It's early in the morning. I can't sleep, but that's to be expected. Katniss woke up a bit ago and walked to a nearby stream. She seems to be more stable, but she keeps moving things by her ear. The one that was bleeding yesterday. I wonder what's wrong with it. Hopefully she can still hear, at least out of one of her ears.

After she eats a breakfast of small fish from the stream, Katniss begins the trek to where she and Rue were supposed to rendezvous. It's eerily silent there, and Katniss seems on edge about it. I'm not worried though; Rue is probably just making sure the Careers or anyone aren't nearby.

Katniss climbs a tree to wait for her young ally. She dabs medicine on her burns and hardly winces at all. I'd imagine they're healing quickly with the fancy Capitol medicine. She braids her damp hair back into it's now-signature style. Eats another fish that she must've caught. Even with that in her stomach, I'd bet she's still hungry. It's hard work, being in the Games. Deathly work, even. I chuckle at this darkness.

The sun shines through the gap in our window shades, blinding me temporarily. What an inconvenience. I shake my head. My greatest inconvenience is the sun poking into my house, and Katniss's is happening to be in a fight to the death. Pitiful.

Keeping an eye on the television, I do chores around the house. Clean the dust that has settled. Sweep it outside. Practice a new piece on the piano. Katniss remains in the tree, clearly anxious. I mean, who wouldn't be? She has no idea where her ally is, and no idea what everyone remaining is up to.

Done with waiting, Katniss climbs carefully down back onto the ground. She scatters a handful of leaves on the fire that she cooked her fish on. As night begins to fall in the arena, Katniss makes it to a pile of wood. A pile of wood Rue was supposed to light a day earlier. Something is amiss. I can feel it, even through the screen.

Katniss creeps into the shadows of a tree. Even her delicate footsteps crunch the dried leaves and needles on the ground, and I grimace. Shhhhh, Katniss! I think. She suddenly stops, cocking her good ear to the sky. A faint bird call sounds from a small black and white bird. A four note whistle. It doesn't mean anything to me, but Katniss grins, relaxing her posture. It must mean something good. Katniss's eyes search the trees, looking. Looking for Rue.

Butterflies fly around my stomach. Something still doesn't feel right. Katniss repeats the whistle. And then a scream sounds.

A high pitched scream. A child's scream. A young girl's scream. Rue. Katniss runs toward the screams.

Another cry sounds. "Katniss! Katniss!"

"Rue!" Katniss yells back. "Rue! Rue, I'm coming!"

I'm holding my breath, but I don't realize it. Katniss breaks into a clearing. In the middle of it lays Rue, entangled in a fine net. She just has time to reach her hand through the mesh and yell for Katniss before the spear enters her body.

I'm very sorry, even though that's like literally what happens in the book. 

Also, I'm like super tired, so hopefully this chapter made sense. See you guys Thursday (hopefully).