Prologue: Weight of Living Part 2

Weight of Living Part 2 by Bastille

It all crept up on you, in the night it got you

And plagued your mind, it plagues your mind

Every day that passes, faster than the last did

And you'll be old soon, you'll be old

Do you like the person you've become?

Hey :) Say hello to Oblivion's beta- Sgarnett99! She reads through and helps me with grammar and such so mistakes should be at a minimum. Shoot her a pm or review and thank her :p so yeah… thanks again Sgarnett99!

Icelynne Winterrose (20) Head Gamemaker POV

"So we watched the games and…"

"They do have some pretty neat elements to it, very intresting…" Ky whispers as he scribbles madly in his notebook.

"So, should the tributes have weapons in the Arenas?" Izzy asks as she begins to open the computer file with the random tribute name generator. It contains all deceased tributes for 99 years of Games, minus the 3rd Quarter Quell tributes; obviously, since that consisted of victors.

"The fourth Arena, the final three will be provided a weapon if desired."

"What about the first three Arenas?"

I stop to contemplate; maybe it's best if the tributes go through the Arenas without weapons and just let the Arenas work their magic. "They'll go through the Arenas with just luck; they won't be allowed to kill one another while passing through the different areas."

"So they need to solve the puzzles and stuff to pass?"

"Exactly."

"Well here we are," Izzy exclaims as she clicks the mouse one last time. "Let's pick those tributes!"

"Here's the clicker. The first time you click the button many names will pop up on the screen simultaneously. Once you click the button again it will reveal the tributes selected," Hunter states as he hands Izzy the controller. "You get dibs."

"Cool!" Izzy greedily grabs the controller and presses the button. Many letters begin to pop up and spin like a lottery machine as we sit, holding our breaths anticipating the tributes that will be brought back…

District 1

Glint Gemstone- Tribute of the 2nd Quarter Quell

Carmini "Carminha" Floyd- Tribute of the 87th Games

Steele Lawrence- Tribute of the 10th Games

District 2

Keither Masonfeld- Tribute of the 76th Games

Azura Sparks- Tribute of the 46th Games

Hero De'Rogue- Tribute of the 60th Games

District 3

Mac Wattson- Tribute of the 52nd Games

Rhea Katze- Tribute of the 90th Games

Vetch Colhaine- Tribute of the 99th Games

District 4

Ashton Finnow- Tribute of the 59th Games

Brielle Marina- Tribute of the 21st Games

Eccentricity "Tricity" Elm- Tribute of the 90th Games

District 5

Joules Valence- Tribute of the 70th Games

Mitzi Allardyce- Tribute of the 85th Games

Faust Stark- Tribute of the 1st Quarter Quell

District 6

Track Williams- Tribute of the 86th Games

Maiandra "Andra" Goldenrod- Tribute of the 95th Games

Trolley Deckman- Tribute of the 55th Games

District 7

Kale Kolman- Tribute of the 2nd Quarter Quell

Ember Oakland- Tribute of the 87th Games

Barkley Brimming- Tribute of the 71st Games

District 8

Messiah "Alpha" Emerald- Tribute of the 33rd Games

Mercy Jade- Tribute of the 96th Games

ERROR

District 9

Barrik Solstice- Tribute of the 17th Games

Fenella Wren- Tribute of the 79th Games

Charlotte "Chord" Whitestone- Tribute of the 80th Games

District 10

Coyote "Coy" Coy- Tribute of the 8th Games

Sierra Maize- Tribute if the 45th Games

Elmay "El" Risque- Tribute of the 87th Games

District 11

Valiant Yates- Tribute of the 63rd Games

Lilac Fields- Tribute of the 45th Games

Yarrow Ashby- Tribute of the 97th Games

District 12

Orion Hades- Tribute of the 1st Games

Carella Bray- Tribute of the 90th Games

Bram Riles- Tribute of the 93rd Games

"Vetch! He's baaccckkk," Izzy exclaims as she hugs Lucina. "Vetchy is back!"

"Izzy, he's going to die again anyway," Lucina sighs as she hands the remote to me. "Why is there an error?!"

"You don't know that, Lucina," I hiss as I take Izzy in my arms. "You need to be more considerate of others' feelings!"

"Yeah, ask me how you're feeling when you're still reeling from the effects of electro-therapy," she counters as she rushes out the door.

"What's up with the error?" Izzy coos as she looks up to meet my eyes.

"I don't know… the name should print out once we collect the tribute files."

Izzy nods and smiles as she heads to her seat, grabbing the paper she assigned us all with assignments for this years' Games…

Responsibilities

Icelynne- Arena Creator/Controller

Ky- Mutt Creator/Controller

Hunter- Audio/Video Tech

Lucina- Death Observer

Izzy- Tribute Parade Coordinator/Interviewer

Calloway- Sponsors/Gifts/Messages

We all turn our attention back to our daily routine. Hunter snickers and begins to converse with Ky, the usual talk concerning the Capitol and mutts. Izzy begins to play through the games that I must recreate and control in several weeks.

Turning my attention to the projector, I feel the sense of empowerment bubble and ooze from the pores of my pale skin as the tributes faces flash before my eyes, the faces of those part of oblivion now back to escape its grip…

River Echo (17) D4 Victor of the 99th Games POV

I am lying on the beach to the north of the Cornucopia. Where the shores would rise and fall just beneath my toes and the sand would scratch the back of my calves like sandpaper, yet soft like grain at the same time. The desolate darkness of the night sky is illuminated by the stars that shine with such brilliance that anyone looking at them would fall in love.

Leon is lying next to me, his shark tooth necklace resting lightly on top of his chiseled chest, tanned and toned by the tireless hours of swimming and training in District 4. His blonde hair is swept to his left and some falls into his ocean blue eyes, lively and joyous as he looks at me. I can't help to feel the corners of my lips stretch and curve upward as he takes my hand, the fear of losing the only one who listens and cares for me unconditionally gone as I entwine my fingers in his. The deep musk of his skin tickles my nose and relaxes me knowing that he always be there. The radiance and beauty I feel deep in my heart bursts and shines with a new light, no longer murky, but translucent. All I could hear is the sound of his voice, the crashing of the shores never matching to the soulful and dark voice that I had grown to love. His voice ringing in my ears, the protection I feel while next to him warms my heart and spreads throughout my whole body. I feel alive, reborn as in this moment, this one moment in the Games.

"I love you, River."

He turns his head to face me and slowly reaches his hand out to my face, his thumb tracing circles on my cheek as he brings his lips closer and closer to mine. Two worlds collide as our lips meet, the electricity shooting out in all different directions as our kiss ravishingly continues, trying to find some resolution to our prolonged contact. The world around me slows and distorts, the liveliness in me restores as I finally find some hope in my new life.

Suddenly the light dims and darkness takes over. The reds, demonic and traumatizing come to life and eat away at my happiness, the world around me collapsing. My blood runs cold and I watch as Madeline shoots her arrow. She laughs maniacally as it hits Leon's leg, my heart skyrocketing as I face this deranged creature. Her entire body is black, pitch black and only her eyes remain a blood red. Her eyes tantalize and scare me as I throw the knife into her head, the shudders within me emerging as she explodes and blood splatters everywhere. I turn my attention back to Leon who now lies on the cold hard ground as just a skeleton, his eyes no longer in his sockets or his calloused hands no longer there. Gone.

I scream as the dead appear and begin to ramble, their voices piercing and damaging as they begin to circle around me. They are crooked, their faces, their smiles, their eyes… all is crooked as they stand before me taunting me as I had escaped the Arena and they died for it to happen.

"AGGGGHHHH!"

I shoot up from the bed, my body in a frenzy as I try to control my panting and racing heart which beats still, as it has been a year since I volunteered for the Games. I bring a hand to my face which is covered in sweat, my long, wavy chestnut brown hair plasters to my face as I quickly wipe it away, erasing the evidence of the night terrors that still plague my mind even though the Games have ended. I grip onto the shark tooth necklace Leon had worn and let the porcelain soft skin break as the tiny ridges of the tooth dig into my killer hands. The very hands that killed four children like me, the ones that died for me to live. I let the stinging pain remind me of my sheer existence, a very pitiful and sinful one, one where the world around me cherishes and worships my very sins that haunt me. Haunted is the best word to describe how I have lived my life since the 99th Games. Haunted by the ghosts and memories of the people, places, and things associated with the Games.

Boom

Boom

Boom

All that I hear as the crowds cheer for me for my interview and Victory tour. The sound of Leon's cannon that forever changed my opinions and thoughts of the Capitol and what I had done. What lead me to believe that winning would save me, would save me of the ridicule and shame I had brought upon my family whenever Raine would do something better.

I carefully lie back down and slow my breathing, cautious as to not let my stress level go up for what I now carry, for what life I must care for. I reach for the large bump that has taken over my abdomen and begin to trace my fingertips across the stretched skin, soft and smooth until I hit the bumps of stretch marks that have plagued me since the third month since that night. Lightly pressing my palms against my abdomen, I listen and feel for the life that I now care for, for the life of me. I close my eyes and calmly listen as three different sets of heartbeats pump through me, one of which is my own. I carry with me two fetuses who begin to kick and squirm in the very place where once held nothing, now holds new life.

The last time you saw me, Calloway and I were kissing and undressing, well me and Leon. I'm still confused about it even today as I remember that night, the one night where the Games were not on my mind but only love and protection. The one night where I truly felt alive. I had only seen Leon that night, not the mysterious brown haired boy who was forced to marry me by his own mother. The one night where I had let myself go and live a part of my damaged one. The night had been earth shattering. Of course the tablets that were slipped into our drinks were the cause of this, the reason why I had only seen Leon and had done what I did with him that night. The next morning however was… for the lack of a better word, scary. I was the first to wake and see that we were completely naked under his sheets. I remember my face heating up in embarrassment as I quickly ran to the bathroom and locked the door. The tears of shame and stupidity stinging the corners of my eyes as I began to sob on the tiled floor, the room that had been my haven at dinners with Seraphina. Calloway woke up soon after and began cursing and throwing stuff around the room, apologizing to me for what had happened. I couldn't find it in myself to unlock the door, to face him after that night. It took several hours as the growing pain of hunger settled deep in my core for me to gather the courage to leave the bathroom. Seraphina was of course splendid that we had finally attempted to make a baby, threat from her if I didn't by the announcement of the Quarter Quell.

Several weeks after, I had begun to feel morning sickness; every morning for three months. The swelling in my feet intensified and night terrors became more vivid and traumatizing. My chest began to swell and numbed the pain in my heart, the depression gone as my body was changing. I was PMS-ing all day every day as I walked around the mansion cursing and crying every five minutes, bi polar if you were a normal person not affected by the Games. Seraphina had an idea what was happening to me and bought a pregnancy test: a pink cross was all it took for the dam to once again break as the terrifying thought of bearing a child toke over my mind. Calloway was conflicted; I knew he never wanted children, not when his mother was in rule. He seemed distant, lost even as the weeks passed by and my clothes hung tightly to my bursting belly. My stomach had stretched to quickly for just one baby and just yesterday I had gone to the doctor, concerned with the baby's and I's lives as Calloway rushed me to Dr. Forester. The ultrascan revealed that two unborn babies were present inside me; the tablets supposedly not only made you… not yourself but also increased the chances of multiple babies during pregnancy. My mouth was open the entire time as the doctor congratulated me; the thought that I must care for more than one scared the shit out of me. Calloway was even more out of it as Joylena squealed and shouted out baby names for us, even offering to babysit both.

"Hey." I snap my head to the right to see Calloway at the door, smiling, yet a sad presence fills his dark brown eyes as he stands there. "I'm going to be District 12's mentor."

"Oh," I whisper as I try my best to move from the edge of the bed with very little luck. Calloway chuckles as he stands by my side and helps me up, his strong hands wrapping themselves around me. "What happened to Haymitch?"

"Cirrhosis. He passed away yesterday."

"Oh…"

"Yeah. I still have my responsibilities as Gamemaker though… I can't believe you're still going to mentor," he says as he sits on the bed while I stand in front of him.

"I have to – well, I need to. Cameo will be there to help me; we'll be the only District to have two mentors instead of one."

"What about next year?"

"Seraphina said Cameo can stay with me if he wants, I'm not sure he will…"

Calloway just nods as he stares at my stomach, his eyes lost in thought as he brings his hand to me. "Twins…"

"Yeah. I feel about ready to explode and I still have three months to go," I groan as I begin to pace around the room. "I'm too young to parent, nonetheless twins."

He sighs and brings his hands to the sides of my face, his eyes filled with tears. "I'm here for you River… and the little squirts."

"Okay," I whisper barely audible as he kisses the top of my head. "We have to pack for the trains. They leave in a couple of days…"

"Right." He begins to open our dresser drawers and pulls out clothing. "I'll pack your stuff for you."

I nod, not wanting to argue since the lack of sleep is making me dizzy and woozy. "Thanks."

He continues to pack and manages to gather four suitcases that sit at the edge of our bed. The thought of mentoring three tributes from past Hunger Games leaves me to see this as a semi good thing. Children living now have a break from the reaping and I guess the past tribute's families would be old or dead, hopefully Leon isn't picked…

"Do you think I'll be a good mentor… like my dad?" Calloway frowns and drops his head as he begins to twiddle his thumbs. "Do you think my dad would be proud of me for helping these tributes?"

I can't help the tears that begin to cloud my vision as I think of Calloway and his deceased father: Victor for District 7 of the 78th Games. Knowing that Calloway has now taken his father's steps must scare him, possibly thinking that he is stuck like this until a successful tribute comes along and wins. I tell him the only thing I can as I worry for myself for the impending doom for District 4 tributes.

"You'll be great."

A/N: For people who didn't read Haunted: Leon was River's district partner and Madeline was the D2 Female who was bloodthirsty… literally. She killed Leon and River killed her in retaliation. To those male readers out there: you now know what pregnant women go through! So don't mess with one unless you want the place where the sun don't shine to be punched :p Anywho review what's up. Here are some questions you could answer in a review…

1. (For those who have Googled or played Ib, Mad Father, and The Witch's House.) What do you think of the games? Which elements stood out from each and what vibes do you get from each one.

2. What do you think about River?

Love Always, Domi