They Fight Back
A/N: I have no clue what this is. So, take that as a warning. I don't even know where this came from. If you leave any comment on this work (I don't mind if you don't even read past this A/N, seriously), please don't mention plot holes. I know this piece is probably filled with them. This is set in an alternate universe before The Games in book one. A take of what could have happened if they all had a grain of salt in their heads and decided to work together against The Capitol - if the rebellion started early, so to speak.
Anyway, this is probably shit.
"We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided." - J.K. Rowling, 'Harry Potter'
Katniss Everdeen doesn't sleep.
She doesn't sleep because these days sleeping just takes so much effort. Effort she doesn't really have the strength for. She should rest, she knows. The Games are coming up and she volunteered (because Prim - oh, dear, sweet, Prim - is just a child, a small, weak child with a big heart that just doesn't make you a killer but rather makes you dea-) and she also knows that, in probably less than two weeks from now, she'll be dead.
Katniss wonders what it'd feel like.
She walks out of her room slowly, her feet barely making any sound as she goes out into the hallway. Katniss goes into the elevator, and her eyes settle on the buttons.
Where to now, Girl on Fire?
She sighs, closing her eyes, and lets her finger push one.
She ends up in Seven.
The elevator doors open with a ding and she inhales a sharp breath, as if she's been sleeping and just woke up. She has no idea what she's doing here - no fucking clue, to be frank - but she likes to think that she has a plan. Katniss likes to think that she has this grand plan all detailed out and that she just has to take the first step and that, in the end, she just might win. For Prim.
But, honestly, she's just fooling herself.
"What are you doing here?", she hears a voice coming up the hall and she stiffens, her instinct telling her to run. She ignores it.
"Couldn't sleep.", Katniss replies, surprised at how strong her voice sounded.
The female tribute from Seven nods her head, "I kind of figured.", she says and Katniss realises her voice doesn't have that sleepy tone in it, "But what are you doing here?"
Her first instinct is to lie. She doesn't, "Honestly?", Katniss says, her brows furrowing, and it seems like a question. She doesn't wait for the girl to reply before continuing, "I have no idea."
The girl nods and turns around and Katniss gets this strong urge to follow. She walks behind her, running a hand through her hair and giving her eyes an unnecessary rub, only to stop when the girl opens the door to her room.
"I'm Sarah.", the tribute says and Katniss nods, forgetting for a moment that the girl's back is turned on her, "That's Marco.", she gestures to the guy lying on her bed. Marco gives them a nod, not even interested about why Katniss is there, and goes back to watching the TV.
Sarah turns to her, "We couldn't sleep, either."
Katniss gives her a smile.
Third night in, she finds Peeta talking to the guy from Four.
It's around midnight, and she is standing in the elevator, her fingers hovering over the buttons as she debated where to go. The night before, she found herself in Five. The tributes weren't as welcoming as Sarah and Marco - Andreas didn't really mind chatting with her over a game of chess, the girl prefered silence - but they were company and they also couldn't sleep, so she thought why not make something good out of it. Well, not necessarily good good, but good enough to get through a sleepless night.
Peeta and the guy from Four turn to face her and she gets out of the lift.
"Can't sleep?", Peeta asks, but she thinks of it more as a statement. A fact.
She shrugs, "I kind of made a habit out of it.", she responds and the boys' questioning looks make her explain her answer, "Spent one night in Seven, the other at Five. Good company, although Foxface could talk a bit more."
The guy from Four chuckles, "Foxface?"
Katniss shrugs again, "Wouldn't give a name. And 'the silent girl form Five' sounds a bit rude."
Peeta laughs, "So you've been camping out, too?", he asks, already knowing the answer, "Welcome to the club. This is Kevin, he's from-"
"District Four.", Katniss finishes, "I kind of figured that, thanks."
Kevin laughs, "Where you off to tonight?"
"I was thinking Two.", she responds, "Want to join?"
They walk back into the lift, and Kevin presses number two.
Cato's not really thrilled.
"What the fuck?", he exclaims, a look of confusion falling down on his face.
Katniss walks past him, grabbing the remote and flipping through channels. Peeta goes to find the fridge and Kevin opens the door to his partner from Four.
"Nice place you got here.", she says, even though she knows the rooms are all the same.
Clove glares, "Thanks, we know.", she exclaims, "But what're you doing here?"
Katniss lies down on the bed, her eyes not leaving the television screen, "Never get tired of hearing that.", she says rather sarcastically and Peeta laughs, "Couldn't sleep, and we thought you could use some company."
Peeta brings the food as the tributes from Four join Katniss on the king-sized bed. He chuckles, noticing the annoyed look on Cato's face, "No killing allowed outside the arena."
Cato sends him a glare, but Clove just shrugs and lies down on the bed.
"Not like I was planning on sleeping tonight, anyway."
A laugh escapes Katniss' lips.
Tresh and Foxface sit together.
Neither of them talk much, Katniss notices, only saying a few words here and there when needed, but she doesn't have a doubt in her mind that they understand each other perfectly. Their silence isn't deafening, or awkward, it's almost comforting and she could use the comfort.
It's the ninth night of her small 'journey' across the halls and she'll admit she's surprised that they're all sitting together, eating food they stole from the kitchens or saved from dinner and watching stupid programs in Twelve, as they make small talk and throw in sarcastic comments.
Twenty-four people, all pretty much sentanced to death, talking together like they're some kind of old friends. Katniss wonders what Gale would think of that.
"This is stupid.", Cato exclaims all of a sudden and Katniss looks at him, keeping a neutral expression.
"What is?", she inquires.
Cato gets up and walks around the room, "All of this. We're gonna kill each other!", he says and before anyone could reply, he continues, "Don't deny it. In just a few days we'll be thrown into that arena and we'll have to kill each other until only one of us stays alive."
Katniss sits up on her bed, "You think we don't know that?", she yells out, the neutral expression changing into one of anger and irritation, "Why do you think we can't sleep? Why do you think you can't sleep? You might be a career but the death still haunts you like it haunts the rest of us. It comes to you at night, in your dreams, as you try to sleep. It shows you all the way you could die and you just-", she stops, taking in a breath and shaking her head. She continues, hoping her voice won't break, "And you just know one of them will come to life."
The silence is deafening.
"She's right.", Foxface exclaims and if Katniss wasn't as focused on her breathing and the tears that threaten to come to her eyes, she knows she'd be surprised. Foxface looks at Cato, "Would it be a bad thing to pretend just for a little while?"
Cato shakes his head. He opens his mouth to speak but before a word comes out, Peeta speaks up.
"If only we had a way.", he says and they all turn their heads to face him, "Something - anything - to show them that we're not just a piece in their Games."
"How?", Tresh asks he walks over to Rue and presses a kiss to her temple. He's very fond of the little girl, Katniss discovered as she spent an evening in Eleven and watched as they sang together. She knows he's willing to do anything to keep the little girl alive.
She reminded her of Prim.
"We won't kill."
Clove speaks up, "How do you mean that 'we won't kill'? The Gamemakers are expecting a slaughter on the first day!"
"We won't give them one.", Katniss answers, her eyes searching across the room for some kind of reassurance. Some kind of sign that at least some of them want to hear what she has to say, "What're you best at? What's your strength? There's gonna be a weapon for all of us, so we take it. And we don't slaughter each other to get it. We take it and we find a lake, water and shelter and we don't kill."
"And then what?", a girl from Six calls out, "We wait for them to kill us?"
Katniss turns to her and nods, "Yes.", she says and for a moment the girl looks at her like she's crazy, "Because if they kill us, The Games don't serve a purpose. Do you ever wonder why they don't just gather twenty-four kids and shoot them dead? They put up The Games so everyone gets hope. A little bit of hope to all the districts because what if their tributes win? They win and the whole district has a better year. Hope.", she pauses, blinking out the tears from her eyes as she tries to ignore the pang in her chest, "And then they take it away."
Marcus is the first to speak, "What do we have to do?"
Katniss smiles.
(Clove shows Rue the magic of knives. Katniss tries to teach Glimmer how to use a bow correctly. Tresh fights with Peeta and Kevin and Cato's showing Foxface the basics of throwing speers. In return, she and Rue teach them how to be unseen. How to hide and jump trees and tell them all the best hiding places. They all teach each other things, and they do it as subtle as possible.
Someone's always watching.)
She doesn't think it'll last. Twenty-four people who were brought to be enemies working together seems far-fetched and there's something in the back of her mind telling her that 'it'll never work' and that 'someone's gonna kill as soon as you get to the arena', but she decides to ignore it. Because, it was her idea after all and if someone has to be optimistic, it's her.
They stand, not moving an inch. Their breathing is shallow, like they believe The Gamemakers will forget they're there. Clove tightens the hold on her knives and Katniss thinks about the fastest way she could get to one of her arrows placed behind her back. From the corner of her eye, Katniss sees something move. One glance across the crowd of twenty-four people shows her it wasn't one of them.
"They're gonna send something our way.", she whispers to Rue who is closest to her. The small girl whistles once.
Ready.
Cato nods, tighting the hold on his weapon. Something moved again, he can hear it. His eyes lock on Rue's and the girl whistles once again.
On arms.
The noise is closer and Katniss counts to three in her head. Her breathing is slow and her ears recognise even the smallest of sounds. The years of hunting came in handy as she can almost feel their prey - or, depending on the point of view, the beast they're the prey of - coming in behind them.
She nods.
Peeta yells.
(Rue whistles.)
"Now."
It feels like it's been hours.
They're tired - downright exhausted, actually - and filled with blood of which some is their own and some is not, rather belonging to the beasts they fought. They're all still alive, though, and that's a silver lining Katniss holds on to. They're all still standing - no matter how much it hurts - still standing, always standing, and she sees that neither of them plan to give up easily.
"What're you gonna do now?", she asks the air.
Someone's always listening.
Ceasar Flickerman's voice fills the arena, "You must fight."
"No.", she's surprised at how her voice doesn't falter.
"You must fight.", he repeats like a broken record. It makes her angry because The Capitol thinks they have them in such control. That, if they repeat the order enough times, they'll obey like dogs.
Two can play that game, "No."
Another voice fills the arena, and it surprises Katniss for a moment, "You must fight until only one lives. Or did you forget the rules of The Hunger Games, Ms. Everdeen?"
She shrugs, "I chose to overlook them."
"Fight."
She winks at Rue, "You want a fight?", she asks and the little girl whistles a melody. The rest of them give a wink back, accompanied by a small smile. Katniss shrugs again, "Then we'll give you a fight.", she lifts a bow in the same time Rue lifts a knife her way. Cato prepares his weapons - each to one of the tributes next to him as they do the same. Clove tightens the hold on her knives as she prepares to throw them at Foxface who stretches her fingers, preparing to snap Glimmer's neck.
They're all up against each other and it reminds Katniss of domino pieces. One falls and it's enough to bring them all after her. She tightens the hold on her bow, holding it at Peeta - who is holding a big rock heavy enough to break Kevin's skull.
She takes a deep breath.
"But, a warning, President.", she says, almost mockingly, "If I pull this bow, we all fall like dominos. If I pull this bow, we all die."
Silence.
"You know, I've never heard all twenty-four cannon shots go out at once. Wonder what that sounds like."
Silence.
And then, "Ladies and gentlemen, may we present to you the victors of the 75th Hunger Games."
They lower their weapons.
"We're not victors."
They're in the hovercraft, going back to The Capitol. She wonders what Effie and Haymitch will say of their little stunt. Katniss looks at Cato, "Nope."
They all feel a bit relaxed. They know they won't die. The Capitol isn't stupid enough to shoot them dead as soon as they land. But there's this uneasy feeling in the bottom of Katniss' stomach and she knows the others have it, too.
"What do you think they'll do to us?", Rue asks, but fear doesn't fill the little girl's voice. Katniss smiles.
"I don't know.", she says, surprised at the lack of fear in her voice, too.
Peeta speaks up, "They won't kill us.", he says, his voice firm, "We're safe for the year."
"We have to get the best out of it.", Marco replies, "Make people take a stand."
Rue traces her fingers over Katniss' mockingjay pin, "Raise a rebellion.", she says, but Katniss can't figure out if it is a statement or a question.
"Yeah.", Clove whispers, a slight gleam in her eyes, "Raise a rebellion.", she says the thing everyone's thinking. Clove smiles at Rue, "Fight."
The hovercraft lands and they all get up to their feet as the doors open.
"Chins up. Smile.", Katniss says, doing her best Effie impression. The rest of the group chuckle.
Katniss sighs.
"This is only just the beginning."
And neither of them regrets.