Disclaimer: I do not own any aspects of Harry Potter in any way, shape, or form. Do you think Sirius Black would have died if I did?!
Written for Round 12 of The Quidditch League Fanfiction Competition as Chaser 3 of the Chudley Cannons.
Chaser 3: Write a story about your OTP that has an UNHAPPY ENDING.
Prompts:
*1.) (word) control
13.) (quote) 'It's easy to make a decision if you already know what the outcome will be.' — Armin, Attack On Titan - Inspired from
14.) (creature) Acromantula
A/N: Hunger Games AU. XD
Word Count: 1,683
In Another Universe
"How many are dead?"
Marlene groans and her eyebrows scrunch up as she tries to recount how many times she'd heard that blasted cannon boom across the arena. She raises one hand to rub her temples, keeping the other on the jagged piece of metal that has come to represent Marlene McKinnon. The other tributes has knives and swords to go with their name — even Sirius has his ebony-handled hatchet. Marlene has a piece of trash she'd ripped off from the side of the cornucopia.
The boy beside her gives a dramatic sigh as he reaches over and snaps his fingers. "I asked you a question, sweetheart," Sirius sing-songs, a tight smile on his lips. His hair falls in wispy black strands over his eyes, and she can see that some of his hair is slightly damp. Marlene isn't sure if she wants to berate him for using their precious supply of water to wash his hair or reach over and press her lips against his. She decides on neither; it's not like one or the other will do her any good.
"Two more dead from fire, and there was that one mysterious death with all the screaming — so that leaves six. We're in the last quarter left," Marlene says, her voice taking on a bitter edge as she says the last sentence.
Sirius chuckles softly as he turns to face Marlene.
Her heart feels like it's been stabbed, which probably isn't the greatest analogy in this situation. Either way, she feels her breath catch. Marlene forces herself to breath as she leans in, closer, and closer, and closer, until her lips are barely an inch away from his. Him, a career. The one she's suppose to hate, the one that she's suppose to kill, lest he kill her first.
Marlene lets out a breath she didn't even realize she'd been holding. I should hate him. Marlene thinks as she looks into those steely grey eyes, so allusive to the house of Black. She should hate him so much, despise him for all his family's cruelty. It isn't his fault that his family has been training careers for generations, nor is it Sirius' fault that all the victors who carried the surname Black killed with such brutality and ease, as if they were simply exchanging pleasantries.
Screw it. Screw it all. Marlene throws all her momentum forward as she slams into Sirius, her lips crashing into his as she gives in and lets herself enjoy this last speck of happiness. Sirius kisses her back with equal vigor, not even a second of hesitance surfaces as he claims her lips. Marlene leans into his lanky frame, her eyes flutter shut as she tries to block out the darkness of the arena, the unfeeling cold of the night. All she wants to feel are Sirius' lips as he brushes them ever so lightly against the curve where her neck meets her shoulders. All she wants to feel is the whisper of a breath as he purrs sweet nothings into her ear. All she ever wants to feel is Sirius Orion Black, District 1's pride and joy, holding her - a farmgirl of District 10 - close and never letting go. All she ever wants is Sirius.
And, of course, that is the moment the game makers decide to shatter the illusion of bliss they'd shrouded over her. A curse hidden beneath the thin veil of blessing. The monsters crawl out of nests, hungry for a meal; programmed to grab one in particular, one whose scent still clings onto the fields of hay back home.
One by the name of Marlene McKinnon.
She curses herself for losing control and forgetting that this is not an appropriate place to think of kissing. Both of them are quick to break apart and pull out their weapons to fight those horrid spiders. Of course it is then that Marlene remembers her useless weapon and how impractical it would be for her to even attempt to fight. One quick glance at Sirius tells her that he sees her problem, too.
"Run," he whispers, glancing at the Acromantulas that have yet to attack, and he repeats himself louder. Marlene notices the desperation laced into his voice, but she won't leave him; not now or ever.
"I'm not leaving you. Either we both run or I'm not moving," she snaps as they step backwards to add more distance between the spiders and them. "On my word, we run. You got that, Sirius? Run like your dear mother's after you."
That comment earns her a soft throaty chuckle in response and a curt nod. The giant spiders are still a good distance away, and Marlene is taking no chances.
"Run," she hisses, spinning on her heel and sprinting towards the only place she can think of- the Cornucopia. Sirius is quick on her heels and so are the spiders. They spring into action, but Marlene pays them no mind as she dodges trees and bushes. "We're almost there!"
It's so close that Marlene allows herself a shred of hope. Perhaps they won't die at the pincers of the Acromantula and maybe, just maybe, they can make it out alive. But this is the Hunger Games and happiness isn't part of the ending, she knows that.
"Crap." Marlene turns around in time to see the giant spider pin Sirius down. She opens her mouth to scream but not a single sound comes out. Before she registers it, her body is moving towards him with her jagged dagger pointing straight at the monster. "Marlene, please, leave me."
She shakes her head firmly and smiles with regret before she pounces. She can't let Sirius die. Despite all those horrible opinions she initially had of him, she's come to see the real him. He is not a ruthless killer. He is not a superior prick. He is not everything she thought him out to be. He is gentle with those he kills, not inflicting any more pain than necessary. He is obnoxious but the tears he spills for the dead are genuine. He is nothing like the rest of his family.
He's also the one who stole her heart. Although it doesn't count as stealing if Marlene freely gave it to him.
Her body slams into the spider, taking her breath away, and she manages to knock the beast off Sirius. She groans at the striking pain in her right shoulder but stands up on shaky legs. The spiders hiss insults and crowd around her.
"It's her. She smells. Kill her. Let us eat."
Her time is up. This is how Marlene McKinnon will leave the world. She accepts the fact that she will die this moment. She was never meant to make it out alive anyway. The odds were never in her favor, and they would never be. She blows a kiss at Sirius and grins, holding back her tears. As long as he gets to live, that is enough for her.
The Acromantulas shriek in pain as Sirius begins his killing spree to get her out. It's too late. Sirius was never their goal; it had always been her. She notices how they ignore Sirius but focus on her.
"I'm. Not. Leaving. You." Sirius manages to say in between breaths as he grunts and kills spider after spider. "Don't die for me!"
She's accepted her death, yet for some reason, her body won't let her stay still. She slashes and stabs any spider who tries to kill her. However, there are so many spiders, and Marlene only has one short piece of metal. Their pincers prick her and leave gashes on her body. Her blood spills to the ground in dangerous amounts.
"I'll get you! Hold on," Sirius pleads, but she knows it's a futile effort. "Don't die. I need you."
Oh. It's in that instant that Marlene recognizes why her body makes her fight. It's because she needs Sirius too. She doesn't want to die and leave him. She doesn't want to lose something she cherishes. She doesn't want to leave the person she lov-
She loves Sirius. It's so painfully obvious that it startles her and allows a spider to stab her. She never once thought that she would love anybody. Her family is dead. She has nothing here. That is, until Sirius came into her life.
There's only one thing left for her to do.
"Run! Run now," she yells, her tears flowing and her body throbbing with pain. "Please, go. I'm done. Go, for me!"
It's heartbreaking to watch as Sirius struggles with her words, but the Acromantulas easily push him backwards, and turn towards her. He cries in protest, but Marlene fixes him with a deadly glare.
"Win, Sirius, win!" Her voice breaks as he turns around and makes his way to the Cornucopia. She will never see that obnoxious smirk. She will never bicker with him about idiotic stuff. She will never laugh with him. She will never hear his voice again.
I love you. The words pound in her mind, wanting her to yell it out to the world, and her arms are getting too tired to fight. She wants to rest. She wants to let Sirius know how she really felt. She wants to live. In an alternative universe, Marlene and Sirius could have lived happily ever However, this isn't another universe. This is real life. This was her reality. They would never be together.
The piece of metal falls to the ground.
She screams.
She can't say anything more than that. Not when her vocal cords are ripped out, not when her limbs are snapped off, not when chunks are missing of her head, and not when her neck is being broken.
Still, she has to let him know. There's a particular saying in her district regarding the games that says: "You know they're gonna use the things you love against you." She didn't believe the words when they whispered it to her after she got chosen as tribute. She was extremely mistaken.
"I lo-"
Boom.
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