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"I love you," Ron kept repeating to Dove as the night came to an end. The two tributes and their mentors were in the living room, Ron hugging his daughter desperately as Mags did the same with Finnick, who was like a son to her.
"I love you too, dad," Dove muttered, closing her eyes as she let the darkness take her prisoner for a few seconds. The rebel plan was driving her nuts. She was already frightened to go back to the arena. But, to top it all off, she probably had to protect Twelve, which surely had to be the faces of a rebellion she barely knew about since no one had told her anything. "Tell the rest I love them, too. It's not their fault. Make sure they know that."
"I will." Her father replied, surprisingly confident, as if he knew something she didn't. Well, who doesn't? Everyone seems to know something I don't. Dove thought. She got the bigger picture of what could happen once in the arena, but it would have been nice to be told.
One, if we both make it to be Katniss' and Peeta's allies, we've got to keep them alive. I don't know until when. Like, what will happen when it's only the four of us left? Or will we not get to that point? Are the games going to be stopped somehow? No. The Hunger Games cannot be stopped from outside. . . But what about from inside? Her thoughts suddenly stopped as the two stylists appeared through the door.
"Are you prepared to leave?" Kala asked, entering the fourth floor alongside Ohan. Everyone in the room was chatting. Mags kept hugging Finnick as Ron stroked Dove's hair gently, kissing her head as they said goodbye.
"Is it time already?" Rhett asked incredulously, glancing outside the room to see dawn was already upon them. "Then, this is goodbye. . ." He whispered, hugging both tributes tightly.
"Take care, Mags," Dove said, hugging the elder, who patted her face softly as if trying to reassure her.
"I'll miss you two," Muscida said, giving another round of hugs as a few tears ran down her cheeks. Her voice cracked every few words, but it wasn't too difficult to understand. "Do your best to keep each other alive."
"We will," Finnick promised, letting go of the hug. Kala motioned him to approach. Each tribute entered the arena alone, so the two tributes wouldn't see each other until the bloodbath, which, with some luck, both would survive. "I'll see you later. Don't come to the fight. Hide, I'll go look for you."
"OK," Dove replied, grabbing a hold of his collar to kiss him. The moment couldn't last long, as Kala deliberately cleared her throat and pointed at her watch. "Don't do anything stupid while I'm not around."
"I promise nothing," he replied with a chuckle, giving her a soft kiss before walking to Kala.
"Ready?" Ohan asked on their way to the hovercraft. Dove shook her head. The thoughts of a rebellion still clouded her mind, not allowing her to sleep, although she, nor anyone, even tried.
"Are we ever ready?" She questioned in a whisper. The rest of the flight until the Launch Room, where she took a shower before dressing for that year's tribute outfit, passed by in the blink of an eye. After dressing on simple undergarments, Ohan helped her put on her outfit, which included a fitted blue jumpsuit, which zippered up the front. A padded belt covered in some kind of shiny purple plastic. A pair of nylon shoes with rubber soles.
"Any idea?" Dove asked, raising her arms for her stylist to analyse the fabric.
"It offers little protection from cold or water," Ohan replied, braiding her hair into a braid that fell on her back, almost reaching the back of her knees.
"So, it'll be sunny," Dove commented, not needing an answer to know she was right. "Oh, do you have my necklace?"
"Yes, I wanted to leave it for the last. Here you go," he replied, helping her put it on as they tried not to undo the braid. "Perfect. The songbird is ready to sing."
"What does that even mean?" She questioned, laughing softly as he shrugged. The usual voice that announced the tributes to get in their places made its presence earlier than expected. "Guess this is goodbye, right?"
"Just for now. And remember, I'll always bet on you," he replied. Just for now. Dove repeated inside her mind, counting inside her mind another person who knew about the rebel plan without telling her. The glass cylinder closed right in front of her. She waved goodbye. The plate rose, not letting Dove see him anymore as the bright sun forced her to close her eyes momentarily.
The Arena was identical to the one from her nightmare. There was some sort of lake in the middle, then sand, and finally forest. Dove knew the forest would be the safest option to hide in, but she didn't want to enter there. At least, not alone.
Looking to her right, something worse came to her mind. Peeta was right next to her, separated by a piece of land between them. He looked at her, his eyes showed how confused he was at the placement.
"It's OK," Dove mouthed in his direction, although she wasn't sure he had understood. "Allies?" She mouthed again. This time, he understood what she meant. Peeta nodded, looking around himself before muttering confidently, "Allies."
However, there was a problem. Neither Finnick nor Katniss were anywhere to be seen, which only meant they were on the other side of the Cornucopia. They would be too late to reach them if something happened. We're on our own. Dove thought.
"Ladies and gentlemen, let the Seventy-fifth Hunger Games begin!" Claudius Templesmith, the Hunger Games announcer, declared just before the countdown started. One minute to get ideas straight. Flee or fight.
Yeah, let hell begin. Dove thought, watching as the tribute at Peeta's other side stared at him. She couldn't distinguish his face with the distance and the bright sunlight that reflected in her face because of the water, but she was sure Peeta would need a hand to get rid of him.
When the minute was up, Dove dived into the water without a second of doubt and swam in Peeta's direction. When she reached the land between the two, she realised her previous judgement was wrong. The other tribute was going straight to the Cornucopia, which she wished she could copy.
Looking back up, Peeta didn't move from the metal plate. He stayed in place as if he was stuck. Of course, being from Twelve, there's not much chance to learn how to swim. She thought.
"Peeta, stay right there. I'll go help you," Dove said, catching his attention before throwing herself back in the water. When she emerged again next to him, he descended from the plate and let himself be carried to land.
Dove helped him crawl his way up the piece of land, before trying to pull herself up, which he rejected to let her do it on her own as he held a hand out to help her up. "Thanks," she uttered, before hearing a pair of footsteps coming their way.
Fuck. And we have no weapons. Dove cursed inside her mind. With the little strength she had after the sudden exercise, she tried to motion Peeta to run to the tree line and hide. However, Finnick's voice stopped her from doing that.
"Dove!" Finnick exclaimed, hugging her as he and Katniss reached them. Peeta got up and kissed his supposed wife before pointing out the obvious. "We've got allies."
"Yes. Just as Haymitch intended," she answered bitterly. "Remind me, did we make deals with anyone else?" he asked.
"Only Dove, but I'm sure you already noticed that," Katniss said, nodding towards Dove, who was still in Finnick's protective arms.
"Well, I can't leave Dove behind," Finnick commented. His cocky behaviour was showing immensely as he continued to explain. "She's one of the few people who actually likes me, even if she tries to deny it."
"That's because I don't like you," Dove replied mockingly. "Oh, yeah, sorry. You don't like me, you love me." He mocked, nudging her side softly.
"I've got no problem with her, especially now that I see the arena. Her fish hooks are probably our best chance of getting a meal," Katniss replied, motioning around her to the arena as if trying to prove a point.
"Katniss wanted her on the first day," Peeta explained simply, to which Dove smiled at them. She didn't know she had left such a good impression on the couple from the very first day.
"Katniss has remarkably good judgement," Finnick stated, just as Dove tugged on his arm to direct his attention to their right, where Beetee was using the belt to keep himself afloat.
"They can't have us die from drowning. The belts keep you afloat." Dove muttered, forgetting completely the existence of the couple from Twelve.
"Exactly, look. Someone has figured it out." he pointed out, causing their allies to glance at Beetee. Katniss looked back at them, confused. "The belts. They're floating devices. I mean, you have to propel yourself, but they'll keep you from drowning," he added.
Katniss nodded but shortly after ended up telling them to move on, as she gave Peeta a few weapons. Finnick turned around to Dove, showing her the trident he got for her. "Is your body OK? I can carry it for you until you're better," he suggested, although she shook her head, declining the idea completely as she took the trident from his hand.
They ran away from the fight and entered the jungle with Peeta in the lead. Finnick and Dove were right behind him as Katniss positioned herself at the end. After walking for a couple of kilometres, Finnick asked for a rest, which was obviously more for Dove's sake than his own.
When they stopped, Dove dropped to the floor as Katniss climbed a tree to get a better way of what was going on in the Cornucopia. Finnick, for some reason, took a defensive position in front of her just as Katniss descended. "What's going on down there, Katniss? Have they all joined hands? Taken a vow of non-violence? Tossed the weapons in the sea in defiance to the Capitol?" He asked.
"No," Katniss replied plainly.
"No," he repeated. "Because no one in this arena was a victor by chance. . . Except maybe Peeta." Both became more defensive, as if they would attack each other. Peeta deliberately got in the middle, trying to stop any potential conflict by asking Katniss how many were dead.
"Hard to say," she answered. "At least six, I think. And they're still fighting."
"Let's keep moving. We need water," Peeta proposed, staying in place between the two as Dove got up from the floor to approach Finnick with a confused look.
"Better find some soon," Finnick intervened. "We need to be undercover when the others come hunting us tonight." His words seemed to have some effect on Katniss since she let go of her defensive position to signal the rest to keep walking.
After another kilometre, Katniss tried to cheer everyone despite the poor luck in finding water by saying there could be something on the other side of the hill. However, seconds later, she cried something that seemed like a warning, just before Peeta's knife swung out to lash away some vines in his way.
There was a sharp sound, and for a split second, an open space replaced the trees. Peeta launched back from the force field, bringing Finnick and Dove to the ground. The hit took all the air out of Dove's lungs as Peeta laid motionless.
"Peeta?" Katniss cried, repeating his name endlessly as she approached him. Her cries changed to yells when she didn't hear his heartbeat. Finnick got up rapidly and examined Peeta.
"Let me," he said, pinching Peeta's nose, to which Katniss raised her bow. Although not for long, as Finnick's push made her land near Dove, who still couldn't move from the ground. The dizziness didn't allow her to determine what was up or down.
When Katniss incorporated herself, she saw the bizarre sight of Finnick kissing Peeta. Soon, she realised what was happening. Finnick was trying to reanimate Peeta, not kill him. Minutes later, Peeta finally coughed, allowing Finnick to relax and sit back while Katniss sighed in relief.
Katniss left her weapons without a second thought in the dirt and flung herself on Peeta, repeating his name in desperation. She brushed his hair, making sure his pulse was working as she placed her fingers on his neck.
"Careful," Peeta said, opening his eyes. "There's a force field up ahead." Katniss laughed through her tears, caressing his face as he continued talking. "Must be a lot stronger than the one on the Training Centre roof. I'm alright, though. Just a little shaken."
"You were dead! Your heart stopped!" She burst out, before covering her mouth with her hand, so no sobs could make their presence known.
"Well, it seems to be working now. It's all right, Katniss," he said, causing Katniss to nod, her sobbing still present. "Katniss?" he asked worriedly.
"It's OK. It's just her hormones," Finnick spoke from Dove's side. He caressed her face, making sure she was all right, before continuing his brief explanation. "From the baby."
"No. It's not-" Katniss said between her tears, although another sob only seemed to prove Finnick right, which made her glare at him. He didn't pay much mind to the dirty look, although he did glance at them from time to time with a baffled expression.
"How are you?" Finnick asked both Dove and Peeta. Dove sat up slowly, with Finnick's help, while Peeta remained on the floor. "Perfect. How about you? Do you think you can move on?" He asked, looking straight at Peeta.
"No, he has to rest. Both have to. Don't think I didn't notice Dove almost desperately gasping for air," Katniss replied immediately, her voice almost cracking and her nose running, although she tried to sound confident.
Dove looked around slowly. Seeing moss near her range, she took it and tossed it in Katniss' direction. The girl understood what it was for as she blew her nose and mopped away her tears with it.
Finnick got Dove's attention back to him as he examined her, making sure she was ready to get up. Unsure, he glanced back at Katniss, who seemed to just have had a brief conversation with Peeta. "So you want to make a camp here, then?" he asked.
"I don't think that's an option," Peeta commented, still laying on the ground. "Staying here. With no water. No protection. I feel all right, really. And I'm sure Dove is too. If we could just go slowly."
Finnick glanced from Peeta to Dove, nodding once he realised that was the best option. "Slowly would be better than nothing at all," Finnick helped Peeta get up, as Katniss did the same with Dove, who seemed to have trouble getting her legs to respond to her commands.
"I'll take the lead," Katniss announced, her weapons already back in their place as she made sure Dove was ready to stand on her own two feet before letting go of her arm. Peeta immediately tried to stop her, but Finnick intervened.
"No, let her do it." He said. "You knew that force field was there, didn't you? Right at the last second? You started to give a warning. How did you know?" Finnick asked Katniss, who hesitated for a bit before explaining her 'inhuman hearing' thanks to the Capitol's reconstructed ear.
"By all means, go on Katniss," Dove said, a smile on her face as she tried to lift the trident, which Finnick took from her, telling her she had to rest. As minutes went by, Dove noticed blackened and cracked nutshells on the ground. She knew those types of nuts. They were safe to eat.
Stopping, she crouched down and took a better look at one, peeling it off before eating it. "Dove! Spit it out. It could be poisonous." Katniss cried, causing Dove to almost laugh at her ally's face. Katniss ended up looking at Finnick as if he was meant to control his district partner.
"I guess we'll have to find out," he replied with a laugh. He knew perfectly well that, if Dove ate something, it meant it wasn't poisonous. "See? I'm perfectly fine. Nothing happened." Dove said, although Katniss nodded doubtfully and resumed her walk.
After another hour of walking, Katniss stopped moving abruptly, telling everyone to rest as she took another look from up a tree. Dove sat down on the ground, looking around for any sign of an attack or animals near.
"The force field has us trapped in a circle. A dome, really. I don't know how high it goes. There's the Cornucopia, the sea, and then the jungle all around. Very exact. Very symmetrical. And not very large," Katniss said as she descended from the tree.
"Did you see any water?" Finnick asked, to which Katniss shook her head before replying. "Only the saltwater where we stated the Games."
"There must be some other source," Peeta reasoned as he frowned, trying to find some sense of the situation. "Or we'll all be dead in a matter of days."
"Well, the foliage is thick. Maybe there are ponds or springs somewhere," Katniss replied doubtfully.
"There must be drinkable water between the force field and the wheel," Peeta reasoned again. Everyone quickly agreed to descend a few metres while continuing to circle around the arena.
Dove hated her lack of stamina. She never had much, but after years of poisoning, it had only decreased. Now, by mid-afternoon, she could barely take another step without stumbling. The only thing that didn't make her feel bad was not being the only one, since Peeta found himself in a similar situation.
Seeing their state, Katniss opted for stopping the hike. And Finnick ended up setting camp ten metres under the force field, claiming they could use it as a weapon if necessary. There, Dove pulled strips of the grass and wove them together into rugs. A technique Finnick recognised, since Mags had also taught him that.
Meanwhile, Peeta collected a bunch of nuts, seeing as Dove had no side effects from eating one, and fried them with the force field. On the side, Katniss kept guard around them. "Finnick, why don't you stand guard, and I'll hunt around some more for water?"
The rest rejected the offer, claiming it would be too risky to let her go alone, but she insisted. Dove shook her head and got up from her spot. "If you go, I go with you. I'm not of much use, but I can watch your back," she said.
"No, you're tired, and your body is not working properly since earlier. If you come with me and something happens, you won't be able to run away." Katniss argued. "Don't worry, I won't go far," she promised, this time looking at Peeta, who also tried to argue. But she didn't let him go either, claiming he was too loud to hunt with her and she wouldn't take long. With just those words, she left.
"Do you want some help with those rugs?" Finnick asked Dove, sitting next to her. Sometime later, a quite impressive hut was created with those same strips of grass. A roof, three walls and a floor. When that was done, Dove created a few bowls, in which Peeta put the roasted nuts.
When they caught sight of Katniss, they turned around hopefully, but she only shook her head in reply. "No. No water. It's out there, though. He knew where it was," she said, showing them a rodent. "He'd been drinking recently when I shot him out of a tree, but I couldn't find his source. I swear, I covered every centimetre of ground in a thirty-metre radius."
"That's all right, Katniss," Dove replied, a smile forming on her face as she saw the girl struggle to defend her absence of discovery. "Can we eat him?" Peeta asked.
"I don't know for sure. But his meat doesn't look that different from a squirrel's. He ought to be cooked. . ." Katniss replied, causing everyone to wonder how they could start a fire in such a tiny arena. There would be no way of hiding the smoke.
However, Peeta seemed to come up with an idea as he got a cube of rodent meat, skewered it on the tip of a pointed stick, and let it fall into the force field. It worked. The outside was blackened, but the inside was perfectly cooked. The rest gave him a round of applause, but immediately stopped when they remembered they were in the arena.
As the sun sank into the horizon, Katniss started chatting with Dove, which Finnick and Peeta sometimes joined. "How did you know about the nuts?"
"Oh, Mags taught me about them years ago. They were in someone's games." Dove replied simply, which seemed to encourage Katniss to try the nuts.
"Dove, you've got to eat. Either meat or an entire bowl of nuts, but you have to eat." Finnick muttered, sitting next to her as he showed her the two options. Dove sighed, choosing the nuts as it would be easier to take its time eating without them going to waste.
While she ate, Finnick was the one to question Katniss. He asked about the rodent, which he called a tree rat. How high was it. How long did she watch it before she shot, and what was it doing. She gave him doubtful replies, since she didn't recall exactly what he was doing.
As the night made its presence, the anthem played. The four were at the entrance of their hut, watching as they showed the fallen in the sky. There were many, eight to be exact. All of which Dove and Finnick knew somewhat personally.
Finnick held Dove's hand as the faces disappeared. No one spoke. It wasn't needed. However, the sudden appearance of a silver parachute surprised everyone. "Whose is it, do you think?" Katniss asked.
"No telling," Finnick replied. "Why don't we let Peeta claim it since he died today?" he said teasingly, his hand not leaving Dove's as Peeta revealed a metallic object.
"What is it?" Katniss questioned, looking at everyone to see if anyone had an answer. Dove doubted for a second. She knew that object. But from where? What was it for? "Can you fish with it, Dove?"
"I don't think so. . . Can I take a closer look?" Dove replied, letting go of Finnick's hand when Peeta gave it to her. He left it in the palm of her hands as she continued to wonder about the familiarity. Then, a memory popped up in her mind. "Melo!" she exclaimed. "I mean, it's from my brother's games! It's a spile!"
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