Disclaimer: I own very little.
Chapter Twenty-Four: Coronation and After-Party
I didn't realize how quickly everything happened for the victors. As soon as Caesar escorted me off the stage and the crowd's applause settled down, Enobaria was grabbing me again to adjust minor details of my dress and makeup, a skill I didn't even realize she was allowed to do.
Nevertheless, we pushed through all of the transition rather quickly so that I looked neat and fresh for the appearance in front of thousands of Capitol citizens for the coronation ceremony. At the platform, Sage and his crew were waiting and almost immediately confirmed my suspicions that Enobaria was not supposed to lay a finger on my hair or makeup. Quickly, Sage and his crew did some 'damage control' backstage before one of escorts came from the main stage to say that they were ready to begin the ceremony.
I nodded and thanked my crew for tending to me before walking alongside the young man who had come to walk me to not only face the people, but also to wear the crown that would glamorize the winner even more to the people of the Capitol while proving to the losing Districts that the Capitol was still superior.
As we entered the exterior portion and stepped outside to wait for the signal to step on stage, the escort and I stood there in awkward silence as we heard the noises from the crowd just around the corner.
"My family rooted for you. The whole time," The escort said, looking at me and trying to break the silence.
I smiled at this, genuinely touched," Thank you for telling me that. It means a lot."
"It was nice not to have a complete blood fest this year…yeah, it was," He said and I found that no answer would have been appropriate.
Complete blood fest? It certainly wasn't that, but it doesn't change the fact that twenty-three innocent children died for the Capitol's ego. Would I ever dare say this outloud? Of course not, it would have been the best way to ensure death outside of the Games, but I still felt it was truth.
Just before the escort could say another word, another personnel approached us saying," We're ready for you onstage."
I nodded a thanks to the escort before following this other woman with a black, very heavily pinstriped suit to where the stage was. Just as we reached the stairs that lead to the stage, she stopped me," There's going to be an announcement, as soon as the announcement is over I'm going to give you a countdown. Go on one."
"Sure," I said, nodding to her.
Moments passed as we waited for the announcement. When it arrived, the audience was silent as the booming voice of the recognizable Claudius Templesmith came over the intercom system.
"Ladies and gentleman, please welcome to the stage…the winner of this year's Hunger Games….Savera Stone!"
As soon as the woman counted to one, I walked up the stairs and made sure to smile as though I were having the time of my life, just as Enobaria had told me to do. Waving to individuals here and there, it was…somewhat pleasant. I wasn't one to bask in attention, but I certainly couldn't look like a scrooge in front of all of these people.
Once I was standing in the middle of the stage, just as I had been directed to do…another announcement came over the speakers.
"And now, welcome to the stage…the man you all know and love…President Coriolanus Snow!"
Applause erupted again as the older gentleman stepped onto the stage. A chill ran down my spine at the sight of him and in his hands sat the crown which they were to give me. It was nothing too glitzy, which I greatly appreciated, but seeing him holding it was something that disturbed me ever-so-slightly. He smiled briefly to the crowd, but his attention shifted to me quickly.
His light blue eyes met mine and had I known any better, I would have thought him to be friendly as he placed the crown on a side table before embracing me. Immediately, I smelled a strong scent of roses…which I found to be rather odd. It wasn't until I broke out of the embrace that I noticed a white rose on the lapel of his black suit.
With another round of waving to the crowd and posing for pictures, the crowning ceremony was finally underway. The crowd was silenced at the raise of the powerful man's hand. This was when he turned to me and pulled the delicate, gold crown from the pillow on which it rested.
"Miss Savera, I can honestly tell you that there is not a person more deserving of this crown…job well done; the odds were certainly in your favor," He whispered to me just before placing the crown atop of my head.
Before I could thank him, he immediately grabbed my hand, turned to the crowd once more, and raised it high into the air. I smiled as the applause erupted once more and we stood, taking in the glory from the people of the Capitol. I was being treated as a hero for being the sole survivor of a game meant for death.
I stepped in to President Snow's mansion in absolute awe of the structure…the high ceilings, the tall windows, the spotless tile lining the floors. All of it looked so sleek and expensive. Never had I seen a residence as lovely as this one. Whenever I arrived, it appeared as though the people there had been there for quite some time already. Half of them already looked done for the night (as far as alcohol went…) and mopping around as though they were half-dead. That didn't prevent everyone from making a huge scene of my arrival.
As soon as I stepped through the main doors, an announcement came from over the speakers (that I was still locating).
"Ladies and Gentlemen, please avert your attention to the front doors for now I announce to you…the newly-crowned winner of the 64th Annual Hunger Games, Savera Stone!" The voice boomed and nearly as soon as it had, the audience erupted into more applause.
I smiled at the attention and waved to the crowd, feeling only slightly awkward. Okay, very awkward, but I tried looking as though I wasn't completely lost. It took a slight shove from Enobaria to keep me from becoming completely absorbed in the bright light pointed at me as well as the people flashing all sorts of cameras. At the end of the string of fame, she whispered in my ear," Just follow my lead, alright?"
I whispered right back," What could be so hard about this?"
"You've gotta talk to the right people if you want to stay a favorite. Otherwise, you turn into a winner like Majoris Inchcape…" She said, pulling me through the crowd.
"Who's that?" I asked, genuinely never having heard of such a person before.
"Exactly," She said, turning and smirking at me.
First of all, she took me over to chat with my sponsors from the Games. All of them were very pleasant and friendly, but I wouldn't have expected them to be anything else. I had almost forgotten how ridiculous fashion was in the Capitol until I saw all of my sponsors coming up and making casual conversation as if I were one of them. Women in long, flowing dresses of wild colors, women in short, vulgar dresses with strange fabrics, men in vibrant pinks and purples with matching hats, and not to mention the wild jewelry both implanted to their skin and detachable that they wore.
When the sponsors were finished speaking with me, several other citizens, who Enobaria explained to be sponsors of the other contestants, began speaking and chatting for quite a long while. I thought normal conversation with people whom I usually spoke with was tiring, needless to say that this was a full-blown workout trying to engage with complete strangers who felt they already knew everything about me.
"So, do tell me, what posed you to even think that direction played a part in the arena?" One gentleman with a particularly long mustache asked me, a glass of fine alcohol in his hand.
"Well, I, uh, play a lot of puzzles that are manufactured in the Capitol. It's customary for me to receive them as gifts and I thought that seeing as the odds were against me fighting wise, why not take a chance on direction," I answered with a small smirk to which he returned with a hearty laugh and a loud clap on my shoulder.
"Clever, clever, clever! They better keep an eye on this one, eh Margie?" He slurred, looking over to his wife who was in conversation with Enobaria.
"What Clyde?" She demanded before looking at me and realizing who he was speaking with. "Oh, dearie! Of course, she is quite the clever one!"
I saw out of the corner of my eye, Enobaria's eyes narrow at the loss of her conversation partner. Margie was wearing a long blue gown covered in sparkles and long feathers, a combination I wouldn't recommend to any average woman. She was a little older and to put it nicely, I saw far too much of her.
She grabbed my arm endearingly before saying," You are just one of my favorites! You deserve it so much dearie!"
I smirked, slightly feeling as though personal space was being invaded, " Oh, well thank you."
I saw Enobaria approaching through the sea of people and immediately put herself in the conversation," Margie, Clyde, it's been great talking to you! We really need to head out."
It took some prying to get Margie to let go, but eventually we said our farewells as her grip was replaced with Enobaria pulling me along through the sea of colorful people.
Without turning back to me, she kept a tight grasp on my arm before escorting me over to a group of men, ranging in age from their middle-ages, to elderly, and very few younger men. I didn't have a chance to examine them very closely, but Enobaria turned to me just before we entered into conversation with them.
"Listen, these men are the Gamemakers. They're going to compliment you and make you feel very warm and fuzzy on the inside. As nice as they sound, be careful because just twenty-four hours ago…they were still trying to kill you, sweetheart. Just a few tips," She said very quickly before swiftly turning away, linking my arm into hers and pulling me into the group of men with one hand as she grabbed a drink from the tray passing by with the other.
Instantly, she turned on her largest smile before pulling me beside her," Gentlemen, I would like to introduce you to someone-"
"Oh, Enobaria…there's no need to introduce this one," The eldest gentleman said, the one who I recognized to be the head Gamemaker; Enobaria's hand dropped from my arm as the man shook my hand very firmly. "I have to say, Miss Stone, you played quite the Game. You had all of us pulling our best wits…"
I supposed that I was supposed to smile at this…seeing as he basically just admitted to me that they were trying to kill me. Of course, it was normal in this culture, but it just still seemed so foreign. Nevertheless, I shoved it off as something completely normal.
I cleared my throat before saying," Well, I tried my best, sir. I still would like to think that I simply got the best of the odds."
Another man chipped in, shaking my hand firmly," You played a very intelligent game. That's something we don't see much; it was a nice change of scenery for once."
"Though I will be the first to admit you were…rather frustrating at times. No hard feelings now, of course. That's just a thing of the past and I suppose you should take it as a compliment seeing as not many contestants push us that much," Another, much less sober one slurred.
There seemed to be a round of laughter as they were all getting a little more drunk with each sip of their drink. I stayed with Enobaria for several more moments, trying to force conversation, but finding that I was being viewed more as a trophy than anything else. If I didn't feel obligated to stay around and listen to the compliments from all sorts of outrageous people, then I most certainly would have left so that I could see my family and…sleep in a real bed.
Before I could get too far, another hand grabbed my arm gently pulling me aside," Excuse me, Miss Stone."
I looked at the one who had grabbed my arm and recognized him to be the one that had saved me before. He was the whole reason I hadn't been killed the first time I stepped foot in the Capitol.
"Ah, yes Mr. Crane?" I asked, raising a brow at him.
A smile came to his lips," So you do remember me?"
"How could I forget? I suppose I owe you a thank you for all of this, yes? Had you not done what you did, then I certainly would have been caught," I answered, looking straight into his striking blue eyes.
His smile was constant, as he looked away. Though the lighting was poor, I couldn't help but notice color coming to his cheeks as he spoke," It was my pleasure, really. And I suppose the act paid off. Look at you now."
I didn't even know this Seneca Crane, but there was something about him that made me feel a little more at ease. Don't get me wrong, there was still something about him that I was still unsure of, just like every one else in this room, but conversation seemed to flow a little less awkwardly with him despite the fact that his fashion choices were just as outrageous as the others. With a bright white suit, electric blue shirt and bright pink tie to top off the outfit, he was, no doubt a Capitol-born young man.
I took a deep breath in, looking around at the party continuing around us. Folks all around were stumbling around, chatting, eating, drinking, dancing…they were most certainly enjoying themselves," It's a little surreal still."
"Just try to enjoy the moment while you can. It's not every day there's parties such as these thrown," He said, motioning to the lavish event around us. "With that being said, would you….like to dance?"
For a moment, I was completely taken aback. Conveniently, Enobaria crossed by behind me just as he had asked. I almost think she planned it for I felt a harsh nudge right in my lower back as she passed by. Seeing that I had no choice, I looked at Seneca and smiled," Of course."
As we walked over to the dance floor, I shot a glance back at my sneaky mentor, who was grinning from ear to ear at me. She had a brightly colored drink in her hand and raised it high to me before turning back to her colleagues and socializing a little more. I rolled my eyes at her; I didn't mind dancing with Seneca, but it was her immaturity that bothered me most.
My heart was beating a little faster than usual. I wasn't used to all of this socializing; I certainly had never danced with a boy before. I hadn't ever really 'danced' before, but I certainly wasn't going to say anything.
When we reached the center of the dance floor, the young Gamemaker faced me and I placed my hand in his. It was at the moment that he placed his hand on my bare back that I realized how lacking of material this dress was. I swallowed hard before looking at him, in a matter of moments we were moving across the dance floor and I was glad he knew what he was doing because all I did was follow.
"So, tell me a little bit about yourself, Miss Stone," He said. "What does the world not know about its newest victor?"
I smirked at this," Well, I've grown up in District Two, as you know. I suppose the most interesting thing about me is that I was the least favored child at our academy in the district."
"With Flux, I'm sure there was little glory to go around," Seneca added to this, nodding his head, urging me to continue.
"Well…I was basically nonexistent. I couldn't fight like all the other ones. I wasn't even in the ranks, actually. My main goal was to come and go without causing a ruckus. It was a complete fluke that I was even reaped in the first place. Typically, there is a volunteer in District Two, but I was the sacrifice. I was the one that would give Flux the least amount of trouble," I said, finding that words were coming much easier to him than they had to most others.
He laughed at this," I see that worked out for them."
"I honestly think that when I go back…it won't even matter-"
"They'll just be happy they got a winner?" He asked with a raise of his brow.
"Precisely," I said with a nod of my head.
"I would think it hardly matters what they think. You showed the rest of Panem that this Game isn't as predictable as they think it is," He said with conviction.
My eyes shifted from him to a different part of the mansion. Standing at the top of the stairs, I noticed the same older gentleman that had crowned me as the victor just hours before. President Snow was coming down the stairs and I noticed he was looking directly at me. I felt a chill run down my spine before I turned back to Seneca.
What Seneca said was true, I suppose. Typically, one could tell by looking at the volunteers who would win. This year was certainly the exception, however, I don't know if that was the point they were trying to make this year…
There were still elements of this year's Games, that I did not understand and questioned the intent behind. I may have enjoyed conversing with Seneca, but I did not trust him enough to delve into my own personal theory. He was still, after all, a worker of the Capitol.
"You think so, Mr. Crane?" I asked him with a tilt of my head.
He furrowed his brow at the sound of this question. Before he could answer, once again, I felt Enobaria passing behind me. This time, however, she leaned in to whisper in my ear," Sorry to cut the party short, but President Snow insists on a word with you. I suggest you not keep him waiting."
I nodded before turning my gaze back to Seneca, who was looking straight at me. The dance came to a halt, as if he knew what I was to tell him.
"President Snow wishes to see me," I said, genuinely disappointed to cut the conversation short.
Slowly, Seneca dropped his hand from my waist and hand before nodding," Of course, don't keep him waiting."
"Goodbye, Mr. Crane," I said cordially and just as I turned to leave, I felt compelled to add one last thing. "You know, you learned quite a bit about myself, but I don't know much-"
"About me?" He asked with a raise of his brow and a smirk. "Perhaps, our paths will cross again. Goodbye for now, Miss Stone."
I smiled and nodded at him farewell, but before I could completely pull myself away; he added one last note.
"Oh, and Miss Stone?" He stopped me before I could get too far.
"Yes?"
"Please, call me Seneca," He said with a growing smile. "I'm too young for all this mister business."
I laughed at this," Only if you agree to call me Savera."
"Of course, Savera," He answered before I finally forced myself to turn and make my way to face the president of Panem to see what it was that he needed.
For some reason, I couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.
A/N: Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think!
Katielouise10x- Thanks for all your feedback! Your reviews make me smile :D
