Fawn In The Dawn | Peeta Mellark

nineteen

It was quiet in this tunnel as everyone slept. The sound of water dripping was the only noise to be heard.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

That's all I could hear anymore. The pipe above us dripped into my cell and onto the cold white floor. I just watched as each droplet created a splash, my only entertainment in this hell of a prison. I looked to Peeta, asleep near the glass. Everyone was asleep in their cells. But I couldn't anymore. Reality was almost better than the nightmares at this point, so I suffered through the exhaustion. I slid over to the water and opened my mouth, letting it drip in. I hadn't had water in days and this was more refreshing due to it.

Katniss looked over as a distant rumble startled her awake and snapped me out of my trans. She nudged at me and grabbed the holo, so I pulled out my gun, aiming it down the tunnel, behind her. "Katniss, wait, don't go too far." I told her. But she ignored my command. Seconds later she immediately came running back to us as everyone began to wake up from the noises.

"We gotta go! They released mutts!" Peeta shouted, standing up.

"Pollux, what's the fastest way out?" Kat asked him. He looked around, before pointing down a tunnel and we all climbed into it after him. Gale launched an arrow, with fire to blaze through the tunnel ahead. The noises grew closer as we headed forward. But before we knew what was really happening, mutts came running from behind us, attacking and killing Lt. Jackson.

We ran as fast as our feet would carry us through the tunnels, before Castor was now attacked and killed. Men were beginning to drop like flies and we needed them. All of us began shooting while running but mutt's were just on our tail.

Peeta ran just ahead of me as we got to a ladder, each trying to climb up without being attacked. I pulled out my sword and began slicing through them like cake. One lept onto me, causing me to fall onto my back. It continued to try and eat my face off practically, so I took the katana and shoved it through the side of its skull. I thought of the first games, and the boy I did this to. Peeta stared over at me, as if he almost knew the uncanny irony of the situation that just happened. But we then had to continue fighting for our lives.

Finnick and I became back to back as we continued to fight them off. I watched as I decapitated one and Finn stabbed his spear through another. The rest of the squad began climbing up the ladders to safety and Finn pulled me to the ladder, forcing me up.

"I can't leave you!" I shouted to him, not wanting to budge.

"Just go!" He shouted back, spearing them still. I climbed up some more but stayed near the top, pulling the gun around my shoulder and shooting into a few of the mutts before my bullets ran out.

"Finn!" I screamed, trying to get him to come up here. He began climbing up as I reached my hand out, but before my eyes, a mutt jumped up and tackled him and more closed in, it was over with at this point. I tried reaching for his hand once more as he climbed up the ladder a second time almost to safety but before I knew it, one jumped on his back and pulled him back down, and they swarmed in on him. Kat stood just above me on the platform as we both screamed out his name in agony. He was being torn apart before our very eyes, limb by limb and I couldn't help but begin to cry. I climbed up the last few steps until Katniss said Nightlock three times and dropped the holo, causing the mutts, and Finn, to explode.

"Finn!" I shouted, running to the fromt door as he lifted me up.

"Hey, shrimp." He smiled at me. We walked to the field in the backyard as I held onto his arm. He was like my big brother that I had always wanted. I lept onto his back as we continued on through and he told me stories of adventures he'd gone on since the games. And I giggled as the little twelve year old that I was, happy to have some company in this cold and frightening home.

"We have to keep moving!" Gale shouted, but I remained in my spot, staring down at the fiery abyss below. Katniss held onto me, but all I could do was scream his name.

"Arizona, we have to go." She insisted, pulling me to my feet, and beginning to take me away from the scene. I couldn't leave him. Even if he was gone, I didn't understand how I let this happen. "Ari, please!" She tried, but I just kept shrugging her off. "Arizona! Look at me!" She demanded, leveling her face with mine and holding onto the sides of my face. "He's gone, Ari, he's gone. I'm so sorry, but we have to keep going. For Peeta's sake." She said, wiping my tears. I finally looked to her and nodded, hesitantly, still feeling the tears pour down my cheeks.

As we continued ahead, my mind couldn't stop drifting to Finnick, the closest friend I ever had, and was now gone.