"Red"
2.
He and Katniss were to be lighted on fire. As they made their way out of the elevator and into the bottom level of the Remake Center, Peeta spied the other tributes staring as they made their way with a flutter of cape and crown towards their chariot. He spied a flash of red hair in the lineup in front of them, and averted his gaze to Katniss in order to clear his head. She looked stunning, so proud and fearless as they stood in the chariot and awaited their potential roasting. As the flames ignited their headpieces and capes, he breathed a sigh of strained relief as his skin was not burning off... yet. At the last minute, right as they were to enter the circle, he looked towards Cinna who was gesturing something to him and Katniss.
"I think he said for us to hold hands" Peeta says, and he reaches for her hand to hold it in his own. It felt good there, comfortable, but not quite satisfying in a way. Perhaps because it was one sided, the attraction? Peeta ignored this and used Katniss as more of an anchor to the chariot as they were rolled out. He smiled and waved, playing his part for the Capitol beautifully. Next to him, Katniss was acting in a similar manner, gaining favor and cheers for District 12 that brought a genuine smile to Peeta's face. Yet beneath the exterior, a carefully crafted winning grin, Peeta's mind was still working over the details to come.
Haymitch had agreed to help them out, and he had done what was asked of him and not protested as he was remade by his prep team. He was mostly miffed by the fact that he would be growing no body hair on his face for the next three months, however, as the serum they had injected into the hair follicles on his face halted their growth. He only hoped it was worth it in the end, for no self respecting male should have to endure such things.
As they made their final round around the square and entered the Training Center, Peeta was relieved when the fake flames were extinguished. He joked a bit with Katniss, but did not miss the cold flicker in her eyes as she kissed him on his bruise. They entered an elevator with Effie, who pushed the large button with the number 12 on it in order to take us to our quarters. As the doors were sliding shut, however, two more groups of tributes and their companions pushed their way in. To Peeta's dismay, they were Districts 5 and 8. The red headed tribute who had danced about his dreams was standing right in front of him.
He chose to not look at her, instead focusing on Katniss and Effie standing beside him. He made the mistake of looking up several times only to find that red hair framing her smirking face causing his breath to hitch and his legs go weak. He was glad when she and her District reached their level and got off. As she turned to leave, her hair flipped in his direction, sending the crisp scent of oranges, cinnamon, and spice. It hit him like a freight train. His mind was reeling, the crystal from the elevator glinting and shimmering lights across his brain as her scent infiltrated his nose. He turned to look at Katniss, and recoiled when she met his gaze with no warmth but simply frustration.
x.X.x.X.x.X.x
In the training room the next morning, Peeta was ruminating over the events of last night and how to handle things from here on forward, while still maintaining the facade he was creating with Katniss, the one of "friends." Oh how he wished to be so much more. He noticed the red-headed tribute from 5 quite often that day. It seemed as if she was always a station away from him, and each time he would glance at her she would appear to have just turned her eyes away from him. He was probably just a bit shaken from last night's incident with the Avox girl.
When Katniss had pointed out that she thought the girl looked familiar, he nearly started and choked a tad on his wine. Peeta had already noted the similarity between the Avox and the tribute from 5, but it was simply the hair color that did it. Plus, the Avox's hair was not nearly as vibrant as the girl who plagued Peeta's dreams. He figured it was simply a cruel trick of fate that the color and the girl seemed to follow his thoughts just when he thought he had escaped them for a little while.
Yet when Katniss spoke up, his insides clenched for no solid reason. Had she discovered his simple yet potent fascination with the red-headed tribute? Of course these were foolish thoughts, and to throw Katniss off the scent and help her out simultaneously he helped cover for her. Yet he couldn't resist demanding an explanation from her later on, after dinner and up on the roof.
It was these and much more that plagued Peeta as he trained with Katniss, the girl he loved more and more each day he spent with her.
x.X.x.X.x.X.x
He felt guilty for hurting her, but it had to be done. Private coaching for the interviews was something necessary if he wanted to save her, and even Haymitch himself had commended him on his choice. He honestly hadn't expected the look of betrayal that flashed across her pretty features, and thus the guilt. Haymitch made him feel no better about it.
"No matter what you do, there will always be something there to trip you up, to catch you off guard. Even if you manage to play that love card to your advantage, she's going to ruin it. She doesn't love you, and you know it. She won't be able to, and she won't be able to put up a good act either. Maybe for the simple-minded sheep the Capitol has in the masses, but it won't fool the Gamemakers, and it won't fool those who matter" Haymitch had said, quietly, but even Peeta knew who he was talking about when he neglected to name specifically.
He was referring to President Snow, a man who quite frankly put Peeta on edge. Unless Katniss truly felt for him as he felt for her, unless she pulled some sort of raw and real emotion out from deep inside her, President Snow would not buy it. But if that's what it took to get her out, alive and well, Peeta was willing to take that chance.
"And I'm not so sure you really want this enough, kid. You might be persuaded otherwise. She's never shown real interest in you, why risk it all for her if that's the case? You're worth something, and so is she. But if you wanted to give up on her, it's understandable. Now's the time to do it, though. Either you play the 'star-crossed lovers' card at your interview and throughout the Arena, or you don't go there. If you do, just remember this: it won't be so easy to change your mind in the Arena, once the die is cast. You'd lose much more than sponsors that way."
Peeta felt he understood this. If he gave up on Katniss, before the interviews and the Games themselves, he would be able to go through the trials of the Arena with her as a potential ally but as no one special. He would most likely get overlooked by sponsors and not be too much of a threat for the other tributes, the Careers especially. If he could make it through the Games this way, he could only hope that he would survive with Katniss long enough to ensure her path to victory.
If he went ahead and made his feelings known, however, he would become a much more interesting player in these Games. The Capitol's citizens would follow his every move greedily as he plowed through the Arena, and he'd not be at want of sponsorship. Yet there was that one crucial detail that was missing if this plan were to work well enough to get him and Katniss through the Games, and that was that Katniss did not love him.
And what if he was sick of all the unrequited feelings? What if he ached for some sort of a genuine smile from her, but he knew that he would never receive one? And who says they would both survive in the first place? A brief flash of orange-red danced in his vision. If we both die, I'd want it to be her. I'd want her to win.
Clearing some things up now:
I'm purposefully avoiding giving Foxface some made up name until her name is actually released by Suzanne Collins for the film since I want this to stay canon, or as close to canon as it can get. I'm just OCD like that.
Peeta is a bright guy. He's actually really damn smart. I feel like he would have noticed Foxface's name, but as aforementioned I'm putting off naming her until I can. :P So for now Peeta is oblivious to her name. Plus, I think that even in the book he was ignorant of her name, as Katniss tells him that she calls her "Foxface"
I'd love reviews telling me if this is a good or bad endeavor. I'm not sure if it's been tried before, but from what I've seen it hasn't. If I make any obvious screwups, please inform me! (Spelling, grammar... all that fun shiz.)
The title is in the works. I'm testing it out as "Red"' right now because I have no other ideas XD