{Missed the Boat}{Day 4/Island 12 Fight}

Semper gave a small, heinous smirk as his blade made contact with Sami's skin. The sight of blood was a welcoming sight, even though he didn't particularly take a liking to hurting others. It was for Ree's sake that he was doing this: throwing himself into harm's way, trying to take on all three of the attackers at once to keep her safe. His plan had worked, too, for the most part -- right up until time began to slow down. The boy wasn't quite sure what was happening, though as he began to turn his head, a projectile was flying by in a blur. He couldn't tell what it was, though as soon as he realized the collision course it was on, his eyes widened.

"Ree!"

Putting the knife with the bundle of arrows in his wounded hand, he reached out to her, trying to get to where he could pull her out of the projectile's path -- to safety -- but it was too late. As soon as it struck her in the eye, an overwhelming sense of dread swept over him.

"Damn you perfect little angel. Go to hell."

She had fallen to her knees. All the pain Semper had -- all the anger, the hurricane, the dehydration, the frustration -- it all vanished. His entire world was now focused on Ree, who was slipping from life's grasp. The boy dropped to his hands and knees beside her, ignoring the fact that at any given moment one of the other three Tributes could slaughter him on the spot -- so be it. If he were to die there next to Ree, he wouldn't mind at all. She had been there by his side ever since the bloodbath, and she had been the only one of his allies to survive. Semper had vowed to keep her alive so she could return to District 7 -- but he had failed. Here she was, holding onto him, dying, and there was absolutely nothing he could do but fight back the tears that were already welling up in his eyes.

Ree had torn open her shirt and used the tip of her knife to carve a heart into her skin. Semper wanted to stop her, to tell her that she didn't need to be doing that. She'll be okay, he continuously tried telling himself, though as the tears slid down his face, leaving trails of blood from his cheek wound, he knew he was lying to himself. Ree was dying, and she knew it, too.

"Yours,"

The boy's heart felt as if it were burning, and it was then that he realized something: he loved her. They had been through much more than any other couple back in their home Districts, and through thick and thin, they had stayed by each other's side, determined to keep the other alive. It was that gesture, he figured, was what love was: placing yourself in harm's way so that the other may live.

He reached out to her with a shaky, bloody hand, lightly stroking Ree's hair.

"Damn you, I love you, damn you, I love you, damn you, I love you,"

Semper leaned forward, placing his forehead against the temple of her head, shutting his eyes tightly. His body was trembling; not just from blood loss, but from emotional instability.

"I love y' too, Ree. Oh, damn it, I love y'...."

No one, other than his family, had ever told him they loved him, especially not in a situation like this. Grinding his teeth together, Semper tried to fight back the stinging threat of tears again, running his soot-covered hand through her hair, hitting something. The boy raised his head and opened his eyes, noticing the pin in her hair; her District token. With shaky fingers he lightly took it out of her hair, running his thumb over it and narrowing his glistening eyes. He would fight for her, too, along with Papero. Their tokens gave him a sense of renewed strength, one that he hoped would carry him for at least a few days -- or until his death. He was about to stand up when the sudden, morbid sound of the cannon echoed above the howls of the wind. The sound struck him in the heart, causing his fingers to tightly close around the pin. Ree was dead; never to see the sun's light, or feel the gentle raindrops of rain, nor see her family again. It was tearing him apart on the inside.

Placing a soft kiss on Ree's temple, Semper proceeded to stand up, though as soon as he did a sharp pain erupted in his stomach. The boy yelped, his hand holding all the arrows and knife absentmindedly reaching up, grasping the shaft of another arrow sticking out of his flesh. Grinding his teeth, he didn't care anymore. Ree was gone -- he had no one else left. Holding the shaft tightly, he tore it out of his abdomen, staggering backwards. He had to get away from the other three one way or another. If he stayed, he most certainly would die, also. Holding Ree's pin securely, he gave one last agonized glare at the three attackers before turning around, heading into the black jungle, leaving Ree's body to the mercy of the three.





Semper has left the fight.