Author's Note: Hi everyone! Here's my longest chapter yet! And the next chapter begins their time in the arena! I hope you all enjoy reading it. Please review, I love reading all your reviews because it makes me so happy that people are enjoying something that I've written.

On another note, I am beginning to come to the end of this fanfic (I don't usually write extremely long stories, and especially since this is my first…), there will probably only be 4 or 5 chapters at the most to go. But I have had an idea for a 'sequel' story I guess, that would lead on from this one (either carrying on in this story or under a whole new name, I'm not sure yet) so if you would read and be interested in that, please review and tell me that too!

Chapter Seven

Grey's POV

Night before games: Interviews

Cato's up there on the stage, looking arrogant and self conceited. It's so far away from the teenage boy I saw a few nights ago that it makes me nervous. After that night in his room we stopped talking alone together. I don't think he wanted anyone to know that for a second he had been weak. Clove suspected something was between us and gave a few sly looks from time to time, but Cato would always silence her about it.

But now here he was, talking it up with Caesar Flickerman like they were best friends and he had no care in the world. I had known that District 2 was close to the Capitol but squinting my eyes at them, Cato looked like he could be a Capitol citizen. I however, was going to stick out like a sore thumb. Cato and Caesar were chatting about how he was finding it here ("And don't say with a map!") and Caesar even looked like he was bouncing in his seat from excitement. But eventually the unavoidable question had to come up.

"So, Cato. A fine, strong tribute like you must have a million girls after you, am I right?" Cato smirks and without even seeing them I know that half the female species watching just swooned.

"You might be." His expression is overconfident, and he looks like he's relishing the attention. I can't see any doubt in his expression, but then again why would there be? He's trained so hard for these interviews; he can't be anything except the arrogant career that he's expected to be.

"Now I've been hearing some rumours…" Caesar says quietly, winking to the audience, "That you've been cosy with a girl from another district. Is there something between the two of you?"

Cato's laugh is booming and Caesar laughs with him, probably not sure what the chuckle is for but wanting to be in on it anyway. I couldn't help but like the interviewer with his blue hair and vivacious personality, but I wasn't so sure about the interviewee right now. I felt a sneer come up very slowly and I hoped there wouldn't be any sneaky camera hoping to catch my reaction.

"I'm here to win Caesar. My time with other tributes is purely for fun. I'm sure as a Capitol man you know how to have a good time, right?" I'm nearly sick from all the winking he's doing, and Caesar's just playing along like some puppy.

I stand in front of the screen backstage feeling numb, until I hear Spens cruelly laughing at me. I turn around to where he's standing behind me with his arms folded, a sneering smile on his face.

"Aww, your boyfriend's ditched you the night before the games?" And for once, Cato's not here to punch him. I wouldn't dare do it myself, not that I couldn't, but I would feel the wrath of everyone trying to help me when they saw his black eye live on the interview.

I look past him and see the tributes from Districts 5 to 12 all staring back at me. Some of them are trying to hide pitying looks and I realise that if I hadn't been in the career alliance, I might have made some real friends. Cato was officially not a friend. All these teenagers that I was going to kill in the next few days, and I hadn't even bothered to learn their names. With Cato's voice blaring away in the background, I felt ashamed. Why was he better than any of these people?

I stood with my head bowed, looking over the dress that I was wearing. It was beautiful; my stylist had done a good job. It was a deep blue, strapless dress that came down to the middle of my thighs; cinched at the waist with a deep blue ribbon so dark it was nearly black. With a sigh I realised that if I had been standing next to Cato, my dress would have matched his silver suit jacket and his blue eyes. I felt a small hand on my waist, and I looked to see a young girl standing next to me. She was small with frizzy hair, and she was wearing what reminded me of a princess dress with round puffy sleeves. Without thinking I figured that her stylists would have been aiming for an innocent look because she barely looked old enough to be in the games, but I quickly shook the thought out of my head. I sounded just like a career, planning who was a threat. I was going to try and make a friend instead.

"Hello there." I said quietly, and the little girl jumped away from me, looking like a deer in the headlights.

"It's okay, I wont hurt you. My name is Grey." I murmured to her and she slipped closer to me.

"I'm Rue. I've seen you before in the training center, but you were always with him." Rue's gaze moves to the screen where Cato is just finishing up his interview and heading off the stage. Like the other tributes before him, he's going to head back to his floor and I may not even see him until we board the hovercraft to take us to the arena tomorrow.

"You looked nice and I wanted to talk to you, but he had his arm around you a lot and after seeing him get angry…" Rue continued. I couldn't remember Cato having his arm around me at all, but thinking back, he did seem awfully close a couple of times and it wouldn't have been difficult for him to place his hand possessively on my waist. He was quite a domineering person, and adding it to the fact that he was a strong career, no one would be dumb enough to mess with his girl. He'd shown that he cared about me when he attacked Spens. And I was right in the middle of it.

"Sometimes he's gentle…" I say, thinking of when he poured his heart out to me. But I wasn't so sure anymore and it didn't persuade Rue, who wrapped her tiny arms around my waist. I hugged her back but my stomach felt sick. I wanted to protect her as much as I could, but I couldn't get the picture out of my head of my career friends killing her.

"District 4?" A blank-faced backstage worker was standing in front of me, holding a clipboard. I nodded and he began to lead me towards the entranceway going to the stage. Rue stood back before she was trampled, and I looked behind me at her as I was pulled away. There were no words between us; no "I'll look after you" or "Alliance?" It was just a sweet innocent girl that didn't deserve to die, and some crummy career.

"I'm delighted to introduce Grey from District Four!" I stood up straight and pranced on stage, grinning and trying to look as happy as possible. I felt like a Barbie doll with the Capitol audience all screaming at me and it was a little overwhelming. But I didn't plan to be the first and only career that looked anxious. Caesar Flickerman stood up to kiss my hand and I held it out to him, even managing a curtsy that would make Domitia proud.

"It's wonderful to have you here, Grey." Caesar said to me very enthusiastically.

"It's amazing to be here, Caesar. I love the Capitol!" I answered in the same tone, and I saw the interviewer's smile broaden just a bit, knowing that he was going to have an easy interview. I imagine some tributes would give him nothing at all to work with and I felt like even he deserved someone who would banter along.

We continued chatting easily, and for a second I wondered if Cato was watching me right now. There were screens in nearly every room, even the elevator, and I knew they would all be playing the interview so it seemed likely that somewhere he would be watching. And even though Capitol Cato felt no pain about what he'd said about us, I wanted him to.

"Boy, the oceans in District 4 sound amazing, I do hope you get to return back there." Caesar says, gripping my hands in his, "I do have a final question for you, I think everyone here would all like to hear your opinion on Cato, the District 2 tribute." He used his hand to gesture to the audience, who played his game and cheered. Here it was, my opportunity to say something that would hurt him, or at least make him angry. I made a big show of laughing before I answered.

"Oh no, there's nothing at all between us! He's hardly my type! But do you want to hear a secret, Caesar? He's not the best kisser I've ever met." Caesar put his hand over an overly shocked mouth and turned to the audience who hooted. A buzzer signalled the end of my interview, and Caesar kissed both my cheeks.

"Do you think I'm a better kisser than Cato?" He asked cheekily, before I waved and walked off the side of the stage.

There was no one except a few Peacekeepers where I had come off the stage. I didn't want to wait the few minutes until Spens had finished his interview, and Rue was going to take even longer until she was done. I headed into the lift by myself instead and went to my own floor. It was silent when I entered, and I called out for Finnick and Domitia, wondering where they were.

"Finnick? Is that you?" I called out.

"Not quite." A familiar voice replied. Cato was sitting on my couch in his interview outfit, and he didn't look impressed. I snuck a look behind me, hoping that maybe Finnick would pop out and yell, "Surprise! Cato's not going to strangle you!" When I turned my head back around, he was standing right up against me. I hadn't even heard him get up!

"You embarrassed me!" We both said at the same time. The difference was that I shrieked it, and he growled it with narrowed eyes. This seemed to amuse him because he smirked.

"I'm not a good kisser? We both know you were lying." Cato teased. For a second I thought he'd forgiven me, but then he grabbed my wrists with one hand and maneuvered me back into a wall.

"However," He purred, "The Capitol doesn't know that. And so that little comment makes me a little angry." I struggled against his grip on my wrists, but he wouldn't budge.

"Well you're just perfect then, aren't you? Mr 'my time with other tributes is purely for fun.'" I spat at him. Cato pursed his lips slightly at my comment and he let my wrists go in defeat. I didn't run out of the room because I wanted to hear what he had to say.

"Grey, you know I can't show that sort of emotion. I'm just trying to do this for my district." When he says 'for my district,' I mouth the words with him; just knowing that's what he's going to say. He sighs.

"Surely you understand, don't you?"

"No, I don't! I don't understand and I wish someone would explain why I've sided with some person that can't even show emotion instead of someone sweet like Rue!" I'm getting a bit angry now, and Cato can tell, but he doesn't try and stop me. He instead says something very quietly.

"I'm just trying to protect you."

I have to pester him before he continues.

"If I ever said that I even favoured you over another tribute, they'd use it against me. They would hurt you to get to me; I know they would. They might even be sadistic enough to kill all the other tributes so it's just the two of us that remain and make us fight. Argue as much as you like, but I can't let them find out about us and ruin it all." He's right, I do want to argue, but he's lost the sarcasm in his voice and for a second it actually sounds like he cares about me. Cato turns away and is about to leave when the elevator door opens and Finnick enters.

"Grey…" My mentor says softly, and just by that I know it's going to be bad news. Cato seems to feel it too and he moves towards me and uses his arm to pull me close.

"Ah, so the rumors are true." Finnick tries to smirk, but it looks like a sad smile instead.

"What rumors?" I can't help but ask. He gestures to Cato and I, wrapped in each other's arms. For a second I wonder why Finnick didn't know, but I remember that I never told him about the evening in Cato's room.

"This. You're being portrayed now as 'the lovers that won't admit it.'"

Cato's POV

"This. You're being portrayed now as 'the lovers that won't admit it.'" No… Now the whole of Panem knows, the Capitol will never let us be. Grey tenses up and we simultaneously let go of each other. She turns to look at me but I have my gaze trained on her mentor. I know that wasn't the bad news.

"But that's not what I came to tell you. I heard that your father worked in the Capitol and I thought maybe he could come and visit you to say goodbye. I went to see him personally to try and persuade him, but he said that he was too busy working, and he said…" Finnick mutters something quietly under his breath.

"What? What did he say?" Grey shrieks, and I want to hold her close but I know this isn't the time.

"He said, 'maybe another time.'"

Everything goes hysterical after that. Grey screams and cries, shouting things about how there will be no other time because she's going to be dead within a week. Neither Finnick nor I try to answer because even we can't be sure that she'll win, especially since I'm trying to win myself. At some point Grey makes the transition between grief and anger, and when I catch a decorative vase that she throws I decide that she's gotten angry enough. I grab her as she's about to punch the wall and I wrap my arms around her, protecting Grey from herself. She doesn't bother struggling and instead sobs for a long time, only standing on her feet because I'm holding her up. Finnick approaches us and pats Grey's back comfortingly as I rock her in my arms.

Grey's POV

It takes me a long time to calm down even with Cato's arms around me. He never asks to leave, even when Domitia returns and Finnick bids us goodnight. I sit in his lap and he rocks me back and forth, not needing to do anything except be there.

"You can go back to your floor if you want, it's getting late…" I whisper, my voice cracked from sobbing. He shushes me and kisses the top of my head.

"I'll leave if you want me to." Cato replies, and I can see the ghost of a smirk playing on his face, knowing full well that I want him to stay. Seeing him not afraid, still able to be his career side, comforts me. As long as he's okay, I must be too.

Cato picks me up in his arms and in the dim light I can see his eyes are gentle. He won't hurt me, at least not tonight. We go into my room and he helps me into bed. I'm feeling numb. Every few minutes or so I'll remember my father deserting me, and then when I've recovered from that I remember Cato telling me that the Capitol will use everything we could have against us. It moves in a cycle, but when Cato has his arms around me the hurt in my heart subsides a tiny bit.

He looks unsure of what to do when he places me into my bed, but I pull the covers back and lean up to help him out of his suit jacket. A minute later I feel his warm body slip under the covers and he folds me up in his warm embrace. I can't help it and I start to cry, but Cato's calloused thumbs wipe the tears from my cheeks. He doesn't try to kiss me, he doesn't try to do anything. Except be there with me. It doesn't take long before his breathing slows down into sleep and I turn to look at him without waking him up. He looks calm and gentle and I experience déjà vu thinking back to when I first saw him that day during prep. It feels like so long ago. Cato murmurs something in his sleep and he rubs his head against my hair, which has draped on the pillow beside him.

Don't befriend the girl with the knives. Don't let your guard down in front of the tall skinny boy.

Don't trust the big sword-welding career.

Don't love the big sword-welding career.