So sorry for the long hiatus! I haven't really had the time nor passion to write, so I know, I'm awful. I've also decided to continue the series, so expect more soon, hopefully.
I grit my teeth as Dinosaur stabs the needle into my leg, pushing her flabby thumb into my muscle. I bite my tongue and hold back a scathing remark for the bitch, but I'm in a fairly good mood today, so let's not let Dinosaur ruin it. Which reminds me, I don' even know their names.
Just to get my mind off the burning, tingling sensation, I ask her, "What is your name anyways?"
She lets out a light, Capitol chuckle. "Oh, dear, my name is Furalda."
Mad Man steps in as well and contributes his name, "Darson."
Lastly, Honey says, "Cafasa." I look up at all their creepy faces. What in the hell? Those names are really weird, to say the least. I squirm a little when they continue to stare at me expectantly.
I clear my throat and then they begin to bustle around me. Furalda says, "Oh, and by the way, the serum I used on you was designed to not let anymore hair on your body."
"Why didn't you use that for the Hunger Games?" I ask.
"Well, dear, we only use this for the victors, since it is quite expensive. Wouldn't want to waste our valuables on morons, am I right?" Furalda answered, chuckling to herself. I just nod and my hand self-consciously goes to the base of my throat and I fiddle with my necklace of the Rebellion.
Darson speaks up again and says, "Well, we won't have to deal with you until Neo is done with your District 11 attire. Now get going!" I shrink back a bit from his yelling. He apologizes and rubs his eyes, clearly out of exhaustion. Seems he hasn't been getting much sleep either.
I get up and walk out to my house, where I am supposed to meet Neo. I open my door and walk up the stairs. I walk down the hallway and see a door that is open. I notice Neo's bald head sticking up over a chair and I walk in the room, closing the door behind me.
Neo turns around and smiles at me. She motions for me to come and sit next to her. "Hello dear, how have you been?"
"Good," I answer, which was an understatement. She smiled again and then she grabs a touch screen device of sorts and scrolls down with her fingers. She hands the device to me and I peer down at the design on the page. I smile at the color of gold, once more, on a shimmery, jeweled top. Tight black latex pants are on the bottom and a coat is over the shimmery top. Four inch heels are on the very bottom and I look up and smile at her.
"Do you like it?" she asks.
"Yes, it's stunning," I answer truthfully.
"Good, I collaborated with Leile and Cinna and Portia."
"Cinna and Portia? District 12's stylist?"
"Yes. Katniss and Peeta are the victors as well, remember?" Neo explains to me like I'm a small child incapable of such thought.
I had actually totally forgotten about them, though. "Right, right. I remember now. We'll be stuck on the train with that scum. Wonderful," I say scathingly and full of venomous hate.
Neo clears her throat once again. "Yes, well, yes…" she says, obviously for lack of better word. Awkward silence fills the space between us and the air is full of strain. Neo nods and stands up, walking over and grabbing an outfit cover from a rack that I have never noticed to be in this room.
"Well, here's your outfit. Please be done getting dressed in at the most, 10 minutes. Then go back to your Prep Team. They will prepare you further more. After that, your escort, your mentors, your fellow victor, and myself and Leile will join you at the town square. Are we clear?" Neo explains.
I nod and stand up, taking the outfit from her. I wait for her to leave before finally taking off my pajamas. I unzip the cover and am nearly blinded by the extremely sparkly material. I smiled. Just the way I like it.
I slipped the shirt on and then the pants. They fit perfectly, of course, as did the fur coat. The next obstacle was the shoes. I sit down and slip the equally sparkly shoes on. I laced them up and stood up. I quickly gained strength in the heels, but I'm not gonna lie, I slipped a few times.
I open the door and start walking down the stairs, my heels clacking down the steps when I feel a rough hand on my shoulder. I wince against the touch and turn around slowly, preparing to have my nightmares confirmed. Unfortunately, they were confirmed when I was starting into the blood-red eyes of my dysfunctional father.
He leaned on me more, causing me to teeter slightly in the heels. He lets out a breath of air that would probably have been a laugh if he hadn't been drinking so much.
His raspy voice sounded out as he said, "You look real pretty."
I lean back in disgust and then I feel other hands around my waist, strong reassuring hands. I lean back into the touch and touch a familiar, hard chest. I know it's Cato instantly.
Cato speaks up from behind me, his chest vibrating against my back as he speaks. "I would recommend leaving her alone unless you want me to beat your ass again, pervert."
My father lets out another breath of laughter and reaches his hand out. Cato grabs in an instant and flicks his fragile wrist, breaking it. I back up even farther into Cato and spin around, prepared to run.
I start to walk quickly and ignore the screams of pain coming from behind, just like it was when I was 14, except then I was scared to death. Now, I'm glad that Cato was there to stop him from doing things to me that he used to do all the time to me. Back then, I could never appreciate Cato and what he did for me, but now I know I could. He was just protecting me, but I always thought he was hurting my father, and I didn't like it. Now I do.
I open the door and Cato's hand is placed securely in the small of my back. As soon as I close the door, he leans over and puts his mouth on top of my head, giving me light kisses as we walk. He holds me protectively against him and I feel so safe, safe from the rest of the world. I feel like there's nobody else in the world until I feel Darson's hand on my shoulder. I pull away from Cato and turn around, facing him.
"Where have you been? We have work to do and we only have so long!" he exclaims. I nod and look back at Cato. He nods and turns on his heel, heading to where his Prep Team is located.
Darson led me back to my Prep Team and they started brushing through my hair again, then they applied my makeup. Everything else was a blur as I kept remembering what my father used to do me. It was true he never truly raped me, but he still assaulted me, even though I lived with Cato and his older brother, Clavin. He would come over when they weren't there, and I, of course, was too weak and scared to do anything about it. I am nothing like my former self.
When they were done applying my makeup and finishing touches, they announced me even more beautiful than before and ready for the eyes of the Capitol. I just smile and nod, appreciating my team.
I stand up from the seat and open the door, walking down when I heard an all too familiar voice. I couldn't help but smile and laugh. It was the world's best escort, none other than Barrio.
I dash down the steps and see his new style, which consists of spiked pink hair and a purple, feathered outfit. I shout out his name and hug him, putting my entire weight on him. He laughs and smiles, pulling away from me, but keeping hold of my shoulders at arms-length, observing me.
"My my my, they did quite the job on you. You look fabulous!" Barrio exclaims. I laugh and smile when I notice Cato's hovering shape by the door. He is wearing a gold suit jacket like mine with a lighter gold shirt underneath and black pants and black, shiny shoes. I smile at him lightly and he just nods his head and turns around, arms crossed, and walks out the door.
He calls over his shoulder, "They're ready for us now."
I sigh and look at Barrio and he nods, putting his arm through the crook of my elbow. "Shall we?" And with that, we walked outside and were nearly blinded by the flash of more cameras. I notice Brutus almost immediately as he pushes through the crowd like they're a herd of cattle and approaches me, taking in my appearance. He just smiles and tilts his head to where Cato and Enobaria and Leile are already standing.
Neo comes up behind Brutus and I start walking towards them, following them to the train once more. I step up the steps onto the train car and stop, turn around, and blow them a kiss, the cameramen and women alike swooning.
I walk into the car adjacent to the one I was in and notice everyone else is standing around awkwardly. I look over and notice why. Katniss and Peeta. This wasn't going to go all too well.
