Fanfics: Rue

I was seven years old. I remember running along a patch of greenery under the beating of the bright yellow sun. My face was filled with sweat. I wore a simple white sundress, a small straw hat, and a smile to match. I was playing alone, going about the daily business of a child. I live in the agricultural district, District 11. Everywhere you look and everywhere you go is green, the good kind. People working in farms, harvesting plants, planting seeds, watering them. If it weren't for the harsh rules of The Capitol I'd say this is the most peaceful district there is.

I was walking through a forest of wheat. Being me, being Rue as a kid, everything was tall. I walked into the plain with the grass towering above me. The grown-ups say that wandering out alone is dangerous, but what do I know? I'm a kid. I wander in deeper into the wheat forest, pretending I was in the Hunger Games. I would pretend I was injured, limping on one foot. I'd pretend I was hunting for food. I'd pretend I was looking for water. I'd even make a tiny shelter for added fun. Believe it or not I enjoyed playing tribute, but what do I know? I'm a kid.

I reach an opening where part of the wheat was already harvested, leaving a giant plain so bare and vulnerable. Across it was a giant mountain. It stretched to the right and to the left as far as the eye could see. It seemed to surround the district, I don't know. I wiped the beads of sweat on my forehead, the smile on my face even wider. I step forward slowly, steady, breathing in the fresh air. I relax at everything so quiet and calm, and take it all in. I started forward, walking hours on end. I never stopped, after all, I am in the games. The thought amused me so much I started to run. I held onto my straw hat, in fear that it might fall off. I ran until I couldn't run anymore.

My legs are as hard as tree trunks. My lungs are burning from exhaustion. My body is sweating like crazy. I smile. What do I care? I'm a kid. The sun was still high up in the sky, so I decided to go farther. Mother and father woundn't mind. I kept walking. The mountain kept growing, too. I might be walking towards it. I stopped and looked back. Home seems so far away now. I don't plan on running away, just running. I want to have fun, because hey, I'm a kid.

I look around the ground and find a stick half as tall as me. I trudge into the nothingness of the plains, a smile still apparant on my face. I reach the electric fence. I let out a sigh of disappointment. I tried to find an opening. I look to my left, the wires are all perfectly in place. If it wasn't charged with electrical currents it might've looked beautiful. I look to my right. Out in the distance I see a broken line. Part of the fence was missing. A huge grin returns to my lips and I dash toward it. Hey, I'm a kid, fun is what I'm looking for.

After a few seconds of running, I reach the opening. Between two poles there were no wires at all. Is this good or bad? Good. I enter the unknown. I walked bare-footed into the dark forest. The undergrowth, the fallen leaves, and the occasional soft soil are warm under my feet. I jog around, stick in hand. I poked the ground time to time to make sure I know what I'm stepping on. I walk deeper into the forest. Do I know what I'm getting into? No. I'm a kid. What do you expect? I reach a small river. The water is clear. I decided to drink. I set the stick down and cupped my hands. My face had a fair amount of dirt. I removed my hat and placed it beside me. I splashed the cool liquid onto my face again and took a few sips then sat down by the stream.

I couldn't see the sun but judging from the way the forest was lit up I'd say it was still high in the sky. I let out a yawn and rested my head on my hat. My eyes started getting heavy. I closed them. After what seemed like a few minutes my eyes started opening. I can hear cicadas all around. I sat up, rubbing my eyes. It was pitch black all around me. It's night. I stand up in a panicked heartbeat. I turned my body slowly. I can't see a thing. How am I supposed to get home? Tears started running down my cheeks. I wanted to cry for my mother. I wanted to shout for my father. I knew it was useless. No one would find me here. I stayed as quiet as possible. After what seemed like an eternity, I hear footsteps and... and... I hear growling.

My body stiffens and I can't seem to breathe. Out of the corner of my eye I see a large figure. Its body was sleek, long. Its four legs were made of pure muscles. Its tail was longer that my own body, swishing around. It crept low, ready to pounce. It growled and showed its teeth in the process, something like saying 'I can hurt you. I will hurt you. No matter what you do, I will hurt you.' and it made my heart beat fast. The most attractive feature were its eyes. Yellow green with a black slit in the middle, they seemed to glow. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, ready to run.

I couldn't move, so I coun't to three. "One..." I whispered, "two..." my voice was shaky. Right when I was about to say 'three' I heard more rustling, leaving me more incapable of running away. The rustling grew louder. The animal shifted its head from me to the direction the sound is coming from. Suddenly a shadowy figure jumped out of the trees, tackling the beast to the ground. "Run!" the person shouted. It sounded like a boy, a kid, but older. "Run! Go! Get away! I'll catch you later!" I heard two objects smashing together, like a rock hitting something hard. I couldn't run. No. I don't want to. Sweat was coming out of me. My palms are wet, my forehead is soaked. I could pass as just coming out of the river.

My heart was beating so fast it's like it wasn't beating anymore. I started crying. I closed my eyes. I could hear the animal swing its claws. I can hear the boy's screams. I heard a knife being unsheathed and sliced into something, flesh. Someone grabbed me by the arm so hard I almost fell. My feet were moving on their own. I opened my eyes. I can barely see the person in front of me, but I know it's the boy. Who else? His hand felt warm. Warm and wet with blood. Whose? I don't know.

He held onto my hand as tight as he could. I held back even tighter. How long have we been running? I don't know. The adrenaline is working its way through my body. I tried looking back to see if the beast was chasing after us. A big mistake. Its fangs almost bit my leg. The boy turned a sharp left and the beast disappeared into the darkness. We slowed down, almost to a jog. I don't know where he was taking me but I'm sure it's better than being with the beast.

He hid us behind a giant rock. He sat me down. He put his finger on his lips. I nodded and stayed down. He left. He left me in the undying silence of the forest, alone in the never ending darkness. After what seemed like an eternity he came back, berries in hand. "Here," he whispered, "eat this." Hesitantly, I took the berries. I popped one in and flavor exploded in my mouth. I shuddered. I feel like I'm in the real games, real threats, only no killing. I steadied my breathing, slow and shallow. "Why didn't you run?" I looked at him. I can barely see. He looked about thirteen.

"I... I was scared." I whispered. I looked away. He scared me, honestly. "So, I'm guessing you're Rue." he whispers. My heart stopped for a second and started beating fast again. How does he know my name? "Your parents are looking for you. I'm Thresh." The name seems familiar. I heard that name before. Where have I heard that name? I looked at him. Maybe his features would be familiar, but it isn't. He looked at me blankly, like he wasn't staring at me at all. "Where have I seen you?" I whisper. His attention snaps back at me. "I was called in the reaping last year. I... someone volunteered for me." His body stiffened. I knew that I shouldn't ask anymore.

He stood up and took my hand. I was hesitant at first, but I decided to relax. His hands felt big, twice as big as mine. That wasn't saying much, I'm a small kid. We started walking back to the direction we came from, it's the only way out as far as I knew. I reached for my head to fix my hat. "My hat. I left it by the stream." I looked down. He didn't bother turning around to look at me. He just kept walking. Which is probably the best thing to do right now. After a few minutes of walking we return to the place where we left the beast. "It was a mutt," he whispered, "everything is."

A shiver went down my spine. Muttations. I don't know much about those, just that they're very deadly. I held his hand tighter and we kept walking. We travelled in silence. Neither of us wanted to talk, or at least I knew he didn't want to, so I kept quiet. Just when I was hearing the river again he stopped. Thresh let go of my hand. I felt vulnerable again, so I stayed still. He got his knife out again. It's stained with blood. He was listening for something. I can't hear anything. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath.

"Rue!" Out of nowhere something pushed me down to the ground. I hear a loud thud and feel a pain shoot up my spine. The sharp claws pierce through my skin, boring into my muscles. I can feel in my bones, but I know that's not true. I stop a cry from escaping my lips. The noise might startle it and keep digging into me. I clench the soil my hand can reach to help ease the pain. It doesn't. It doesn't. It hurts. Why isn't Thresh helping me yet? Does he have a plan? Did he leave me? Tears start running down my face. The animal placed its face up close to mine. I can feel it's breathing. It hissed and growled. I close my eyes tighter and turn my head sideways.

I clench the soil and leaves tighter in my hand, shaking. The mutt's saliva was dripping on my neck. I think it's sniffing me. I hold my breath, mainly because his stinks. It does nothing to me. It's just on top of me, clutching onto my shoulders. Why am I not dead yet? I open my eyes. A big mistake. It's still there. Its eyes still staring at me. Over by the distance I see a human moving about: Thresh. I wanted to scream, but I know that would be a mistake. He places his finger on what should be his lips, a sign to stay quiet. He lifted up his hand. One by one he lifted each finger. I have to count to five. He then gestured pushing. I know what to do now. I slowly nod so as to not startle the mutt.

I close my eyes again and count to five. One... two... three... four... five... I release the clenched soil and push the mutt with all my might. I somehow got it off me but I winced. I look at my shoulder and my skin was scratched deeply, I'm bleeding. An object, or rather person, flew at the mutt. Thresh started stabbing it everywhere, the neck, the abdomen, the lungs. He stabbed it over what seemed like a thousand times. He then gently inserted the knife into it's chest, where its heart is supposed to be. He let go of the weapon deep in the mutt's chest. He stood up over the beast, breathing hard. His hands were covered in blood. I stood in awe. He walked toward me and grabbed my arm.

He looked me in the eyes. "We have to get out of here." All I could do was nod. He started running and I followed. We reach the river and found our way to the fence from there. We're now under moonlight. I can see that his hands aren't the only ones covered in blood. Everything was. Is this how it is in the real games? Is there even escape in the real games? I shiver and started running faster, as far away from the forest as possible.

I was seven years old. I lost all hopes in childhood. I lost it all.