Multifandom Crossover

Chapter 21: Augustus Waters

"Let the seventy-seventh Hunger Games commence!"

There was a scream to my right. I jumped a little, staring at Katniss. She let out an ear piercing scream, her hands flying to cover her ears. She dropped to the forest floor, crouching. Her scream subsided to a hoarse cry, her voice raspy. Her eyes were closed, scrunched up in pain, though there was nothing physically hurting her.

Peeta dropped down beside Katniss, rubbing his hand in soothing circles on her back. He whispered reassurance, words of comfort. Katniss went silent. She stood up, robotically, her face was blank, except her for her eyes; they betrayed fear and trauma.

That's when I noticed Hazel, gripping my arm, her face pale. "Is she okay?" She whispered hoarsely.

Peeta nodded, trying to hold it together, but he also looked terrified.

"What happened?" Tobias asked as Tris went and gave Katniss a side hug.

"Just... you know how we appeared in your world?" Peeta asked.

Tris nodded.

"Well, this is our world." Peeta finished. "Panem. And this is our nightmare: the Hunger Games."

I didn't know what it was... but it didn't sound good.

==== ====

The sky was dark. Nighttime. There were stars, scattered through the sky, giant balls of gas that twinkled in the inky darkness of outer space. The canopy of leaves above us cast dark shadows along the forest floor. Everyone had paired off, sleeping a few feet away from each other.

I laid on my back, next to Hazel, who kept her oxygen tank close by. Her eyes were closed, and she was smiling gently, as if recalling a happy memory. "Gus?"

"Yeah?"

"Can you believe that just a few hours ago, we were in Amsterdam?"

I processed the fact; it seemed unbelievable, but it was true. "How did we get caught up in this?" I asked softly.

Hazel propped herself up on one elbow, looking at me. "If I wake up, and this whole thing, this... this crazy adventure, is all just a dream, I promise, in the real world, I'll treat you to a fancy dinner at Oranjee." She promised.

"And if it turns out that all of this is real?" I asked quietly.

"Then we'll still have each other." Hazel responded. "There's nothing in the world that can tear us apart, okay?"

I grinned softly. "Okay."

Hazel smiled, leaning on my chest. I could feel her breathing, the weight of her head against my chest. My heart rate slowed to a rhythmic thump... thump... thump.

The forest was quiet, save for the sounds of nature. I heard the scurrying of paws, the chirps of crickets, even the faint sound of a water as it cascaded down a stream, somewhere to the right. All was well in th-- okay, all was well in our little piece of infinity.

"Did you hear that?!"

I jumped at the sound of Tris's voice. She was standing up, her gun drawn. Tobias was standing next to her, looking thoroughly confused. I sat up, looking at her expectantly. "What?"

"Did no one else hear that?" She asked again. The hand holding her gun fell to her side. "There was a... a growling noise... like some large, wild animal."

Katniss and Peeta were up in a flash; neither one of them seemed to have been asleep. They looked at each other for a second, and a silent agreement came over the two of them. "We need to move. Now." Katniss said. I noticed that the bandages around her leg had turned a faint red colour, but she seemed to be ignoring it.

I helped Hazel to her feet, still very confused. "What? What's going on?"

Katniss looked at Tris. "If you really heard something, then we're in danger." She slung her quiver over her shoulder and grabbed her bow. "Let's get going."

"What's going on?" Hazel whispered to me.

I shrugged helplessly. "I have no idea, but this can't be good."

"You two lead." Tobias said to Peeta and Katniss. "Since you guys obviously know more about our current situation than any of us, you guys lead. Tris and I will cover you." He pulled his gun out.

And so we started walking.

==== ====

The forest didn't seem so nice anymore instead, it was just a scene that held many ways to kill us. I carried Hazel's oxygen tank, helping her step over the thick branches that littered our path. We had been walking for about five minutes before the silence broke.

There was a growl, to my right. Hazel tensed beside me and I stopped walking, my breath catching in my throat. Before I could move, something--a large, wild animal--pounced out from the foliage, right at Tobias. Hazel yelled. Peeta let out a cry of shock. I felt a cry rise to my throat, but he didn't back away. There was a loud BANG, and the animal fell at his feet, writhing in pain; it was still alive.

Tris's gun hand wavered as she cocked the gun and fired a second time, right at the animal's skull. Bang.

I stiffened, not ready to move. Katniss's voice broke me out of my thoughts. "Come on, we have to run. There's more coming this way."

I looked up at her. "You mean there's more of them?"

"How can you be sure?" Tobias asked. He didn't seem fazed at all; there was a steely glint in his eye.

"Those are the same mutts from our first Games." Peeta said, a wave of terror flashing behind his wide eyes.

"Yes." Katniss said softly. She walked over to the animal and crouched down beside it. "Look, Peeta, it's Rue."

Huh?

In the moonlight, I could make out the animal's shape. It was... wolf-like in shape, but that's where the similarities stopped. It had razor-sharp claws, about four inches long, and reddish fur. Its eyes, which were open, even in death, were big, coloured a soft brown that looked almost... human. It was small, surprisingly, and had a collar around its neck, displaying the number 11.

"How do you know there's more coming?" Tris asked, slipping her gun back into her holster.

"Because we've gone through this before." Peeta said, almost listlessly. "Assuming they heard the gunshot, there should be twenty more on their way. Twenty-one, if they added Cato."

"He's right." Katniss said, standing up. I noticed that she had left a single, small flower beside the animal. "They're getting closer, I can tell."

All of a sudden, there was a howl, echoing through the night.