A tribute appears from the bushes but before I know I am reacting, I have sprung up a tree like a frightened squirrel. I feel guilty for a few seconds, leaving my new allies on the ground and exposed, but I do not fully trust either of them yet. A girl dashes from the bushes, and looks as shocked as we are upon seeing us. She is armed only with a knife, and is not ready to take on three different people. She's a brave one though. I can't remember her name, but I think it was Raven. She kneels, grits her teeth, and closes her eyes.

" Do it quickly!" She tells Nino. I cannot help but admire her spirit. Niño thinks for a moment, but at last he lowers his sword.

" No. I'm not going to kill you. Panem's can force us to compete in these games, but I refuse to kill someone just because my diabolical govenment tells me to. If I'm going to die, I'm not going to die your killer."

Raven seems to understand, and rising to her feet, she sprints away. From my perch, I cannot help but feel that we will see her again later. 

~Raven~

A girl appears in the bush across from me.  She points at the Careers and holds up three fingers, then two, then one.

The mysterious girl throws a knife at the girl from District 2, and it sinks into her throat.  Before I can do likewise to the boy, he is aiming a spear at me, so I flee.

After a while, I stumble into a clearing-- with three tributes already there.  I don't stand a chance.

"Do it quickly!" I say to the tall boy at the front of the group.  Miraculously, he doesn't kill me.

"No. I'm not going to kill you.  Panem's can force us to compete in these games, but I refuse to kill someone just because my diabolical govenment tells me to.  If I'm going to die, I'm not going to die your killer."

I nod my head, then run off.  I find a tree, and think about what the boy said.  I wish I was like him.  I've killed one person, and almost a second, with barely a thought.  I don't deserve to live.  I hope one of the other tributes finds me and kills me.

Heather thought about what the boy said, he wouldn't kill anyone? Had he no value on his own life? She thought hard, should she stop fighting herself? I mean she had no family that really relied on her, she's the youngest. She had caught a pheasant in her trap, lunch, plucking the bird she lit a fire, roasting the bird afterwards. She sighed. She'd just hide and see what happened from there; she was already a murderer.

Nino~

After the encounter with another girl, Alize slowly climbs down the tree, then looks at me.

"Look, I'm sorry. I'm just too nice. I haven't killed anyone yet, and I'm not going to start now," I say. "Plus, we can still go after the guy from 7 in the mountains," I add.

Alize nodds. "We better get started," she orders. I am about to follow, but then notice something. I grab Alize's shoulder.

"Let go!" she hisses.

"Venture!" I whisper. "He's gone!"

I jerk wildly around, my heart accelating to a this and miles an hour in a single moment. I am pertrified, and I begin to tremble. I dash to the place where venture was standing a few moments ago, but he is gone. In a massive adrenaline rush, I toss down my bow and scale a nearby tree, searching the surrounding area. Nino looks terrified as well, and wears the look that I have seen on the faces of many of the parents as they send their children off to the Hunger Games. Venture am was like his little brother. But I am careless as I climb, and my foot slips on a branch. I come crashing to the ground, and a sharp pain stabs my side as my lungs threaten to collapse. I may have cracked a rib, but I can barely feel the pain over my racing heartbeat. I struggle to my feet, but I can barely take more than a few steps before I collapse against a tree. I put my face in my hands, and try to control my breathing.  Venture has been gone about 15 minutes now. Before I know it, Nino is looming over me.

" Alize. Calm down.... We'll find him. Are you ok?"

I taste blood in the back of my throat, and shake my head in response.

" I'm going to look for Venture. You stay here. I'll be back in ten minutes. If not, climb the tree and wait for a canon. Keep your bow loaded."

As he turns away, heading into the forest, I call after him in a croaking voice.

" Wait Nino! Catch- " and I toss him something.

" What is this?" Nino asks curiously.

" It's a compass..." I explain. " it was my district token.  Now you can't excuse getting lost in the woods. Hurry, ok? Find Venture."

Nino takes the small wooden compass with what I think might be a smile.

" I'll be back in no time."

What seems like hours later, I am still waiting for Niño and have almost given up all hope of ever finding Venture again. A heavy, drowsy sort of weariness steals over me, numbing my body. I have tried to make myself useful in my spare time, using one of the bandage rolls in my bag to bing up the area where my rib has cracked, organizing my food rations, and even managing to shoot a squirrel. I can barely stand, but the audacious thing literally ran over my toes. Just as I am about to follow Nino's instructions and climb the tree, Niño and Venture stagger from the woods. Both of them are rather bloodied and look like they have been through a disaster zone, but they don't seem to be in critical condition.

" What took you so long?" I demand, attempting to be angry.

" We got lost in the woods." says Niño slyly.

I still don't trust them, I tell myself. But trust is of little matter now, and suddenly, sleep steals over my and I am forced to succomb to a short rest.  

TOP

TOP!!!!!

Nino~

Alize fell limply into a deep sleep. Mabye she was in a coma or something. I gave Venture my stuff, climbed up the tree, and returned holding Alize. But when I turned around to tell Venture we were headed to the mountains, but a girl had him by his shirt with a knife to his throat.

Venture immeadietly managed to cut her hand with his knife. She screeched in pain, while Venture retreated safely behind me. She reached for her knife, but I kickboxed her into the rock that Alize had climbed. The went pale, and dropped to the ground. I had killed someone. The cannon sounded, and by now there had to be 8 or 9 left.

Venture gathered his stuff and we headed out, guilt in my heart, Alize in my arms, and mountains in the horizon. 

I awake to somebody carrying me. I tense, and thinking that it is one of the Careers come to kill me, I jerk away, searching for my knife. 

" Alize, calm down! Seriously! I found Venture..... I think you're ok, but you passed out after we came back. We had to keep heading for the mountains, and I didn't want to wake you. "

I relax a little, and slowly come back to reality. 

" How long was I out?" I ask, not wanting to know the answer.

" Maybe 7 hours? It could have been 8..."

" And Venture is ok?"  

" He's fine.... Glad that I found him when I did though. He's a little shaken up."

" I'm fine!" Venture calls out, making me laugh a little. But my laughter stings, and I taste blood once again. I wince as I wipe a trickle of it from the side of my mouth. "

" You ok?" Nino asks, almost sounding concerned.

" Yeah  I'm fine." I lie. " I think I just cracked a rib. Do you think you could put me down now?"

Nino gently sets me down, and I take a few steps, biting my lips to avoid crying out. 

" This isn't going to work. You're too slow. " Niño insists and scoops me up again.

" Excuse me! I was fine! Put me down!" I demand. 

"  That would have been a little more believable if you weren't coughing up blood as

you shouted that at me.

I grumble, but he is right. Speed is a necessity right now. So I try to make the best of it, and talk light-heartedly with Venture as we make our way to the forboding mountain.  

TOP

Heather's breathing was heavy. She had panicked again. Why had she attacked the boy? He hadn't done anything to her. She should try to team up but she felt like she would end up turning traitor. What should she do? Heather put out the fire and climbed up a tree for the night, troubled. When she woke up she heard a noise beneath her and froze. She looked around frantically for a weapon.

Someone does find me.  The mysterious girl who appeared in the bushes and killed the girl from District 2 wakes me up by shaking the arm that's hanging out of the tree I fell asleep in.  I didn't even relize I fell asleep.  I only just stop myself from sending a knife whizzing at her because the thought occurs to me that if she wanted to kill be, she wouldn't have woken me up.

"What do you want?" I hiss.

"I want to be your ally," she says.

"Who are you?" I ask suspiciously.  I don't remember her from training.

"Heather Field, District 11, at your service."  She gives a bow.

"All right.  Why do you want to be my ally?" I say.

"You seem smart.  So, is it a deal or what?"

If I say no, she'll probably kill me.  "All, right."