Here is the fourth installment of Cato's P.O.V of Career of 12 which is now sadly completed. This takes place the night the two alliances are created and he finds out he and his pack can all go home. I want to thank all my reviewers and people who have alerted this fic, if you followed Career of 12 thank you for finding the time to follow the side story's it means a lot that you love this verse so much, if you only have read this fic then that is also fine because it means you still read my work and i thank you for that.

On to the fic.

The Mark That Binds

Cato's P.O.V

We're in the games: the same games that I've been training for my whole life, the games I should be intending to win and yet I sit here and watch Peeta gut the strange creature he had taken out earlier, it was surprising to watch Peeta rip open the creature's ribs with such ease at first until I remembered how easily he had thrown around the weights only a few days ago. But the way he scoops out the entrails with ease not even blinking is what really makes me look twice and suddenly I know how Peeta came to be so skilled in the art of killing. There was no academy in twelve like there was in one and two so it had been playing on my mind how Peeta came to be so skilled but now I know: Peeta was a hunter so he must have self-taught himself the best ways to get a kill.

Once the entrails are all gone Peeta hands the carcass to Marvel and Glimmer who put it on the spit while he goes to wash up, I follow him with my eyes as my mind wanders to the moment the two of us had shared the night before. Fate: Did I believe in it? That was what Peeta had asked me and all I had been able to think was that I had to, and I stood by that statement now because meeting Peeta, becoming friends with Marvel and Glimmer that couldn't have just been a chance that we had all volunteered at the same time-well Marvel, Peeta and I had volunteered the two girls had been reaped-because that was too scary.

That moment on the balcony while the other tributes had spun around on the dance floor had been the single most precious moment I had, despite the fact it was like an introduction to our lives as victors I hadn't cared I had that moment with Peeta and what's even more I had kissed him. When I had told him I had fallen for him I knew it would spark something between us, and I knew that I was confusing Peeta because I was more than seventy percent sure that he had some kind of feelings for Clove, but he had kissed me back and while he hadn't told me he had fallen for me either I could take that as a good sign and could only hope that when it came down to it that it was me he chose.

I do wish only the best for Clove really I do because she'd like my little sister but there was just something about Peeta that drew me to him, maybe it was Fate like Peeta said it was but maybe it was something else that drew me to the other blonde. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn't notice that Peeta had returned to sit in between me and Clove until he spoke. "Hey Marvel you expect the meat to cook by it above the flames?" he said lightly as he leaned back.

Glancing over to the meat I have to hold back my smirk as I notice it burning on the side directly over the fire it was funny to watch but it was even funny to watch Marvel flail to save the meat before it burned terribly. After that we all settled in a strange silence: I could only guess that half of it was because in two weeks only one of us will be left and that kinda put a depressing spin on things. Despite how well I got along with my pack it was always hovering over our heads that only one of us was going to get out. By the time the food was cooked through and then served I couldn't help but wince when there was nothing left, if that was as large as the animals got in here our pack was going to have it hard if we decided to hunt for our food.

"I'm gonna have to hunt again tomorrow" Peeta muttered as he handed me my share of the food.

"I noticed…it was really small after you finished cleaning it" I say hesitantly before taking a large bite from the meat to avoid looking in Peeta's eyes. Things weren't exactly awkward between us anymore but they weren't awesome and it was making me feel a little self-conscious: which wasn't something I could really afford to be at this point in time.

The anthem played in the arena catching my attention along with the other members of the pack and I looked to the sky to watch the faces of the dead tributes shine in the sky bright making me grin: I had done that, I had killed them and sure I had help but that was the whole point of the pack right: to kill as many tributes before I had to kill one of them. Once all the fallen tributes had all been shown I was ready to turn back to my meal when the suddenly voice of Seneca Crane made me pause in my actions.

"Hello tributes…how was your first day in the hunger games" I felt like rolling my eyes at the stupid question because seriously how did he think it went: we came we killed now we were resting nothing else to it. "President Snow has finally decided to reveal his little surprise and I must say it's going to change the games as we know it"

Swallowing tightly I watch as Clove takes Peeta's hand out of the corner of my eye and push down the spike of jealously that flared through me when I noticed him give the girls smaller hand a gentle squeeze . "Because of how fast our tributes were killed out this year, the President has decided to be generous because of the great show you have given us" knowing that something big was about to happen I find my own hand reaching for Peeta's and give it a squeeze silently conveying how much I needed him as an anchor at that moment.

Through my mind I kept running terrible situations around and around as if one of them might come true when in reality I wanted none of them to come true. "Two Alliances will be created, these will be noticeable by the marking that will appear in the place where your tracker was injected, this is no longer a kill all the tributes game: it is a game of pure survival: only one alliance can win, but more than winner can be made: so long as they are all from the same alliance and they are standing by the end of the games in thirteen more nights" I feel my jaw drop down in shock and despite the fact I know I must look like an idiot the only thing that I understood was that if fate was one my side then I wouldn't have to kill Peeta, I wouldn't have to kill my pack at all.

"But to make it fairer, we as Game makers will be making this very hard on you and from this point on you will no longer just have to deal with the other alliance members but the arena itself: that it all: happy Hunger games tributes and May the Odds Be Ever in your favor" none of that mattered or at least not to me all that mattered was I wouldn't have to kill Peeta…if I was in luck.

I was going to ask what was about to happen when suddenly a burning pain entered my arm; it was as if my arm was being incinerated from the veins outwards. But I was Cato the Career I would not scream so I grit my teeth and focused on Peeta next to me who was leaning over his own arm as the same pain flared through him. I could only guess this was the formation of the marks as I could hear the screams of the other tributes flooding the arena and suddenly I couldn't help but wonder if the capitol found our pain enjoyable. It took a few minutes but slowly I felt the pain beginning to fade away until it was nothing but a tiny after shock like the pain you get after your burnt: nothing a career couldn't handle.

Glancing around the pack I could see how scared each one of us were for one another and what alliance we belonged to. When I look at my arm I smile at the wold marked on my arm: a wolf a pack animal a great hunter-a predator I liked it. "What marking do you have?" I ask and curse myself for how breathless I sounded.

Peeta was the first to move and hesitantly revealed his own mark to me, when I saw an identical wolf marking as my own marring the flesh of his inner arm I could hold in the laugh of joy I had as I bared my own mark to my fellow pack mate: I could only guess that fate really was on my side today. But all of that joy faded when Clove launched herself at Peeta laughing and pulling him tight into a hug her own arm baring the same mark. I could tell by the way Glimmer and Marvel was smiling that they too had the same marks and before I could stop myself I feel myself slipping back onto the grass to stare up at the artificial sky that the Capitol created for these games: my pack was safe but all I could think about was Peeta, Clove and the strange love triangle that we had got caught up in unknowingly.

I began to think of the life we could all have outside of the games when we won-because we would win-when suddenly Peeta was by my side like a light in the dark making my smile grow even softer: he really just made these games seem a little bit easier "We're safe now: You don't have to kill us" he whispered to me.

Shaking my head I glance over to the other members of the pack and watch as Marvel and Glimmer danced around totally in love with one another and then at Clove who was beaming happily when suddenly I knew that I had to get over everything between that three of us. Peeta was going to make a choice because there was no way I could pull myself away from him and by the way Clove stared at him lately neither was she. "I want you to be Clove's partner" I say turning my attention skywards again and ignoring the looks the other members of the pack were sending me.

A moment passed and I could already imagine the shocked and confused glances that Peeta and Clove were probably giving me at this point but I was too far gone to care. "What do you mean" Peeta asked turning his beautiful blue eyes on me again "Clove is your partner, has been since the start"

That really had to be the most amusing thing anyone had ever said to me but I couldn't find it in me to laugh so instead I give Peeta my fondest and warmest smile "No…you two are best suited for one another, I can take care of myself, but tomorrow when we split up to hunt down the others I want you and Clove to be each others partner you got it?" thinking I might need a little more ammo for convincing the passionate blonde with the fire blue eyes I flicker my gaze over to the two whispering district one tributes and smile sadly "I couldn't break them up…not now that they just found out that they would be able to save one another so please…just do what I ask" I'm begging by now but I couldn't really care less I just needed Peeta to do this and not just for me but for Clove and himself as well.

Peeta must have understood how much it meant to me because he sighed and nodded "We'll stick together out there we promise" he said and before I could stop myself I shot up and wrapped me into a hug. The hug was completely selfish but I needed this I just needed him to be mine even if it was only for a few moments. I lean forward and press my forehead into his shoulder as Peeta's hand wound into my hair making me smile thankfully: that small affectionate move meant more to me than any affectionate moment I had with my previous boyfriends and maybe even my parents. . "We're going to win Cato" he said his voice strong and believable.

"Of course we are. When we do I'm going to take you to district two and show you everything" I say and it sounded like a promise which probably wasn't too far off that bat, I could already picture it now: Peeta walking arm in arm with me, Glimmer and Marvel beside us as Clove skipped ahead of our group as I pointed out the sights for him.

"Sounds like a plan" he said and I could only hope he had a similar vision as my own.

Lifting up my head from his shoulder I meet his gaze with my own and suddenly I'm transported to the moment on the balcony where I kissed him, I was fully ready to do it again when suddenly the fire cracked spoiling the moment and making us jump apart. Peeta pulled apart and moved to Clove talking about their new partnership allowing me to take the time to reclaim my senses and when I had full control over them I begin to move back to them when I hear Clove talking about how she and Peeta were going to take out all the tributes making me snort "Leave some for the rest of us Clove" I say teasingly as I sat down next to Peeta once more.

My feisty district partner must have done something amusing because suddenly Glimmer was giggling and Marvel was snorting in amusement "Oh but where's the fun in that?" she asked sarcastically.

After that we began to talk about tactics until we all decided to crash and go to sleep but I unfortunately found myself with an ill-timed case of insomnia and ended up keeping watch as the others all slept peacefully around me. Peeta was curled up next to me looking totally content and relaxed making me smile happily every time I looked down on him, when I volunteered for these games I hadn't been expecting to find someone like Peeta in fact I never really expected to find someone like Peeta and now that I had I was worried he wasn't going to want me back.

"Need company?" spinning around my eyes lock onto a pair of sparkling emerald ones making me relax almost immediately . Only one person could have those eyes: Glimmer.

Nodding I motion for her to take the seat next to me and the blonde disentangled herself from Marvel's side and came to sit next to me in front of the fire not saying a single word so that a silence descended on us neither uncomfortable or strained. I don't know how long we sat there but it was enough for me to get used to the silence and jumped when Glimmer did finally speak. "That was a real selfless thing you did with Peeta and Clove" she said.

"Well what can I say" I mutter shrugging off the shock that had just overcome me at the sudden spark in conversation that Glimmer had created "I'm all for inner alliance unity" the blonde snorted and arched her perfect eyebrow at me making me shift where I sat.

Glimmer had been forced to play the part of a pretty face but now that I look at her observant face and sharp eyes I knew that she was so much more than that, she picked up on a lot more things than people gave her credit for. Maybe that was why she and Marvel were such a good couple, both of them were good at deception but Glimmer was just scary at how much she knew and wouldn't reveal and when those eyes were directed at you it was a little hard not to shiver. "What?" I mutter looking away as she grinned at my discomfort.

"Cato you are good at a lot of things" she said shaking her head and staring into the fire "But hiding the fact that being separated from Peeta for so long is going to kill you isn't one of them" she said lightly and I was about to protest when she silenced me by lying a hand on my knee and giving me an understanding look. "I'm not going to judge you" she whispered looking over at Marvel who hadn't stopped shifting since she had left his side. "Because if I was separated from Marvel I would probably feel the exact same way…and that Cato is why you're our leader not because you're so strong"

I could only stare at the beautiful tribute in front of me and suddenly I'm so glad that she was going to have the chance to head home and live out her dreams, I could tell just by looking at the beauty that she had not wanted to be a tribute at all so the fact she was going to be able to head home was just something that made me that much happier. "Glimmer how do you and Peeta do it?" I ask shaking my head in pure awe "You're so pure and kind inside and yet you're able to kill and maim like the best of us: how do you keep that light in you?" I ask glancing over to Peeta who shifted slightly in his sleep.

"I'm not sure about Peeta but it's the reasons we kill that keeps me the way I am" she said lightly "I will kill and sure I'll enjoy it but if I didn't do this for a reason: to protect Marvel I think I might lose that light and it's that light that keeps me going" she said before standing up and moving back over to Marvel who I could tell was moments away from waking. "Oh and Cato"

I give her a questioning look making her smile and turn her gaze to Peeta "Tell him how you feel…he might just very well feel the same way" she advised before curling back up with Marvel who instinctively wrapped his arm around her waist pulling her tight against him.

Smiling at the cute couple for a moment I think over Glimmer's final words and then look down at Peeta and trace a finger over his cheekbone causing him to sigh happily and suddenly I knew what I had to do: I would tell him exactly how I was feeling before he left in the morning and that way when he was gone with Clove he would be able to think about things easier. With that plan in mind I close my eyes and slip into a light sleep only thing was that by the time I woke up in the morning Clove, Peeta and all their knives were gone: the hunting had begun.

I can only hope it line up with the main story correctly.

Thoughts are always kind.

Next Chapter: Night Peeta and Cato kill district 8