Updated as of June 23rd, 2021
Hello everyone! I'm back! I know it's been way too long, but this school year has really done a number on me. Well, anyways, let's get to what you all came here for.
ONTO THE STORY.
Disclaimer: Don't own nothing but my characters and the like. Woo.
FLASHBACK TO LAST CHAPTER
His name was called, his match coming much too soon for his liking. All those years in the Ring had taught him almost every trick in the book when it came to fighting bare-handed, but he knew he couldn't use all of them. When the session started, he ducked and weaved, rolling with the punches like his worthless father taught him. He heard the door open, but not really. The District 4 boy laughed, seeming to like the game they played. Eyes boring holes into his back made his skin crawl with the memories of those dark nights, when the crowd of men would watch on, too drunk to really care about the lack of humanity. A small gasp, the sound barely decipherable, but still loud enough for him to hear. The hair on the back of his neck stood on end, his skin suddenly alive with a tingling sensation, making his stomach drop and flutter at the same time.
Laurel.
"Laurel! Are you okay? How's your arm?" Klew asked in a blur of motion, gently taking hold of my arm as she turned me to face her. She didn't leave me any time to answer as she tsked and pulled me back to the crowd, where Hive was waiting.
"Is it fixed?" Hive asked softly, eyeing said appendage with worry.
"There's barely even a scar left," Klew said with a sigh. "If the Capitol's good at anything, it's surgery."
I nodded, giving Hive a small smile as Klew turned my arm this way and that to look for any sort of mark.
"Ten! Match over!" Coach Atala announced, drawing my attention immediately back to the mats. Finnick grinned as he helped Emery to his feet, the latter keeping his face carefully blank as he nodded his thanks.
"Darn. And I was rootin' for him too," Klew said, shaking her head in disappointment. "It's about time the Careers get knocked down a peg."
Emery walked off the mat, his eyes scanning the crowd once before stopping on me. Grey locked onto blue, a mixture of caution and something akin to relief warring in his eyes. I swallowed hard, my fingers curling into my palms as I forced my eyes to remain expressionless. His chest rose and fell at a quicker pace, but instead of approaching me like I feared he would, he just shook his head and broke eye-contact. I crossed my arms, feeling like it was the only thing keeping me together.
A warm, comforting arm curled around my waist, a shorter form pressing into my side as they hugged me. I went rigid, my eyes darting down to look at the culprit. My face softened as I took in the young boy's innocent features, my current problems disappearing for a moment as I looked at him. His dark green eyes stared up at me with gratitude and kindness, a soft smile showing off the small gap between his front teeth.
"You are so awesome," he whispered, staring up at me in awe. My eyes widened and my breath got choked up in my throat, caught off-guard by his sudden compliment.
"Uh, thank you, Jaxon. But, may I ask why you think that?" I asked, eyebrow raised.
"Well, I've never seen anyone look so calm and cool after someone took a chunk out of their arm before!" He said, his eyes lighting up.
Well, there went all the fluffy feelings.
"Thank you, Jaxon," I snorted, gently ruffling his short, brown hair.
"You know my name?" He blinked.
"Yeah, of course. I watched your fight, too."
His face fell and he looked at his shoes, toeing the ground to distract himself. "I'm terrible, I know. I won't last long out there anyway, so it's okay."
"Don't you dare talk like that," I said with a glare, something inside me burning with anger just listening to his defeated tone. "You have just as much of a chance as anyone else in this room. Don't let anyone tell you any different, you hear me?"
He was quiet for a beat, his head resting innocently against my side. I slowly started to brush his hair back away from his face, an old habit I had obtained from comforting Luke.
"You know, you sound a lot like my grandma," he whispered, his eyes locked onto Atala as she called up the next two tributes. I could honestly say up until that point I had never been compared to someone's grandma before.
"She must be a pretty sharp woman then, huh?" I joked, a small smile curling my lip up.
"She's the smartest person I know," he admitted, his grip on my body slowly loosening until he let go completely.
"You're gonna have to be careful when you get to the Arena, you know. My sister doesn't forget anything, and I know she's gonna want revenge," he said, ducking his head as if remembering a past injury.
"You don't have to worry about me, Jaxon. I can take care of myself just fine," I promised, feeling a smirk starting to grow on my face.
His face went blank as he continued staring ahead, setting me on edge. Had I said something to upset him?
"Just, always watch your back, alright?" He murmured, turning away from me and heading towards the Distict 9 girl, ignoring her curious stare. An uneasy feeling settled in my gut, my brow furrowing as I contemplated his words. What an odd boy.
"Ten! Match over!" Atala called out, ending the sparring match between a District 10 tribute and one from District 5. "That will be all the sparring for today. You all may go to lunch now."
Everyone filed out of the training room eagerly, the prospect of food nearly sending a few into stampede mode. Klew had latched onto my arm as to not lose me in the coming mob of tributes, already chattering on about something or other to Hive while she drug me along.
The doorways and halls we passed through flew by in a blur, nothing holding my attention for more than a moment. The scar hidden beneath my tunic and hair began aching as a memory surfaced, fresh and biting against my weakening psyche. The night I got the scar, the night I finally took charge for my life. It was the last night I ever worked the Ring.
My stomach clenched as the distinct feeling that I was about to puke overwhelmed me. I fought back the urge, but it took more than a little effort to contain. My face had to have been green by that point. I forced myself to focus on Klew and Hive's one-sided conversation, hoping that would help keep my breakfast down. It was then I realized we had finally managed to make it to the cafeteria.
"Hey, you guys go on ahead, I'll go grab us a table," I said, offering a small smile that felt more like a grimace and probably looked like one, too. The two tributes exchanged quick glances, but thankfully they didn't question my sudden lack of appetite.
I snagged the same table as I had yesterday, too preoccupied to even consider any other one. The bread basket residing in the middle became the center of my attention. All the wildly diverse grains felt warm in my cold fingers, a sense of home filling me the longer I held them. There were so many different kinds available, no doubt from every district, and I briefly wondered if 12's came from the humble little bakery in town.
"So, you aren't gonna eat?"
I glanced up, flicking my gaze back to the bread just as quickly. The boy from 11.
"No, I'm not that hungry today. Guess I didn't work that hard during training, huh?" I joked, discreetly watching for his much larger district partner.
He frowned, apparently seeing right through my half-hearted joke, and set his tray down. He looked at me with the kind of disapproving gaze that my mother would give me when I was younger. He took a cookie from the large pile on his plate and held it out to me, waving it slightly when I just stared at him.
"You need to keep your strength up. Take it."
"No. That's yours, you eat-"
"I said, take it."
I looked up into chocolate colored eyes, seeing the determination he had for giving me this simple cookie. My brow furrowed as I examined him. His skinny frame needed all the nourishment it could get. For a moment I considered just telling him to go away, but it was fairly obvious he wasn't going to even if I did ask. Pursing my lips, I set down my bread and took the cookie, bowing my head when he smiled.
"Thank you," I said, still keeping an eye out for his district partner. He nodded, picking his tray up and walking away without another word.
It was just a normal cookie, as far as looks went, but I couldn't help but feel that something was off. Who in their right mind would give up food to someone else when they were a tribute in The Hunger Games? It didn't really make sense, once I thought about it. I narrowed my eyes at the circular dessert and placed it on the table. Something in my gut was telling me that bad things would happen if I ate it.
I caught sight of the District 11 tribute talking with Jaxon and the 9 girl a few tables away. He was handing cookies to both of them, a strange smile pulling at his lips. I squinted my eyes at him, definitely off-put by the fact that both of the tributes already had trays filled to the brim with food. The District 9 girl grinned happily up at the boy, taking the cookie he offered eagerly. Jaxon however just shook his head, mumbling something or other to get out of eating one. 11 just nodded, the smile staying in place until he turned away. 9 began munching happily on her prize, gently bumping her good arm against Jaxon as if to say he should have gotten one too.
"Hey, are you okay?" Klew asked, her eyes searching mine as she sat across from me. Hive pulled out a chair next to Klew, setting his tray down with his head bowed. I hadn't even noticed them coming over. "You look like you're about to throw up."
"You are looking a little pale," Hive added.
"No, no I'm fine. I just think I need to go lay down for a while is all," I said, waving away their concerns. Klew's eyes clouded with doubt, and I knew she thought I was lying. I rubbed the bridge of my nose, closing my eyes as I tried to compose myself.
"Hey, where did you get that cookie? I didn't see any of those up with the rest of the food," Klew asked, cocking her head to the side as she looked at the baked good in question. I tensed, her words taking a moment to register as I slowly brought my gaze up to hers.
The sharp, headache-inducing sound of a chair slamming into the floor echoed around the cafeteria. The District 9 girl had hit the floor, coughing and spluttering as tears leaking out from her only eye. Her nails left red, angry scratches against her pale neck, the look of sheer panic on her face making my own heart flutter in fear as I stood up. Jaxon jumped up and started yelling for Peacekeepers, his hands gripping his hair in helplessness and terror. Three of them came bursting through the cafeteria doors, running to where Jaxon stood next to the choking girl. Two more hustled over from where they had been stationed on the other side of the room, startled that something had actually happened on their watch.
The girl's eye rolled to the back of her head, some kind of disgusting foam leaking from the corners of her mouth. Her gagging gradually turned into a gurgle, her hand halting in its clawing. A soft, slow rattle came from the back of her throat as she finally fell silent.
I would never be able to forget that sound.
Not even two seconds later the Peacekeepers swarmed around her body, the two cafeteria guards restraining Jaxon. His eyes had widened to the size of saucers and he was screaming for her to wake up. All the careers but Glimmer had stood up to watch the mayhem, the District 1 male and Merida looking on with unabashed horror. Cato stared blankly at her as she was lifted up and taken away, one Peacekeeper radioing in the damage. Finnick put his hand on Merida's shoulder, speaking softly to calm her down when she began sobbing.
My eyes slowly drifted towards the District 11 tributes, my hands curling in rage. That little brat had the gall to hide his face in his partner's tunic, to cry softly as if he was just traumatized by what he caused. I grabbed hold of the cookie he had given me and crushed it in my fist, chucking the mangled remains onto the floor.
He was as good as dead once we were thrown into the arena.
Once the District 9 girl was gone, the remaining Peacekeepers let go of Jaxon, one of them having the decency to mutter condolences as they moved back to their station. Jaxon sank to his knees, his head in his hands as cried. Setting my jaw, I strode over and knelt in front of him.
"What was her name, Jaxon?" I asked lowly, watching his every move as my hands clenched and relaxed. He sniffled, raising his head slightly to look me in the eye.
"H-Her name w-was Esla. Esla G-Golbieske," he whispered, wiping the tears away. "She didn't deserve it. I-I told her not to take the cookie, but she wouldn't listen to me. I told her, Laurel."
My heart hurt at the genuine anguish he let play across his features.
"Listen to me, Jaxon. I am going to do everything in my power to avenge Esla, alright? It wasn't your fault," I said, my voice just low enough so that only he could hear. He hiccuped, an itty-bitty little smile turning the corners of his lips up.
"I know. Thank you, Laurel," he murmured, standing up and dusting himself off. I rose as well, oblivious to all the eyes locked onto my frame as I patted his shoulder and walked back to my table.
The room was silent until I slid back into my chair. Low murmurs broke out around the room, everyone already trying to forget about what just happened. Klew was staring hard at her empty tray. Hive twiddled his thumbs. I rubbed my hands over my eyes, wondering what possessed me to want to help even more people out. At this rate I would be too busy protecting everyone that the Capitol would begin throwing mutations and earthquakes at us just to keep us fighting.
Yeah, like that would happen.
The shrill ringing from yesterday sounded off, signaling the end of lunch. I brushed some hair behind my ear and got up, whispering a goodbye to Klew and Hive before walking out the doors.
I sank to the floor as the elevator doors closed, a hollowness filling my chest as I thought about what happened. That could have been me. That could have been Jaxon. The cookie hadn't smelled off. It looked perfectly shaped too. Well, before I crushed it. It was kind of like that old saying, what was it again? Something about a wolf wearing a sheep's skin.
The elevator dinged, but I didn't want to get up. How was I supposed to survive in the arena when I was too stupid to not take a cookie from a stranger? A rather harmless looking stranger, but a stranger nonetheless. I struggled to my feet as the doors opened, relief washing over me when Haymitch was nowhere to be seen. I padded down to my room, peeling off my shoes and clothes as soon as I got inside.
After changing into some sort of sleepwear, I curled up in the bed, grabbing the TV controller and flicking it on. Caesar Flickerman's face came to life on the screen, brightly colored wig and all. Instead of his trademark grin that was almost always plastered upon his face, a look of solemness had taken over. The way he looked at the camera was all I needed to know about what he was about to say.
"It is with sincere regret that I must bring you all this news," he started, taking a deep breath as if to compose himself. "Esla Golbieske, one of this year's tributes from District 9, suffered severe head trauma during the training sessions that were held today. And sadly, she has passed away.
"However, this is not the end of the world, my dear viewers," Caesar continued, a smile slowly creeping upon his features. "As I am speaking, another Reaping is occurring in the ninth district to pick her replacement. As long as things go according to plan, the new tribute will arrive in the Capitol within a few hours. My deepest apologies goes out to the family of Esla. It is always a shame when a tribute dies before getting a chance to bring pride to their district.
"On a brighter note, the beginning of the Games is right around the corner! Stay tuned for more inside inf-"
The screen went dark, and the controller fell from my hand, thumping dully on the carpet flooring. I dug the palms of my hands into my eye sockets, trying to rub the images of her writhing body away, but they never left. My first taste of what the Games did to people, and I was holed up in my room, cowering away from what I had seen. I pushed the hair out of my face and fell back on the bed, staring up aimlessly at the ceiling. I needed to get out of here. I needed to get away from it all. Sitting back up, I pulled my shoes on again and fled the room, zig-zagging around the floor as stealthily as possible. Glancing over my shoulder once more, I opened the door to the stairs and went in, shutting it with a soft click.
An odd sensation of giddiness filled me as I got closer and closer to the roof door. It made me feel childish, and, well, happy. I couldn't wait to reach the top and run to the ledge, to feel the wind rustling through my hair as I sat and watched the sun begin its descent to night. However, that feeling left as soon as I reached the cold, metallic door. I wasn't sure as to why until I took a moment to listen.
A soft, deep voice carried through the small opening where the door hadn't been shut all the way, a song I had never heard of being sung in low tones. I paused, taking a moment to consider who the owner of the voice might be.
Abruptly, the voice cut out from its soothing melody, leaving behind only the gentle music of the wind chimes. I attempted to peer through the gap to find whoever was out there, but try as I might, I couldn't find even a measly shadow let alone a person. My brow furrowed and I frowned, crossing my arms as I contemplated my next move. There was always the option to just throw open the door and confront the mystery singer, but I didn't really feel like whoever they were would appreciate the action. I could just sit down next to the door and wait them out, but that might take awhile, and did I really want them to know I was eavesdropping on their private moment? Or, I could take the easy way out and just go back to my room, get under the covers, and go to sleep. But, was I ever known to take an easy way out? Sadly, no.
The mystery vocalist started up his song again, a few hums thrown in there for when he forgot the words. I sat down beside the door, pulling my knees to my chest and tucking my chin into the crook of them. I tried to understand what he was saying, but I could only catch bits and pieces between him forgetting the words and the wind carrying them away. It was something about getting away, freedom maybe? Soon enough I was humming along to the chorus, or whatever it was. I wasn't as beautiful of a singer as Katniss was, but I didn't sound that terrible. I still tried to keep my volume to a minimum, just in case.
My eyelids drooped lower and lower, the events of the day finally taking their toll on me.
Just for a minute, I thought to myself, I'll only rest for a minute.
.
.
.
The door quietly creaked open, slightly heavy footsteps stepping out into the hall. I didn't stir, too lost in my own dreamworld to notice. They hesitated when they caught sight of me, curled up on my side in the corner of the landing. Glancing around quickly to make sure no one was coming up, the mystery singer shrugged off the jacket he was wearing and draped it over top of me. They stood there a moment longer before turning and treading down the stairs to their floor.
I smiled to myself at the sudden warmth of my surroundings, glad that the wind had finally died down. Rolling to turn onto my other side, crisp, cool air caressed the bare skin on my arm, causing goosebumps to spring up all over my body. My eyes snapped open and I sat up, pushing the hair out of my face as I looked down at the jacket in my lap.
"How did this get here?" I murmured, fingering the soft material.
I jerked my head up and to the door, my heart rate increasing when I saw that the door was now opened wider, revealing the empty roof outside. That meant that this was my mystery vocalists' jacket, and he must have thought I looked cold or something. At any rate, I knew I had to get out of there and back down to my room immediately for fear of Effie teetering her way around to look for me. I wrapped up the warm clothing in my arms and set off, bringing it closer to my chest whenever I was hit with a sudden chill.
Luckily for me, no one was waiting for me at the dining table, nor in front of the TV, so I made it to my room without much of a hassle. Someone had ordered my food to be delivered to my room, allowing me to more than make up for my missed mid-day meal. Once I was stuffed fuller than I had ever wanted to be, I rolled the cart back over near my door and crawled into bed, the jacket having been tossed somewhere onto the floor. I curled in on myself, bunching up some of the blankets to press against the side of my face.
In my dreams, I forget about all the bad things happening. All my fears evaporate in favor of happier times, back before anything had ever happened to me. Before my body was riddled with scars. Before I knew what the Ring was. So, I went right back to sleep.
A/N: I'm back! Holy shmazow! It is insane how many people have added this story since I last updated. I can't thank you guys enough for reading this and any other of my stories!
P.S. I'm uploading this the night before my birthday and I'm pretty stoked about it. Let me know what you think about this chapter in a review!
Thank you all so much! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to follow Laurel's example and go to sleep. See y'all in the mornin'!
Okay!
Bye.