When Luck Runs Out

Arguing For Our Death

    And so we were off, to break some more rules on our little family bonding time. Everyone knew that the big bad electric fence around the perimeter of the District wasn't active, but few venture across it in case a peacekeeper happens to walk by. I knew some people did to hunt in the woods, but other than that it was the road less traveled. To make sure it was indeed inactive, Molly threw some sticks and snow at it, and when nothing happened we all climbed over, one by one, the best we could in the awkward snow shoes. The woods looked beautiful, looming into our view with the trees covered in shining white snow, the songs of birds traveling from the branches.
"Won't someone see our tracks?" John asked nervously, looking behind him to see the snow torn up by three pairs of clawed snowshoes.
"They will, they just won't care." Molly assured.
"Do you go out here a lot?" I asked.
"Only when I need to think." Molly shrugged.
"So a lot?" I clarified.
"Ya." Molly admitted.
"Understandable." John agreed. We reached the edge of the woods, and I was a bit apprehensive considering there were wolves and bears in the woods, but then again, the bears would be in hibernation and the wolves won't attack.
"So, you know we'll have to talk about this eventually." Molly pointed out as she pushed a low hanging branch out of her way.
"Yes, but not now." I agreed, shaking a branch above John to make snow rain down on him. John just groaned, brushing the snow out of his hair and continuing walking. Apparently no one was in the mood for laughter right now.
"Eventually." Molly insisted.
"You know what'll happen, we'll make a plan and then when we actually get to the Reaping everyone scraps the plan." I pointed out.
"Hate to admit it, but Sherlock's right. We'll let our emotions get the best of us." John agreed.
"But we need to have a plan; we need to know exactly who's going in and who's not, even if it's not going to work out that way." Molly insisted.
"I don't want to think about this yet." I pleaded.
"But you have to." John pointed out.
"I know, but not now." I muttered. We trekked on, looking at the little paw prints in the snow, left by squirrels and chipmunks and stuff, throwing snow at each other and trying our best to feel warm. There wasn't much conversation, we were mostly enjoying nature but mostly we just didn't want to think about anything. There was only one topic of conversation possible at this time, and that was the upcoming games, something no one wants to think or talk about. Or, at least, I didn't want to think or talk about. It was peaceful though, the crunching of our snowshoes, the chirping of the birds, the wind blowing the bare tree branches every which way, it was just an overall pleasant nature experience. Of course we were trespassing, and our pleasant nature experience could be squashed with one peacekeeper handing out court sentencing, but we'll just try to ignore that for the time being.
"How are you parents?" Molly asked. I knew she wasn't asking general, she was asking how they were coping with the idea that I might die.
"They're just as annoying as usual, so far. I haven't seen them since last night." I shrugged.
"Well, if you ever need a safe haven, my house I always empty." Molly offered.
"Be thankful Molly." John pointed out.
"Having annoying parents beats having none." Molly muttered.
"What happened to you parents?" I asked.
"And if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine too." John assured.
"No, it's fine. My dad was killed in a coal mining incident; it was just me and my mom until I got Reaped. I guess she thought I had no chance, and she couldn't stand living alone, so..." her words trailed off, and she held a purple glove to her mouth as if she might start to cry.
"Oh god, Molly, I'm so sorry." I decided.
"It's okay, I'm over it now. I wouldn't want her to see me like this anyway." Molly decided.
"If anything you should be a role model, you're the only one of all of us who actually has a hold on your life after the games." John pointed out.
"Yes well, that's only what I display." Molly insisted.
"We're more alike than you'd like to admit." I pointed out. Molly just glared at me, as if not wanting anything to do with my mental state, and walked on. Obviously our conversation was over. We walked the rest of the way in awkward silence, but that didn't stop my mind from racing. Why had Molly never told me what had happened to her parents? I mean, I knew they were absent for some reason, but they could've just been on a very long vacation to the Bahamas or something, not dead so horribly. How did Molly keep herself going every day, how could she put up with my endless negativity and complaining, if I had been in her shoes I'd have followed my mom straight away. Molly really did do so much more than we gave her credit for, just the fact that she got out of bed was enough to applaud. After a little while we stumbled across a frozen pond, and decided this would be a good place to take a break and maybe turn around. There was a thin layer of ice around the lily pads and the cattails, and there were moss covered rocks jutting out around the edges.
"Winter is so pretty isn't it?" Molly asked happily, snuggling down deeper into her parka and looking around.
"Sure." I muttered, not wanting to point out how snow is only pretty for a day, and then it stays around too long and gets all gross and brown and you can't do anything except put up with it. John sat on the snow, which was just a big fluffy pillow right about now, so I sat next to him, tightening the straps on these mortifying snow shoes the best I could. Molly went over to a small bush and was picking something off of it, probably snow covered flowers or something, to put in her hair maybe. Girls were really confusing to me.
"So, this is nice." John decided.
"Better than sitting at home. I think." I muttered.
"Oh stop, Molly's right, we need to live this week to the max, because you can sit in your house anytime, the three of us won't be here in three weeks." John pointed out.
"John, don't say that." I insisted.
"You can't avoid it forever." John pointed out.
"Ya, well, I can try my best." I decided stubbornly, crossing my arms and looking across the pond. There was a little bird hopping around the ice, picking at bugs that lay concealed in the snow. I envied it, was life so easy for that little bird. All its little birdy friends didn't have to go fight for their lives, it wasn't in immediate danger from the Capital, and I'm sure it could slap Snow in the face three times with its wings and all the peacekeepers would do is shoo it out the window. See, if it were me who had the gracious pleasure of slapping our supreme overlord in the face, I'm be shot straight through my brain.
"Ready to head back?" Molly asked, her jacket pocket bursting with little leaves and flowers. She was so weird...
"Definitely." I agreed, getting to my feet the best I could with these blasted snow shoes. John followed suit, and together we managed to get back to the District without incident. When I finally returned the snowshoes to Molly's house, walking on my regular feet felt extremely odd, and I actually tripped once over a small chunk of ice. When I got to my house though, I opened the door to hear and odd screech. Suddenly I was attacked...no...hugged, by a rouge mother.
"Where have you been?" she demanded.
"On a walk." I insisted, pushing her off of me.
"We went to John's and it was empty, we went to Molly's and no one was home, we thought the Capital had taken you all away early." Mrs. Holmes insisted.
"We're fine mom, really." I argued, finally wrestling away and running up the steps to my room, before she could catch up, and slammed the door shut, locking the deadbolt I had installed and groaning. Once I got rid of the multiple jacket and gloves I felt freezing, so I put on a woolen sweatshirt and looked out my bedroom window, into John's kitchen window, so see if he had a ladder I could get down from, so as to avoid my parents. Unfortunately though I was staring only at a roll of paper towels, and there was no movement on his end. I knew that my parents would eventually catch up to me, demand to know exactly what was going on in my head and what I was going to do about the games. Of course I wouldn't answer them, but I'm sure they'll find some way to trap me in my own house and force me to talk. A happy little family interrogation. But that was not this day, this day I will hide, maybe even jump out of my window with a bed sheet rope.