Poison. The Perfect Weapon For A Snake.

I Look At Peeta And He Gives Me A Sad Smile. I Hear Haymitch's Voice. "you Could Do A Lot Worse." At This Moment, It's Impossible To Imagine How I Could Do Any Better. The Gift...it Is Perfect. So When I Rise Up On My Tiptoe To Kiss Him, It Doesn't Seem Forced At All.

"clove!" Cato's Voice Is Much Nearer Now. I Can Tell By The Pain In It That He Sees Her On The Ground. "you Better Run Now, Fire Girl," Says Thresh. I Don't Need To Be Told Twice. I Flip Over And My Feet Dig Into The Hard-packed Earth As I Run Away From Thresh And Clove And The Sound Of Cato's Voice. Only When I Reach The Woods Do I Turn Back For An Instant. Thresh And Both Large Backpacks Are Vanishing Over The Edge Of The Plain Into The Area I've Never Seen. Cato Kneels Beside Clove, Spear In Hand, Begging Her To Stay With Him. In A Moment, He Will Realize It's Futile; She Can't Be Saved.

I Pull The Sleeping Bag Up To His Chin And Kiss His Forehead, Not For The Audience, But For Me. Because I'm So Grateful That He's Here, Not Dead By The Stream As I'd Thought. So Glad I Don't Have To Face Cato Alone.

When I Ask Plutarch About His Absence, He Just Shakes His Head And Says, "he Couldnt Face It." "haymitch? Not Able To Face Something? Wanted A Day Off, More Likely," I Say. "i Think His Actual Words Were 'i Couldn't Face It Without A Bottle,'" Says Plutarch.

I Know What Blood Poisoning Is, Katniss," Says Peeta. "even If My Mother Isn't A Healer." I'm Jolted Back In Time, To Another Wound, Another Set Of Bandages. "you Said That Same Thing To Me In The First Hunger Games. Real Or Not Real?" "real," He Says. "and You Risked Your Life Getting The Medicine That Saved Me?" "real." I Shrug. "you Were The Reason I Was Alive To Do It.