Betrayed

The line moved quick enough that she did not notice how much time went by, or if time even ever went by wherever she is right now. Though in any case, what was once the hundreds or thousands or probably even millions before her disappeared.

With no one in front of her to obscure her sight she could see clearly what she had to face: three tall judge’s desks – like the ones you see in court – stood tall. The middle one was about fifteen feet, the other two slightly smaller. In each seat was an old man, around 60 to 65 years old. God knows what they’re still doing, and God knows how they get up there. However, they did look familiar to the girl, a small spark of a memory from long ago, as if she had seen these people from pictures, from stories told to her when she was younger.

She looked at the man in front of her, who was looking up at the three judges, saying things she couldn’t hear. When he was done talking, the three old men write things down and looked at each other. The one in the middle made a gesture, and the gate below them (something the girl never noticed until it moved) opened to reveal a grey expanse filled with only a sea of people. The man stepped forward, through the doors, and disappeared.

“Next,” a voice shouted.

The young girl stepped forward, albeit hesitantly, but the three men were quite far up she wasn’t sure they’d hear her when she speaks.

“Name,” the man in the middle said, whose gold plaque had the name MINOS engraved on it.

“Bianca,” she said, although she wasn’t sure how she knew, and that seemed awfully strange to her. “Bianca Svelare.”

The one on the left, whose plaque reads AIAKOS, scrolled through his book, probably looking for her name. He smiled, probably finding it, and read a little more.

“Killed in the night by a thief with a gun,” Aiakos says. Bianca felt a chill down her spine. Aiakos looked at her happily, a sly smile on his lips, as if that was good news. Minos looked at him with sharp eyes. He looked tired of Aiakos. He probably is, Bianca thought.

The one on the right, RHADAMANTHYS his plaque reads, decided to speak up. “Do you recall what happened, young one?”

Bianca closes her eyes.

***

The glow of the screen made her look pale, almost like a ghost. The bags in her eyes were heavy, her hair tied in a messy bun, her clothes stained with coffee, and plates of unfinished food sit atop the table.

No one was home tonight, they all left for a movie. They wanted her to come. No thank you, she told them, I don’t feel too good. You go on without me. And so they did.

But she had company. Old friends. Familiar faces. Familiar voices. They were always there for her. They always had her back. They’d give her opinions and ideas and they made sure she always had something to do like good friends should.

“Tonight, maybe?” One of them said.

“Yes. No one’s home,” the other crows. “When else will you have this opportunity?

“Not for a very long time,” Bianca replied. True. Her family never left her alone.

She got up slowly. Her hands were shaking and her legs could barely hold her up. I have to do it tonight, she thought. With one foot in front of the other she walked into the kitchen, her friends left alone in the living room.

“The big one!” They both shout. Bianca nods.

She holds the cold metal in her hands, gliding it along the tip of her fingers. The thin, sharp edge gave her goosebumps.

“Now.”

***

Rhadamanthys frowns, obviously disappointed with the story. Bianca looks down at her feet. She hadn’t noticed that she wasn’t wearing any shoes on. How impolite. But the ground was cold and wet, and she wondered how she never felt it until now.

“Your actions were not noble,” Minos says. His eyes were dark, almost as if they were hollow. “However, you were in distress.”

Aiakos laughs. “You call that distress?”

“What my brother means,” interrupts Rhadamanthys, “is that you could have done something else. Nonetheless, it was a choice made and equal actions must be made.”

Bianca swallows the lump in her throat. “What’s going to happen?”

“The Fields of Punishment,” Aiakos shouts.

“Elysium!” Rhadamanthys says at the same time. They look at each other angrily as if this has happened before.

Minos clears his throat. “This was in no way your fault,” he says. “You are truly brave for struggling for so long. However, your act of cowardice at the last minute… well… it cancels your bravery, young one.”

He looks at Bianca with wise eyes and she relaxes. Minos knows what he’s doing, she thinks to herself.

“Asphodel. For bravery against the multitude and crimes against the self.”

The doors below them open once again, just like it had for the man before her. The same sea of grey. Bianca looks up for one last glance at the three men – the last faces she will ever see.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Minos, Rhadamanthys, Aiakos - Judges of Hades. Dead souls go through them for judgement, whether they will be placed in Elysium, Asphodel, or the Fields of Punishment.

* Bianca Svelare - Bianca means "white", a symbol of her purity and innocence. Svelare is Latin meaning "to betray", her own thoughts caused her distress.

Fanfics: Annabeth

Seven demigods left Camp Half-Blood. Only five came back.

Annabeth, Hazel, Frank, Piper, and Nico were escorted to safety to New Rome after they had defeated Gaea.

Jason stood atop a cliff, his hands up high and eyes golden yellow. He tried desperately to create a storm to slow down Gaea's troops from reaching the Argo II. He promised Piper he'd come back, but right now all she could do was look into Katoptris to find clues on his whereabouts. Leo was gone too. He sacrificed himself to stop a Greek Fire rampage in one of the major Greek cities. The son of Hephaestus was a talented demigod, skilled with the art of fire, but no living being can ever survive Greek Fire. He was assumed dead. If he's really still alive, he can always find a way back to New Rome.

Of course, the loss of the two demigods broke Annabeth's heart. They were family to her, somehow. They had share stories on the Argo II, secrets as well. They laughed together, had struggles together, and overcame obstacles together. A small part of Annabeth will never be okay without them anymore, but what hurt her the most, what made her break down and give up on life, was the loss of her boyfriend Percy.

He pushed her on the Argo II. She saw for the first time since they fell into the depths of hell how dead he looked. He was worse than Nico. His skin was as white as paper, his hair as black as a moonless, starless night. His lips were so dried and shaky, but he managed to smile at her anyway. His eyes, oh gods his eyes. His usual sea-green eyes, so full of life and joy, his eyes that only saw the good in everyone, his sea-green eyes were now a dull grey, faded and tired. You could see his veins, a brilliant red in the white orbs.

Annabeth tried reaching for him, she tried reaching for his hand. Whether to pull him up or fall back down, it didn't matter. All she wanted was to be with Percy. He took her hand, but it had no force at all. He leaned in, kissed the back of her hand, mouthed the words I love you and let go. Annabeth jumped from the Argo II but someone, hands rough and strong that probably belonged to Frank, pulled her back. He grabbed her by the waist and kept a tight grip around her as she thrashed around, kicking her feet and waving her hands violently.

"Percy, no!" Her voice cracked, the scream hurting her throat. "Let go of me! Let go! Percy!"

Frank didn't listen to her. He tightened his grip around her, the son of Mars didn't need to turn into something else to hold her down. After a few minutes of thrashing, she finally calmed down. Frank brought her to her room and, for the rest of the trip back to New Rome, stayed there.

She kept her knees to her chest, her eyes staring blankly at the opposite wall. Annabeth didn't move. No one was able to get her to leave her room.

She was almost dead.

Fanfics: Love? Hate? Or Is It Just Me?

She was never the one to fight, so when Piper challenged Drew for the position of Head counselor she immediately stepped down. Children of Aphrodite, especially someone of Drew's status, were supposed to have someone fight for them. Beauty and the battlefield do not go together. The goddess of love was never into wars and neither were her children.

Unsure of what to do while everyone cheered the Cherokee daughter of Aphrodite (she refused to call that her sister), the young girl stormed away from the cabins and to the only place that seemed to calm her down at the camp: the lake. Now, Drew knew that she was no child of the sea god but the water calmly riding the wind relaxed her. Sometimes she secretly wishes that cabin 3 was her real home and that the Olympians made a mistake. She hope that her true godly parent was Poseidon, but then it was impossible since her mortal parent was a man. She almost joined the Hunters, truly disappointed with her parent, but that would've made her look weak in front of everyone. Drew, as intimidating as she is, was just as confused as the rest of the Camp Half-Blood population.

She sat down at the dock, taking her designer camp shoes off and tossing them aside, letting her feet dangle right above the water. Even just the smell of fresh water blowing past her comforted her. Drew's lips curled into a smile, not a fake petty grin but a genuine smile of happiness. Near the lake was the only place she could ever do that. She let herself fall, hearing a soft thud before feeling the wood press against her back. To Drew, this was the closest to pure happiness she can get. Her eyes closed and the sun's rays pierced through her thin eyelids. She took a deep breath. A few seconds later, something stepped over her, blocking the sun.

She opened her eyes and the silhouette of a young lady appeared before her and said, "You shouldn't simply throw shoes like these just anywhere, Drew." The voice was familiar but Drew didn't know who it belonged to. She stood up. The woman was only a few inches taller than her. She had fairly tanned skin and mousy black hair that dropped down her right shoulder. The woman's eyes had an Asian feel to them pointing slightly upward just like Drew's, which seemed to be their only resemblance. Her pupils, however, caught the young camper's attention. They kept changing from blue to green to yellow to orange to red. Every color of the spectrum alternated in her eyes. It was like looking into two small kaleidoscopes. The woman's outfit was simple: a yellow flower-print maxi dress that fit the woman perfectly, showing her delicate figure.

"Dear child, will you not greet your own mother?" The woman says. Drew realized who this woman was in front of her and bowed. "Enough with the formality, child. I was expecting more of a hug." Aphrodite sighed, "Oh well, I guess that will do." Drew re-positioned herself to stand straight, but still looked at her feet. She had a feeling that her mother was disappointed of how she was acting. "Let's take a walk." Aphrodite says.

They start walking.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Drew spoke up. "Mom, why are you here?" Those are the only words that came out of her mouth. She wanted to slap herself. Aphrodite smiled, and Drew instantly knew why her mother came. She was worried about her daughter, not disappointed. A rush of guilt and pride ran through Drew's veins. Guilt because she made her mother worry about her. Pride because she was important enough that a goddess would worry about her. The guilt was stronger.

"I came for you, dear." Her mother replies calmly.

"Did I do something wrong?"

"You tell me."

Drew stepped back. Of course she did something wrong. She must have. Charm speaking everyone into doing everything she wanted. What if her mother takes away that gift? She'll have to work for herself. No one will dare help her after what she's done to the campers. Not even Lacy, the girl she goes to school with in the mortal world, will be there for her. Drew sighed, hoping that her mother would decide to go against punishing her. Looking up at Aphrodite, Drew could see a resemblance with her mother and various siblings. "You look like Piper." she blurts out.

Her mother seemed surprise, "Do I?"

Drew nods, taking in carefully her mother's features, "Your eyes stand out though. They look like mine."

"Well, my child," Aphrodite says, "I only ever look like what you perceive as true beauty." Drew frowns, obviously taken by surprise with her mother's statement. Aphrodite laughs, "Is something wrong, my dear?"

"True beauty... and you look like Piper..."

"Is there something wrong with that?" The young girl stands still. Completely awestruck that the person she was supposed to hate the most was her perception of true beauty. "My child, sometimes hate isn't exactly what you're feeling." Her mother continues, "Sometimes, it is simply pity. Not that you pity Piper of course." They stop walking.

Drew looks at her mother, "Then who do I pity?"

"Probably yourself, dear."

"That doesn't make sense."

"Oh," her mother counters, "but it doesn't have to. All it has to be is its own. That's what everything has to be." Drew doesn't talk. She realizes what her mother was trying to say. She has been hiding her real self behind a mask and has always been someone else's. Sure she's never had a serious relationship at all, but she was a slave. A slave to ego. "You shouldn't be hiding behind that mask anymore, Drew. No child of mine should be a slave to oneself, either." Her mother says, as if reading her mind. "Pride, in all honesty, is most of my children's fatal flaw --- as I've been told. Be careful with that, dear." Aphrodite sighs, but smiles, "You had better return to your camp. People are probably looking for you. Especially Piper." Drew turns around, looking at the cabins. Everybody was gone except for Piper, who was sitting on Cabin 10's front porch.

Aphrodite placed her hand on Drew's shoulder and smiles. Drew looks back at her mother, "Thank you."

"You better close your eyes." Aphrodite releases her grip on Drew's shoulder as she turns away, not daring to look at an immortal goddess showing her true form. She'd die if she did. After a bright flash and a few moments to make sure, Drew opens her eyes, silently praying to the gods as she approaches her soon-to-be friend.

Fanfics: Diary Of An Angel

As a young child I had no idea what was going on.

Over the years in the places we've lived bad things happened. Storms were always frequent, lighting crashed almost every night, thunder became my sweet lullaby even. However, whenever my mother, Maria di Angelo, checked the local news for any storms nothing would appear. I didn't understand it, but it never bothered me. Some nights I'd catch my mother talking to herself repeatedly muttering the words "The lightning... I have to get them away from the lighting..." and when she'd see me she'd just smile and carry me to my bed, telling me to go to bed again. I'd just shake it off and go to sleep.

One late evening, the thunder and lighting grew especially loud. Everything that could swing and rattle and break did just that. The ceiling light swung violently, the various items on the cupboards and tables all shook until they fell from their places and broke. I was frightened to the last nerve in my body. My hands were clenched into fists so tight I started shaking, my heart was pounding so violently I swore that it could've jumped right out of my chest.

My mother suddenly rushed into my room. Nico was in her arms. He was too old to be carried by her, but she did so anyway. The look on her face devastated me. Her face was dotted with droplets of sweat, her breath looked heavy by the way she panted. The thing that disturbed me most was her eyes. They looked scared beyond belief. No, they weren't scared. My mother was never scared. Her eyes showed sadness, genuine sadness, as if she knew what would happen next and that it wasn't something good.

She placed Nico right beside me and whispered something. I couldn't hear it under all the noises, but her delicate lips carved the words "I love you" before she leaned in, kissed my forehead and Nico's cheek, then ran and disappeared. I wanted to run to her. I wanted to be by her side, knowing that being with her was the only place I knew I'd be safe. Looking at Nico while the thoughts circled around my head, I just knew I couldn't leave my brother there alone in the dark.

All of a sudden, the loudest blast of thunder shook the whole hotel. It was so loud that it must've caused a minor earthquake. The thunder rattled my eardrums, my ears started to pop multiple times. Only seconds later lighting had struck through the roof a good distance away from Nico and I. When the lightning flashed, it portrayed a fake daylight. It was so bright it blinded me but despite those I held Nico close to my chest, making sure he heard my heartbeat, that he heard a sign of life and that he wasn't alone.

Suddenly, everything stopped. The surroundings became still and quiet. My ears were still ringing from the thunder and for some reason I can hear someone laughing, as if the thunder and lighting were his bidding. When the ringing reduced and my sight came back, I realized that I was still holding Nico. He was small for his age. He had black hair and pale skin, making him look like a ghost. His eyes were shut, but water kept running down his cheeks. His hands were holding onto my clothes as if they were his lifeline, which I concluded that they were considering the situation.

Not a moment sooner than the realization a young woman in Ancient Greek clothing appeared in front of us. She wore a black cloth covering her whole body, including her head, but never touched her face. She had green eyes and small dry lips, giving the idea that she rarely talked but I had the feeling that when she did she said powerful things. Beside her stood a tall man with pale-white skin. He had a long chin, a pointed nose, and somehow pointed eyes. They were dark eyes, and not just because they were black, but they released an aura of grief, as if he'd seen every death the world experienced.

The man started shouting at the girl with green eyes, she was obviously scared of him. He raised his hand and even I winced. He might've heard me because he stopped what he was doing, knelt in front of me and smiled. His smile was cold and emotionless, but I had a strange feeling that I've seen that smile before. It comforted me. Nico, who was still clinging on to dear life, shifted his head to look at the man and surprisingly loosened his grip around me. The man carried Nico and reached out for my hand. My eyes firmly glued to the man.

He started walking us out of the hotel, everything was dark. The place seemed to radiate the aura of death. When the man stopped walking, he let go of my hand and put Nico down. Another strange man wearing a pair of dark sunglasses, which made no sense since the whole place was darker than the night, appeared next to him and said, "Are you sure, my lord?" With a single nod the man with black eyes, the first that appeared to us, knelt once more in front of us. He smiled his emotionless smile once again and said, "Never forget that your mother and I loved you both very much."

I took Nico's hand, "Who are you?"

"My name is Hades," he said, "I'm your father."

Then everything went black.

Fanfics: Dead On Arrival

We won.

We won Capture the Flag. The Fifth Cohort won. Do you know how impossible that is? Capture the Flag was one of the most difficult games in Camp Jupiter being the Fifth Cohort, and we won. I was over-joyed. Blood rushed everywhere inside my body. Out in the distance everyone was congratulating Frank, Hazel, and the new kid Percy. I've got to admit, he's the best thing that happened to the Fifth Cohort ever since, well... let's face it. He was the best since we lost the Eagle.

The next thing that happened was one of the worst.

I felt a sharp tip gently touch my back. It pushed harder and harder into me. Something inside me snapped, like a bone that was probably my rib. The item that ran halfway through my body pierced its way into my lungs. Suddenly I needed air. My head fell back, my eyes grew wide as my mouth hung open. The blade, I realized, was a spear. I felt like I was drowning. Water filled my lungs. No, it wasn't water. The liquid that started dominating my lungs was my very own blood. The spear dug deeper into me.

My eyes began to blur. Patches of white and black appeared here and there. My head became awfully light, like a balloon filled with helium ready to float away. I tried grabbing whoever was behind me but I knew it was too late. Whoever it was couldn't wait any longer and decided to end me right there. He pierced my heart. I was conscious enough to feel every bit of agonizing pain. A sledgehammer coming into impact with your body a thousand times, a chariot weighing a million pounds running over you a million times, fire eating away your flesh slowly, a Minotaur running its horns into you billions of times,   honestly all those combined wouldn't even begin to really describe the pain.

Then it stopped and all I could see was black. I was dead.

For a moment I felt nothing, but I knew it was cold. I heard nothing, but I knew there were screams. I saw nothing, but I knew there were people around me. Slowly, I was able to open my eyes. Blotches of white still appeared from time to time. My head still felt light and so did the rest of my body. Maybe I wasn't dead. When my vision cleared, I was standing inside a small shop. Looking around, it looked like it sold really expensive suits for men.

To the opposite of me across the room was an elevator. Above it were the letters DOA. The carpet on the floor and the walls were a steel gray. Black leather furniture was placed in random places. To the right was a man with chocolate-colored skin in tortoise-shell shades and a silk bleached-blond Italian suit that matched his hair. People were here, although, they didn't seem quite... human. They looked like our Lyres.

The man approached me. "Hello there, girl." I looked at him, puzzled. He had a British accent. "Hello." I said back, looking around the room. The elevator suddenly opened. Was I imagining things or is that a river at the other side? I approached it slowly, reaching my hand out. Stop it, I scolded myself. So I did. As I was about to turn around, the man was beside me. He smiled. "You're next in line, girl." I looked at the river, then back at him. I pointed to myself, looking skeptically, "Me?"

He grinned, showing his perfectly white teeth, "Yes, you. Although, you need to pay me." I crossed my brows and searched for my pockets. I had no money. "Just a drachma will do, girl." I stared at him blankly. "What's a drachma?" I said, and he just smiled. I looked around to ask one of the people here if they had a drachma, whatever that was.

The exit caught my eye. "Is the door open?" I asked. He shrugged and said, "My, my. I do believe it is," he leans in closer to me, "but don't tell the others." I looked at the steel grey carpet and worn out walls, at the black leather furniture, and at the man.

Then I made my way to the door, back to Camp Jupiter, where everybody was surrounding me.

Fanfics: Here I Am

I looked up at her as she hastily climbed the tree. "Kill her, Cato!" I shouted alongside Glimmer and Marvel. "Kill her!" I seemed to say although I didn't want her dead. For some particular reason I am unaware of the girl on fire has caught my attention. Backstage, while getting last minute preparations from her stylist, I couldn't help but look at her. The way her long wavy hair was tied back in an intricate bun, the way that black suit fitted her perfectly and when it was finally lit on fire it emphasized her... physique, I couldn't help but stare. Of course when she looked my way I instantly turned my head.

She's prey, I told myself, you can't afford to let your guard down Clove.

My attention snapped back when I heard a huge thump on the ground. Cato had fallen from the tree. "Why don't you just throw your sword?" the District 12 girl taunted. It seemed to get on Glimmer's nerves, she glared. She took out her bow and aimed at the girl atop the tree. (I refuse to say her name.) Glimmer held the bow with ease as if she'd been handling it all her life. Of course I'm pretty sure she had, just like Cato with his sword and me with my knives down at the academy back home.

Even with those hands so used to the feeling of the bow, she missed Twelve. When Cato grabbed the bow and an arrow from Glimmer's quiver I relaxed a bit more. Cato can't handle a bow. He's a monster with a sword but when you give him something else he has less precision than a monkey, to say the least. With that, he missed. Loverboy here, I had almost forgotten that he was with us, seemed shaky when he said, "We should just wait for her to come down." Everybody glared, including myself, but it seemed like the smart thing to do, "I mean she can't stay there forever, right? We'll get her then."

He seemed sincere enough. Cato had, thankfully, thought so too. He ordered one of us to start a fire and walked away with Glimmer. Marvel and I went the other way. As for Peeta, I didn't care.

Marvel and I walked aimlessly, looking for wood we could use. When I say 'Marvel and I', mostly I meant Marvel while I sharpened my knives a few paces behind him. Marvel wasn't so bad, he had a sense of humor and was almost kind. Still, Marvel was just another guy. "Hey, Clove," he shouted, stating that I wasn't my usual self. I simply nodded and continued with the knife in hand. He whistled one long high-pitched tone and started talking more.

"What do you think of fire girl?" He says, with an awfully disturbing grin as he licked his lips.

A shudder ran down my spine. I hated it when Marvel did that, but at the mention of her name a smile crept onto my lips. She had such a beautiful name although I forbade myself from uttering it, in fear of my own suspicion. Marvel looked at me again, a few pieces of small branches already in his arms. "Well, you're happy." I looked at him and wiped the smirk off my face. I rolled my eyes and turned around. Knowing myself, whenever someone caught me smiling I start turning red. I don't know why but I do. I can feel the cold grin locked on Marvel's lips, only this time he was grinning at me and not her.

"Something's off, little Clover." He stated. I hated it whenever called me Clover, though I can do nothing about it. I can feel the gears in Marvel's mind working, he's smarter than he appeared. I guess he shrugged whatever he was starting to conclude off and continued to talk. "Fire girl's got some moves, I'll give her that." I heard his feet walk away, I turned around and followed him, "plus she's pretty hot." At the mention of the world hot a part of me wanted to laugh her ass off, the other part wanted to scream to the world how beautiful she was and how hot didn't even cut it.

I did neither.

I simply nodded, the smile made its way onto my lips once more, and said "She is kind of cute..." Instantly Marvel stopped and turned around to face me. He dropped all the branches he carried and grabbed me by the shoulders. His reaction seemed a little too much for the statement. It's not like I confessed my love for...

"You, my little Clover, just told me you found fire girl attractive." I raised an eyebrow. His eyes were searching mine, for an answer I'm sure I didn't have. I noticed that I was holding my breath. Then he let go. "Kidding." He said again. My body relaxed and I released my breath. I tucked my knife down its case and into my pocket. "What was that for? You looked like an idiot." He simply chuckled his way through my question as he picked up his branches. The rest of the day went by quietly.

When night came, Peeta set a fire, Cato and Glimmer came back with some food from the camp (which was a long way out) and I sat down at the base of the tree. I lightly touched my shoulders, feeling the ghost of Marvel's grip earlier. The only thought inside me at that time was that he might think I liked Twelve, which to me was the craziest idea ever. Me? Have a crush? On Twelve? Ridiculous. Never had I fallen for another girl. Never had I fallen for anyone, period.

Feelings were foreign to me, except hate and anger. They're all I've ever known. The feeling of love distracted me. Cato had Glimmer. It would be obvious for me to fall for Marvel, but let's face it: I'm only 15. They're all 18. It's only three years but I found it very unsettling. Peeta is 16, but I refused to even talk to him. And so out of all the tributes, much less the people I had to fall for, I fell for her.

Then I noticed that it was already dark.

The dim light of the fire barely lit up the surrounding. I can faintly see all the others already sleeping while I stayed up. I looked up at the tree to where the District 12 girl is supposed to be. I took out two knives, stood at the base of the tree, and looked up once more. Slowly I glided my hand across the bark, the tree's tough skin. Outside, it was hard and protected the inside so strongly. Inside it was soft and sensitive, pretty much like me.

I climbed the tree, using my knives as anchors. After some time, for my body was not built to climb, I reach the branch where the girl on fire was. I didn't even try to sneak up on her, she had nowhere to run to. She was asleep. She didn't even hear me climb. I let it stay that way.

What do I do now?

I could kill her right there. Just one knife through the heart and she'd be gone. I wouldn't have to think about her anymore. My eyes stayed glued onto her, studying her features. Her face was filled with cuts and bruises, but it didn't make it less beautiful. The coat had shielded her figure, making her look a bit more stout than she was. My lingering eyes wandered down her leg where I noticed a deep wound, probably a burn. I wanted to treat it so badly, but I couldn't do anything about it. It's a miracle she fell asleep.

Then something came floating down from the sky. A parachute.

I looked at her before grabbing the item. I opened the case, it contained a small round object. Inside was a gel-like substance. Instinctively I took the medicine and rubbed it on Twelve's leg. I don't even know why I'm doing this. Why am I doing this?

The girl on fire (to me it translated literally now) barely moved. Her face though showed slight pain, but soon it relaxed. I continued to rub the substance on her leg, enough for it to cover the whole thing. My hand was stained with her blood. I held it near my face, a good distance away so I can still see it. I smiled and looked at the girl. Was it my imagination or did she smile as well? It took me all I had to lean forward and simply rest my lips on her forehead. I let it stay there for a few seconds too long before I pulled away and climbed back down.

I rested my head on the ground, eyes getting heavy. That encounter, I suddenly realized, was probably broadcasted to the whole of Panem. I am made a disgrace to District 2. I should care, I should feel ashamed, but I didn't. They never taught me to care. They never taught me to love, either.

But here I am caring for and in love with Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire.

Fanfics: Never Never Land

A place in our hearts that will always last

A place in our hearts that everyone has

The second star to the right and straight on 'til morning

With Peter and the lost boys and Tink and the Darlings

To Never Never Land we go as we fly with happy thoughts

With Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust, to believe is what we ought

And inside Never Never Land no one ever grows up

Adults are considered nasty but some do show up

Like the Indians in the tribes or the mermaids in the ocean

And the nastiest of them all, the pirates and Hook the captain

Now Peter Pan and Hook are the meanest of foes

One fights for good the other from the darkness rose

Likewise for Wendy Darling and an Indian girl named Tiger Lily

Fight for the likes of Peter Pan which he thinks is quite silly

But at the end of the day the quarrels don't exist

They kick their problems out to the backdoor exit

A new day means new adventures like finding gold and hidden treasure

A day in Never Never Land is a memory with no measure