Chapter 18--Episode "Explode"

                                    

                                          
"Alright, now these things will start smoking like crazy, so the moment you light this one move on to the next one," you instructed Rue as you set up another campfire in the woods. "Of course, anyone can catch you at this point, so you really have to be speedy."
                          
Rue nodded as she listened to you intently, placing the branches down on the huge pile that made up the third and final campfire. 
                          
"Then I'll just try to get rid of the supplies so that Thresh and the others would have to resort to nothing," you eventually concluded, slinging the arrows on your back.
                          
Rue nodded. "That's a good plan. But we'll need to come up with a signal. You know, in case one of us gets held up." Shen then pointed to the golden chain on your neck. "What's this?"
                          
You looked at what Rue was pointing to and gasped quietly. Again, you forgot about your mother's pendant. "Oh, this?" You uncovered the pendant, where the sapphire sparkled in a brilliant blue hue under the sun. "This is my token from my mother."
                          
"That bird," Rue said, pointing to the golden bird surrounding the jewel. "That's a mockingjay. You know the story about them, right?"
                          
You nodded. Mockingjays are really a slap in the face for the Capitol. Back when jabberjays were still around they would act as Capitol spies, relaying information from the Districts to the Capitol before something made them turn the tide and they would relay false information. As a result, they were banished to the wild, where they mated mockingbirds. The jabberjays then lost the ability to enunciate words, but with mockingjays, the thing with them is that they could simply imitate songs and fill the air with music.
                          
"Yeah I do," you nodded. "But why do you bring this up? Are there any mockingjays here?"
                          
Rue nodded. "Yeah, there are. Hey, I'll teach you a tune so that if one of us gets held up, we'd send that signal, and that will let the other one know that we're okay."
                          
"Alright then," you nodded. "You sure this would work?"
                          
"I used to sing to the mockingjays all the time back home to signal the end of work," Rue told you further. "Trust me, this would be no different."
                          
For the first time you truly admired little Rue and her wisdom beyond her years. Being the oldest of six children, as you learned earlier, she was forced to grow up too soon. Her maturity was just so admirable. It was a miracle that so far she hasn't been caught yet. Knowing that leaving her alone now would put her in more danger, the best you could do is hope.
                          
"Okay," you nodded. "Stay safe."
                          
"You too," Rue said, wrapping her arms around you as she gave you a spontaneous hug, and you hugged her back now, biting your lip as you tried not to imagine her in danger. Soon, you pulled away, and while you headed to the Cornucopia, Rue headed off to the first fire. 
                          
As you laid low behind the bushes that surrounded the open plain where the Cornucopia lay, you caught sight of the remaining non-Career tributes that surrounded it--Thresh, the girl from 5 (oh for hell's sake, just nickname her Foxface for the time being, you decided, since she does have a face that resembles a fox), and the boy from District 3. All three of them were simultaneously guarding a huge pyramid of things ranging from supplies to weapons to even small packets of food. Your eyes immediately honed in now on the metal plates where you rose from below...and you knew something has gone amiss, the moment you saw the dirt unearthed and sitting on the grass.
                          
"Hey! Over there!" you heard Foxface shout, pointing out into the forest. Sure enough, you saw a plume of smoke rise from the trees, and the first fire was lit. You smiled to yourself, crouching low behind the leaves.