Hello all this is actually wisegirlindisguise because this part of the story is off the government's record since our character are "dead." I hope you like reading. Enjoy.
Lucas was lowering Prim down to the floor from the vents which they had spent most of their time in over the day, but nightfall was approaching so all of the people were headed to bed which meant they had a better chance of sneaking around. As soon as she was on the ground Lucas settled in to lie in the vent until Prim was done. Lucas closed his eyes willing himself to take a nap while he waited.
"Lucas, Lucas!" Lucas jolted awake and passed down Prim's new clothes. He made sure not to look at her when he did and then he continued to wait until she was fully dressed. "Okay, Lucas, come down and help." Lucas stirred slowly and then slipped his feet through where the vent had been and dropped down into the shower room heavily with his clothes tucked under his arm. Prim looked almost messy though she seemed to have really tried to dress on her own. Lucas chuckled and walked up to her. "Shower first," she told him smiling calmly as if they weren't in mortal peril at that very moment, "you're a mess."
Lucas rolled his eyes for his benefit purely but he agreed and had her leave the room as he turned the water on for one of the shower heads in the washroom. As steam built up around it he practically disappeared in the water that pushed all the camouflage work he had done from his skin. After minutes of scrubbing his skin he was no longer green. He had dark hair again and he was himself for the first time in weeks. He peeled off the dirty clothes as soon as they had been washed of all the muck and draped them over a bar bolted into the wall.
When the water was turned off Lucas gathered the new outfit he would be wearing. Lucas pulled on the white uniform of a Peace Keeper and left off the hat as he walked over to Prim who was seated silently in the locker room with her legs crossed. She was completely done up in Capitol couture which made him feel queasy. "You look like a Peace Keeper," Prim noted as she looked at his blurred silhouette standing in front of her.
"You almost look like a Capitol citizen," Lucas wasn't sure if it was a compliment or an insult, but she would pass for a capitol woman easily. She had managed the contacts and her eyes made his head spin. She looked nothing like herself. When Lucas helped her put on a white wig and he smiled weakly. There was no more Prim.
She had really long white hair that reached easily to the back of her thighs with only a simply band over the top of her hair separating the back of her hair from the bangs that shortened her face since the bangs touched her eyelashes when she blinked. Her eyes irises were made completely black by contacts except for little embellishments of stars. The right contact had a moon that would change faces every time she blinked until there was no moon and it slowly came back. She had on a sparkly silver dress that poofed out at the hips and was wearing a fiery red coat over it that had pleats like a skirt around the bottom. gold tight covered what parts of her legs one could see but most of her legs were enveloped by lace up boots that went up to her knees and laced up the whole way.
"Help?" Prim asked sticking out one her legs. Lucas agreed and knelt in front of her starting to lace up the whole boot. This was all he could really do. They were really just hoping that they could get off without beautifying her nails and doing any makeup. It all just depended on who they ran into. When Lucas finished he sighed. "Ready to go?" Prim wondered as she got to her feet moving around experimentally in the heels.
Lucas pulled on the Peace Keeper's helmet and thread his arm through hers. "As I'll ever be." Together they walked out into the hallway where everything was bustling with activity. Peace Keepers moved desperately around with blank stares as if they didn't understand what was going on the. The avoxes moved about as well though they kept their eyes cast down following orders without any complaint. Some of the more obvious Capitol citizens had clipboards or touchscreens that they worked away on as they went jabbering to the unfortunate Peace Keeper who was kept in tow. They fit in quite well actually. This would work.
That was until they saw Leera. Her tattoos were unmistakable and unfortunately the first person she recognized was Lucas. Her eyes widened for a moment and she quickened her steps sending the loose fitting top she was wearing askew. "May I borrow this Peace Keeper? I need some help." Leera asked as she got to him grabbing his arm. At least Prim wasn't recognizable.
"No, I need him." Prim kept her voice down though she didn't try to disguise it. For the sake of keeping up the hoax she started to speak louder winking to Leera. "I could NOT find my stylist this morning and all I have is this Peace Keeper who is a positively atrocious makeup artist." Prim let go of Lucas' arm and took a step away as if she were disgusted by him.
Leera smiled taking her arm. "It is my job. I'd be happy to help." Lucas followed after them with head hung like an escort as the two girls bubbled on about petty things. When they made it to Leera's assigned quarters Prim got to sit down on her bed and relax. She closed her eyes sighing with relief. "Like I said," Leera smiled at Lucas pulling his helmet right off his head and set it on her vanity, "it's my job. Lucas, sit." Lucas took a seat at her vanity surprised that there was so much makeup sitting around just on its surface. "You first Lucas."
Leera grabbed some of the makeup brushes and few prosthetic pieces that she used to change his facial structure slightly. She blended the edges carefully and then pulled an airbrush gun that she filled with a pale makeup. "I'm gonna make you pale so that people don't recognize you." Leera said it so casually as if she used the tools of torture every day. As Lucas thought about it she probably did. When she was done smiled proudly and put a little bit of gel in his hair to slick it back. "Now you look like a Peace Keeper that survived the war."
Lucas had seen those guys around. They never got the really big security jobs because they had a history of PTS (post traumatic stress). He was sure there would be some around the arena though because they had been around as followers of President Snow. President Markkus probably trusted them more than the rest of the Peace Keepers the academy was cranking out now on a yearly basis. When Lucas looked at the mirror he frowned. He did look like those men. His face looked washed out as if shock had never cleared from their system. There was a scar carved on his cheek that looked like a battle wound. No one would recognize him.
"Okay, Prim your turn," Leera ushered Lucas out of the seat and then got Prim to sit down at the vanity. She looked at Prim just watching her for a moment. "Where did you get all of this stuff to play dress up in?" Leera wondered as she began to draw eyeliner on around Prim's eyes.
Lucas answered for her, "We've been crawling around in the air ducts for a really long time, two days I think, and we found one of the rooms for a capitol citizens and Peace Keepers room. We pulled together what we could."
"You guys did really well." Leera praised them for their choices especially Lucas who had worked on image with only one set of eyes and the eyes being male eyes. No offense. She continued to do makeup until Prim had darker skin than usual and her eyes stuck out against the, now curled, white hair. "So what was your plan after you got into the behind the scene's of the Hunger Games?"
"We were actually planning on getting help from our parents to get out of here." Prim admitted as she stayed seated at the vanity. She faced Leera's and Lucas' general direction with her legs crossed comfortably.
"Well, your parents aren't in town Primrose." Lucas looked over at Leera confused with a cocked eyebrow. Prim also turned to her searching for her face in the blur that she couldn't get used to. "As of yesterday, the people of Panem think you two are dead. Plus, everyone walking around here is freaking out because President Markkus has decided he is Game Keeper." Leera sighed setting down the makeup brushes in the vanity drawer and closing it a little too harshly. "That's why I'm still here. They want to 'keep an eye on me.'" It was Leera's turn to roll her eyes as she finally sat down on her bed relaxing in her tight black jeans that hugged her body without being extremely uncomfortable.
"They're not going to arrest you, are they?" Prim asked worriedly.
"I'm not sure Primrose. I've been playing it off as if I was raised by air headed capitol folk from before the revolution. That way I was just trying to copy it instead of actually having rebellious acts. So, I should be fine for now." Prim nodded as if she would accept the answer for the time being. She would definitely want to know more later.
"What happened to the last Game Keeper?" Lucas asked putting his elbow on his knees as he leaned forward from his seat.
"Arrested. President Markkus is trying to work it out so that she is shipped back to her home district for a public hanging." Leera closed her eyes as if the reality would go away. She had known Iris her whole life because they were both District 4 natives. They had spent their time there as free divers until they decided they could do more in the Capitol. Unfortunately, once they got to the Capitol they started to drift away from each other. "She tried to help you guys, and now she's getting punished for it."
"Help us?" Lucas asked looked at Leera with a mix of utter confusion and anger. Leera nodded. "This woman, whoever the hell she is, did not help us." Lucas stood just so that he could walk around. When Leera tried to speak up Lucas blew up. "She did nothing but make it worse. We could've handled ourselves! If she'd leave a damn chink in the armor or did blow every thing up in our faces then we would be home free by now!" Prim looked down at her hands with his choice of words. She shook her head slowly wishing somehow her hearing had been the one to go instead of her vision. "She teased us! She opened a door and then as soon as we got close enough she threw it in our faces!"
Leera stood jabbing a finger at Lucas as if it would make him second guess his words. "She showed you a way out!"
"She hurt Prim!" That sent Leera back into her seat, sitting silently. Prim looked up at Lucas with the change in his tone though there was still this raw power that made the strongest of Peace Keepers shudder. "That is crossing the line and if she was trying to help anyone she should've stayed out of the Games. She should've never agreed."
No matter the severity of the conversation, with the tension choking their throats, Leera chuckled. Lucas was ready to throw a punch at her just to make her shut up. He didn't care if Prim liked her or not. It was obvious to him that she was not on their side. Leera looked up at Lucas searching his eyes for some spare sympathy. "You think we have a choice?" Leera waited for him to say something, to dig up that gall he had so openly expressed only moments before. "Just like all the districts we're require to do something. For some of the people that have hearts, they have to sit there and watch. I have to meet every person that goes through. I meet every tribute Lucas. For people like Prim and you, I make friends. Mentors made friends at the old games and sometimes escorts did. Then we send you off to die because we don't have a choice! Cinna died to make a point when Katniss Everdeen was in the Games. We all have things we're supposed to do Lucas! Markkus took all of the revolutionaries in the Capitol and forced them to send twenty-six kids off to their death! If we don't we die. People with families will do anything to keep them safe. We all do what we have to do."
"Then do something," Lucas grabbed Leera's shoulders kneeling in front of her. "We'll got get your friend and then we'll get out of here." Lucas gave a lopsided grin and moved the hair from her face tucking it behind her ears. "We have to get moving though. If we sit around long enough. They'll figure it out." Lucas walked over to Prim touching her shoulder. She seemed to come back to life looking up at him with a smile. Leera stood though her features seemed too tired to even attempt a smile. There was so much going on. Where Prim found the energy, Leera had no idea. "Let's go," Lucas smirked and let Leera take over his spot at Prim's arm and the three of them walked out with a renewed need to regain their dignity.
The way they walked on their way no one would ever guess where they were going. To their deaths? No, the girls spoke so loudly and turned to the man behind them as if he would give some sort of input on the conversation. He would smile or chuckle at their trivial conversations. To put themselves in more danger? No, their heads were held to high! There was no need to think that they were anything lower than royalty with the way they held their own. To the holding cells? Never, they were high class. Why would any person at their level need to go to the holding cells? Well, why did any good person go anywhere that had grime and call themselves the lower side? Same reason any person would: they had shit to do.
What will happen, what will happen? Tsk, tsk, tsk... You'll have to stick around. Catch you later. ;)
Sincerely,
wisegirlindisguise.