The Hunger Games - Peeta's POV

Chapter Twenty Two - Only Clove

Why did I have to leave? The things I could've done... I am pulled back into the arena. Back into the cave. My head spins, but not so much. The thing that scares me most is Katniss lying next to me in a pool of warm blood. I take a bandage from her orange backpack, and see a syringe sticking out in my arm. I have a look at my leg, and the lines have gone. She got the medicine. She saved my life. But is hers still on? I extract the syringe and place it carefully on the pack. Katniss' bows and arrows have been thrown carelessly on the ground, and the mouth of the cave is camouflaged with leaves and rocks. I take a bandage and press it on Katniss' forehead, where a deep-ish cut is placed. I bet it's from Clove. But Clove would have finished her off, and killed her with her knife. Did Katniss kill Clove?

I stayed up the entire night. I am both loaded with energy and have had my fair share of sleep. I keep watch, knife in hand. I even load one of Katniss' arrows in the notch of her bow, because I believe Katniss would do more protection than me.

She wakes up eventually.

"How long have I been out?"

"I'm not sure. I woke up with a syringe in my arm and you in a very scary looking pool of blood. It's been about a day since I woke up. Clove was the only one in the sky. What happened?"

"I went to get the pack." she says, her eyes flitting to the floor. The same way I did when my mother came to say goodbye. "Foxface was hiding in the Cornucopia and ran away with her pack."

"She's smart," I say.

"Too smart." But she doesn't continue with her story. I make her eat groosling, and even I eat a few bites. We drink water, and we tell each other stories from back home. She tells me about Prim's goat Lady, and I tell her about when I started having a crush on her. We talk, kiss, and sleep, but everything is paused when we hear the familiar ding during the anthem. Katniss collects the sponsor gift and I peer at the tribute slideshow. Only Clove appears in the sky tonight.

The gift is a spectacular feast. Lamb stew with dried plums, a huge portion of wild rice. Rolls with goat's cheese and apples. Two bottles of water. And also silverware. I'm sure Effie is relieved with our guarantee of etiquette. I am salivating at the sight, having only eaten groosling for the past few days. I am about to discard the forks and dig my hands into the stew, when Katniss slows me.

"Remember on the train where we almost threw up because of the rich food?" I do, and I know where she is going with this.

"Let's only eat a small portion, and then if we keep it down, we'll have a second serving." She takes two plates and a serving spoon, and scoops up one spoonful of the rice and stew. She rips the roll in half and spreads a cherry amount of goats cheese on either of them. I try to use the fork at first, but the food is so rich with flavour that I resort to using my hands, licking each finger once I have finished. We wait an hour, washing down the food with water, and this time I serve each of us with a second serving. It is gone quickly. Our bellies full, I usher Katniss to sleep, where I am content in keeping watch.