When Finnick woke up the next morning, he just had to stop and stare at the beautiful girl beside him.
Camille wast still fast asleep, her blonde hair messy and splayed out across the pillow beneath her head. Her collarbones jutted out just above the edge of the blanket, and her bare arms were visible as well, the blanket only covering from her chest down to her mid-calves as her feet popped out at the end. Finnick knew that she hated sleeping with her feet under the covers; she claimed it made her warmer.
He sighed, wishing that he could stay in this bed with her like this forever, but he knew that his wishing was for naught. If he wanted this to happen again, he had to get up and fight for it.
Leaning over, he woke Camille by kissing her on the forehead. She snuffled, kept her eyes shut, and said almost incoherently, "Go 'way."
Grinning, he said, "Good morning to you, too, darling. You best get up now so we can go start and finish this rebellion, then we can spend all the mornings in bed we want to."
Rolling from her side to her back, Camille gave out a loud sigh and rubbed her face with her right hand. "Once again, I ask you as well as myself: why does it have to be us that fights and wakes up at 6AM to fight?"
"We're not the only ones fighting. But we are some of the few that can afford a good night's rest because frankly, we deserve it," Finnick said, kissing the top of her head again as he pulled back and stood out of the bed. Their years of prostitution had left them both with what Finnick wasn't sure was a good amount of confidence or a complete lack of shame, but neither of them flinched as Finnick's bare body was exposed.
In fact, Camille rolled over as if to go back to sleep, and Finnick joked, "Don't like what you see?"
He could practically hear her smirk as she said, "I've seen better."
Leaping back into bed, Finnick pressed up against the back of Camille as she squealed and laughed, trying to pull away from him as he littered kisses all over her bare skin. The two of them became so tangled up in the sheets, when they finally stopped the grab fest, they were stuck against each other, breathing heavily and staring into each others' eyes.
Finnick kissed Camille's nose and told her, "We really need to get going. Coin said 7AM."
"Guess we'll just have to shower together to conserve time," Camille said, untangling herself from the comforter as she pulled the blanket with her, wrapping it around her body. "I mean, we're really doing them a favor by conserving water..."
Finnick grinned at her from the bed. "Obviously."
When she stepped to the doorway leading into the bathroom, she let the sheet drop as she looked over her shoulder and grinned at Finnick, asking him, "You want to join me?"
She didn't have to ask twice as Finnick raced in behind her. After a quick shower and an even quicker breakfast in a creepily empty cafeteria with only their team present, Finnick and Camille walked with Gale and Katniss to the hovercraft hangar where they'd be meeting with the rest of their team, made up of some rebel-friendly Capitolites who would be helping them film their trek as well as Thirteener fighters.
When they arrived, the Thirteeners were waiting for them, looking almost bored as they lounged around the hangar. Boggs, who would be leading their faction into the Capitol, introduced everyone as they began to all get well acquainted. Suddenly, he straightened from his lounging posture against the hovercraft and they all turned in unison to where two guards were walking in, flanking Peeta.
Boggs quickly rushed over to figure out what was going on, while Camille could see Gale unsheath a knife from his waist. They couldn't hear any of the conversation that Boggs was exchanging with the guards, but suddenly the guards left and Boggs was walking toward them, leading Peeta.
Katniss visibly tensed as Boggs and Peeta reached the group, but Gale was the one to ask gruffly, "What is he doing here?"
"Coin sent him," Boggs said, looking just as annoyed and concerned as the rest of them felt. Moving as one, Finnick, Camille, and Gale formed a sort of ring around Katniss, acting as a human barrier in case Peeta lost it again. For now, he simply looked flat, not a single emotion reigning on his face. "She thinks that he will help with the mission."
"More like help with her own personal mission of having me killed," Katniss grumbled underneath her breath. The comment was loud enough for her small group of guards to hear, however, as they all tensed even further.
Peeta shrugged and said, "I'm not trying to hurt you, Katniss. I'm just falling Coin's orders."
"Just like you were following Snow's in trying to call her?" Gale snapped, pulled back by Finnick and Camille on either side of him. He huffed out and turned to Boggs, asking desperately, "Is there really nothing you can do about getting him off the team? He's not only a danger to Katniss. He tried to strangle Camille, too!"
Finnick turned a steely stare on Peeta as a threat while Camille said, "He's not in his right mind, you guys. And I don't think Boggs would have let him on the team if he actually had some say in it. We've just got to make the... best out of it."
There was much grumbling as they all entered onto the hovercraft that would be taking them into District 8 before they headed into the Capitol. It was a long trip, and because of the large group they were taking, they could only afford a small hovercraft crew that would need rest somewhere along the way.
With not much to do on the hovercraft, Camille tried to catch up with sleep when they weren't going over battle plans and schematics. She spent more time with her eyes shut, pretending she was asleep, than she probably did in actual REM, but when the hovercraft landed, she felt almost restless due to the amount of sleep she had taken in on the long ride.
The moment they stepped off the hovercraft, they were split into three groups: Leegs 1 and 2 would go with Katniss, Gale, and the Capitolites to go make some public appearances, while Boggs, Peeta, Jackson, and Mitchell would all go to talk to District 8's rebel leader. Meanwhile, Boggs wanted Finnick and Camille to do the same as Katniss in making public appearances, but he also wanted them to walk around and get a good feeling for how strong the rebels in 8 were.
A guide walked up to lead them around, introducing himself as Theo as he led them to the rebel's base: a large warehouse in the middle of the district. Camille spotted the destruction of a Justice Building just beyond the warehouse, and she felt a conflict in emotions in being happy over the movement against the Capitol but sad that it had to happen in the first place.
When they first stepped into the warehouse, they were immediately assaulted by color.
Finnick whistled, and Camille just said, "Wow."
Stretching above them, across the expanse of the warehouse, was a poster which, in the desolate conditions, looked brand new. The banner was horizontal, and even Camille had to admit, it acted like a beacon in the darkness of the district. The models within were in district order, from left to right, and each of them was holding something specific to themselves, dressed in normal clothes. Beetee was holding a welding torch; Camille had wires wrapped around both arms; Finnick's trident and net were draped over his back, and his fingers were locked through Camille's; Johanna had an axe across her back as well as a revealing outfit that showed off her scars and bruises; Peeta was wearing his wedding tux, and his hand was locked through Katniss', who was wearing her Mockingjay outfit.
Below were the simple words: Led by the victors. Led by the warriors.
"That is so intense," Camille said.
"If you think that's bad, wait until you see the back," Theo said with a smirk.
Still looking over his shoulder at the banner they were leaving in their wake, Finnick asked carefully, "How are they so... pristine?"
Theo seemed to somber a little bit as he registered Finnick's question. "The banners are symbols of hope and inspiration. We have people whose sole job is to protect them during an attack. They take them down, and make sure nothing happens to them. In these times of war and poverty and hunger, they are our wealth. They... or, you, more appropriately, are our everything."
As they followed Theo, listening to him point out certain aspects of the rebel base, they met the eyes of rebels around them that nodded in acknowledgement and even gave them the same finger-to-mouth salute they had given Katniss. Camille was already struggling with the feelings of being considered a rebel leader and how much people were depending on her when they came upon another poster.
There was a breathtakingly beautiful one of Katniss and Peeta in their wedding clothes, followed by the word 'Sacrifice'. Camille found herself staring at it as Finnick continued walking, looking at the other side as he gasped and said, "Cam."
She walked over beside him, and found their faces were on the next one. Their hands were on Finnick's chest, so both their metal and net rings could show, and the look Finnick was giving her was indescribable. Their picture was followed by the simple word 'Unity'.
Finnick whispered, "Wow, we look incredible, if I do say so myself."
"When did we ever take that picture?" Camille whispered to Finnick, who shrugged hopelessly in return.
Theo, of course, was ready for an answer. "An artist in six created them, then sent the design to three where they mass produced them and sent a set out to each district through our secret tunnels."
Raising an eyebrow, Camille turned to Theo in surprise. "Secret tunnels?"
"They were created during the last rebellion against the Capitol, as a means to move troops and goods without the Capitol's knowledge. When it started to go badly, we assume some people from 13 went under and excavated them to make sure they were cleared of debris or something, because they're still just as functional as I imagine they were back in the day," Theo said as he opened a door and guided Camille and Finnick through to the next room. "We are still struggling to maintain our previous lifestyle, but it's not as bad as we're letting the Capitol and the public know."
"So, are things really as bad as we think they are?" Camille asked as they followed Theo up a long staircase, not really sure where they were going.
"They're probably worse, but we are a hardy people. We carry on through famine and poverty in normal circumstances, but now, we have something more to fight for than just our lives," Theo said as he opened another door and led them back out into the warehouse. They were standing upon a balcony overlooking the whole thing, and Camille spotted the banners posted throughout the warehouse, beacons of color and hope.
She gasped when she saw just how large 8's rebel base was. She knew they were one of the smaller factions, so she could only imagine how big the rebel cause had actually become.
When Camille leant over to look down from the banister, she squinted down to somewhere on the floor before her face went blank. Surprising even Finnick, she took off back down the stairs as he went to go rush after her, but was held back at Theo. He fought his initial distinct to drop him as he shouted, "What? What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Theo said with a smile, pointing down to the floor as Finnick saw Camille racing between the beds, not grabbing for any of her weapons. He only slightly understood why when he saw her reach up and embrace some woman who had been running to meet her, followed by an older man and a teenage boy.
While Finnick kept a careful eye on Camille and the group that she was now with, Theo turned to him grinned at he asked, 'You have no idea who they are, do you?"
He shook his head. "Should I?"
Maintaining his grin, Theo pointed out to the group as he told Finnick the last thing he expected.
"They're the Brazens - Camille's family."