Disclaimer: All characters and things associated with The Hunger Games belongs to Suzanne Collins and Lionsgate. This writing is for pure entertainment only.
Summary: Sequel to A Far Worse Games To Play. Emberly survived the Games, but at what cost? She has distanced herself from the family that loves her and the people who need her causing Katniss and Peeta hold onto hope that their daughter is more then a Capitol Puppet, but all signs point to their daughter being the destruction of Panem.
CHAPTER 7
EMBERLY POV
The train starts to slow and I realize we are pulling up to District 13. I stand from the breakfast table that I am sitting at with Effie and Mason and move to the window. I have never seen District 13 before and am not impressed by it.
Sure, there are houses above ground now, which I know is an improvement from the bunker the entire District lived in before the revolution, but the land is mostly barren and there doesn't seem to be much substances on the surface.
"Doesn't look very inviting…" I mumble.
"Much of District 13 is still below ground…" Effie comments.
I look back at her, slightly surprised. "Didn't know that."
"Well, we will be heading down there for the speech," Effie says, handing notecards to Mason.
"What are these?" Mason looks at them.
"Your speech. Stick to the cards, and we should be okay," Effie says.
"Do the cards make us sound like we love the Capitol?" I ask a serious question as the train moves below ground and comes to a halt. I need those cards to make us sound like Capitol supporters so that nothing we are doing is suspected, not that Mason and I have much of a plan.
"I wrote them myself," Effie seems satisfied.
"Great," I take a deep breath as the doors open and three Peacekeepers from District 13 come onto the train, directing us off.
We are lead down a slopping hallway and I can tell we are only going further below ground.
"Why is everything still under ground?" Mason asks the Peacekeeper.
"Ground up there is safe but we built our society down here. We like the dark," One Peacekeeper says gruffly, as if he is annoyed by our question.
"Yeah…because normal people like to live hundreds of feet underground," I mumble under my breath to Mason.
Mason laughs at my crack but Effie slaps us both in the back with the hand fan she is holding and we both straighten up. This is no time for jokes.
Finally, Mason and I are led to a large platform, which we walk out on and are met with thousands of silent faces from those in District 13. They certainly don't seem happy to see us.
"Lovely," I mumble.
"You're on in three...two…go…" The cameraman to our right signals.
And then suddenly, the crowd comes to life and cheers as the mayor of District 13 greets us. He shakes both of our hands, though it's so obviously forced, just like the cheers from the crowd. Everyone plays his or her part.
"Thank you," My voice is shaky and I realize I have never been a good public speaker, and now, standing in front of thousands of people who want to kill me, I am no better.
Mason seems to see my nervousness and covers for me, picking up Effie's card. "We are honored to be here and celebrate our victory as well as the lives of your fallen tributes…"
Silence sits among the crowd.
"Though both Leaky and Nuke were young, their lives and drives were brilliantly led. They fought with honor for their District and for that you should be proud," Mason continues.
"YOU KILLED THEM! YOU MURDERERS!" Someone in the crowd yells.
Mason seems surprised by the rude comment and although Peacekeepers move to silence the screamer, a spark has been ignited and curses and screams are coming our way from the crowd. They hate us.
Perfect. Now I can start my own chaos.
"OH SHUT UP!" I growl into the microphone.
The crowd seems to grow quiet in shock and I take the minute to show the Capitol my loyalty, so it will not be questioned until the moment I decide to destroy the Capitol.
"Your Tributes were weak and vial just like all of you! You live below ground like disgusted insects. Creatures who can't face the light of day! I am glad your tributes fell beneath us because that helped us get here! Be honored their lives were given in that victory! Be honored their served the Capitol! Be honored you all still have breath in your lungs!" I scream.
The crowd now goes wild, screaming and throwing things at Mason and I. We are quickly led off stage and hear gunshots followed by screams. I am certain a few people from District 13 have been cut down and although I feel sick to my stomach for costing more lives, I know its essential if we are ever to really take the Capitol down; assuming we have a plan to do that in the next few days.
Effie, Mason, and I are quickly led back to the train. The doors are locked promptly behind us and the train takes off quickly.
"What in the hell was that about?" Mason asks me when we are safely out of District 13.
"They weren't being loyal to the Capitol," I glare at him, indicating that this was an imperative move in our plan. Now we look loyal to the Capitol.
Mason takes a moment and then gives a small nod, though I can tell, as he walks to the back of the train, that he is not exactly thrilled with what I have done. To be honest, I am not either. I know I cost innocent lives and I want to forget it. Since I have been left alone in the dining car and I don't think Mason will be back for awhile, I decide to pour myself a big glass of the clear liquor on one of the bar cars.
KATNISS POV
I sit in the garden, trying to plant some tomatoes. Peeta is at work and Galen is at school and I thought getting my hands dirty in the backyard would be a good distraction. But the truth is, I can't think of anything but Emberly's awful speech in District 13. She costs innocent lives and she sounded so disgusting. I never taught my children to hate, but maybe I should have taught them to hate the Capitol, because now all Emberly seems to do is hate everything but the Capitol.
My hands shake as I dig up the garden and finally, I give into my own nerves and toss the tools down. I am not use out here anyway. I close my eyes, trying to steady my own dizziness.
"Well, why not ignite another riot in District 13? Seems proper…" A familiar, drunk voice fills my ears.
I open my eyes and am surprised to see Haymitch, as drunk as ever, has wandered into my yard, holding a flask.
"Haymitch…" I am shocked to see him and quickly get to my feet. I have no idea what he wants but I can't imagine it would be good given what Emberly did to his son.
"Relax, sweetheart," Haymitch motions for me to sit back down and I can tell he can sense my unease. "I didn't come here to make your life miserable."
"You didn't?" I ask the confusion in my voice clear as day but I do ease back down to the ground.
"I think your life is probably already miserable enough without me making it worse," Haymitch says, taking a swig from his flask.
I want to apologize to him, to say something, but as usual I am not the one with the words. Peeta has always been better.
"So I watched your little darling over in District 13," Haymitch continues when I don't speak.
"Oh," I say, surprised by Haymitch's description of Emberly though I am certain he is being sarcastic.
"She didn't seem to have many fans there," Haymitch says.
"No. I guess you are right," I sigh and rub the dirt around in my hands, trying to pick it from my own nails.
Haymitch just sips his flask and I think now he has just drunkenly stumbled over into our yard to just remind me my daughter is awful.
I feel the need to correct some of that. "Haymitch, I am sorry…about…about Damir…"
I fumble out his son's name but it seems to peak Haymitch's interested and his head snaps up to look at me.
He studies me for a long moment and I am worried I have triggered something in him when Haymitch gives me no expression, only continues to watch me carefully.
I bow my head, feeling I have crossed a line when Haymitch finally speaks again.
"Well, I lost my son…and from the looks of things, you lost your daughter as well," Haymitch tells me.
I look up at Haymitch, truly surprised by his words. I don't know what to say.
Haymitch sighs and kneels down next to me, patting me on the back. "You're going to be okay, Katniss."
Suddenly, I begin to cry. I don't know why or maybe I do. Maybe its because I am ashamed; because I am the weak one and my daughter is still alive, and Haymitch is comforting him and my daughter is the reason his son is dead.
"Katniss…don't do this. Be stronger, I know you are," Haymitch comforts me which only makes me cry harder.
"I…I am so sorry, Haymitch…so…so…sorry," I get out with tears.
"Hey, I saw what happened to Emberly. She isn't okay. Maybe she did Damir a favor," Haymitch says.
I know he doesn't believe his words, he is just trying to make me feel better but it only make me feel worse and I completely collapse in my mentors arms.
And Haymitch doesn't move. In fact, he sinks down so that he can wrap both arms around me, dropping his flask in the dirt and rubbing small, soothing circles on my back.
EMBERLY POV
I lay in bed but sleep does not find me. We are far from District 13 now and we should arrive in District 11 in a two days time. Every time I close my eyes I see the lives I cost in District 13 and I know sleep will not come.
I roll over and see Mason laying next to me. We have opted to keep the romance story alive in case anyone on the train reports back to the Capitol. Plus, for my own selfish reasons, I feel safe with Mason next to me.
Mason is asleep and I can't wake him so I gently slip out of bed and move to the window. Its raining outside and I can't see but a foot from the train.
"Can't sleep?" Mason's groggily voice comes from behind me.
I turn and realize, despite my best efforts, I must have woken him when I got out of bed. "Did I wake you?"
"Sleep hasn't been my best friend tonight," Mason admits and sits up.
I sigh and move back to the bed, sitting on the edge of it. We lapse into silence.
"What's wrong?" Mason asks after a long minute.
"I just keep thinking about the people in 13. I really got under their skin…I know some of them are dead because of it," I whisper, though at this hour I doubt anyone in the Capitol is listening to us.
Mason must not think the same way because he stands. "Why don't we go get some fresh air?"
"It's raining," I warn him.
"I like the rain," Mason says and takes me by the hand.
We move silently to the last cart and open the door. Thankfully there is an overhang that we can protect ourselves from the cold rain. We can certainly speak more freely because of the noise of the train.
The second we are outside, Mason's strong arms are around me. "You can't worry about what happened in District 13…"
"I cost people their lives…" I whisper.
Mason pulls back so he can look me in the face. "But you are going to save so many more lives. You need to understand that."
I know Mason may be making a point, assuming that we actually are able to help anyone, but that's not what is right in front of me. Right now, all I can think about is the people who died in District 13 today.
"I just…don't know how we are going to keep this up," I sigh, rubbing my own shoulders now.
"One District at a time…" Mason says.
I take a deep breath, realizing I can feel tears rising as I think about our next stop. "District 11 isn't going to be easy…"
Mason nods and knows I am right. Two of our allies came from District 11, Kerr and Orch, and both are dead. We may not have killed them directly but in the end, District 11 got to see what they think we did to Antu and Damir, so they must think that part of our plan was to kill their Tributes in the end as well.
"We just need to keep to our plan…" Mason says.
"We don't have a plan," I admit flatly. "We have an idea of a plan and we don't even know if it can work. What if everyone we left in the arena is dead?"
I look away from his as the last of my words slip out and pull my arms around myself in the chilly, wet air. I can't think about Damir really being dead, because if he is, then I really killed him. I left him there to die; that's the same thing to me.
"We still know what we want. We want to end the Games…you know this is just the beginning," Mason says.
"How are two of us going to take down the Capitol?" I snort. It seems insane.
"You're mom and dad did with a handful of berries," Mason says.
I turn to look at him, to really study his face. "No…they started it with berries. It was more then that…I watched it everyday growing up. It took everything from them…"
"We've already lost everything at this point, haven't we?" Mason says.
It's true. Our families aren't speaking to us; our District's hate us. We don't have much left to lose.
"Valid point," I nod after a minute and then sigh. "So what do we do?"
"Get the Capitol to trust us…learn how they work…and then destroy them," Mason says.
"Again…there might be only two of us," I remind him.
"Two of us now…but there are others who feel like us. We just need to figure out a way to get this started," Mason says.
I don't know how he can be so optimistic. Even assuming all those in our alliance that we left in the arena, Damir, Antu, Kerr, Orch, and Cable, are still alive, that only leaves seven of us under the age of eighteen verse the entire Capitol. In retrospect, that doesn't seem like a great plan, but I know its all we have, because we are already on the train and no matter what we want now, there is no way we can get off it.
"We can do this," Mason says and then leans in, surprising me as he steals a quick kiss.
I look back at him, confused, when he pulls his lips from mine. I don't know why he kissed me, no one can see us out here; there are no cameras, so there is no need for a show. But whatever his reason was, I can't say I hated it. In fact, it felt nice. Confusing, but nice.
Mason opens his mouth to explain when I do not respond, but I don't want to hear an explanation, I just want that same feeling that is creeping over my spin, the same one I had in the arena when we were together, to come back, and so I lean in this time, kissing him.
KATNISS POV
At some point I managed to get myself together enough that I invited Haymitch into the house. Now he sits at our kitchen table, sipping on his flask while I cook lamb stew for Peeta and Galen when they return for the day.
It's strange. After everything that happened; after Emberly took Damir's life in the Games, I swore I would never get Haymitch back in my life and yet here he sits. It shows to me that time can heal even the worst of scars, or at least, heal them enough to let people forgive.
Haymitch cut us off and I assumed it was because he blamed Peeta and I for what Emberly did, but maybe he doesn't now. Otherwise, how could he sit here with me?
I glance over at Haymitch to see him swirling his flask around. He looks like he has aged ten years since I last saw him. All of the work the Capitol did to keep him presentable over the years has worn off. Between the excessive alcohol and the lifestyle Haymitch led, he didn't stand a chance. The only thing that seemed to bring him back to life, that seemed to give him some purpose was Damir.
I remember when Sarah first brought Damir to Haymitch's home. Haymitch cleaned for days on end, and has been able to keep the house somewhat presentable.
I wonder now what it looks like. Surely it is as damaged as he seems to be now.
Haymitch catches my eye and I realize he caught me watching him. He gives a small smirk but then waves me off with his flask. "Don't worry about me, sweetheart…I am a survivor."
I shake my head and return my gaze to the stew in front of me. I should have known that Haymitch would have recognized what I was thinking. Aside from Peeta, Haymitch is the one person in the world who can read me like a book, even better then my own kids.
"I just…there isn't anything I can say to fix this," I manage out, trying again to apologize for my daughter.
Haymitch shakes his head and takes another sip from his flask. "No, there isn't…but its not your place. You can't control Emberly…or what happened…"
"I know that," I try.
"Well it took me a little longer to figure that out. But…here we are," Haymitch motions around my kitchen. "I figure I can't keep being angry at you for something you didn't do. You and Peeta and Galen are the only family I really have left."
I give Haymitch a said smile and we exchange a long look. We never need a lot of words, and I know by the time I go back to cooking and Haymitch goes back to thinking that he has come to some sort of peace and that he wants us to still be in his life.
The rest of the afternoon is lighter. I finish cooking, Haymitch finishes drinking, and we are able to talk about what is going on in the District, how his geese are doing, and how he has noticed I have been spending less time in the woods. We even are able to pass a few crude jokes before Peeta and Galen return to the house.
When Peeta and Galen come in the kitchen I can see they are both shocked to see Haymitch sitting at the table.
"Haymitch…" Peeta breathes out our mentor's name slowly.
"Peeta…" Haymitch matches Peeta's tone but with a smile. He is, after all, slightly drunk.
"What are you…did you—" Peeta tries. He seems confused to see Haymitch and so does Galen. I can't blame either of them. After all, the past few months Haymitch has spent scowling at us for our daughter taking his son's life.
"I thought a visit was in order. I realized…despite how hard I tried, I can't stay away from you all forever. We are neighbors," Haymitch waves his flask but I can tell both Peeta and Galen know this is not the only reason Haymitch has seemed to forgiven us.
"Haymitch, I am so sorry—" Peeta tries to apologize for Emberly and what she did.
Haymitch waves Peeta off in a similar fashion to how he had waved me off. "Peeta, like I told your hard-headed wife here…what happened is not your fault. I lost a son…and from the looks of things, you all lost a daughter."
Peeta seems touched by Haymitch's words and nods before offering Haymitch his hand in a sign of peace.
Haymitch shakes Peeta's hand as well and that seems to settle anything that was there.
"Now…when are we eating? I am starving…are you starving?" Haymitch looks up at Galen who hasn't said a word since he walked in.
Galen, however, does give Haymitch a small smile. "Always hungry."
"That a boy…" Haymitch ruffles Galen's hair before sliding down and allowing my son and husband to sit at the table.
For once, I am serving a meal for a family of four again.
