I Knew I Could Have

Chapter Nine

When I return to consciousness, Cato and Marvel are already awake. The boy that saved us is telling them that he can do something. I can't hear perfectly, but it sounds like he's talking about bombs or a minefield he can activate. I can only assume he's talking about the minefield near the platforms. Cato smirks when he sees me, and hands me some type of cream to help the stings. Then I realize where I am. I'm in the cornucopia! All the supplies are stacked up in a huge pile, and I sit up. "What?" I ask. "He's going to reactivate the mines." Marvel says, his voice back to normal. "So, Glimmer's dead?" I ask them. Cato nods. "Guess I didn't have to," he mumbles. I remember how he felt about her during the testing score thing. Marvel shoots me a look, and I smile meekly. "What about me?" he asks worriedly. "You're in the clear." I tell him. He sighs in relief, and Cato raises an eyebrow. I shake my head at him. The boy, who told us his name is Felix and who is from District Three, notices the tension. He clears his throat, and coughs. "I'll go rewire the mines now, if you'll excuse me." Felix says. He shuffles out of the cornucopia and starts to work on something. All of our eyes follow him, and when he's gone, we all go back to our stares. Marvel breaks first and leaves the cornucopia. Cato and I stare at each other, then burst out laughing. "It's ok, Clove." Cato says, smiling at me. I smile back and he gives me a quick hug. It's the 7th day of the Hunger Games. I must have been sleeping for longer than I remember. Anyway, we help Felix fix the minefield and Marvel and I set up a canopy. When all the work is finally done, we take a break and eat some lunch, which is several sandwiches that sponsors sent for us. "So, uh, what now?" Marvel asks us. "I don't know. Cato?" I say. Cato thinks for a second, and then he smiles. "I hear someone coming." he says. A boy has seen our pile of goods and runs for it. He's not halfway across when suddenly he blows up. Felix looks away, but the rest of us watch. "You never told us what happened to Loverboy." I realize. Cato smirks. "I found him helping Katniss, so I attacked. She got away, but Loverboy has a nasty gash on his leg, and I was too weak to keep going. I saw you and Marvel's tracks and found the water. I don't remember anything before that, but I woke up maybe an hour before you and met Felix. Did you know he saved us?" he asks. I nod. "She told me to help you." Felix says as he walks under the canopy. "Thanks to both of you." Marvel tells us, and nods. "And thank you two, I mean three, for carrying me." I say, pointing to Cato and Marvel, and then including Felix. They all smile.

For the rest of the day, we basically just tell each other stories. During the night, Felix takes first watch, then Marvel, Cato, me, repeat. Normally, we wouldn't need to keep watch, but Katniss has Glimmer's bow and arrows. Archery is Katniss's skill, so she could shoot us without even needing to come close. So, we lookout. When my watch comes, I tell Cato to get some rest. I wake up Felix once it's his turn, and then fall back asleep.

When I wake up, a warm omelet is waiting for me. I eat slowly, because it tastes really good. Everyone else has already eaten theirs. I'm bored. They are too. We sit quietly but are interrupted by a cloud of smoke. We all grab our weapons and tell Felix to stay and guard the camp. He nods, and we run towards the smoke. When we reach the cause of the smoke, we see nothing but a fire burning. No one is there. "Over there!" Marvel shouts, running towards another column of smoke. Cato and I race after him. When we finally stop, confused and out of breath, a loud exploding sound catches our attention. "The supply pyramid," I scream. Cato and I turn around to go back, but Marvel stays. "I'll be a second. I think someone might be close." he calls to us.

Cato and I reach the pyramid, or what's left of it, and become extremely angry. The whole minefield has gone off, destroying our supplies. Cato walks up to Felix. Cato's hand wraps around Felix's throat, and I hear a snap. Felix drops to the ground, and a cannon booms. Cato turns around, and the rage melts out of his eyes. We go through the pile of rubble, looking for anything useful. "I don't see anything," I say. Cato nods. "I wonder what's holding Marvel up," he says. Another cannon booms. "It can't be..." I start. We freeze, and a few minutes later, another cannon goes off. Cato and I remain silent until nightfall, when the names and pictures of the fallen tributes appear in the sky. Sure enough, there's Marvel. Dead. I gasp, and Cato sighs. He wraps his arm around me and looks off into the distance. "Clove, I never want to see your picture up there. Promise me I won't." His mouth is smiling, but his eyes remain serious. I nod. "Promise."

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