Okay, this is a Cato and Clove twisted romance set during the 74th Hunger Games. I haven't decided yet if the ending is going to be happy or not... I'm sure we'll find out anyway ;) But whatever happens, this story is AU and neither Katniss Everdeen nor Peeta Mellark will win. Sorry. But that's how it's gonna be.
I've never tried writing as Clove before, and I've discovered she's a blast to write. Especially in second person. It just makes it more twisted somehow...
Please review, I'd love to hear your thoughts... and be sure to check out my other Hunger Games fan fiction which are both Finnick/Annie stories and full of fluff and loveliness (although there's quite a bit of angst, heartbreak and arena action for the more morbid of my readers) But yeah, I needed a break from the mind of self depreciating, kind, cute Annie. (Although I love her to bits) And well, Clove is her complete opposite.
Anyway, enough babble, my lovelies, and on with the twistedness... Enjoy xx
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Hunger Games or any of the characters in this story. They all belong to Suzanne Collins.
...
Your name is Clove.
You are very nearly sixteen years old.
You are District 2's resident teen lunatic, but you like it that way.
Yesterday, you volunteered as tribute for the 74th Hunger Games. You had to fight for it and some might call you crazy, but you don't care. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Right now, you are on your way to the Capitol. You could be dead within a week, but you don't think so... You fully expect to walk out of that arena alive and victorious.
Nothing will stand in your way.
When you state this out loud, your district partner rolls his blue eyes.
"I wouldn't count on it, Clove."
The way he says your name makes you want to punch him. He talks to you like you're a child. You draw back your lips in a feral snarl but he only chuckles.
So damn arrogant.
You can't wait to pin him to the ground, your knees pressed into his shoulders, a long sharp blade to his throat... You might be merciful, but you don't think so.
Cato will die and he will die at your hand.
You will make sure of it.
...
Enobaria and Lyme - District 2's mentors this year - make you watch the other reapings. You get bored very quickly and begin amusing yourself with deciding which of the other tributes you most want to kill.
The girl from District 1, of course. She slinks on stage, golden hair glistening, lips pouting, eyes sparkling. You hate her straight away. You hate her even more when you spot Cato eyeing those slim curves on screen appreciatively.
You entertain the thought of killing that hulking great boy from District 11. You could do it from a distance definitely... close range, of course, would be trickier, but much more satisfying.
And then the girl from 12. Katniss Everdeen. You dislike her the moment she leaps from the crowd, wide eyed and screeching I volunteer over and over like a flipping banshee. You realise she may be a threat the second she regains her composure and a steely determination settles in her eyes. You know you have to kill her when Enobaria voices what everyone else seems to be thinking.
"Now she could win."
...
You don't like the Capitol.
You hate your stylists, you loathe your mentors and you detest Cato.
His new found hobby is getting under your skin and for a beginner, he demonstrates great skill in doing so. That smirk. You've been close to snapping at least twice and you've only been stuck with each other for six hours.
If he wasn't so bloody gorgeous you might be able to stand it. But as it is, he's so perfect, it's untrue.
Those light blue eyes the colour of a sunny sky... that rough, untamed hair the colour of a sandy beach... that slow, self satisfied smile when you scowl at him...
It makes you sick.
Still, the Capitol people love him. And for some reason, they like you too. They chant your name like a prayer when they see you during the chariot ride. You revel in the screams, bask in the glory...
That is until the crowd suddenly falls silent and you realise they are all staring, dumbfound, at something far behind you.
It's then that you see them onscreen.
District 12... on fire.
On. Fire.
And then the crowd are no longer cheering your name. They're screaming twelve, twelve, twelve!
You see Cato's jaw tighten. He's furious. So are you. You realise you've lost the cameras. Whilst before they were focusing on you and Cato – the glint of your golden armour under the sparkling lights – now, all you can see on the screens around you is her.
And then a new chant arises. A new name.
Katniss! Katniss! Katniss!
Anger, frustration and jealousy pulses through your blood.
You are here to win. You are here to kill. And nothing – no one – will stand in your way.
Least of all Katniss Everdeen.
...
After the chariot ride, back in his room, Cato smashes a vase and kicks over a table.
You watch him, eyebrows raised, a taunting smirk already on your lips.
"What are you looking at?" He spits when he notices you in the doorway.
"A fool." You reply smoothly, stepping inside and shutting the door. He looks like he might smack you one.
"I'm going to kill her!" He snarls, turning and slamming the bedside lamp into the floor.
"I assume you're referring to Katniss Everdeen." You say coolly. "But, forget it. She's mine."
He points an angry finger in your direction.
"I'm going to kill you too!"
You laugh at that.
"I'd like to see you try."
He has you pinned up against the wall in less than a second.
"I could crush you." He growls, pushing the heel of his hand into your windpipe. "I could crush you like a bug."
"You could." You admit, irritated to find you're more than a little breathless. "But you won't."
His eyes narrow.
"Give me one reason."
"Because, Cato," You hiss. "The Games haven't even started yet and I'm telling you now, you're bloody lucky they haven't."
"Is that so?" He asks, although the pressure on your windpipe decreases somewhat. You glare at him.
"Believe me, Cato," You snap back. "If they'd started, you would have been dead before you'd even moved."
He holds your gaze for a moment or two and then suddenly, he chuckles. You glare at him, because you weren't being funny. You meant every word.
"Oh Clove." He says, releasing you and stepping away. "Have I ever told you before how cute you are when you're angry?"
You're so affronted you could kill him right here, right now.
"If you had," You manage through gritted teeth. "You wouldn't still be breathing." And then you turn on your heel, flinging the door open and storming through.
The last thing you hear before you slam the door shut behind you is his loud, raucous laughter, echoing around his bedroom.
...
You enjoy training.
You like the sound of your knives thwacking into the bullseye of every target you aim at. You love the appreciative nods of the trainers. You adore the look of abject terror you see in the eyes of every tribute you deign to glance at.
Enobaria and Lyme insisted you and Cato set about creating a Career Pack. You rolled your eyes when Cato immediately suggested that girl from District 1, but you go along with it. You don't need an alliance, you're sure you could win single handedly... but a Career alliance will be formed, with or without you, and that pack will get every scrap of the cornucopia's treasure. You think of the endless supplies of weapons from previous years and you know you want them.
And so, when Cato goes over to speak to the kids from 1, you follow, your nose crinkling in disgust as that girl starts flicking her blonde curls and fluttering her ridiculously long eyelashes. You find out her name is Glimmer and you're torn between sniggering and throwing up.
You actually do laugh when the boy tells you his name is Marvel.
What is with District 1? Seriously.
"Clove, right?" Marvel asks, holding out his hand. You eye it like it just crawled out of the gutter and after a second, he pulls it back and tucks it self consciously into his pocket. You eye him coolly.
"You are correct." You say loftily.
"You looked pretty good in that chariot..." Marvel eyes you with unconcealed interest and you let out an ungainly snort of disgust.
"Don't even think about it." You warn him but he just grins. He has a rather toothy grin, you think idly.
"Can't stop me." He replies cheekily.
"Not yet." You say, adding him to your mental list of tributes you want to kill. You hear Cato guffaw behind you, apparently listening in on your conversation whilst still managing to flirt with that tramp from 1. (Who says men can't multi-task, eh?)
Marvel, however, does not seem fazed. He glances between you and Cato.
"I assume you two came looking for an alliance..."
Glimmer beams at you and you fight the urge to retch.
"We did." Cato says, nudging you. You roll your eyes but nod.
"We wanted to know what you'd both offer to an alliance." You add.
Marvel tells you of his skills with a spear. Glimmer babbles on about her being an "all rounder".
"Fine." You cut her off, tired of hearing her voice. "Consider yourself part of our alliance."
"Your alliance?" Marvel questions.
You smile.
"Mine."
...
By the end of day 1, you've also recruited both tributes from District 4. Neither are particularly special, but they'll be perfect for guarding your supplies whilst you and Cato hunt the other tributes.
During day 2, Cato tries to persuade you to recruit the huge boy from 11. You don't particularly want him in your alliance... you've seen him practicing with a huge sickle shaped sword, slicing and hacking dummies into pieces as proficiently as Cato. He's too good, you'd have to watch your back too much if he was around.
"Why won't you?" You snap when Cato mentions it for the fifth time. He shrugs.
"I just think he'll respond better to a girl."
You bark out a laugh.
"Send Glimmer, then."
Cato snorts.
"She's an airhead. She'd forget what she went over to ask him about."
Of course you smile at that.
"Fine." You say. "But I can't promise anything."
And so you head over to where 11 is chucking a couple of knives around. Not bad, you think, not as good as you, but still, not bad...
He notices you watching him.
"What do you want, 2?"
You cock your head thoughtfully.
"Thresh, isn't it?"
"What's it to you?" He says rudely. You fake offence.
"I was merely being polite."
"Well, don't." He replies shortly. "Are you looking for an alliance?"
"I am." I inform him. He turns away and throws another knife. "Relax your elbow a little more." You tell him when he fails to hit the bullseye. He tenses.
"I don't need your help, 2."
"Well, answer me then and I'll leave you alone." You say with an irate little sigh.
"No."
"What?" You smirk. "You won't answer me?"
"My answer," He turns, hatred in his dark eyes. "Is no."
You shrug.
"Fine, then. Your loss." And then you turn and stroll away, back towards an expectant Cato. You don't need to glance over your shoulder to know that Thresh is staring after you.
"What did he say?" Cato asks as you near, his eyes still on Thresh.
"No."
Those blue eyes zero in on you, narrowing ominously.
"What did you say to him?"
You hold your hands up innocently.
"Nothing. I just offered him a place in the Pack."
"He looked like he wanted to slaughter you on the spot."
You snicker.
"I just gave him some advice on knife throwing. He didn't take it very well."
"Clo-ove!" Cato turns your name into two syllables and you know he's irritated with you.
"What?" You glare at him. "It's not like you really wanted him in our alliance."
"He's too good to be on his own." Cato crosses his arms like a petulant child.
"He's too good to work with us." You shoot back. "He's a peasant, Cato. How the hell can we trust him?"
"You shouldn't trust anyone in the Games." He says.
You smirk at him.
"You trust me."
"No, I don't." He replies sharply.
"Yes, you do." You tease. "You do trust me, because you know the final battle will be between us..." And here your voice lowers, almost seductively. "And you know that neither of us would miss it for the world."
...
Well... I hope you enjoyed that. Clove is a twisted little girl, isn't she? Man, it's so fun tuning into my psychotic side ;)
What do you think of second person by the way? Does it work? If you don't think it does, let me know... I may make this first person yet. It's my first story in second person so I'm a bit nervous... (also let me know if I've slipped into first person at any point already... I had to catch myself a couple of times writing this)
Anyway, please review (I do love reviews) and hope you stick around for the rest when it comes xx