Hunger Games 1

Chapter 30 Trap (1)
I had completely gained Lulu's trust, and I knew it because she fell asleep snuggled up next to me as soon as the national anthem was over.I don't need to have any doubts about her, and I don't need to take any precautions.If she wanted me to die, she didn't have to show me the hive that day in the tree, she just walked away.Supporting each other with me is her most obvious idea, otherwise neither of us can win in the game, and the current situation is still extremely unfavorable for our survival, so I don't think about it so much.

Plus, I'm still thinking about the pros and their supplies.Anyway, Lulu and I have to figure out a way to destroy their supplies, and I'm sure finding something to eat will be extremely difficult for them.Generally speaking, in the past, professional players grabbed food first, and then attacked others.In some years, they did not protect the food well. For example, some ferocious reptiles ate their food in one year, and in another year, the flood designed by the competition organizers washed away the food; Player wins.Pro players have grown up with nothing to worry about, which is actually their weakness, because they don't know how to deal with hunger.It's different from Lulu and me in this.

I'm too tired to make detailed plans tonight.My injuries have eased, but my brain is still a little dizzy from the bee venom.Lulu laying next to me with her head on my shoulder gave me a sense of security, and for the first time I felt how alone I was in the arena these days, how comfortable it was to have another person lying next to me!I'm drowsy. I'll do something tomorrow.By tomorrow, it would be the group of professional players who will be anxious.

I was awakened by the sound of the rumbling guns, the sky was dawning, and the birds were chirping.Lulu stayed on a branch across from me, holding something in her hands.We waited and heard no more cannon.

"Who do you think that could be?" I couldn't help but think of Peeta.

"I don't know, the others, anyone could be." Lulu said, "I think we'll find out tonight."

"Excuse me, who's left?" I asked.

"The boy from District [-], the two from District [-], the boy from District [-], Saresh and me, and you and Peeta," Lulu said, "That's eight. Wait, there's the boy from District [-] , the one with the broken leg, that’s nine, and one, neither of us remember.”

"I wonder how this one died," Lulu said.

"It's hard to say, but it's good for us. If one dies, there will be one less of these people. Maybe we should do something before the competition organizers feel that the progress is too slow," I said, "What are you holding?"

"Breakfast," said Lulu, and she held out her hand, revealing two large eggs inside.

"What bird's egg is this?" I asked.

"Not sure, there is a swamp over there, maybe it's a waterfowl." She said.

The eggs were delicious when cooked, but neither of us wanted to risk a fire.I'm guessing that today's dead were the victims of the pros, which means they've recovered reasonably well enough to return to play.We sucked out the eggs and ate some rabbit legs and berries.Anyway, it was a good breakfast.

"Ready?" I said, putting on my backpack.

"What?" said Lulu, jumping to her feet, and she could tell she would do anything I suggested.

"Today we're getting the food out of the pros," I said.

"Really? How to do it?" You can see the excitement in her eyes.In this, she was the exact opposite of Prim, who always found adventure a kind of ordeal.

"I haven't figured it out yet, let's go, let's think about what to do when we hunt." I said.

We didn't catch a lot of prey. I kept asking Lulu about the situation of professional players, and my mind was all on this.She had just finished spying on them not long ago, and she observed them carefully.Their camp was by the lake, and their supplies were hidden about thirty yards away.During the day, they would leave a boy from District Three to guard the supplies.

"The boy from District Three?" I asked. "Is he with them?"

"Yes, he will stay at the camp during the day. When the group ran to the lake, the wasp followed, and he was stung by the bee." Lulu said.

"I think they let him live on the condition that he see things, you know, he's not very tall."

"What weapon does he have?" I asked.

"It seems that there is no weapon, a spear, it's okay to use this to deal with a few like us, but Salish can kill him easily."

"The food is just outside?" I said.She nodded.

"It doesn't seem right to do that."

"I know, but I can't tell what it is," Lulu said. "Katniss, even if you can get to where they keep the food, how are you going to destroy it?"

"Burn it, or throw it in the lake, or pour fuel on it." I poked Lulu in the stomach, the way I used to poke Prim.

"Eat it." She giggled.

"Don't worry, I'll figure it out, it's easier to destroy than to build."

We discussed in low voices what to do as we dug up grass roots and picked berries and wild vegetables.I also know more about Lulu. She is the eldest of six sisters. She loves her younger brothers and sisters very much and gives them her rations. She goes to the grass to dig wild vegetables to eat. The security police in her area are not as good as us The area is easy to talk to.When asked what her favorite thing was, she answered "music".

"Music?" I was a little surprised.In my opinion, music is something between a hair band on the head and a rainbow in the sky. At least the rainbow can also indicate the weather, but the music is not useful at all.

"Do you have a lot of time to listen to music?"

"We sing at home and when we work, and that's why I love your brooch, too," she said, pointing to my mockingjay, which I had long since forgotten.

"You got mockingjays there too?" I asked.

"Oh, yes, some of them are still my friends. We can sing duets for hours. And they can tell me the news."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I'm usually the one who climbed the highest, so I was the first to see the flag of the end of work, and then I sang a special ditty." She opened her mouth and sang a four-note ditty with a clear and sweet voice. "The mockingjay spreads a little song all over the orchard so everyone knows it's time to shut down," she went on, "but it's dangerous if you get near his nest, but it's not their fault."

I took off the brooch and handed it to her, "here, take it, it will be more useful to you than me."

"Oh, no," Lulu said, closing my outstretched hand. "I love it when you wear it. That's why I feel like I can trust you. Besides, I have this." Pulled out a straw necklace with a star, maybe a flower, "it will bring good luck."

"Oh, so far, so," I said, pinning the brooch back on, "maybe you should keep it on."

While eating at noon, we figured out what to do.In the afternoon we started to move as planned.I helped Lulu prepare firewood for two campfires, and she could prepare the third campfire herself if she had time.We agreed to meet at the place of the first meal, and the stream would help me find it again.Before I left, I made sure Lulu was well stocked with food and firewood, and I even insisted that she take my sleeping bag in case we didn't meet up at dusk.

"What about you? Aren't you cold?" she asked.

"I'll find another one at their camp by the lake so it won't be cold," I said. "It's not illegal to steal here, you know." I said, grinning.

At the last minute, Lulu decided to teach me the Mockingjay callout signal.

"It probably won't help much, but if you hear the mockingjay, you know I'm fine, I just won't be coming back right away."

"Are there a lot of mockingjays here?" I asked.

"Didn't you see they've got their nests everywhere," she said, and I have to admit I didn't notice.

"Well, then, if all goes well, I'll see you at dinner."

To my surprise, Lulu stretched out her arms and hugged me, I hesitated a bit, and hugged her too.

"You have to be more careful," she told me.

"So are you," I said.

I turned and walked towards the creek, feeling suddenly worried.What if Lulu was killed?What if Lulu hadn't been killed?What if it's just the two of us?What should Lulu do alone?What should Prim do at home alone?No, Prim has Mom, Gale, and the baker who promised not to starve her; Lulu has me.

I walked to the creek and went down the stream to where I saw the wasp the first time I was stung.I had to be careful because there was something on my mind about Peeta.Did the cannonade this morning herald his death?If yes, how did he die?Did it die at the hands of a professional player?Was it revenge for letting me go?I tried to remember when I was lying on top of Glimmer and he came rushing out of the woods.I remember him being all shiny gold at the time, which made me wonder if all this really happened.

I must have walked very slowly yesterday, because it didn't take me a few hours to get to where I showered yesterday.I stopped to add some water and put another layer of mud on the pack.No matter how many times I muddled it, the pack seemed to stubbornly turn back to orange.

As I got closer to the camp of the professional players, I became more and more alert. I stopped from time to time to listen for any unusual noises. An arrow had already been placed on the bow.I didn't see the other contestants, but I did see the things Lulu mentioned, the clumps of sweet strawberries, the herbs that gave me my sting, the beehive by the tree that trapped me.On the branches above me, I could see the black and white wings of the mockingjay flickering now and then.

(End of this chapter)