Rick Riordan's Hunger Games [PJO AU]

Ep 8 - "Team"

"What did I miss?" President Clair asked, arriving at the table with a scowl. "And how have you managed to use up half a box of tissues?"

"Oh, Luke killed Thalia," he wiped his eyes. "He and Annabeth broke their alliance."

She stared at the screens for a second, likely trying to remember who he was talking about. "Oh, them."

"Do you still want Annabeth dead?" he asked curiously. "That's the blonde one."

"I know who Annabeth is. She hasn't done or said anything against the Capitol, has she?" At his innocent head shake, she shrugged, "Then no, I don't care what she does. She seems to be exactly like everyone else."

◼▲◼

Calypso woke up alone. And even though that was normal, she worried about where Will had gone.

It was the anthem that had woken her, and she glanced up in time to see the girl from 5.

The first thing she did was check her stings. They were healing fine, and when she grabbed a branch and tried to stand, she found that she could without her head spinning.

Will had gotten more venom than she did, and with a sinking heart, she realized he must have stumbled off in a hallucinating daze.

But his backpack was gone, so that was a good sign.

They had wanted to break off the alliance so they could cover more ground while they searched for Leo or Nico. .Just not in a way that left no warning or chance to say goodbye.

She tried to gauge how many days had passed by how sore and hungry she was. Three, most likely. Maybe even four. She had been really tired before.

There wasn't any way to find out who had died in that time, or even if Will was alive. 

She felt like she was back home in District 7, anxiously watching Odysseus and then Drake in the Games. Back then, she'd only had one idea whether or not they would come back: that they probably wouldn't.

It was like that now. About Leo, about Will, about everyone. There could be three people left for all she knew, and all she had was hope. And that made her feel alone and helpless. Hope was for those who had no other option.

Calypso shouldered her bag. No, she had options. She could stay in the forest, try out the meadows, or return to the desert. She could do anything.

She could find Leo.

◼▲◼

"Our sponsorships are dwindling," Bryce announced, his patience wavering to the point of snapping.

"We know," Clarisse scowled. "It's pretty hard to miss that we've only been eating two meals a day."

Annoying.

Clarisse especially, but they all annoyed him. Bryce never had friends or family, and he was glad for it now. No one he spent more than a few days with could stand him, and vice versa. People were annoying in general, and nobody understood him.

Well, there was one person that he found interesting.

Bryce watched Piper braid her hair with dull fascination. The way she could comb out all the dirt and leaves to make herself presentable was honestly impressive. She saw him looking and assumed he was expecting her to talk. "Well, I think it's a sign that there's going to be a feast."

He brightened and grinned appreciatively, "Aha. That would be perfect. Now we can finally fight something besides mutts."

Clarisse grumbled, "We would be able to find people if you and Piper didn't argue so much. It really gives away our location, in case you weren't aware."