Fissures
Wise words propose that every story is a love story. Whether or not that's true, they manage to tangle in and fill each others' broken parts.
Chapter One; Trite
Katniss' shoulders were aching. Muscles that had gone soft over a year of restricted use protested this new change in routine. Sweat pooled at the small of her back and more than one bruise had blossomed across her arms and ribs. Her heart was still pounding and her breath was better used in breathing than talking.
She almost smiled.
But her expression remained drawn; lips pulled tight at the corners, eyes dark and shaded and back set in a stiff posture. There was no room in her life- no room in her body or mind- for a moment of jocularity. Every move she made was made with a purpose that defined her life. Every step spoke rigidly and without hesitation; I am Katniss Everdeen. I am the winner of the Seventy Fourth Annual Hunger Games. I am going to win again.
Only when she glimpsed the back of a familiar blonde head did she slow. Destination, motivation, and purpose did not sway, but the frostiness of her countenance softened a hair. She released a breath and let her shoulders drop as she pivoted on her heel and made a bee-line for her co-champion.
Hers. If only Snow could feel the fire of possessiveness that burned in her belly when her gaze fell on Peeta Mellark, perhaps he might reconsider his terms and conditions he'd printed on love's tin. It was certainly the strongest thing that Katniss understood outside of Prim and Gale, and she had assumed that would be enough.
Not for him, though.
Then again, maybe nothing was enough for President Snow.
She extended a hand as she drew closer, ready to catch Peeta's attention and pull him aside. But a shadow blotted her vision and caused her to stumble to a stop. Instincts kicked in instantly and she was reaching for a bow that she did not have when a rumble of laughter alerted to just whose presence she was in.
"- Odair," she threw out curtly by way of greeting. Said boy stepped in front of her, and over his shoulder Katniss saw Peeta turn to look at the them. His expression was inscrutable, and she dropped her gaze to the floor.
"Everdeen." Where her tone rang with accusation, his was alight and alive with laughter. When she looked back up at him, it seemed like every inch of his face was delighted. She arched an unimpressed eyebrow.
He was going to make her talk first- for whatever unfathomable reason he'd conjured. "Yes?" She refused to give the insufferable champion an inch, but if her waspish response had any effect on him he didn't show it. Instead, he simply rested one hand on his hip and gave her a look that Katniss assumed had wooed many a lucky lady in the Capitol.
She crossed her arms and took a half-step back, light enough to make no sound on the hard floor.
"If you haven't noticed, we don't have the luxury of time."
He laughed again, this time open and loud enough to make her flinch. Dropping his arm, he affected a gentler pose. "Duly noted, Miss Everdeen." His smile was no less radiant, but it too had fallen into something a little less- pompous.
"Can you get on with it?" Katniss snapped, biting her bottom lip to prevent herself from any more outbursts. Finnick merely seemed amused.
"For the lady? Of course." He winked. Katniss ignored him. Not missing a beat, he swept his hand out towards her. "Would you do me the pleasure of attending our last supper with me?"
That was fairly unexpected. Fairly because even their first brief meeting had given Katniss the overwhelming impression that Finnick Odair was not one to avoid Grand Gestures accompanied with as much frivolous fanfare as possible. So she was only caught off guard for a moment- not something she was happy with but even she had to admit it could be worse.
"I have plans," she ground out, stepping neatly around him and stalking to where Peeta was standing. Possibly waiting for her, or simply caught up in the ridiculousness that was Odair. She knocked her elbow against his and walked away, clearly a sign for him to follow. His overly-loud, careless footsteps behind her indicated that he understood.
He's going to need a refresher course.
Katniss refused to turn back and glance at the man she'd left in her wake. Chances were he was still grinning like an idiot, but she wanted to picture a dumbstruck expression on his face. Perhaps crestfallen, though that was hard to conjure even in her own imagination.
Her stomach twisted uncomfortably.