My Games: Johanna Mason

Chapter 14

DAY 14

Johanna's POV

Today it ends.

Two weeks of pain, torture, starvation, and thirst. At this moment, I was the hungriest I'd ever felt in my life. I'd die of starvation if the Games weren't over by tomorrow. I didn't eat or drink anything for all of yesterday.

When I get back home, everything will be okay. I'll be filthy rich, and Cervus and I can live in a mansion together, and be happy. While I'd be forced to watch the Games every year for the rest of my life, at least I'll have an excuse to see Blight. He's the only good person I've met since I was Reaped, except for Cyprus. I tried not to think about him. I realised that since I'd be the youngest victor from District 7 (I'm 18, and the next youngest, Blight, was somewhere in the 30s), and I'd be brought back to train the District 7 tributes each year, with or without Blight, only to watch them die around eleven out of twelve times.

Great.

I stood up still holding my axe, and I what I saw shocked me.

I remembered falling asleep underneath a pile of trees in a forest in the Autumn section, where the ground was basically made up of leaves. Now, I stood on stone, and there were no leaves underneath me. I looked around, and saw that were still trees here and there, but their leaves were all shades of yellow and orange, so I was still in the Autumn section. I only noticed how unnatural the trees looked until now.

I didn't move. It wasn't possible. The arena must have moved. The Gamemakers must be moving the Autumn section, which I was certain was the only remaining section, around. Most likely to make it smaller, or to place the Careers closer to me.

Either way, it meant that the Games would definitely end today. For the first time in the arena, after becoming sure that my suspicions were correct, I felt happy. I played around with my axe, and decided not to move. I did not want to waste any of the minimal amount of energy I had. The Careers would find me, I would see them from a sufficient distance, act weak, and then kill them all.

The scenario played out in my head, though it ended with one of them resurrecting and beheading me. I decided not to think about it anymore.

After what felt like only an hour of waiting, the sky started to turn the orange-pink that it does in District 7 when the evening has arrived and the sun is about to set. When the sky is that colour, all the child workers have to go home. The teenagers, like me, left when the stars became visible.

I hated the control the Gamemakers - the Capitol - had over me. When I left I would make sure that they didn't interfere with my life. I'd still work in the woods, I'd still cook meals for Cervus, I'd still walk around the main square. Period. When I left...

All I could think about was home. Except it wasn't over yet. Still a couple of hours left. Minutes even. I was there for another hour at least and no changes. The sky was only the tiniest bit of a fraction darker by the time I assessed my surroundings. I gripped my axe tighter and nearly vomited from all the fatigue I was feeling. Lucky I didn't have anything in my stomach to throw up.

Alabaster's POV

Mutts. Again.

The same mutts that took all of our food yesterday, and bit of four of my fingers. The same mutts that looked like a strange cross between a wolf and a monkey. After we'd killed them, Torah and I collapsed. Throughout the Games, I'd never felt so weak, so helpless, so hungry.

I remember having so much food at the start of the Games. Mara, Lance, Torah, Apollon and even Amity - though she was quite reserved - celebrated and feasted on the first day. Most of us thought we'd have more than enough food for weeks.