CupcakeSprinkles14- This chapter should answer that question. And Peeta's demon is definitely sick, up to no good. And I love it muahahaha!
JacksonTheGreat- Good to be back, thanks! As far as where Cato ran off to… good guess, but read on!
pumpkinking5- I enjoy reading your insights into Peeta's demon. I wasn't sure if I was getting that manipulation across, but you certainly hit the nail on the head with it. Thank you.
Your Failing Epicness- Hahaha, love it. And you know, I've never considered addressing Marvel's sexual orientation, but you make a good argument. Plus, I aim to please. And did you mean that you picture Marvel as a seme or his partner? Hmm, I'm getting some ideas ;)
EPuppy1- Ahhhh indeed!
Cato's POV
My mind won't shut up. Is this really happening? Is it all true? Where the fuck do I go from here? What do I do?
Peeta's bare skin draws me into a trance. The moonlight through the window outlines his resting silhouette as I continually trace the dip in his waist and follow it up to the top of his hip and back down again. He wants to stay here. He doesn't understand we can't stay here. We can't stay anywhere, at least not for long. How can I protect him when just being with me puts him in danger?
I watch Peeta's body rise and fall with the filling of his lungs and take notice when the rhythm slows. He's asleep. My lips connect with his shoulder blade before closing my own eyes. We all just need some rest. But rest is not what I get. Falling from consciousness, an image flashes across the back of my eyelids. I see bodies littering an alleyway. It's like my premonitions back home, but they're not of district 2… it's 12. I hear screaming. A little girl? She's crying for someone to help her. She says a name. Katniss.
I see Peeta's friend in the dirt, bloodied and sobbing, begging for this little girl. A man, I can only make out the back of his head, stands above her when he suddenly bends down to pull her up by her disheveled braid. He gives her an ultimatum.
"Cato or her life."
I awake with a jolt as my mind races back to the present. It was all so real. I look over to Peeta and see his shoulders twitching slightly. He's having a nightmare too. But no, mine was no nightmare. It was a warning. Someone's going to wreak havoc in 12, someone clearly capable of bloodshed by the sight of those bodies. Someone will threaten Katniss. Who was the little girl crying? Who was that man who knew my name?
Who knows my name?
Finnick.
I immediately leap off the bed, ripping the sheets away as I fumble into my clothes. It was definitely a premonition. I remember now what Katniss had said before we left for 4, how she couldn't leave her little sister to help Peeta. That crying girl must be her sister. Finnick is going to hurt her, use her as bait for Katniss. Katniss knows where we are. And surely she'll rat me out for the sake of her sister. I'd do the same in her shoes. My god, this is real. I had failed to heed my premonitions before and it had cost all that was dear to me. I will not ignore the signs again. I can't deny what is happening, can't put off accepting it any longer. Finnick is hunting me. He has death on his side. Whatever his reasons, I refuse to let him make it to 4, to get any closer to us… to Peeta. I must meet this demon before he makes it here.
Dressed with sword in hand, I have to get one last moment with Peeta. I kneel before his side of the bed and, as tenderly as possible, brush my lips against his. He barely even stirs, but I swear a slight smile tugs his lips. I commit it to memory and lock it away, safe from the world. I'll be back soon. Keep fighting till then, Peeta. I won't lose you too.
I creep out into the hallway, only to hear the soft patter of a conversation emanating from downstairs. What the fuck are Mags and Haymitch still doing awake?
"We must warn the other districts of what's arising," Mags insists to Haymitch.
"I'm sure word has traveled fast and most, if not all, of the districts know of 2's fate by now," Haymitch points out. "Elders of each district will take action. But, yes, we must make sure they know the full extent of what's happening."
"Do we send word that a boy survived?"
"I think the less attention we bring to Cato, the safer he'll be. We say nothing to no one about who he is or where he's from. Let Snow squirm a while trying to find him."
"Whatever role that boy has to play in this, we need to keep him guarded," Mags declares.
"He'll definitely make it difficult for us considering that district 2 temper of his and," Haymitch sighs, "I don't mean to pour salt into an open wound, but he's risking his own safety with Peeta. Keeping a possessed boy in your inner circle is like a ticking time bomb in this harrowing situation."
"Indeed," Mags agrees. "We'll just have to monitor the situation very carefully and take the appropriate actions if necessary."
Appropriate actions? What the fuck are they talking about? Whatever they're insinuating, it's clear that there is no way they're just gonna let me walk out the door on my own. They'll blow the whistle so fast, Marvel will probably burst out of his room with nothing but his spear and a smile on before I even take 2 steps out the door. And this is not his fight. I want to do this myself, show Snow he can throw whatever he dares my way and I will conquer it. I may be the last of 2, but I'm certainly not the least.
I tiptoe back into the bedroom to find Peeta exactly as I left him. His brow is furrowed deep in anguish and I fight the urge to wake him so as to release him from whatever nightmare he's having. I'd rather have Peeta face demons in his sleep than wake him and make him face reality. A slight breeze suddenly diverts my attention to the window, and in a heartbeat I'm tying the scattered bed linen like a rope. Certainly not a graceful exit, but an effective one nonetheless. One end tied to the doorknob, I nimbly descend down the side of Mag's home only to find my escape blocked by Annie. She's startled to see me and I can tell she's been crying.
"What are you doing out here?" she asks with a sniffle.
"I could ask you the same thing," I gruffly reply.
"Couldn't sleep, needed some air," she shrugs as she wipes her face with the back of her hand.
"Fair enough," I acknowledge and start to walk off.
"Wait!" she calls. "What about you? Where are you going?"
"Not your concern," I dismiss as I keep walking.
"You have your sword with you. You have everything with you. You're leaving, aren't you? What about your friends? What about Mags and Haymitch? They insist that you stay."
"It doesn't matter what they 'insist.' They're not my parents. I'm a guest, not a prisoner, and you best not say a word to them," I warn as I turn to glare at her, my hand on the hilt of my sword. Her eyes warily follow my movements, and she stiffens.
"I'll scream," she threatens. "Just tell me where you're going. I won't say anything."
I could kill her. A snap of the neck, a slash of the throat. Could I close the distance between us in time before she screams? Wait, wait. What the fuck am I thinking? That couldn't possibly bode well for me. She isn't the enemy, just an annoying girl.
"I'm going back to 12," I declare.
"Why?" she asks, confused.
"I had a premonition that something bad was going to happen there," I answer, vaguely. "I don't know when, but I want to be there when it happens to face him head on."
"Him?" she points out. Shit, I slipped up. "You're talking about Finnick, aren't you? Let me come with you!"
"No," I scoff. "You'll just get in my way. Hell, you'd probably stab me in the back if it meant it'd protect your precious Finnick. You don't seem to get that he's the enemy now. You're lost in denial."
Annie only glares at me with disbelief as she shakes her head. "I feel like you of all people would understand what it's like to still want to protect the 'afflicted'," she chides. "Are you saying you wouldn't do the same if it were Peeta? Hell, it's one step away from being Peeta! Are you saying that you still wouldn't fight for the boy, regardless of the demon's hold on him? I see the way you care for him, Cato. I think you're the one in denial."
"Peeta isn't like Finnick," I defend.
"Not yet," Annie warns. "But with each passing day, he'll weaken. Trust it from someone who's speaking from experience. I've seen firsthand, the deterioration. In the end, the darkness always gets what it wants. You can't save him."
"You shut your mouth," I growl.
"So sad," Annie disparages. "But, go ahead. Confront Finnick alone. I won't say a word to the others. This way he'll at least stand a chance instead of having to face you along with Johanna and Marvel by your side."
"He won't stand a chance regardless if he's facing me. I don't need anyone by my side to help my odds," I correct smugly, still gripping the hilt of my blade. Annie only smiles deviously in return before turning to go back into the house.
"You have no clue what you're up against, you brute. Nice knowing ya." And with that the mad girl from 4 shuts the door, leaving me to race off to 12 under the cover of darkness. I navigate to Marvel's horse, happy to take our last resort of speedy travel as to discourage the others from following once they catch wind of what's happened. And, without a second look back, I gallop away from the sleeping district of 4, Annie's words left in my head like a bitter aftertaste of spoiled wine.
My eyes scan the horizon for any sign of mutts. I know Marvel's skill would certainly come in handy again if they return, but I'm confident I could hold my own just as well. I think back to the way the one mutt halted its attack against Peeta, surely sensing the darkness within him. It was the only time I was actually relieved and grateful he was possessed. It had saved him, if only for a brief moment. Peeta had been reckless, putting himself in between me and that mutt, but his actions speak volumes towards him as a human being, and perhaps even more about the way he has come to feel for me. Annie's wrong. Peeta's not like Finnick. He's fighting and he's winning, right? He's strong. His soul is strong. But immediately my mind races back to the moment where his strength faltered during our journey to 4 and the demon came through. God, those black soulless eyes. I'd never admit it aloud, but I was frightened. I didn't know what to do. Fear took hold and I thought I'd lost him. I know those moments are bound to happen again. Will every one of them weaken him over time? Will it get worse?
I think back to just yesterday, the two of us together, the world pushed away and locked outside the bathroom door. The way he looked at me, the things he said, and his hands tangled in my hair. His lips were finally eager, he was willing. Everything had changed. It was a turning point for us and I won't let anything get in the way of him being with me, and me with him. I have so much to fight for now. It's not just for the past, for the memory of my family and the honor of my district. I'm fighting for the future. There's a chance for a future, for me and for Peeta. I'll stack the odds in our favor.
I never thought that my entire existence would be entwined with the fate of another, but here I am. My whole world so quickly shattered, but just as quickly rebuilt anew with fervor.
My thoughts are quickly torn away as I suddenly feel the hair prickle on the back of my neck. The further I ride into the forest, the more I realize I'm not alone.