Chapter 29: Ford Hamilton
A/N: The second decade of the Games and finally, a Victor from Six! It seemed impossible, but they've finally pulled it off! Read on to find out more!
Katniss stared at the boy. "Know anything about Ford?"
"His arena was an island full of snakes, I think. Or was that Crystal's arena? I forgot," Peeta replied.
"District Six were pretty bad at these Games, huh?" Katniss muttered. "Nineteen years of losing."
"To be fair, on average, they do better than us," Peeta sighed. "But we've got the same number of Victors. Four each."
The pair sat silently in respect for Ford, a legendary hero back home in Six.
Ford Hamilton
District 6
Aged 18
5 Kills
District Six were desperate. They were the laughingstock of Panem. Nineteen Games and zero Victors. Even Twelve had one! Bloody coal mining Twelve! Every year they were forced to watch some kid drugged with morphling stumble into the arena and get killed in horrific ways. Michelin had given them hope last year but he'd taken too much morphling from his backpack and was too drugged to run from the forest fire. Boom. Another year, another two damn cannons. It was getting embarrassing. And the fact that their workers had to go to the winning district every year to shower them with a year's worth of supplies? Even more embarrassing! After Switch won, the Fives were practically trolling the Six workers the minute they entered the district! It felt as though there was no hope. They may never have a Victor. Their mentor was Sapphire and while she was a nice lady, she couldn't bring anyone home. It was easier said than done, guiding two impoverished drug addicts with few skills through a death match. It also didn't help that Sapphire was always crying a lot and was known for her numerous sex scandals, not exactly a figure that commanded respect among drugged tributes. District Six was the second poorest District in Panem, marginally richer than only District Twelve. They needed those supplies! The amount of Capitol bombing during the Dark Days plus the excessive brutality enforced by the exceptionally large peacekeeper force forced most residents to live in the slums, drinking muddy sewer water and feeding off scraps in the dirt. The work they did was excruciating. Manufacturing vehicles and modes of transportation from bicycles to hovercrafts, it was hard work for the people of Six, who often turned to morphling to ease the pain. Ford, however, wasn't like the rest of his district. No, he'd never so much as even gone near morphling, much less taken it. He was a pretty popular figure in his district. Despite being seemingly forever stuck in poverty, he managed to make a good living by doing what he always loved to do. Racecar driving. He used to work as a test driver for new Capitolian vehicles, until a peacekeeper invited him to join one of their races. He was the only one from the district in the race, but it didn't matter. He won every single time. Soon, the peacekeepers were paying him money to join their teams in the annual Grand Panem Prix, with ten teams made up of Capitolian and peacekeeper racers. Ford was the only one who wasn't any of those, but did it matter when he was the crowd favourite? Sure, they were paying him only an eleventh of what they paid the other racers, but it was more than enough to get by. Being the sole bright talent in the district, naturally, everyone loved him. Kids from neighbouring slums would come up to him and ask him to sign their shirts. Peacekeepers would pay him to tell him his tricks. His friends would come up to him asking for money to buy a decent meal. He never refused any of those requests. His sole purpose in life was to have fun, and he couldn't do that by ignoring others. He had to help them. Shame they couldn't help him. It was the twentieth annual reaping for the Hunger Games. As people were getting poorer and production levels were hitting all-time lows, the Capitol introduced the tesserae system, of course with the catch that the child's name will be added to the reaping balls for every claim of tesserae. Ford never had to take out tesserae but everyone else in District Six had to. It was their only hope of survival. The escort's name was Nimrod, surprisingly fitting considering the occasion. Six had never understood his parents' choice for naming their child. Apparently it was a trendy thing back in the day, naming your child after a cruel literary figure. Nimrod pulled out a girl's name. Bogie Gagnon, yet another morphling addict. She was thirteen and worked as a railroad construction worker. District Six sighed. She was dead before she even entered the arena. Then it was the boys' turn. "Ford Hamilton!" Nimrod yells. The entire district gasps, their large, saggy eyes following Ford's every step closely as he marches confidently up the stage. On one hand, they could potentially lose a district hero. On the other hand, he was their only shot of ever winning the Hunger Games.
Ford gave the wide-eyed crowd a big grin. "Don't fret, guys!" he told them. "Ford's coming home! Let's do this!"
Six found it in them to, for a moment, believe in him.
Six were usually given junior stylists, the worst of the lot. Well, they were better than the ones that styled Twelve, but still hilariously bad. Last year, they'd been dressed as steering wheels and were completely ignored by Bartomeus, who'd merely rambled on and on about the girl from Five, who the Sixes absolutely hated for stealing what little attention their tributes ever had during these Games. But this year would be different. The pair from Five were two nervous wrecks dressed in poorly-designed atom costumes. And Ford, well in his racecar driver suit, he was unmistakable. The Capitolians recognised him instantly and he posed confidently for the cameras. They flung roses at him, screeching the name of their beloved driver. Once again, an outlier had stolen the Careers' thunder. Bogie got a small amount of support as well, considering the fact that Ford put a protective arm around the smaller girl, who looked dizzy and about to faint. She smiled appreciatively and gave a shy wave as the chariot passed by. Ford's parents were especially relieved. In their minds, they'd feared the worst. What if their son had been forced to wear yet another silly costume by yet another silly stylist? Thankfully, this was far from reality. Tigris had certainly done a good job. Bartomeus certainly helped in hyping them out, even though he did incorrectly mention that Ford and Six were proud, contributing citizens of Panem. The Sixes all secretly knew Ford was always somewhat of a rebel. Of course, to say that out loud was to condemn their best chance at a Victor and a district hero to his untimely death. Now they were starting to believe, though. They were even more delighted when Bartomeus was still talking up Ford even as the Sevens, who, for the second year running, were being overlooked in favour of their fellow tributes from other Districts, emerged in the same old tree costumes. For once, many of the citizens began the process of morphling withdrawal, opting to make do without the drug completely to show support for Ford. It was, after all, what he would have wanted. They were, however, left worried by the seemingly sadistic girl from Nine, Kiwicha, who was snarling and letting out battle cries as her district partner, Fonio, looked on with a mixture of fright and disgust. She could be one to challenge Ford. But they all knew his ultimate task would be to take down the Career pack. To try and pull off something like what Shocker, Orchid and Switch did. They hated the Victor girl from Five and her childish immaturity but they had a begrudging bit of admiration for her finale. And Ford should have certainly taken some notes. He needed to come up with something similar to win, or take a risk by relying on his own fighting skills. Either way, Six showed a certain confidence that was never shown before, not since one hundred and twenty-five years ago, anyway. They believed.
Tributes from Six always got horrible scores. Last year's pair, promising as they were, only managed a four each. This time, though, District Six expected something different. They held their breath as Bartomeus began to read out the scores of the various tributes. Their hearts sank when all the tributes from One, Two and Four received a score of nine. As usual, they would be the go-to favourites. Six could only dream of ever having a tribute who could even attempt to match their scores. They smirked a little when the girl from Five, not exactly a second coming of Switch, only managed a two. Then it was Ford's turn. Tension hung in the air as Bartomeus paused, anticipating the drama and tension within Six. They were actually nervous for once. They hadn't been this afraid even during the Dark Days. They'd know they were going to lose that stupid rebellion anyway, so why bother hoping for the best? But now, they willed themselves to hope. They let out a cheer, an actual, delighted cheer, one that left the peacekeepers, who'd thought that even a minuscule amount of happiness was not possible in a down-trodden district like Six, absolutely stunned and speechless, when Ford received a score of ten. Their living hero had the best odds to win! So excited were they that they didn't pull themselves together in time to notice, or even care about, Bogie's five. "Ford's coming home!" someone yelled, and the entire district hollered in agreement. They'd never felt, or even known, this feeling before. This feeling of joy. It had always alluded them in the past. But now, feeling it, anticipating Ford's likely return, it felt good. For once, they had a possible reason to celebrate. Their mood wasn't dampened when the insanity-driven Kiwicha got a score of nine. They didn't care about her or her district. Ford was the only one that mattered to them. He had to survive!
Up next were the interviews. Usually, the tributes from Six were too drugged to make much of an impression besides slur a few irrelevant lines. They sighed and grimaced as Bogie did just that and barely received any applause in return from the Capitolian audience, especially not after she vomited on stage, forcing a five-minute commercial break as the Avoxes rushed to clean the mess on the stage up. Bartomeus looked revolted, and quietly murmured a snarky remark about Bogie and Six, momentarily forgetting that his microphone was still on. Bogie heard it and wasn't too drugged to start crying and mumbling for help. Ford gave her a hug and tried to offer an alliance, but she was too far down the depression hole. Meanwhile, Six were shouting and screaming for Bartomeus' head, needing more than a bit of prompting from the peacekeepers to stay calm. One elderly man was shot to death and two other residents were badly injured. Problem was, they weren't allowed to even return home to get a bandage or rest. This was mandatory viewing! Even the corpse couldn't be removed. That would be breaking the law. District Six had no choice but to comply, still very much enraged by Bartomeus' words. The show went on and this time, it was Ford's turn. Tigris had ditched the traditional boys' tuxedo and had gone for Ford's driver suit instead. It was more recognisable, more iconic amongst the Capitolians. Ford grinned and waved his arms as he went up the stage, greeted by thunderous applause. His interview went pretty well, he talked about his driving career, some of his favourite moments, shared a new poem about the Grand Panem Prix that he'd written, and even managed to crack a few jokes here and there. "Oh, Barty," he chuckled. "I simply cannot af-FORD to lose this race! This is way more important for both me and my District than all the Grand Panem Prix races that I've won combined!" Even Six, depressed as they were, had it in them to lightly chuckle, or at the very least, smile. Ford turned out to be way more charismatic than Bartomeus himself, who seemed utterly star-struck. When the buzzer rang, he was given a large standing ovation as he exited the stage, letting out a loud whoop and shouting, "Thank you, and good night!"
District Six had a good night, all right. The loud chants of "Ford's coming home!" filled the night, with even a couple of peacekeepers joining in on the fun at their own private peacekeeper taverns, cheering and having a beer or two for their charismatic young driver. None of them even cared that Kiwicha had threatened Ford outright during her interview, or that Fonio, a merchant boy who was relatively well-to-do, admitted he was a big fan of Ford and the Grand Panem Prix drivers in general. They only cared about good ol' Ford and his upcoming victory!
District Six sighed and groaned when they saw the arena. A jungle island full of snakes. Most were harmless, but some were deadly mutts, including the feared hydra snakes and mace-tailed anacondas. Ford's pedestal was raised between the girl from Eight and Turnip from Eleven. He looked around, examining his surroundings carefully. Six gritted their teeth as the countdown began, only getting tenser and tenser as the countdown neared zero. Bogie was raised between Rapier from Two and the shivering boy from Three. She wasn't likely to stand a chance, not after Six saw the way Rapier looked at her with contempt. The gong rang and Six cheered on loudly as Ford dashed into the heart of the cornucopia and managed to grab two backpacks and a sword. He turned and roared in rage as he glimpsed Rapier and Sabre from Two tearing apart a screaming Bogie. He charged at them, despite Six's loud screams and cries of protest, his district begging him to leave the Careers alone. What happened next stunned the nation. As Bogie breathed her last, Ford ran up and slashed Rapier's head clean off his neck. Sabre yelped but she couldn't react in time as Ford struck the sword through her chest. Just like that, the proud Careers from Two, gone in a flash. Some of the more mischievous residents of Six smirked as they imagined the face of Draco, red hot and steaming with fury as he probably rampaged around the mentoring room in the Capitol. It felt good, considering it had been his tributes who were usually responsible for brutally killing theirs. Burberry, the girl from One, looked up after spearing the miner boy from Twelve and seemed as though she was about to chase after Ford, but Champagne, her District partner, held her back and called for Shoal and Grouper, the pair from Four, who'd killed the girl from Three and the boy from Five respectively. Draco had told the Twos to hunt down the Fours, but as far as the pair from One were concerned, Sapphire, Onyx and Franc were completely fine with District Four being included into the Career pack. District Six didn't even notice this, they were too busy cheering Ford on as he pushed the strong boy from Seven, who'd tried to charge at him with an axe, to the ground, leaving him to be finished off later by Shoal, the fisher girl not hesitating to stab him through the neck. Ford raced through the jungle, joined by Fonio, both boys slashing past thick plants and snakes along the way. Eleven had died in the Bloodbath, but Ford was not among them. In fact, he had killed two of the most powerful tributes around! Just like that, District Six suddenly became hot favourites for the top prize, and far away in the Capitol mentoring room, Sapphire grinned as the sponsor funds began flooding in. This was going to be a good year. Unless you were Draco, of course. The proud Career brute from Two was venting out his frustration at a surprisingly calm Snow at a newly-opened brewery in the city centre.
The District wished Ford could just kill Fonio. They were getting too close, in their opinion.
"So, Ford," Fonio asked nervously. "You're pretty famous. You must live in a nice house back home in District Six, right?"
Ford chuckled. "Me? Nah, I still live in the nicer slums back home. Not that I mind, though. I feel more connected to everyone there."
Fonio blinked, confused. "Wait, but can't you afford at least a decent housing."
Ford shook his head. "Nope. I don't earn that much from my race wins. Most of the earnings go to the peacekeepers. Oh, our Head Peacekeeper, Bacchus? Yeah, he takes all my prize money away from me the minute I return to Six. He doesn't even pay the workers, saying that the 'Capitol needs the money more'. Ironic, considering he always makes President Ravenstill jokes at the local tavern! " Ford revealed, a sneaky smile on his face as he calmly stabbed a mace-tailed anaconda lurking behind him. Back home in District Six, the citizens could only stare and smile smugly as the other peacekeepers were given a direct order straight from President Ravenstill himself to arrest and execute Head Peacekeeper Bacchus right there and then, the old tyrant screaming and wailing for the mercy he'd never shown the people of District Six, least of all Ford. It only made the people love Ford even more, if that was even possible.
The Careers found the boy from Eight on the third day. District Six watched and had to close their large eyes as Burberry butchered him beyond recognition, his pleas for mercy blatantly ignored by the snooty noble from the now desperate and in-crisis Cooper family, a shadow from their former glory. Meanwhile, on another screen, that crazy girl Kiwicha was biting the limbs off the crying girl from Seven, biting straight into her chest and tearing her heart out in a manner that made even the tubby tyrant President Ravenstill himself wince a little as he watched. District Six hoped that their beloved Ford would stay very far away from her. Later that day, the girl from Five was attacked by a brood of hydra snakes. Unlike Ford and Fonio, she did not have a weapon and was eaten alive. District Six took that as revenge for Switch ruining their tributes' chances with her stupid quick-change the year before.
Ford and Fonio themselves soon ran into trouble on the fourth day. You see, they had run right into the cobra mutts' den. These cobra mutts were huge, each at least twice the size of Ford, with razor-sharp fangs and spikes along their backs. District Six screamed for Ford to run away, to push Fonio to the ground and leave him to die, but no, he stood and fought. The boys slashed and stabbed for one long, hellish hour. Ford dodged a lunging snake and stabbed it head before whirling around to stabbing another. Fonio had his knives, which he chucked at any snake that came too close for comfort to Ford, his racing idol. Soon, the Gamemakers decided that enough was enough and called the attack off. Everyone in District Six heaved a huge sigh of relief as For dusted himself off and grinned at the cameras. "That was a good workout, eh?"
Fonio laughed, clapping his hands. "That was brilliant! Where did you learn to fight like that?"
"I knew some fighting skills from home," Ford admitted. "We had a lot of rogue peacekeepers and bandit gangs, you know? Life in Six is super tough so we have to be tougher!"
Fonio whistled. "Awesome, dude! Surely, you've got a lot of girls clawing at you back home?"
Ford smiled sheepishly and the District Six citizens suppressed cheeky smiles. Ford was a nervous wreck around girls. He always stammered when he came across one around his age. It turned out, the popular district hero racer boy was simply too shy to be around girls. In turn, the girls in District Six respected his privacy and stayed away from him. "Uhh, no," he replied awkwardly. "I, err, don't like talking to girls."
Fonio raised an eyebrow. "Really? Scared they'll bite or something?"
Ford averted his gaze. "Uhm, yeah, something like that..."
The fifth day rolled around and the boy from Three and Leek from Eleven got into a brawl, with Leek pushing the nerdy programmer into a pit of venomous snakes. Later that day, he too, would meet his end at the top of Champagne's spear. Ford and Fonio wandered by a gushing river. Despite their sponsors, water was getting scarce and they needed it desperately. They were about to go ahead and have a drink when Turnip arrived at the scene, bone-thin and severely dehydrated. Her eyes brightened when she saw the river and she dragged herself over to the bank and took a sip. Just then, a horde of water snakes burst out of the water and dragged her into the river. District Six watched in horror as the river ran red with blood and a pile of organs floated to the surface, including the poor girl's brains, heart, fingerbone and liver. Fonio let out a silent scream as Ford let him away, he himself looking absolutely petrified as well. "Okay, got it, don't drink from that river. Understood."
The alliance came to a bloody end on the sixth day. District Nine gritted their teeth as Ford and Fonio were attacked once again by ferocious cobra mutts. This time, though, Fonio couldn't escape and Ford couldn't save him in time. A cobra mutt crept behind him and scooped him into the air before tossing him far, far away. The cannon boomed. Ford screamed as he ran for his life, District Six shouting and encouraging him on, remaining true to their tribute until the very end. The cobra mutts eventually left him alone in favour of chasing the Careers. Ford panted and wheezed, but he couldn't hide his tears. District Six sighed. He shouldn't have been so close with that damn fanboy from Nine! It would only make things harder in the end. Ford stared up at the sky. "You were a brilliant ally to the end, Fonio," he said. "Keep racing on in the afterlife."
The cobra mutts drove the Careers in a frenzy, the trained tributes not daring to challenge them after they tore apart Champagne. Ford used that to his advantage, waiting for the Careers to come running by before jumping forward and slashing Grouper and Burberry with his sword. He managed a deep cut on Shoal's shoulder but she fled before he could do more damage. Ford had no choice but to run too. Those cobra mutts were still coming, and they were coming fast! District Six, meanwhile, was in an excited mood. They were about to have their first Victor! Only that mad girl Kichiwa stood a real threat in his way...
Kichiwa found and butchered Shoal up soon enough. The fisher girl begged for mercy but she showed her none. District Six braced themselves. The finale was on! It was time for Ford VS Kichiwa. The pair met on the seventh day, both wielding fearsome swords and ready to settle this once and for all. They charged at one another and clashed their blades. Kichiwa had trained with a sickle back home and was the better fighter in general, but she was crazed. Her slashes were at random and most of the team, pretty easy for an agile boy like Ford to dodge. Ford was more disciplined, biding his time and waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. District Six were on edge, praying for Kichiwa to go down and die. The quicker this ended, the better. The perfect opportunity came not long after, when Kichiwa raised her sword, leaving her chest exposed, and Ford struck his blade deep inside her chest. She let out a choked gasp as the cannon boomed. Cue the celebrations. Cue the partying. The peacekeepers might not like their elation but could they care less? Absolutely not! Not when they knew the peacekeepers themselves were having their own tavern raves! Six whooped and cheered, chanting Ford's name as he raised his sword triumphantly, an exhausted but relieved look on his face. The wait was over. District Six finally had their Victor.
"Keep being a legend in the afterlife, Ford," Peeta said softly. There was nothing much to say, so the pair moved on. Peeta flipped the page, revealing a girl with sleek, blonde hair, bright blue eyes and a slim figure. She had a smile on her face and her eyes sparkled with eagerness.
"District One?" Katniss guessed. She was a classically beautiful Victor from the luxury district, she could tell.
Peeta nodded. "Crystal Montgomery."
VICTORS
District 1-Sapphire Huntington(4), Onyx Hibonite(9), Franc Montgomery(14)
District 2-Ragnar Sveinsson(5), Reyna Boudicca(6), Draco Hadley(10), Scipio MacAllister(17)
District 3-Nikola Johnson(13)
District 4-Marina Bluebell(1), Mags Flanagan(11)
District 5-Shocker Crimson(8), Switch Kim(19)
District 6-Ford Hamilton(20)
District 7-Hassan Greenwood(2), Jill Wilson(15)
District 8-Woof Casino(16)
District 9-Gwendolyn Whitfield(18)
District 10-Ringo Alvarez(7)
District 11-Orchid Bloom(12)
District 12-Axel Millar(3)
A/N: Well, finally, all twelve districts get one Victor each and Ford stays alive! But will Six win again in the near future? Or are they in for an even longer wait for another Victor? Time will tell, but in the meantime, stay tuned for Crystal, District One's equaliser with District Two (and potentially their chance at pushing ahead!)! Cheers:)