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Chapter 16

[Marina Pellgrove's POV]

I wasn’t able to go to sleep. The cut on my arm from Althea’s arrow stung despite not being very deep, and I had nothing to treat it with. And the now exposed skin on my arm was forced to deal with the cold. Without the strange material covering it, I was no longer protected from the freezing air. I don’t know how our exposed heads seemed immune to the cold, but the Capitol must have done something to the suits so that our faces could be exposed. Nothing exciting about a dying tribute if you can’t see their face, right?

Fortunately, the temperature within the trees was much warmer. I would be fine for the night. The odd rumble of thunder, however, was my main safety concern. How the Capitol managed to initiate a thunderstorm in a frozen arena was beyond my imagination.

“Marina!” I heard a voice whisper in the darkness. My heartbeat skyrocketed as I glanced down sharply from my spot in the tree. A flash of lightning illuminated the face of none other than Talon Keene, standing alone on the ground with a spear in hand. He waited for the low, distant rumble of thunder to pass before he spoke again, while I in the meantime was looking for a way to escape. As much as Talon had helped me before the Games, there was no doubt in my mind that he would kill me if he had the chance.

“Uh, yeah.” I whispered back, confused at his concern and wondering why he didn’t just kill me right now.

“Come down from there! I have food!” he reached into the bag on his back and pulled out an apple, smiling at me and waving it around dramatically before taking a bite. The lightning lit up his face again, and I hoped none of the other tributes were near, otherwise we’d both end up dead.

A drop of ice cold rain splashed on my face, indicating that the storm was closer.

“Come on, Marina!” Talon whined comically, his voice still quiet. I glared at him, and for the first time I noticed the blood on the tip of his spear. I’d almost forgotten about his earlier kill. Fear lurched my stomach once more as I quickly looked away.

“No!” I whispered sharply back.

“Aw, come on! Don’t make me come up there!”

This got a laugh out of me, and I didn’t even try to hide it.

“Like you could climb this.” I snorted. I heard him grunt angrily and looked down to see him attempting to climb in an agonizingly slow and clumsy manner.

“Maybe not…but…” he began as he heaved himself onto a branch. “I’m not leaving you.”

“Oh, cut the bullshit Talon! We’re not at the Capitol anymore! Drop the act!” I realized I was raising my voice, and looked around anxiously to see if anyone was near.

“It’s not an act! Why do you think I helped you?”

“For your own sake.” I answered automatically. He didn’t respond. “I knew it.” I muttered, letting out a sarcastic chuckle. “And here I thought you were different.”

“It’s not what you think.” Talon’s voice growled, closer than I expected. I looked down to see that he was only about 8 feet below me now. “I risked everything-”

“A tribute from District 1 helping a tribute from District 12…” I spat. “You knew everyone would eat it up. The perfect controversy.”

“They don’t care-”

“Yes they do!” I had to work to keep my voice down. Talon glared at me this time, but before he could say anything, he lost his footing on the branch and slid further down, catching himself on one of the lowest branches. Letting out a sigh of frustration, he looked up at me again.

“Just because Caesar asked you and me about it doesn’t mean they all care, and if they do, they’ll stop when you come with me.” He promised, giving up climbing and hopping back onto the ground. “That’s what I came here for. Ally with me. Then you’ll be better off…you and I both damn well know it. And everyone watching will understand why I helped you and they won’t care in the way you think they will.”

“I’m not allying with you.” I murmured, and instantly I thought about Huck. If he was still alive, which I assumed he was since I’d heard no more cannon fire, I needed to find him. Talon picked up on my hesitation.

“He won’t do you any good.” Talon spoke up louder as the rain began to fall harder. “You want to survive? You come with me.”

I weighed my options. Talon was probably right that I would last longer with him. But I had no chance of winning anyways, so would I be better off helping Huck? I moved down a few branches.

“All I have to do is scream, and the rest of the careers will come and they’ll kill you.” Talon threatened.

“I thought you wanted me to live.” I spat, climbing down a few more. I was already deciding that if he had wanted to kill me, he would have already. And he did have food.

“I do…for the moment. But it’s your choice, and your death won’t be on my hands.”

“That’s not what you told Alabaster.” I climbed down further, but slipped on the wet bark just as I was nearly there. With a gasp, I shut my eyes instinctively and planted my feet to help me land. Landing firmly, but with pain shooting up my legs, I felt Talon put his arms around me to steady me.

“Get off me.” I snarled, pushing him away.

“Ever figure that I was trying to protect you from him? Think what you want, though. I could care less about what you think at this point…or if you’re even thinking at all.” He ignored my glare. “But about allying with me…what’ll it be?” he was smirking again. I didn’t answer, instead grabbing an apple from his pack and eagerly taking a bite. He inhaled deeply, and I realized in an instant he was about to scream. Holding my apple in my teeth, I threw my hands over his mouth just as he started to make a sound.

His stupid blue eyes twinkled amusedly at me as I let go and took my apple out of my mouth.

“What’ll it be, baby?” he whispered arrogantly.

“I’ll go with you, but promise me one thing.” I hissed.

“And what’ll that be?”

“Keep Huck alive.” I watched as anger washed over Talon’s face, but he said nothing. I continued. “If anything, don’t be the one that kills him unless you’re the last two left. Got it?”

“Fine.” He said sourly, grabbing my arm and practically dragging me toward a destination only he knew. I was nowhere near excited about this, but at least I knew I was doing all I could to keep Huck and I alive.

“Oh, and don’t call me baby.” I demanded, shuddering at the word. It just sounded so…wrong coming from him. With a smirk, he glanced back at me.

“You only asked me to promise you one thing, baby.” He drawled. I gave him the most menacing glare I could muster, although it didn’t have much affect apparently, as Talon just rolled his eyes and faced forward once more.

He ended up leading me back to the Cornucopia, where all the careers had decided to take shelter. I should have known. The careers camp out by the Cornucopia every year unless some other place seems to be better. Here, they could use the Cornucopia for shelter, reactivate the mines for defense (if they knew how without blowing themselves up), and hoard all the food and resources they had gathered in the middle of the open area.

Blood was stained in several spots on the snow-covered ground, leftover from the bloodbath at the beginning of the Games. I swallowed nervously, and nearly slipped on the snow as I tried to quickly get behind Talon. Alabaster was making his way toward us.

“So you decided to join us, Marina,” he stated more than asked, grinning widely in a way that managed to make me shudder.

“Yeah,” I mutter hesitantly, mentally refusing to go anywhere without Talon from this moment on. Even if he’s the one that kills me, I’d rather it be him than Alabaster.

“Good!” Alabaster exclaims, before walking off towards Breccia, to my relief. I felt the urge to blurt out all of my fears to Talon for some reason…as if he’d have some magical words of assurance. But I knew better. Even though he’d trained for this all his life, he and I could both end up dead before I can blink.

Althea marches up to Talon, never glancing in my direction.

“Hey, so we’re gonna sleep in the Cornucopia. There’s no snow on the ground in there and it offers wind protection. Alabaster and Breccia will guard tonight, and you and I will guard tomorrow night and rotate until shit happens and…well…we can’t keep up that system.” She lets out a nervous laugh, before walking out to help Alabaster and Breccia haul more bags of resources to the center of the area the careers now controlled.

Unfortunately, just as Talon and I made our way to the Cornucopia, Alabaster approached us again.

“Bathroom break before we call it a night. Ladies first.” He winked at me, nodding towards the woods. I stiffened. The thought of being alone in the woods with Althea and Breccia was unnerving to say the least.

“I don’t have to go.” I managed to reply, and thankfully that was true.

“Suit yourself.” Alabaster shrugged and walked away once more. Finally, Talon and I could go into the Cornucopia. I tossed my apple core aside as we stepped in.

“Want another apple?” Talon offered, pointing at his pack.

“No thanks.” I gave him a small smile. Honestly, after everything that happened I had no appetite. I just ate the first apple he gave me because I knew I should.

Talon settled down on the ground and began unpacking a blanket from his bag. I sat next to him as he handed it to me, before pulling another out of the bag. He didn’t reply when I thanked him. He just continued to unpack. There were wrap bandages, apples, needles and thread…and a few other things I couldn’t make out in the darkness.

“What was Alabaster talking about? When he said he didn’t want to let me go because you had already let two others go…” I found myself asking. Talon didn’t meet my eyes, but just when I thought he was ignoring me, he spoke up.

“It was those two kids from District 4. I think they’re both 12. They uh…I had them backed against the Cornucopia and my spear was ready and everything. But I couldn’t do it. They were so young…so scared…and I…even with all the training I’ve had, the thought of killing a child still doesn’t sit well with me. I don’t have the strength to do it, it seems.” He spat. I want to tell him that he is strong. In one small step, he’s already defying the careers. As much as his District and the Capitol would hate it, it was admirable to me. I couldn’t imagine what was going through his mind when he saw those kids after he’d been trained to kill without the blink of an eye.

“I told them to go. Screamed at them to get out and…the little girl…she hugged me.” Talon continued, the shock of the little girl’s actions still evident on his face. “I watched all around me to make sure they got out to the woods safely, and when Alabaster started to go after them, I nailed him in the stomach.” He’s grinning now.

“You did what?” I can’t help but laugh.

“I punched him in the stomach.” He laughed as well. “It was priceless. I’m lucky he didn’t kill me, but I don’t regret it.”

Talon goes back to sorting through the supplies as I watch. After a few moments, he looks at me once again.

“You’ve got a cut on your arm.” He stated. I looked down, having completely forgotten that Althea’s arrow had nicked me. “I’ll take care of it for you.” He gently took my arm, and I blushed and jerked away.

“Oh uh…no….you really don’t have to. I’m fine.” I promised hastily. He smiled at me, shaking his head.

“You say that now, but if you let this go, it’ll get infected. I’m sure you don’t want that.” He cautioned. I frowned. He had a point. And I really had no logical reason to refuse. What could I say? That his touch made me nervous? That would surely make him laugh, and he’d probably bring it up again before he kills me. I’m also almost certain that seducing me is a tiny part of his plan to win the Games, and I can’t fall for it.

Without a word, he washes off the dried blood with some water from a water bottle he snagged out of his pack. He then cleans the wound with antiseptic and bandages it with ease. “You’re welcome.” He grins before I can say thank you. As always, I smile back…and I can’t help but wonder if we could have been friends if he had been from District 12. Probably not, because I’d only ever really talked to Alec and Rosemary. My heart sank at the thought of them…the thought of home. I felt the tears come, and I bit my lip to hold them back.

“What’s wrong? Are you alright?” Talon asked, seeming genuinely concerned.

“Yeah.” I nod, forcing a smile. “I was just…thinking about home.”

I can feel Talon looking at me. He stares at me long and hard for a few moments before moving to sit a little closer to me.

“Tell me what it’s like. What it’s like in District 12.”

I look at him in disbelief. Does he really want to know? He nods as if he heard my unspoken question. Why would he ever want to know about District 12?

I tell him anyway. I talk about seeing the starvation and sickness and death…never getting used to it but learning to try and tolerate it. I tell him about making clothes with my mother in order to get food. I tell him about Alec and the coal mines. I tell him about Rosemary and the little boy that always waves at me. I tell him everything except for the fact that my special place is the tree by my house, where I like to write.

To my surprise, he never interrupts me. He listens intently, and although I can’t decipher the emotions held within his eyes, I can tell that he genuinely wanted to know. I don’t know why I told him so much, but it felt nice to finally open up and talk to someone about everything.

“What’s it like in District 1?” I ask, breaking the silence. He doesn’t tell me about the conditions or the people. He goes right into what it’s like to be a career.

“My father won the 46th Hunger Games. All he could ever talk about was when I would become old enough to compete…and about how I would win. He never talked about anything else. I had to be the best. And I had to win.” He says, his voice choked with emotion. “I don’t remember life before training. Every day consisted of waking up, training, eating, training, eating, training, then going to bed and repeating the same thing the next day. I trained with Althea a lot. That’s how we became friends. I was also friends with a guy named Silver. Best friends, actually. I don’t know if you remember…but…he…he died in the Games last year.”

I can see the pain in his eyes and it breaks my heart. Tears well in my eyes once more, and despite the fact that Talon probably thinks I’m a weak, overemotional little girl, I have the urge to hold his hand. But I know better.

“I’m so sorry,” is all I can think to say. He just continues on, as if I’d never spoken.

“It was my last year…this year, I mean. I’m 18, and I knew I had to volunteer. If I didn’t, all those years of training would have been a waste. And my father would have probably killed me himself if I hadn’t volunteered.” He choked out a laugh. He’s quiet for a moment, and then continues once more. “When I was 12, my mother and Silver’s mother got us matching rings.” He holds up his left hand to show off a simple yet beautiful ring made of gold, with a glistening ruby in the center.

“How does that still fit you?” I blurted out the first thing that came to mind. He slips it off and I swear I see his lips twitch into a smile but I can’t be sure.

“It’s made with gold that’s interlaced with this…material that expands and contracts with body heat.” He explains. “Here, try it on. It’ll fit.” I open my mouth to protest but he slips it on my ring finger regardless. The material quickly contracts until it fits my finger perfectly. I can’t help but gasp, never having seen anything like that before. I quickly take it off and hand it back before I end up breaking it or something along those lines. Knowing my luck, I’d ruin the most important thing he had with him…and in return he’d slit my throat.

“They let you wear that in the Games?” I asked, baffled. He nodded, a trace of a genuine smile flickering on his face.

“Actually, I snuck it on when they escorted me to the Capitol. But I knew they’d let me wear it after they inspected it because they let Silver wear his. Anyway, our mothers knew how close we were. And I guess they always knew that one of us was going to lose the other, so they wanted a way for us to keep a part of each other always. He was like a brother to me. And well, when this year came, I wanted to fight for Silver. To win for him.” A look of determination washes over his face, and suddenly it’s Talon I want to win this Game. If I can’t win and live, I’d rather have him win. Funny how a small exchange of words would make me feel like this, but I can’t help it. And I can’t help but notice how wrong Althea was in assuming that Talon had volunteered specifically to fight alongside her. Somehow, I find relief in that.

I can hear footsteps right outside. Speaking of Althea….

“Hello,” her voice cheerily greets us as she steps in.

“Took you long enough.” Talon comments.

“Breccia and I killed a tribute lurking around in the woods.” She grins in satisfaction. My stomach lurches and I hope like hell it wasn’t Huck or Joules.

“Good.” Talon nods, getting up.

“Who was it?” I ask, looking up at her.

“Like I fucking know.” She snaps, glaring down at me.

“She wants to know if it’s that skinny shit from her district.” Talon rolls his eyes.

“Well, it wasn’t. Although I wish it had been.” She smirks, and I try to refrain from going off on her. She doesn’t deserve the satisfaction of knowing her words get under my skin.

“I’m off to take a piss. You girls better play nicely.” Talon warns as he steps out. Instantly, the tension inside the Cornucopia increases, and the second Talon’s footsteps fade, Althea springs at me.

Before I can grab my spear, she’s got a knife at my neck. I struggle as she grabs me, but she’s got a vice-like grip that even someone with strength would have trouble getting out of.

“Look at you, all dolled up for death.” She flashes a sickening smile as she observes the makeup Aemilia had put on me before the start of the Games. Of course, all of the girls had makeup on, including Althea. But she must have found it amusing that such a poor, weak girl was made to look beautiful before she was killed.

“This came for you, by the way. From a sponsor. I thought about keeping it for myself, but as far as I know, you can’t kill with tiny sheets of paper.” She quickly uses the hand not holding the knife to shove something in my arms. It’s my notebook. Despite the current situation, I smile and thank Aemilia in my mind.

“Listen,” she demands, as if I have a choice. “This is my chance to warn you not to cross me. Don’t do anything I won’t like, understand? Alabaster wants to kill you himself, and I won’t mess with that. But I can kill that boy from your district. You know I can. And I’ll make you watch.” She doesn’t know that Huck and I barely know each other. She doesn’t know how close we are at all. But she knows that’ll hurt me. She knows that I care about him. For all I know, she saw me save him. But of course, I can’t show any emotion. I can’t let her know the emotions her threat elicits.

“And you may think Talon will protect you…being the strong, handsome man that he is, right?” she smirks, her voice disgustingly sweet. I don’t respond. “Well, he won’t. I’m his closest friend here. And don’t think that lust works in your favor. How could he ever want someone with a body like yours, when he could have someone with a body like mine? He could win and have any girl he wants. He won’t waste a breath on you unless it benefits him. But you should know that.”

And with that she lets me go as Talon walks in. Althea and I both act nonchalant as he settles in between us and lies down. I lie down as well, pulling on the blanket he gave me. He’s not touching me at all, but I can feel his body heat, and I quickly move away.

“Goodnight ladies.” Talon yawns, resting his head on his pack and shutting his eyes.

“Goodnight.” Althea and I respond automatically. I turn away from them and am engulfed in silence. I wonder when they’ll play the Anthem. It’s my only way of knowing if Huck is alive.

“You’re shivering.” Talon’s voice interrupts my thoughts, and before I can turn to see who he’s talking to, Althea laughs softly.

“Yeah. It’s still cold even with these clothes on that are supposed to protect us. Stupid pieces of shit.” She mutters.

“Come here,” he chuckles. “I’ve got a blanket. We can share.”

I can hear here shuffling towards him and as she sighs with content I have to refrain from making comments I know will piss both of them off. I doubted I'd get much sleep tonight either.

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