A Game of Chance [THG Fanfic]

Arena, Day Three (2), Party

-Valentyna Taras, District One-

The party is drawing closer, yet Damon trails behind me like a lost puppy. I'm only keeping him with me because, if I left him, I fear that he might form another alliance, and therefore receive the sponsor gifts for his arm that I have been hiding from him.

He grumbles for nearly all the way to the cornucopia, until I turn and run my knife across his arm. He goes pale, and shuts his mouth immediately.

I was hoping that I could treat him to a little more sculpturing with the knives, perhaps on his mouth. Unfortunately, he just had to listen to me and be quiet.

As we approach the building leading to it, I am aware of faint voices behind us. Good. More people to kill.

I halt Damon and jank him round. Sure enough, there are two people staring at us, in surprise. My least favourite tribute, and the treacherous idiot who accompanies her.

Hunter and Damon-Lee.

I focus on Hunter, a smile twisting around my mouth. "Well, well," I say, still staring at her. "Look what the dog dragged in." I sneer at her.

Her expression becomes one of hate as she lunges for my throat. Damon runs forward to intercept her, while Damon-Lee slams into me, pushing me too the ground. He pins down my arms, but before he can secure my feet I kick upwards.

His grip lessens, and as he glares at me I grin at him. "I don't suppose that the rule about not attacking defenceless girls counts here?"

His lip curls at this. "You're not a girl; you're a monster," he replies, struggling to regain control. But I don't make it easy, and slowly, but surely I gain the upper hand, finally suceeding on getting on top of him and pinning his arms and legs down.

He thrashes wildly, his eyes darting around, appariently looking for something. It soon becomes obvious that he can't find this 'something', as he collapses, resigning himself to whatever I have in store for him.

I smile, bringing out a small dagger from my pocket, careful to keep him down. I positon it over his wrist, and, just as I begin to lower it, a Capitol voice booms out from across the Arena, and I pause, straining to listen.

"Tributes, you have exactly sixty seconds before the party will start. If you do not arrive on time, there may be consequences."

I grimance, and, rather than torturing Damon-Lee, ram the sword directly into his heart. Blood spurts out over my arms, my front, and my face as the light in his eyes dim and his head lolls to one side. It wasn't my method of preferance; he had a far too easy death. The next tribute won't be nearly as lucky. I relish the thought of a drawn out, painful death.

I toss his body to the side and stand, searching around for Damon. To my horror, he is no-where to be seen; nor is Hunter. He has betrayed me.

Furious, I sprint to the Cornacopia. Now I have an even longer death list. Hunter and Damon are going to pay for this.

I reach the Cornacopia with around ten seconds to spare. I can see other tributes staring at each other, sizing each other up, but this is the safe zone. If they attack here, the Capitol won't be happy, and they know it.

Finally, the horn signalling that the party is ready for us blows, and I charge into the midst of the tributes, almost immediatley spotting a bag with 'VT' written on it in fancy script. I grab it, run towards the table with cakes on it and choke one down, then turn to watch the other tributes.

Gazing around, my eyes zoom in on Mia, who is being carried by someone else- probably from a different district. She looks so weak at this minute, and my brain gets fogged up with the thought of her death so much so that I can't stand just seeing her there, looking so innocent, anymore.

I ready a knife, and use all my strength to throw it at her as she turns her head, eyes curious. It hits her directly where her heart should be, but for an unknown reason it bounces off. I scowl. She has made a fool out of me.

The boy carrying her takes one small peek at my expression, then grabs both of their packs and sprints away from the party. I start to follow, then stop. I might as well remain here for a bit. It is safe, and, besides, I should check inside my pack.

Opening it up, I discover a strange weapon inside, as well as a blanket and a couple of bottles of fresh water.

The weapon is quite small, but has a razor sharp edge. It appears to be a kind of frizbee, except that it is made in a full circular shape, with a screw around the side. Inspecting this screw more closely, I realise that it is in fact a way to tighten or loosen this circular device.

Deciding what to call this weapon is difficult, but eventually I decide that it should be called a 'noose'. That is the only word that seems fitting, and it seems like it is supposed to go over other peoples head as a method of torture.

I smile, tight lipped. Perfect. My sponsors will love this more than anything else I have recieved before, and I know that Hunter will put on a good show if I use this, although I don't intend for her to be my first victim.

I intend to use Mia and her strange ally as my first tests. Best to go for those who are weak, to put on a far better display for the audience.

My head begins to hurt, and I try not to show this sign of weakness. How strange. I haven't had a headache in years, and I am most certainly not dehydrated.

Surveying the area, I realise that all the the other tributes have left, possibly to check out their goods, as I have done. In fact, I should probably leave too.

I have work to do, and it begins with tracking down Mia and her ally. The sooner I find them, the better it will be for my reputation.