𝙏𝙄𝙇𝙇 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙀𝙉𝘿 - 𝑯𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔

Ten

The arena was a clock. That's what Wiress was trying to tell the group.

They were all excited to finally understand how the different sections and different threats of the arena worked. It seemed that the Gamemakers and President Snow didn't just want the third Quarter Quell to have victors, but also to have a unpredictable threat every hour.

"This entire arena seems to be laid out like a clock," Katniss spoke as the group walked along one of the rock bridges to the cornucopia. "With a new threat every hour. But they stay only within their wedge."

"I have to give it to the Gamemakers . . . they're pretty fuckin' creative." Sidney laughed as Peeta took his machete and drew a circle in the sand on the cornucopia island. He divided it into twelve sectors.

"It all starts with the lightning. Then blood rain, fog, and monkeys. That's the first four hours," Peeta spoke, making markings in each sector to represent what threat came with that hour. "At ten that big wave heads from over there."

"Well the tail points at twelve," Sidney explained as she pointed at the top of the cornucopia.

"That's where the lightning strikes at noon and midnight," Katniss explained.

"Where?" Beetee asked, eyeing his coil.

"That big tree," Katniss pointed at a tree in the distance that was, surprisingly, not burned from all of the lightning.

Beetee smirked. "Good."

"Hickory Dickory dock. The mouse run up the clock," Wiress began to sing as she sat on the edge of the island. "The clock stroke one. The mouse run done. Hickory Dickory dock."

Sidney smiled at Wiress from where she sang. Wiress truly was a good person. She was genuinely smart and kind. Sidney had never really gotten to know her, but she wished they could've been friends in any other situation.

"So twelve and one is lightning," Peeta began. "Then one to two is blood. Then fog. Then monkeys."

"Right," Sidney nodded her head.

"Hickory Dickory dock. The dog barked at the clock." Wiress continued to sing.

"What about everything else?" Katniss asked. "Did you guys see anything?"

Johanna shook her head. "Nothing but blood." Sidney grimaced as she let her mind wonder where the Gamemakers got all of that blood.

"It doesn't matter if we know which sector is acting," Peeta shrugged. "We'll be safe."

"Yeah," Finnick scoffed. "Relatively speaking."

Sidney looked up, noticing that the background singing of Wiress had ended. She heard a gasp. Sidney snapped her head over to Wiress to see Gloss standing behind her with a knife in her back. A canon went off.

"Wiress!" Sidney screamed, her grabbing her spear. Katniss beat Sidney to it, shooting an arrow right into Gloss's chest. Another canon off.

Cashmere ran up behind Katniss, screaming. Johanna pushed Katniss out of the way, throwing her axe at Cashmere and killing her instantly. A third canon off.

Sidney felt the ground rumble beneath her feet as the island began to spin in circles. Sidney kept a tight grip on her spear and fell to the ground, rolling down the side of the island.

"Sidney!" Finnick screamed when he saw her fall.

"Finnick!" Sidney yelled back, maybe to show him she was still alive for the time being. Or as a goodbye in case she would die in that moment.

Sidney tumbled down to the edge, Peeta grabbed the dull end of her spear with one hand and the rocks with the other as she held onto the other end of the spear, trying not to slide down and cut her hand on the spike. She had a good grip, but the water splashing up against her hand didn't help.

The spinning caused the many items in the cornucopia to start falling and go flying everywhere. A sickle in particular flew in Peeta's direction, he would've been dead if he didn't move his head. Sidney didn't see it coming and the sickle sliced across her right cheek, an inch away from the corner of her lip and all the way down almost to her ear.

Sidney's muscles and face ached and she was seconds away from finally letting go, but the island's spinning finally slowed down, the spinning stopping and the water calming down.

Katniss broke the surface of the water, climbing up onto the rock bridge and laying on her stomach. She coughed up water as the rest of the group ran up to her, Sidney holding her bleeding cheek in pain.

Peeta helped Katniss stand, wrapping an arm around her to help her keep her balance. "You okay?" He asked her. All she did was give a thumbs up.

Sidnry groaned as she turned to Finnick and Johanna. "Do you think I'm gonna scar?" She asked, slightly lifting her hand to show the wound, a bit of blood in her mouth.

They all sat on the sand of the beach. Finnick waited, anxiously, for Sidney to return as the others talked. She had to grab more bandages and wash away the blood on her face before she went into the woods to clean herself up.

Sidney returned a moment later, just in time to hear the discussion on what their next move should be.

"So, besides Brutus and Enobaria, who's left?" Katniss asked.

"Maybe Chaff," Peeta shrugged. "Just those three."

"They know they're outnumbered I doubt they'll attack again," Finnick told everyone. "We're safe here on the beach."

"What do we do?" Johanna asked, standing next to Sidney, who kept on touching the bandage on her cheek. "We hunt them down?"

"Katniss! Help me!" A surprising voice of a young girl came through the trees. Katniss's eyes widened as she looked into the trees.

"Prim!" She screamed, breaking into a sprint through the jungle. "Prim!"

"Katniss!" Finnick yelled, running after Katniss. "Katniss, wait!" Sidney was about to go after Finnick when Johanna stopped her.

"They'll be back." Johanna mumbled as she held Sidney back. "Don't fall for it."

"Prim! Prim!" Katniss screamed as she ran deeper into the jungle. Katniss followed the sounds of her sister screaming her name through the jungle, the worst running through her mind.

Katniss looked up into the sky to see the source of the sound. A jabberjay. Katniss fired her arrow, shooting the horrible bird down and silencing its screams.

"Katniss?" Finnick yelled, running up behind her. He laid a hand on her shoulder. "You okay?"

"Finnick!" A voice screamed. But it wasn't just any voice, it was Annie's.

"No, Finnick!" Katniss tried to stop him but it was too late as he ran off into a sprint.

"Annie!" Finnick screamed her name, stopping and looking around the jungle to see if he could find her body.

"Finnick, it's not her!" Katniss yelled, running up behind Finnick. "It's just a jabberjay. It's not her."

"Where do you think they make that sound?" Finnick questioned. "Jabberjays copy."

"Katniss!" Another voice called out.

"Gale," Katniss whispered to herself.

The birds multiplied, screaming as they swooped down upon Finnick and Katniss. Their beaks nipped at their skin and their voices drove both tributes insane as they sprinted from the birds.

"Stop, stop, stop, its okay!" Peeta yelled from behind the forcefield, but Katniss couldn't hear him. "It's okay, they're just mutts! They're not real!"

"Finnick," Sidney whispered. Finnick opened his eyes in a startle, looking up and seeing Sidney's face hovering above him. "You okay?" He only silently nodded. She frowned and softly ruffled his hair.

"The hour's done. It's alright." Peeta said as he comforted Katniss. "They won't touch Prim."

"Your fiance's right," Johanna spoke, she was the only one standing, Katniss looked up at her. 'The whole country loves your sister. If they torture her or do anything to her," Johanna held back a laugh, "forget the districts there would be riots in the damn Capitol." Johanna began to yell up at the sky. "Hey, how does that sound Snow?! What if-what if we set your backyard on fire?! You know you can't put everybody in here!"