No Place Like Home

Part 18

As soon as they sat down, the music started, and the holograms appeared in the sky:

Anya District 9

Lewis District 8

Robert District 8

Damien District 6

Madeline District 6

Ruby District 5

Elena District 5

"Ruby and Elena," Dan said after the holograms disappeared. "The one's we killed."
"Yeah," Phil said. "I think they were sisters."
"Evil ones." Dan mumbled.
Phil glared at him.

"What?" Dan laughed.
"Not everyone here is evil," Phil said.
"Oh really?" Dan replied. "I'm sure you would've had a different opinion if her katana was in your neck."
Phil sighed, "I understand that. But I find it difficult to think the worst of people, so I try to find the best in them."

"Oh, spare me, Paddington," Dan rolled his eyes.
"You can't always do that," Dan responded. "Not when you're playing games like this."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Phil asked.
"I mean," Dan said. "Everyone in this arena has killed someone. They have, that's the whole point of the Hunger Games."
"That doesn't make them bad people," Phil stated. "You've killed what, 4 maybe 5 people? And you're not a bad person."

Dan sighed and said quietly, "Thank you."

"Well," Phil said. "It's true. You aren't a bad person. You killed for a little girl, so that she could live. You killed for me, multiple times. The point is that you killed for people, not just for your own safety. And that makes you a good person."

Dan looked up and smiled lightly, "I took one life for another one that meant more to me."

Phil smiled, he meant something to Dan? He wasn't just another ally?

Dan cleared his throat and said, "So, uh, there's only 8 left?"
Phil nodded, "Yeah, 10 left including us. And we're gonna take them all out tomorrow when the lightning hits that tree."
Dan nodded back, "Yeah, and you're sure this is going to work?"
"Um," Phil hesitated. "To be honest, no, I'm not really sure. But it's the only chance we have of getting out of here alive."

Dan looked up at him, "Both of us?"
Phil smiled and nodded, "Both of us."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Phil decided to take watch tonight, as he thought it only fair to let Dan sleep.

After all, Dan had saved him twice in less than 48 hours.
Phil was slightly puzzled, why was Dan so protective of Phil?

A week ago, Dan wouldn't of given a flying crap if Phil was about to be sliced in half by a katana, but now he's crying over his dead body, and making promises to his corpse that they would both live to see the outside world again.

Maybe Dan wasn't very good at losing people, he was almost in tears when Alyssa died, and he didn't even know her.

It made Phil a little sad, Dan was a protective person and probably wouldn't last if Phil died for good.

As Phil was thinking about Dan, he heard a rumbling from a distance.
He quickly stood up to look at the lightning tree.

With each strike that hit the tree, Phil mouth worded, "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve."
12 strikes.

Maybe that meant it was midnight, as this whole arena seemed to be laid out like a clock.

It was such a weird choice of arena, maybe the Capitol and Snow just wanted a special one with more dangers as there were twice as many tributes.

Phil hadn't really thought about Alex and Rudy since they'd died.
They weren't much but they were from home.

It wasn't about them now, it was about surviving with Dan, and praying this plan worked.