A/N: 06/19/2015 I was gonna wait until next week to update again, but it already feels like it's been a really long time so I went ahead and posted the next chapter. Not that you guys'll mind, right?
Thank you Mrsfinnickodair0102, elfielovesbooks, Nightshade Mirakuru (lol you're gonna fly through this chapter if you read over 300wpm), mini (glad you like my 'what if' depiction!), Guest, Guest, MoonPrincess623, Anabanana23, and loveshay199 for your reviews :)
Reading Time:
If you're fast: 6 mins or less.
If you're slow: 10 mins or less.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games.
Chapter ten: Storm to Flood~
They take some supplies from the Cornucopia and retreat to the beach after they decide it's safe to do so, none too keen on formulating a plan on a surface that could start spinning again at any minute.
Finnick keeps a close eye on Katniss as they toss ideas back and forth, worried that she's not doing as fine as she says she is. Try as he might, he can't get the image of her near-lifeless body out of his mind, the way she just floated in the water, not moving...he feels the urge to cringe and shiver, suppressing it as he shakes his head to will the thought away. Katniss sits beneath the canopy, conversing with the others while he stays silent.
"Okay, so aside from Brutus and Enobaria, who's left?"
"Maybe Chaffe?" Peeta suggests, though he's clearly unsure. "Just those three, I think."
Just barely keeping himself from rolling his eyes, Finnick speaks up. "Look, they know they're outnumbered, so I doubt they'll ambush us again. We're safe out in the open here on the beach."
"So what do we do, then?" Johanna snips, challenging him as she crosses her arms. "What, do you expect us to just hunt them down? We can't just-"
She is interrupted by a piercing scream, loud and clear and crisp, and they all look towards the jungle where it's coming from.
Finnick grabs his trident and holds it tightly, preparing for whatever's coming, when Katniss whispers, "Prim..."
He looks at her, confused, and she yells the name again.
"PRIM!"
She dashes off into the trees before anyone can question her, and he grabs unsuccessfully at her arm to try and get her to stop.
"Katniss, no!"
But she isn't listening; she's already meters into the jungle, running and running with a new-found energy he hadn't known existed within her. He doesn't hesitate to follow her, he just does. He bolts past the tree-line after her, hearing her call for her sister over and over again. He's surprised at how deep into the jungle she's gotten, and he's pretty winded by the time he reaches her.
"Katniss!" He calls, slowing his pace as he comes up behind her, breathing heavily. "Are you okay?"
She whirls around to face him, eyes wide with horror. She begins to answer, but is cut off by the sound of another piercing scream, this one more deep and matured. In fact, it almost sounds like-
"Annie."
His stomach drops and he's moving forward before he can even catch himself, and Katniss puts her hands on his chest to stop him from going any further as he frantically searches for the source of the sound.
"No! Finnick, it's not-"
"Annie?!" He screams, waiting to see if she'll answer him. "Annie!"
Was it true? Had the Capitol gotten a hold of her? Was he finally being punished for his actions? For his thoughts and feelings towards Katniss and his betrayal of Annie? Was this Snow's way of mocking him?
"It's not her!" Katniss says, eyes pleading for him to understand. "It's just a jabberjay! She's not here!"
He's finally able to stop searching and look at her, and though her explanation makes sense, it does little to comfort him. "How do you think they're making that sound? Jabberjays copy!"
Her own face pales then, and another scream shreds through the air, calling for help, this one male.
"Gale..." She whispers, eyes glistening with tears.
And suddenly they're bombarded with voices, male and female alike, each one calling out for help as though on their dying breath, and neither of them can take the guilt that drops from their hearts to their stomachs. And so they run.
They fly through the lush trees and brightly-colored plants as they head back to the beach, jabberjays flying and diving and pecking at them as they move. In a burst of adrenaline, Katniss speeds ahead of him, desperate to get out of hearing range of the calls and cries of her family and loved ones, and Finnick realizes that it's meant for her just as much as it is for him. Snow must have thought it necessary to teach them a lesson.
Peeta and the others come into view, and Finnick watches as she runs toward him like he's the only beacon of light through miles of darkness, and his heart fills with just the tiniest bit of sadness before being overtaken by the fear and adrenaline coursing through his veins.
Katniss is inches away from Peeta when she smacks right into an invisible wall, and he realizes it must be the edge of the wedge for the hour's threat. Finnick finally reaches the wall and notices that he can't hear Peeta or the others, and that he and Katniss are stuck here until their punishment passes.
He beats his fists against the forcefield, knowing he won't break it but trying anyway, and Katniss is slowly unreeling beside him. She claws her fingers through her hair and presses tight against her ears, trying to block out the sounds, and he sees that she's beginning to hyperventilate. He watches helplessly as she sinks to the ground, Peeta following her down on the other side of the wall as he tries to comfort her with soundless words, and he's never felt more useless in his entire life as she does the only thing she can to drown out the noise.
She screams.
And there's nothing he can do to help her.
They make it back to the beach after the walls let up and the birds cease to berate their ears, and Finnick goes off alone to sit on the shore, letting the water sweep up past him and shrink back into the sea as he stares off into space.
Katniss seemed to be doing fine, if not a little shaken. He had let Peeta comfort her, as it should be, and she was up and moving around again in minutes, as if nothing had happened. He couldn't say that he didn't want it to be him, that he wanted to be the one to hold and comfort her, to be able to nurse her broken mind back to health with nothing but his words and touch. But he knew now that that could never be the case.
Snow had made it perfectly clear what he thought of their little 'affair', and he wouldn't stand for it. And looking back, he honestly didn't know what he was thinking, trying to fool the whole world like that. Really; how much more obvious could he have been?
He tears his gaze away from the Cornucopia and shakes his head, focusing instead on the wet sand under his left hand as the water pushes and pulls at the tiny particles, creating a growing crater beneath his palm. He stares forlornly at it, letting the feelings of sadness and emptiness and anger and loss clash in a continuous swirl beneath his ribcage.
He's vaguely aware of someone coming up behind him, and his heart nearly snaps when he realizes it's Katniss. She lowers herself to sit next to him on the wet sand, mirroring his pose as she wraps her arms loosely around her knees and stares out at the setting sun, and he does all he can to avoid her eyes. He feels like absolute garbage with her beside him, and though he knows he shouldn't blame her for the way he feels he also can't stand the sight of her right now. Her very presence is suffocating him, taunting him with what he can't have, and it's the best he can do to just sit there and not get up and walk away.
"...I'm sure they didn't hurt Annie," she says, staring out at the water.
It's an opener for conversation, but he's not in the mood to talk. He nods his agreeance, keeping his eyes set firmly on the retreating waves as he does so.
She seems to sense his unwillingness to speak, which he knows is unusual for him, so she tries again. "You know, if you didn't want to talk, all you had to do was say so."
He snaps before he can stop himself, and the look of surprise on her face is almost too much for him to handle. "Dammit Katniss, why did you think I was over here?! Because I wanted to go for a swim?"
She's taken a page out of his book, he realizes, making a snide comment to get a rise out of him, but rather than feel impressed or proud of her he's just the opposite. He lashes out at her, angry that she doesn't get what is so abundantly clear to him, and tries his absolute hardest to act as though he doesn't care.
"If I wanted to talk to you I would. Do you really think that if I go off on my own it somehow means I want you to follow me? Is that what you think? Because if it is, then you need a serious wake-up call."
His tone is cold and his words are biting, and he knows by the look on her face that he's hurt her. She opens her mouth to counter him, but he's too fast for her stunned lips.
"You know what? Don't. Whatever it is you're thinking just don't. Whatever this was...it's over now. Get over it. I can't look out for myself and the others at the same time if you're busy following me around like a lost puppy."
She glares at him, lips pursing and jaw clenching as she answers is a dangerous voice, "If you think for one second that I came here for anything other than to check on you and see if you were okay, you're dead-wrong."
He turns his face away, unable to look at her. "Why don't you go check on Peeta?" He asks coldly. "I'm sure he'd love that."
She tenses, and for a moment he thinks she's going to slap him – and for a moment he wishes she does – but she doesn't. She sits there and stares him down, pinning him with her scornful stare for what feels like hours, before finally getting up and stalking back to the tree-line where Peeta and the others are.
It nearly kills him inside, but it's for the best. If either of them hope to make it through the Games, then he has to cut all ties. The jabberjays were child's play compared to what Snow could do to them, and he's not about to test the limits of his relationship boundaries with her when she has a perfectly innocent knight in shining armor waiting for her with open arms. Peeta may be annoyingly sweet and boyish and naive, but he's been through far more with Katniss than he could ever say for himself and he knows her far better than he could ever hope to claim, and he can't compete with that. Hell, even her 'cousin' from her own District couldn't compete with that! What made him think he could?
"Hey! Finnick!"
He turns at the sound of Johanna's voice, and she waves him over with her ax as she yells, "Get over here, we've got a plan!"
He sighs, looking somberly at the assertive and spiteful young woman, and slowly gets up to do as he is told.
A/N: Waah DX Okay, so Katniss and Finnick have had their official 'falling out' now. You have to admit though it kinda had to happen, what with Snow and the Capitol and everyone breathing down their necks. Don't worry though, they'll get back together soon enough, there's just a lot of tension and confusion and stress going on between them right now :)
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'Til next time!