Peeta's Story- The Hunger Games

Chapter 44

 i haven't updated & this is boring and short. i'm so sorry! i'll explain after... :P

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I stalk off towards the forest, but before I can get far, Katniss drags me by the elbow towards the creek, which is overflowing with rainwater. "Cato will be hunting us by now," I say, trying to tug her back towards the forest. Something about standing here by the stream, in plain view, makes me feel queasy, as if someone is watching us.

"He could be wounded," Katniss suggests, kneeling by the stream and filling a canteen to the brim with water.

Somehow, I still can't shake off the feeling of being watched. "It wouldn't matter. If he can move, he's definitely coming."

She sighs and snatches my canteen, filling it up before tossing it roughly back into the backpack. She beckons quickly for me to follow, and then she's off, running into the forest until she reaches a small clearing surrounded by high trees.

When I finally catch up to her, panting, she's kneeling on the floor, eyebrows furrowed. My first thought is that she has been hurt, so I rush over to help her before realizing that she's examining some type of snare that she's rigged. "Nothing here," she sighs before slipping back into the forest.

We check every trap and snare she's set, but our morale sinks with every second. None of them have any game in them, but at least they don't seem to have been tampered with. "I guess we'll have to go back to my old hunting place," she says and I nod vigorously, even though I don't have any clue where that is.

"You call the shots. Just tell me what I need to do," I say as she raises her eyebrows at my eager expression. Admittedly, part of my excitement is due to the fact that I'm finally going to see her hunt.

"Keep an eye out," she says. "Stay on the rocks so you won't leave tracks." I follow her as she walks away, but she stops suddenly and I almost collide with her. "Oh, and listen for the both of us," she says, wincing and patting her head gingerly.

It's silent for awhile as I drag myself on the rocks. My leg has started hurting a bit, but I'm determined to make myself useful and go on. More than once, I stumble and Katniss has to catch my arm and help me right myself. Every time, I grunt in annoyance. I shouldn't be so presumptuous, but it's hurting my pride that I'm the one stumbling and she's the only picking me up. Shouldn't it be the other way around? As I stare at the back of her head, I can't help but feel that I'm not living up to her expectations of what a man should be like. To my relief, the stones finally turn to pine needles, making it much harder for me to trip. I look to Katniss for instructions, but she frowns and turns to me.

"What?" I ask as she scrutinizes my face. Immediately, I feel self conscious, and I check my shirt to see if there's anything irregular on it.

"You've got to move more quietly," she says, trying to keep her voice gentle. "Forget about Cato, you're probably chasing off every rabbit within a 10-mile radius."

I resist the urge to stick my tongue out at her and bite back a cocky retort. Even though my leg hurts, I don't want to be sent to sit somewhere safe, as if I were a reliant, dependent creature. "Sorry," I mutter. "I didn't know."

When we start walking again, I make a point to slowly lift my hurt leg and walk on the balls of my feet. However, I can see what she means now. The needles are cracking underneath my weight, crunching with a sound that seems to echo for miles. I know what she's going to say before she says it, so I just mumble "Sorry, sorry, sorry," again.

She smiles and waves my apology away. "It's fine. Can you take your boots off?"

"Here?" I ask, confused. Why would she want me to do that?

"Yeah," she says. "That way we'll be quieter." She takes off her boots and socks and gestures for me to do the same.

For one second, I think about how disgusting it must be to walk on these prickly pine needles, but then I remember that I have been through much worse. Pushing away my irrational fear of getting my feet dirty, I tug my boots off and sling them over my shoulder, cautiously shifting my weight back and forth and adjusting to the slight dampness and coldness of the ground. I have to admit, hiding in the mud in the creek was definitely worse than this.

Katniss keeps quiet and I hang back reluctantly, examining the trees and plants for lack of anything better to do. By the time we reach our destination, I've seen so many different types of plants that they've all become a blur in my head. I resort to counting the pine needles, but that just reminds me of the throbbing pain in my leg, so I quickly switch my focus elsewhere, choosing to look at the clouds or examine the plants instead. Cautiously, I lift my foot up and experimentally wiggle it when I notice I've stubbed my toe. Blood is smeared all over it and I watch with a detached interest, realizing with a start how parched my lips are. There's a cramp in my side from walking too long and my stomach declares that it hasn't eaten in a while with an audible growl.

Katniss looks over, an amused expression on her face, before she crinkles it into one of concentration. She scans the trees around us critically before looking back at me with a reserved expression on her face. I know what she's going to say before she opens her mouth.

"Look," I sigh, beating her to the chase. "We need to split up. I know I'm chasing away the game." And sure enough, I am. There's no sign of life besides us for a good few miles, and it's probably all because of my loud stumbling around.

After some pointless arguing about my safety, we finally settle on an agreement. I am to collect roots and dig for edible plants while she hunts. Before she departs, she teaches me a whistle which takes me a few tries to learn so we can signal to each other that we are safe. As she leaves, her eyes shifting side to side in concern, I roll my eyes. She's almost too cautious and paranoid.

Sighing, I kneel down on the packed ground and look around for any signs of vegetation. Time to go root gathering. I can't help but feel slightly humiliated at the helplessness as my situation. Right when I spot a bush of plump berries, I hear a sweet, simple tune travel through the woods. Almost carelessly, I whistle the melody back, signaling to Katniss that I am safe and sound.

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so as you guys all know, i'm sick and i've been sick (what's up with that? i seem to be sick at least once a month). anyway, i just had my CM piano evaluations sunday (while i was sick, mind you, so besides the loads of class work I had to do, i also had to practice 3 hours of piano a day for the whole week... that didn't go over well. anyways, after a week my mom decided to take me to the doctor, and here i am, finally healthy enough to write and on antibiotics. eww. so yeah, i'm sorry, but i have a HUGe math project due friday (it's about conics, which is why i really need to work on it) and next weekend i'm gonna be gone for 3 days for an orchestra retreat... so i have no time to finish anything./write

as for this chapter, i rewrote it about 3 times. then i got so mad at it, i just posted it...and it's short because i don't have time (what with all the rewriting and the projects) so i'm really sorry!

and sorry if i don't make sense -_-

x amanda