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Song Suggestion: Filter- "Happy Together"

Thank You: zazanis, 3vlee, Guest, katnisseverdeendistrict12, K.C., DHTDesty, Guest, Lucy Greenhill, Bea0407, ElektraMackenzie, Guest, Rachel, Sandraanataliaa, SergeantJohnston, Guest, and HeyBirdy.

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"Beauty provoketh thieves sooner than gold." -William Shakespeare

Beauty Provoketh Thieves

Prim woke to a great bang and shouting.

"Who the fuck is coming into my house?" Cato's voice could be heard. He exited his room with a slam of the door. It reverberated through Coral's room. His heavy footsteps pounded down the hallway. He seemed to be shouting some more, but it was warbled with distance.

Prim jerked from her bed, curling the sheets around her ankles. She still wore her dress from the previous night. But it no longer looked elegant, with wrinkles in the silk like an old woman's face. She was sure her makeup was smeared on her face, and she was also sure her inner thighs would still be coated in dried blood. After the scene in the study, Prim refused to come out of bedroom all day. Coral thought her outfit was wonderful and made her get up to play tea party in it. A maid brought them breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It was nice to spend time with Coral; it made her forget her troubles, made her focus on the act of laughing instead of crying.

Cato came by after dinner. He watched from the doorway, while Prim acted as if he wasn't there. They were playing pretend school with the little bears. She had told Coral all about desks and pencils and chalkboards, and lately, it was everything the little girl talked about.

Prim's back had straightened, as she felt his eyes on her; felt them boring their way through her meager armor.

She ignored him until Coral spotted him and squealed.

"Daddy!" She ran and threw herself in his arms. To Prim's surprise, Cato caught her and then lowered her, giving an awkward pat on her back. "Come play school! Bear Bear has to say his ABC's. Do you know de ABC's? I do. It goes like dis: A,B,C,D, E..." Prim continued to sing at the top of her lungs. When she got to the the middle she sung Elemeno P as if L,M, N, and O were all one letter.

Cato winced and looked as if might correct her, but surprised her again when he held his tongue until the end of the song.

"That was..." he rubbed the back of his neck and looked at Prim for help, "That was good, Coral."

"I know," Coral squealed again, clasping her hands. "Oh, Daddy, pwease come play with us. Pwease, pwease, pwease."

Cato looked torn. He hesitated before answering.

"I can't," he said, and her face fell, "I have work to do, but..." he reached into his pocket, "I have something for you." He pulled his hand out to reveal a small bracelet. It had little charms attached to it.

"Oh, it bewtiful!" She placed a hand on her heart. Cato leaned down and secured it on her tiny wrist. "I wuv you daddy with all my heart." She threw her arms around his neck. He jerked a little in surprise, but brought his hand out to pat her back again, his eyes on Prim the whole time.

When Coral let go, he reached again into his pocket and brought out a matching one.

"I got one for you too." He held it out towards Prim.

If Coral had not been there she would have refused. The last time he put jewelry on her, it ended up being a tracker. And she didn't want him to think she could be bought with trinkets, because she couldn't. But Coral was there, and she was already squealing with excitement, so when he walked forward, she held out her wrist. Heated, calloused fingers brushed down the skin, longer than he should have. Eventually, she pulled the hand back to her chest, unnerved with how good his hands had felt.

Even long after he left, her skin remembered the electricity. She had gone back to bed conflicted.

Now someone had entered Cato's home, and Prim winced in discomfort when she swung her legs over the side of the bed. Her head still pounding with a small hang over, both physical and emotional.

A small whimper came from the twin bed beside hers. Coral tossed in her bed, still asleep, even through all the noise. Prim waddled over to her and tucked the covers back around her little body before exiting the room.

Though it sounded as if someone was breaking and entering, Prim wasn't afraid. Anyone stupid enough to cross the threshold of the house without permission deserved the painful death they surely would get. However, despite her lack of worry, her feet bounded fast down the steps, taking two at a time at some places. She hurtled around the bend in the stairs, and then almost fell over, trying to stop herself from crashing into a person positioned at the end of the stairs.

She didn't succeed, smacking hard into a waiting body. After the crash, her body tilted to the side and almost smacked into the marble floor.

Two arms caught her just in time. Her nose had been an inch from a painful meeting with the floor. Strong arms, they belonged to a man. He twisted her so she could look up at him.

He was very handsome with golden hair, the tips flaring out into curls around his ears, except his eyes were dark, and his skin pale. A very odd combination, but not unattractive. Dark circles lined the undersides of his eyes, and Prim had the suspicion it was their natural state. An ugly burn started at the hollow of his neck and twisted down, peeking out from under his shirt. She craned her head, in a natural curious compulsion, to see how far it reached below his shirt.

When he noticed her looking at it, he frowned and helped her up. He adjusted his collar to hide the wound, buttoning the shirt up his neck.

She almost apologized, but he surprised her with a brilliant smile as if unfazed by anything glancing her up and down in a flirtatious manner that reminded her of Rory, as if it was his natural nature. The stare wasn't like Jace's. This one didn't have the edge or the threat intertwining with it. It was almost... innocent.

"Beauty provoketh thieves sooner than gold. And you, my dear, could make a man greedy."

"Who says things like that?"

She wanted to snort. She was anything but beautiful at the moment. She could scare little children if she wanted to.

He laughed.

"Dead men." He winked at her, "If I told you, I would have to explain that I sneak into Cato's study to read his Ancient books. That would mean admitting to reading, and that can't be very good for a reputation. Us warriors must be empty-headed and scowl. Not to mention, Cato has an awful temper when people touch his things. "

"I think you just told me without telling me."

He put his hand over his heart, "and now you are entrusted with a most serious secret."

They both smiled in amusement. Prim decided she liked him.

"And what shall I call a gallant gentleman such as yourself?"

The man's eyes twinkled.

"Hannibal will do." He nodded, and he placed a hand to his chin as if in thought, "Though it's a bugger of a name. Some friends have tried to shorten it."

"To Han or to Hanny?" Prim asked with a snort.

He smiled wide. She noticed his teeth were crooked at the bottom, devoid of capitol intervention. The normalcy soothed her. It made him human and approachable. It made him more handsome.

"Hanny, though with the way you say Han, I'm leaning towards that." He paused and glanced her up and down again, as if in appreciation. "I would ask what the lady present is named, but the secret is pasted across every magazine in the Captiol. Your new relationship is quite the story."

He annunciated story, as if he understood it was a farce. Snow's threat echoed in her mind, and it made her suddenly wary. Who was he, and why was he in Cato's house in the early hours of the morning?

"Who are you?"

"I feel like we already discussed this."

His hand came out and grabbed her hand. He leaned over, giving it a small kiss on the top. The games he played were suddenly not as charming. She was about to tell him so, but she was interrupted.

"Get your annoying, thieving fingers away from what's mine."

Prim spun around to find Cato. He leaned against a wall leading into the main living room with a blank expression. His whole aura was calm, but that could be just a rouse. Calm could be deadly too. He unfolded his arms and walked closer, just inches from Hannibal. Hannibal dropped her hand and straightened. Neither man seemed intimidated.

"What's a brother for besides being annoying and stealing your things every now and then."

Brother? It took Prim back a moment, but after a moment she could see it. They shared the hair color and body build, and though their eye colors were different, they had the same shape. They both grinned, and she mused that they shared the same smile too.

Hannibal reached out and embraced his brother, giving a few rough pats on his back. Cato gave a small laugh and wiggled away, punching him on the arm. It was the first time Prim saw Cato give real affection, and it caused something to stir inside her.

She had worked so hard to keep him a monster that the sudden appearances of his humanity rocked her and disturbed her.

"We've been waiting for you," Cato said, clasping his shoulder with one hand. "What took you so long? The others are in the living room. Theodora is especially excited."

Others? Prim felt wary. She was in no condition to meet new people. The thought of meeting a slew of new people so soon after the ball caused her anxiety to skyrocket. Prim was never the type of girl to like big gatherings. Back home, she had Rory and she had Gale. Sometimes, when she wasn't being jealous of her, Prim would spend the day walking around with Madge. And that was it.

Hannibal straightened and puffed out his chest, clearly proud about something.

"There was a little," he glanced at Prim out of the corner of his eye, "struggle."

Cato frowned at that. He opened his mouth as if to ask a question, but closed it when he noticed Prim straining forward as if to hear better. She was sure they were deliberately skirting around something in front of her, and she desperately wanted to know what it was they were hiding. He looked her up and down, staring deep into her eyes for a moment. The inspection made her feel vulnerable, as if he was picking apart every flaw. As if now that he had been intimate with her, he held the power to bleed out the hidden, fragile parts of herself.

He sneered, and she clenched her fingers at her side, trying to disguise her hurt with anger. She knew she looked bad at the moment, but it was something else when somebody else pointed it out.

"Maybe you should go get yourself cleaned up and go back to bed."

Hannibal smirked, "Theodora is going to tear down this house when she figures out you hid your new Manato from her."

"I can handle Theodora."

As much as she didn't want to meet Theodora, who sounded fierce and terrifying, she also chaffed at being told to go to bed. She had the distinct feeling he wanted her out, like a child, so he could either discuss or do something important.

"I'm not very tired."

Cato's features tightened. "I said go to bed. This isn't a discussion about what you want to do. It's an order."

She almost fought against it, but held her tongue. Her sister used to do this to her when she was little, tried to hide the hard things, soothe things over, and pretend the world was perfect. Obstinacy never got her very far then, and she doubted it would get her far now. If she fought, he might lock her in her room or something.

"A bath does sound nice."

Cato's face softened as he walked over and kissed the top of her head. He looked relieved about something.

"Goodnight, little bird.

She pulled out of the embrace, and slowly turned and walked up the stairs. On the way up, she listened hard to the conversation.

"Is she with you?" Cato asked.

"She's in the car." Hannibal's voice sounded like tires rolling over gravel.

"Well, you might as well bring her in. Get the process started."

She heard a small grunt, as if in agreement before the door slammed.

Prim went up the steps, trying to be as loud as possible, she went to the bathroom and turned on the faucet the tub, but didn't stop it, so the tub wouldn't overflow, slamming the door loudly; when she finished, she turned back around and, as quietly as she could, tiptoed back down. She stopped at a few places where floorboards creaked, holding her breath. But Cato never came up to check on her so she gained her courage, lowering herself and sliding on her belly until the bend in the stairs. From her vantage point, she could see them, but, she hoped, they couldn't see her.

Hannibal came back in, a body slung over his shoulder. It was female, her feet dangling over his chest limp like a doll. There were no shoes on her feet, and Prim briefly wondered what happened to them. Cuts and scratches lined the bottom of her feet, and some of them had small lines of blood running from them. She had obviously been running, and the absence of shoes hadn't stopped her from fleeing, and it looked as if she ran over rocks and dirt.

Prim sucked in a deep breath, trying to calm down. She could endure her own horrors, but she never liked to see anybody else in trauma.

Did they capture her to torture her?

Any good feelings she had towards Hannibal were now long gone.

Cato reached out and fingered the cloth of the girl's dirty skirt. It was torn and stained, some of them years old. Cato brought it up to Hannibal's face. His lips were in hard, straight lines.

"You told me you got a real Manato, but she's not. She's from the quarries."

Hannibal cringed.

"I know."

"It would be easier for you if she was."

"I know." Hannibal nodded. "But yours wasn't either, and she seems agreeable to you. She even let you kiss her."

Cato snorted. Prim was starting to catch on, and felt like snorting herself. Agreeable. Prim wasn't sure if she should feel upset at that or not.

"Mine is a different story and you know that," Cato sighed, as if giving up, he walked behind Cato for a moment and glanced at the girl's face, and then walked back around to face Hannibal. "Who is she? She looks familiar."

Hannibal's face softened.

"Her name's Katla. We were in the same grade at school. I've always wanted her from the moment I saw her in primary. I always knew one day-"

"Was she willing?" Cato cut him off. "I mean, I see she rebelled at some point, but did she want you at all?"

At this Hannibal frowned as if remembering something distasteful.

"No... well, I'm not sure," he stroked her feet in a tender gesture, and Cato rolled his eyes, "Katla starting running as soon as she saw me. For years, I've told her that when we were both of age, I'd come and get her, so I'm not sure why she looked so surprised. She was in the quarry. I mean, why else would I be down in that filthy place besides to take her out of it... Anyway, she ran to her fucking boyfriend," his face darkened, "He thought he could fight me, some fucking quarry kid, as if he could win. I took care of that misunderstanding."

"Did you kill him?"

"No," he reshifted the girl's weight. From her lack of resistance, it looked as if he drugged her, "not for lack of wanting to. I had the sword right here," he reached up and touched Cato at one of his pulse points, "and Katla started crying and begging, saying that she would never forgive me if I killed him. I didn't want her to hate me forever, you know. Of course, she burst into tears on our way out, and you know me with crying girls. I'm not sure what to do with them. I attempted to calm her down, but as soon as we got back outside into open air, she started running again. Almost got away too, even when she lost her shoes. She knew the area better than me." He patted the back of her thighs as if proud, "But I'm a fucking Carthage, and no one gets away from me. You taught me that."

Cato smirked, but then his face turned serious.

"She will hate you. I'm sorry little brother, but she will. At least, for a little while. You'll have to work for it, and that's not always fun. If you wanted love, you should have gotten a Manato. Why else do you think the others stay away from quarry girls?"

Cato sounded bitter about something. Prim guessed a quarry girl was on par with a slum rat in his district.

"I never wanted a Manato, those conniving fake bitches. I'd kill them before the year was out. I've never wanted anyone besides Katla, and I never will." He reached down and gently grasped her limp foot, running his fingers over the wounds. "Besides, who are you to talk? Your little Prim isn't even from our district. The last time I heard you wished to cut her throat for her inconvenience, so what happened?"

Cato was about to say something, but Hannibal stopped him.

"Save it. Just by talking to her, I understand why you took her... but enough talking, as tiny as Katla seems, she's heavy."

He shrugged the girl off his shoulder and gently lowered her to the marble floor.

The girl was pretty, with vibrant red lips. A black handkerchief tied her hair back, but she could see tendrils of auburn hair peeking out. Dirt splotched her face, and all of her clothes were covered with a layer of grey silt. Her features were strong for a girl, with a heavy jaw, square face, and a cleft chin. But her nose was cute and upturned, her eyebrows delicate, and her lashes long and dark.

Cato placed his hand on Hannibal's shoulder and squeezed.

"Put her in the study when she wakes up. Mother won't arrive for a few more hours, and there is no way she'll miss out on your Manato. She was mad enough that she missed mine."

Her eyes fluttered as if trying to wake up. Hannibal kissed her sooty cheek.

"Wake up, baby. Welcome to the family."