Note: Okay, honestly, I love the character Ravius so much. But you will either love him or hate him, especially with upcoming chapters. Enjoy~! Crystal Castles – Knights
By the time Ravius came back, it was nearly three in the morning. Ivory had gone to sleep hours before, but I remained awake, just trying to sort out my own thoughts – How to end the Hunger Games. How to – I don't know – be a savior?
Finally, Ravius saunters into the house, as if he was just coming home from a rough day at work. He looks like he's dancing when he walks. Just seeing that elfish freak pisses me off. I say silent in the dark room, hoping that I'm hidden in the shadows. I don't want him to notice that I'm here.
He steps on his toes lightly as he walks over to a cabinet on the wall adjacent to me. He opens it, revealing endless bottles of alcohol, and he takes one, opens it, and sips on it.
I stand up, and walk over to him, behind him. I don't know quite what I'm going to do – fight him, yell at him – but I'm going to do it.
Until Ravius starts to laugh. I freeze.
"Stupid boy," he says, with his back to me, "I can hear you, you know." He walks away, then abruptly turns around. His eyes pierce at me, sending daggers at me. "Gale, if you want to kill me, just know that you're killing the wrong person." He laughs, uncomfortably. "Kill my bastard father, instead."
He turns around again, and comes so close to my face, that I can smell the brandy on his breath when he speaks.
"He's the one you want to kill. Not me." He says, "I'm just a spoiled brat with a rotten attitude – I know. But trust me; I wouldn't want to slowly kill off my country's population with those stupid Games."
He steps back, seemingly from a lack of balance, as he takes a gulp from the bottle.
"I've got better things to do than watch people fight to the death," he says with that stupid smug smirk on his lips.
"Now, Gale. We've had our little chat," he takes another drink, "go to sleep. You've been awake longer than you think. We're all the way across the world!"
He slinks his way over to the couch and lies down on it.
I don't know who this kid is, and I might not ever know. But I can't help but wonder, what made him this way? What made him this bitter, sarcastic alcoholic? At least when I was on morphling, I had a (somewhat) valid reason: Katniss. But she's in my past, I don't need to think about her. Here, she is unknown. She – she doesn't matter to me anymore. Much.
Ravius stares at me with his lazy green eyes. His smirk remains through anything, I've noticed. I finally realize how similar he looks to Ivory, aside from the black hair. Are they related?
"Who are you?" I ask him.
He scoffs, "I'm Ravius. My word, you're strange. We've already had this conversation."
"That's not what I meant dipshit."
He throws his hands up, pretending to be offended. "No need for harsh words," he answers sarcastically, "I'm Ravius. Just Ravius. If you mean who I am to Ivory, I'm Ravius to her, too. Just Ravius. I'm nothing more than a friend." He laughs, again.
He must have seen my confusion, because he laughs at me again. I can't tell for sure, but I think I hear him mumble fool under his breath.
I roll my eyes and walk back to my room.
The thick, lush carpet greets me. Although I don't like this Capitol, it's more comforting than a conversation with a drunk Capitol snob. Stupid Ravius.
I take off my shirt and crawl into bed. I instantly fall into a dreamless sleep – and I'm thankful for that. I don't want to see anyone's face now.
I wake up the next morning – at least I presume its morning, since the sunlight is beating down on my exposed back. I shower quickly and change into another Capitol costume. It's a strange hoodie that leaves my arms exposed and the tightest pair of pants known to mankind. Luckily, I find my hunting boots, so I wear those. But unfortunately the rest of this outfit is left up to whatever this Capitol finds fitting. At least I'll fit in.
I glance at my reflection through a mirror on the closet door.
What the fuck, man?
These Capitol clothes are so weird! Whatever, they can take me seriously – even if I can't.
I feel like a girl in this.
I leave my room, and I see Ivory skipping by, although I can't understand how, since she's wearing those incredibly tall shoes again. Her hair is down, and today it's as pink as her long strapless fluffy dress. She stops skipping once she sees me, and greets me with a smile, but remains silent.
I see a figure chasing after her, from the corner of my eyes, and before I have time to react, the person hugs Ivory, catching her off-guard. She giggles wildly. Then I see who it is: Ravius. But for once, he doesn't have a smirk – strange. His smile looks real, genuine.
Okay, but what did I just walk into?
Ravius looks up and the second he sees me, his lips return to what must be normal for them – that stupid smirk.
"Looks like Gale finally decided to wake up," he says, condescendingly. I notice that his hands are around Ivory's hips.
Okay, so are they together or not? Mixed signals, man!
Ravius' hair has streaks of red in it today, and his eyes are lined in jet black. He's also wearing all black, which is strange for the Capitol's neon standards.
Ivory playfully taps his nose, and he lets go of her so she can skip off again. His real smile returns as he watches her go, but it returns to a smirk as he turns back to me.
"I can see the jealously all over your face, you know." He says, "You want her. Even if you don't realize it yet – you do. You want her. But she's not yours."
"I don't want her!" I say in defense, but once I utter the words, I realize what a lie that is. I do want her. I want to hold her. I want to kiss her. I want to protect her from this disaster of a country.
Ravius leans in toward me, inches away from my face.
"Liar." He whispers, sending chills down my spine.
