Rick Riordan's Hunger Games [PJO AU]

Ep 4 - "Rain"

"Oh hey!" Rick exclaimed excitedly. "He's on his way to them. I wonder how this will play out?"

President Clair rolled her eyes, "What I care about it why the Careers are so different this year, and why that dratted boy from 12 won't bleed out..."

He sighed. "You're no fun."

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Leo grit his teeth and dragged his wounded and surely broken leg out of the clearing and behind a tree. He collapsed, not able to stand.

Useless useless useless, he cursed.

Though he was lucky he still had his limb. Bryce had been running when his axe had swept him off his feet so the swing wasn't too powerful. Then he'd ran straight by, determined to reach Travis.

Footsteps stopped beside him, and he stared grimly up at the girl from 1. Piper.

She gripped a dagger in one hand as she regarded him. "I can't believe you're still alive. Aren't you just a repair boy?"

"I invented the force field," he defended himself, trying to edge away from her, but his leg flared with white pain and he gasped. Leo willed himself not to look.

He had nothing to live for anyway, so hey, dying wasn't all that bad — he'd get to see his family again. It was only the primal instinct of survival that drove him to even try in the first place.

No blow came, and Piper fiddled with her weapon, "You need to hide."

"...What?"

"Don't make me repeat myself. Just go."

He was in too much agony to question it, "I kind of...can't walk, in case you...haven't noticed."

She scowled and checked over her shoulder. Then she hefted him up and with effort carried him to a dense low-branched tree and dumped him in it. "Climb. Or you're dead."

Her words powered him, and he immediately used his good leg to inch himself among the leaves.

Piper turned her back and stalked away, shuffling her feet to cover up the trail of blood. She shouted, "Bryce, where did you leave him!?"

"What do you mean?!" a boy bellowed.

"I MEAN YOU LOST HIM."

As they argued, Leo hugged the bark so he wouldn't fall, and weakly pulled a roll of bandages out of his backpack to wrap up the injury so it wouldn't drip.

Half an hour later the Careers disappeared and their voices faded, and Leo still couldn't figure out why Piper would spare him. Sweat dripped off his skin — he was losing way too much water.

He got distracted by Travis walking underneath him.

"Hey!" Leo rasped. "Up here."

Travis's head shot up, "Leo!" He scrambled up and settled himself beside him. "I'm glad you're safe. The Careers are at the desert planning to ambush people. I got to see the place — it's raining hard." He held out an unfamiliar steel thermos and popped the cap, "Here. I stole everything the girl from Two had on her belt."

Leo drank from it gratefully, "Thanks." He knew it was just water, but it tasted like nectar.

Travis gestured at his leg, "Is it broken?"

"Yeah. I managed to set it, but I won't be walking anytime soon."

His ally gave him an odd look, "That's fine. If we just stay here we can last a few more days until you can move."