Chapter 33:
Marian Lilley, Victor of the 137th Hunger Games
Marian really thought she would feel…more after her victory. Thought she'd feel the immense joy that Jory and Zephyr feel, prompting them to go nuts out on the dance floor. Or maybe a bit of somberness over the lives she just took. But no, she just feels…
Satisfied.
And that's just fine with her. Who says she needs to feel guilty for being alive in the end? And why would she feel guilty? She knew going in that only one would get out alive and long accepted that there would be blood on her hands. And none of it matters to her. Only one person matters to her and she's waiting back home for her.
Although…okay, there is some guilt lurking deep within her as she stands in the banquet hall, drink in hand, and laughing at whatever poor joke some Capitolite is making. Clearly things are bad in Two with her parents if they completely refused to be interviewed and didn't let Jazmyn get interviewed. Marian can only hope that her sister will be fine for just another day until she gets back home. But what will even happen then? Will she be able to get her away from them? She thought for sure she would before the Games, but now, there's a pressing worry that Jazmyn will need to wait out the last few months before her birthday in a home that is surely even more of hell following Marian's victory.
Oh how she would love to see her parents' faces when she won. She's going to make sure she rubs it in when she takes Jazmyn away from them and ruins their reputation forever. Because who in Two is going to believe them over their newest victor?
"Marian!" She looks up at the sound of her name being yelled by Jory and finds him waving her over. "Come dance with us!"
"I don't-" she cuts herself off before finishing the statement because this is her fucking party. She's going to damn dance and not give two flying fucks what people think! She laughs as she approaches the two mentors and Jory wiggles his eyebrows. "Don't be too upset when my amazing dance moves outshine yours."
"Oh you can't take the title of best dancer from me," Jory jokes with her before grabbing her hands and getting her to start dancing with them. Around them, the Capitolites have some appalled expressions at them doing whatever crazy dance moves they can think of to the upbeat classical music, but for once, Marian doesn't care what they think about her. She doesn't care if she's not the toughest looking one.
She won and nothing will change that fact. At the end of the day, she's a victor and that's all that matters to her.
Dancing with her fellow victors – mostly Jory – Marian actually has fun for the first time in months… Last time she had this fun was with Jazmyn. The thought brings her to a stop and Zephyr collides into her. "Sorry, sorry," he mutters and grabs her arms, steading her. He looks at her face, puzzled look in his eyes as he studies her. "Are you alright?"
"I think I just need some fresh air," Marian answers quietly before clearing her throat and forcing a smile at him. "I'm all good, don't worry. Apparently they haven't completely patched me up."
"Alright, well you know where to find us if you need anything," Jory reassures her before pulling Zephyr away, understanding in his eyes as he glances back at her. For all his joking around, he's been nothing but supportive since she woke up and Marian doesn't know how to feel about the new revelation about him.
But that's something to think about later. Right now, she just has to get out of this crowd before they can see her break down in worry for her sister. She starts hurrying for the back doors, giving a forced smile at the people that stop her to congratulate her, but just desperate for some alone time. She finally gets outside and starts jogging down the steps – thank whoever decided she could be in a jumpsuit and not a dress for this – and is stopped short by a strong voice calling for her.
"Marian."
Marian stops at the voice and shuts her eyes for a moment, preparing to face the woman she made a promise to. When she finally opens her eyes and turns to face the Head Gamemaker, she doesn't know what to expect. Lisia stands at the top of the stairs, hands on her hips as she studies Marian with a calculating look, before a grin spreads across her face. "I hope you don't mind if I join you."
"That wasn't a question," Marian points out as Lisia starts down the stairs towards her, which makes her laugh loudly. She looks so…carefree compared to everything Marian has seen of her before. "I doubt I can say no to the Head Gamemaker."
"Former Head Gamemaker, so technically you could say no," Lisia corrects as she stops next to her, meeting her with a raised eyebrow of question. "So? Care for a walk? We are, in fact, the two women of the hour," she asks as she holds out her arm to her.
Well when she puts it like that… Marian takes her arm and Lisia guides them off into the gardens, getting more than a few curious looks from people they pass. They walk in silence for a few minutes, getting further and further from the noise of the party, and Marian waits somewhat impatiently for her to speak.
"So I should start by saying congratulations," Lisia finally speaks up and catches Marian off guard by the softness of her tone. When she looks over at the Head Gamemaker, she finds her looking up at the night sky with sadness in her eyes. All of this…is not the woman Marian has come to know from studying her over the years in preparation. She always admired the strong woman leading the Hunger Games for so many years, but this…this is a woman letting down her guard. Lisia turns towards her and gives her a grin, "You did live up to your promise."
"Yeah, when you would let me," Marian counters, feeling like she can let down her guard a little around her, since Lisia is doing the same.
Lisia gives a wave of her hand and a scoff at that. "I couldn't have you killing everyone. There were certain expectations that needed to happen."
"I suppose," Marian grumbles, only making Lisia chuckle at her response. They walk on in slightly uncomfortable silence for a few minutes, but Marian isn't complaining too much that Lisia isn't chatting her ear off right now. She's had too many people doing that from the moment she woke up.
"So," Lisia finally starts after a few minutes, her voice soft. "What now?" she asks and Marian wonders if she's asking that to herself as well.
"I go home and get my sister out of that house," Marian answers right away, but she starts to falter. "But…I don't know…I'm starting to wonder if I can. She's still under 18 and they have legal custody."
"Hmm, I suppose," Lisia says and Marian glances over to see her pursing her lips, deep in thought. "I'm not completely old news yet… Perhaps I can pull some strings to give you legal custody of her."
"You could do that?" Marian asks in surprise, before narrowing her eyes cautiously. "What's the catch?"
"Well I personally can't, but I do happen to know the people who can. I'll talk to Rosabella tonight," Lisia tells her and turns to face her directly. "And there is no catch. Can't I just want to help out my final victor?"
"No one does things without any expectations," Marian points out to her and Lisia smirks at her observation. "So again I ask. What's the catch?"
Lisia contemplates this for a moment, studying Marian so deeply that it makes her uncomfortable and feel like she's seeing all the things she pushes down. "You remind me of my younger self," she finally says and Marian is caught off guard, before starting to beam with pride. "You made sure my final Games were memorable and that's all I could ask for. So consider us even."
"I…" Marian shakes her head, speechless at this. "I don't know what to say. Thank you. Jazmyn…she means the world to me and I'd do anything for her. All of this," she waves her hand around them, "was for her."
"Then I'll make sure she is safe with you," Lisia reassures her and turns her to start heading back to the mansion. "Now come on. Now that you know she'll be safe, go enjoy your party. Tonight is all about you."
"We both know it's about you as well," Marian points out and Lisia just gives a smug shrug. But a weight has been lifted from her chest from this conversation and…she feels happiness now that she can feel it without guilt for her sister. "Thank you for this, I needed it."
Lisia nods her head and is silent for a minute as they walk, but she slows them down as they get closer to the mansion. "I needed it too," she answers quietly, letting Marian see one last bit of vulnerability before she puts her mask of confidence back on. "Now let's go party. I'm sure my intern needs to get saved from whatever scheme Fabio has dragged him into."
Lisia Arune, Former Head Gamemaker
Tonight was apparently the night of talking to the President's Council. Rosabella had been easy to find at the party and as soon as Lisia explained the situation, she immediately started making the calls to ensure that by the time Marian returned to Two, she would have legal custody of her sister.
But Luciano and Theodosius were a bit harder to find. Impossible, really, if someone didn't have the proper clearance for it. And hard when Seraphim didn't want to leave her after she rescued him from Fabio's drinking games. But he couldn't go here with her.
This is something she must do alone.
The first room she knocks on the open door and finds Luciano inside with Pascal. They both look up at her knock and Pascal only gives a slight scowl at her – look at that progress. "What, the party is so boring that you have to come visit a dead boy?" Pascal asks her as she steps into the room and approaches them.
"No, but it would be much more entertaining if you were there telling off the snobby rich folks," Lisia tells him, getting a smile out of him before he quickly turns it back into a scowl. "I wanted to check in with you, see if you need me to sneak in any candy of something."
"Well if you're offering," Pascal says, actually considering her offer.
"I'll get a goodie basket for next time," Lisia tells him before looking over at Luciano, finding them dressed in much more modest clothes. "Are you leaving tonight?"
"Yes," Luciano answers with a solemn nod. "Now that the Games are over, I have to get back to my duty."
"I wish you weren't leaving," Pascal says softly, looking at them with sad eyes. "You're the nicest one here and I don't want to be alone."
"Mendalius is going to spend some time with you," Luciano reassures him, but he doesn't seem too convinced that that's a good thing. "He's kind, I promise."
"Kindest man I know," Lisia adds on, which seems to make Pascal have more doubt. She gives him a shrug and pats his arm, which he quickly pulls back from her. "I'll stop by too because I've got nothing else to do now that I'm officially retired."
"Oh goodie, time with the woman who killed me," Pascal says sarcastically and gives a big roll of his eyes at her. They all look at Luciano when their phone starts to beep and Pascal frowns deeply. "You're still going to check in on them, right?"
"I will," Luciano reassures him with a comforting smile. They give his shoulder a squeeze before standing up. "I'll be back before you know it."
Lisia moves to follow them out of the room, knowing she's not exactly welcome by Pascal. But she stops when he calls for her. "Hey Lisia? I want the best candy out there."
Lisia turns back to him with a grin. "You got it," she tells him before shutting the door behind her. Spoiling the kid with sweets is the least she can do, even if he is a bit of a little shit. But what else would she expect with him growing up among the rebels?
Luciano gives her a wave as they head off, preparing for one of their secret trips. Lisia turns to head to another room and as she approaches, she can hear Theodosius's raised voice, frustration so obvious. "Kid, you just don't get it!"
"What doesn't he get?" Lisia asks in the doorway, crossing her arms as she looks in at Theodosius pacing the room and the boy laying in a hospital bed, still recovering from his wounds. Another dead boy that the President and Council decided to keep alive for reasons that were beyond Lisia.
"I need to know the sanctuary will be safe," Sissel answers with a casual shrug, but winces and puts a hand on his stomach from the action. "Otherwise, you can find a different person to do your research."
"You don't get to bargain with me when I saved your life," Theodosius tells him with a sigh of exasperation, clearly an argument they've been having for a while now. "You don't exactly get a choice here."
"Is it that hard to ensure the sanctuary continues on without him?" Lisia asks as she walks into the room. She grabs a nearby chair and drags it over to sit next to Sissel, all while he watches her with calculating eyes. "What, it needs a bit of money?"
"And someone to run it," Sissel adds, clearly not backing down from this. "Those birds are the top thing I care about leaving behind in Ten. I know my family will survive losing me, but the birds? I'm all they have."
Lisia fixes Theodosius with a pointed look, raising one eyebrow at him. "Doesn't sound too unreasonable to me."
Theodosius pinches the bridge of his nose and shakes his head at them. "You're both missing the point! The point is, I made the decision to let him live. He owes me and therefore, he does not get to make bargains about his future."
"I didn't say I was opposed to the research," Sissel tells him with a smaller shrug, wincing less this time. "I just said I wouldn't do it until I know the sanctuary is safe. But after that, I'll gladly do what you ask and if it's working with birds, well, I'll enjoy it."
"You realize you'll need to completely change up your appearance, name, and personality," Theodosius points out to him and again, Sissel doesn't seem too bothered by it. "And no contact with your family or anyone from Ten. You do realize this, right?"
"Yeah, I do," Sissel answers nonchalantly. "Look, a couple days ago I thought for sure I was dying, but I didn't. Anything is better than death. Just as long as the sanctuary is safe."
"I can't believe this," Theodosius throws his hands up in frustration and walks a few feet away, his shoulders shaking in his frustration, which only seems to make Sissel smugger. "I save a kid's life and he won't just do whatever I ask."
"Oh just do what he asks already," Lisia tells him, earning herself a glare from the Council Member over his shoulder. "If you won't, I'll tell Mendalius and he won't be too happy about it."
"You wouldn't dare," Theodosius turns to face her, pointing a finger at her in accusation. His intimidation might work on most people, but not on her. When she doesn't back down, he slowly lowers his finger and glances over at Sissel. He lets out a loud sigh as he rubs his face. "Do you swear to give your full cooperation if we do this?"
"Absolutely," Sissel answers immediately, with no malicious intent in his voice. "I just can't leave the sanctuary without knowing it's in good hands. But once it is, well," he gives them another shrug. "I'm all yours."
They both turn to Theodosius, waiting for him to make his decision. Lisia wants to give the kid some praise for having the balls to bargain with Theodosius despite everything. After a minute of pacing the room, he finally sighs and turns towards them, and Lisia knows he's giving in. "Fine, the sanctuary will get a one time donation to hold it over for the immediate future and I'll find someone for them to hire. But that's it."
"Then we have another deal," Sissel says and holds out his hand to shake. Theodosius takes it and shakes it harder than he should with Sissel still in recovery, but the boy doesn't acknowledge it. But before Theodosius lets go of his hand, he smirks at him, "Oh and I want Pissy here."
Theodosius lets out an exasperated sigh as he lets go of his hand. "You can have a parrot mutt you train," he compromises and despite his annoyance, Lisia can see the hint of respect in his eyes for Sissel.
"I can work with that," Sissel answers and settles back in his bed. "So, when do we get started making me look completely unrecognizable?"
Yeah, she has no need to worry about him. If Sissel can bargain with him right after getting saved from death, he is going to fit in just fine with Theodosius and his team.
Whoops, I did it again! Surprise, Sissel is still alive! Yes Legend, your tin foil hat conspiracy theory had some validity to it XD You know, this is my fourth SYOT and at a certain point, you just decide to do whatever you want. I think saving Pascal was that turning point for me and opened up the door for this. I loved Sissel too much to kill him for real but knew they couldn't let him be victor with his knowledge (although he was one of my victor considerations for a while before deciding this), so here we are! And no, I don't know what these means for Renegades and I'm still figuring that out lol. All I know is we'll see Sissel in that story, just under a different alias like how Pascal is now Calisto - which we will see in the epilogues, which is why I'm posting all of those before getting back to Renegades lol.
RQ #33: On a scale of 1-10, with 1 being didn't suspect anything and 10 being adamantly believed he was still alive, how surprised are you by Sissel?
So now what? Now we have three epilogues and then this story will be all wrapped up! First up will be the first half of the 'in memory of' tribute epilogues on Friday. See you on Friday!
