07:  The Convergence

Minah clutched the axe to her chest tightly, knowing that her life literally depended on the wooden tool. She tried to fold into herself as closely as possible, keeping her body small, compact, and hidden under the bushes. She took deep careful breaths, all too aware that getting nervous and panicked would lead to loud, ragged breaths. She couldn’t afford that—she needed to meet up with Baekhyun and the others.

She bit her lip, eyes peeking out from her hiding spot onto a deserted clearing. She hated planning—it always made her jittery and on edge. It made it hard to focus, and in the arena, she needed focus above anything else. Plus, she needed it if she wanted their plan to succeed. It was a bold move, even for them, but Minah felt proud, even just a little, that she was a part of something big—something that would change everything.

A soft rustling of leaves from the south end of the clearing yanked her from her thoughts.

Gripping her axe until her knuckles went white, Minah refused to blink, eyes burning on the area of the disturbance. Her heart beat rapidly, and for a second, she was afraid that it was too loud—what if that ruby-haired princess from District 1 finally caught up to her because of her loud heart?

Minah almost laughed from the absurdity of her thoughts. She wasn’t even aware she still had the luxury of laughing. A shadow slowly started forming in the clump of trees where she was looking. Minah’s brain suddenly went on overdrive. Without a second to spare, she sprang to her feet and sprinted in the opposite direction.

She ran without looking back, skirting along the trees and never letting her axe go. She only stopped when she reached a small area of berry shrubs. Feeling that it was safe already, she slumped down to her knees, breathing hard and trying to catch her breath.

“I…running…I can’t do this…oh God…”

She looked around tiredly, eyesight blurring from the exhaustion of running God knows how long. Her stomach rumbled, her hunger also catching up. Her eyes suddenly locked on the luscious, purple berries hanging from the shrubs in tight little clumps. She grabbed them ravenously, shoving them into without any hesitation. Had Minah given it a little thought, she would have heard the other tribute running behind her in a frenzied panic, telling her to stop and drop the berries, and she would have reacted accordingly. Things would have gone differently if she hadn’t rushed.

Minah dropped to the ground with a soft thump, her eyes rolling to whites and foaming. The axe lay forgotten beside her lifeless hand, a couple of round, luscious, juicy, nightlock berries sitting innocently in her palm.

The cannon blew off in the distance.

Baekhyun jumped in surprise, whirling around and staring in horror at where the sound of the cannon came from.

Chanyeol urged him forward wordlessly, pulling on his elbow. Baekhyun remained frozen, his heart hammering in his chest. He was so worried—so worried. Chanyeol pulled him again, and Baekhyun finally relented, eyes glued on the sky.

“A-are they okay? Oh God, I can’t take anymore of thi—

“Shh.”

Chanyeol roughly pulled him towards a grove of tightly clumped trees. Baekhyun glared weakly at him. Chanyeol wasn’t looking at him, his face set in a stern and guarded expression. Baekhyun frowned at him, but followed his gaze anyway. Beside an undisturbed lake in the distance, about sixty feet from them, four people were standing in a little circle. Baekhyun couldn’t quite see who they were.

“Hey—who are the—

Chanyeol gently but firmly raised his hand and pressed it against Baekhyun’s mouth, promptly shutting him up. Baekhyun failingly gasped against Chanyeol’s hand, and Chanyeol had the decency to look apologetic. He glanced at Baekhyun.

Your voice is too loud, dweeb. He mouthed carefully, and Baekhyun found it a little irritating that Chanyeol felt the need to insult him, even when he was only mouthing words.

Baekhyun frowned, and Chanyeol shrugged his head towards the gathering near the lake.

It’s Tao and Luna. He said simply, looking back.

Baekhyun leaned closer, his weight on Chanyeol’s body, and peeked over his shoulder. He squinted, and could finally distinguish details, more or less.

Standing on the farthest left was a lean and tall red-headed guy. He was standing so casually you’d think he was just looking for food in a market. Baekhyun noted the long pole gripped in his arms. Beside him, a short girl was talking animatedly, seemingly weaponless. Her golden curls bounced as she gestured wildly. In front of them, standing rigid and unresponsive was another similar looking pair. The girl was a little taller than the one talking animatedly, and the boy had sharp and pointed features and paler skin.

Chanyeol suddenly turned his head, his chin bumping against Baekhyun’s forehead. He didn’t say anything, but Baekhyun winced.

Keep quiet. We can’t leave until they’re gone. Someone’s going to die there.

Baekhyun’s eyes widened, but he kept his hands frozen in place, fingers clutching Chanyeol’s shoulder. They watched in silence, the surroundings so quiet that they could clearly hear what was happening.

“—so what do you say, eh? Let’s just duke it out like real warriors!” The golden haired girl, Luna as Chanyeol pointed out, punched her fist into her hands aggressively.

The other girl flinched, stepping back in surprise. Luna grinned.

“Luna, stop shouting. Seriously.” Tao chided, still looking bored, but there was a certain glint in his eyes that frightened Baekhyun. He found himself inching closer to Chanyeol. Chanyeol didn’t say anything, still rooted to his spot even as Baekhyun tried to practically merge with him.

“Well, they’re not saying anything!”

“It’s because you’re being very rude.”

Luna glared at him, before crossing her arms and stomping off to the lake. Tao watched her, before regarding the other two with a slight hint of interest.

“You’re both from District 8, am I right?” He asked quietly, and he sounded so nice, it was scary.

The other guy pulled the girl back, stepping in front and nodding his head. “And you’re from 2.”

Tao just shrugged his shoulders, and then everything happened too fast that Baekhyun took a moment to process it all.

Baekhyun remembered seeing Tao whip his stick around in lightning speed, and the District 8 guy—Kris, he recalled—pushed the girl back as he dropped to the ground. Luna was sitting cross-legged beside the lake, her eyes holding a crazy glint as she grinned and watched Tao play around with Kris.

“Ugh—! Hyo—damn it—Hyoyeon, run!” Kris managed to grunt in between dodges, and Hyoyeon, the other blonde girl, didn’t even stay around.

She ran towards Baekhyun’s and Chanyeol’s general direction, crying wordlessly as she passed by them in her blind run. Nobody chased after her. Luna was clapping like a child as she watched, yelling out score points every time Tao hit Kris with the stick. It went on for a while, and Baekhyun could see Kris starting to slow down. He felt bad for Kris, seeing as it was so obvious that Tao was just playing around, but each of them knew that the moment Kris dropped his guard, Tao would go for the kill.

Luna suddenly yawned loudly, and she whistled, catching Tao’s attention. He stopped abruptly, looking away as he jabbed his stick against Kris’ kneecap with so much force there was an audible breaking sound. Kris dropped limply to the ground on his side, clutching his leg as he gasped in silent but excruciating pain. He didn’t touch his knee, afraid to inflict further pain.

Luna clicked her tongue. “I’m getting bored. Can I kill him now?”

Tao huffed before swinging his stick at Kris, who was trying to drag himself away. He looked back at Kris slowly, and there it was, an expression fit for the arena—a murderous look so dark and frightening, Baekhyun didn’t even feel ashamed that he shivered, and Chanyeol pulled him closer, afraid that Tao’s murderous sense would notice them.

“Be a man, Kris. Don’t do that.”

Kris’ face paled to an ashen white, and his soul seemed to leave his body as Luna jumped up, stretching her arms as she walked leisurely towards a big boulder behind Tao. Baekhyun heard the scraping of the metal against the rock first before laying eyes on it—a double-bladed axe so huge it equaled Luna in height. She hefted it over her shoulders so easily as if it weighed nothing. Tao moved away, dragging his stick behind him. Luna walked closer towards Kris, a serene smile on her face contrasting the murderous intent rolling off of her in waves.

“...P-please...please don’t—

“One more time. Beg.” Luna murmured, savoring every syllable, and Kris rightfully sobbed.

“Please d-don’t kill me. Please...I still want t-to see my little sister b-back home.”

“Aww. That’s nice.” She adjusted her grip on the labrys axe, and Kris let out a strangled sound of despair.

“...please…!” Kris cried out, his voice cracking as he weakly held up a hand in defense.

“Bye bye!” Luna trilled happily, and she swung her axe down.

Hard.

Baekhyun quickly pressed his face against Chanyeol’s back, hearing the axe slashing the wind, the wet-sounding slice, and the heavy thud of the axe that followed as it cut Kris’ head clean right off. He didn’t see Luna kick around Kris’ severed head like a ball, whistling as they headed east, away from their only audience, accompanied by the sound of the cannon blowing off in the distance.

Chanyeol looked unaffected and used to it, but Baekhyun was so shocked, he couldn’t even care. He cried silently. He would never get used to this bloodshed and violence. Kris’ begging voice, his words of plea, they would forever be stuck in Baekhyun’s mind, and there was no way to get them out.

Pulling away from Chanyeol, he wiped his face, sniffling softly. Chanyeol looked at him, his face characteristically blank. Baekhyun looked up at him.

“Please help me reunite with my friends. I’m stopping this.”

Chanyeol may have smiled, but Baekhyun’s not sure.

“Is that...fire?”

Kyungsoo looked up as he changed Lu Han’s bandages. The peach haired boy was staring wide-eyed at something behind their group, and reflected in his eyes, Kyungsoo could definitely see something glowing in the distance. Kyungsoo turned around, and felt his body run cold with fear and panic.

“The gamemakers are trying to flush out all the hiding tributes.” Victoria had stopped picking up rocks, her face looking stern and voice edged with calculated fear.

Jongin, who had been resting his tired body from carrying Lu Han, sprang up to his feet like a well-oiled machine and hefted Lu Han up on his back. Lu Han had no time to protest. “We have no time. We need to find a hiding spot, and at the same time, not get burned to crisps.”

Victoria nodded, picking up a few more rocks (as they were her weapon at the time), before dumping them in her pockets and leading the way. Kyungsoo stayed at their rear, eyes still planted on the glowing, orange light in the distance. He heard the faint and distant sound of stones crumbling, and he could only guess that the fire was also burning down the walls of the maze. This meant a wider playing field for them, and less hiding spots. He wiped the bead of sweat trickling down his face, and jogged to catch up with his allies.

The cannon blew off in the distance again, and he felt his heart do a somersault.

“Baekhyun, please stay safe…”

At the sound of an explosion, Baekhyun found himself gripping Chanyeol’s hand too hard.

Chanyeol threw him a questioning glance, and Baekhyun gave him an apologetic look before promptly loosening his grip. He couldn’t help it. Chanyeol had demanded that they held hands seeing as Baekhyun’s hearing was nowhere near helpful, and guiding him along the quietest path was the safest choice for them. Baekhyun had been indignant at first, but Chanyeol had been relentless.

“...was it always this hot?” Chanyeol suddenly asked as they traversed a deserted forest trail, and Baekhyun blinked at him.

“Excuse me?”

“Don’t you feel it?”

Baekhyun quirked up his eyebrows. He felt the tremor on the ground before he saw it—in the distance, about a hundred meters from where they stood, the wall of the maze glowed, flickering between shades of red and orange. The trees suddenly burst into flames. Wordlessly, Baekhyun abruptly pulled Chanyeol with newfound strength amidst the taller male’s protests. He dragged him to the opposite direction of the flames quickly engulfing the grove they were headed. Chanyeol finally decided to sprint with him, and in the blink of an eye, he was the one leading Baekhyun, his long legs carrying him effortlessly as they turned corners in the maze. The pathways were starting to become narrow and the walls shorter, a clear sign that they were headed to the Cornucopia. Baekhyun gritted his teeth.

“We shouldn’t go here!” Chanyeol raised his voice over the loud ominous crumbling of the walls.

“We have no choice! The gamemakers want action, so they’re trying to coop us all up together in the center!”

Before Chanyeol could reply, he crashed into someone. Their speed increased the impact, and Baekhyun, who almost had his shoulder dislocated from Chanyeol rolling off, watched as his temporary ally bounced and rolled on the ground violently with the person he crashed into. Before he could piece things together, a heavy torrent of rain suddenly poured, drenching him and soaking his clothes.

“Oh my gosh—Baekhyun!!”

Baekhyun fell down to the ground next, another pair of arms almost choking him to death. If it weren’t for the familiar auburn hair and incessant fussing over his face, he would have panicked.

“Vic, I-I’m fine! Really, please stop crying.” Baekhyun sat up, and Victoria got off Baekhyun, still sobbing as she hugged him, face buried on his shoulder.

“So many cannons went off, I-I thought you were—” Victoria sobbed harder, and Baekhyun would be lying if he didn’t feel a tad bit touched.

Standing in front of him, looking relieved as well, was Kyungsoo. Lu Han winced as he sat on the ground, but nodded at Baekhyun anyway. Baekhyun frowned a little upon not seeing Jongin until—

“What the did you do to Baekhyun?! I’ll kill you!”

“Get the hell off me! Baek—

Baekhyun whirled his head around to see Jongin trying to strangle Chanyeol. With a start, he scrambled up to his feet and ran over, pulling on Jongin’s arm and trying to pull him free.

“Jongin, stop! Stop it! He’s not a threat—well, sure, yeah—but let go of him! Jongin!!”

Jongin let one hand go and pushed Baekhyun away. “Did he tell you to say that?!”

“No! He’s my friend!!” Baekhyun shrieked, and Jongin promptly stopped, his fingers loosening as he stared at Baekhyun.

“But he’s a Career…?” He supplied blankly, his eyes flitting to Kyungsoo for help.

Baekhyun glared at him. “You don’t just start killing strangers when you see them, even if it is the Hunger Games. He’s my friend.”

Jongin begrudgingly got off Chanyeol, and Baekhyun crouched down next to him, helping him sit up as he coughed and rubbed his throat, trying to catch his breath and ease the pain around his jugular. His face was flushed, and beads of sweat dotted his forehead. Baekhyun looked at him with concern.

“A-are you okay?”

Chanyeol nodded, and if Baekhyun’s eyes weren’t doing weird things again, he was sure Chanyeol’s lips quirked up into a smile, just for a split second.

“Good. I’m sorry he tried to kill you. I hope you understand.”

Chanyeol nodded again, still not saying anything as he took deep breaths. Baekhyun stayed beside him, rubbing his back while turning back to his friends.

“How did you guys get here?” He asked, and ignored the fact that Chanyeol just inched closer to him.

“The fire.” Kyungsoo said simply, and as he did so, he held a hand up, catching the heavy drops of rain on his palm. His gaze flitted to where the flames were before. “I guess the gamemakers completed whatever purpose the flames served—whether it was to burn someone or group us all together—”

At this, Jongin suddenly tensed. His hand shot out towards Kyungsoo’s in a flash.

“Quick. Hide!”

Chanyeol still felt like his lungs were on fire, but thanks to Baekhyun, he was alright. Again.

He tried to fight off another smile from breaking out onto his face. The arena was the last place where he could smile, more so when they were all trying to hide from Krystal, whose voice he could hear even from a mile away. The girl had always been a loudmouth. Still, crouching next to Baekhyun on top of a tree and hiding again after the smaller male had saved him for the second time seemed like a funny thought to him. Baekhyun was probably braver than he gave himself credit for, and Chanyeol found his ideals so naive and impossible, but refreshing and hopeful.

“Am I being loud?” Baekhyun asked in a whisper, and Chanyeol couldn’t help it anymore. Baekhyun frowned at him. “Are you smiling? What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, really. Be quiet, and move closer. Krystal’s just around the corner.”

Chanyeol held Baekhyun by the shoulder gently, trying to keep them both as still as possible. He wasn’t kidding, though. Krystal was really just around the corner. He could hear her swishing around her double scythes in the wind, the sound unusually loud over the rain.

Soon enough, her ruby red hair appeared in their view,  and she was standing just around the area they had all met up in. She stopped, eyes glancing around her carefully. Thanks to the rain, it masked their breathing, and probably helped in concealing their presence. Krystal, however, could still sense something. She narrowed her eyes, walking around in slow circles as she dropped her scythes, gripping them by the chains and dragging them in the mud.

“I know you’re there.” She said clearly, and Chanyeol felt Baekhyun shiver.

Krystal suddenly whirled around, her dripping wet hair splashing droplets of water everywhere. She glared towards the direction where Lu Han and Victoria were hiding. Baekhyun tensed in his arms, but Chanyeol held him still.

“I can feel you. Come out; come out, wherever you are! I’ve been itching to use my scythes, y’know?”

To his surprise, someone really did come out. It was that muscular guy from 7. The gentle-looking dimpled one with the blonde hair. He came out from the bushes, an axe in his hand. Krystal pointed at the axe happily.

“Oh! That’s the axe from that other girl, isn’t it? Did you kill her?” She looked genuinely interested, and the guy from 7 just shook his head.

Krystal hummed in deep thought, momentarily letting her scythes go. The guy took that as his chance. He broke into a sprint in the direction where Chanyeol and Baekhyun had come from. Krystal stared at him, looking affronted and pissed. She stomped her foot, before grabbing her scythes and running back to where she came from.

They waited a while, Baekhyun breathing rapidly as he leaned against Chanyeol. Chanyeol’s gaze flitted everywhere, and as the rain slowed down to a slight shower, he finally relaxed. They watched as Kyungsoo and the others all slowly and carefully came out of their hiding spots. Baekhyun also got moving, but Chanyeol pulled him back. Baekhyun looked at him questioningly.

“We’re friends now?” Chanyeol asked, mocking curiosity in his voice.

Baekhyun flushed slightly, gulping nervously. He opened and closed his mouth to say something, but Chanyeol just looked amused.

“Don’t sweat it. Besides, you saved me twice now. You don’t have to answer everything I ask.”

Baekhyun nodded wordlessly, cheeks still flushed.

“Now come on, I’m dying to see you stop this violence.” Chanyeol smiled at him, and Baekhyun swatted him on the shoulder.

For the pun, for the smile, Chanyeol doesn’t know, but the pinkish tint in Baekhyun’s cheeks never faded away, and only reddened when Chanyeol glanced at him.

Sixteen tributes left.

_{A/N: I keep popping up on AFF like a damn mushroom. I'm so sorry. OTL}

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