A MockingJay Story Part 1 Chapter 3
Katniss was granted permission to visit the ruins of her district. A camera crew would accompany her to film her reaction to use against the Capitol. Katniss met her new prep team, Cressida, Pollox, Castor, and Messalla. Liam pleaded his case to Coin and Plutarch and was able to accompany her. The trip would visit 2 districts. Gale, Katniss's best friend went with her too.
Liam stayed in the hovercraft while in 12.
Katniss was horrified by the remains of her people. Houses and homes turned to ash. Piles and piles of bones were spread across the land. People she went to school with and people she traded in the animals she hunted. The place she lived in her entire life. All that remained was the victor's mansion.
Inside the mansion, Katniss found Prim's cat Buttercup, and a fresh white rose on the counter. She picked up the rose and stared at it with dread. Snow was here. It's just like what Shay said!
The team headed away from 12 and over to their next stop. Liam practiced sign language with Pollux, the Avox. Castor, his brother, helped with the interpretations.
"You can't be seen in 10, Liam," Cressida told him. She was a part of the camera crew. She handed him a large hooded cape.
"The hovercraft is going to be very suspicious." Liam said.
"We'll be landing in the forest. Bit of a walk to the mansion." Messalla said, another member of the camera crew.
The hovercraft landed a couple miles away from the victor's mansion in district 10.
Liam, Katniss, Gale, and half the camera crew got out of the hovercraft. Liam led the way to his old home. Through the trees, he could see the roof of the mansion.
He unlocked the front door with keys that Boggs retrieved upon rescuing Liam and Clara.
The door creaked as it opened. Liam slowly walked inside. His feet crunched on some dry leaves inside the house.
He entered the house, walking into the living room. The couches were all turned over. Framed photos were on the floor, cracked and broken. The rug was ripped.
"What happened here?" Katniss asked quietly.
Liam went into the kitchen. There were dirty plates in the sink with flies buzzing around. The fruit on the counter was rotten. The foul odor filled the room. Liam made a face and left the room.
"The whole place is ransacked." Messalla said.
"What were they looking for?" Castor asked.
"Who." Cressida corrected him.
Liam ran up the stairs of the stairs of the mansion. He peered into the study with all the books. Many were ripped up on the floor. There were some bits of charcoal on the ground. They burned some of thier books. A few books were missing, but those could have been the burned up ones.
Messalla and Cressida followed him up the stairs.
Cressida checked the study after the left. "I used to have a room like this." She said aloud. "Minus the mess."
Liam went into his old room and stood in the doorway. His bedsheets were all messed up. His nightstand was cleared, with the lamp and snacks on the carpet.
The room over was his sister's. His eyes filled with tears upon seeing her room.
After a minute, he left her room and checked Clara's. It was also a mess, with her toys scatters about. Most of them were ripped open. What where they looking for? Liam picked up one of her stuffed animals that wasn't destroyed, clutching it in his hands.
The last room upstairs was his fathers. As soon as he walked in, he knew something was different. The room wasn't torn apart like the others. There wasn't much in that room. No clothes in the closet or the drawers. No shoes on the closet floor. No hairbrush on the dresser... Liam's face intensified as he understood what happened.
Liam slammed the dresser drawer shut in his dad's room.
Cressida peeked into the room. She noticed Liam's face and entered the room. "What's going on?"
Liam grit his teeth. "I know now why Boggs didn't find my dad that night."
Cressida lifted her head up.
Messalla stood in the doorway.
"He fled." Liam said. "He left us like a coward."
Gale and Katniss checked the other rooms downstairs. There was a bathroom, a coat closet, a couple empty rooms before they got to the last door. He opened the door, letting it swing open.
Katniss's eyes widened upon seeing something in that room.
Sitting in the rocking chair in the corner of the room, was a body. The visual was a little familiar for Katniss-or at least the story she heard a few days ago.
Liam came down the stairs, still holding a stuffed bunny toy of Clara's. He saw Katniss and Gale standing outside the room and narrowed his eyes. He maneuvered past them into the room.
"Wait-Liam." Katniss said.
Liam saw the body, staring at it. He was frozen, paralyzed by what was in front of him.
"Liam?" Katniss asked.
Liam finally lifted his head up. He turned to the side and spoke. "It's Patrick."
Cressida glanced in the doorway and gasped. She took out her camera.
"Is this really the time?" Gale asked, annoyed.
"They killed a victor. The districts need to know." Cressida said.
"Are you sure it's the Capitol?" Messalla asked.
Katniss stepped forward, closer to the body. She lifted his jacket to the side. Sure enough, there was a white rose in his pocket.
Katniss covered her mouth. "It was Snow." She said.
Liam ran out of the room. He pushed passed Gale, Cressida, and Messalla. He ran across the house, passed the kitchen, and out to backyard.
It was quiet outside. There were a couple birds chirping off in the distance. The calm wind blew on his face.
His eyes fixated on the shed he built. It was untouched... He walked towards it slowly. He gingerly touched the handle, taking a deep breath. He opened the shed door, letting the outside light shine on the room.
It was empty. The shed was so still. The water bowls were still there, half empty. The food bowls were still in place. There was hay scattered around the ground.
Liam sighed with relief. He grabbed his chest and smiled a little.
