So, it turns out that procrastination came upon me and I decided to take a study break and post this chapter.

At last, Finnick enters our tale.

Please let me know what you think!

The third year of her efforts seemed to go along as the other two had except for a strange occurrence.

While she was stomping on the nettles, she heard horse's hooves on the sand.

Annie thought her feet were ready for a break anyways and so went to see who was on the beach.

She felt her breath catch in her throat when she saw him, the most handsome man she had ever seen riding, on palomino horse.

He had bronze hair that shimmered in the sunshine and was quite tanned.

He startled her by jumping off his horse and running, throwing his jacket and shirt aside.

Now she could see his muscular form and felt her cheeks blush as she stared at his perfection.

He stopped only briefly to take of his boots before he ran into the surf and dove under the waves.

He stayed under for so long, Annie was worried he had drowned.

Just as she was about to leave the woods and go check on him, his head popped out and she felt her heart quicken at the look of contentment.

The madness that had possessed him seemed gone now that he was in the waves, floating.

She could relate to that, she knew the feeling of wanting to run far away from your problems and she had lately found the ocean to be a great comfort to her.

She continued to watch him, and thus saw the sorrow overcome him when he sat on the beach. He also seemed nervous as well.

He kept fidgeting at every sound and frequently his hands went to look at his sword in his pile of clothes.

Annie wondered about him, why was he so on edge? What was he running from?

She was so deep in her thoughts, that she missed the arrival of two other men, though one of them seemed to be more boy than man.

"Finnick", the taller one called out, "You can't leave us behind like that, it isn't safe."

"I think I can take care of myself, John." the bronze haired man, Finnick she guessed, answered.

"After all, I am the youngest admiral ever and the hero of many battles at sea." He winked but she could see the hidden sorrow.

"Winning battles doesn't mean you can leave behind your guards, or me at least." John said with a glance at the boy.

"I don't know why you let him come along." He sneered. "In his...condition"

The boy remained silent as he started to walk to Finnick. His steps were unsteady but he persisted.

Annie noticed he had a pronounced limp and then saw that one of his legs was wooden from the knee down.

The boy asked "Do you feel better now, out here?" as he gestured to the ocean.

Finnick sighed heavily. "I thought I would...but I can still see the blood painting my hands red, hear the death cries and smell the cannon smoke." His face was filled with pain and guilt.

He suddenly stood up and whirled around. "I can't get my hands to stop shaking at times, Peeta look!"

The boy, Peeta, obediently looked at his hands. Then he walked closer to Finnick and put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay to be bothered by the battles. I still have nightmares too."

"Yes but you lost your leg, you have reason. I was fine, am fine...I just..." Finnick trailed off.

"My scars are easy to see, yes." Peeta acknowledged. "But that doesn't mean yours aren't there too."

John sniffed but walked over to join them. "You had survived many battles, Finnick. That's nothing to scoff at."

Finnick nodded. "I know and I am glad to do my part, I just wish that I could find some way to be calm at home too, to find a way to keep the ocean with me, for it's only in the water that I finally find peace from my thoughts."

"I paint mostly to help with my nightmares." Peeta offered. "It gives my hands and mind something to do to bleed off the poison."

"I'm no good at painting." Finnick said while John snorted and added "Unless it's the town." with a wicked smirk.

They sat around for a bit and then John grabbed his axe and went toward Annie.

She scurried back as far as she could while staying low, worried she had been seen.

Soon, John started chopping down a tree, she realized to get firewood, once he left the woods with the logs.

Annie creep away from her hiding place to watch the group once more.

One by one, they seemed to fall asleep, mesmerized by the flames and the sound of the waves.

Annie waited for a while longer before leaving the woods to creep closer.

Up close, Finnick was even more handsome than she realized. But his sleep seemed troubled and she saw his hands start to shake.

She wondered what she could do to help him, for her heart had been touched by his story and the pain he suffered from.

Annie walked back to her cave, determined to find some way to help Finnick.

She then remembered how making the net with Mags had soothed her after the tracker jacker hallucinations when she saw her loom.

She wondered how she could recreate that experience for him. She sat down and thought about it for a few minutes.

Suddenly, her eyes spied a piece of rope she had used to hang the distaff from a tree.

Perhaps it would work...she had to try anyways.

She untied the distaff and freed the rope. Annie tied a basic knot, in hopes he would get the idea.

She crept back to the beach and had another idea of how to convey the idea to him.

As quickly as she could, Annie gather up some pieces of seaweed and used them to create partial knots, leading up the one she made in the rope. While she gathered the seaweed, a wave knocked her over.

She got up, soaked to her skin but she endeavored to finish her task.

She laid out the series of knots besides Finnick and just as she put down the rope, he stirred.

She froze for a moment and his eyes caught sight of her before closing again.

When he next opened them and sat up quickly, Annie was hidden in the woods once more, her heart racing from her run and from his dreamy gaze.

Finnick sat up quickly, as though his brain had just processed what he had seen and he looked all around the beach before finding the seaweed and the ropes.

He paused, trying to figure out what it meant when Peeta woke up.

"What do you think this means?" Finnick asked. "I woke up and this" He gestured to the pile, "was lying here."

Peeta moved closer and took a look. "It looks like a progression. See how it starts here completely untied and it ends here with the full knot?"

"Yes." Finnick nodded and then his eyes light up. "I think I have it, it's something for my hands to do, tie knots!"

Peeta's grin matched his, "That's a great idea."

John woke up then. "What are you two idiots so happy about?"

"I've found a way to treat my...tremors." Finnick answered and held up the knotted rope.

"Hmm, guess it'll do." But John's eyes had brightened at the grin on Finnick's face.

"How did you think of it?"

"I didn't, I just woke up and it was here." Finnick hesitated. "I think I saw a... mermaid...but when I opened my eyes again, she was gone."

"A mermaid?" John scoffed. "Yeah right, think the sun touched you in the head today."

Peeta simply smiled at Finnick. "Perhaps she was, Finnick."

They left soon after that. Annie felt the loss of his presence acutely but was glad to know he liked her idea to help him.

I wanted to embellish their interactions more than the original tale. So, I added a pseudo meeting. I thought Finnick would suffer from PTSD, similar to all the victors and made his arena naval battles instead.