Chapter 4 – The Truth Hurts

Jay stopped in the entry to the dining room, his eyes wide at the sight of the Doctor. He really hadn't been able to get a good look at him when he'd fallen from the sky, he'd been too worried about retaliation. If anyone knew Snow, it was Jay. He knew how angry he was probably because of the interruption. Knew he'd want retaliation. Knew that whoever had been in that box wasn't safe and neither were the people around him so he really hadn't paid much attention to him or Beata. Well he had noticed Beata, he'd have been stupid not to have. Looking around, he saw Beata standing in a corner, her brow furrowed and tears streaming silently down her face as she stared at the ground, looking nothing at all like the girl in the box or from the elevator.

The Doctor on the other hand looked ecstatic, something a tribute never saw his or her mentor as any time before the victors night or when leaving the arena. He was pacing the room, his arms flying around as he ranted on and on about something that Jay didn't know yet. There was writing on one of the walls, weird symbols and random words, also making no sense to Jay. The Doctor did look funny though as he paced quickly, his bowtie starting to falling apart, hair a mess and tugging periodically on his suspenders. The funniest thing about him however was his accent, it was so strange, even stranger then the capitol's and one he had never heard before.

" Sexy Thing shorted out because of Beata's drink spilling on the mainframe. She's never shorted out before so maybe this was no accident? Well of course it's no accident, Sexy Thing would never make a mistake and has never been damaged by a silly spilled drink, she's too old for that and she only does this kind of thing on purpose because we're needed here... This is brilliant! Just brilliant! Don't you see this Beata, you get to see the future of your country! This is what the future holds for your children!" The Doctor exclaimed as if it was a good thing.

Beata's head snapped up at that instant and she shoved the Doctor away since he had gotten in her face. " Brilliant? Brilliant?" She shouted, her face turning red with anger. " I'm seventeen years old and now I have to risk my neck and you think it's brilliant? Have you truly gone off your rocker?"

The Doctor looked dazed for a second and looked at her curiously. " You're really scared aren't you Beata?" He asked softly, seriousness finally settling over him.

" She should be!" Jay finally shouted, all the heads in the room turning to look at him. " She's obviously not from Panem, she just crashed Snow's celebrations which are more important now than they ever were in the past and she doesn't know what she's facing!" He explained, his face starting to turn red from anger.

" Jay." His father's voice came from behind him in his soothing voice. His hands come down on his shoulders, but Jay just shrugged them off without a second thought, taking a step forward.

" No, she needs to know and so does he. These aren't for fun and games, these aren't fun in any way. This is my second time in these games, my father lost a leg, my mother lost a baby, twenty-three children die in this every year. My parents have killed people, my mother held my father as he lay dying, barely able to save him, she held a little girl no older then twelve as she died, everyone in this room has killed and almost been killed to be here. The only ones excluded from that are you Doctor, Beata there and Jaide. I'm the only person going back into that arena who's already been there. I barely made it and I don't know if I can do it again, she should be scared!" He shouted, not caring about the stunned looks the other mentors were giving him.

" I think that's enough Jay." His father told him firmly, but Katniss held up a hand to stop him from saying anything more that usually followed ' that's enough' in his lectures.

" No Peeta, Beata and the Doctor deserve to know the truth. Beata is a tribute, she's going to train with the other twenty-four, Snow's going to force her into that arena and she's going to have to fight for her life. Jay has every right to not sugar coat this, you and I both know this. The three of us have been in that arena twice, he stole you from me, threatened to kill everyone I loved and succeeded in killing your entire family and Gale and has forced us into despicable things." She told Peeta calmly, her eyes never leaving the table in front of her.

Peeta fell silent and Jay dropped his gaze. " You're right Katniss, he does have every right to be doing this since none of us were going to speak up." He sighed, stepping around Jay to sit beside Katniss and took her hand in a loving gesture.

Beata stepped around the Doctor to look at Jay with a pale face and terrified expression. " Is this true? Your president really forces twenty-four of you to fight and kill each other?" She whispered, the Doctor staring at the space where she had been.

" Every word." He told her with a small nod of her head.

" He is telling the truth Beata. I've grown up knowing the glory and honor of the games, but there is a down side to it." Jaide whispered, Jay hadn't expected her to say anything.

The four other mentors in the room nodded in agreement, no one able to look Beata or Jay in the eyes. Jay mentally called them all cowards before taking his spot on the other side of his dad. " You don't have a choice in this anymore than we did, but as I offered Jaide on the train, I can help you in the training center. I can't guarantee in the arena, but I can help you learn the basic survival skills in the next couple of days." Jay told her with a small sigh, leaning back in his chair.

" The six of us have even offered to assist the Doctor in mentoring her just as we would any other district twelve or eleven mentor." Katniss spoke up, the other mentors agreeing as well.

" This still doesn't make this anymore right! How old are you Jaide?" Beate snapped.

Jaide looked stunned and it seemed to take her a moment to find her voice. " I'm sixteen, the same age Peeta and Katniss were when they first competed." She choked out.

" What about you Jay? How old were you when you first entered that arena?" Beata demanded, giving him a fierce look. She seemed dead set on whatever path her mind had started to wonder down and he wasn't going to try and derail her.

" I was twelve when I was drawn. Jaide volunteered for this, she knows what she's doing and I would have gladly volunteered to come had I had the chance." Jay told her boldly, his parents both seeming to hold their breath as he was sere memories were flooding back.

" Twelve? You were twelve when you faced everyone and you still survived?" Beata whispered, unable to believe it.

" Yes." He told her curtly. " I fought against people more than twice my size, all the odds were against me and I was able to make it out alive." He balled his hands into tight fists as he tried to suppress memories.

" I'd like to talk with you about these games and your experience in them. I've talked with these fine people about their times in the arena and I want to know about yours the most since you were so young." The Doctor suddenly said, turning around to face Jay with a determined expression.

He shrugged and moved to stand up. " Alright, let's go into the living room and talk further. Now's the best time before I get too preoccupied with training." He said, motioning for the Doctor to follow him into the sitting room.

Katniss tried to follow, but Peeta held her back, shaking his head. Jay was relieved because he didn't want to deal with his mom interrupting him as he told the story to the Doctor. The Doctor followed him out with Beata on his tail. He didn't care if Beata knew the story, it would possibly save him from having to explain it at a later point. The Doctor and Beata took seats on either side of the couch and Jay sat in one of the arm chairs.

" So where do you want me to begin?" Jay asked as he relaxed and seemed completely at ease. It didn't bother him or faze him to tell the story of his first games.

" Begin at the beginning, why couldn't someone else volunteer for you like they're able to do for anyone else in the district?" The Doctor asked as he leaned forward, truly curious.

" Alright, so it all started when my parents had their games and my dad confessed his love…" He told them with a small sigh, running his fingers through his hair as he tried to recall every detail his parents had told him about why he was being punished for their troubles.

Yay! Four chapters in three days, go me! More to come and I'm gonna do my best to update daily!