Chapter 20:
Elias Pilkvist, Survivor of the Sixth Quarter Quell
Elias watches the chariots in confusion for a moment as the mentors and escorts around him fall quiet. Did they faint from the attention…? "What…just happened?" he asks Anastacia and Emilio, right before the crowd starts screaming in panic.
And that's when he notices the blood pouring out of the tribute's neck.
"Move!" Emilio shouts at them, grabbing both of their arms and starting to drag them towards the building, as around them the others start scrambling. Next to them, Misha jumps up before Odyssey and puts his arm around him, guiding him towards the door they're closest to before he has a chance to look for the others. "Radian, help me!"
"What's happening?!" Anastacia yells in a panic, spinning her head around and trying to figure out what's going on around her. Elias grabs her hand as tight as possible, refusing to let go of her even when she stumbles. Radian takes her other arm, keeping her on her feet as Emilio keeps moving them inside. Elias looks back, trying to find where the rest of their friends are, but Emilio shoves them inside with fear on his face that Elias has never seen before.
"Stay here," Emilio tells them, leaning close to them and holding their shoulders. "One of the tributes was shot."
"But the others," Anastacia says, already moving to go get them, but Emilio stops her immediately. "Let me get my family!"
"No! I promised Thetis I'd keep you two safe so please," Emilio begs her and he glances back as Lotis enters without Jory, only Drazen. "I'll get them here, please, trust me."
"My brother," Radian says, his face paling and he runs back outside before Emilio can stop him.
"Elias, protect her," Emilio tells him before letting go and running back out.
"Fuck this, I'm going after him," Anastacia says and before she can take two steps, Elias wraps his arms around her waist and holds her back. "Elias! Put me down, for fuck's sake!"
"No, I cannot let you get hurt," he tells her, feeling awful for keeping her from finding the rest of their friends. But he has to protect her. He cannot lose her… He looks over at Odyssey and Misha for help, but Misha seems to barely be keeping Odyssey from running back out. It's only when Zan puts a strong hand on his shoulder and promises to get the others that he slumps down in Misha's arms.
"Where's the others?" Anastacia asks, still fighting to get out of his arms and almost succeeding. "Who was shot? Someone tell me what the fuck is going on already!"
"There's Amelia," Elias says in relief when she runs in, dragging Letha along with her and keeping her close. The older woman is in tears as she clings to her with one hand, the other dragging Galen with them, who has an arm around Sloan. Behind them, Matla and Rosalina come in, having not left Amelia behind when she went to get Letha.
"Where's Fox?" Amelia asks before her phone starts ringing and she answers it in a panic. "Argos, I'm safe," she says, almost on the verge of tears herself despite her tribute being safe. "Yes, your mom is right here," she passes Letha the phone, watching her with deep concern.
"We should be doing something," Odyssey says quietly as Misha slowly lets go of him, for him to go over to Elias. He puts his hands on Anastacia's shoulders and she tenses up until he starts talking. "Zan will get him. If anyone can, it's them. They used to be a Peacekeeper."
"Okay, but will someone please tell me who the fuck was shot?" Anastacia asks as she stops fighting against Elias, but he still holds onto her, not trusting her to throw herself into fire if it means keeping them safe.
"None of ours," Misha says as the next group runs in. Muir has Lucky and Iona has the District Six team and Elias wants to go to them, relived to see his former team unharmed, but he can't leave Anastacia alone. Not when he can feel her starting to shake from holding in tears as she no doubt tries to be strong for all of them.
Astrid all but carries Clark in over her shoulder as Iris helps Fonio get inside faster, with Lelantos dragging Mord along, the escort stunned and in shock at what they just witnessed. The poor young boy is shaking with sobs as he clings to Astrid, who looks as if she would murder anyone who dared to hurt him right now.
When Fox finally runs in with Zan, both of them helping Johan, Elias finally lets go of Anastacia. "I'm here," he says, running over to them as Roo runs over to Sloan immediately, crying as he collapses in their arms. Behind them, Kanzi drags Pinova inside, stopping her from running back out to the chaos, but Ain and Radian both aren't with them.
Anastacia runs over to Fox and hugs him, soon followed by Amelia. Odyssey takes Elias's arm, pulling him over to them and they are soon pulled into the hug. "I'm so glad you're all safe," Amelia clings to them, sobbing as she leans up against Fox.
"Me too," Elias says, the fear just starting to hit him that they could have been hurt too. He does not know what he would have done if that happened…
"I love ya damn bastards, I can't lose any of you," Anastacia says, her voice shaking as she presses her face into Fox to hide her tears. Elias leans his head on her shoulder, trying to keep his breathing calm, but he is terrified…
"We're all safe," Odyssey reassures them, but with the screams of the crowd just outside and the Peacekeepers coming in… He does not feel too safe.
The last group comes barging in, splitting up their hug. Jory and Emilio along with the Ashminov brothers are pulling the District Seven team inside, both of the mentors in shock and numb. The two career victors both have an arm around a mentor, helping them along, while the brothers are with Winona, who's sobbing hysterically over what just happened.
Their group is silent as they stare at the team and Anastacia is the one to break the silence before Elias can stop her. "Can someone please tell me what happened out there?"
"They – they shot her," Winona sobs out before collapsing to the ground. "Baylor."
The room falls into silence broken by screams outside as it's secured and locked down by Peacekeepers now that everyone is there. Anastacia stares in shock and Elias hugs her, relieved that it was not one of their tributes, even if it makes him feel horrible. "How?"
"Rebels shot her." They all look over at Kostas entering the room, flanked by Peacekeepers. The Head of Security looks them all over, counting under her breath, and when she has them all accounted for, she visibly relaxes. "The tributes were rushed inside and as far as we know, no one else was hurt. But Baylor…we won't know for sure until we get there but…" she shakes her head and gives the District Seven team a sad look. "It's not looking good."
"Fuck," Odyssey says and turns away from Kostas, grabbing his hair and shaking a bit. Misha reaches out and puts a hand on his back, silently letting him know he's there, but there is not much he can do to comfort him right now.
"What about the others?" Jory asks, staying close to the District Seven team. "The Gamemakers? Council?"
"All safe," Kostas reassures him. "We don't think they tried to attack us but we did have a force field set up around us…"
"What do we do? How do we get to our tributes?" Astrid asks, still clinging to Clark and refusing to let him go.
"We're working on figuring out how to get you there safely. In the meantime, you're safe in here," Kostas tells them. "I will be here working out transportation and will be staying in contact with the security team at the Games Headquarters. We should know soon if Baylor can be saved."
Anastacia clings onto Elias tighter as Kostas lets them be for the time being and Misha directs them over to the side of the room where they can all sit together. "We are safe," Elias reassures her as they sit down against the wall and she curls up against his side, barely holding back her tears from the other. "I will keep you safe."
"I'm supposed to do that," Anastacia says quietly as the whole group piles around them, Amelia and Fox on the other side of her and Odyssey and Misha on his other side.
"Things just got a lot more serious, huh?" Odyssey comments as they watch the others in the room. Cal and Glen cling to each other, surrounded by a few other mentors trying to give them support, but there's nothing that can be done for them. Not when they might lose one of their tributes. "I can't imagine being in their shoes right now…"
"Why?" Amelia asks as she pulls up her knees to her chest and wraps her legs around them. "Why are they doing this?"
None of them have an answer for her. Oh, Elias sure wishes he had one. He had thought before it was tough seeing Anastacia hurting from the stress of mentoring, but seeing all of them hurting… He does not know how to be brave for all of them.
"Fuck," Kostas says suddenly, bringing everyone's attention over to her as she stares down at her phone. When she looks back up, her gaze finds the District Seven team right away, pain in her eyes as she watches the three struggling. "Baylor is dead."
Morris Holmes, 15, District Five
None of them really knew what was going on as the chariots were rushed inside, so suddenly after the interim President finished her speech – a speech that Morris would do much better once they become Monarch. But once inside, the noise from the crowd outside getting dulled, a piercing scream pulls everyone's attention back.
"Someone help! She was shot!" Karter yells, setting off a panic among the tributes. Someone…was shot? How?
Peacekeepers start swarming the area as tributes start running towards the elevators, trying to get away from the danger. There's so much commotion and yelling around Morris, including their District partner jumping down and running for her allies. Morris calmly steps down, more curious to see what happened than concerned for their own life right now.
Some of the careers run past them as they walk to the District Seven chariot, along with a few others. Kasada and Farren are there first, the girl having been allies with Baylor and at the sight of her body laying there, she grabs onto her brother's arm. "We gotta go," Farren tells her and she doesn't protest him, letting him lead her away from there.
Lobo runs up to where Karter kneels next to Baylor, his hands on the wound in her neck and blood pouring out of it. Morris stands there watching as Peacekeepers come over, trying to move Karter out of the way. "Let me help her!" he snaps at them and Morris tilts their head in wondering.
They hadn't thought they would see death first hand before the Games started… So much blood on the ground…they have no doubt she isn't breathing anymore. They take a step closer, getting as close as they can with the Peacekeepers moving in, wanting to take it all in. Her eyes stare up in frozen shock, blood splattered on her lips, the hole in her neck from the bullet…
Morris has spent a lot of time in the morgue with Dennis, helping him embalm bodies and perform autopsies. They know what fatal injuries look like and they're staring at one right now. There is no coming back from that injury.
"I can't get a pulse," one of the Peacekeepers say and Karter stumbles back from them, his arm caught by Lobo and keeping him upright. "Someone contact Kostas and then we need to secure the area."
Morris can't help but move even closer, only for a Peacekeeper to try to push them back. "Let me see the body," they snap at them with a sneer for touching them. Don't they know who they are?! They are the next Monarch of Panem…and they want to see death up close.
"Get back and head to the elevators," they instruct Morris, ignoring their disdain at the way they're being treated.
Morris takes a couple steps back, still staring at the body as they try in vain to keep her alive, before taking in the reactions around them. They have seen death before – they would never forget the day they went into work with their grandmother and witnessed her being electrocuted to death. But this…this is death at its most brutal. Was there any reason for her death? Or was she just the poor target?
At the next chariot over, the girl is wailing as she covers up her ears and sits on the floor, as Ciana pulls on her arm, but she can barely make her move. "Rhiannon, we need to go!" she says, panic in her voice as she looks around desperately. "I know it's tough but we need to get somewhere safe and then we can break down."
"Go," Ardent says, pushing along Mercy and Bez towards the elevators to stop next to the District Eight girl. "I can get her up," he tells them, surprising Ciana and putting her on guard.
"Why would you?" she asks him, rightfully not trusting the career. She stands between Rhiannon and Ardent, even as she shakes in fear at standing up to him.
"Please, I understand…it's not safe here," Ardent says, pleading with her. "Let me help."
Ciana finally nods her head and steps aside. Ardent doesn't waste any time picking up the crying girl and holding her easily as they make their way over to the elevators. The whole time Ciana stays by her side, brushing her hand over Rhiannon's hair and whispering to her.
Interesting…Morris watches them leave, so curious about that. That right there is part of the beauty of death, showing different sides of people they wouldn't normally show. It only makes them look forward to the arena even more… What secrets about death will they learn there?
"Everyone make your way to the top floor rec room!" a voice booms out to them as the area gets flooded with Peacekeepers, coming to get any stragglers moving and secure the area. "Stay there until further notice!"
Morris lets them direct them over to the elevators, taking one last look back at Baylor's bleeding body, memorizing every detail of it, before stepping inside with a couple other tributes. All of them seem shaken up by what happened and Morris studies them curiously. Why are they so upset at her death? Didn't they all volunteer to kill each other?
But death in the arena is expected… Who would have predicted there would be death during the chariots? Certainly not Morris and clearly not the others. They can't wait to see how this changes things moving forward, because they have no doubt it will.
The elevator doors open and they step out calmly, head held high as they study the tributes in the room. They find a wide variety of emotions across their faces and they take them all in, wanting to know what death does to them. Some wear a cold mask, keeping their emotions back from the others. Some quietly weep in fear as they sit with others, no doubt wondering if it could have been them that was shot instead. And others openly weep and wail, those who have seen death before, and Morris finds themself gravitating towards them, wanting to know more about what they had seen. But they will ask them tomorrow.
For now, they simply want to take it all in.
Perhaps the most interesting reaction is Karter, sitting with his head in his hands and shoulders shaking. "I should have done more to save her," he says, voice muffled by his hands and Morris takes a few steps closer to him.
"Why would you bother?" Lobo asks him, failing at hiding the concern in his eyes. "She's just your District partner."
"Because it's the right thing to do," Karter answers, picking up his head to look over at Lobo. "I just…what's the point of life if I don't try to help people?"
Interesting…very interesting… Morris walks past them, noting the splatter of blood on his uniform. But they pause, unable to resist asking him about it. "What exactly happened?"
Karter's eyes darken at the question and no doubt he'll be asked that many times tonight. "We were standing there as the chariots started moving again," he starts and a few other tributes nearby quiet down to pay attention to him, yet he doesn't notice. "The fireworks were going off and I thought nothing of it. Then I felt something wet hit my face and when I looked over, she…"
He shakes his head and looks back down, leaving the others to fill in the gaps. But Morris wants to know everything. "She what?"
Karter picks up his head to glare at them. "She was collapsed in the chariot, blood pouring out of the gaping wound in her neck!" he snaps at them before turning away, wrapping his arms around himself before starting to rip off the pieces of armor on his arms. "Just leave me alone."
"Death isn't something to fear," Morris responds before stepping away from him, not wanting to waste their time on someone who doesn't understand the beauty of death. The one thing that equalizes them all. They would just have to try and watch a recap of it later since they couldn't see it happen.
They resume their pacing around the room, watching all of the tributes…and just fascinated at their reactions. Amazing what death does to people… If this is how they react to death now, what will it be like in the arena?
While this might have made the others afraid for the arena and the reality of death so much realer… Morris cannot wait.
Ardent Sterling, 18, District One
Ardent doesn't know what made him stop to help Rhiannon up. But as they sit there on the couch, the girl curled up at his side and desperately clinging to him as they're surrounded by the rest of the tributes… Well, he doesn't regret it. He knows too well what she's gone through… All that blood there, the body lying limp… How could he have left her there?
There was no way he could have done that. Just like Ciana and Shams aren't leaving her side now, even if Shams is numb from it. How did he go from leaving the careers to this in such a short time?
But he isn't the only one with unexpected people. Of course, the careers are all together, aside from Juno who is pacing the room and chatting with the groups. Bez sits with Farren and Kasada, for once keeping their mouth shut and not speaking before thinking. The two siblings also aren't bickering for the first time, quietly chatting to each other and looking like they do care about each other. Cimmer and Inutil sit with Karter, Lobo, and Kazu, none of them knowing what to say to Karter as he sits there, blood staining his costume and eyes glazed over in shock. The District Three and Eleven teams chat together quietly as they half-heartedly toss a beanbag back and forth, trying to keep their mind off of what just happened. The only one not clinging to someone is Morris, who sits in the corner of the room, watching them all with an unreadable expression. Ardent doesn't understand how they aren't affected by this…
Because the reality is, one of their fellow tributes just got killed during the chariots and it could have been any of them. They all volunteered for this, yet this was the first moment where their potential death became very real. Ardent had thought he had come to terms with the possibility of his death. How many times had he thought about how one way or another, the Games will free him? But he's not at peace with it. He's scared.
They're all scared.
"Attention tributes, this is Theodosius speaking."
They all perk up at the voice over the loud speaker, a few of them looking around for the source. Rhiannon lets out a whimper and moves closer to him, as Ciana rubs her back to try and soothe her. Shams just sits there, back straight and stiff, as she stares straight ahead, shocked into silence by this.
"I will be honest with you. Baylor was killed by rebels, due to a family history with them," Theodosius tells them and a few tributes talk quietly about that. "We don't know if they intend on attacking anyone else so we have shut down the building completely. She was the only casualty and the Gamemakers, mentors, and escorts were not harmed. But we are taking every precaution to ensure your safety moving forward. Your teams will be there soon, we have them in safety and are trying to get through the crowds. We have them in groups of three for safety so sit tight until your team gets there. I'm sending in one of my most trusted colleagues in the meantime, he will help keep you safe. Just…sit tight and when we get more information, we'll share it with you."
The room goes silent aside from those still crying a bit at the shock of it all, for once all of them speechless. It's a silence he's all too familiar with, that empty feeling of dread pressing down all around them…
The silence is broken when the doors open and that bird man from the banquet walks in with Seraphim's intern. "Hello tributes, it is I, Julian, also known as Theodosius's trusted colleague," he greets them and Calisto next to him smacks his arm before he can give a dramatic bow. At least one of them has the tact for the situation. Julian doesn't miss a beat and steps aside, giving a dramatic flourish of his arm. "I have brought my children to protect you."
Ardent didn't expect him to mean dogs when he said that, but none of them are complaining. Not when a bunch of very good dogs run into the room, going up to groups of tributes and bumping their hands with their heads for pets. The only one who doesn't seem happy is Adonis, who makes a comment about wanting a cat instead. One comes right up to their group and gives a small whine at Rhiannon, who slowly moves her head to look at him. He puts his head on her knee, silently comforting her, and after a minute, she reaches over to start petting it and most importantly, her sobs slow in frequency.
"I love dogs," Ciana says softly as she slides off the couch, sitting on the floor and leaning against the couch so she can pet the dog better. She looks up at Rhiannon, "Doesn't Clark have one? Did he bring him?"
"He didn't," Rhiannon answers and Ardent tries not to let his happiness at hearing her speak show to not startle her.
"He should have," Ardent responds softly to her, thinking about Anastacia's service dog and how just him being there on the same floor has helped him. "Maybe you could come see Anastacia's dog…"
Ciana rightfully gives him a cautious look at that, her eyes narrowing as she tries to figure out his intentions. And honestly, he's just as surprised as she is that he suggested that. What's he doing asking someone that isn't a career to come spend time with him? Well…he did tell the others he's barely a career… Oh what does it matter who he talks to now? The normal rules of the Games are long abandoned at this point.
"Maybe…" Rhiannon finally answers and moves her head from hiding in his shoulder so she can better pet the dog. The spot immediately feels cold and he wants her to move back, but he stays quiet, keeping his longing for human contact to himself. But it's just been so long since anyone hasn't recoiled at his touch…
But she doesn't move from his side, their arms still touching each other as they sit in silence for a few minutes, her breathing starting to even out and the tears falling less frequently down her cheeks.
"What was it for you?" Ardent asks quietly, not wanting to send her back down that path, but also needing to know so he doesn't do it accidentally and set off her tears again.
He can feel Rhiannon tense up beside him and her hand stills on the dog, who licks her hand until she starts petting him again. "The fireworks," she finally whispers and buries her face against his shoulder again. She takes a shaky breath and he reaches over, putting his hand on her arm to hopefully comfort her. "They reminded me of the gun…"
"You're safe now," Ardent whispers, pulling her closer to his side to comfort her. "No one is going to hurt you here."
But that isn't true. Everyone in this room could hurt her in the end, if it came down to them or her. But as far as the rebels…no, they are safe now.
The elevator door opens and a few people flinch in fear, but it's just the first group of mentors and escorts arriving. The Capitol group runs in first, Odyssey and Misha clutching each other desperately as Zan follows behind, searching for Adonis and Bez. When they see their pair, they visibly relax and slow their pace towards them. The second group out is the one most affected by this and Winona goes to Karter, letting Cal hold Glen near the door, silently trying to comfort him after losing his tribute so suddenly. But Ardent can tell that there's nothing Cal can say or do right now that will erase the pain on Glen's face. The last team has one mentor coming right towards them and Johan going to Cimmer, as Roo hugs himself and glances between the two, trying to figure out who to go to.
"Shams!" Fox calls out to her and she moves for the first time since they sat on the couch, looking up at his voice. He pulls her in for a tight hug immediately, so much concern on his face for her. "I'm so glad you're safe."
Shams clutches the back of his shirt and nods her head, letting out a small sob in response. "I'm okay," she says quietly, but the look on Fox's face shows that he knows that isn't true.
"Come on, let's go to the others and we can get you downstairs and comfortable," Fox tells her, releasing her from his hug but keeping an arm around her as he looks at the three sitting there. Ardent waits for some sort of reaction to his presence with the girls, but Fox just looks concerned for all of their safety. "Your mentors are all in separate groups but they're on their way. Are…you good?"
"I got them," Ardent responds to him as the next group comes in. "Anyways, there's Letha."
The two career women of Four lead in the teams from Three and Five, with Lucky looking at them with new respect, and the District Four team makes sure they have found their tributes before going to their own team. Amelia looks at Fox, who nods his head, before she turns and runs to Riley, with Matla and Rosalina right behind her. Galen heads over to Morris in the corner, only a little bit of visible concern on his face for them, while Letha and Sloan head to Ciana.
Ciana jumps up from the couch and accepts Letha's hug immediately, while Sloan watches, staring over at Roo with concern. "I'll be right back," they say, quietly excusing themself to go check on their fellow escort.
But for the two woman, they barely notice them leaving. Letha steps back, putting her hands on Ciana's face and giving her a concerned look over as she starts crying, before turning to Rhiannon on the couch and leaning over to hug her too. "Are you girls alright?" Letha asks as she lets go of Rhiannon, before shocking Ardent by leaning over and giving him a hug too. He's frozen in shock for a moment before hesitantly hugging her back. "And you too, are you all safe?"
"We are," Ciana tells her mentor, taking her hand and holding onto her once she stops hugging him. She looks over at Ardent, still not fully trusting him, but not seeming to hate him either. "Ardent helped me get Rhiannon to safety…"
"Thank you," Letha gives him a warm genuine smile and puts her hand on his shoulder. "I should have known Anastacia and Elias made a good choice in supporting you."
"I…" Ardent starts before stopping, having no idea how to even respond to that.
He's almost grateful when the elevators open up and gives him a reason not to. It's almost a struggle for two of the teams to get out as the One and Eleven mentors both try to leave first, until Radian holds Anastacia and Elias back for a moment, letting Pinova and Ain out first. Behind them, Emilio and Kanzi stand with the District Six team, all of them concerned, but not to the same extent as the younger ones. But once Radian lets them go, there's nothing that could stop Anastacia.
Anastacia rushes into the room, black makeup stains on her cheeks as Elias is right behind her. "Ardent!" she calls out, her voice panicked as she searches for him. Behind them, Emilio and Radian are there, finding him before looking for where Mercy sits with Chantelle.
"Right here," he answers her and when she pinpoints his voice, her shoulders sag down and she rushes to him. "I'm okay."
Rhiannon lets out a noise as Anastacia reaches him and she flinches back, not expecting someone at his side. "That's Rhiannon," he tells her quietly, not wanting to move away from her. He barely wants to admit it to himself but…he's been so depraved of human contact and he needs it as much as she does right now. "It was just…madness."
"So was it with us," Anastacia says quietly, sitting down on the floor and leaning against the couch where he sits. Elias sits next to her immediately and puts his arm around her and rests his head on her shoulder, taking a few deep breaths to steady himself. She puts a hand on Ardent's leg, silently reassuring herself that he is still there. "I didn't know what was going on or who was hit, or if we would be hit," she continues, and she shakes her head before shutting her eyes. "I'll tell ya, I haven't been that scared in a long time, if ever. The thought of losing anyone…"
"Well you didn't," Ardent says quietly, putting his hand on top of hers and giving it a gentle squeeze. He looks around the room as mentors and escorts slowly come in and find their tributes, except for the District Seven team… Glen stands near the door, Cal just silently wrapping his arms around him, with tears silently pouring down his cheeks. "Death is so much more real now…"
"You're telling me and I was in the arena already," Anastacia says with a forced laugh, clearly trying to keep herself from fully breaking down. Ardent knows because he's in the same boat as her…
Radian heads over their way after checking on Mercy, continuing to look back over at the District Eleven team where his younger brother is. "Are you okay?" he asks, subdued for the first time since the Reaping.
"Yeah," Ardent replies and gestures towards Ain. "Go to him." Radian gives him a grateful smile before making his way to his brother, not needing to be told twice.
They fall into silence, none of them really knowing what to do. "Now what?" Anastacia finally asks them. "It doesn't feel right leaving here yet…"
"Where is she?! Get the fuck out of my way!"
They look over at the young voice screaming in the doorway as the last group enters, with District Eight, Two, and Nine. Jory is almost more concerned for Emilio than his tributes as he heads over to them with Drazen and Lotis. And Mord is actually serious for what must be the first time in his life, his head down and frowning as he follows Lelantos over to Inutil as Fonio goes to Lobo.
But the last team is a whole different story, as Clark is panicking as he searches the room, Astrid and Iris at his side. Rhiannon picks her head up at the sound of his voice and when he sees her, he comes running over, pushing people out of his way. "Are you okay?" he asks immediately, crouching down in front of her. Up close, Ardent can see the tearstains on his cheeks and red eyes. He glances at Ardent and flinches a little bit, before turning his focus back to his tribute.
Ardent can get the hint very clearly that he's not welcome by Clark and sighs loudly, moving to stand up. "I'll leave now that you're here," he says under his breath, only to be stopped when Rhiannon grabs his arm with a surprising amount of strength.
"Please don't leave me," Rhiannon begs him and he slowly sits back down next to her, as Clark stares him down.
Anastacia reaches over, trying to pat Clark's shoulder and managing to hit the side of his head, causing him to flinch away from her touch. "Looks like you're stuck with us careers, buddy."
"You're not as bad as Odyssey," Clark grumbles under his breath, but there isn't as much anger in his eyes as he looks over at the Capitol team. The couple is holding each other tightly as Zan helps them gather up Bez and Adonis from the groups they've been with so they can get back to their floor. It's more obvious than ever before just how much Odyssey is relying on Misha.
"Should we be going?" Ardent asks, looking around as some of the teams start heading towards the elevators. "Are we even allowed to?"
"Of course we are," Anastacia scoffs, but with her makeup stained face, it's clear she isn't handling this well. She turns in Clark's direction, "We're a package deal now so where we going?"
"Why are you asking me? I'm the youngest!" Clark says quickly, not liking the decision making responsibility falling on him. "I don't know…"
"We all need some sleep," Astrid says, coming up behind Clark with Kazu at her side.
"I don't know if I can," Rhiannon says quietly, shaking her head as fresh tears start falling down her cheeks. "The memories…"
"I can stay with you," Ardent offers, getting surprised look from all of the mentors at that. "You know…keep you company until you fall asleep. That is, if you want…"
"I don't want to be alone…" Rhiannon trails off, looking away from him and down at her lap. "I've been alone for so long…"
That hits so close to home for Ardent… For more than a year he's been alone too, for something he may or may not have done… He doesn't want to hurt her by getting close to her, yet at this point, he doesn't know if he can do that. He needs someone too… "Yeah me too," he says quietly, looking over at her, someone who really understands what he's gone through.
"Well that settles it," Anastacia says, standing up and brushing off her pants before putting her hands on her hips. "Party on the District Eight floor, as long as you have something to drink because I think we could all use one after this."
"Now that's a woman speaking my language," Astrid responds, getting a grin from Anastacia, but the pain is still in her eyes. But Astrid doesn't question them joining their team, something Ardent is glad for. He just…wants to be accepted by someone, he doesn't care who or where they come from. "Let's go."
Ardent stands up and holds out his hand to Rhiannon. She stares at it for a few seconds before taking it and standing up. She grabs his arm with her other hand and stays close to him as they follow their mentors. "Thank you," she says quietly and puts her forehead against his shoulder.
"You're welcome," he replies to her, glancing down at the small girl tucked against his side. He really doesn't know what he's doing with her. He doesn't deserve someone being close to him after what he might have done. And yet…it feels right. Is it wrong to want someone close after everything he went through? Does he deserve someone?
Maybe he does, maybe he doesn't. But he'll let her decide if she wants to stay close to someone as broken as he is.
Yeah...I went there. Since this is my last full SYOT/story in this trilogy, I figured I gotta go big or go home and a pre-Games death is one of the only things I haven't done up to this point. It's been one of those things I've considered before but the subplot just wasn't right for it, but there's no better time than now. I know some people won't be happy but I stand by the choice. I'm not the first person to do a pre-Games death and I sure as hell won't be the last one. At the end of the day, I'm writing the story I want to write and I haven't had this much fun writing my stories in a long time, so I'm going to keep doing it.
And no, I have not forgotten to do a eulogy, I am going to do it at the bloodbath chapter so people can't just scroll down to the A/N and see who it was (because I know I'd be tempted to do that too). If you did that and are reading this...get back up there and read the actual chapter lol.
So, what will this mean going forward? Well...next chapter we'll get a look at the Capitol side of things in the immediate aftermath. I did warn a couple chapters ago that the rebels have things planned...but is this all or is there more? Guess you'll have to wait to find out!
RQ: Did you think I'd actually kill the tribute or I would be soft?
Also this chapter features a 5 AM idea I had when I couldn't sleep lol. I'm curious what people think on that (and guesses on what it was lol).
Anyways, the subplot is in full force. Shit is getting very real, very fast. The Games aren't safe and the rebels are ready for war. These Games have been different from the very start and they are going to continue to be different from any past Games. Good news is I have quite a few chapters written ahead so we'll have consistent updates for a while! I'll see you next Friday when we check in on our Capitol team!