15

Now more than ever, Johanna wants to sexually subdue Peeta, and torment him in ways that'd make Katniss envious. But she hasn't yet chopped enough wood, so she returns to that for a bit.

In the cabin, Peeta waits for her in the shower stall. At his size, it looks like a big stall.

Johanna left the stall door open a crack. Peeta can't imagine why. He'd think that if Johanna really wanted to torment him, it'd be closed to where he couldn't escape. Johanna must be more human than he thought.

Peeta doesn't know whether to anticipate or dread sex with Johanna. He's been told that chicks like Johanna like their fun rough and their sex rougher. But he's sure it'll beat no sex with Katniss. And it can't be half as intense as sex with Katlanna.

Not that Peeta's complaining about Katlanna's sex; he's never overslept that much as a result of sex with Katniss. But Katlanna isn't Katniss, and Peeta must remember that as he looks for a way to get Katniss and Katlanna to settle for the old Katniss, and stay that way.

But is that really what he wants? Before this all started, it sure seemed like he was the only person in District 12 who preferred Katniss over Katlanna. And the more Peeta ruminates about it, the more foolish it seems. Katniss has been a cold-shouldered bitch lately.

The hours creep by. Still, Johanna chops wood outside. Peeta can hear the wood splitting from where he is. Johanna must REALLY miss her ordinary life in District 7...

Most people just masturbate when they miss sex. Alas, Peeta's been told that masturbation is different with women than it is men...

Far away, a spider crawls out of the bath faucet. It crawls on top of it, and rests.

Initially, Peeta and the new threat don't notice one another. But spiders are perceptive, and it's only a matter of time...

The spider notices Peeta. Peeta doesn't notice her. The spider aims, coils, and leaps across the shower stall.

Peeta hears it, when the spider's legs land on the ceramics next to him. He turns. He shouts. He runs. The spider chases him. To the cabin all around them, they're like two bugs running across the floor.

Peeta isn't a bug. But he smells like one, and that's probably all the spider cares about.

Peeta runs towards a window. It's shades are up. Peeta has a hunch that most spiders are nocturnal. He runs into the sun beam, and looks for a place to hide.

The spider runs into the beam. True to Peeta's expectations, the spider slows, and tries to shield her eyes from the blinding light. No doubt about it, she's got the eyesight of Dr. Mid-Nite. And only at night is that a compliment.

Johanna has left a pair of her pink panties on the floor. To Peeta, they're like a deflated hot air balloon. He hides in them, and pretends to be a wrinkle. At his size, he shouldn't have to try to hard to pass himself off as one.

Moments pass. Peeta waits in suspense, and listens to the spider. She stumbles about, blinded by the light. Peeta dreads she won't be able to find her way out of the cabin.

After that, Peeta will just have to worry about what'll happen if he's in this kind of spot when and if another spider gets in. He'd hate for Johanna to have to get rid of all of her spiders for him...alas, he thinks he'd understand if she chose not to.

Gosh, he's been small for so long that it's affecting his self-esteem. He'd hate to think that Johanna would want to have sex with such a man.

Peeta listens. The spider still stumbles around. She's far away. Peeta's too afraid to abandon his cover if she's still around.

He falls asleep. Or maybe he doesn't; it's hard to keep up with these things sometimes.

He wakes. He listens. He doesn't hear anything. He throws off his cover, and starts to get up...

The spider's back. She's over him, and staring right down at him with all of its scary eyes.

Peeta freezes. He supposes it's too late to trick her into thinking he's part of Johanna's panties. He smells like them, after all. Alas, flies are attracted to feces, which is what some parts of panties smell like, and a spider's favorite food is a fly.

Still, Peeta feels offended that the spider would think he likes to eat poop. It's as if she doesn't know him at all.

The spider bares her fangs. They writhe. Their venom is passed between them. Peeta stares helplessly, as these fangs will soon claim him.

A huge drop of venom falls from her fangs, like a beach ball full of fluid. Peeta crawls back, and out of the way, as the venom burns a hole in Johanna's panties when it splashes down.

Peeta's pulse couldn't be higher. The spider leans in, and robs Peeta of his space and wiggle-room. This is getting intimate. It's hard for Peeta to believe it'll all be over in an instant.

Peeta thinks of Katniss. And Johanna. And Effie. He'll never see either of them again.

And he thinks of Katlanna. He wonders if he could've given her a chance.

The spider caresses Peeta with her fangs. He knows they're loaded with venom. Peeta dreads his end. He whimpers. He perspires. He's somewhat turned on by the process...but if only he could enjoy himself while it lasted.

For some reason, the spider backs off. She elevates herself over Peeta with her legs. Peeta blinks, and watches. He doesn't get it.

Across the room, a fly flies low and loud. To Peeta, it's like a biplane. The spider turns when she hears this. She runs after its flight path, leaving Peeta in relative peace.

Peeta breathes, and regains the balance of the airspace in his chest. He really thought it was over for him.

He wonders why the spider let him be. He wonders if she could tell he was missing Katniss.

But that's just ridiculous, of course. Spiders are just as empathetic as Johanna, right?