Daughter (Hunger Games Fan-Fic) {Watty Awards 2015} (COMPLETED)

Chapter 17

  Max acts as though I need help out of the tree, reaching a hand up towards me.

  I laugh and jump from a fifteen foot branch.

  He just looks down and throws Jonny over his back.

  "We should get him cleaned off. Come with me." I begin walking towards the sea.

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  Jonny groans as we dunk him under the waves.

  The clear water turns red from the mass amount of blood and puss.

  He screams once or twice, but then goes silent.

  When we finish we bring him back to the cornucopia, that was somehow not harmed by the title wave. 

  "Hey how you holding up?" I keep my eyes on the fire, ignoring Max's question.

  He is silent a few moments.

  "Rosie I asked you a question."

  I don't answer.

  "For god's sake Rosie! What has gotten into you? You barely even talk, you refuse to eat, and you act like some heartless killer whenever something goes wrong." He sounds angry.

  I don't reply.

  "Rosie look at me!" 

  I look at the fire.

  "Damn you Rosie." He stomps off towards the cornucopia, the moon reflecting off his black hair.

  "It's Primrose now." I say quietly.

  "What?" He turns around.

  "Rosie died the second she thought you were dead." I say monotoned.

  He is quiet.

  "My name is Primrose Mellark. I am twelve or thirteen, depending on how long we have been stuck here. Rosie is dead. Sorry for your loss." I stand up and wipe a tear from my eye.

  I begin to move towards the woods, but Max's arm catches me.

  He spins me around.

  "I don't care who the hell you are now Rosie, but cut the bullshit, and look at me." I do as I am told.

  He examines me for a minute.

  "How are you holding up?" He says once again.

  "For your information my ankle hurts like shit, and I am a bit parched." I reply, "Thanks for caring." I say sarcastically and rip my arm from his grip.

  He grabs my waist.

  "May I have this dance?" he says smiling.

  "I told you, I am not Rosie, and I don't dance."

  He throws his head back laughing.

  "You know you did something similar to this when we were five. You yelled at me and said that your new name was Cozzette Picklebottom, and that you hated playing tag, and all you wanted to do was drink tea and do grown up things." He says bringing his forehead to mine.

  I am so tempted to lean in, but I can't.

  Not anymore.

  "Right when I think I have got my grip on something that won't break away. You do something like this. With time you will learn, it is better not to feel." I say, pulling away, but he doesn't budge.

  "Dance."

  "No."

  "Yes."

  "I couldn't even dance if I wanted to, there is no music."

  Worst thing to say, because now Max is humming his famous lullaby in my ear.

  Almost immediately I tuck my head into his shoulder, and wrap my arms around his neck.

  "Fine. But tomorrow this never happened." I smirk.

  He begins to sway back and forth, and soon I am laughing my head off.

  The last thing I remember are his lips, touching mine gently.

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   I wake up outside, in Max's embrace.

  "So I was thinking, you wanna be Primrose, this tough heartless badass girl, and I think you should be Rosie, perfect Rosie. So why not be both. Be tough and badass, but keep your heart, because you have the biggest heart of everyone I know." Max says yawning.

  I fiddle my fingers which are locked with his.

  "Okay, but... only you can call me Rosie. Understood?" He nods.

  "But you know, you shouldn't be telling me that, you should be telling that to the viwers, and the sponsors, and your parents."

   "They heard me. And is they didn;t, I wish them the best of luck against my wrath of anger that will come when they call me it." I smile and so does he.

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  It's about two o'clock when she comes around, and by the looks of it, it wasn't her choice.

  Her black hair is matted and burned.

  Her skin is dark, much like Rue's.

  In fact she reminds me a lot of Rue.

  Her skin, her hair, even the way she holds herself.

  Rue.

  "Maddie." I say under my breath.

  "Maddie?" Max says coming up beside me.

  "What do we do?" I say.

  "We kill her..."

  "Are you crazy?"

  "It's the only way to get you home!"

  "I'm not killing a little girl." I say.

  Then she starts running. Running after us, and I see why.

  "Fire!" I scream.

  The forest suddenly ignited with flames.

  "Run!" I can hear in the distance.

  Maddie.

  "Grab Jonny!" I scream at Max who is already half way there.

  I run towards the sea, the only place that can't catch on fire.

  Max follows me, and Maddie follows him.

  I take off my backpack and bow, and I dig through the pack quickly.

  I refilled it before I went back into the roses, and I specifically remember putting a-

  "Raft!" I pull the lever and a bright orange raft inflates infront of me.

  I toss the pack over my shoulder and grab my bow.

  "Get on!" I shout at Max and Maddie, they do as they are told and soon all we can see is a small flame in the distance, what once was the arena.