AN: Takes place just after the feast, RUE IS NOT DEAD!

When The Sun Goes Out

The feast had gone well, I had successfully retrieved the medicine for Peeta and Rue was waiting loyally in the trees for me. I rushed from the Cornucopia site and felt lucky that hiding in the Cornucopia had paid off, even resulting in the quick and painless take out of my other competitor Foxface. I had Rue to thank for the idea of hiding inside and I was so thankful that I had reached her before that Boy from 1 did. I ran splashing through the water and Rue didn't rejoin me on the ground until we broke the tree line. I paused as I was supposed to when I reached the edge and caught the quick girl in my arms. I set her on the ground and we took off again.

I passed the pack to Rue and turned, my bow and arrow drawn already. Rue quickly scurried beneath the concealed opening of the rock cave. Regardless of Rue's hesitance to team up with Peeta she was determined to do her part to help him. Once I was sure that no one had followed us I ducked into the cave as well.

"He's still asleep for that syrup you gave him, " Rue said while her tiny fingers were already working on rubbing the medicine into his wound. Rue wrenched her fingers away suddenly.

"What, what's wrong?" I asked alarmed.

"It's already beginning to heal," she said.

"What?" I leaned over her and looked as well. "Capitol medicine really is amazing," I muttered. Rue nodded in agreement as we watched the cut heal completely into a baby pink skin. "That's gonna be a nasty scar," I stroked it gently, for the first time naturally falling into the role Haymitch would have for me.

"But he'll live," Rue reminded gently before going over to our pack and taking out some more chewy leaves. She shoved them in her mouth and I silently helped take Peeta's shirt off to reveal his stings. Rue slowly began to treat the stings again and it would help even though the initial pain was gone. All at once Peeta regained his senses before causing little Rue to scream with the abruptness.

Luckily I moved quickly and covered her mouth with my hand. She calmed down quickly and blushed from her lapse in good judgment. I ruffled her hair and released her, she went out to the stream for a minute to refill the canteens while Peeta and I stayed inside. "You shouldn't have done that," his voice was annoyed.

"I only wanted to save your life," I said quietly looking down.

"You could've gotten killed!" he yelled.

"I had Rue with me," I snapped back.

"Forgive me if I don't see how a twelve year old could have saved you," he said looking away.

"Peeta stop," I rested my hand on his arm. "I'm alive and you have the medicine you need. I'm afraid it's gonna have kind of a nasty scar though," I ran my fingers along it.

"I don't care about scars," he said. "I care about you!" he turned and took my face in his hands. "Please stop scaring me," he begged stroking my cheeks. I blushed and swallowed hard and stared into his dreamy sea blue eyes.

"Ick, rule," Rue said as she rejoined us in the cave. Peeta gave a small, good-hearted laugh and backed away. Rue had been a little untrusting of Peeta when they had found him laying in the mud just trying to survive. Rue had agreed to help me with him on the 'rule' that we kept our lovey dovey to ourselves. I had agreed but I was secretly worried for Rue since the Capitol loved our love she may be in a dangerous position.

I smiled fondly at her though and gratefully took the canteen from her hand. "I have a plan," Peeta suddenly said. Both of us looked at him and waited for him to speak again. "On how to kill Cato," Peeta said in a whisper, just in case.

Rue and I looked at each other excitedly as Peeta told us the plan, it was a good plan, risky but good. Somehow I talked him into letting me be the bait instead of him. Rue had already gone around and put tiny rocks over the air holes of an underground maze Peeta had discovered. Inside firewood was set up beneath the last remaining air hole. My job was simple get Cato to see me, chase me, fall into the opening. Then I ran to the fire hold and dropped in a match to ignite it, then I covered the hole. Meanwhile Rue would quickly shut the hatch and Peeta would push a huge rock over it, Cato would have two options to die, burn or suffocate. Was it ideal no it felt mean and cruel but we needed to live and for us to live he needed to die.

Somehow our plan worked although Cato was stronger than expected and both Peeta and I had to sit on top of the rock. "Clove," Rue called quietly from a tree.

"This is not good," I whispered to Peeta. "We either have to get off this rock, thus letting him free or fight Clove from this rock and be vulnerable."

Peeta was thinking of what to do when the bizarre happened, the sun went out. The entire arena became coated in darkness and we were stuck fumbling around. "Rue don't move!" I called from the ground.

Peeta and I both climbed off the rock trying to find the tree Rue was in. "Peeta," Clove's voice reached out to him. "Peeta please let Cato out!" she cried. "At least until we figure out what's going on!"

"Clove another chance like this isn't going to come along," Peeta said harshly.

"But what if we're being let out! Then Cato and I could both go home and you all could go home too! Peeta please!" the agony in Clove's voice was so real it tore at my heart.

"You make sure he doesn't kill us," I said trying to push the rock off. Clove appeared next to me and helped.

"Cato don't kill us when you get out!" Clove yelled inside.

"Clove? Clove!" Cato yelled up.

"I'm trying Cato!" she said still pushing.

"Peeta come help," I summoned.

"I would but I'm stumbling around in the woods right now," Peeta's voice held obvious frustration.

Clove and I were putting all of our strength in moving the rock when finally finally it moved off the hatch. Clove yanked the concealed door open tons of smoke poured out but we didn't see Cato. "Cato!" Clove yelled. "Cato it's open!" she said. "Cato!" the girl screamed.

I looked at her and realized something I was stupid to miss, so I did what came, unnaturally to me. I jumped down into the smoke and landed inside. I moved quickly, though scuffing my feet, searching for Cato's collapsed body. My shoe ran into him and I quickly bent down picking him up. I was horribly distressed to find out that he must weigh something around two hundred pounds.

"It's just a deer," I muttered. Gale and I had lifted deer together before, suddenly the idea ran through my head that Gale may have supported most of it's weight. But step-by-step I made my way to the entrance. "Help," I muttered.

"Cato!" Clove said seeming him emerge on my back. She grabbed him and helped me hoist him onto the ground. "Thank you," she said through sniffs and tears.

I nodded coughing, Rue was sweet enough to come and give me the canteen. I took a little bit and then saved the rest for when Cato would wake. Suddenly he coughed and it sounded like a dying man. I managed to get the canteen into his hand and he drank like he never had. Clove held him close and stroked his hair calmingly. "I'm here," she said.

"You tried to kill me!" Cato hollered.

"I wouldn't have let you out much less help you out if I wanted you dead. Cato eyed me warily. "The sun went out," I said.

"What if it come back on?"

"Then we count to 60 and all run off making it just as even as it was before," Peeta said finally finding us.

"Do you know what happened?" it was Thresh's timid voice that asked.

"Thresh!" Rue yelled excitedly descaling her tree and jumping on him. Thresh didn't seem to mind her weight at all.

"We have no idea," I said. "I think we're all at a tentative truce right now," I smiled.

"Isn't there one more of us alive?" Peeta asked standing by my side.

"The girl from eight," Clove said.

"Hi," her soft voice found it's way to our ears. She nervously stepped into the outskirts of our group.

"Well now what?"

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AN: Please review this is my first multi chaptered Hunger Games story.