Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed! Really it provides so much motivation to write more. School started again a few days ago, but I'll be updating at least once a week. This is the shortest chapter yet but they won't be getting any shorter I promise. Feedback is revered. I don't own THG.


Chapter 4:

Impulse had caused Annie to speak, but now the only thing stopping her from changing her mind back was pride. Learn to swim? Where, in all of Panem, had this thought suddenly come from? Too much time with the Odair boy, she thought, Soon you'll be as crazy as he is. Nevertheless she stood perfectly still in the water, waiting patiently but not without anxiety as Finnick paddled over slowly. The longer she stood out here, the more things she noticed as her senses came alive. The smell of the pure, salty water, the way the sunlight would dance on it, the way she could constantly feel it moving in and around her feet and legs.

"Don't tell me you're nervous already, Cresta?" Finnick had been underwater right up until the point where he surfaced right in front of her, his eyes flickering to where her hands were. Before his words registered, she thought of how the way his eyes flickered perfectly matched the light on the ocean. Only for a second, but in every way right down to the colour. This thought disappeared when she was reminded of the stinging in her fingers and looked down to where she'd been subconsciously picking.

"With you as a teacher, who's to say I'm not going to drown?" she said back, and splashed him lightly.

He splashed her back, "You should be grateful, I'm the only one who's willing to put up with you long enough to do it. Now come here."

Annie obeyed, wading towards him. The water reached her hips now, there was no longer any use in worrying about her dress.

"What now?" she asked.

"First thing's first," Finnick began, "You'll learn to float on your back. Don't worry, I'll keep you afloat for the start, it's just to get used to the feeling of it."

Annie nodded, and slowly let herself into the water. With Finnick's hand on her back, she leaned back the whole way. It was a strange feeling, so weightless. She found that there was no real way to explain what she was doing, swimming, as it was more instinctual and done by feeling. The water covered her ears, blocking or muffling out all the usual sounds. For a second, when she closed her eyes, Annie felt a moment of peace. This isn't so bad, she thought to herself. But then Finnick moved his hands away, the hands keeping her afloat. Despite doing it carefully and gently, Annie was reminded of the feeling of being alone in the ocean, where waves can break your neck and and where she was nearly swallowed and killed as a child. She flailed, losing her composure completely, gasped while under water, and then ungracefully thrashed about until she could feel the sand underneath her feet. She stood there, coughing and spluttering, throat and nostrils stinging.

Finnick didn't know whether to be concerned or burst out laughing. She had looked ridiculous, but the fear in her eyes the moment his hands had left her back was so intensely real, he held his tongue. In spite of this, Annie was eyeing him scornfully.

"It's not funny," she exclaimed with a cough.

"I'm not laughing," Finnick said in surprise, for he wasn't, but after this outburst he was close to it.

"You are on the inside," she glared at him, but her next bout of coughing was mixed with laughter. "I really thought I had it."

"I did too," he admitted, "That's why I let go. Do you want to take a break?"

Annie shook her head, the terror of her memory gone as quickly as it had come. "No, let's try again."

The corner of Finnick's mouth twitched, "Why would I even ask?"

They did the same thing as last time, only after about a minute of Annie treading water on her back, Finnick pulled his hand away. Slower, this time, and not without warning. Annie didn't flail, no terror of getting lost in this abyss caused a sense of panic. Instead she remained treading the water lightly, and keeping afloat with ease. This was not difficult, and it was not scary. It was simple and pure just like the water which surrounded her. After about a minute Finnick tapped her arm gently and her eyes opened. She stood up and faced him, any thoughts about her soaking wet clothing forgotten.

"You can float now," Finnick said, "That's the easy part though. Come on, you've got a lot of catching up to do if you're going to be as good as me."

Normally this would incite a smart remark back, but Annie did not bother. Instead, without speaking, she took his outstretched hand and they waded deeper still.


They met nearly every day for the next week and in that time, Annie had learned the basics of how to swim. Despite the fact that she could not yet swim very far and could still find it hard to tread water for very long at all, Annie had nonetheless picked it up quickly. She gained a quick appreciation for being underwater. She loved the way her hair would all part and float in a cloud around her, the way everything sounded, the feeling of weightlessness, and especially how the light looked when it shone through the surface of the water in a white blur. If it weren't for her body letting her down with it's constant need for oxygen, she could stay down there for hours.

She resurfaced, gasping for air.

"You ok?" Finnick had swum over to her in a second.

"Yeah," she puffed, trying to get her breath back. "I just run out of air quickly." She paddled over to the drop, which she had only recently conquered, and stood up on the rock shelf.

"That'll get easier in time," Finnick promised, "So will treading water. You've just got to be patient." He said with a smirk.

"Then it's a good thing I'm the one learning," Annie said, "And not you." She began wringing out her hair. It was a warm day though so it wouldn't be a problem for it to dry. "I'm gonna go dry off. Are you coming?"

Finnick waved her off, "In a minute." And dove under. She turned to go to the shore without him.

He resurfaced, and lay floating on his back for a few minutes, eyes closed, the sun warming his face. Each day that he spent with Annie, she seemed to become less like the strange girl he had first met, and more like someone he could - almost - understand. She was less puzzling, less tedious, less stubborn - well okay, less puzzling at least.


A month had passed, and on this particular day Finnick and Annie decided to wander in the other direction. They went away from their bay, past their homes, past the busy centre and markets and main bay and beaches, to just past the docks. With them they brought a few small rolls of bread, two fishing rods, a net and some bait, and spent hours sitting on some large rocks, waiting for the fish to bite. They didn't talk much, just sat in each other's company. Annie mended nets for her aunt's stall that she had brought with her, Finnick whistled quietly under his breath and Annie showed him various types of knots.

"You always have to keep your hands busy," Finnick remarked quietly. Annie didn't answer and they both kept knotting.

Finally she simply replied with, "Yeah. Don't know why." Over, under, twist left and loop.

Tension began to form in the air, as both their minds went to the one thing neither of them wanted to talk about. A mandatory television viewing which had aired that morning, not long before they had met. Finnick was first to break.

"Did you..." he began slowly. Words escaped him, and he could only finish with "This morning?"

Of course she did, they all did.

Annie nodded, her throat was tight. The thought of that one 30 second segment had managed to make her chest and entire body tighten. Her hands shook slightly, fingers fumbled, she lost the knot she was trying to form and instead tangled the twine.

"Crap," she muttered under her breath, and set the rope aside. "Seven days until the reaping."

The words came out of her mouth and her hands continued trembling slightly. She became conscious of digging into her fingers with her short, heavily bitten nails, but did nothing to stop it. She would have made her fingers bleed further if not for Finnick setting his rope down, reaching out to lay one hand on hers, and with the other take her net and put it into her hands. It was all her could do for her for now.

"You'll be fine, ok?" he said, then felt the need to add, "We both will."

This was for his own benefit, though.

He went on, "It's your first reaping Annie, your name's only in there once, ok?"

She nodded, but it was doing no good. "And your name's in there three times, but it's enough. One is all it takes Finn, what if I get picked, what if you get picked?"

Annie regretted saying this immediately, Finnick was doing a good job at trying to keep calm, why would she say something to make him nervous?

Finnick's stomach knotted up, but he held it together. If he began to panic, Annie would be in no better state. "We won't," he said soothingly.

"But what if we do?"

"But we won't."

"But what if we do?"

"Someone would volunteer."

"What if they don't?"

"But they would."

"But what if"-

Annie couldn't speak anymore. "Sorry," she said. She had nearly completely lost it.

"It's alright," Finnick replied quietly, "Now knot."

Neither of them paid attention to one of the rods when it began to bend with the weight of a catch. They just kept tying.


Let me know what you think? It was a slightly shorter chapter but anywhere upwards of 1,500 is alright for me, I don't know. Reviews are so very, very greatly loved and appreciated, as are all the alerts/favourites.