Nothing Is Holding Me Back [Finished]

[Stare]

The coldness feels like needles on my hands. I rub them together, trying to warm them.
I've been walking for at least an hour. I should stop.
I look behind me.
Footprints.
I sigh, grab a fallen pine branch, and begin to cover them up, walking backwards. After about fifteen minutes of spiraling and brushing, until I figure I've done pretty good.
I turn around and see an extremely tall pine.
I sigh, and walk under it's long branches, to the trunk.
Here, it's like a small house.
I begin to climb the branches. Pines are the easiest to climb, since their branches are plentiful and close together, stacked on top of each other, unlike normal trees.
After I'm a good halfways up, I sit on a branch. That's another good think about pine branches. They're nice and sturdy.
I take of my backpack and begin to carefully look through it.
Another jacket. I know it will come in handy, considering the weather.
Antipyretics. They're good to have, anyways.
Cheese and a Tomato. Food. I need food. I need it badly.
The last thing my hand finds is a dagger.
I stare at the shining blade for a long time. Then, I slowly begin to smile. I can use this for hunting! This dagger is my key to survival!
I almost laugh.
I'll stay here for the night, I think. I put my backpack with everything but the extra jacket up on a higher branch.
Then, I spread the jacket over my lap with my frozen fingers under it, and begin to think.
Who's dead?
My first though is the blind boy. He's most likely dead, since he only got a three.
Next, my district partner. What was his name? Dalton. Is he alive? He got a seven. He has a chance...
How many lives have been lost?
I lean back and close my eyes.
Then, I begin to speak.
"I'll reveal my first secret now," I say. "I'd like to get it off my chest."
I take a deep breath. The cameras could be elsewhere, or zooming in on me.
"I was known across District 9 for killing a bear at the age of thirteen," I begin, somewhat shakily. "I was treated like a hero. Like I was an amazing star. But that wasn't how I felt. Because no one know the real story. Until now."
I squeeze my eyes shut, certain that I'm on camera.
"The bear smelled my game. It came into the clearing, and saw that I was holding it. The bear looked starving, but it was against the law to feed a bear, so I held on tight. The bear began to charge. Terrified, I tried to run, but it kept after me. Finally, I turned around and help my knife out. The bear ran right into it. And it died."
I shake my head.
"After about three days of my fame, I went back to the forest. And I found..." I take in a sharp breath, "two dead bear cubs. They had starved, because there mother didn't come back. She didn't come back, and it was all my fault."
A tear slides down my cheek. I open my eyes.
"I know that's not the greatest secret, but I'm saving the best for later, telling out all my smaller ones. Who knows. Maybe I'll tell myself a bed time story tonight..."
And I let that hang there.
My first secret has been revealed.

[Stare]

As the day drags on, I get bored of just sitting in a tree. I need to do something. Something that will help me survive.
I climb down the pine tree, shivering.
I need to hunt, I think. I need to find water.
Water? Yeah, right. I look down at all the snow. I've got all the water I'd ever need!
But I need somewhere to keep it...
An animal hide might work. Which leads me back to hunting.
But right fresh after the Cornicopia... not the best idea.
I sit down near the trunk and try to think. What could I do for the next hour or so?
Become prepared. Organize your bag. Camoflauge. Do what you can.
But first priorities.
I pull of my jacket and begin to rip stips of fabric from my sleeves. Long and short.
Then, I take snow and begin to clean them through. I roll them up, making bandages. Perfect.
Next, I begin to dig through the snow. My figers are numb, but I continue to dig until I find what I need. Mud.
Brown against white isn't exactly what I'd call camoflauge, but I leave it there, in case I need to camoflauge against the tree.
It' been about half an hour, and still no one has passed. No one.
I can nsee the tracks of an animal in the snow. I know this is a huge chance. If I can see them, that means they're fresh.
I climb up the tree, grab my dagger, and follow.
Finally, I come across a rabit. I'm perfectly still, trying not to alert it.
I pull out my dagger, focus on the target and throw.
The dagger lands on its mark.
I walk over to the rabbit and pull out the dagger, cleaning it in the snow. I kick fresh snow over the red, not wanted anyone to know I was here.
I pick up the dead rabbit and follow my tracks back to the pine, brushing my tracks away behind me.
When I reach the tree, I skin the rabit, carefully setting it aside.
Next, I cut off some of the fat and set it next to the skin.
I wash the carcass in the snow and then leave it up in the tree, where no animal can reach it and it can dry a little before I put it in my backpack.
I grab the rabbit skin and fat and climb up into the tree.
I carefully wash the rabbit's fur with snow until it's at least free of the blood. Then, I rub the fat over the back of the skin over and over again. Occasionally, I melt some snow and put it on to test.
Finally, when the water doesn't sink through, I fill it with snow. I fold the skin upward, and tie one of the bandages around it. I have a decent water bag.
I smile. This little trick will help me a lot. If I ever find myself at a great source of water, I can fill this up. I have a great advantage.
And I sit back against the trunk, proud. And as I sit there, I let my imagination take me back home, under millions of shining stars...

[Stare]

Night has come. I look up at the sky to find eight are dead. The blind boy is not, to my surprise. But Dalton is.
When I see his picture flash up, I feel something in my gut. It's not like we were friends... in fact, we ignored each other. But he was from District Nine, and I can't exactly say that his death means nothing to me.
Eight dead. Sixteen left.
It's freezing now, and I allow myslef to sleep close to the truck of the tree, well hidden. I put on my extra jacket, and fall into a quiet and uneasy sleep.
END OF DAY 1