Saving the Tributes || Demigods in the Hunger Games

.oOo. Percy .oOo.

Peeta and I looked up as the awful sound of the cannons rang through the air.

"That's four deaths in one day," Peeta whispered. I nodded, unable to do anything. The chances of it being Annabeth was too large. I'd find out tonight.

"If that's Katniss, I think I'll die," Peeta said in despair. I shook my head.

"Only one way to find out, is there?" I asked. "Wait until tonight. Or we can go out and find them and risk getting killed. Actually that's two ways. Are you strong enough to walk?"

We both looked down at the gaping wound in Peeta's leg.

"Nevermind," I muttered.

He shifted into a more comfortable position. "What are we going to do?" He asked.

I looked up from where I was trying my best to wash out the blood from my shirt which I used to bind Peeta's wound. "Just wait here, I guess."

He sighed and leaned back on his palms. "I mean, I'm glad we're not dead or anything--" he cut off.

I understood. It was impossible to say anything without triggering something by the cameras and their viewers.

We both sat quietly, trying to think of something to say to each other that wouldn't end in a Capitol-induced action scene. I don't think either of us could think of anything to say because Peeta went back to looking up at the clouds and I turned back to my thin, dirty, worn, bloodied T-shirt.

.oOo. Piper .oOo.

Rue sat quietly in the entrance of the tent flap, braiding grass. The sun was setting, getting to nightfall, and I sat next to her with two cups of hot chocolate. She took one gratefully.

"So it's true, then?" She asked. "I'm a demigod?" The words sounded foreign in her mouth. I realized they must be. She was handling the news better than the other four tributes who also just found out. Now that Jason and I were here, a monster attack was less feared and they had the right to know.

"Yeah," I said finally. "And Jason says you're a child of Apollo."

She perked up. "Really?" Then she frowned. "Who exactly is Apollo?"

I laughed. "He's a... very egotistical, self centered... he's the god of archery, healing, and music."

Rue smiled. "Who's your dad?"

"My mom," I corrected her. "Aphrodite. Goddess of love and beauty."

Rue nodded. "Makes sense," she said. I smiled and looked down. "What about everyone else?"

"Of the people that are in on this too, Percy from four is a son of the god of the sea and earthquakes, Jason is a son of the god of the sky and lightning, Nico's the son of the god of the Underworld-- the afterlife," I explained to Rue's confused look. "Annabeth, three is a child of the goddess of wisdom and strategy, Leo, also three, is a child of the god of fire and the forge, Hazel from one is Nico's sister-- not full sister, they're both children of the Underworld. Thalia from ten is Jason's full sister though, same mom and dad and everything. Anyways, Frank, also from ten, is a son of the war god, and..." I ticked off my fingers. "I think that's it?"

"What about the other tributes, though?" She asked.

I pursed my lips. "That's hard, since I don't know much about them."

Rue nodded and sipped her cocoa. We sat in a comfortable silence, listening to the disbelief and questions that were being rapid-fire shouted at Jason.

"I hope Katniss is okay," Rue said finally. I held the map in front of us where it caught on the light of the setting sun. There were eight names remaining on the map.

"As long as we can get Cato and Clove out of the picture, they'll be fine," I said.

"And Thresh," Rue said quietly. "He could easily kill them. We need to get her safely here." She sighed. "I mean, if anyone has to win, I'm hoping it's Thresh. That way my family can get the year's supply of food."

I nodded, not quite sure what to say. My family hadn't ever struggled with food. I mean, with a Hollywood dad and a goddess for a mom, I never stressed about how I'd eat. The thought made me cringe in guilt, as if I could've done something to improve her situation. Which was silly, since we were hundreds of years into the future.

Rue looked content to sit the tent flap, so I stood up and went back in. Kalex was tending to Waylan's ribs, probably broken, which Waylan had gained from falling twenty feet up from a tree during Jason's 'upper strength class'. My idiotic boyfriend had been completely obsessed with catching a fly with two sticks like the guy in the Karate Kid so he hadn't seen Waylan plummeting stomach-first to the ground.

I tried to pin everyone's godly parent, but it was difficult. Kalex, with his knack for tending wounds, was most likely a child of Apollo, but his jet black short hair, olive skin, and brown eyes spoke differently. Then again, Rue didn't look like a child of Apollo either, with her Hazel-like appearance. But that could've just been how Apollo was presented at the time, because her skills clearly pointed to the awful music god. But like Jason constantly reminded me, we'd find out when they got to Camp. We might as well train them in every aspect without looking at them with biased opinions.

But I couldn't resist.

Waylan definitely reminded me of Leo, with his carefree spirit and constant energy, but that was where the similarities ended. While Leo had dark, curly hair, Waylan had shoulder-length blonde hair. Leo had a darker skin tone and brown eyes, Waylan had pale skin and heterochromatic eyes, one gray one blue. Leo was skinny in a scrawny way, Waylan was skinny in an underfed way. I had no idea who his godly parent could be.

Hayley had dark chestnut hair, tanned skin, and light brown eyes. She was relatively tall for a girl, and larger than the other tributes, even though she too had an underfed look to her. A bit like Clarisse on an all-broccoli diet, if Clarisse ever did go on an all-broccoli diet.

Lodi was perhaps the complete opposite of Hayley. Sunburned red skin covered her arms, legs, and neck, showing signs of once-pale skin. Her hair was ashy gray, and her eyes were a soft blue. With a frame nearly matching Nico's, she showed potential for strong and limber athleticism. Probably Apollo, or if Artemis wasn't a maiden, then Artemis.

Jason locked his eyes on mine. "What did I just tell you?" He asked exasperatedly across the tent. I grinned, knowing he knew exactly what I had been doing.

"I'm just curious," I defended.

"Curiosity made Pandora kill mankind," Jason shot back.