9/9/20

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The Manipulation Games 3: Rebellion

Chapter Eighteen: Squeaky Little Mouse

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One week later, and Katniss and I are finally able to hold our own in training. It's hard, and some days it feels like winning the Games was easier, but we make it through. As promised to Dr. Aurelius, I make daily check-ins at the hospital where they repeat meaningless platitudes such as "you're completely safe here" and "it's okay to un-censor your thoughts", but after a while I decide that it isn't the worst part of my day. In a way, some of the things they tell me are kind of helpful, even. Not that I'd ever admit it out loud, of course.

After today's training, Katniss and I join the Odairs, Gale, and Peeta's childhood friend Delly in the dining hall. Delly has sat with us before, though I haven't given much thought to making an effort to befriend her. Not that I do with any stranger, but her blonde curls and upbeat personality remind me a bit too much of Cashmere on her better days. So I ignore her and ignore the guilt, instead focusing more on the newlyweds.

They're both doing better than I've ever seen them. Annie's zoning out less, Finnick's smile is always genuine for once. If someone here can find a little bit of happiness, I'm glad they were the ones to find it. After what they've been through, they deserve it.

Finnick is finishing up another rendition of the same story I've heard him tell a million times (you know, the one where he fell out of his Dad's fishing boat and a sea turtle stole his hat?) when another guest joins us.

"Peeta!" Delly squeals happily, curls bouncing as her head jolts up. "It's so nice to see you out… and… about?"

As her speech slows, I follow her gaze to the two shackles chaining Peeta's wrists together. Two incredibly buff guards stand menacingly behind him, looking as though they're prepared to murder him the second he steps out of line. They seem like pleasant enough guys, so I decide to give them their very own world famous Johanna Mason nicknames. Remembering the tattered, beat up copy of an illegal pre-Dark Days children's book my mother used to read to me, I settle on the names Thing 1 and Thing 2.

"What's with the fancy bracelets?" I scoff.

"I'm not quite trustworthy yet," Peeta says, nodding his head in Thing 1's general direction. "I can't even sit here without your permission."

I look over at Katniss, who seems horrified at the mere presence of her fiance. Well, that's nothing a little impromptu couple's therapy can't help. After all, if there's anything the past week has taught me, it's the value of a good therapy session!

"Sure he can sit here! We're old friends!" I say with a grin, patting the empty seat next to me. Addressing the rest of the table, I add, "Peeta and I had adjoining cells in the Capitol. We're very familiar with each other's screams."

On my other side, I feel Annie squirm. I look over just in time to see her hands clamp over her ears and her eyes snap shut. Crap. Finnick shoots me a glare as he defensively wraps an arm around her shoulders, which really is fair since I should know better by now.

"What? My head doctor says I'm not supposed to censor my thoughts. It's part of my therapy!"

Finnick rolls his eyes, turning his attention to Annie. He quietly talks her down form the panic attack until she hesitantly comes back to reality.

"Sorry," I murmur.

Annie nods slightly, but doesn't say anything otherwise. An awkward silence follows until Delly decides to break it.

"Annie, did you know it was Peeta who decorated your wedding cake? Back home, his family ran the bakery, and he did all the icing."

Cautiously, Annie peeks around me to glance at Peeta.

"Thank you, Peeta," she says. "It was beautiful."

Peeta smiles at this. "My pleasure, Annie," he says warmly.

Finnick glances at the clock hanging on the wall. "If we're going to fit in that walk, we better go. Good seeing you, Peeta."

Keeping an arm wrapped around Annie, he gives me a quick pat on the shoulder before grabbing both of their empty trays in his free hand.

"You be nice to her, Finnick," Peeta warns coldly, "or I might try and take her away from you."

I'm sorry, but what the actual heck?

Annie and I exchange a confused glance.

"Oh, Peeta," Finnick says jokingly, a hint of warning clear in his tone. "Don't make me sorry I restarted your heart."

Finnick and Katniss briefly exchange a similarly concerned glance, before Finnick leads Annie safely away from the chaos that is likely to ensue. When they've been gone for a minute, Delly breaks the silence once more.

"He did save your life, Peeta," she scolds, glaring at him like one would a naughty child. "More than once!"

"For her," Peeta says, nodding his head at Katniss. I can't help but notice its the first time today that he's acknowledged her. Yeesh. "For the rebellion. Not for me. I don't owe him anything."

Katniss glares, rage flaring in her expression. "Maybe not," she says icily. "But Mags is dead and you're still here. That should count for something."

I hum to myself, taking a sip of water. Well, at least someone's going to acknowledge it. I never expected it to be Everdeen, though.

Peeta matches her glare.

"Yeah, a lot of things should count for something that don't seem to, Katniss. I've got some memories I can't make sense of, and I don't think the Capitol touched them. A lot of nights on the train, for instance."

Peeta takes his spoon and uses it to gesture between Katniss and Gale.

"So are you two officially a couple now, or are they still dragging out the star-crossed lover thing?"

I nearly choke on my water, forcing myself to swallow it before I can spit it all over the table. What happens in Twelve?

"Still dragging," I cough, clearing my throat lightly.

Peeta's hands twitch and spasm, curling and uncurling into fists. Thing 2 steps closer.

"I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself," Gale comments.

Peeta manages to control his hands again, causing the guards to relax.

"What's that?" Peeta asks.

"You."

Peeta raises an eyebrow. "You'll have to be a little more specific. What about me?"

Gale doesn't say anything, so I answer for him.

"That they've replaced you with the evil-mutt version of yourself."

Gale refuses to meet either of our gazes, turning his attention to Katniss instead. Shame. I thought after all we've been through he would at least thank me for taking the harsh statement out of his mouth.

"You done?"

Katniss doesn't answer verbally, instead standing up silently and taking her tray. The air is heavy with the resulting silence as they leave, leaving only Delly, Peeta, and myself. After Katniss and the man who hopefully isn't her real cousin leave, Delly springs to her feet, attracting the stares of the entire dining hall.

"Peeta Mellark! What on earth has gotten into you lately?"

Peeta stares, wide-eyed. A small smirk forms on my lips. Well, well, well. It would seem my earlier comparison to Cashmere wasn't so far off after all. The temper is certainly there.

"Delilah, you know exactly-"

Delly cuts him off.

"No! None of your excuses! I know what the Capitol did to you, but you have no right-"

I dip my spoon into my bowl, but find it to be empty. Glancing over at Peeta's place, I find his tray to be entirely untouched. What a waste.

"-treating Katniss like this, after everything you two have been through-"

I discreetly swap his bowl of stew for my empty one.

"-parents raised you better than this!"

Her voice gets squeakier with every syllable, like a mouse being stabbed repeatedly with a fork. It's kind of funny, actually. The rest of the dining hall sure seems to think so.

Delly cuts herself herself off mid sentence, eyes softening. "Peeta, I love you. You're like a brother to me. As much as it kills me to see you hurting, it doesn't give you an excuse to lash out like this."

At the sight of the tears forming in her eyes, I look away awkwardly. Show's over. Instead, I focus on my soup. Or Peeta's soup, if we're being technical about it. I do my best to block out their argument while I finish eating. By the time I've almost finished, the argument has devolved into Peeta arguing with himself rather than with Delly. Finally, Thing 1 and Thing 2 intervene, dragging him away "for our own safety".

I look over at Delly, who is wiping her tears away with her napkin.

"I, ah… I'm sorry," I say awkwardly.

Delly sniffles and shakes her head.

"It's not your fault," she whimpers.

I hand her the unused napkin from Peeta's tray, which she quickly accepts.

"What if he doesn't get better? What happens then?" she cries.

"He will," I promise her. "Just give him time."

Not that I've ever been able to keep a promise before. I think back to the promise I made to Cashmere, to take care of her pet back in One who's probably starving to death in its cage in Victor's Village. I think back further to my promise to Lumi, the girl I barely knew, to kill Snow and destroy the Games. This isn't even something I can control, so I don't know why I added it to my list of heartbreaks. But as much as I want to be a cynic, there's a part of me that still holds on to the hope that those promises can be fulfilled.

….

Delly is such an underrated character in the fandom. The only time I ever see her mentioned is when people are talking about this scene.

Quote of the day:

"The good thing about not having a roommate right now is that I can blow bubbles in my dorm room without looking like a total weirdo!" -totally not me… definitely not…

May the odds be ever in your favor,

Spectrobes Princess