Cato Point of View
I left her room, although I wanted to stay and pull those secrets out of her. People came back from these things changed, everyone knew that, but she seemed too different. I went through another day on the train- amazing food, wonderful entertainment through gaming devices and books. Glimmer surfaced only rarely and briefly, coming out to eat or get a new book. I offered to practice sparing with her, thinking that maybe that would turn her back into the real her, but she just shook her head.
So my day was passed peacefully, and I enjoyed it. This was the life, with relaxation and good food every day. As a victor, I was entitled to this type of treatment, and I was going to enjoy it.
To further enjoy my victory, I watched and rewatched every death at my hands from the Games. I grinned in triumph each time, thrilled that I had been so powerful. There were some shots with Glimmer and the others, and I watched those too. They were interesting, knowing what was going to happen to them, yet in that moment, they didn't know. I watched what some had called a 'sweet moment' between Glimmer and I. It was the time when I had accidently cut her with my sword, and at the lake had had to jump under the water to save ourselves from the Tracker Jackers. When we had surfaced, I didn't realize she couldn't hold her breathe as long as she had been forced to, and I had to help her to shore. My hand had been on her waist when she was done coughing, and I had been trying to help her turn over, to make sure she was okay.
Looking back, I guess it was kind of sweet, but it was only because I wanted to make sure she was alright. It was what partners did for each other. But some had thought we had played the 'young lovers' card, which was defiantly not the case. Sure, she was pretty, and hot, and even out in the woods, she always smelled good. And maybe I liked to hold her around the waist at night and pull her close, because I like to protect people. Especially girls, whether they think they need protecting or not.
Wait, maybe I did kinda like her. But not a lot, just a little, like a crush. I cared about her a bit, but that was all. We had kept each other alive in the arena, and that meant something, but we were out now, both of us different, both of us changed, her more so than me. And it didn't really matter, because she obviously didn't want to tell me anything.
Glimmer Point of View
I was excepting him to come that night. I sat on the bed in my nightclothes, waiting for him and hoping against hope that he would come. Tonight, if he came, I would tell him. Maybe not everything, but enough, enough so he would understand and not think of me as weak. The room was dim when he opened the door and came in without knocking. Had I not gotten ready earlier, he would have found me changing, and I'm grateful he didn't.
He slowly came closer to me and sat down on the bed, simply looking at me. I lowered my head, contemplating what to tell him. As I thought, I began to unwind my hair from the plates that I kept it in on the two sides of my face. Gently, I felt his hands replace mine, pulling his fingers through my hair. I closed my eyes, relaxing into his touch, almost forgetting. But then I felt his hand go to my waist, and my eyes popped open as I scooted away from him.
"Glimmer please, I'm trying to help. Do you want me to leave or stay?" It was nice that he actually seemed to care, to ask. But I just lay down, and he turned to look at me, starting to get up. I grabbed his hand, and my eyes begged.
"Don't leave; it's alright if you stay." So he took off his boots and lay down next to me, making my heart pound. He put his arm around my head so instead of my pillow, I was laying on his bicep. He held me close, and it scared and comforted me at the same time.
I told the lights to dim, and the blackness surrounded us. The feel of his body so near mine scared me, and I moved so that he was lying on his back and I was looking down at him.
His features were illuminated in the moonlight, and he looked handsome. But we were suddenly plunged through a deep forest, and the darkness got even blacker. His face was shrouded, and he was cloaked in darkness. Darkness, him, dark. The pain, the blood, his fists, him...
I shot up, trying to push him away suddenly. He took my hands in his larger ones, but I kept on trying to move away from him. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me close to him, which only made me panic more.
"Stop, stop! Please, Thresh it hurts, stop!" I wrenched myself out of his grasp in the terror that had taken over my mind. Though the pain wasn't present, it was like I was trapped in the past, in my memories.
Finally, he let go as I said his name, and he sat back, looking at me as I dove under the covers, tears running down my face.
He pushed some of the hair back from my eyes, gently rubbing the tears away with his thumb. I put my head on his chest and began to cry as moonlight surrounded us once more.
"Glimmer, shh, it's okay, you're okay. Now tell me, what did Thresh do? I found him beating you to death, and I stopped him and killed him, remember, were you thinking of that?"
I gripped his shirt in my hands, tears wetting it. I shook my head, trying to swallow and lift my head so I could look at him.
"No, it wasn't that. Before he beat me...he...he came into the shelter and said I would pay for Rue's death. And he was bigger than me, stronger. I tried to push him away but he tied my hands and had his knees pressing into my legs. And he... he forced...he made me..." I gulped and cried again, his arms around me, rubbing my back, trying to sooth me.
"What did he force you to do? Tell me." He voice wasn't demanding, it was concerned, worried for me.
"He...he pulled my pants down and he...he made me... And it hurt, it hurt so much, and there was so much blood because he just kept on doing it harder. And...it was my first time and that made it hurt even worse, and I was screaming, but you didn't come in time, you came when he was done and had started...beating me to death."
The tears were rushing in rivers down my cheeks, and I put my head on his shoulder, crying as he rubbed my back. I had become a tragic heroine, and it wasn't as amazing as the books had made it out to be.
"Thresh raped you?" His voice was full of shock, a hint of sadness for me, and you could tell he was happy about killing the boy.
But I only nodded into him, and he held me closer, petting my hair and rubbing my back to try to soothe me. I swallowed and looked up at him, moving once more so I was sitting slightly.
"I didn't want to tell you...but I thought I sort of had to. You're not mad at me, are you?" I shook a little, hoping and praying that he wouldn't fly off the handle.
But he wrapped me in his arms once more and pulled me close.
"How could I be mad at you? It was his fault, not yours."
We stayed that way all night. I slept lightly, and if I woke up, I looked at his face; grateful and somewhat relieved that my burden wasn't just mine anymore. He had willingly taken some of it for me.
Cato Point of View
I left the next morning before she was awake. My mind was spinning with this new piece of knowledge. I had known Thresh was cruel- if he wanted revenge, why didn't he just kill her immediately not do...that.
I found Glimmers mentor up as early as I was. Should I tell him? I should, shouldn't I? She was in his charge, he would want to know.
"Wynn, I think you might want to know something that happened to Glimmer in the arena."
He leaned forward with interest, and I checked to make sure no one was listening before whispering the story. His eyes grew wide once I was done, and he covered his mouth in shock. He clapped his hand on my shoulder as we both stood up.
"Thank you for telling me that, Cato. I should know about something like this. I'll alert the Gamemaker and the Capitol immediately."
He turned to go, but I put my hand on his arm. This wasn't something that should get around, especially as gossip. Glimmer obviously didn't want anyone to know what had happened to her.
"I don't know if you should tell them, I could tell she didn't want people to know."
He shook his head before assuring me it would be fine and left before I could protest more. I shook my head as he moved away, hoping that nothing bad would come of it, and that Glimmer wouldn't think that I had betrayed her trust. I had only been trying to help.
I heard a loud pitched scream come from her room about two hours later, and I ran towards it. Perhaps she was furious with me, but we didn't need her harming herself or anyone else over my betrayal. I found Wynn had very quickly backed out of the door, and though he tried to dissuade me from going in, I knew I had to.
She was sitting on her bead, still in her nightclothes, shaking and crying. When she heard the door open, she lept up and glared at me.
"How could you? I told you that in secret, and now I have to go back to the Capitol, and they have to test me for whatever reason. Who knows what they're going to do to me there!"
She had hurled herself at me, and tried to pound on my chest with her fists. Though soon she was crying once more, and I held her to my chest as her knees almost collapsed under her. Gently, I picked her up and held her close, trying to keep her on her feet.
But she pushed me away and walked back to her bed, sitting down and hugging her pillow. Poor thing, she was so hurt. And I felt guilty, but I knew I had done what was best for her. So I left, closing the door behind me gently. Then I shuddered. Who knows what the Capitol would do to her.
