Peeta's POV:
Right after I left the television set, I didn't know where to go, so two guards grabbed my arms and a third one knocked me out. I woke up a day later. When I did, Johanna and Annie were awake. The woman from district 4 was covering her ears with her hands and started humming with her eyes tightly shut. Johanna, for her part, seemed badly bruised and very anxious.
I tried to get an explanation about what was happening to us but both women were too far gone in their minds and thoughts to even hear what I asked. I was also really tired. I lied down and fell asleep surprisingly quick. Each day we were getting less and less food. We each had a daily session with Snow, as he tried to get information from us in order to receive clues about what they could do against the rebellion that was occurring.
Once in a while, I was brought into an empty room and before the door was closed, a peacekeeper was walking in. One of the wall seemed to be a mirror and I guessed it was a one-way glass. The man in uniform was getting close to me, kneeling. He asked me if I knew anything about the rebellion. Every time I said I had no clue, I was getting either punched or kicked. As there weren't any possible escape, I cowered and tried to dodge the blows but since I was weak, the peacekeeper was a lot faster than me.
We were witnesses of each others "treatment". Also, to show how controlling the Capitol was, they tortured both the avoxes that were assigned the penthouse during the last Hunger Games, in front of me. The girl died instantly as the electricity dose they inflicted her was far over her tolerance. I learned later that her name was Lavinia, by Johanna. Sometimes, without any consideration, the Peacekeepers called both of them redheads. As the Peacekeeper, who controlled the lever, increased the power, the only sound we heard was the girl howling, before a sudden silence.
After her death, it became obvious that Snow's goal was to break me. He would kill people I care for in front of my eyes, hurt my friends, hurt me in every possible way. I was trying to keep holding on and sometimes it took all my willpower in order to stay myself. I thought that if I could keep up with the silence long enough, there were less people that could be hurt by my actions or my words. As the President wanted to keep me under his control, immediately brought the other avox serving our floor during the week before the third quarter quell.
The avox man, Darius, who I've only seen once or twice in the Hob, in district 12, was stronger than the avox girl. It took many days to get "rid" of him. He went through the electric treatment, the whipping station, before he landed on the quartering table. At each question answered with a pleading sound, the avox man was quartered from an inch more. This treatment had been going on for almost three hours when Darius gave me a look that we both knew was his last. He had a tiny smile as he was happy that it was finally over. The Peacekeeper noticed our unsaid exchange and as a consequence gave a final twist to the wheel controlling the quartering table. I heard a "Snap!" and then all that was left of Darius was his lifeless body.
After a while, the treatment I was inflicted daily got severe modifications. I was brought in a room with a giant flat screen. Some suckers were put on my head, on the frontal cervical lobes. The monitor started to show clips of Katniss in the Hunger Games. The only things they showed me was her over-the-edge rationalism. At first I was astonished how beautiful and flawless she was. Slowly, my opinion changed. As I felt a migraine growing in my head, I started to perceive the girl of my dreams as a horrible being. When my opinion changed, the memory became clearer. Strangely, it felt the same as when I got stung by those Tracker-Jackers, in my first Hunger Games.
It was no longer possible for me to say if the girl with the braid loved me or only played it. It was awful being confused with my own thoughts. I was, by the end of the first week sessions, sure that Katniss never tried to save me and that she always did anything but care about me. Considering that my migraine was awfully severe, my conscience was only held by a thread. The decision to drift off was easy to make as it would get me rid of the pain, momentarily.
I was no longer being held with Johanna and Annie. I even started being violent. I couldn't recognize myself. I haven't been aware of the change in my head except that I lost all the trust I had in Katniss. Even if the memories I kept from the Hunger Games didn't match with the course of events, I had no choice but to believe them. No one could stay in my company for any longer than half an hour. Considering this, no one I could trust was able to stay long enough with me to convince me of what I thought was real wasn't at all. My new room consisted of a hidden dungeon. I didn't stop throwing myself on the walls as I didn't want to stay there, to stay alive. I wanted it to end; to stop suffering.
Two weeks after the beginning of the clip treatment, I was brought again to Caesar's television set. Portia came and dabbed makeup on my entire body. My rib cage was showing under the shirt I was wearing. I was wondering while I look in the mirror how much I thought I had changed. As the makeup came on, I looked better and better. However, someone paying a close attention would have seen how bad I was. I finished looking very handsome and all covered by a thick layer of foundation, to cover every imperfection caused by Snow's treatment.
Even if I thought I had an easiness to move people, this time was different, I was more focused on the pain running under my skin when I moved. I have been held by Snow for nearly two months. In fact, I didn't even want to do this interview, I just wanted to run and hide. As I stood behind the scene, someone had to push me in order to make me go and do it.
