Eve's silent trudge through the woods ended at the clearing in front of the cornucopia.
Clove, Marvel, and a boy she didn't recognize were moving everything into a large pile.
"What're they doing?"
"The kid from 3 knows how to reactivate the mines so we're protecting the food." He said.
"That's stupid." She scoffed. "If it gets triggered it's all gonna blow sky high."
He shrugged. "It's more of a scare tactic."
"Right." She made up her mind that she wouldn't be sleeping anywhere near the ticking time bomb.
The second her eyes met Clove's, a knife was soaring towards her face.
"Woah!" She dodged out of the way and Clove threw another.
Eve slapped it out of the air with her spear and aimed.
Cato's hand came down on her spear and his voice echoed across the clearing. "Cut it out. Both of you."
Clove stomped over to the two. "What the hell is she doing here?"
"Incase you haven't noticed, we need all the help we can get." He said.
She scoffed. "How could she possibly help us?"
With Glimmer gone, Clove was able to enjoy her time in the arena with Cato. Now this random from District Four was ruining it.
"She killed the kid from 10." His eyes moved to Eve. "And might I say it was a very fun watch."
"Is that where you got that cut on your head?" She laughed. "Getting injured by a high district is a disgrace."
In reality she got the cut from falling down a hill but she'd be damned before she admitted that to the cunning girl from 2.
"What happened with 12?" Eve cocked her head to the side. "Looks to me like you're down a player. You're in worse shape than me."
"Please." She scoffed. "I hated Glimmer."
Clove narrowed her eyes. "Saved me from having to dull a knife on her thick skull."
"What don't you hate?" The question was rhetorical, but Eve was genuinely curious if the girl ever felt a positive emotion in her life aside from the thrill that came with murder.
Clove's eyes burned with a deep hatred for the girl in front of her, but Eve wasn't blind to the way her eyes darted over to Cato. It was brief, but it was there.
Eve felt something in her chest when she noticed the slight shift in Clove's demeanor. She didn't enjoy it at all. She wanted to drive her spear into the girl's stone cold heart.
"So you're with us now?" Marvel's voice cut through the tension in the air.
"How'd you guess?" Eve asked, keeping her eyes locked on Clove.
"Funny." He held his hand out to her with a charming smile. "It'll be nice to have the help."
She shook it. It was strange. He would have seemed like a normal guy if she hadn't seen his interview where he talked about his desire to hunt children for sport.
Eve didn't look at the boy from District Three. She didn't want to have to make friends with another person destined to die.
She hoped Finch was okay. Being good at staying hidden had kept her safe, but Eve had a feeling that wasn't going to last. The Gamemakers wanted a good show and they wouldn't get it if she was hiding in the trees.
"I'll show you around." Marvel grinned down at her.
Eve's eyes drifted to Cato's. They were as guarded as ever and she didn't have the energy to decipher whether or not he was okay with her going off alone.
"Alright." She shrugged, following after him as he moved towards the cornucopia.
He blabbered on about camp and where everything was. She tried to pay attention but she just couldn't as her mind drifted to the other people left in the arena.
She wondered what Finch was doing right now.
"So you're pretty good with a spear?"
She shrugged. Even though they were supposedly on the same side right now, she didn't want him thinking she was a threat. "I guess."
"Care for some friendly competition?" The smile on his face was almost begging.
She figured it must be hard for him to go a whole day without killing someone. He must be getting bored. "Okay."
"Perfect!"
He held an apple in his hand as Eve stood beside him. "Ready?"
"Mhmm." She hummed, holding up her spear.
He threw the apple into the air and Eve took her aim.
They both watched as her spear soared through the air and hit the small red ball.
Cato raised his hands from the grass to clap lazily. "Now that's impressive."
Clove kept her mouth shut, which made Eve smile more than Cato's praise.
Marvel's mouth was pulled into a tight line as he looked at the girl. He wasn't watching her as one would watch their competition in a friendly game. He was sizing her up.
Eve noticed, shrugging her shoulders at him. "Beginner's luck."
She made sure to keep from hitting another apple. Her tosses to Marvel were easy and every time he missed her heart sank.
She needed him to win if she wanted him off of her back.
When he hit his mark Eve had to work to keep the smile off her face. "Damn it."
"Don't worry." He grinned, tapping her arm. "I'll give you some pointers if you want."
"You promise?" She smiled back.
"You just need to use your hips for more power." He said.
"Like this?" She asked, twisting her hips as she lazily threw her spear towards a tree.
"No." He moved behind her, placing his hands on her hips.
Eve could feel Cato's eyes on her and it only spurred her on as she leaned into Marvel.
"Like this." He twisted his hips with hers.
She could feel that he was getting worked up behind her, but she didn't care. All she could think about was the way Cato's eyes were burning into her.
She smiled at the ground. "Yeah, this feels right."
"Is that right?" He smiled against her ear, pressing himself harder into her.
"Eve." Cato's voice sounded more like a growl than anything. "Come here."
"I'm a little busy right now." She said, not bothering to look over her shoulder.
"I'm not gonna ask again." He snapped, ripping her from the boy's arms.
She dragged her feet as he pulled her to the other side of the cornucopia. "That wasn't very nice."
"I know you were holding back in that little competition." He said, dropping her arm once they were out of view of the other tributes.
A nervous laugh fell from her lips. "Why would I do that?"
"To keep him off your back." He crossed his arms over his chest. "I have to hand it to you. It was smart."
"You gonna tell him?" She didn't know why he was even talking to her.
His eyes bore into hers. "I won't if you stop flirting with him."
"Hold on." A smile crept onto her face. "Are you jealous?"
He laughed. "You wish."
His eyes narrowed. "He's gonna kill you the second he gets the chance."
She narrowed hers right back. "And you wouldn't?"
He scoffed, rolling his eyes at her. "Trust me sweetheart, I've had plenty of chances."
It was her turn to laugh. "You are such a gentleman."
She crossed her arms over her chest. "I can do whatever I want."
"No." He shook his head. "No you can't."
She laughed as she looked up at the man who thought he ruled the world. "Who are you to tell me what I can and can't do?"
"Who am I?" His eyes flashed.
She didn't have time to think as he pressed her back against the warm metal of the cornucopia. Eve struggled against his rough hands as he dwarfed her not only in stature, but strength as well.
"Cut it out." She said as she squirmed in his hold.
"I'm in charge." His voice was low in her ear. "And I don't like to share."
"I'm not some piece of meat you get to stake your claim on." She said, throwing up her elbow and connecting it with his nose.
His hands released her as he stepped backwards.
She threw her fist towards his face, but he caught it just as fast. He spun the girl around and pushed her stomach against the cornucopia.
The slap of Eve's hands on the wall echoed across the field as she caught herself.
Before she could push off a strong force was pressed against her back.
His fingers spread across her shoulder blades, keeping her pressed firmly against the metal wall.
"Keep fighting." He grinned against the shell of her ear. "It's my favorite part."
Her muscles burned as she fought against the man behind her, but her attempts at escape were futile. He had been training his whole life to be able to overpower his victims, not to mention he was twice the girl's size.
"You didn't ask for a fight when Glimmer dropped to her knees." She mumbled.
"You saw that?" He laughed. "It was you in the woods?"
"I was in the tree right above you." She said. "I threw a knife to get you the hell away."
"Aren't you smart." He hummed. "Why'd you want her to stop so bad? Was somebody jealous?"
"I didn't want to hear her gagging all night." Eve said.
She wasn't lying, but she kept out the feelings that came along with her disgust. She wanted to kill Glimmer that night. Why? She wouldn't say. Not even in the depths of her subconscious.
"Did you wish it was you down there with me?"His hand snaked around her waist before digging into her hip.
"I wouldn't have put you on your knees." He mumbled. "I would've bent you over and showed the whole country exactly who you belonged to. I still could."
Eve felt her cheeks grow red at the thought. She could picture his hands gripping her hair as he pounded into her. She knew he would be rough. There wasn't a delicate bone in his body.
"But not until you're begging me for it." He hummed.
Eve found that harder to believe than him pulling down her pants and taking her right there. She wasn't the type to beg for anything, let alone a man.
"It's gonna happen sooner or later I promise you that." He assured her.
She gasped loudly as a smile lined her mouth. "For a whole five minutes?"
A soft laugh escaped his lungs, rattling against the back of her head. "There she is."
"If you don't mind I have a conversation I need to finish with Marvel." She said.
His hand wound into her hair, pulling her head back against his shoulder. "Shut your mouth."
"Why?" She laughed. "He seems like he'd be a good time."
"Not better than me." He ground himself against her ass and she gasped at how hard he was.
"Let me prove it." He said, trailing his hand down her stomach and between her legs.
"Cato." She rasped as her stomach tightened.
"Tell me to stop and I will." His voice was rough as he rubbed his thick fingers over her cargo pants.
"I-" she trailed off as her eyes drifted shut.
He was good. Too good.
"Go on." He mumbled against the shell of her ear. "Tell me what you want."
What did she want?
She leaned back against him, letting his warmth spread through her t-shirt. His hand moved from her hair to trail up and down her side, earning another soft exhale from Eve's mouth.
"What're you doing to me?" He groaned as he pressed his hand harder between her legs.
She arched into his touch, letting her ass grind against his front.
He pulled in a breath and his fingertips dug into her hip. "Beg for me."
"Maybe you should beg for me." She said, grinding back against him and forcing another quick inhale into his lungs.
A shaky laugh left his mouth before his lips latched onto her neck.
He bit down and Eve saw stars.
Her legs felt weak and her hands grabbed at him. One in his hair and one on his forearm as it rested against her stomach. "Cato please."
"What was that?" He asked, trailing soft kisses up to her jaw.
Her want was strong, but her pride was stronger. "I'm not saying it again."
"You will if you want it." He said, grinding against her.
She drug her nails over the soft skin of his neck, pulling a groan from his lips.
"You want this worse than I do." She said.
"Is that right?" He mused. "How about I shove my hand down these pants and see if that's true?"
It wasn't a secret what he'd find. Hell, he could probably feel how wet she was through her thick pants.
"You're mine." His hand dug into her skin. "Don't you forget it."
"I hate you." She said, leaning against his chest.
"Oh, I'm sure." He said, running his hand gently over her neck.
"Have fun with Marvel." He said as he pulled his hands away from her.
She watched with blown pupils as he walked briskly out of the clearing and into the woods.
Cato that damn tease
Does anybody else see Localization.Strings where it should say description in the edit stories section?
Idk if my phone is fucked up or if somebody made a coding error🤓