me and Dave's all action so far in hunger games
okay what the actual SOB STORY IS GOING ON
i’m listening to sad music while reading this its NOT HELPING AHHHH
MINE:
Day 1:
Nearby, MotherAthy stood rigid on her podium. Her eyes moved across the arena, searching for familiar faces. Somewhere in that circle stood people she considered family. Children. Friends. People whose names she had grown accustomed to seeing in the safety of a screen.
Louise turned towards MotherAthy and advanced just far enough to frighten her away from the Cornucopia. MotherAthy retreated cautiously, choosing distance over confrontation.
Elsewhere in the arena, MotherAthy encountered Rue.
Neither had been looking for a fight. But sometimes, in the wrong place at the wrong time, avoiding one wasn't quite so simple.
Rue reacted first. MotherAthy barely had time to register the movement before Rue came towards her. The two collided, struggling for balance as they fought over the limited space between them. MotherAthy stumbled backwards, catching herself before she fell. Rue pressed forward, determined not to give her an opportunity to recover. For someone usually so kind, MotherAthy could be surprisingly difficult to push around.
She caught Rue's next movement, turned against the force of it and managed to throw her off balance. Rue stumbled, but quickly recovered her stance, attempting to regain her advantage. The struggle continued on for a long while.
A foot slipped against the uneven ground. Branches snapped beneath them. Neither seemed willing to give the other an easy victory.
Then MotherAthy found her opening.
With one decisive movement, she brought Rue down and managed to overpower her, sending her tumbling to the ground. For a moment, Rue struggled fiercely to free herself.
Then she stopped, exhausted and weary of what's to come. Although the sudden stillness was almost more unsettling than the fight itself.
MotherAthy looked down at her with a crease between her brows. Yes, she had won. But now came the part that neither of them could quite ignore. They were supposed to fight. To fight for survival. She knew she could have made the outcome worse.
But she didn't.
Instead, MotherAthy slowly released her grip and stepped away. Rue remained on the ground for a moment, still breathing heavily, watching her cautiously, as though expecting the decision to change at any moment.
But it didn't.
MotherAthy had defeated her, yet she had no intention of turning a victory into something more terrible. The two remained where they were, separated by the uncomfortable knowledge of what had just happened. MotherAthy had acted to protect herself, but that didn't mean she had forgotten the person standing in front of her.
Warmth and kindness were easy things to value when life was comfortable. The arena was going to test how much they were worth when comfort had been taken away.
"Go", MotherAthy said quietly.
Rue hesitated. She blinked in confusion. Once. Twice.
Then she quickly rose to her feet and backed away, keeping her eyes on MotherAthy, until the trees began to separate them.
She left without looking back.
MotherAthy remained still for a moment longer, resting
her head in the palms of her hands. Taking in the sounds of the forest which had slowly returned to her senses. Leaves shifting overhead, distant birdsong and the faint movement of water somewhere beyond the trees. She glanced once more in the direction Rue had disappeared, lightly shaking her head.
She hoped the girl would be all right.
It was a small hope.
Yet at this point, small hopes were all anyone had left.
MotherAthy and MsClumsy had arranged to sleep in shifts, taking turns to keep watch. It was a sensible decision, although neither could have been entirely comfortable with the arrangement.
MotherAthy jolted awake. MsClumsy turned sharply towards the noise, her earlier attempts at rest instantly forgotten. Rue, keeping watch while GrandmaArena slept, felt her stomach tighten and she could feel the colour of her face drain away. GrandmaArena opened her eyes stunned and looked towards the direction of the sound, barely able to realise what just happened.
Halo and Misha fell silent.
Ruth's thoughts of victory were interrupted once again.
MotherAthy and MsClumsy, already unsettled by the previous cannons, had little chance of settling back into their uneasy routine.
Day 2:
Elsewhere, MotherAthy came across Dave as she looked around her immediate surroundings.
For one brief and unfortunate moment, they simply stared at one another. Under normal circumstances, finding one's husband might have been considered reassuring. However, the arena had altered the meaning of normal circumstances rather dramatically. MotherAthy remembered the previous night.
Mo3gi was gone.
And Dave had been responsible for this.
Whether his actions had been merciful or necessary, mattered very little to the part of MotherAthy's mind, currently calculating the quickest escape path between herself and the nearest route.
Dave slowly moved towards her, in a way trying to reassure his wife that he meant her no harm. Yet MotherAthy made a decision in a fraction of a second — she needed to distract him — and fast!
"Oh my goooosh, did Mo3gi actually bring her cookies with her?!", pointing behind Dave's shoulder, at the cave.
It worked.
Dave's attention, still ravenous by hunger, shifted instantly as he flipped his head to where she had been pointing. Only then did he remember just how much he had loved Mo3gi's cookies and his face contorted with a sorrowful expression once again.
But MotherAthy used this opportunity and ran, as fast as she could, to gain as much distance as possible. She didn’t look back. Marriage, it seemed, even to an otherwise benevolent King had its limits when it came to the subject of survival.
Still, as she disappeared between the trees, she allowed herself one small, rather practical thought. She sighed a breath of relief as she finally slowed down, mumbling to herself "At least I'm not dead". And then somewhere beyond the reach of the morning light, the memory of the fallen lingered. The wind swept up as though whispering between the rustling leaves.
[M - M... Mother....Father killed me!].
And then it was gone again in an instant.
MotherAthy looked up in the direction the wind came from, looking rather bewildered. She clearly heard... something.
She wondered if it had just been her imagination. Perhaps it was the exhaustion from the previous night catching up with her. She didn't know what was happening, only the memory of their daughter appearing in her mind in that very moment. She clutched her chest as the pang of these thoughts hit her.
Or, perhaps, she realised, it was not the most reassuring piece of family history to remember while running away from one's husband.
In another part, Louise had spent much of the morning searching for something useful.
Food, preferably.
A safe place to rest would have been welcome too. The previous day had left little room for comfort, and the thought of another night in the arena was hardly encouraging. She eventually settled beneath the shelter of a cluster of trees, taking a moment to gather herself.
Then, quite unexpectedly, again something descended from above without notice. A small sponsor package landed nearby. Louise stared at it, then her eyes darted around her surroundings, making absolutely sure that no one else was there.
For a moment, she wasn't entirely sure whether to be grateful or suspicious. Gifts from strangers were rarely something to question under normal circumstances. In the arena, however, even kindness could feel like a trap. She approached cautiously and examined its contents.
Clean water.
Actual, drinkable, clean water.
Her expression softened and relief swept over her tight shoulders. Whoever had sent it, she was grateful. Very grateful indeed.
She carefully secured the water before slowly setting off again, determined to make the most of her unexpected good fortune. A short distance away though, she noticed someone moving between the trees.
It was Dave.
She immediately ducked down to hide beneath the shrubbery. She watched him carefully before deciding whether she should approach him, or not. Dave appeared distracted, occasionally glancing back towards the direction of the cave. His expression was difficult to read, although there was something rather peculiar about the way he kept muttering to himself. Louise slowed her pace as she tried to get closer without being noticed.
"...Mo3gi's cookies...", was all she could make out between the muttering.
She stopped.
Had she heard that correctly?
Dave continued walking, seemingly oblivious to her presence.
Louise considered calling after him, but then something about his demeanour persuaded her otherwise. She wanted to avoid a confrontation at any cost, so there was little reason to investigate someone else's apparent conversation with themselves.
Still, the words lingered. Cookies?
She glanced down at the water in her hands, then back towards the trees. Dave was gone. Perhaps she was already beginning to understand just how hungry everyone was becoming.
And somewhere in the forest, an entirely different kind of thirst was beginning to develop.
Not for water.
But for information.
Meanwhile, MotherAthy had found herself a reasonably sheltered spot beneath a cluster of fallen trees.
Reasonably being the important word. By this point, she had accepted that the arena's definition of shelter and her own, were two very different things. She settled herself against the trunk of one of the trees and pulled her knees up closer.
The forest around her was dark.
Far too dark.
Somewhere in the distance, something moved. MotherAthy began singing to herself, trying to comfort her shaky soul. Softly at first.
“When the night is dark and—”
She stopped, hearing an unfamiliar sound. Her head turned slowly towards where it came from. Nothing. Listening carefully, MotherAthy remained perfectly still. Then, she decided that the silence was considerably more mortifying than singing, so she started again.
“Everything's going to be fiiine—”
A spider came crawling from behind her. MotherAthy froze mid-note.
She glanced over her shoulder, then shut her eyes tightly whilst she carefully tried to shake it off. The forest, it seemed, was determined to insist on her silence. She took a slow breath and leaned back against the tree again.
Suddenly she thought of her husband.
Somewhere out there, Dave was also trying to survive the night. The thought made her pause. She wondered whether he was safe. Whether he had found somewhere to sleep. Whether—
The wind picked up briefly, gently swaying the trees, the gradual creaking of the stems and branches echoed through the night. MotherAthy became uneasy at the eerie sound and thus continued singing.
"...whether he's currently nowhere near me". She nodded to herself.
At least, that seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to hope for, for the time being. After everything that had happened during the day, their reunion could probably wait until daylight.
Probably.
Preferably, several days from now.
She closed her eyes and for a few precious moments, the forest remained quiet.
“Close your eyes and drift away...”, MotherAthy's voice softened.
Perhaps, if she sang quietly enough, she could convince herself that she was somewhere else. Somewhere warm. Somewhere with walls. Somewhere where mysterious noises were caused by the central heating rather than an unknown tribute creeping through the undergrowth.
“Tomorrow's another d—”. A howl echoed in the distance. MotherAthy's eyes flew open.
"Nope", she exclaimed. She sat upright and shook her head. Her song was over. At least for now. She listened carefully, but the howl didn't come again. Eventually, she allowed herself to relax — just slightly. Then she began humming instead.
It was a little quieter. Less likely to attract any unwanted attention.
Maybe.
Probably.
And beneath the trees, surrounded by darkness and the occasional unexplained noise, MotherAthy continued her private concert for an audience she sincerely hoped would not listen.
DAVE:
Day 1:
Halo, Arelyne, Seishiro, Adeline and Dave all ran from the Cornucopia, followed by Rue, Mist, Mo3gi, Cinnamon, Bunny, MsClumsy and Zelda.
Elsewhere, Dave encountered Mo3gi.
He wasn't in the mood for discussing yet another alliance, after having been separated from Bunny earlier in the day. He was weary and on edge.
Their meeting quickly turned violent, as Dave arrived at the entrance of the cave where Mo3gi had tried to shelter.
Whatever opportunity Mo3gi might have had to escape disappeared in an instance, as Dave lunged at her full force, severely injuring her. She was left in a terrible state, unable to defend herself or continue the fight.
Dave stood over her.
For a moment, the situation seemed to hang between them. There was no easy way out of it. Leaving her there would mean abandoning someone who was unlikely to survive, but what followed would be something he would have to live with for the rest of his life.
After a long pause he made his decision. His face contorted in a regretful way, before he resolved to end Mo3gi's suffering.
Day 2:
Elsewhere, MotherAthy came across Dave as she looked around her immediate surroundings.
For one brief and unfortunate moment, they simply stared at one another. Under normal circumstances, finding one's husband might have been considered reassuring. However, the arena had altered the meaning of normal circumstances rather dramatically. MotherAthy remembered the previous night.
Mo3gi was gone.
And Dave had been responsible for this.
Whether his actions had been merciful or necessary, mattered very little to the part of MotherAthy's mind, currently calculating the quickest escape path between herself and the nearest route.
Dave slowly moved towards her, in a way trying to reassure his wife that he meant her no harm. Yet MotherAthy made a decision in a fraction of a second — she needed to distract him — and fast!
"Oh my goooosh, did Mo3gi actually bring her cookies with her?!", pointing behind Dave's shoulder, at the cave.
It worked.
Dave's attention, still ravenous by hunger, shifted instantly as he flipped his head to where she had been pointing. Only then did he remember just how much he had loved Mo3gi's cookies and his face contorted with a sorrowful expression once again.
It was Dave.
She immediately ducked down to hide beneath the shrubbery. She watched him carefully before deciding whether she should approach him, or not. Dave appeared distracted, occasionally glancing back towards the direction of the cave. His expression was difficult to read, although there was something rather peculiar about the way he kept muttering to himself. Louise slowed her pace as she tried to get closer without being noticed.
"...Mo3gi's cookies...", was all she could make out between the muttering.
She stopped.
Had she heard that correctly?
Dave continued walking, seemingly oblivious to her presence.
Still, the words lingered. Cookies?
She glanced down at the water in her hands, then back towards the trees. Dave was gone. Perhaps she was already beginning to understand just how hungry everyone was becoming.
Elsewhere in the arena, Ruhi, Dave and Seishiro had found themselves sharing a relatively quiet corner of the forest.
None of them planned it — it had simply happened that way. One encounter had led to another, and before long, the three tributes had settled beneath the stars, keeping a cautious eye on their surroundings.
For a while, conversation was sparse. There wasn't really much to say about the day that hadn't already been experienced firsthand. Eventually, Ruhi broke the silence.
"Quite a day, wasn't it?".
Dave gave a small, tired laugh. "That's one way of putting it".
Seishiro remained quiet, only listening at first. Ruhi glanced between them.
"Do you think tomorrow will be any better?".
Dave considered the question for a moment before shrugging firmly.
"Hard to say".
He looked down at the ground, absent-mindedly moving a small twig with the toe of his shoe. "I just hope everyone gets through another night".
There was a brief pause.
"Everyone?", Ruhi asked suspiciously.
Dave looked up at her in surprise, then his face fell again, barely unreadable.
"Well... MotherAthy, for one", he hesitated, his expression becoming a little more distant, "I haven't seen her since earlier. I hope she's found somewhere safe".
Ruhi exchanged a brief glance with Seishiro. However, neither commented. Dave sighed deeply as if the weight of the world was on his shoulders.
"Things haven't exactly gone to plan, have they?", Seishiro finally spoke.
"Plans rarely survive the arena". Ruhi added.
Dave nodded slowly. "True enough", he said, barely audible.
For a moment, the three of them sat quietly. Then Ruhi shifted slightly, trying to get comfortable. "Well, at least we haven't had another fight over cookies".
Dave looked at her, this time pain written across his face. A long pause followed.
"Don't remind me", he grumbled.
Seishiro lowered his gaze, seemingly trying to hide a faint smile. It was perhaps the closest thing to amusement any of them had experienced that evening. But the moment passed quickly.
The wind started picking up again, slowly shaking the trees. There was a sound of fluttering amongst it. All three turned towards the sound in unison.
They waited.
Nothing followed.
Eventually, Dave looked back towards the others. "Probably just a bird, right?".
Nobody seemed particularly certain though.
Their conversation gradually resumed, although their voices were quieter now. And for a little while longer, they remained together beneath the trees, sharing what little comfort could be found in familiar company.
But the night was far from over. And the arena had yet to reveal what it had planned for the next few hours ahead.
Then, somewhere across the darkness, they suddenly heard Bunny's voice scream.
"HEEEEEEELP!".
The sound travelled fast through the trees in echoey waves.
Several tributes stopped.
Some listened.
Some waited nervously.
However, no one was brave enough to move.
OK DONE.
that’s a lot guys :)
Holy crap our story is a total sob story. WDYM DAVE KILLED OUR LITTLE GIRL?????? WHAT?? omfg… I can’t bro- but OMG dude
but UGHGHHGHGHGHG
bEHYEGHUEHFIFA
i’m listening to sad music (well chill/sad) so reading through it at the same time is making me SOB MY EYES OUT HELLO someone grab me a tissue PLS
