How to Save a Life

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I wake up to the birds chirping. Crawling out of bed I put my hunting clothes on then make my way to the woods right outside District 12. I reach the "electric" fence and see Katniss heading towards the woods ahead of me. "Kat!" I call causing her to turn around and wait on me to catch up.

Both of us quietly walk to two trees pulling out a bow and quiver each. Kat and I walk through the woods until we come across a doe. I nod at her so she nods back and preps to take the kill but the deer moves out of our line of sight. Grabbing some leaves Kat crushes them in her hands to help mask our scents before we run to catch up with the deer. Katniss shoots a rock at a ledge to scare the deer out then proceeds to aim.

Just as Kat was about to let her arrow loose a voice speaks up behind us, "What are you gonna do with that when you kill it?"

I turn to Gale as the deer runs off. I run over to him and he gathers my body into a big hug. Gale completely engulfs my 5'3 stature. Katniss turns to us, "Damn you, Gale! It's not funny!"

He releases me and chuckles at her, "What are you gonna do with a 100-pound deer, Catnip? It's Reaping Day, The place is crawling with Peacekeepers."

Gale grabs Kat's arrow to which she snatches it back and answers, "I was going to sell it to some Peacekeepers."

"Of course you were," he says sarcastically.

"Like you don't sell to Peacekeepers," I mock him crossing my arms.

"No. Not today," he defends.

I shake my head at him then look into the woods in disappointment, "That was the first deer I've seen in a year. Now I have nothing to take back to the rest of the district and Kat has nothing to trade for her family."

"Okay," Gale says and picks up a rock and throws it into the brush causing birds to fly off. Kat and I take aim and fire in sync shooting down one each.

"Well, this should be enough for a couple of the kids," I say thoughtfully as I think about who I should give the meat to.

Gale pats my head and says, "Keep it, Fairy. When was the last time you ate more than berries and very little meat?"

I smile up at him sheepishly and nod in agreement. We all stop moving when we hear something big coming overhead. I push Gale and Kat further into the wood coverage as the capital aircraft flies overhead.

After the aircraft is gone we all go to our clearing and I take my place sitting in between the two. "What if they did? Just one year. What if everyone just stopped watching?" Gale asks.

"They won't, Gale," Katniss tells him.

"What if they did? What if we did?" He asks.

"We'd be killed by The Capitol," I answer simply. I sigh, "I don't want to see any more kids die meaningless deaths. I don't want to worry about which of my friends will be the next ones tossed into that heinous game. I don't want to do this anymore," I say as my eyes tear up.

Gale puts his arm around my shoulder in comfort and Kat grabs my hand giving it a reassuring squeeze. "You root for your favorites. You cry when they get killed. It's sick. If no one watches, then they don't have a game. It's as simple as that," Gale says. Katniss smiles at him making him look at her confused, "What?"

She chuckles, "Nothing."

He grins and shakes his head at her, "Fine. Laugh at me."

"I'm not laughing at you," she reassures.

"We could do it, you know? Take off, live in the woods. It's what we do anyway." He says to us.

I shake my head at him sadly, "They'd catch us."

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