Author Games Compilation [Cycle 1]

Task 5 + The Fifth Choice (NEF & MARA)

MAYBE, MAYBE NOT - 5 (PARTNER TASK)

Reality was filtering in like the absence of sunlight through leaves, all to a boy built from old tales and a girl shaped by unbiased truth. Dappled patterns of shadow danced underneath the shelter of the trees, light and dark trapped in their seemingly never-ending waltz.

Trees swept up and contained the words spilling from their lips, hiding it from outsiders. The dark green leaves rustled faintly as they passed, seeming to whisper about them. Forestry stretched on and on for however long they needed until the stories they told had ended, and even then, there'd be another "once upon a time" to start another trail, another hour of conversation. Only when they reached the swelling hills would they stop the spreading of lore to one another.

They were both content to waste time.

Though they walked the same path, they split in different directions, Nefyn absentmindedly telling her one of his stories, Mara half-listening as she thought over her own matters. He was nice background music, she was nice company.

Mara nodded absently, half-heartedly listening to Nefyn blabbering on about tale. She eyed the hills that towered over her in the distance, great ginormous lumps, covered in soft green grass and a blaze of evergreen trees. It was their destination, and if Nefyn liked to fill his mind with such stories and share them onto her to pass the time, so be it. It was amusing, in a way, to listen to Nefyn talk. He was a decent ally, better than some of the others that tagged along, and his stories were endearing, and passed the time quite well. The journey simply became a blur of words and thoughts, all scrambled together and mixed into a great kaleidoscope of imagination.

The story she faintly heard Nefyn talking about was something he said was told to him by a young girl, fresh into kindergarten. He never added that the girl had this wise look in her eyes when she'd told him the story. Mousy brown hair twisted up in braids did nothing to disguise what she knew of life already. It was probably some work of imagination Nefyn conjured during the conversation, but he remembered the look well.

"The girl wore a crimson cape 'round her shoulders, one fashioned over three days and nights without rest by her mother. It was to protect her from careless hunters, for no animal they knew of had a pelt so bright. Animals themselves, however, saw her as blazing meat. Only a wolf dared act on his whims." Nefyn spoke barely above a whisper, as if fearing someone else might've been listening into the story. The fact he'd chosen to tell it to his ally was a step in itself. He called it trust.

Mara saw nothing special in the words though, choosing to slip into a reverie concerning her siblings. The story reminded her of them, especially her younger siblings. They would just love a story like that, they'd probably look at her with wide, innocent eyes and beg to hear it over and over again. Fairy tales, stories wrapped in layer upon layer of myth, magic and legend. She wondered if they were listening now, eyes glued to the screen and utterly engaged in Nefyn's whimsical words. If she ever made it back to them, perhaps she should bother to learn those stories.

She didn't realize she was being pelted with words until Nefyn took to nudging her physically. Her eyes flashed up, confused, and slightly annoyed at being jolted out of her thoughts, the annoyance hidden under the veils of confusion. Nefyn sighed. "We should stop," he said, "and eat." Without her agreement, he plopped upon a boulder, slinging a pack over his shoulder and digging through the contents. With Teara (Viagra-Boy) and Hades (Actually king of the underworld? Rebellious teen? What was up with that?) having gone off on their own, they were left with an abundance of rations. Nefyn almost hummed his way through a pack of dried fruit.

Mara sat across from him, less at ease. A packet of jerky slid across her knee and she tore it open without much thought. She mentally sighed, knowing she shouldn't have let herself get distracted by her siblings. If she ever went home, there would be time enough for that. She glanced sideways at her constellation box, wondering what it would be for. It must've had some importance, otherwise the Gamemakers wouldn't have set up that crazy elderly fiasco. She felt slightly uneasy around how calm it was, as if it was the calm before the storm. Soon, once she was tricked into relaxing, the Gamemakers would fire something up at them and everything would explode. Otherwise the Capitol would get bored, and their minds would be craving blood and gore. Yes, something awful was just around the corner, she could feel it. Nothing would make her forget that, and when danger slammed into her, she would be ready.