Fall Away

Cashmere smiled down at me, a wicked glint to her eyes. "Well, let's get to sparring. Unless, of course, you're scared."

I pressed my lips into a line and gave a slight nod. "Shut up and start sparring," I grumbled.

She shrugged and nodded before suddenly throwing a punch. Her fist connected with my jaw, sending me flying back, though it took a few moments before I could feel the intense pain spreading through my cheek.

I shook my head to try and regain my focus, but before I could get myself back together, she lunged forward and grabbed my arm. She gave it a rough twist, spinning me around so my back was to her, and she continued to twist it, pulling it up at the same time. A crippling pain shot up my arm, through my shoulder and into my spine. My legs quivered as they tried to keep me upright, but she reached out one foot and swept it under my legs, knocking them out from underneath me. I collapsed to the ground, squeezing my eyes shut so nobody else could see the tears of pain that threatened to spill over.

She suddenly gave my arm another rough jerk, pulling me onto my back so I was laying down, staring up at her as she smirked victoriously at me. I could do nothing but watch as she raised her foot, lowering it over my throat and putting the slightest bit of pressure on it, as if showing that she could completely crush my windpipe right now if she wanted to. The arena grew quiet as a few people turned to watch us, and I could feel their mocking gaze on me, like they were laughing internally at how weak and defenseless I was.

I suddenly reached up and clamped my arms around Cashmere's leg, giving a great pull and knocking her down next to me. Before she had time to react, I rolled onto my side and lunged on her back, wrapping one arm around her neck and securing her in a headlock while my other hand found its way into her hair. I curled my hand into a fist, knotting my fingers through her long locks, and pulled slightly, forcing her head back so I could improve the angle of the headlock.

She let out a quick shriek of effort and frustration as she jerked to the side and flipped over, crushing me between her back and the ground. She reached over and grabbed my right leg, twisting my foot as hard as she could, and I could feel the tendons and bones in my foot scream in protest. If she broke or sprained my ankle now, there was no way it would heal completely before I went in the arena. I had to do something, but what?

Apparently, my body knew what to do without my brain's help. As if of its own accord, my foot jerked up and out of her grip, my boot planting into her nose. I heard the sickening crack as it made contact, and she let out a sharp gasp before she could stop herself. My eyes flickered up to the trainer, but he was simply watching us with a blank expression on his face. It dawned on me that this was exactly what the Capitol wanted; early grudges and fighting in the training arena. These people had become friends over the years of mentoring together, and it would take a lot of interfering to break up those friendships.

Cashmere took advantage of my lack of attention and slammed her head back into my chest, knocking the wind out of me as my chest was crushed between her head and the concrete floor beneath me. She sprung forth out of the headlock and whirled around, cupping her hand over my throat. Blood dripped from her nose onto me, and the mischievous look in her eyes was gone. She wasn't playing around now; she was dead serious. If the look on her face wasn't enough, the grip she had on my throat confirmed my suspicions. She wasn't just putting light pressure on my windpipe like she had before; she was honestly suffocating me, her grip growing tighter and tighter.

I had one last option. I pulled my knees into my chest before launching my feet deep into her stomach, and she looked as though she were about to retch. Her grip released on my throat, but she continued to hover over me. She lowered herself further and whispered in my ear, in a pained voice, "You're making it so tempting to kill you right here."

Her words sent panic through me. Her shirt had slipped off one of her shoulders during the fight, leaving a small patch of exposed skin where her neck met her shoulder, and I was suddenly hit with inspiration for my next -- and possibly last -- move. I jerked my head up and sank my teeth deep into the pale skin of her shoulder as hard as I could. I grimaced as I felt her flesh give way under my teeth, but it seemed to work. She let out a pained scream and pushed me off of her before she turned and rolled a few feet away from me.

"Winnie!" Adri called, running to my side. Oh, of course. You arrive right after the fight is over -- great timing, I thought sarcastically, but I was still too overwhelmed to speak.

"Look at what she did to me!" Cashmere howled, wiping the still-flowing stream of blood from under her nose before pointing to the bite mark on her neck. I was surprised at how much damage the bite had done. A perfect ring of tooth-shaped wounds were marked into her skin, blood oozing from each puncture wound.

"Let's get you to the medic." The trainer said, finally stepping in. He offered a hand to help Cashmere up, but she ignored it and scrambled to her feet before following the trainer out of the arena, casting one final dark glare at me before she left.