Cavatina
The wind whistles through the forest, swirling through the air until a gentle breeze plays with a young girl's blonde braids.
"She'll be all right. She will be." Prim stops stroking the long, soft fur and instead presses her face against that of the goat. "She has to be." Primrose knows she should be grateful for what Katniss has done for her, glad that she sits in the grassy area behind their house rather than in a tree in the Arena. Or, more likely, on her way back to Twelve in a coffin, her final diminuendo having arrived far too soon. But she can't be, for now Katniss faces the dangers that should have been hers.
Buttercup meows from behind her, climbing up onto her lap. Prim smiles down at the cat. "There are only four left, you know," she says. "Soon, she'll be out of the Arena and on the train back to Twelve. Just you wait. It'll happen."
Perhaps the cat can flip ahead a few pages in the libretto, for his answering purr sounds like agreement.
.oOo.
Cabaletta
The murmuring in the square grows around her, a horrible crescendo that tells her the end is near. Primrose doesn't dare to breathe watches her sister as the Two tribute falls, and her heart sings. The world erupts in song and dance and cheers. Strong, browned hands lift her far above the ground, spinning her in the air. "Gale! She did it! She won!"
But then, the district falls quiet again. Gale lowers her slowly back to the ground, and Prim swallows before looking up at the screen to see her sister holding a handful of berries. Her breath catches as Caesar's voice comes from backstage, announcing that there will be two victors. Again, the crowd celebrates. White liquor flows freely, and under its influence, the singing loses its clarity, if not its emotion.
Her mother clutches her in a warm, strong embrace as the song jumbles around them. Eileen Everdeen holds out a hand to lead her younger daughter home, but Prim cannot resist wishing one final bravo to her sister before she leaves the merriment of the square.
She cannot suspect that the Capitol is already planning Katniss's encore performance.
.oOo.
A/N: For Zero [jackassinthebox] using the C/P prompt mellifluous.