— 𝐣𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐱 —

━━━━━━ ☽【❖】☾ ━━━━━━

Aside from the bloodbath at the cornucopia, surviving the games hadn't proven much of a challenge. Almost an entire week had passed and I can't remember the last time I heard the cannon's echo.

Rex, Honey, Harlan, and myself had remained holed up inside our hidden cavern, hoping the others might just take themselves out if we were patient enough. I can imagine how much of a disappointment I've been to the Capitol, but if lying low keeps me alive, I'll stick to what was slowly becoming my daily routine.

Rex would finish the nightwatch—I originally protested this decision, but if I wasn't nearby then Harlan couldn't sleep and we didn't need more than one member of our small entourage exhausted at a time. So Rex would keep watch through the night, then Harlan would take the next watch while Rex rested and hunted down our first meal: usually from some nearby berry bushes that I'd confirmed were safe to ingest.

Harlan had been delighted when he found out that I'd brought him a bo staff, so he'd spend a fair amount of time learning new techniques from Rex while I tried to figure out how to wield a spearhead like a scythe. Rex managed to craft a few crude daggers, but even then I couldn't get a feel for them. I only carried them as a last resort for protection.

The wind rustled the nearby branches, forcing my ears to twitch at the sound. I snapped off a few more branches then quickly turned to head back to the place I unfortunately considered home at this point. The weather hadn't been nearly as bad as that first day, but it still continued to snow and the temperature remained brisk. Even being outside the cave ten minutes and my fingers began to turn blue. I can only imagine how the other tributes must be faring as even the layers we were provided with did little against the cold.

"Juneaux!" Harlan wrapped his arms around me, providing warmth from his body heat the second I closed the makeshift hatch to the cavern. I chuckled as he continued to bounce on his toes, stepping back to show me the bo. "Look what Rex just taught me!"

He quickly twirled the bo, switching from two hands to one; however, on the hand-off to his now vacant hand, his fingers fumbled and the bo clattered to the ground. Not without giving himself a bump on the head though.

"Ow," he winced and muttered under his breath, immediately applying pressure to his head to relieve the pain.

"Hey," I lowered to the ground so that I'd be eye-level as I took his hands in mine. "Let me see... oh no..."

His eyes widened. "What? What is it? Am I bleeding?"

"I think we might need to shave your head, it looks pretty serious," I playfully replied, gently massaging the bump.

"Really?" His worry only grew; however, he relaxed once I laughed. He gently pushed me away, crossing his arms. "That's not funny."

"It's a little funny," I contradicted as I teased him. "You're gonna be alright. It doesn't even hurt anymore I bet."

He slowly nodded his head as he realized the distraction had helped the pain fade. I gently tussled his hair as I rose back to my feet; however, a stern look replaced the playful as we made our way to the back of the cavern.

"But you're supposed to be asleep," I reprimanded Rex, tapping him on the arm with the Harlan's staff as he pretended to snore.

He acted as if I'd startled him awake. Harlan and Honey both giggled at his clueless expression as he looked up at me with large eyes that faked innocence.

"As much as I appreciate you looking after them—and as much as Harlan appreciated the lessons—you need to rest after staying up all night," I reminded him then set down the berries that I'd gathered. "Or maybe I'll just take the next night shift and you can collect breakfast."

Honey tapped me on the shoulder, slowly signing what I knew was a question. Although Harlan had started teaching me the language, I was struggling to understand. It was slow-going and I could only interpret every four or five words in a conversation. This time I only recognized one.

I slowly shook my head with an apologetic look. "Sorry, I didn't find any strawberries."

Harlan giggled as he watched me attempt to sign as I spoke. Honey giggled too, meaning I'd likely said something either ridiculous or utterly embarrassing.

I sighed. "Alright, what did I say?"

"You said that you danced with the strawberries," Harlan continued to laugh.

I furrowed my brow, but laughed along. "How? You haven't even taught me the word for dance yet?"

"Clearly it must be on your mind," Rex suggested with a laugh, joining in with the others. The sound of our brief happiness echoed around us.

I shook my head. "Believe me, dancing is the last thing on my mind. Besides, I've got about as much grace as a fish out of water."

"Please," Rex scoffed. "You're too humble. You're a goddess, remember?"

I rolled my eyes. "Not you too. I thought that nicknamed would have died out by now."

"How could it?" Rex questioned, pulling a few berries from the branches before popping them into his mouth. "When I'm greeted by the goddess each morning and can only return the blessing by dedicating my evening hunt with a sacrifice in her name before returning to my faithful duties of watching over her sleep."

I playfully shoved his shoulder, forcing him to lie down again. "Well now it's my turn to watch over your sleep. So shut your eyes before I knock you out myself."

Honey nodded her head as if she were agreeing with me; however, our laughter quieted as we noticed her eyes drifted beyond the group toward the back wall. She rose and wandered over to that far wall, pressing her face against the cold rocks.

"Honey?" Rex questioned, his brow furrowing.

"I'll check on her," I reassured him, rising to meet the girl. Before I could even ask what she'd noticed, she took my hand and placed it on the wall beside her face.

That's when I slowly began to connect the dots. Moisture clung to the wall, but more than just your typical dark, damp cavern. A thin stream of water had begun to slide down the wall, slowly pouring through the cracks and flaws of the rocks. Then Honey pointed toward the ground. My eyes followed her finger, catching on the pebbles that rolled along the ground that was beginning to shake more violently.

"What's wrong?" Rex called over, noticing that neither of us had updated him.

"We need to go," I insisted, pulling Honey away from the wall as quickly yet gently as I could. "We need to go now!"

I jogged back to the others and began to cram what few possessions we had into the sack without much care for order or organization. Rex didn't hesitate to help, grabbing our self-made rations and wrapping them up to keep them preserved.

He leaned over, keeping his voice low so that Harlan would remain calm. "What's going on?"

I opened my mouth to reply, but the wall cracked first. Water rushed through the opening, filling the cavern faster than any of us could have anticipated. The water was already up to my knees by the time I'd thrown the pack over my shoulder and taken Harlan by the hand. Rex had picked Honey up, carrying her on his back as we trounced through the water toward the cavern's opening.

The current tried to drag Harlan under, but I kept a firm grip on his hand, pulling him back up to my side as the water continued to rise. He coughed and sputtered with wide eyes as I lifted him onto my back as the water levels had risen above my waist.

"Rex!" I called out, still a few steps behind him. "Rex, the ladder!"

"Shit!" he exclaimed as he too noticed that our way out had been crushed from the weight of the waves crashing against the entrance wall.

"What now?" I shouted, trying to ignore the pressure building around my chest.

I couldn't panic. I had to stay calm... but I couldn't think. I could only see the murky waters that threatened to bury us under the earth. I could only feel the cold liquid as if rushed upward toward my chin. I was standing on my toes just to keep Harlan's head above the waves as we were still a few feet away the opening.

"We've got to wait for it to rise enough to reach the top," Rex suggested, but from the sound of his voice I could tell that even he didn't believe in that idea.

Even if we could reach the entrance—and we timed it perfectly so that we weren't swept up in the undertow and bashed against the wall instead—Rex was tiring quicker than I was. He was sleep-deprived and carrying Honey only added to his exhaustion. He wasn't going to be able to pull himself free much less any of the rest of us.

"That's insane!" I couldn't find the energy to fake optimism, I was too focused on keeping myself and Harlan afloat.

"Then you'll probably think this is insane too," Rex replied, but didn't give me an opportunity to question the statement. He gasped then shouted. "Hey! Help! Help us!"

And with no better ideas... I joined him. "Help! Please, somebody help us!"

We screamed until our lungs felt like they were ready to combust without air. The only reason we stopped was because we started choking instead. I could feel my heart shattering. Not out of self-pity, but because I could feel Harlan convulsing as the water had moved on from filling the cavern to filling our lungs. My vision had started to form black dots from the oxygen that had been cut off from my mind. Just when I felt like all hope was lost, my fingers grazed a course material at my side. I scrambled for that feeling of hope, clinging to salvation with one hand and Harlan with the other.

The water rushed past my face and the cold that followed was enough to shock some life back into my pulse. I choked and sputtered, coughing up water from my lungs as they simultaneously cried out for air. The pressure in my chest only released once I heard Harlan's small form coughing beside me. His breath hitched from the cold and he immediately caught a nasty case of the hiccups.

I ran my hands through my fingers, then pulled Harlan close as I laughed deliriously. Even as a spear was thrust toward my chest, I continued to laugh. Tears streamed down the sides of my face and my breath heaved as I slowly looked up to face those responsible for saving us.

The girl with the spearpoint pressed against my chest wore a scarf that covered half her face. Her hair was dark, short, and chopped unevenly. Her eyes were hardened, and her thin frame proved she had every reason as it was evident she'd suffered from a similar poverty of her own. She had a splint holding her right leg together and a soaked bandage wrapped around her left arm. I tried to look beyond her, but she blocked my vision, turning the spear around to knock me back with the wooden end.

"Tuck... this one's not breathing," a higher-pitched, but definitely masculine voice called out. "I think..."

Shivering, Honey pushed the female tribute—holding me at bay with her spear—out of the way. She grabbed me by the hand and quickly tugged me over to where Rex was sprawled out onto the ground. Standing over him was a twig-like male tribute with shaggy hair and a pair of make-shift goggles holding back his bangs.

I dropped to the ground, pressing my ear against his chest. My stomach dropped as all I heard was silence; however, a few seconds of patience allowed me to catch the faint beat of his heart. I immediately began compressions on his chest just as I'd been taught years ago. It wasn't an uncommon skill found in district nine, honestly it was frowned upon if you didn't know how to complete the exercise by the age of nine or ten. People sometimes collapsed on in the fields from heatstroke, seasonal allergies, and the plain unknown at times. It was important to know even the simplest of methods to keep the district's workers alive... only so that the Capitol could get the most out of each drained life force.

The compressions alone weren't enough. I completed the last set then pinched Rex's nose and pressed my lips against his. I blew the breath from my lungs into his. Twice. Finally, his eyes shot open and he began to sputter and choke like the rest of us had. Honey immediately jumped on him, wrapping her arms around him as if she might never let go.

"Careful," I playfully warned. "I don't need to bring him around a second time."

Honey eased up on her hug, but refused to leave her brother's side. Rex quietly consoled his sister, speaking with his hands rather than words, then looked up at me with a soft yet appreciative gaze. "Like I said... a goddess."

"I take it he's breathing now?" And that's when I was alerted to the third individual of this bizarre group. His hair was shorter than the twig-tribute, but no less messy. He had more muscle to him, but Rex still towered over everyone. The most noticeable feature of this tribute was his eyes—or the fact that they were covered by a bandage wrapped around his head anyway.

"Um... yeah..." the twig-tribute blinked a couple of times as if he'd been too shocked to process the mouth-to-mouth he'd just witnessed. "They're all alive, Tuck."

Rex quickly rose from the ground, stepping out in front as if willing to sacrifice himself yet again as he pushed the three of us behind him. "Who are you?"

"The tributes that just saved your lives." We whipped our heads around to be greeted by yet a fourth tribute. His complexion was much darker than his compatriots, and his hair was trimmed neatly along his head. He shook out the frozen rope at his side then continued to wrap it up around his arm—an arm that was currently missing a hand. "You're welcome by the way."

My eyes narrowed, trained on the new tribute until he joined the other three. Unfortunately, my teeth chattered as I tried to remain stoic as I questioned them. "Why?"

"You needed help," the twig-tribute replied. "At least that's what it sounded like. We can help you back into the ground if you like."

Harlan shuddered and shook his head. "That's okay..."

"Besides," the one previously referred to as Tuck muttered bitterly. "We refused to just stand by as those Capitol bastards made more of us suffer."

"And now what?" I asked. "You want to hold hands and make friendship bracelets."

The female tribute finally spoke, snapping her head in our direction. "If we wanted you dead, we would have left you to drown. That's four more bodies we don't have to worry about."

"So why didn't you?" Harlan asked, titling his head in confusion.

Three of the four other tributes looked to the ground, seeing that no one was up to offer an explanation, the twig-tribute shrugged. "We're trying to overthrow the Capitol."

"Shhh!" the other three snapped, immediately jumping to cover Twig's mouth.

"I'm sorry, what?" There wasn't any doubt that the four of us were utterly confused by the four of them. "I think I misheard."

The female tribute hesitantly lowered her hand from Twig's mouth then leaned closer, keeping her voice a hushed whisper while her eyes darted in every direction. "We think it's bullshit that we've been dumped in a winter wasteland to kill each other like animals. Fuck the Capitol and the games. We're gonna figure out a way to get out of here."

"Can we come?" Harlan quietly asked, whispering at the same volume yet hesitant to invite himself much less the rest of us.

The female tribute took a step back, then whispered something unintelligible in Tuck's ear. He slowly nodded his head, crossing his arms as he addressed. "Only if her highness is willing to turn her back on the palace."

A low growl bubbled at the back of my throat, but I remained as calm as I could to make the most of a bad situation. "I'm just trying to get the kid home. I wasn't ever one of them. But since they made the mistake of putting me up on a pedestal, none of them will escape the burning rain of my wrath."

"Cute sentiment," Tuck scoffed. "But it'll take more than hiding in a cave to do that. Are you ready to step into the light?"

"Following whose lead?" I questioned, equally unimpressed. "Because my team might have almost drowned, but your team looks ready to fall apart if you were too blind to notice."

Tuck frowned, leaning forward toward the sound of my voice. There was a tense silence between us for a solid five minutes before Tuck released a harsh laugh under his breath. "Maybe the game-makers didn't make a mistake."

"What? With my score?" I rolled my eyes, tired and annoyed by the constant callback to who I felt was just a stranger wearing my skin.

He shook his head. "Trying to drown you... You didn't think it was an accident that your tranquil shelter was destroyed, did you?"

I looked back at the others, who shared a similar shocked expression. I knew the gamemakers manipulated the playing field, but I guess I didn't fully understand what that meant until this moment. Caius wasn't wrong when he said the gamemakers controlled our fate based on entertainment factor.

"So what now?" I asked.

"We lie low for a little bit," the tribute missing his left hand replied. "The cannon echoed twice while you were drowning. The gamemakers should leave us alone for a day or so, which gives us a little time to gather our wits and come up with a solid plan."

"A plan led by who?" Rex asked, crossing his arms as he stepped up beside me. "No offense, but I'm not the most confident marching in blind behind the blind. And the rest of you look either sick or broken in another respect."

Honey sneezed as if to emphasize her point, shuddering as her wet clothes were not only heavy but half-frozen. My own clothing felt the same as if was harder to move as my jacket grew stiffer.

"Then it's a good thing we've got a queen to lead us into battle," the female tribute countered, pulling down her scarf just long enough to unveil her smug expression.

"My name is Juneaux," I finally snapped. "It's not her highness, it's not Queen of the Heavens, and it's not goddess. I'm just Juneaux."

"And that's pretty amazing too," Harlan contradicted.

Rex nodded as if agreeing. "It doesn't take much conviction to take a life... respect should be commanded by those who preserve it."

"The Capitol wouldn't have their eye on you if you weren't worth their time," Tuck added. "So let's take control of what they only consider a game."

I huffed. "Fine. We'll walk and talk, starting with introductions."

"I'd say we could head back to our campsite, but we're currently on the lookout ever since those wolves attacked," the tribute missing his hand muttered under his breath.

"We'll just have to make a new one," Twig replied then took charge with introductions, sharing far more than he probably had the liberty to. "I'm Otto. This is Tucker, he was leading our small alliance until his eyes were burned the other night by another tribute who was trying to steal our supplies. This is Webb, the wolves snapped her leg and tore a chunk from her arm. And this is Emory, he lost his hand to frostbite the second night."

"That you, Otto," Webb hissed. "For making us look completely inept."

"Well, not all of us could hole up in a cushy cave," Tuck added as if justifying their injuries.

"No, just the smartest of us," Rex countered, crossing his arms.

"Thats's Rex," Harlan took over the introductions for our group. "And that's his sister, Honey. I'm Harlan, and Juneaux already introduced herself."

"Great!" I interjected, clasping my hands together. "Let's get a move on before someone else finds out standing out here like sitting ducks."

"How can we be sitting ducks if we're standing?" Otto