Normally we would be in our rooms, resting, or beginning to get ready for tonight's ball at President Snow's mansion. Instead, Effie had made sure there was time to go ring shopping. Two hours, that's how long she had managed to wriggle everything about to give us time. Caesar had made sure his favourite jewellers would be expecting us, aswell. Sure enough, half an hour later and flanked by three Peacekeepers, we were on our way to Davenport & Bellamy; the jewellers favoured by Caesar Flickerman.
"Congratulations, Miss Hawthorne," the Head Peacekeeper said as he walked us to the car. I looked up to see any sign of sarcasm, and was surprised to see there was none.
"Thankyou, sir," I replied, my smile still trying to burst through.
"Please, Head Peacekeeper Casanova." I looked up at the man, at the winter sun glinting off of his round, bald head. His beard, while wasn't long, it was clearly past the point of being stubble, and was peppered black and white, and his amber eyes didn't seem anywhere near as hard as I imagined they would be. "I have personally chosen these three men to escort you and Mr Mellark to the city centre. Hathaway; Callington; O'Rourke," he barked, and three men in identical uniforms marched over. "These men will take care of you both, you have my assurance," Head Peacekeeper Casanova said, turning back to us again.
"Thankyou," Peeta replied, shaking his hand.
"Miss Trinket has given you two hours at Davenport & Bellamy. That should be sufficient time to make your choice?" Head Peacekeeper Casanova asked.
"It should be," I grinned delirious at the pending jewels at my disposal. Money wasn't a factor. We could afford anything we wanted. Peeta had said that he wanted to do this properly even if it was just for show. He still wanted something real just for the two of us. I didn't normally get all giddy at pretty, shiny things, but this was different. The ride through to the centre of the City didn't take too long. It was a smooth ride and I was grateful for the darkened windows again. We would be getting enough attention in the store as it was - hence the escorts - so for the few moments I could get some peace I relished it; resting my head on Peeta's shoulder, not caring what our escorts thought.
"So he is Head Peacekeeper for the Capitol?" I asked Peeta.
"No, the whole of Panem. I over heard him talking to Caesar as we were leaving. Looks like they know each other pretty well." I began to raise my eyebrows, until I realised that not only did both men live and work in the Capitol in high powered jobs for the President it was entirely feasible that they knew each other through work due to the type of work each man did.
Davenport & Bellamy was probably the sparkliest building I had ever stepped foot in. The outside of the building looked quite unimpressive, slightly imposing. There was a large, bronze clock high above the entrance to the store which showed it was half past one now. The busy street behind us was full of colour, buzzing with activity. More so because we were stood in it. Stepping through the glass doors, however, was like entering a whole new world entirely. It could only be described as a place from the old days, before Panem. A place called Narnia. There isn't very much information about Narnia, only that it was spectacular, vast, mythical.
Two hours later, we were back at the Training Centre, having chosen a ring. The right ring. Tonight, at the ball I knew everyone would want to see it, but before then, it would be introduced to Panem on the Caesar Flickerman show. The nation didn't know we were engaged yet; that was going to be the main topic of conversation tonight.
I nervously twiddled my thumbs backstage. Wrapping his arms round my waist from behind, Peeta brushed his nose softly against my earlobe.
"That tickles," I giggled softly.
"I know, but it's nice and soft," he murmured. "Plus, it has the very nice added bonus if smelling like you."
"You're a suck up," I said, pushing him away gently, but grinning at the same time.
"Are you ready?" One of the backstage crew members, Mendel, came to get us. We had gotten to know him quite well over the last six months, so he was able to be a little more relaxed with the two of us, compared to how he would normally be with guests of the Flickerman show.
"Yeah," I nodded. I turned to Peeta and took a deep breath. His eyes sparkled back at me as he took my hand and together, we followed Mendel to the wings, ready to enter the stage when Caesar called our names.
"...elcome to the stage the Girl On Fire and the Boy With The Bread - Cora Hawthorne and Peeta Mellark!" cried Caesar, with all the enthusiasm and gusto which made him so famous, lovable, and perfect for this job. The audience were clapping and cheering with all their might. We had been greeted like this by the one thousand strong crowd before, but nothing this intense before. The lights were bright, the air was alive, and Caesar was shaking our hands, flashing those spectacular white teeth of his. His hair was just as purple as it was this morning, although his suit was different. Of course it was, I thought, mentally slapping myself. Tonight he was in a lilac shirt, with a glittering black suit, which shone like those disco balls I had seen in some of the Capitol shops. We took our seats next to the Master of Ceremonies, as I tucked the back of my dress to the side of me.
"Welcome back, it's so lovely to see you both again," smiled Caesar, genuinely.
"It's great to be back," I replied, feeling more relaxed about this than I had before. Turning to the audience, he said,
"We are doing things a little different this year folks. I met up with Cora and Peeta this morning, and this is what happened." He gestured towards the big screen behind him, the one which was normally reserved for the Victor when they came out of the arena. Our faces filled the screens, and Caesar's voice seemed loud and booming. I looked so nervous, giddy in fact. There were laughs, a few tears, and even a couple of "awws". Then came the moment. The moment that would change things forever. I gripped Peeta's hand a little tighter as he asked Caesar on screen if he could ask something. Getting down on one knee, he proposed and I had to admit, it did look pretty real. Hopefully Snow would realise that we do love each other and this isn't just some act I concocted to lure Peeta into my game against the Capitol. When the crowd finally calmed down after ten minutes of cheering, Peeta let go of my hand. He dropped to one knee in front of me and opened up the little box containing my engagement ring.
"Will you marry me, Cora?"
"Yes," I gasped, "yes, a thousand times over, yes." Even though he had already asked me, seeing him on his knee, holding out a ring, hit close to home. I had dreamed of this moment for such a long time, although I would have preferred it to be a private moment. However, on stage in front of the entire nation would just have to do! The ring was nothing like I had ever seen. The silver band was embedded with diamonds, but instead of being joined as a whole circle, it curled round like a ribbon and was held together by a silver piece, embedded with pink diamonds. It looked like a 'P' I thought, as I watched the diamonds glitter in the stage lights. 'P' for Peeta. In the centre of all of this, this was yet one more diamond, much bigger than the rest. Beautiful didn't come close. He stood up and swung me around, then putting me back down, he bent his head down and pressed his lips hard against mine. I didn't care we were in front of millions of people, I kissed him back.
"Ahem." We pulled apart, grinning and red yet again.
Back in our rooms in the Training Centre, Portia and Cinna were working once more on getting us into yet another outfit each for the final banquet of the tour - the Presidential Mansion.
"Cinna are you sure this looks ok?"
"Cora, you look beautiful; and I'm not just saying that because you're in my creation," he grinned.
"Okay, I believe you!" I turned to the full length mirror behind me and looked at my reflection once more. The strapless, floor-length dress was stunning. The corset, blue and green chiffon made to look like peacock feathers, lifted my breasts up just enough without taking away the elegance of my look. From there it flowed down to the floor at the back, but the front was what made it. The chiffon / feathers stopped at the top of my hips, and split open. Underneath was the most spectacular gold and violet shimmering material, which again, flowed out and split open just above my knees, showing off my shins and my emerald green, three inch, peep toe court shoes. Cinna had painted my toenails the same blue as my dress - cornflower blue. On top of those, as the chiffon slipped down my body, Cinna had placed actual peacock feathers, the eyes of which sat on the opening of the split. Looking at my reflection from behind me, I saw that the dress looked as though I had a little train at the back, cinching in my waist. It was backless, hugging around my ribs and down to a couple of inches above the small of my back. I looked amazing. My hair had been placed into, what looked like a messy bun, but had actually taken nearly an hour to get just right, and then blue feathers hung from the side. My favourite part of the whole look though, had to be my make up. Slipping my engagement ring back onto my finger - I had taken it off for my shower - I was finally complete.
As we entered the Presidential gardens, we were overwhelmed by the sheer volume of faces who wanted to see us, greet us, hold our hands, congratulate us, have their photographs taken with us, and so on. As we were in the Capitol, Flavius, Octavia, and Venia, along with Calypso, Atlas, and Athena, were all invited to celebrate with us at the mansion.
"Welcome," said a firm, but soft voice. I looked round, knowing exactly who it had come from, but not wanting to believe that person could speak so softly. We all looked up towards the balcony above us and there he was, President Snow, ready to greet us for the grand finale of the 74th Hunger Games Victor's Tour. "I'd like this time to welcome this year's Victors back to the Capitol, and to congratulate them, personally, on the announcement of their engagement." He held a glass of clear liquid up to the sky, and everyone followed suit. "To Cora and Peeta." Whizzing and banging came from behind us, and turning, we all stood watching in awe of the fireworks. The reds, the greens, the purples. Some that spun around in the air, others that spelled out our names, and then others that turned into dragons. The finale was the dragon exploding and bursting from it's depths was a mockingjay, in sparkling gold. I glanced up towards Snow and I swear he was smirking at me as he held his glass of red liquid next to his face. When the fireworks had finished, we were given permission to wander around the garden before entering the banquet hall. It was the most stunning garden I had ever seen. There was a rose bush as big as one of the armoured trucks we rode in with the Peacekeepers in Eleven, covered from top to bottom with the most glorious white roses I had ever seen or smelled. I bent my head down to take in the scent and couldn't help but smile at the velvety softness of the petals, the way they folded one over the other, yet were opened out like a circular fan. The white of the flower was crisp, sharp, which was in contrast the flower itself. The sharpness flowed down towards the stem, where the vicious thorns were hidden below the outer petals, the green leaves. Unless you know they were there, they would be sure to draw blood. Beyond that, through an archway made from pink cherry blossom trees, was a small petting zoo.
"His grandchildren, I guess," Peeta shrugged when I looked at him quizzically. Wandering around, we came across animals we had never heard of, and saw colours we didn't think existed. There was a small family of capybaras by a pond covered in waterlilies. There were alpacas, woolly pigs, three toad lizards, eastern bongos, okapi (the sign said they were also known as forest giraffes, but I didn't think I had ever heard of a giraffe either), a saiga antelope was galloping around, and there were two proboscis monkeys sat on the lower branches of their tree, their noses hanging down low, like two little old men watching the world go by. The butterfly house was stunning, but the best of all, was seeing the albino peacocks strutting about, their white feathers as bright as the roses on the bushes.
All too soon however, it was time to go inside. Effie led us through to the banquet hall and I gasped as we entered. The room was, at a guess, 25 feet high, and the ceiling had been transformed to look like the night sky. About halfway up in the air, an orchestra of 100 musicians were sitting on what looked like thick, fluffy clouds, playing the most beautiful music I'd ever heard. There were tables lining each and every wall, filled with all kinds of food.
"I want to try everything," I smiled, pulling Peeta towards the first set of tables. There were whole roasted pigs, stuffed with apples. Huge platters of fowl scattered with fruits and nuts. Goats and cows turning on humongous spits. Food that you expected to have one taste, but was actually something else. I picked up an icecream cone, covered in green sprinkles with a stick of chocolate poking out of it. Biting into it, however, I discovered it was actually sausage, mashed potatoes and peas. Next to that was a platter filled with something I had never seen before, but tasted just like oranges and peaches. The grilled octopus was a little chewy, but the texture could be closer to pasta. By the time I had tried the pumpkin soup, dotted with sliced almonds and scattered with a spinach puree, I was so full up that I reckoned it would be a week before I even thought about food again.
"Cora!"
"Octavia!" I cried, flinging my arms round one third of my prep team. "Athena, how are you?"
"I'm great," the other woman smiled. "What about you two? Congratulations, we always knew it would happen, didn't we Tavia?" The two women chattered and giggled amongst themselves for a moment, then suddenly realised we were still stood there, looking mildly bemused.
"Have you tried the different chocolate fountains yet?" Octavia smiled, in that way only they could in the Capitol.
"No, honestly, I think I may burst if I eat anything else," said Peeta, stroking his fingers up and down my palm, sending shivers tingling down my spine.
"Drink this." Athena offered him a champagne flute filled with a fuchsia pink liquid.
"What's this?" he asked, putting it to his lips.
"NO," squealed Octavia.
"Not here," Athena told him. "In the bathroom.
"I don't understand," I said, confused.
"It's for when you're too full. It makes you sick, so you can go on eating." They both looked really pleased with themselves, but I couldn't help feel disgusted. Peeta obviously felt the same.
"I think it's time to dance. Cora, care to join me?" He placed his empty plate and the glass of vomiting liquid back into a mildly startled Athena's hands, then offered me his arm which I took.
~ Peeta's POV ~
As Cora took my arm, I led her onto the dance floor.
"People are starving in the Districts, and here they're throwing up so they can continue to stuff themselves more," I sighed into her ear, careful not to say it too loudly. Thankfully the music would drown out anything I said to anyone except Cora. She had her arm snaked around my waist, with her fingers gently playing with my lower back, and her other hand was entwined with mine. I didn't know many dances, there wasn't much of a chance to do so in Twelve, but this one was pretty easy. Hold Cora, move in a circle. Easy. The camera crew focused in on us as we danced past, but I wasn't paying attention at this point.
"Do you mind if I cut in?" A jolly voice interrupted us as we twirled around in our own little world.
"Peeta, Cora,"Effie breathed, as though she was meeting her idol. "This is Plutarch Heavensbee, Head Gamemaker. Successor to Seneca Crane."
"That's a tough act to follow," I replied. Even as I said it, I knew there could be potential repercussions. Even a newly-crowned victor wasn't immune to punishment if they said the wrong thing to the wrong person, but it was a risk I was prepared to take.
"Peeta," Effie scolded me like a child, but Plutarch just watched me for a moment then his face broke into a grin and he started to chuckle. Effie followed suit and I let out a nervous laugh, just thankful I wasn't going to be turned into an Avox. Cora squeezed my hand and grinned at me.
"May I?" he asked, indicating towards Cora.
"Please." I smiled as he took her in his arms, then left them to dance. I had noticed a large table filled with all kinds of different cakes and I wanted to admire the craftsmanship of them. I was just admiring a four-tiered cake with pale green icing, covered in purple and orange flowers, when a flash of purple hair caught my eye. Caesar Flickerman. I should have known he'd be invited to the party of the year! The Master of Ceremonies wasn't alone, however. He was holding the hand of Willow Monroe,the District 7 mentor we'd met a few times, leading her out onto the marble floor. They didn't stand apart like Cora and I had done (Effie had told us it was good manners to leave a little room between us), they stood close, his arm around her waist, their fingers clasped together, and Willow's cheek rested on the shimmering lapel of his jacket. She was gazing up at him, and the way he was looking down at her was just so... I don't even know how to explain it. Desperate, perhaps?
Then she lifted her hand, her fingers stroked his face gently, swiftly, so quickly no one else could have noticed it. They were on intimate terms, obviously, but it really did look like something more, something special, and I wondered why something so beautiful was not public - surely the Capitol would adore such a thing? They looked so lovely, dancing there, like there was nobody else in the world, really. Her dress was the same colour as his hair, his suit was dark, complimenting her perfectly. It was almost as though they'd planned it. They spoke intently whilst they danced, and Willow pulled away a little at one point, gesticulating earnestly with a slender hand, and Caesar's face dropped in a way that I'd never seen it do before. He looked... scared? Maybe a little angry, too. It was odd, seeing him like that, he'd always seemed so bright and amenable when I'd met him in the past. Who knew, though.
"Mr Mellark!" I was pulled back to the present and I spun round to find myself face to face with the head chef for the banquet. "Reuben tells me you have been admiring our work." My mind whirred as I tried to remember what I had been doing just moments before. Ah yes, the cakes.
"Yes, that's right," I smiled, taking his proffered hand and shaking it. A young man with curly, rust-coloured hair, I presumed to be Reuben, stood beside him. He must have only been my age. "They are stunning, I'd love to be able to create something like this back home in Twelve." Reuben's face lit up.
"You like my cakes?"
"I think they're stunning." Before I could say anything else, the head chef, whose name I learned was Otis, hand rounded up three of his serving staff, and was being told there would be some boxes waiting for me when I arrived back at my train later tonight.
