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@harper-reed-d6
Harper Reed | District 6 | Female Tribute | 17 years old
Harper was born in district 6, but people that know her say she should have been from District 1 or 2, a career. She has been training herself since she was 12 and she figured out what the Hunger Games were. She hardly let anyone see...
Game On || Ryan and Harper
Andrew helped Harper sit up and watched as she inspected her arm. She always got up and made her way to her weapons. Andrew picked up the axe he had won, hand made but still very destructive. He was brought back to reality by Harper’s voice asking about food and water. He shook his head, “No, I haven’t. So it’s no use going in the direction where I came from. So I suggest we go in the direction that I was headed and hopefully we will find water in the process.”
A cannon rang through the silence, he saw that the tribute finally must have taken his last breath. Andrew smirked at Harper’s question, “No that was my second kill actually.” All of a sudden Harper was inches from him, taking his hand into hers. Her lips met his, this one being longer and deeper. “Hey, no problem. But I think we should get you out of the open. A little bit of rest will do us both some good.” Andrew looked up at the sky and saw the sun was already starting to set. And with the ruins all over the place finding shelter won’t be that hard.
Harper still seemed unsteady on her feet, enlacing his fingers with hers. Slowly they began to make their way to some sort of shelter. Soon they found an almost intact shelter with plenty of room to hide. “Come on we can hide out here for the night.”
Once inside Harper fell asleep almost immediately using his arm for a pillow. Andrew laughed to himself, this must be how Ryan feels all the time. “I never thought I would say this, but you are one lucky bastard my friend.”
'Well we'll see how long that lasts.'
Harper nodded at Ryan's suggestion. She turned to walk with him but as soon as she tried to take a step, she got light-headed and stumbled. She almost fell to the ground. Luckily Ryan had offered her his hand just in time. She squeezed his hand tightly as she leaned against him for support. She was feeling light-headed from her loss of blood and from standing too quickly. She felt that she was going to be sick, but she knew she could make it if she could just hold on for a few more minutes. She knew she would feel better if she had any food or water, but seeing as she didn't, she didn't want to complain about it.
Ryan led her into some of the ruins and helped her lay down for the night. The ground was cold and hard, but she was exhausted. Thanks to her exhaustion and her light-headedness, she almost instantly fell asleep on Ryan's arm. Just before she fell asleep, and she had laid down though, she got a weird feeling. She felt...warm. She figured it was because she was lying against Ryan and they were sharing body heat, but it was a feeling on the inside.
She got the slightest feeling that maybe it was because, she was actually starting to have feelings for this boy. Before she could think about it anymore, she fell asleep.
Game On || Ryan and Harper
Ryan had been walking for what felt like hours. The sun was already setting and Ryan was very tired.
'Let me take over, you look like you're about to passout'
Ryan didn’t even say anything before he opened his mind letting Andrew take control over their body. Once Andrew had gotten his surroundings he set off. Shortly afterwards he heard a struggle not to far ahead. Quietly Andrew advanced and saw two people having a struggle, one was much bigger than the other. The bigger figure got on top of the smaller one, and the smaller figure began to struggle. Andrew couldn’t place it but something about the smaller figure was familiar.
"Harper!" The word had escaped his mouth before he could think.he had to move quickly, he had to get her out of this.
Andrew rushed forward and grabbed the axe in the man’s hands. He pulled it back to the throat of the tribute. Pulling the axe free from their grasp, and Andrew thew the tribute to the ground. “You my friend picked the wrong girl to pick on.” Andrew raised the axe over his head, he took a split second to look into the terrified eyes of the near death tribute. In a downward motion Andrew brought down the axe with all of his might. Only meeting slight resistence of flesh and bone, then he could only watch as the tribute choked on his own blood.
He dislodged the axe from the now dead tribute and ran to Harper’s side. “Damn I’m so glad you’re alive. Don’t scare me like that again.” He moved her head and placed it on his lap. He examined the cut on her arm, it ran deep and she was loosing blood. He tour off his shirt sleeves and tied them tightly to her arm. “Hopefully that will stop the bleeding.” He looked into her face, he leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss, “fancy meeting you here.”
Harper felt herself losing consciousness and slowly slipping away from the arena when suddenly, the weight was gone. She barely had time to register what was happening, until her head was moved, now someone was touching her arm. She forced her eyes opened and waited for the blackness to leave her eyes and she saw him. It was Ryan, she had no idea where he came from or how he had saved her in time, but she didn't care. He found her.
She tried to smile, "I didn't mean to scare you," her voice was cracking, "if you had come five minutes later, I would've had him. I was winning." She laughed lightly and winced a little as he wrapped her arm. It hurt, but she wasn't going to complain, she wanted the bleeding to stop. She felt incredibly light-headed. Then he kissed her, and she felt her heart jump a little. She smirked at his comment, "Oh yes, what a surprise." Harper waited there a little longer until she felt more stable and she sat up, slowly. She rubbed her head and examined her arm.
It was already bleeding through the material that Ryan had tied around her arm, but the bleeding had definitely slowed and was likely to stop any moment. Now she just had to pray that it wouldn't get infected. She knew an infection in here meant death, but she didn't want to say anything. She slowly stood up, wavering slightly and made her way over to the tree to gather all of her little make-shift weapons. She turned to Ryan and asked, "You haven't found any water, have you? I haven't and I don't have any food, but we could always set traps for that kind of thing. Water is a little more difficult."
Harper was surprised by the sound of the cannon and turned to the man on the ground. She hadn't realized that he was still alive, but she was more aware that Ryan had just saved her life, literally. She turned back to Ryan and asked, "Was that your first kill?" Harper looked up in the trees and was deciding which they should go, but she had no idea. She realized she hadn't thanked Ryan for saving her, and she felt that she needed to. She shortened the distance between the two until she was standing inches form him. She took his hand in hers and leaned up and kissed him, it was a longer kiss than the first one, but she wanted to kiss him. "Thank you for saving me."
Game On || Ryan & Harper
Harper was done waiting. No one had walked by her hiding spot and she knew that if she didn't do something soon, the Gamemakers were going to take her life into their hands. She couldn't live with dying unless she was the one making the decisions. She made sure she had all of her make-shift knives and before she left her spot, she covered her face and jacket with as much wet dirt she could find and then she covered her jacket with grass stains. She was going to travel slowly and stay close to the ground, so this would be more than enough cover for her, she wasn't planning on being seen. With that, she headed north, hoping against hope that she would run into Ryan.
Harper had no way to tell what time it was or how much time had passed since she began walking, but she knew it had to have been hours. Even though the sun was going down and the arena had started to cool off, she was exhausted from her travels. She had taken breaks between walking, running, and a few times when she felt endangered, she climbed a nearby tree, of course she couldn't climb very high. She hadn't come across any signs of water. She hardly noticed her thirst or hunger though, her only thought was to find Ryan. Once she found him, they would make a plan and kill tributes and survive. He was her ally, and she needed to make sure he was safe, that was her end of the deal.
She was thinking about making a place to stop for the night when she heard it. CRACK.
It was definitely a branch breaking. She turned sharply but she didn't see anything. She slowly backed up into a tree and turned to climb it. She was about three quarters of the way up, just hidden under the leaves when she saw a man. She didn't know his name, but she recognized him from District 7. He had an ax, her eyes widened with awe. If he had an ax, that meant other tributes had weapons too. Either sponsors were already sending things, or there was a place around here with weapons that Harper needed to find. He stood still, listening. Harper held her breath, but her foot was slipping.
She picked up her foot to readjust it, but as she placed it back against the tree, her foot loosened a piece of bark from the tree. It fell from the tree, hitting the tree multiple times as it fell to the ground and Harper silently cursed herself. The man turned toward her tree and the ax left his hand. Not a moment too soon, she let go of the tree and she fell to the ground, landing on her feet. She charged towards him and knocked him to the ground. He pushed her off of him, knocking her against the tree she had hid in. She thrust the palm of her hand into his shoulder, dislocating it.
As he yelled, Harper spun around and she was on top of him again, trying to push one of her make-shift knives into his throat. Without looking twice, he glanced up at the tree and kicked Harper off of him. She landed a few feet away and she was struggling to regain her footing, the wind had been knocked out of her. By the time she was up again, she looked towards the man and he was coming at her with his ax, he had pulled it out of the tree. He swung it hard, and Harper turned, but not fast enough. His ax had cut into her left arm, and it was deep. She screamed from the pain and stumbled to the ground.
He jumped and he was on top of her, with his ax to her throat, and it was pushing hard. She felt it start to cut into her, she was trying to fight him off with her all of her strength, but it was just like at home and training with Harris. She just wasn't strong enough. She tried to break his wrist, but he pinned her arms to the ground with his knees. The ax was back at her throat, starting to cut into her flesh and she knew this was it, and she was gong to die.
Waiting; Cornucopia
Harper had two objectives she thought about as she was preparing to enter the tube that would lead her to the Games. Her first, was to run to the Cornucopia and grab any weapons she could. Her second, was to find Ryan. She didn't know where he was going to be placed in the arena, most likely he wouldn't be right next to her, so she would need to make eye contact and then run. She was letting her stylist primp her as he saw fit, although she wasn't much enjoying it.
As he finished highlighting her 'bone structure' or whatever, he grabbed her by the arm and led her to the tube to the arena. She tried to casually slide her arm out from his grasp, but he held tighter. She whipped her arm around and grabbed his wrist with her other hand, bending it back and almost breaking it. She pushed him away from her when he let go, "What the hell?" She yelled, "Don't touch me, I am not running and I know where I have to go. Thank you."
She stepped onto the tube, with her back to her stylist. As the platform rose and she realized she was hidden from his view, she rubbed her arm where he had gripped her. Why had he grabbed her? It had actually hurt a little. She pushed it from her mind, trying to prepare herself for the arena. The platform rose out of the ground, and Harper put her hand over her eyes, shading the bright light of the sun as her eyes adjusted. Then, she began to look around.
She saw there was no Cornucopia, there were no weapons, no supplies, no tributes. She turned around and looked behind her to check and make sure that she wasn't facing the wrong way. But there was nothing behind her either. She was surrounded by trees and ruins. She turned around frantically, almost falling off of her platform. She couldn't find Ryan. Where was he? How far away was he from her? Was he surrounded by tributes? Were they all separated? Could they somehow see her, even though she couldn't see them? There were so many questions buzzing through her mind. She tried to focus.
The clock that had been counting down now reached zero. Harper flew from her platform, running into the nearest building, trying to find a hiding place. She laid her body down under a window in the shadows and tried to come up with a plan. The first thing she had to do now was find water and a weapon. Water might be difficult to find, so first things first. A weapon. It wouldn't be much, but she had an idea. She took 3 or 4 medium-sized rocks that fit into the palm of her hand and began running them along side each other. She did this for who knows how long, she was getting lost in her own thoughts. Mainly worrying about where all of the other tributes were and wondering if any of them had been lucky enough to receive a weapon from the Capitol.
After some time, she had four rocks that were sharp enough to stab someone. She loaded three in her pocket and had one in her hand, in case someone came at her quickly. She decided that for the mean time, she would wait here, until someone or something came along that she could kill and get a better grasp about what was happening. Or until a plan came to her mind, whatever came first. She hated waiting here like a sitting duck, but she didn't have much else that she could do at this point. Oh well, time to wait.
A Show | Private Training
“Harper Reed from District 6.” She made her way to the dagger station. She wanted this to be over and quick. First, she should show that she has good aim, but targets were boring. She took five daggers and walked over to a dummy, then backed up about 20 feet. She took a deep breath, “Head.” She threw her first dagger and it landed in the center of the dummy’s head. “Heart.” She threw the second dagger and it landed in the dummy’s heart. She named three more places on the body, all hitting with accuracy. “Abdomen, inside of the elbow, big toe.” The last two were just to show off her aim.
She walked over to the fighting ring and pressed a few of the buttons and jumped in the ring. The holograms that appeared before her were three times her size. They both started for her and she quickly rolled out of the way. One of them caught her by the arm and gave her a swift punch to the face, and she was down on her knees. The pain was definitely real and intense. She ducked her head just in time to avoid another hit to her nose. She kicked low to the ground, catching its ankles and sending it tumbling to the ground and she quickly jumped on top of it. She wrapped her arms around its throat and was squeezing as tightly as she could, until she was lifted off of it.
The other hologram had come up behind her and grabbed her by the neck and lifted her off of its partner. She was dangling in the air from the arms of the hologram. She was running out of air, and she needed to do something. She grabbed the inside of its elbow and pinched the skin, it pulled away, letting Harper drop just enough to swing her legs over her head and wrap themselves around the neck of the hologram. She swung her torso up so that she was sitting on the hologram’s shoulders and she broke its neck and left it fall beneath her.
She only had 45 seconds left so when the second hologram came at her, she rolled out of the way and jumped out of the ring and over to the dagger station. She turned to look over her shoulder to see where the hologram was and then turned back to the station to choose a dagger. Then she quickly threw it behind her, without aiming. It dissolved instantly as the bell rang. She began to walk out repeating, “Harper Reed from 6 and thanks for watching.” She hated this place.
Details || Ryan & Harper
To say that Harper was good would be an understatement, Andrew had almost been certain that she would pass out. Then the next thing he knew the instructor was cradling his hand with Harper crushing his ribs. She made her way back to him rubbing her neck and giving a wry smile. “Does that count? Well lets see, you broke his wrist and basically left a grown man twice your size crying like a little baby on the floor. So yeah I think that counts.” He checked her neck to make sure there hadn’t been any serious injuries, but all he saw was some slight bruising.
Andrew could not have been happier with the ally that he had picked, she was both beautiful but was also just as dangerous. But there was something else he had noticed, he was actually enjoying her company. This was very different from the constant urges to kill or seriously injure people, and only having Ryan as company. Not exactly the best life so far, but Harper was something else.
"Well I think we’ve proven our point here I suggest we try out some daggers. Plus we need to practice so we can show off for the Gamemakers." They made their way to the knives, and Andrew was not disappointed. There were knives everywhere ranging from small to large, dull and sharp. There were dummies, targets, moving targets, even a simulation that would produce enemies for you to fight.
Facing Harper and gave her a quick kiss but this time on the lips, he wanted to know what it felt like and he also wanted to move things along. Andrew had never actually been allowed to socialize with people very much, no thanks to Ryan but he had felt this kind of feeling before. Or more like experienced it through Ryan and it was the feeling he got when Ryan and Alexandra had first started dating. It was both exhilarating but terrifying at the same time. “Show them what your made of.”
Harper was itching with excitement to get to the daggers. This was the point that she felt was her strongest. She and Hayden worked and worked and worked on this point. This was her skill that she chose to perfect and she was ready to showcase it. She practically ran to the station, eager to throw one. She was practically held back by Ryan so that he could kiss her and wish her luck. This time, Harper was taken aback by Ryan kissing her, because it was on the lips. She figured this would come eventually, she just didn't expect it. It was quick though, so then she was off to the dagger station.
She examined the array of daggers she could choose from, and the different kinds of targets. She decided to try the dummies out first. She picked three small blades since there were three marks on the dummy that indicated death if they were hit just right. She stood at the line and took a deep breath. As she exhaled, she lifted her arms and threw the darts back to back. Right, left, right. It took less than two seconds, and each blade had wedged itself deep into the center of all three of the targets. She felt empowered, she was smiling like a crazy person. She wanted to practice on her distance though.
She chose a knife that was as long as her forearm and was heavier than the rest. She stood about 100 feet away from the single target. She took a running start and after a few steps, she hurled the knife. It spun in the air, blade over handle and lodged itself into first ring. It wasn't in the true center, but it was good enough if she were to be approached by a target running towards her. She noticed there was a moving target and she set the settings to the fastest speed and zig zag.
There were three of them moving around, she chose some medium sized daggers with arrow shaped blades. She approached the lines and watched the targets for a few seconds then she threw. She threw one, and then the second, and she spun around and let the final dagger leave her hand as she finished her spin. Once the targets were hit, they stopped. They were all hit in the dead center, Harper was beaming. She was proud, and Hayden would be too.
As she approached Ryan again, she tried to control the adrenaline flowing through her body. Before she thought twice, she grabbed Ryan by the collar of his shirt and brought his mouth to meet hers. This time the kiss was longer and definitely believable. His kiss was surprisingly soft, for as tough as he was and she was even more surprised to find that she was...liking it. She pulled away and looked at him for a few seconds but then she smirked, "Beat that." She walked a little further away so she could watch Ryan from a good spot.
Caesar Flickerman: Ladies and gentlemen, let us welcome to the stage Harper Reed from district 6. Everyone give her a round of applause. To start off, how are you feeling about this year’s games?
Harper: Oh Caesar, I am so ready to get into that arena and show you all what I can do. I am excited!
Caesar Flickerman: What trait or ability do you possess that you think makes you stand out over the rest of the completion?
Harper: Well, I am wicked with daggers. I have impeccable aim and I am quick. I am also pretty great when it comes to hand to hand combat, despite my size. *winks* So no one suspects that.
Caesar Flickerman: If you do come out as victor, what is the first thing you’ll do with the new found title?
Harper: I am going to go home and move my whole family into my new house.
Caesar Flickerman: As everyone knows, since this is a Quarter Quell Games, there were no age restrictions on the Reaping. How do you think this will affect the Games?
Harper: Well, we are going to see how people will act when they are faced with killing children and elders...it will be different.
Caesar Flickerman: Thank you Harper and may the odds be ever in your favor!
Details || Ryan & Harper
Harper made a good point, it was one thing to be seen as a couple but if they could back it up with some kick ass fighting they would be set. Also Andrew was itching to throw a few punches with the instructor at the combat station. So he didn’t resist when she began to lead him over to it, there were only a few people at this station and the fighting ring was free. Andrew felt his face redden when Harper kissed his cheek, he had noticed a change in her since they had agreed to work together. She was more confident and more comfortable around him, he hardly felt any tension when they were closer, and he liked this new side of Harper a lot more fun to be around.
He bent down and returned her kiss, “Oh don’t worry that would be my specialty.” He entered the ring and got himself ready, fighting had always come naturally to him. He played dirty and he played to win, just perfect for this kind of situation.
The instructor moved into position, he was an average size guy and wasn’t much bigger than Andrew himself. Andrew let him make the first move, and he came with full offensive attack throwing a few punches to the face. Andrew easily dodged them moving to the side and pivoting on his feet facing the his opponent. “Hey now, lets not hurt the money maker shall we?” This only seemed to anger the guy, making his moves more reckless and more aggressive. After dodging a few more punches and a kick aimed for his head Andrew saw his opportunity. He threw a right hook to the instructor’s temple, he connected and the instructor was thrown off balance. Obviously dazed Andrew threw his whole weight into him taking them both to the ground, where he then pinned the instructor disabling him. With one last punch to the face Andrew knocked the guy out cold, and as he got off two avoxes came up behind him and dragged the unconscious instructor out of the ring. Afterwards they ran off to get a new instructor.
Andrew returned to Harper and greeted her with a hug, “So what do ya think?” Soon a new instructor arrived ready to get started, “Ok your turn, show me what you’ve got. I would say good luck but I have a feeling that you won’t need it, but good luck anyway.”
When Ryan kissed her and said it was his specialty, Harper got the urge to laugh. She quickly brought her hand to her mouth so that only a giggle escaped between her fingers. A giggle? Was she serious? Harper didn't even know that she could giggle; that she would be able to giggle, and it sounded stupid to her. They were training to prevent their death and also planning on how to best kill their opponents. All this, she knew and she was standing here, giggling because Ryan kissed her cheek and said something funny. She pushed it out of her mind. She didn't want to think about that now, she wanted to focus on Ryan in the arena.
As he took his stance, Harper saw that he was gauging what the the instructor's first move was going to be. The instructor charged towards him, she didn't even see it coming, but then again, she wasn't really focusing on the instructor. Something moved in her chest, a feeling she couldn't quite describe. Was she pitying him?...no. Was it...worry? Either way, Ryan was faster than the instructor and was soon on top of the instructor, pinning him to the ground and he made a quick movement. The instructor did not move again. As he returned to Harper's side, she had a bright smile. Why? She wiped it off, she felt stupid. She took one look around though, and she knew why she was smiling; what she had been feeling. She had felt pride. Pride in Ryan's accomplishment, or pride in the fact that she had chosen a strong ally? She looked around again and took in all the tributes, staring at Ryan. She was proud at what he had accomplished. He had just proven how powerful he was, and he had made it look easy.
She nodded to him, "You are definitely a strong fighter, and I think everyone else noticed it too." She winked, "Thanks." She headed towards the ring and stepped inside. She tried to size up her new instructor, trying to compare him to her brothers. Shit. He was definitely a Henley, the second biggest of her brothers when compared to her small frame. She thought back to her training at home, when she fought each brother, she had to take a different approach. With Henley, she submitted. So she would do the same with this instructor. She took a defensive stance and waited for him to charge. When he did, she swooped her leg low to the ground and kicked one of his legs from under him and he fell. He was quick to regain himself and he was on top of Harper, pinning her body to the ground, hands on her throat.
She was starting to black out, like with Henley. She had her hands around one of his wrists, but she wasn't tugging to stop, she was feeling along his bone and as she almost blacked out, she found what she was looking for and flicked her wrists. The instructor wailed and let go of her neck and she punched his nose up quickly; breaking it like she did his wrist. He was still on the ground by the time she stood and she put her heel in his ribs, hard. She was trying to knock the air out of him so he couldn't get back up and it works, he waves her off and Harper knows she has won. She makes her way back to Ryan, rubbing her neck with it slightly bruised. She is still catching her breath. "A different approach, but with his size...it was the fastest way for me to...take him down." She had to pause a few times to breathe. "But that counts...right?" She gives him a wry smile.
Meeting A Fan || Wren & Harper
Wren looked at the girl’s outstretched hand. She was still processing the shock of being someone’s favorite, from someone thinking well of her. Especially after the messes she had made the past few years. It took her a few moments to realize the proper response for outstretched hands. She slowly reached her own out and shook Harper’s as normally as she could manage. Her grip was loose and contact didn’t last long, but Wren thought it was a decent enough handshake.
"I… are you sure you want my advice?" Wren asked, genuinely confused. Her time in the arena wasn’t memorable. It was scarred into her own memories, but not many others remembered. Even Capitol citizens asked her to remind them how she had won. Considering she really won by sleeping half the arena time away, she couldn’t blame them. "I’m not exactly… the best at this sort of thing. But Burton is… ummm, good… I think."
Harper took the half-hearted handshake gladly. She figured this would be an awkward process, but she had no idea that Wren would take Harper approaching her this well. She had figured Wren would laugh in her face and walk off, but she figured she better try because she might never see Wren again. She tended to be a very good hider when she did not want to be found. Harper gave her a bright smile, despite Wren's apprehension. Harper nodded to Wren when she asked if she was serious. "Yes, I want your advice." Harper didn't understand how Wren was not seeing how valuable she was. Even if she was the weakest person in the world, she was a mentor, so she had a connection to sponsors. Or she was connected to other mentors that were connected to sponsors. Wren was extremely valuable.
Harper shrugged, "I have actually talked to Burton, and he is very knowledgeable and has given me some great advice. But all of his advice is how to play by the rules, which I understand to a point is necessary, but I don't want to be what the Capitol wants me to be. You went through all of this too, and somehow during it all you managed to survive, right? There must be one thing you picked up that you could pass on to me? In all these crazy things you do, you are different from the other mentors, and I think it's in a positive way."
Details || Ryan & Harper
Harper seemed a little taken aback when he asked for her help, her face even seemed to get red but thankfully she gave him more than just a few pointers. As she joined him at the line she started to explain how he would need to arrange his body for the optimal throw. She handed him another spear and proceeded to help him arrange himself. She went to work by moving his legs to where they needed to be. Her hand met his when she lifted the spear up to his face, their eyes meeting just for a second. Finally in the right positions Harper inspected his stance by walking around a few times, and once she seemed satisfied she motioned to the target telling him to give it another go.
Taking a deep breath Andrew slowed his breathing slowly drawing the spear back. Finding his target he propelled the weapon forward with all his might making sure to keep his arm straight the entire time. He watched as it flew through the air embedding itself much closer to the center of the target. It still wasn’t as good as Harper’s but for a second attempt he assumed it wasn’t bad. With this he let a small smile creep onto his face and turned to face Harper, “Well it could have been worse.”
The spear was definitely not his weapon of choice but if push came to shove Andrew was confident that he would be able to use a spear if needed. Walking over to Harper he picked up another spear along the way shifting it in his hands. He leaned himself against the wall standing next to her and surveyed the stations around them. He mostly saw so many age groups, so many different people, but all were aiming for the same goal survival. He was met with a few curious eyes, they all seemed to be looking between him and Harper some making the connection.
"So tell me how well do you think this is going? I know you’ve noticed some of the attention that we’ve gathered."
Harper leaned against the wall along with Ryan and watched him look around. When he asked how she thought this was going, Harper laughed to pretend that Ryan said something funny so that some girl tribute wouldn't think he was saying anything important. Once the girl was out of ear shot Harper looked back to Ryan. "Well I have noticed the attention. I think these people actually believe that we are a thing. I mean, we have convinced them of that. However, I don't think they see us as a threat, I think they see us as a team."
Harper elaborated, "All we have done are a couple of survival training booths and one weapon station that we are okay at at best." Harper leaned in closer to Ryan, "I know that we said we would wait, but they need to start seeing us as somewhat of a threat before they lose interest, otherwise the few sponsors we have a chance at scoring will lose interest too." Harper looked around until she spotted what she was looking for and pointed slightly, "We need to hit either the dagger station or the combat station. That way they can see what we can do."
Harper took Ryan by the hand and led him to the combat station. She hardly noticed Ryan's hand anymore. At the beginning of this whole thing, when Ryan put his arm around her, she would turn bright red and despite what they were doing, had the instinct to push away. Since this whole thing, she was actually getting used to his touch. It felt almost...comforting. It was a good thing that Harper wasn't noticing this subtle change, because she needed to keep up the act and if she had noticed this, she would definitely freak out a little. As they reached the station, Harper turned to Ryan, "Why don't you go first?" She stood on her toes and hid her face in his neck and whispered, "Give them something to be afraid of." Then she kissed his cheek.
Introductions - Elle & Harper
"Well, when I say computer-based, I mean that something that could be controlled by a computer…like a missile or some kind of electrocution device…I don’t think they exist in the arena." She laughed back at Harper. The girl seemed to be hesitant to let on anything about herself. She wasn’t demonstrating any skills or saying much at all really. However, Elle knew that these were part of the Games. Even though they weren’t in the arena, these other Tributes weren’t her friends. They were all sizing her up, getting ready to kill based on what they know.
"Well…" Elle awkwardly started, trying to make conversation so the moment didn’t turn sour. "What’s District Six like?" She acted like she was interested in what the girl had to so, and honestly she kind of was. Elle had seen so many pictures of it in her students’ textbooks and videos of it on the news. They were known for being morphling-striken, the place crawling with them, however outside of that, Elle knew nothing.
"But really though, what’s your life like? Outside of this crazy mess."
Harper listened with interest to what Elle had to say and then she shrugged, "You never know. Maybe there will be one in the center of the cornucopia. They have had bombs and land-mines before." Harper didn't know if they would include a missile, but there have definitely been mines and bombs and such before. Of course you have to be the first one to get to them and know how to use them, and tributes from district 3 were never that athletic. Harper didn't know why, but she got an urge to tell the girl this, in case she didn't already know...but would that count as helping her? Or being condescending? Either way, she thought it was better not to say anything just to stay on the safe side.
When Elle asked about what she did, Harper was caught by surprise. Not that she didn't believe Elle was interesting in what district 6 produced, Harper didn't care if she did or not. But while you were in the training center, that's just not something you talked about. Most people tried to create allies, discover who their enemies and greatest threats were, tried to make a strategy for the arena, and watching the other tributes to see what they are all majoring in; all while trying to learn the best ways to save your own ass. Harper was surprised because this was something you didn't talk about because you simply didn't have time for it.
It was as if this Elle girl was trying to force conversation. But she didn't have to, she could just walk away, so why didn't she? Oh well, if this is what she wanted to play, Harper could go along too. "Well District 6 is the transportation district. My brothers all work in factories on assembly lines. Building things they can't use, sending them to a place they will never be allowed to visit unless they are picked for the Hunger Games. As a 17 year old girl, I am not allowed to work in the factories. And thanks to my brothers, I haven't had a need to work, I focus mainly on my studies in my spare time." Harper decided to leave the part about her training with her brothers almost everyday out, Elle didn't need to know that. "What about you? What do you do in your free time?"
Details || Ryan & Harper
Harper pointed to the station with spears, she wanted to play with weapons now, fine with Andrew. As she lead him over to it he heard her whisper about her dangerous side. “Oh I have no doubt, lets see what you can do.” Harper picked one up and studied it, so far so good she at least seemed to know what she was doing.
Andrew watched her every move as she executed her kill, since he had never thrown one before. Hers landed in the target, that was for one good, and she also obviously done this before. She turned smiling obviously enjoying herself, smiling back Andrew clapped “Impressive, was that beginners luck or have you done this before?” He picked up one of his own, it was surprisingly lighter than he had thought it would be. Shifting it in his hand he found a good grip and a comfortable weight distribution. “Ok lets see how this goes, though you might want to take a few steps back, I have never thrown one of these before.”
He tried to mimic the stance that Harper had taken, placing the spear by his head so he could take aim. He slowed his breathing and took a few steps forward before extending his arm letting the spear leave his hand. It was close to Harper’s except no where near it, he seemed to have over shot it barley landing in the target at all. He turned and threw his hands up in defeat, “Ok how did you do that. Please grace me with your teachings.”
Harper shrugged, "Maybe I've done this once or twice." Harper watched Ryan closely, he seemed like he was trying to follow Harper's steps, which was a good place to start. When he told her to step back Harper smiled a little to herself and said, "Well okay," and she took a couple steps back. He watched him throw the spear and followed it with her eyes. It had hit the target, that was a good sign. Although it had only touched the edge of it. If this had been a real person, it would have definitely hurt them, but it wouldn't kill them quick enough. It would take more time to kill them, and you wanted to kill as quickly as possible so you could move on and stay alive.
As Ryan turned around and threw his hands up and asked how she had done it, Harper blushed and replied, "I can show you, but trust me, I won't be gracing you." Blushing? Was she really blushing? Why was Harper blushing? He had complimented her but, she didn't think she had done that well. That must have been it. Harper didn't think she was that skilled with spears, so for someone to compliment her made her feel silly. She brushed the thought off and she approached the line where Ryan was standing.
"Here, get another spear and I'll show you," she handed him another spear and let him get a feel for it again. "Once you have it, you need to take your stance, like this." She bent down and touched one of Ryan's calves, "Place this one slightly behind the other, but make sure they are both facing your target." Once his legs were in place, she stood back up and faced him, with her back to the target. "When you aim, make sure your shoulders are aligned and keep the spear in line with your eye." Harper placed her hand on Ryan's hand that was holding the spear and led it up to his face. She lined it up, looking into his eye, and back to the spear to make sure it was perfect.
She walked around behind him and said, "Now take your aim, and when you throw, be sure you follow through and keep your arm straight. The power comes from the follow through." She stood off to the side again and motioned to the target, "Try again."
Introductions - Elle & Harper
"Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you Harper." Elle said with a slight nod, picking up a spear that was similar to the one that the girl was holding. "I’m from Three, so basically, if there’s a weapon powered by computers I’ll be set, but unfortunately, I don’t think that’s going to happen…so practice I will." Glancing over the spear, she took a few minutes to look over its features. "Familiarity breeds contempt." She said almost to herself as she tested various areas on the weapon, trying to find the center of balance.
Elle tried not to make it seem that she was completely inadequate with the spear, but she tried to copy what Harper was doing. Even though the girl from Six didn’t seem completely lost, as Elle probably did, she probably knew a good bit more about weapons in general.
Taking a few steps back she tried to gather enough wind-up to send the projectile towards the set of targeted dummies. Elle bounded forward and let the weapon free from her grasp. It made its way forward and although it missed the target, it landed in the upper thigh of the dummy.
"Not bad." Elle remarked. "There’s room for improvement but for now it will work." She turned to Harper. "Told you, if this were computer-based, it would be so much easier."
Harper watched the throw, with little interest. She wasn't really too keen on seeing how well the other tributes could perform. She didn't want to see what she was up against. She also didn't want to show any of the other tributes what she could do, face to face. Elle clearly didn't take enough time to aim, and when she ran she didn't even try to keep her feet straight so she wasn't keeping the spear straight. When she threw the spear, she didn't keep her arm as straight as she could and she didn't follow through. Many flaws, but not bad if this was the first time she had ever thrown a spear.
Harper gave a slight smile in return to what Elle said. She didn't know what else to do. What was Elle expecting? Were other tributes actually trying to get to know one another? Why would they? That would just make it more difficult to kill them, unless you were heartless. Still, not everyone in here was that heartless. Was Elle expecting help from Harper? Harper wasn't too excited to jump at the first chance to help someone else be a more powerful killer. Harper didn't know what the other tributes were doing or thinking, but she didn't care.
She wasn't going to help someone, and she didn't really feel like getting closer to another person she might have to end up killing. She especially didn't want to let Elle find out what her weaknesses were. Still, Harper didn't have the heart to walk away in the middle of a conversation with the girl, she didn't seem too bad. Well, if Harper didn't want Elle to know her weaknesses, and she didn't really want to help her with a weapon...might as well find out more about what she is capable of. That couldn't hurt, right? Harper leaned against the spear she was holding, "What do you mean, computer-based?" She shrugged a little, "I have no idea what that means or how those work," she laughed.
Details || Ryan & Harper
Andrew could almost smell the anger off of Harper, the moment his hand touched hers he could feel tension rise. It was there and then gone replaced with grudged understanding, Andrew could tell Harper was a prideful girl. It was only after they got the first fire going did he realize that he might have hurt her pride a bit, and for some reason he was very angry with himself. He tried to push these thoughts away as Harper made two additional fires, no doubt to prove that she could do it. Andrew couldn’t help but smile he couldn’t believe that he had found someone in this world as stubborn as he was.
Harper then stood up looking to the near by stations and seemed to have noticed something. Andrew looked in the direction she was looking and saw what she saw, so many eyes were on them. Their plan seemed to be working, or it was going so bad that people couldn’t help but stare. Either way there was no point in backing down now, and Harper seemed to have come to the same conclusion as she rooted herself to his side, taking his hand into both of hers.
The kiss took him by surprise, this girl was getting better and better as they went. Smiling he kissed her on the forehead and lightly squeezed her hand to let her know that she was doing a good job. “You weren’t that bad, once you got the hang of it you were fine. That is a good question, we could go and learn what plants are edible or some other survival thing. Or we could go look at some long range weapons, whatever sounds more useful to you.”
The survival stations were still the least populated station, and he was more than happy staying here. But there was apart of him that longed to have a dangerous object in his hand again.
Harper had seen Ryan glance around the arena at all the tributes around them. She knew he was noticing it too; how they were all staring at them. Harper felt Ryan squeeze her hand and she knew what he was doing. She was doing a good job. She was so relieved, at least for now, because she was doing a good job. At Ryan's ideas, Harper was debating to herself. On the one hand, she knew they needed to learn more survival skills, just to be safe. On the other hand, she had been doing a good job. She deserved a reward, right? Plus, they could alternate between survival skills and weapons that they weren't the best at.
Then they would both still be learning things they would need to know for the Games, so no harm done, right? She pointed to a station with spears, "How about we go to that one?" She had to admit, she was also excited to prove herself useful to Ryan. How embarrassing was it that she needed help to build a fire? The last thing she wanted to do was have Ryan regret forming an alliance with her. When Harper handled a weapon, though she was someone that you wanted on your side. She led him over to the station and whispered, "Then I can show you how dangerous I can be."
She had practiced with spears back at home and a little in the arena with a tribute named Elle whenever Ryan and Harper split to look for more allies earlier. Her body was itching to throw something. She picked up a spear and studied it as she stepped behind the painted line. She held it by her head and she took aim. She exhaled to make sure that her aim would be the best it could be. She inhaled as she ran a few steps to meet the line and she threw all of her power into her arm as she let it go. When the spear landed in the target, it landed right on the line between the first and second rings of the target. She was getting better, that was good. She turned around to Ryan with a smile on her face and she breathed, "Your turn."
Details || Ryan & Harper
Harper decided to work on the fire and so the listening began. The survival skills station was one of the least populated station so it was basically just them and the instructor. It made almost no sense until the the guy started showing them how to actually do it, so how hard could it be? Andrew took a look around the whole facility for the first time noticing the other people, the other people who were learning to kill each other. Some ranged from 10 all the way to their 80’s, this years would indeed be an interesting year.
The instructor left them to practice, showing them where to find all the supplies. Just like the instructor had said Andrew grabbed a lot of kindling and some middle sized sticks. Once he had arranged the sticks and kindling into the way he wanted, he began to add friction by tacking a stick and spinning it while moving his hands down the stick. With some difficulty and trial and error he had a small fire going. “That wasn’t so hard.” Looking over he saw that Harper was having trouble and looked very frustrated.
"Here let me help. For one your sticks are too big and you don’t have enough kindling. And two your not adding enough friction, but otherwise you were doing a very good job." He took out some of her bigger sticks and added some more kindling, "see you want have small things in order to just get it started and then make it bigger by adding bigger things later. And now all we gotta do is get it started, and we do that by taking this stick and spinning it while moving your hands down the stick." Taking a stick that he had already taken out and showed it to her, he took her hands in his and then placed them on the stick. He then started spinning the stick slowly moving her hands down the stick.
He didn’t know if this would work in the whole acting thing but he did it anyway, “See it’s not that hard.”
Harper had to fight harder than before not to hit Ryan. At the touch of his hands on hers, she got the urge to pull away again, but she didn't. She knew he was only trying to help, but the fact that Ryan said it was so easy...that made her want to kill him. Harper had too much pride for her own good, and having someone help her made her sick. The only person Harper could ever take any help from without batting an eye, was Hayden. Of course that was because she was in love with him, and all he ever wanted to do was help her. Like Ryan was now, but no. He was doing this for the act, and she was too. They needed the sponsors.
At this thought she suppressed any negative feelings about receiving help, they were allies after all. With Ryan's help, she started a fire. Harper made two more fires after that without Ryan's help just to make sure that she could do it herself if anything happened in the arena. Plus she didn't want to completely need to rely on Ryan, and it did a little something for her pride. After they were done, they stood to head to another station and Harper took that chance to look around again.
She was met with more than a few stares. People were staring, and she doubted they were staring because of her fire building skills. What Harper wanted to know was if they were staring in contempt or belief. Either way, they were getting attention, and Harper needed to act on it. She stepped around her last fire and stood at Ryan's side. "Thanks for the help, who knew I would suck so bad at surviving, right?" She gave a light laugh. Happy and carefree, that went along with love, right?
She grabbed his hand and held it in both of hers. She was a little closer to him than she had planned with she leaned in to grab his hand so it was almost an accident when she kissed him on the cheek, but she went with it, trying to make it look sincere. "So, where to next?"
Introductions - Elle & Harper
Elle had spent most of the morning avoiding any station that could be fatal. However she did try almost every survival station that she could find some kind of success in. Even though it seemed to be somewhat counter-productive, the Hunger Games were about killing, not knowing how to start a perfect fire. However, what she learned might come in use, if the Games really were as much about surviving as they were about killing, then she had a good foundation. Interrupting her thoughts she noticed another Tribute. She was on the younger side of the range of Tributes, probably only a few years within Elle’s own age. Elle’s view on meeting people was rapidly changing as Training ensued. At first she thought this would be an independent ordeal, she would do her own thing at her own time, trying to avoid all others, but as she got further into the few Training days they had, she was quickly changing her opinion on meeting the other Tributes. Not only was she gaining information about what they were about, their strengths and weaknesses, she could also be finding a valuable potential ally for the Games. It was amazing how quickly someone’s opinion could change when their lives were on the line. So Elle decided to give the girl a chance. If things went sour, then she knew to watch out for her in the arena, and if not, it would only be a positive experience for the both of them. "You’re from District 6 right? I’m Elle."
Harper and Ryan had decided to split up for a couple minutes while he spoke to another tribute. Harper wanted more than anything to go to the dagger station. She hadn't touched one in days. She held herself back though, she needed to hide what she was good at. Instead, she decided to try with some spears. She needed to work on her arm anyways.
She picked up one of the spears and tried to gauge it's weight in her hands. It wasn't heavier than 20 pounds, but throwing 20 pounds could be a little difficult. She practiced tossing it up in the air and catching it again. She decided to go ahead and give it a shot. She took her stance and raised the spear to take aim. She took a deep breath and ran a couple steps and threw the spear with all of her might while trying to keep it as straight as she could. Well it wasn't a bad throw. It didn't land in the center of the target, but it landed on the line between the 2nd and last ring. Not that bad at all. She bent down to pick up another spear when she heard a voice.
Harper didn't want to get to know other tributes. Well it wasn't that, she didn't want them to know about her, so she ended up just not really talking at all to the other tributes, even when they tried to talk to her. So while Harper was just trying to be safe, she was rubbing some people the wrong way. But hey, it was better that a few people thought she was a little rude than everyone knowing how to kill her.
She gave a slight smile, "Yeah. I'm Harper." She stood there awkwardly, not knowing what else to say. "What district are you from, again?"
