Finnick never much liked the peace keepers.
He was ten the first time he was whipped. Although the peace keepers normally only whipped people aged twelve and up, Finnick often passed for older and they were not stopping to ask his age. It happed in the middle of mandatory games viewing, there were no crowds in the square to watch. His next whippings over nine years later would be a much more private affair.
Finnick liked to spend as much time at the training centre as possible, he liked the other students and his mentors, he enjoyed the training, he planned on being the best tribute district 4 had ever seen when he was old enough, and it gave him a good reason to stay away from the home.
That was why when the older careers were asked to watch the games together at the centre to discuss and critique strategy and teqnique.
The career pack had spent the night out hunting, they had killed the girl from 8 in the pre-dawn light, leaving 4 tributes not in the career pack still in the games. The careers had decided to catch up on sleep to stay fresh for the hunt later that evening, making for slow and uneventful viewing. In the training centre a lively discussion was taking place about the pros and cons of sticking to the career pack till the end, or splitting early, either by running off or killing them while you have the element of surprise. Finnick as the youngest didn't contribute much to this conversation, but rather absorbed what he could, surprised by the various strategies, and trying to imagine all the possible scenarios.
Discussion quietened for a moment as the female tribute from 4 Larisa, who had been keeping watch for the last hour, quietly picked up a full backpack and unsheathed her sword. The moment she plunged her sword into the chest of the sleeping boy from 2 their mentor, yelled at them "leave, watch the rest at home, meet for a normal training schedule after the games." And the tone of his voice was so instantly recognisable that no one questioned him, everyone was out the door within 30 seconds. It was the same tone the trainers used when an incident was about to happen, and given the dangerous things they trained with, everyone always obeyed that tone, knowing that an explanation would be heard once all was safe again.
That was why Finnick was already out of the yard of the training centre before he paused realising what he was doing, he turned back to see Mags making her way out of the building as quickly as her old body would allow. She saw him pause and made a shooing motion with her hand. "I can't go home" he allowed a little reluctantly. "mine then, run boy" she said. He gave her a nod and took off down the street.
Before he got more than a few blocks a peace keeper appeared grabbed his arm and demanded "where are you running to?"
"home" Finnick lied a little timidly.
"And where are you running from?" The peace keeper asked. Finnick didn't reply, he knew that training for the games was illegal, but he also knew that the peace keepers were OK with it. They all knew, and a few of them even joined for sparing practice on occasion. But the way that they were told to run, and the impersonal reflection of a helmet where eyes normally were, made him a little too uneasy to give that information freely. Still when the peace keeper suggested "the training centre perhaps?" Finnick nodded unsure what else he could do.
The peace keepers grip tightened and without a word he dragged Finnick through the empty streets to the square in the town centre. Finnicks confusion and panic heightened as his wrists were bound to the whipping pole, and when he looked out over the unusually empty square he saw Mags being dragged towards him by 2 peacekeepers. But before he could catch her eye to question what was happening a peacekeeper behind him announced "for the crime of training for the hunger games, you will receive 10 lashes."
Finnick braced himself but there was nothing he could do to prepare for the pain. His high pitched pre-pubescent screams made sure that anyone who could see without risking trouble for skipping mandatory viewing, peaked out of their windows. And although Mags and a few peacekeepers were officially the only ones there, by the time school started back up, his whipping was common knowledge.
After it was done and he was untied a peacekeeper shoved his balled up shirt into his hands and pushed him aside as another tied Mags to the pole where he had just been. Finnick stared shocked that they would do that to her, although he noticed that they did allow her to keep her top on. The peacekeeper gave him another little shove and grunted "run home". Finnick took off pausing for a moment at the edge of the square to look back at Mags. She was making loud pained grunts and gasps as her body jerked after each blow, but the fact that she was not all out screaming the way Finnick had been comforted him. He turned and ran to her house.
When Mags arrived some time later she found Finnick laying on her front porch with his eyes closed using his shirt as a pillow, fresh wounds airing in the shade. She took him inside and used their need to tend to their wounds as an opportunity for an impromptu lesson on wound care. Something that would prove very useful in the arena.
The wounds caused no problems other than a bit of pain for the weeks they took to heal, although Finnick did carry the scars until he won his games, (after which the capital made his scin flawless) earning Finnick the nickname tiger shark, and making for some hilarious impressions on his part.
Although Finnick already had a bed at Mags's place, he had previously never done more than sleep the night, after training late had left him locked out of the home for the night. (Something that happened regularly) This time Mags allowed him to stay for the remainder of the games. Most of their interactions started out as mini training lessons, they began to lead into interesting conversations and Finnick and Mags begun to bond more and more as the days wore on. Mags was still mostly his trainer and mentor, but she began to feel like family too.
Mags explained so many things that many careers never spent enough time away from combat practice to learn, from starting fires with sticks; the right type of wood is vital and teamwork allows for continuous pressure while repositioning hands making it 100 times easier than trying alone. To the history of the training centres; District 2 formed theirs almost immediately by accident, As the new military district, their schooling included all kinds of fighting skills, those at the top of the lessons joined an elite class, and those near the top of that competed with each other for the chance to volunteer, or were raised high up the ranks of peacekeepers, being given important roles and often rising quickly to head peacekeeper or at least something close to it. (That was why the peacekeepers practiced with them sometimes, and why they cracked down on training when 4's tribute betrayed 2's tribute, but would still allow the centre to stay open, so long as having carriers in 4 benefited 2's tributes through the career alliance, it was just a warning not to do it when the kids training today volunteered.) District 4's training centre began after the 25th games and first quarter quell. The district had been forced to vote in the tributes, there had been much discussion on how to go about that, should they choose the kid with the best chance of winning, or that disabled kid with no chance of winning but also little to no chance of a decent life as an adult. Some parents talked of voting in a home kid like Finnick, just to save parents grief. But in the end district 4 had ended up with what was essentially its first volunteer and career. He had given a speech about how if it was the still the dark days, he would be only one year off of becoming a soldier and risking his life for the sake of others. He asked to be given the opportunity to do just that. To fight his best, hoping to win, but at least knowing that even if he did not win his sacrifice would save the lives of innocent children. He did not win, he was no match for the highly trained 2 tribute who sliced him in half with a sword, but despite that he was honoured and remembered in district 4. And despite having to watch his gory death, other children began to step forward, to volunteer, to train for the games. The training centre was opened, and named in his honour.
Finnick started staying with Mags even more frequently after that, and the extra time they spent discussing games related topics as well as Mags's extensive experience of all things games, most defidently gave Finnick and added advantage in his own games. But there was a reason that most mentors chose not to have children, and a reason that Finnick still spent more nights than not at the home, a reason that Mags never even hinted at adopting him dispite growing to love the boy.
That reason was why Mags often wondered if he was reaped early intentionally, instead of having the opertunity to finish his training and volenteer at his last games. If it was all to make her shatter the way she did inside when his name was called from the reaping ball in a volunteerless year, for though she knew he was skilled, she also knew well, that no 14 year old had ever won the games.