Next Chapter! Shorter than the first one, but it you want daily updates they aren't always going to be so long. Enjoy!
Katniss pushes Prim behind her on her way up to the stage, but Prim is panicking. When Katniss gets to the stairs, she grabs hold of her and starts screaming and crying at her to "please don't go" and "don't do this". I wish she would listen to Prim, but I know she won't. She can't. Katniss is starting to lose her strong demeanor at Prim's panic, and I know she won't want to look weak. Looking weak automatically marks you as an easy target, and I don't want that for her. No, I need her to look strong, to be strong. I need her to come out of that arena alive, and Prim isn't helping at the moment. So I decide to help Katniss myself, not caring that I'm probably not even allowed to interfere with this. Who's going to stop me? I stride over to the steps from my place on stage and grab Prim from behind, taking her in my arms as she breaks hold of Katniss.
"Up you go Catnip." I tell her, trying mostly in vain to keep my voice from shaking. I don't want her to go up there. No, I want her to run in the opposite direction, to the woods. Disappear so she won't have to do this. But that isn't an option now. Not with the entire fucking country watching. Not when she had to volunteer for this shit to save Prim.
I take the still crying Prim to her mother, who is screaming so loudly that I can't hear anything that's happening on stage. It must be something interesting though, because I see a lot of people gasping in the crowd. Guess I'll find out in the recap later of the reapings what that's about.
I make my way back after forcing Prim into a shocked Mrs. Everdeen's arms, and hear Effie asking the crowd to give Katniss a round of applause. And to my everlasting thanks to District 12, no one complies. Instead, everyone silently touches their lips with three fingers and puts them in the air to her-the old symbol of love, admiration, and thanks. I think they do it because they know this is so fucking wrong, every bit of it. To try to make a twelve year old fight to the death in the first place, because Katniss had to volunteer for this death match to save her. All of Panem is finally seeing the girl I love for who she is; self-sacrificing for those she loves no matter the consequences for herself. And despite the fact that I wish she wasn't up there at all, I'm proud of her. Proud of the District for this rebellious move.
Effie clearly doesn't know what to do with this response, but when she recovers she walks over to the boy's bowl of names. Once she has another slip in her hand, she walks back to the microphone. I don't even have time to wish for Rory's safety before she's saying the name. Not that wishing has gotten me anywhere good today, so maybe that's for the best.
"Peeta Mellark." Effie says. I sigh with relief because it's not Rory, because I really don't know what I would do if I had him as a tribute as well as Katniss. He's safe with his one slip, just like Prim should have been. Interesting though, that it would be the baker's son; he couldn't have had more than five slips being that he's from town. The odds were definitely not in favor of the safest people this year.
I watch as the blond boy walks up to the stage from the sixteen year old section, and he looks like he's almost in tears. Big mistake kid. I take a quick glance at Katniss, hoping my taking Prim away helped her to not look like her fellow tribute, who is well on his way to making himself look like a future bloodbath cannon. Well maybe it's for the best since he's not coming home alive any way. Not if Katniss is going to win, which she is. I sigh in relief-luckily she doesn't look about to cry like her competitor. To anyone else she would look bored, but I know better. Concealed behind that bored mask is fear and disbelief, and she's gazing in the direction of our woods. And I know she's thinking the same thing I was just a few minutes ago-we both wish she could run away.
I make my way back onto the stage as the mayor starts the Treaty of Treason, but I'm not really paying attention to him at all. Instead, I begin to formulate a plan to bring Katniss home. There isn't another option here; I'm not going to let her die-I know it would be partially or entirely my fault if she did. I wouldn't be able to come home if that happen, nor would I want to. I would be a complete disaster and I wouldn't be able to live with myself. No, Katniss is going to be the Victor of the 74th Hunger Games. And I'm going to make damn sure that's the outcome-any means necessary. On her side and mine.
As the mayor asks the tributes to shake hands and they do so, they are escorted into the Justice Building for their friends and family goodbyes. Since I don't have to say goodbye because I will be with her, I go the other way to my waiting family. On my way there, I see Prim and Mrs. Everdeen going in the opposite direction. Suddenly, I have an idea.
"Prim!" I call to her. She turns in my direction and runs to give me a hug, crying while doing so.
"Bring her back. Please bring her home." she mumbles between tears. I gently pull her out of the embrace and crouch down to her level, looking her right in her teary blue eyes.
"I will. But can you do something important for me?" I ask her seriously. She nods, listening for my request.
"I need you make Katniss promise you she will win. Can you do that?" I tell her. At that, she gives me a small smile.
"Yes. She would never break a promise to me." she answers as she realizes my logic.
"Exactly." I reply with a nod. Prim gives me a quick squeeze goodbye as she races back to catch up to her mother at the Justice Building. Good. Making Katniss promise Prim to come home is the first part of my plan. She will be far less likely to do something stupid in the Games if she has to win for Prim after all.
I go to find my family again, and hug them all goodbye. Luckily it won't be for maybe the last time this year, but they know this year is almost as horrible; Katniss is basically family to them as well. I ask my mother to tell Katniss that she will take care of Prim and Mrs. Everdeen while we are gone. I don't want her to have any distractions going into that arena, and I know that her family being taken care of is the biggest worry on her part. Katniss won't like the charity, but she did it for them last year and it's not like there's a better option. Besides, she won't be here to feel guilty about it anyway. My mother agrees, and she and the rest of my family go to say goodbye to Katniss as I go to the waiting car that will take me to the train.
As soon as I get to the train, I walk down the hall to the bedrooms, purposefully passing mine and going straight to the one that will be Katniss's. I know she will want to see me in private because she won't want to show the others any weakness. She can to me though, because we are the only people that we can truly be ourselves with. I want to give her the chance to be weak if she wants to, even if it's only for a second. Hell, I want to break down but I know I can't. If she sees me falling apart, she won't believe that I'm going to make her a Victor. While I'm waiting, I sit on the enormous bed and think about how I will go about the next part of my plan for what I can do to get her out. I'm not going to like it, but I'll do it. For her.
Eventually the door opens, and when she sees me she shuts the door behind her and lets her careful mask fall. In its place is all the fear and sadness that I could see behind it earlier, and I jump off the bed quickly to her to embrace her tightly. I hold her as close as I can, never wanting to let go. In my arms at least, I know she is safe.
"I-I had to do it. I couldn't let them take her." I hear, muffled by my shirt since I haven't let up on my hold and neither has she.
"I know." I reply, stroking her hair as I do so. I pull away slightly so she can see me.
"Do you remember what you told me to do last year?" I ask her, staring her right in the eyes. She needs to know how completely serious I am. In response she nods but clearly doesn't trust her voice to say it yet.
"You made me promise to come home any means necessary. And I did." I remind her. It wasn't always easy, but I did what I had to do to come home. I take her face in my hands so she can't look away from me, "Promise me the same. Any means necessary."
"I promise. Any means necessary." she replies after a moment. Good. Between promising Prim and me, she will have to come home. She won't allow herself to let us both down.
"And I promise the same. You are winning these Games. I'll make sure of it."
"How? It's not going to be as easy to get me sponsors as it was you. I'm not 'camera ready' like you are." she asks, referring to what Ceaser called me during my interview. I really don't believe that's true, but apparently it did help me get sponsors. More than Haymitch could get me on his own anyway. But she can get sponsors-Katniss is beautiful, though she doesn't see it. Plus she has a mentor who is willing to go to the gates of hell to bring her home a Victor.
"Trust me, you will have sponsors. I'm going to make sure of it. Any means necessary." I respond boldly. She really has no idea what I'm willing to do. What I have to do-I've kept her in the dark for a reason. But I can't have her ask me what I'm going to do, so I change the subject quickly.
"It's time to go to dinner. Ready?" she nods, and we walk out the door to join the others.
Yes, Peeta is the other tribute still. In fact, all the tributes will be the same as the book. But I promise things are going to change since Gale's the mentor. Some things will be the same, but the results won't always be. Anyways, next chapter up tomorrow. Promise it will be a lot more interesting than this one ;)