This is friendship-y relationship-y kind of one-shot. I do ship Finnick and Katniss together and there is some romance in here, but serves a different purpose.
Katniss's POVI'm back to that horrible moment where Rue, my little, innocent, bright, Rue died. Except this time, Prim fighting in the Games. Once Rue is speared, I switch places with Prim to take revenge on Rue's killer. I begin plaiting Rue's hair with flowers and sing her asleep. I give her a light kiss just in time for to her to fall asleep in death.
Then I'm at the lake with mom, dad, Prim, and Buttercup that, for once, doesn't look hideously ugly. Dad and I harmonize intricate whistles and songs to the birds. Then Gale and Peeta arrive, laughing and joking like they're best friends. We laugh, joke, and have a great time.
With another switch of scenery, we're back in the middle of town. That's when the bombs rain from the sky. Blood shattered about carelessly. Dead bodies left where their lives were taken from them. President Snow is here and slits my father's throat as impossibly slow as I watch, powerless. Snow moves on to Peeta and places him in an electrifying chair that'll take at least an hour to scramble his brain and kill him. His next victim is my mother. He sets her on fire and listens in delight as she screams and burns to her death. Then little Prim, who has to grow up all too quickly, is slowly eaten by the mutt versions of Cato, Glimmer, Clove, and Rue. When the now ugly again Buttercup tries to help her, the Glimmer mutt bites his head clear off and spits it in the agony filled Prim's face. She screams even louder in horror.
My mother and Prim start screaming at me to help them, but I'm too far away. For every step forward I take, they go back another twenty. I keep running to them as they yell for me to give up and how they hate me for brining all of this to the world. Their last words are 'burn with us, Katniss,' and it all ends.
I jolt up from my subconscious hell in a cold sweat. I know for a fact that I won't get over my District's destruction or the possibility something will take my remaining family. That doesn't mean I can't fight the images or the reality. I can't break down, not now, not until this is all over.
"Can't sleep either," I hear a all too familiar smooth voice of District Four's sex god dull.
"No," I reply.
Finnick sits next to me on my hospital bed. There's close to no wires attached to me, so he's free to make himself comfy.
"You had a nightmare again didn't you," he asks. I nod dully. "Was it about the Games or your district?" Another robotic nod is delivered.
"You look just like Annie when she used to have nightmares of the Games," Finnick plays with the wisps of my hair lightly. "You're stronger than her though, you refuse to let people see you cry; you find it unbearably weak, don't you?"
I silently nod once again, "tears extinguish fires. I'm supposed to be catching the fire of the rebellion, not nullifying it."
"Do you honestly think crying makes you weak?" I chose not to answer. The vibrations from Finnick's chuckle travel through my body, "If breaking down sometimes makes you weak, I must be as useful as a injured deer."
"You're stronger than you give yourself credit for. You've been dealing with all of this longer than I have and you're still expected to do everything on a whim."
He pulls me into a tight hug, "thank you, I needed that. It sounds a lot better coming from you."
"Why is that," I say while lightly returning the hug.
"You remind me of Annie at your age, but you're stronger. You had more to lose," he says softly. "Can I ask you a favor just this once?"
"Always," I reply promptly. After all he's done for me; I'd be a horrible excuse of a person not to give him something to him. He deserves whatever he wants; he's had so much yanked away from him: from his childhood, his lover, and on a few occasions almost his life.
"Can I all you Annie, just this once?" He sounds so broken. He's too broken and emotionally aged for being seven years older than me. This is what the Games do to even the brightest of people.
His tone wavers a bit, "just for the next hour or two, please? I…" he lets out a jagged sigh, "I just want to have one night where I can pretend with someone else that life's ok. That we've both won our games and we've been left alone. That…I get to hold her for one night without being ripped away and sold for the next weeks."
Annie, his Annie, his beloved Annie. He compares me to the one person in the world he loves more than life itself. "Of course," I sniffle lightly. "Thank you, Finnick."
"Why are you thanking me?" he asks while pulling back a bit to see my face.
"You're letting me be your Annie for the next few hours," I grin sadly. "I've been complemented by people here on different levels, whether in vanity or for skill, but I've never gotten such a honorary gift. Being your Annie for a while in time is the best and hardest role I've been given my whole time here. I'll try my best for you."
"I love you Annie," Finnick says after moments of silence.
"I love you too, Finnick," I say while snuggling into him a bit. Would Annie do this or would she shy away?
"I wish we could've just left to a deserted island where no one could find us."
"Me too," I reply, my mind playing over Gale and I discussing the same thing. Except they're different, they know who they'll get to end up with if we all survive, "We'd get caught in the end wouldn't we? The aftermath would be ok, if we're together."
"I'll only leave if it's what's best for you," he says while giving me a tight squeeze.
"What's best for me isn't always what I want," I admit, a bit more for myself than for him. "Can't we all just have a desire fulfilled for once? What do you want, Finnick, one thing you want that you can't have right now?"
"A kiss from my Annie," he says while loosening most of his grip on me. There's a stretch of silence. "I'm sorry to mention it Ka-"
"My name is Annie," I interrupt him. "I don't see the problem if I am yours and you are mine. That's one normal thing we can share that isn't controlled, a simple movement with a deeper meaning."
He smiles at me and leans in. The kiss is good, but I'm not the one he's giving it to. It's just a release of emotion for a few seconds. Well, it's one more thing; it's tying us both together for a moment. We're both being kept away from someone we care about and can't reach. I kiss him back lightly as if he were Peeta. I'm not sure what I'll do if he comes back, but I do know that I want-no need- a perfect moment like this one with him. With Finnick, I still feel something, devoting love to the one he's loved. With Peeta…I'm not sure what it'll be. I don't feel right kissing him because of Gale some days, but other days it just feels like it's supposed to be this way.
Finnick pulls up when I'm just about out of breath, "I love you Annie."
"I love you too Fin-"
"That's not my name," he interrupts.
A grin sneaks its way on my face. He knows what I'm dealing with, he's better at this type of thing. I guess after a while of longing for your loved one, you learn how to detect the look within other people.
"I love you Peeta."
"I love you too, Annie," Finnick says with a chuckle. "Just don't let Finnick and Katniss know, they're rather dangerous when pissed off. Especially Katniss, she'll use anything as a weapon."
"I believe Finnick is the dangerous one," I play along. "If he can pick it up, he will use it to spear you."
For the first time, I share a genuine chuckle. There's tears in my eyes, but I'm not sure if that's from my laughter or everything on my mind right now. I guess it's a mixture.
"I should probably get going," Finnick says while starting to get up. "You need your rest."
"Stay," I say while gripping his wrist. "Or at least until I fall asleep. Peeta used to and I'd sleep bet-"
"There's no need for an explanation," Finnick says while scooting under my covers. "I'd be honored to be your Peeta for a while."
"For now, you're my Peeta and I'm your Annie," I say quietly.
He wraps his arms around me and I feel mentally stable for the first time since Peeta was captured. For this moment in time, we're exactly what we both needed. People have tried to comfort me, but they've never tried to be what I need. I'm glad Finnick came to check on me, I finally get a dreamless, peaceful slumber tonight.
So how did you like it? I hope it was good enough!
Review if ya feel like it!
K-Chan.