**EDITED as of 11/3/2016


Chapter Three

Arva

There was a knock on the door, followed by a familiar male's voice telling me to rise from my slumber. Still foggy from sleep, my brain didn't fully register who the voice's owner voice but it certainly wasn't Arlen's for one. Opening my eyes, I blearily blinked to clear my vision and for a brief moment, I felt lost. Sunlight streamed through the open spaces of the curtains that hung on the windows of unfamiliar walls, indicating that morning had arrived. Then, I recalled the series of events prior to falling asleep.

The door opened and the bed I laid in shifted at the new weight of another person. Finnick's charming smile came into view as he crawled over me and every last bit of drowsiness in my being vanished at once. I watched his expression warily, momentary forgetting to pull on the benevolent persona I had allowed to be dominant in public for nearly a decade.

"Good morning," he greeted me in a seductive tone—husky and low—as he neared my neck and inhaled. "The scent of strawberries and vanilla befits you," he continued, pulling away to meet my eyes once more.

"Do you greet every woman in her bed like this?"

The sentence slipped out my lips and I regretted it soon after, even more so when Finnick's smile noticeably widened. No one—not even Arlen and Cordi had witnessed anything else but the gentle side of me but Finnick alone could pull out my true self within minutes without much effort.

"Do you show this livelier self of yours to just anyone?" he teased, taking a lock of my hair and pressed his lips onto it. Although I was forcing my gaze to not break away from his—to remain composed, I could tell that he was aware that his closeness made me uncomfortable.

"What do you want, Odair?" I didn't bother to hide anymore. My plans to fool everyone and surprise them were ruined unless Finnick kept his mouth shut. In his point of view, I wasn't the meek sheep I made myself turn out to be anymore. I was a step away from the flock and a step closer to the pack.

"Why don't you call me by my given name instead? Calling me by my last name makes it seem like we're strangers," he inched closer to until I could feel his breath on my lips, making it more difficult for me to keep the eye contact as I felt my traitorous cheeks grow warm.

"We are technically strangers, Finnick," I replied flatly but called the man by his given name nonetheless. "What do you want?"

"Will you share all of your secrets with me?" he whispered. His lips were now so close to mine that any slight movement would make them meet. I clutched the sheets, afraid to make any other movements, let alone breathe. Finnick's eyes were like endless sea green pools. Desire was evident in his eyes but then, I realized that it veiled deeper, hidden emotions. Curiosity rose and I felt myself being lured into Finnick's trap—just not the one he was expecting.

"Arva! Are you awake? We'll be reaching the capitol in an hour and—oh…O-oh! Excuse me!"

The door slammed shut as Elodea hastily fled the scene, successfully breaking whatever trance I was in and saving me from the possibility of revealing more about my real self. I hurriedly pushed Finnick off me and thankfully he complied, falling onto his side on the comfortable bed. I clumsily stumbled out from under the covers and headed towards the door that led to the bathroom without turning around to see the look on my mentor's face. I couldn't bear to look at it. It could be triumph written on his face. It could be curiosity. It could also be something else but whatever it was, I had no desire to confront him in this state.

Water soaked my form as I exhaled a shuddery breath, bearing in mind that the running shower would muffle every sound I made as long as it remained within a range of volume. My mind replayed the scene and my fists clenched tighter. Finnick broke down my defenses. In several minutes, he reached further—to the same point where I limited Arlen—than anyone else who had tried for years.

'How?' My lips pursed. I couldn't allow that to happen or all those years of dedication in fooling everyone would be nothing but a waste of time. I couldn't fully trust anyone—at least not until this was all over, but would that even be wise? Mother's final words echoed in my mind again. They haunted me ever since her death, serving as a painful reminder along as fuel for my determination to protect what was left of my family.

Also, what led to Finnick's earlier actions? He couldn't be romantically interested in me. It was foolhardy, especially when I could be dying soon and depending on how much this 'love' of his was measure, he would be plunging himself into despair. Furthermore, he had rows of potential love interests lined up for him—especially those from the Capitol. No free and willing female would be able to turn away from his attentions and I suspected that men fell for his charms as well. There was no need for him to resort to such actions...unless he wanted to string me along as well.

'No, that can't be.' My eyebrows furrowed as I frowned. 'We've only just met yesterday and there's nothing about me that should've heightened his interests…except maybe the smile? No, no. That wouldn't result in his earlier actions.'

Raking my hair back, I continued to ponder the possibilities. For Finnick to approach me in such manner meant that I had something to offer him. He could have figured out that my public persona was a façade. Yes, that would make sense. He had asked to know of all of my secrets, after all. However, he possibly could have had no idea that I was pretending all the while. My slip-up could have been as much of a surprise to him as it was to me.

Pursing my lips, I pushed away the theories. Whatever Finnick's real motives were, I had no extra time to waste deliberating about it. I had to focus now. Distractions cannot be afforded; I would be facing my death every day in the arena.

'For now, I'll just pretend that nothing happened,' I told myself, lathering shampoo onto my body. I would only to settle what occurred with Finnick when he decided to bring it up.


Although both Elodea and Finnick acted like nothing out of the ordinary had occurred, breakfast retained a slight awkward air. The escort of District Four had inquired Finnick about how Atl and I should behave in the presence of the other tributes, mentors and the Capitol, which Finnick had redirected the question to us. Atl chose to be the watchful, silent type—not that it was much of a difference from how he was already acting whereas I chose to remain my usual self. My serene gaze became slightly pointed when I answered. It was directed at Finnick and the flicker in his sea green eyes told me that he got my message. Hopefully, no one else noticed.

After that, we, with the exception of Elodea, moved to the main compartment. The escort of District Four wanted to speak with the driver and to make some quick arrangements for our arrival. Steel, glass and concrete buildings of various sizes flashed by; we were nearing the Capitol. There were blobs of colors—residents—everywhere as well. I tried my best to contain my curiosity for the outside world and to remain indifferent in my usual smiling, gentle manner, but my eyes still strayed to the window. Here, the people were enjoying life. They took everything for granted. They fed off the labor and suffering of the people in the districts.

"What do you think?" Finnick's voice prompted me out of my reverie. I turned and found his sea green eyes on me, watching my every move like I was some foreign being. Atl's gaze joined his soon after.

"…Different," I answered simply, finding that the other words that popped out in my mind to be too rude for my public persona. I turned back to the window the exact moment the train hissed into a stop.

Atl was the first to exit the train. He smiled moderately at the crowd, already placing down his card. I followed him and the flashes intensified. Despite being taken aback by the roar of the Capitol people, I kept the surprise inside. I fluttered my fingers at them before joining Atl's side. It was only when Finnick stepped out, the roaring entered to a whole new volume of loudness. Girls and ladies alike screamed for our mentor, begging for his attention while he remained unfazed, flashing the crowd his charming smile now and then. Mags was behind him and I couldn't help feeling sorry for her. With this kind of noise, her head should be throbbing. Still, Mags smiled sweetly at the crowd.

Elodea ushered us into the Remake Center where a prep team each whisked Atl and I away. I didn't protest when they told me to strip and behaved when they took their turns beautifying me. The waxing and plucking didn't hurt so much since it was common in District Four. The lesser hair we had, the faster we could swim.

"I'm so glad that Andri requested for District Four this time!" Flossé, the one in charge of removing my body hair exclaimed joyously. "They're more human than the others!"

"Yes! Her skin is perfectly smooth too," Fiammetta added while filling my nails only to frown with her later comment, "But, she's too pale! She looks so…lifeless!"

"Wouldn't it look great against Andri's costume, though?" Flossé giggled.

"Oh, hush now. We've got to hurry before Andri arrives!" Lur, the final member of my prep team instructed as she worked on my hair. I couldn't see what she was doing but I could feel the faint heat of whatever tool she was using.

As soon as their jobs were completed, the trio of colorful ladies exited the room and left me alone in a fluffy white robe. Though, it didn't take long for whom I assumed as the head stylist to enter…only I couldn't tell whether the person was a he or a she.

"My name is Andri. I'm your head stylist."

…Even the voice concealed its owner's gender. My head stylist was entirely androgynous. Fortunately, Andri noticed my hesitation and smiled.

"I am a female, if it makes you comfortable with that knowledge. I chose to be androgynous so that I could gain more control in situations," she explained. I nodded in understanding. Born and bred in the Capitol or not, we all feared what we have no knowledge of so Andri's undetermined gender based on her appearance would make the people around her more submissive.

"Good," Andri's purple lips widened. Then, she cautiously eyed my wrist where my sibling's gift was clasped around. Instinctively, I wrapped my fingers around the sea glass bracelet and Andri's expression softened.

"A token from home?"

"Yes."

"Alright. Don't worry about it. It fits with the costume I've prepared. You don't have to remove it," she circled me once and then, snapped her fingers. The colorful trio hurried into the room at once with a bunch of mainly translucent and white materials in their arms.

"You and your partner…"

I looked into Andri's dark brown eyes which had grey eye shadow around it to make them resemble a panda's.

"…shall surprise the audience this year."