he ever did was with his sword or sometimes spears. Anything else he thought was a waste of time, which means he lacks basic knowledge when it comes to wildlife and plants. Out of all of us the best climber is probably Clove, but since he still sees her as down for the count from the fire, he decided to go up himself. Not to mention he's been obsessed with getting Fire Girl ever since the games started." I looked at Glimmer who seemed honest, and then turned my attention towards the tree. Cato was climbing, but so was Katniss. She's 50 feet in the air when a cracking sound comes from Cato and the tree as he and a branch fall. He hits the ground hard, right in front of Sagara. It was silent for a second, everyone waiting to see if Cato had injured himself. He didn't. He got back on his feet, and was not happy.
"I guess it's my turn. If only I were great with arrows." Glimmer stated and began to scale the tree, but the branches weren't gonna hold her up either. She got down and all eyes went on Katniss, who had been climbing again. Glimmer attempts to shoot her, but she was right when she said she's not great with a bow. The closest one to Katniss landed in the trunk of the tree near her, which Katniss promptly grabbed. She begins to taunt us with the arrow as we begin to regroup.
"This is embarrassing." Cato spat.
"She's too high up for anyone to climb." Glimmer reminded.
"I can climb that high." Clove said.
"Absolutely not." Cato said, causing those two to start arguing again, leaving Glimmer, Marvel, Sagara, and I to actually think of a plan.
"My mace is too heavy to go that high, but Clove's knives might make it." Sagara brought up.
"Good luck intervening in that conversation." I stated and Sagara looked annoyed at my remark, but knew I was right, considering the two of them were only getting madder.
"What about lighting the tree on fire? Then she'll literally be the Girl on Fire." Marvel said, laughing at his sick joke. Glimmer couldn't help but let out a giggle.
"Sorry." She whispered to me.
"That would actually kill her." I spat. I'm not sure if Marvel knew that and just wanted to kill her, or if he's just so ignorant when it comes to fire that he didn't realize that would actually kill her. Either way, his idea only made me angrier.
"What else can we do?" Sagara asked.
"Oh, let her stay up there. It's not like she's going anywhere. We'll deal with her in the morning." I said harshly and loudly, catching even Clove and Cato's attention.
"Mellark is right, it's getting dark out." Clove said with finality. Cato didn't even argue with her. I had a piece of fish we had caught the other day and drank some water. After that, I was asleep.