𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐬 | 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟕𝟔𝐭𝐡 𝐠𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐬 ✔️

𝕏𝕍𝕀𝕀𝕀

Soon after Vesta leaves us, I have to fight to keep my eyes open. Eventually, I give in, and I sleep through the whole night. The whole ordeal with Axel and Phoenix, paired with all the running back and forth I did today, makes me more exhausted than I've been since I entered the Arena.

It's already daytime by the time I wake up. I slowly sit up. My first thought is one of alarm - where is everyone?

Then I remember what happened yesterday. It's just Aurora and me now.

I turn to my girlfriend. She's watching me silently from a few feet away. When I glance up, she offers me a smile. "How are you feeling?" she asks quietly.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" is my first question. "I could have taken a shift. You're going to be tired now."

Aurora shakes her head. "I could tell you were exhausted. You had a really hard day, so I let you sleep. We can alternate tomorrow."

I nod, sifting through my pack for a suitable breakfast. When I start eating, I feel myself wake up fully, and I start to think about our situation.

"It feels like yesterday was a dream," I mumble. "I can't believe what happened yesterday was real."

Aurora nods grimly. "I feel so bad for Axel. He didn't deserve what Phoenix did to him."

I try not to think about Axel's head rolling on the ground to avoid throwing up my breakfast. "Who's left in here after all that?"

Aurora stops to think for a second. "Phoenix, Vesta, the boy from 3, both of us, the boy from 7, Phoebe and Jesse from 11, and Selina from 12. So only 9 left."

"So we're the last pair left, other than the District 11 kids," I say with a smile.

I feel more confident now than I ever did before what happened yesterday. There are only nine of us left. I don't tell Aurora this, but I know the District 3 boy has no chance - I saw him bleeding to death in that tree a few days ago. I like Selina, but she's no match in a fight, and I'm sure I could outmatch the District 11 kids, too.

When I'm done eating, Aurora stands up and sits right next to me, resting her head on my shoulder. "You don't understand what yesterday was like for me. Vesta and I heard the cannon shots, and we were so worried. I just thought, what if Phoenix finally got to him, and there was nothing I could do to protect you? And then when you came back without Axel, almost hyperventilating from what you saw..."

I don't let her finish, planting a kiss right on her lips. It hurts too much to hear her speak like that, even more so when I think about the end of the Games. I plan to defend Aurora until the end, even if the cost is my own life, but is that a choice Aurora will be able to live with? Is that fair to her?

She pulls away, a smile on her face. "I'm so glad it's just you and me now. The others were getting on my nerves. You understand what I need without saying a word."

We're interrupted by a pinging sound, and I look up to see a sponsor gift. It's a fairly large plastic case with the number 4 on it, and I grab it excitedly as it lands nearby. I crack open the plastic case, and inside is an array of food. From the looks of it, it's good-quality food, much better than the stuff we picked up at the Bloodbath.

Aurora gasps, taking items of food from the basket. I catch a glimpse of something white at the bottom of the case, and I reach in to grab a note.

Griff and Aurora~

Congratulations on performing so well this far into the Games. You have greatly exceeded my expectations. As a reward for your faith in one another, enjoy this treat on me.

You are one of only two remaining pairs - keep that in mind. You are also the only romantic couple remaining. Play your relationship up to the cameras, and the sponsors will come running.

N

I fold the note, tucking it into my pocket, thinking about what Nereus told us. I guess we're in a good position since we're both still alive and together.

"Want to go pick some flowers?" I ask Aurora nonchalantly. She gives me a confused look but seems to catch on.

"Sure," she says excitedly. "Let's pack up our stuff."

After we pack our belongings into our backpacks, we head into the surrounding forest. It's not long before we find a patch of flowers - the same ones I picked for Aurora when we first entered the Arena.

"They're so beautiful..." Aurora breaths quietly. "It's so weird. They remind me so much of home, yet I don't think we ever had anything like them back home at all."

I nod, reaching down and picking a flower with a rich purple color. "Look at this one," I tell her, examining the flower with awe. "Isn't this your favorite color?"

Aurora gasps when she sees it. "That's beautiful!" she exclaims, her eyes filled with light. "Thank you, Griff."

I can't help but blush a bit. Aurora tucks her favorite flower into her pockets, while she throws the rest of the flowers she picked into her backpack.

"I'm starting a flower collection," she announces with a smile. "You'll have to help me find the rarest ones."

I salute her with a grin. "Yes, ma'am!"

Our antics are interrupted by a cannon shot, and our smiles drop at the sound. "Let's set up camp," Aurora says solemnly. "It's going to be night in a little bit."

"Who do you think the cannon was for?" I ask him as we walk.

"Hopefully Phoenix," Aurora sighs, "but it won't be him. Who knows."

Well, there are only nine of us, so the odds are getting narrower and narrower.

Aurora and I pause as we come across a group of neon footprints. The prints are pink, blue, and red, meaning our group left them behind a few days ago. "These must be from earlier," Aurora says. "Do you recognize this area?"

I look around, and a sense of familiarity overcomes me. I've definitely been here before.

Something suddenly clicks in my mind, and I know when we were here. "We're by the lake!" I tell her. "Let's follow the prints backward and try and find it."

I was right - it's not long before the big lake comes into sight. The neon prints from our first visit here are still present, and there is a new set of white footprints on the ground walking around the area that leads into the forest.

Aurora and I barely set up camp before the Panem anthem plays, revealing today's Fallen Tributes. I cross my fingers that it's not Vesta or Selina.

The tribute appears in the sky, and it's Vance, the boy from District 7. Aurora lets out a sigh next to me, deflating. I'm disappointed, too - if anyone could outmatch Phoenix, I thought Vance might have been able to pull it off.

"I guess Phoenix finally got to him," I say. At least it's one less tribute for us to face in the end.

"I wonder how Vesta's doing," Aurora responds as the landscape around us goes dark for the night. "She's still out there somewhere."

I nod. I hope she's doing okay. If Aurora and I were to die, I'd probably want her to be the one to make it out of here. Especially after what happened to her brother.

I force Aurora to sleep first since she's exhausted. We're supposed to take turns keeping watch, but I won't wake her up into the morning.