Chapter Two

Prim sat in the velvet chair of the visitation room. This is where she would say goodbye. Goodbye to her sister, her mother, and to her home. Sure, District 12 was arguably the worst District to be born into. The streets were riddled with starvation, and young girls lined up outside of Head Peacekeeper Cray's door every night, trading their bodies for food. It was the place where the Everdeen's father, along with countless others, were killed in a mining explosion, leaving orphaned children to beg on the streets in order to provide for their families. But, it wasn't the Hunger Games, which for the poorer residents of Panem was all you could ask for.

It wasn't all that bad. It had been the place where Prim made all of her friends, who she would play and gossip with, while braiding flowers in one another's hair. It was the place where her father would wake the girls up to show them how beautiful the sunrise was in the Seam. It was the place where her mother had healed the wounded, where Prim learned how to heal others alongside her. Maybe District 12 was an acquired taste, but it was home, and as Prim thought of all of these memories her home had given to her, she wasn't sure if she was ready to say goodbye.

Katniss burst into the room, with their mother trailing behind. You could already see it in Mrs. Everdeen's eyes, she was starting to lose herself again. Prim tried to level her breathing as the two women approached her, tears threatening to spill over.

"Oh, Prim," Katniss sobbed as she embraced her sister. "Why would you do that? You should have let me go, Prim! You should have let me-"

"No, Katniss," Prim cut her sister off, trying to hold herself together. "I couldn't let you. You've spent your entire life sacrificing yourself for me. You risk your life everyday putting food on the table, I can't let you go in that Arena for me. You have to stay here. You have to take care of mom." She whispered the last part, as to not let her mom know that she had little faith in her mental state. It wasn't entirely Prim's fault, though. She had left her girls to starve when their dad had died. Now her daughter's death was going to be televised for her to see. A mother who was entirely mentally stable wouldn't be able to bear that.

The three women held on to each other, not saying a word, all of them thinking about what was to come. Taking a breath, Katniss broke the silence. "You're gonna make it," she said, her grey eyes meeting her sister's blue ones. "You're gonna come home. You're smart, you're so smart Prim. You know how to heal people, you know about plants and which ones to eat. You don't need to be big and muscular to win the Games, you've seen it before. You just have to outthink the others. I believe in you Prim, please come home."

Prim nodded, and let a few hot tears cascade down her face. "I'm going to come home," she assured her sister. "This isn't a goodbye. This is an 'I'll see you later'. I'm going to come home, Katniss. I promise."

The Peacekeepers opened the door, signaling that their time was up. Katniss hugged Prim one last time, and Prim thought that she wasn't going to be able to let go. They finally managed to separate, and Prim gave Katniss one last smile. She then turned to her mother, and kissed her on the cheek. "I love you so much," Prim whispered. "I'm not leaving forever, I promise. I will see you soon."

And with that, Katniss and Mrs. Everdeen was taken away, leaving Prim by herself once more. Her heart felt empty, and she wasn't sure if she believed the words she had said to them. Could she make it? Those odds were certainly not in her favor. She was only twelve, there were guaranteed to be kids who were older, bigger, and more experienced. The youngest ever Victor, Finnick Odair, had been fourteen, and he was from a career district. But, Katniss wasn't wrong in saying that the Victors weren't always big and brutal. Sometimes the Victor's laid out traps to eliminate the other tributes, like a Victor from many years ago from District Three. They were never allowed to just hide out until the end; no, the Capitol needed some entertainment. But there were other ways to win than being physically strong. Prim almost smiled to herself thinking about this, maybe there was a chance.

In the room a few doors down, Peeta Mellark wasn't expecting any more visitors. His parents and brothers had come in to say goodbye, as this family was certain that there was no chance of Peeta coming back. There wasn't even a mention of him trying to win before the family was told their time was up. Peeta stared blankly at the wall, wondering about what was to come, when the door opened again. He turned his head, expecting to see Peacekeepers who would escort him to the train. Instead, it was Katniss Everdeen, and his heart skipped a beat. He didn't know what to expect, when she stomped up to him and put her face just inches away from him.

"I don't care what you have to do," she asserted, "but my sister comes home no matter what." It wasn't a question, but a statement. There was no sense of if in her voice. She demanded that the boy with the bread lay down his life for his sister.

Peeta contemplated whether or not to tell her everything. About the day he had fallen in love with her when she sang in front of the kindergarten class. About how he would always catch himself starting at her across the classroom. About how sorry he was for throwing the bread at her that night. About how he should have come down and offered more. About how much he wanted to kiss her right now before he was sentenced to death in the Arena.

Instead of any of this, Peeta nodded, not being able to form words. Katniss gave him a curt nod back, turned on her heel, and left the room. Just like he had in school, he watched her the whole way, not being able to take his eyes off of her. If dying in order to bring her sister back home was the way to win Katniss's heart, maybe it was worth it. He was sure he was going to die either way.

Time was up, and Peacekeepers came to both rooms to retrieve the tributes. As they were escorted to the car which would take them to train, Peeta and Prim did not make eye contact. Prim simply couldn't look at anybody, a sort of glaze took over her blue eyes. Peeta wasn't sure how he could even begin to look at the girl he was prepared to lay his life down for, the girl whose sister he was in love with. The silence was filled with Effie's chirping, about how Primrose's valiance was sure to be all the rage at the Capitol. Occasionally, one of them would nod, but neither of them processed anything that Effie said. It didn't matter to either of them.

In a flash, they were out of the car and onto the train, which moved so fast that Prim could feel it in her stomach. Effie instructed both of them to go to their rooms until Haymitch was ready. Both victors glanced at one another with uncertainty; both of them had seen Haymitch around District 12, and they were pretty positive he wouldn't be a useful source of advice of mentorship. Nevertheless, they did what they were told, and the two tributes departed ways into their rooms. Prim planned how she would keep herself alive, and how happy Katniss would be when she made it home. In his room, Peeta contemplated those same thoughts.

(A/N) Thanks for reading, will be updating soon!