Hiiiiii. This chapter is all edited with my evident and very stupid mistakes. Although I'm somewhat belligerent at the moment so I probably haven't replaced it with quality writing, but maybe in the very least this presents you with some semblance of a restored alternate universe that I created.

Stinging, blinding pain courses throughout my veins. I am on my feet before I'm awake; my eyes are open before I'm done dreaming. I come to my senses instantaneously to realize that Cato, Clove, Marvel, Glimmer, Dorian, and Orabel are sprinting away from our campsite, and I am on my feet sprinting even faster than them before I'm completely aware. I vaguely wonder how I can run fast enough to pass them all before pushing away those thoughts to focus on the pain coming from my ear. I reach up to touch it, feeling a sore and a tracker jacker stinger embedded in it. I pull it out without even wincing. Katniss is in the tree climbing down, but I don't pause to look back at her when she slips and falls from the tree.

All of us ignore the pain that sings inside of us and the buzzing swarms of tracker jackers promising death, but a blood-curdling scream resonates through the trees, and I can't ignore that. It's not Katniss, but that doesn't keep my heart from stopping. Someone, somewhere is in pain, suffering, and I can't ignore that. Something pulls me toward the screams, not another person or my own pumping legs, but my conscience. I turn from the Careers, searching for the source of the screams.

Zap. A needle of stinging pain cascades from my shoulder down my arm, numbing it for an instant before intense jolts of pain pulse repeatedly. I glance down and rip the stinger from my flesh. Glimmer lies on the ground in a heap, a swarm of tracker jackers precariously clouded over her. Without a moment's thought, I grab the branch Katniss cut down and swing it over Glimmer's body, through the cloud of muttations. I sweep the branch through the air over and over, and time slows as the swarm dissipates and starts toward me. I react quickly, flinging the branch away, and dive to the ground.

Zap. I ignore the pain of the sting this time, pausing only to pull the stinger from my side, and haul my body up off the ground once the tracker jackers have flown away. With practiced ease, I pull Glimmer up and heave her over my left shoulder. Memories of carrying a dead deer over my shoulders edge into my thoughts. Suddenly, the forest is District 12, with Capitol citizens dressed in ostentatious clothing stalking around the coal-covered town. There is no longer a person on my shoulder, but an animal's carcass. I stumble to the side, and push away the hallucination. I breathe in deeply and close my eyes, trying to control my actions. If I believe I can control the hallucinations, I will be able to. I take a step forward, open my eyes, and begin to sprint away. I don't have a plan and I don't know where I'm going but I'll be damned if I'm going to stand by while another innocent tribute dies. Glimmer is tall, with mile-long legs and ample muscle, so I'd place her at around 120 pounds, but her weight feels nonexistent with adrenaline surging through my body. I sprint away from the tree we forced Katniss into, looking for some semblance of a hovel to put her down. A cave-like structure looms into view about 100 yards away, and I make it my goal to get there before I collapse.

My body is crumbling with the effort of carrying another person, but I do not stop. Each stride is labored and purposeful, and each thought hinges on going just a little bit further, trying just a little bit harder, running just a little bit faster.

I arrive at the mouth of the cave and hesitate momentarily, but decide to risk there being another tribute or some kind of animal inside. I collapse inside the cave, deposit Glimmer on the floor, and promise my return. There is something else I must do.

I crawl back out of the cave, and think of my next mission. I run back the way I came, searching frantically for Katniss. I hear screaming everywhere, then only one scream. Cato's booming voice sounds from far away, Orabel's distinct giggle fades into silence. My head swings to the right, the direction I am positive Katniss went. I am nearing the tree Katniss climbed to evade us, and although I haven't heard any cannons, something still seems off. My body sways as my thoughts morph into mirages. Katniss is just in front of me, her braid swinging over her shoulder as she smiles shyly at me. She is 10 feet away, looking at me with a scared expression, she is 50 yards away, kneeling and gripping a tree for support, swaying back and forth much the same way I am. I force myself out of my hallucination again, smacking my own face to rouse myself from the haze.

Katniss is still there, lingering at the tree. She is not a mirage. I don't need to think when I pull my quiver of arrows off my body and throw them behind a tree with my bow to stop them from slowing me down as a I run frantically towards her, checking over my shoulder for the Careers. Cato is out there, I can hear his voice, and I sprint even faster to Katniss. She looks into my face, dazed and confused.

"What are you still doing here?" I hiss at her, shaking her by the shoulders. "Are you mad?" I yell into her face, urgency covering my face and coating my voice, trying to bring her out of her hallucination. It's not working. "Get up! Get up!" I scream, pulling her from underneath her arms to stand her up. I look back over my shoulder, sure that Cato will burst out of the trees any second now. "Run! Run!" I shove her forward and she lurches to the side, grabbing the tree again. Panting noises from the back of her throat escape her mouth as she runs away without looking back stumbling every so often, and I am thankful she can at least do that. I watch as she keeps running into the forest, now hidden behind endless trees, and run back to retrieve my bow and arrows.

My head is still pounding, tracker jacker venom taking effect. I stumble again as a flash-bulb memory of training alongside Cato appears in my mind, but I push it away and force myself to stay awake. I turn to the distinct boom of Cato's voice, and realize he is just coming out of a strip of trees, running towards me at full speed. This is not a hallucination.

"Peeta, where the fuck is Katniss? Did you see her? Did you get her?" he screams.

I stumble over my words, which only makes Cato angrier and more urgent.

"Where is she, Peeta? If you don't find that bitch right now, I swear I will kill you," he threatens angrily, drawing his sword from his sheath. My spine snaps to attention, and an immediate defense response registers. I can't lead him anymore; I don't have a clear enough idea of where Katniss is to know where not to bring him.

I can only form one clear thought, and that is protecting Katniss.

Without a moment's hesitation, I reach behind my head to the quiver of arrows on my back, but feel only the jacket. I left my bow and arrows next to the tree, too far away to get before Cato attacks me. Shocked realization slowly covers my face, and a demonic smile spreads over Cato's features.

I forget about the bow and arrows and instead draw my own sword, silently rejoicing at my idea to bring extra weapons. I also put a small knife into my pants pocket. I approach Cato slowly, glaring into his menacing visage. Our swords are extended, ready to fight, and I silently mull over my chances at winning a sword fight against a Career specially trained in sword fighting. I ignore these thoughts and instead begin to battle, clashing my sword against his, hoping that he will make a sudden mistake under pressure, giving me a chance to wound him. I realize that I will do no damage if I take every opportunity available to jab at him, so I advance towards him, waiting for the proper time to strike. I spent a long time in training before the Games doing sword fighting, so I'm holding up fairly well, only retaining small flesh wounds as Cato lunges at every chance.

Suddenly Cato jumps forward, landing a blow to my left leg, up high. I scream in pain, the blade sinking deep into my skin, but I know this is my chance. I twist my body away from his sword and slice my own through the air towards his stomach, certain that this move will win the battle. Cato pulls his sword back towards him, tucking it into his body to shield himself from my sword, and thrusts it away from him with such force that my arm flies back, clutching the weapon. My movements seem to slow as I lose my grip on the handle of the sword and it is flung yards away. I cannot get to the weapon before he kills me, so instead I lunge at him, mustering every ounce of my willpower to pounce on top of him. I grab his wrist and push his sword away from me as we topple to the ground. My weight pins him, and I bash his hand on the ground to get him to release the sword. He grunts as a cracking noise fills the air and he loses his grip on the sword, and I try to grab my knife from my pants while holding him down.

My leg is weak now, pain screaming and searing through my whole body, and Cato rolls on top of me, gaining the upper hand. He starts to reach towards the sword I forced from his grasp, but I twist my good leg out from under him and kick it away swiftly, only praying he doesn't have another weapon.

But of course, Cato doesn't need an actual weapon; he has his hands. His fingers slide around my neck, pushing down on my windpipe, and I squirm and kick, trying to get his weight off of me, but my leg is holding me back. I writhe in pain, suffering underneath this beast as he kills me. I expect to lose consciousness any time now, but then I realize Cato's flaw: his broken wrist keeps him from squeezing my throat hard enough to kill, but he doesn't know that. I can still breathe. I can hardly breathe, but I can still breathe.

I shut my eyes and count down from 10, waiting for the right moment to stop kicking. 10. 9. I turn and twist my head, trying to free myself from his grasp. 8. 7. I take a shallow breath so he doesn't notice I can still get air. 6. 5. I lift my body off the ground and fall again, unable to get him off of me. 4. 3. I wriggle from side to side, squeezing my eyes shut. 2. 1. I take another shallow breath, and all of a sudden, my body goes still as I hold my breath.

Cato stops squeezing my throat after a few seconds, lingering on top of my body to make sure I'm really dead. His weight lifts, and he steps over my body to grab his sword. He pauses, and I imagine he is looking around to make sure there are no other tributes around. Heavy footsteps take off into the woods, and I wait until I can't hear him anymore. I count down from 10 again to be sure, and then a wide smirk covers my face as I jump up from the ground, breathing heavily as I clutch my throat. As quickly as I can, I grab my sword, my bow, and my arrows, wincing at the deafening pain in my leg. I ignore the pain, knowing I have about 60 seconds before Cato realizes there was no cannon.

I sprint faster than I ever have away from the bloodied ground where the fight scene just unfolded and look for the cave I left Glimmer in. Pain is all I know right now, and I fight my body begging me to stop. I focus on each individual stride as I recognize the cave, and battle my weaknesses to get to that cave. This fight is more difficult than against Cato, because in this war I must fight against my own willpower. Everything inside of me tells me to stop and to collapse to the ground as my vision becomes blurred, but I keep running for the cave. Black spots dot the sky, and they look like bugs in one second, then black droplets in the next.

I finally reach the cave and give in to my body and the hallucinations. I fall into the small hovel, rolling over Glimmer, whose hair becomes strands of pasta and then worms. I land on my back next to her and I can form one clear thought before I black out.

I hope I saved Katniss.