GAMES
"Do you know what the reason for these games even is?"
"Of course I do. To punish us for the Dark Days. The war."
"Exactly. And do you know what that means?"
"What?"
"No one wins when it comes to the Games. Twenty-three tributes lose their liv...
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***
Shay was camped out in the brush that lined the open field. The Cornucopia sat invitingly in the center, the debris and wreckage from the explosion long gone. The blonde tribute picked at her nails as she thought about what led her there.
Not long after she finished her gifted soup with the note from Taurus, she had fallen asleep. She tried to understand what her mentor's note possibly meant, before resigning to just have to 'have faith' and wait for a sign. That didn't quell her anxiety much. But, her patience was rewarded when halfway through the following day she was startled once again by another announcement. It was time for the Feast.
The Feast was somewhat of a Hunger Game tradition. It was a ploy towards the end of the Games in which the gamemakers would attempt to lure tributes together. They would promise them some extraordinary reward—or in some cases, a simple loaf of bread—in return for the risk associated with trying to retrieve it. The risk, of course, was gathering with the rest of the tributes who all wanted each other dead.
Shay pondered on it for a minute, debating if it was worth the risk at all. The same night she received her parachute, she weighed her choices. She had everything she needed as far as she was concerned; food, weapons, water, and shelter. But, with the announcement coming so soon after Taurus' words of encouragement, she had to wonder if there was more to it; if there was something she needed that she didn't even realize she needed.
And that's why she was hiding in the foliage, closed off from any prying eyes as she eyed the bags lined up on a long podium right outside of the mouth of the Cornucopia. There was a bag for each of them. District 2's bag was large, obviously holding whatever the Capitol thought Cato and Clove needed. Shay didn't doubt the two of them were still together and honestly, she dreaded them getting the advantage that was in that bag.
The bags for Districts 5, 11, and 12 were also there along with her own. If Shay hadn't known where to look, she might've missed hers. It was small and blended in with the surrounding colors. Her eyebrows furrowed as she stared at it. What the hell could I possibly need that is that small? she thought.
The blonde thought about making a mad dash for her bag. She knew she was fast enough to grab it and be gone before anyone even processed what happened. She would have the element of surprise. However, she wasn't the only one who thought that.
Just as she was about to leave her cover, the red-haired girl from District 5 popped out of the shadows of the Cornucopia and snatched her bag before fleeing to the forest once more. Shay couldn't help but stare at the spot she came from, wide-eyed and mouth agape. How had she managed to hide in there?
