Katniss pov
Stepping out of the shower the weight of the situation I'm in comes crashing back. Once in my undergarments I study myself in the mirror, dark waist length hair, grey eyes, tall, muscular, dark complexion and riddled with scars. Most of the scars were sustained though training, I've got scars from axes, knives, spears, tridents, machetes, doing hand to hand combat, lighting fires and falling out of trees, but they were all worth it and deserve to be there.
The worst of my scars start at the base of my spine and finish either on my neck or peak over my shoulders. I got these just under a year ago, whipping scars, I received over sixty lashes to my knowledge, from a district one trainee peacekeeper, because I wouldn't give myself willing to him.
I was dragged to the outside of the justice building and publicly whipped, all I really remember was seeing my loved ones being held back and my mother and sister screaming. The pain was blinding, hot and excruciating, I counted to forty lashes before he stopped, I hadn't even made a sound, when he started again, I screamed and let the tears that had been building up stream down my face.
"KATNISS!"
"NO, STOP, STOP!"
"YOUR KILLING HER!"
"LET HER GO!"
"STOP!"
"PLEASE, STOP!"
"KATNISS, KATNISS, KATNISS!"
I scream again, when will it stop, please make it stop, all there pleas have merged into one I can't make out who's saying what
I kept my head down, not wanting anybody to see the pain on my face, my hair had long since fell out of its braid keeping my face hidden from the Capitol like recording device one of the peacekeeper has trained on my bloody body.
With every lashing I scream having no strength left to hold it in, every time his catches my neck, my head jerks up, revealing Peeta and his brothers trying to break through the barrier of trainee peacekeepers
"Forty-six" I whisper as a new wave of searing pain hits
My knees are soaked with a mixture of my tears and blood, at the moment my back feels like a slab of raw meat
"Ahhhhhh!" I scream "Forty-Seven"
"AGAIN!"
"FILFHY WHORE!"
"WHOOOP, AGAIN, SHE DESERVES IT!"
I feel a jolt of pain, but not from my back, but in my heart, I know that voice, but he wouldn't, would he?
I painfully bring my head up
"Ahhhh!...Forty-Eight!"
I blink away the tears clearing my vision, to see Fenton Hills cheering alongside my best friend Gale Hawthorne
He looks at me and smirks I glare, he is not the same Gale I befriended, we've grown distant the past year or so, he is no longer someone I want in my life
"Aahhhhhh!" I let out a blood-curdling scream
"Forty-Nine...Fifty...Fifty-One...Fifty-Two...Fift y-Three!" I pant, the pain now reaching unbearable
"STOP!"
"STOP, I ORDER YOU TO STOP!"
"PLEASE, STOP!"
"KATNISS!
"NO, STOP, KATNISS STAY AWAKE!"
I'm brought out of this memory by a constant knocking, I open my bathroom door to find my Uncle Haymitch
"Sweetheart, you ok, you've been in there for half an hour, Effie loosing it cause your late!" He asks studying my face
I smile "Fine, just took a trip down memory lane!"
"Sweetheart, you got to stop dwelling on the whipping!" He states in an annoyed tone
"Listen, I'm not, I'm just dreading having to explain to Cato why one of his best friends...enjoyed the show" I finish sarcastically not really knowing how to describe Gale's behaviour or finish that sentence
"Look, sweetheart, lets get dinner out of the way and when the train stops to refuel, we will talk, surrounded by fresh air, ok now put some clothes on!" Winking at me
I flush with embarrassment and hurriedly try and throw my clothes on managing to trip in the process
Haymitch chuckles heading to the dinner carriage mumbling something along the lines of 'can't believe my niece is such a prude'
I throw a glare his way and follow him to dinner
To say dinner was eventfully is a understatement, first I was lectured about manners by Effie and how it is unladylike to scowl, roll your eyes, scoff and snort, which I apparently managed to do in the first few minutes and get caught doing it.
Second, I was placed in the middle of Effie and Haymitch, meaning throughout the whole hour I had to listen to Effie whittle on about the Capitol and bad manners in one ear, while Haymitch was impersonating her under his breath in the other ear and try to contain my laughter.
Then, Fenton was in my eye line meaning, we glared at each other and I had to endure his snide, punch worthy comments and not being able to retaliate. Finally, Effie just had to collect her remaining brain cells and remember I was Haymitch's niece and that I had meet her a number of times, which led me to panic, just as she said "oh i remember Kat..." I jumped over the table and tackled Peeta out of his chair to distract her, which led to us rolling around on the floor wrestling playfully and Effie screaming about bad manners and running out of the dinner carriage.
So overall, Haymitch now has to keep Effie quiet about who I'm related to, I managed to bruise Peeta's ribs when throwing myself at him, I upset Effie, but at least Fenton doesn't know what I'm capable of or who i am, otherwise I'd be in deeper shit than I am currently. All in all I ruined dinner and now I'm sitting with Peeta waiting for the Reapings to be broadcasted and apologising to him profusely.
" I'm so sorry, I just panicked, it's was the first thing that I thought of, it was either tackle you or..."
"Look Kat it's fine, I've had worst"
"I know, but I hurt you" I exclaim trying and failing to pull his t-shirt up to see the bruises
"Katniss Everdeen...he scolds while grabbing my intrusive hands...listen how many times have we wrestled playfully?"
"Too many to count"
"Exactly and how many times have both of us got hurt?" He asks raising an eyebrow
I just look down biting my lip, knowing no matter much I try to argue, Peeta's right, ugh I hate admitting I'm wrong
"See, I'm right and you know it, right I'm going to find everybody else, the Reaping's are about to be shown"
He stands up and leaves
I stare at the Tv screen dreading having to pinpoint easy targets and my competition, it makes me feel sick and disgusted with myself, but it's necessary.
As district one is displayed, I repeatedly chant all the hand to hand combat moves I know under my breath as a distraction until Cato's Reaping passes.
Just as I recite a move, I hear footsteps before me and whirl around to see Fenton smirking
"What do you want?" I snap
"Oh, waiting for you to crack and cry like the weak, pathetic little girl you are"
"You'll be waiting a long time" I huff turning back to the Tv
"I don't think so you're just like that pathetic piece of scum you call fa...
He was cut off by my fist
"Don't you dare speak about my father like that" I spit shaking with anger
"How about...No" he laughs then lunges
As we fall my head smashes off the floor, I block the incoming punches, when realising I'm not supposed to let Fenton know how advanced my skills are.
So I let my arm fall to my side and let his fists collide with my jaw.
