"Evelyn Brinley, better known as Lady Red, victor of the 72nd Hunger Games. Won her games at 15."
"Why Lady Red?"
"Because she always wears red. Oh, and she won her games by burning the remaining tributes alive."
✮
"𝑮𝒊𝒓𝒍 𝒐𝒏 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆? 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒄...
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"GO!" Joshua shouted at Evelyn, pushing her forward as the snakes finished feeding on Tera. The tributes didn't know where they were going, they were just trying to get away from the snakes that had focused their attention on them. They made it out of the forest, and the gamemakers must've hated them since the wind started to pick up.
Sand and dirt blew in her face, irritating her eyes and causing her to sputter and cough. She could hear the snakes hissing behind them, slithering through the dead grass with ease.
"What do you think I'm doing?!" Evelyn snapped at Joshua, turning her head back to look at him, "I am going!"
The boy glared at her, "You aren't going fast enough!"
"You're literally behind me what are you talking-"
"Forget about it, just run!"
Neither of them was worried about other tributes and being quiet anymore; the snakes would kill any tribute before they reached Evelyn or Joshua. They were purely focused on surviving the mutts. Evelyn didn't know anything about snakes. The closest she'd been to grass or greenery was her father's garden. 8 was mostly an industrial place. Joshua was the one who should know more about snakes.
"Can snakes swim?" She asked him.
"What? How the hell am I supposed to know?" The tribute said in a harsh voice, although the tone was dimmed since he was out of breath.
"You're the one from the forest."
"That doesn't mean I know about snakes."
"You guys have to work in the forest, do they not teach you about different animals in school?"
"I'm not sure, I never made it to my final year in school, did I?"
Evelyn grimaced but didn't say anything, focusing on running again. The hissing was dying down, so maybe the mutts were starting to disappear but she didn't want to risk stopping unless she knew for sure. Her knee was aching, the leaves fell off, and the wound opened up again. Leaves definitely weren't the best alternative bandage.
Joshua was running next to her now instead of behind her, and the girl glanced at him. "Do you think we can fight them?"
"You know, for a smartass, you're ridiculously slow," He said sarcastically, making a point by rolling his eyes.
"Point taken."
"Stop," Joshua suddenly said, and Evelyn stopped in her tracks and looked at him with a raised eyebrow. He looked around, seemingly trying to hear something, and it took Evelyn a moment to figure out what he was trying to hear, or trying not to hear.
She pursed her lips, "The hissing stopped."
There were only a few snakes left slithering toward them, and the two tributes took them out within seconds by stabbing them or slicing them in half. Other than that, it was completely silent. No snakes, no tributes, and no wind.
