Just Tell Me You Love Me Already

Chapter 21: The Feast

Clove's POV

Telltale hints of the sun coming up are in the sky, it's beginning to turn a light orange in the distance. I pull my glasses off and stuff them in my backpack. Just as the first ray of sunlight hits the Cornucopia, there's a disturbance on the plain. The ground before the mouth of the horn slips in two and a round table with a snowy white cloth rises into the Arena. I wonder if you dig far enough, could you make it back to the catacombs, and out into freedom? Four backpacks sit on the table, the two largest ones are marked 2 and 11, and they are black. There is a medium sized green pack with the number 5 on it, and a tiny orange pack with the number 12 on it, the only thing that could probably fit in there is a syringe, medicine for Peeta?

As soon as the table clicks into place, a figure darts out of the Cornucopia and snags the green back pack. It's the girl from 5, clever idea; she was probably there right after the announcement, since we didn't see her all night. 5 is now sprinting across the plain into the cover of the wood. 5 has us all trapped here, she knows that none of us will risk losing what we need most to chase after her. I hope that Cato has seen her and is going after her now. 5 has purposely left the rest of the packs alone, if she'd grabbed another one then she'd defiantly have a pursuer, but now everyone is waiting for their chance to get their pack. I know that at least twoother people are poised to run and get their packs at the moment, Thresh and Katniss.

There she is, sprinting for the table to grab her tiny bag; I emerge from the forest, running after her clutching a knife. Ugh short legs mean have to run faster. I'm good at running yes, but right now it seems that Katniss's legs are two times longer than mine, even though they aren't. I lift my first knife, aim and throw. It would have hit her too, but she deflects the knife with her bow. Next Katniss turns with a bow and shoots an arrow at me; I turn, though not fast enough to entirely avoid the arrow. It pierces me high in my left arm. Lucky I throw right handed, though, I can throw with my left too. It slows me down to have to rip out the arrow from my arm and take in the severity of the wound, it's not death but it sure hurts like hell. I still chase Katniss, she's at the table now, fingers wrapping around her tiny bag, but I can't let her get away. I throw a knife; it hits her in the forehead, right above her right eyebrow. The gash causes blood to pour in to her eye and mouth, gross.

Katniss lets go of the readied arrow, but since there was blood in her eye, she couldn't aim right and misses me so badly Glimmer could've done better than her, and that's saying something.

I slam into Katniss; momentum helps me knock her to the ground. I perch on top of her chest, my knees pinning her shoulders to the ground, and my boots holding down her hands.

"Where's your boyfriend, District Twelve?" I taunt. "Still hanging on?" I know I shouldn't be taunting her right before I kill her, but she freaking shot me in the arm. Though, I plan to make her death quick so that she won't be in pain for long.

"He's out there now. Hunting Cato," She snarls. "Peeta!" she screams.

Did she just threaten my boyfriend? I think that she did, slamming my fist into Katniss's windpipe I effectively cut off her voice. I whip my head around; he couldn't be healed could he? I know that if he is, that he will run to Katniss's aid no matter the cost, love is weird that way. But if Peeta were here, he'd be out by now, coming to save Katniss, since he's not here, obviously Katniss lied, and I'm not happy that she just threatened Cato.

"Liar," I grin at her to look menacing, though Peeta was actually a nice guy and I liked him. "He's nearly dead. Cato knows where he cut him." I don't know why Cato hadn't killed him, it's torture to leave someone to die like that. "You've probably got him strapped up in some tree while you try to keep his heart going." True Katniss did seem to have an affection for trees which was demonstrated by her running to a tree for help and climbing like ninety feet in the air. "What's in the pretty little backpack? That medicine for Lover Boy?" Ugh, my grammar... "Too bad he'll never get it."

I open my jacket, showing my collection of knives to Katniss. It's an impressive collection, I have them lining the front of my jacket, and I have my knife vest plus the belt. I pick out a small thin knife with a curved sharp blade. "I promised Cato if he let me have you, I'd give the audience a good show." Not true, Cato still wants to murder Katniss, he never gave me permission.

Katniss struggles to get out from under me, but I have her firmly pinned on the ground. "Forget it, District Twelve," I say, I'm still really pissed off about the whole threaten-your-boyfriend-with-my-fake-boyfriend thing, when I'm mad I do and say impulsive things. "We're going to kill you. Just like we did your pathetic little ally..." See what I mean? My anger about her threatening Cato has stretched to me taunting her on Rue's death, which admittedly saddened me a lot. "What was her name? The one who hopped around in trees? Rue?" Saying her name makes me regret this whole situation. "Well, first Rue, then you, and I think we'll just let nature take care of Lover Boy. How does that sound?" Great now I've really made her mad, see how it feels? Don't threaten Cato; I'm as good at hurting with words as I am with weapons. I even hurt myself talking about Rue, "Now where to start?"

I wipe away the blood from her face with my jacket sleeve, tilting my head side to side, as if surveying her face. Katniss attempts to bite me, what is this? The rabid dog games? I stop her by pulling the braid on the top of her head, forcing it back to the ground, ow, that's got to hurt, I resist the urge to say 'I'm sorry!' and beg forgiveness. Yes, I'm that soft-hearted, though, I don't act like it. "I think," I purr to scare Katniss, "I think we'll start with your mouth." We'll, me and the knife, am I turning into that creepy character from Rose's book? What was his name? Gollum?

Katniss clamps her teeth together as I trace the lines around her mouth with my knife. As I said before Clove plus angry equals bad clouded judgment. I was going to give Katniss a quick death, but she threatened Cato so no quick death for her.

Katniss is staring at me angrily; oops Rue comment hit the anger/hurt button for both of us.

"Yes, I don't think you'll have much use for your lips anymore. Want to blow Lover Boy one last kiss?" Then she spits a whole mouth full of blood and spit in my face, can I just say, EW. I can feel myself flushing with rage; she threatens Cato, and then has the nerve to spit in my face. "All right then. Let's get started."

I put a little strength into the tip of the knife; it opens a cut above her lip I begin to slowly bring it along her lip line when something forcefully pulls me off Katniss. It's Thresh; he looks at me, his eyes full of hatred and anger. I am dangling a foot above the ground, imprisoned in Thresh's arms. Thresh flips me over and flings me to the ground. Then he shouts, I've never heard his voice so loud, much less so angry. "What'd you do to that little girl? You kill her?"

I'm scrambling away from him, he is towering over me, I'm short and Thresh just reminds me of that, especially since I'm on the ground. "No! No, it wasn't me!" I scream frantically, trying to get Thresh to understand through my eyes, that I liked Rue, and was saddened by her death.

"You said her name. I heard you. You kill her? You cut her up like you were going to cut up this girl here?!" His features are filled with rage.

"No! No, I-" Why can't he understand that I liked Rue?! Then I see a loaf-sized rock in his hand, I'm dead and I know it. "CATO!" I scream at the top of my lungs. "CATO!"

"CLOVE!" I hear Cato call back, he's far away, was he hunting 5? He is too far away to come to my rescue; I'm dead, just because of my fit of anger at Katniss.

The next thing I see it the rock coming down towards my head, and then I feel immense pain.