Another Victor...., Lora Carlson [book club books .txt] 📗

The Reaping

As I sat on the stage I heard Evie Shine call out the female tribute for district 9,

 

“ Bridget Lark Dettri, our female tribute. Come come dear.” This girl looked about 13 or 14 and scared out of her mind. As soon as she came onto the stage Evie said

 

“Now for our male tribute.” She reached into the glass bowl and pulled out a name

 

“Lincoln Bishop Foster, our male tribute. Come here deary.” He seemed almost smug as he walked onto the stage, and stood next to Evie.

 

”Evie chirped, and they shook hands. That's my cue, so I stood up and walked to the front of the stage and spoke into the microphone.

 

“I can see that this year we have two fairly young tributes, tell me, Bridget, Lincoln, how old are you?”
Bridget looked surprised as she said

 

“I am 13, Miss” and Lincoln said

 

“So am I.” I thought this is going to be awkward, but not as awkward as last year when I had a 16 year old girl and a 18 year old boy.

I was 12 when I won the Hunger Games two years ago, which makes me 14, a year older than both of them, awkward. Before I was reaped I worked in the fields with my best friend Aiden, we had the job of stopping fights, because in the fields there are a lot of fights that can end up really bad. So I had experience in hand-to-hand combat. Aiden and I also had to catch the animals that live in the fields. So I am a pretty good hunter with knives and snares.

In the Arena

On the first day in the arena, 12 people died and I was wounded. I had been stupid enough to run straight to the Cornucopia when I spotted a set of knives and rope. I reached the knives when suddenly I was knocked out of the way by the girl from 7 who had a knife in her hand, but I landed by a sword, so I picked it up and cut her. She staggered back into one of the Career tributes. He took his sword and killed her. I stood up and looked him in the eyes, he was about to say something but I grabbed a knife and threw it. He thought it was at him so he ducked but it was actually for the person who was standing behind him about to stab him. The guy dropped and the Career stood up, confused.

After that we spent a while just watching each others backs while every one came at us from their plates. We were good, really good. But near the end the boy from 7 cut me really bad in the leg, and I fell to the ground. The Career boy saw that I was hurt and killed the boy, who was the last person besides the other Careers who was still at the Cornucopia. Every one who hadn't died went into the woods. He ran over to me shouting to who I think was the girl from his district, “Baylin! Get a first aid-kit!”

I was starting to lose consciousness when he reached me. He knelt down next to me and said,

 

“It’s ok 9, I’m going to help you” after he said that Baylin came with a first aid-kit. When she saw me she asked the boy;

 

“Isn’t that the girl from 9? The one who got a 9 in training?” The Career boy just nodded taking the first aid-kit and opening it. He got something out and put it on the ground, took a knife and cut my pants from the knee down to look at my wound better.

He did something to my leg that made it feel a whole lot better. Then the girl from District 1 said to the group,

“We have to move, everyone left will assume that we will stay here, at the Cornucopia, so we must go into the woods.” No one objects. The boy from District 1 comes up to me and the boy.

 

“Why is she here? you should just let her die, it’s not like she can walk, she would just slow us down” Career boy stands up slowly and says to 1;

 

“I am not leaving her” and to prove his point he kneels down, picks me up slowly, so he doesn’t hurt my leg, then stands up straight saying, ”So what are we waiting for? Let’s go.” and starts to walk towards the woods. Then I lose consciousness.

Beginning of the End

When I woke up I had no idea where I was. Well, I knew I was in a tent, on a sleeping bag, in the woods. But you know what I mean. I tried to sit up but a stabbing pain in my leg stopped me. I was forced to lay back down and a sound escaped my lips. I think I groaned but I can’t be sure. The Career boy came into the tent to check on me, or kill me. They both made sense. He came and kneeled next to me and said “Finally you are awake, do you want to come outside?” Since I thought I couldn’t talk, I just nodded. He picked me up and took me outside, then put me down on a rock. I noticed that we were the only people there. So I asked “Where is everyone?”

 

“They went to hunt the other tributes.”

 

“Without you?”

 

“I chose to stay.”

 

“Why?”

 

“So I could take care of you, I didn’t trust Baylin, our doctor.”

 

“Why are you helping me? I mean if you want to win you would just have to kill me anyways, wouldn’t it be easier if I was hurt?” I was truly confused. Why was he helping me if he had to kill me later? He had a good reason.

 

“At the Cornucopia, you saved my life multiple times. Now I want to save yours.”
He had a good point, but he had already saved my life, at the Cornucopia, with the 7 boy and many other times. I pointed that out to him but he said that he wouldn’t let me die because of a leg wound, which was fine by me. 

We just sat there for awhile when he took a big breath and said

 

“We haven’t met properly, I’m Ave” Ave, what a strange name. But everyone from the ‘more important districts’ have weird names. I told him my name “

 

My name is Victoria”

 

“Victoria? That is an odd name.”

 

“Look who’s talking Mr. Ave.” That made us both laugh.
 
For about a week we had a good routine. Wake up, eat, look for tributes, kill 1 tribute, go back to camp, eat, rest, hunt for another tribute, kill 1 tribute, go back to camp, eat, sleep, wake up to keep watch, sleep, repeat. Then we got seperated. During our first tribute hunt of the day, Ave and I were with Gavin (district 1) and Rhythm (district 1). Gavin saw the girl from 12 and went after her, while Rhythm saw the boy from 12 and went after him. I saw the boy from 10 and ran towards him, when I realized this was their plan. 12 and 10 had teamed up and were separating us. I called out for Ave, to tell him that it was a trick but, as always, he was a step ahead. When he found me, we ran towards the others. Gavin was carrying Rhythm. I asked him

 

“What happened?”

 

“12 tricked me. She was a decoy. The boy was the fighter, caught Rhythm of guard.”
He set her down and said “We have to get back to camp and warn the others.”
So we started off towards the camp. Rhythm kept whispering to Gavin, but he would tell her to wait. When we got to the Cornucopia Rhythm whispered to Gavin again and he nodded. Rhythm spun and sprang at Ave. He was caught off guard. She stabbed him in the stomach. I grabbed two knives and sent them into her skull. She was dead before she hit the ground. Gavin ran into the woods. I ran to Ave, I already knew he wouldn’t make it, so I wanted to spend the last few minutes we had together by his side. I knelt down and carefully put his head on my lap. He looked at me, and I started to cry.

 

“Why are you sad?” he reached up and wiped away my tears, but more kept coming.

 

“Because you saved my life, but now I can’t save yours.” I know it was stupid to like him so much, but he was like my brother even though I had only known him for a week and a half.

 

“Victoria, you're like my sister and my best friend, you have to win.”

 

“I will, for you.”

 

“For both of us” he smiled. It was a reaction, but I’m glad I did it. I leaned down and kissed him.
When I looked at his face, and smiled. He whispered to me, “I love you.”

 

“I love you too.” and he closed his eyes, smiled, hummed the tune I taught him, that we sang to people we loved, then the cannon went off. I set his head down carefully and reached into my pocket. I pulled out my district token, a necklace made out of rope with a wooden heart on it. I put it over his head and kissed his forehead. I stood up and walked away.

I was mad, really mad. When I got to the camp, everyone looked at me, surprised.

 

“What are you looking at?” I growled. The girl from 4, Mimi answered.

 

“Gavin told us you were killed, with Ave and Rhythm.”

 

“Well he lied, Rhythm killed Ave and I killed her.”

 

“Look, we can’t let you kill him, but if you want to you will have to kill us first.” Mimi stood up and picked up her spear, Olson the boy from 4, pulled out his bow and arrows and Baylin grabbed her sword. I was too mad to think about them, so I took out two knives and ran at them. Mimi threw her spear and I ducked barely dodgeing it, I threw one of my knives and it found its way into her neck. Olson, shot an arrow at me and it went into my