WINGS - Coriolanus Snow

FIVE

THE IMPACT OF THE BOMBS THREW ARIA OFF HER FEET, and she landed on the ground with a loud thud. She cried out in pain, gripping onto the arm which she had landed on. It was bruised and bloody, but she knew this wasn't the worst of it. Aria sat up with great difficulty, coughing and spluttering whilst looking around at the array of destruction the bombs had caused. Flames ravaged the arena and screams echoed around the walls, but Aria paid no notice. She was focused on spotting Coriolanus. It took a while, but when she did, a sense of relief filled her. He wasn't hurt, he looked fine and he was just lifting his head up when she shouted out for him.

"Coriola--" her call was interrupted by a final explosion, which erupted high above in the stands. She was flung across the arena again, damaging her arm even further. From this explosion, chaos ensued; flames grew stronger, screams grew louder, and Aria could hear Coriolanus's amongst them.

"Help! Please, somebody help!" he screamed.

Aria grimaced, getting up as fast as she could in her injured state.

"Aria, please, help me!"

Aria looked around helplessly for Coriolanus, but he was difficult to spot amidst the rubble. Although she couldn't see Coriolanus, what she could see was an exit. The District 2 tribute, Marcus was already running through the opened gates, undetected by the Peacekeepers. For a brief moment, Aria was tempted to follow. She'd run away, live in the woods on plants and berries. She had a better chance in doing that than she'd ever had in The Hunger Games, but Aria stopped when she had finally caught sight of Coriolanus. The helpless look on his face, trapped under a flaming beam caused her to become conflicted. This was the man who fed her when no one else would, the man who cared for her when no one else would, and she was about to just leave him to die? No, she couldn't do that. She couldn't live with herself.

Aria rushed to his side. "I'm here, I'm here, don't worry," she assured him, which he replied to in pained grunts. "Shhh, it's okay."

Aria, despite her injured arm, lifted the beam off of Coriolanus, but she lost her grip and it fell back onto him as he let out a pained cry. The flames were now spreading, already catching onto her hands and soon, Coriolanus's pretty face. She put all her strength into lifting the beam, ignoring the searing pain going up her arm as her sleeve caught fire. Aria held it for as long as she could, finally slamming it back down on the ground once Coriolanus had dragged himself out from it, injured and burnt, but alive.

Aria helped him to his feet, and the two limped away from the flames, collapsing somewhere in the middle of the arena where there was no fire.

Medics had finally arrived at the scene, and Coriolanus tried to reassure the injured Aria.

"It's okay, help is here," he breathed out. The medics rushed over to him, laying him on a stretcher, and Coriolanus waited for one to come for Aria, but it never did. Instead, Aria was rewarded with a beating. A Peacekeeper landed blow after blow on her stomach, a gun pressed up against her neck as she was doubled over in pain.

"No... wait! Aria!" Coriolanus yelled out before he was wheeled away. When he'd reached the hospital, he had passed our from his exhaustion, finally getting a bit of relief from his pain.

When he awoke, Grandma'am and Tigris were leaning over him with worried looks.

"Hi, Coryo," said Tigris. "It's us."

"Hey," he exhaled, before Aria entered his thoughts. "Aria. She saved me." He leapt up.

"I'm not surprised. She's obviously a good person. Right from the beginning, she tried to protect you from the other tributes." Tigris said with a smile.