Chapter 15
1147 Words
Wyatt Sparks POV
Acee was a great mentor, but there was only so long I could listen to all the ways to kill a person. Maybe it was necessary, but it made my skin crawl. I told her I'd study hard and meditate, then snuck off to the observation car. I was about to sit down when I noticed a boy slumped on the couch and almost jumped out of my skin.
"Gah!" I blurted. "Where did you come from?" I asked the boy. He looked like the one from Three, Adair or something. He looked up at me forlornly and remained lying down.
"Sorry," he muttered. He looked so dispirited I couldn't take it. I sat down across from him and tried to cheer him up.
"Hey, you all right? You look like your girl left you," I said. Adair sat up and drew his knees to his chest. He didn't say anything, so I continued.
"It's the Games, right? Yeah. It's pretty scary. Of course, I have it even harder with my... condition," I said. Adair peeked at me to see if I had three legs or something. I sighed and lowered my voice as if I could barely stand to speak.
"See, back when I was six, I was playing with this laser when BAM! They couldn't reattach my thumb. Ever since then I've just had this plastic thing. It looks real, but it comes right off," I said. I wrapped a finger around my thumb and pressed it against my other bent thumb, then pretended to pull it off. Adair gawked in horror and recoiled, and I laughed.
"I'm just messing with you," I said as I "replaced" my thumb. "Might as well enjoy the time we have left." Adair smiled in relief and then genuinely. An idea I'd already been toying with solidified.
"I suppose you already had a plan, but us underdogs gotta stick together. You looking into any alliances?" I asked.
"You want to ally with me?" Adair asked.
"Sure, why not? You're a nice guy. Might as well roll the dice and see what the Games say," I said. "Maybe we'll hit the jackpot."
"Okay," Adair said. "Is it just us, or do you already have allies?"
"You're the first, but if a few more of the riffraff fall in with us it might be fun," I said. "Let's see who else is interested. Not that Haber girl, though. She's creepy."
Hermes Track POV
Toby had one piece of advice to give me: find an ally. Whether he meant I'd have a chance or I wouldn't die alone I didn't know, but I decided to take it. The possibility of allying seemed pretty slim. I didn't have any skills or really anything to attract an ally. Maybe one of the younger Tributes, like Yasmine, would take pity on me. Talking to the other Tributes seemed unbearable and I really just wanted to go to bed, but I had to be strong.
It was dark out when I finally found the courage to leave my room. I crept down the halls in the cars hoping to bump into another Tribute who would start the conversation for me. I ended up almost tripping over a girl curled up against the wall of the narrow corridor.
"Oh, excuse me," I apologized. "I didn't see you. Sorry."
"It's okay," the girl muttered as she wiped her eyes. Seeing that set me off too, and my eyes started to water.
"I'm scared too," I said. I sat down next to her. We barely fit in the hallway and the snugness felt reassuring.
"I don't want t-to die al-l-lone," the girl said. I wished I could protect her, but I never did anything right.
"I can stay with you if that's okay," I said.
"You would do that?" she asked. I hadn't expected her to say yes, and I felt like a hero.
"I don't think I can help you much, but I won't leave you," I said. I wanted to tell her something about myself, so when I died I wouldn't be entirely lost.
"I'm Hermes," was all I could think to say.
"I'm Serena," she said, and that was all we needed.
Pepper Brye POV
When the goofy boy from Three asked if I wanted to join him and another boy in an alliance, it seemed like a good idea. I wasn't very strong on my own, and there was safety in numbers. The train was hours away from the Capitol, and Snapdragon ordered delicious skinny pancakes filled with cream and fruit for breakfast. I would have stayed there all day eating, but I wanted to take a last look at any more possible allies before cliques and groups solidified during training. I headed for the observation car, since that was where most Tributes went if they weren't in their rooms.
There were two Tributes in the car, a boy and a girl. They were sitting next to each other on a couch and talking.
"I wish I had been a better son. I was always making my dad angry. Then he had to pound some sense into me, and he always felt guilty afterward," the boy said.
"Well I hope he felt guilty! What kind of father hits his own son?" I interrupted.
"It's okay. I deserved it," the boy said after he reacted to my outburst. The girl seemed to agree with me, but she didn't say anything. I had a few more choice words for the kind of dirtbag the boy was talking about, but I didn't want to embarrass him.
"Mind if I sit with you?" I asked. Neither of the Tributes responded, so I plopped down.
"What are you guys talking about?" I asked. Someone started talking on an intercom and I had to strain to hear his response.
"We're telling each other about ourselves in case... you know," the boy said. My chest hitched once again as I remembered my situation. I looked at the ground and felt the fear resound inside me.
"Are you two allies?" I asked. The girl nodded. I already had two allies, but somehow it felt like the more people I had around me, the farther away death was. I wanted to surround myself with a protective layer of allies like lucky charms.
"I'm in an alliance with Adair and Wyatt- the boys from Five and Three. We're looking for more people if you're interested," I said. The boy looked at the girl and she nodded again. When he looked back at me, there was a sort of surprised hope in his eyes. He agreed, and Hermes and Serena joined my alliance. I still didn't have much hope, but I felt a tiny bit better.
I think that's how the alliance goes. I might have left someone out or added someone random.
- Writer
