Johanna sat on the edge of her bed looking down at her hands, just as she always did during Reflection. The woman before her, Katniss mused, could not be more different from the Johanna Mason she met before the Quarter Quell. That Johanna had been strong and proud; she never would have trembled and hunched her shoulders the way this Johanna did.
She should probably stop staring, Katniss decided. She didn't want Johanna to think she was being rude, but Katniss couldn't look away. Even with the fading bruises still visible on her neck and arms and her shaved head, Johanna was beautiful. Katniss wondered what it would be like to kiss those chapped lips or touch her –
"What are you looking at, brainless?"
Katniss blushed crimson. Johanna wasn't supposed to catch her watching. She stuttered, trying to think of an innocent explanation, but when she couldn't come up with anything, Katniss hurried towards their room's tiny restroom. She brushed into Johanna on the way. "Sorry," she said.
Johanna pushed her in return. "Sorry doesn't cut it."
Fuck, this woman made her angry sometimes. Katniss shoved her back. Neither was willing to admit that this fight was stupid, and soon they were wrestling on the floor. Katniss outweighed Johanna, but the other woman was still strong from years of chopping lumber and managed to pin Katniss to the floor, dragging the other woman's hands up above her head.
Suddenly, the closeness of their bodies was too much for Katniss. She couldn't think with Johanna's hips and stomach pressed against her. Her heart started pounding faster and her breathing sped up. Johanna noticed her discomfort and loosened her grip on her hands. "Katniss, what's wrong?"
"You." She really couldn't see it, could she? It was probably for the best. If Johanna knew, she'd leave, and then Katniss would have to be alone again. She'd rather have Johanna as just a friend than lose her completely.
Johanna lowered her face, her lips now only centimeter away from Katniss's. "Katniss?" The question in her words was obvious.
Katniss closed her eyes and tilted her head up to close the space between them. She'd imagined that kissing Johanna would be incredibly different than it had been with Peeta or Gale, but she'd been wrong. Physically, there was still the mixture of warm breath and soft lips, but emotionally, Katniss had never felt so invested in a kiss. She wanted to take more and more of Johanna, but at the same time, she would gladly give anything of herself that the other woman asked.
Finally, they had to separate. Johanna looked nervously at her. "How was it?" She worried her lip with her teeth as she spoke.
Katniss licked her lips, tasting that little bit of Johanna that was left. She gazed up at the other woman and smirked. "I'm not sure. I think I need more data."
"Well, since it's for science…" Johanna laughed and gave Katniss plenty of other data points to consider.
.
.
A/N: Thanks for reading! This was written for the Shipping Week challenge on Caesar's Palace. Any feedback is much appreciated. Thanks again,
~finnicko-loves-anniec
