Chapter five: The Tributes
It is bright and early on a Saturday morning and Peeta and I are sleeping soundly. I am comfortable wrapped up in his arms with my head on his chest and the sun shining down on us through my curtain.
"Peeta! Katniss! Get up! Now!" Haymitch runs into my room and scares us both out of our sleep.
"What's wrong?" I ask sleepily after being tossed aside as Peeta sits up.
"The reaping has started! Come on, you both need to see this. We're going to end up with two of these brats; you might as well see the selection!" I groan. "brats" is exactly what I'm thinking myself when I think about how we're going to have to mentor two of them. I roll over and burry my head under my pillow. Peeta begins rubbing my back.
"Come on Katniss, I know you don't want to do this, I don't want to do this either to be honest. I've had enough of this to last me a life time. Sometimes I don't understand why you let me live to begin with." I roll over.
"Don't say that," I demand, "stop thinking it." I sit up and tackle him.
"I'm sorry Katniss, but it's true. I don't get it," he says obviously taken by surprise.
"I don't get it either because I didn't like you before. I just didn't want you to die. I love you now though." I have Peeta in a rather compromising position. His legs are still on the ground where he'd had them. I am mostly on top of him and I have his arms pinned above his head. Haymitch comes back into the room to see what's taking us so long.
"What are you two doing? Get off of him Katniss," Haymitch comes over to us.
"I haven't had the chance to hit him yet," I complain glaring at him.
"Why are you going to hit him? What did I miss in the two minutes I was gone?"
"I think I made her mad by saying that I didn't –" his sentence is cut off by my fist across his mouth.
"You're still thinking about it," I say to the figure now on the floor. Haymitch is taken by surprise as well. It isn't like me to just deck Peeta for no reason. He helps Peeta up out of the floor and sends him out of my room closing the door behind me.
"Why did you punch him?" Haymitch asks calmly.
"He's still thinking about how I should have let him die in our first Hunger Games," I say.
"So you punched him because of that? Katniss, you can't punch him for how he feels," Haymitch throws his hands up.
"Why not? It's irrational," I reply. I think about how maybe I shouldn't have gone as far as to punch him.
"So I can I punch you every time you're being irrational? Because if I could, you'd have some real pretty black eyes by this point," Haymitch says angrily. I look away from him.
"Okay, fine, maybe I was wrong. I just – I know it's hard for him, it's hard for me."
"You know what, to hell with it! I don't know why I'm arguing with you. It never does me any good. You never listen. You haven't changed!" Haymitch yells at me and leaves my room slamming the door behind him. I don't know what to think. I sit in the center of my bed where Peeta and Haymitch left me.
It feels as though it's been a few hours, but when I look at the clock I see that it's only been ten minutes. There's a soft knock on my door.
"Come in," I say quietly wondering who it is. No one knocks around here. I should have been able to guess. Peeta comes in holding ice to his jaw.
"I'm sorry Katniss," he says. He opens his mouth to say something further, but I've already gotten up and placed my hand over his mouth preventing him from saying anything.
"No, Peeta, I'm the sorry one. I shouldn't have punched you. I shouldn't have gotten as angry as I did. You didn't do anything worth apologizing for," I say. He kisses my fingers.
"You've never been one to think before you acted," he smiles and takes my hand in his. I reach up with my other hand toward his face but instead I find myself wrapped in his embrace. I don't deserve him and he doesn't deserve me.
"I love you Katniss, no matter if you punch me in the face for telling you that I don't understand why I'm still here. I know this is as hard on you as it is on me since you're the one who should be afraid of me. I'm dangerous to you."
"I know. I'm not sure what actually made me fall in love with you. Maybe it was just that I realized that you were everything that my life needed and when I didn't have that things just fell apart."
"Katniss,"
"Peeta, I'm serious," I pull away enough to look at his face. His jaw is swollen. I shouldn't have punched him. "I'm sorry," I whisper. I move onto my toes and gently kiss where I punched him.
"Now that you two have made up, you should come see the tributes. You'll get the names again later I'm sure since you've missed the reapings. If not, I'm sure we can get the video if you really want to see it again," Haymitch is leaning in my doorway. I'm not sure how long he's been there. I wish that he would leave us alone for more than ten minutes at a time.
"We'll be down in a moment," Peeta says turning his head toward Haymitch. His arms have not left their circle around me. Haymitch hesitates but something in Peeta's appearance seems to make him leave. Peeta doesn't turn his attention back to me at first. He watches the door. I am able to reach up and touch his jaw before he takes me by surprise and kisses me hard. For a moment I don't kiss him back. Once he relaxes and I'm over the surprise, I allow myself to be caught up in the moment. It's over long before I want it to be over. He rests his forehead against mine.
"We should move on from the past. All we have to do is get through this last Hunger Games and then it's over. For good," he says comfortingly. I want so much to believe him. I do believe him, there's just so many other things that have happened that I haven't had time to get over yet.
"Okay," I say. I'm going to try. For him. For the people that I lost. It's the least I can do for them at this point. My arms are still around his neck and I pull myself closer to him and close my eyes as I rest my head against his chest. I never thought that things would have changed. I never thought that Prim wouldn't be here; especially after I took her place in the Games.
"Alright, you've been up here long enough, let's go. I'm not leaving until you do," Haymitch says coming back, "you're missing everything." I sigh. I don't want to. I don't care, but Peeta unwinds my arms and takes my hand. As we pass Haymitch I hear him mutter something about not understanding how one minute we're at each other's throats and the next we're kissing and making up.
~HG~HG~HG~
This selection of children is enough to make even the strongest people feel for them. There is a brother and sister pair. It wouldn't surprise me if two of them decided they liked each other just to see the effect that it might have. Snow's Granddaughter was also reaped. I can't help but wonder which two children District 12 is going to end up with. I wonder if the siblings are going to be assigned the same District; knowing the Capitol they won't. There's a decent selection of age. There are a few of each age except there are no eighteen year olds.
The families of these kids are distraught. I feel the worst for the family that's losing both of their children. Even though this is the last of the Games I still don't ever want to have children. I guess this is how Commander Lyme wanted them to feel though. They finally get to witness and be put through the things that the rest of us have dealt with for the last seventy-six years.
Commander Lyme comes on the screen after the twenty four tributes have been taken away.
"Hello all of Panem! Many of you might know me as the District 2 Victor from the 66th Hunger Games, many of you might not have even heard of me. I am your new President. The people here in the Capitol have known about this Hunger Games for a while now. This year as you all saw, we've taken a reaping of Capitol children to participate in the Final Games. After a Capitol Victor emerges, there will be no more Hunger Games. Ever." She pauses for the cheers that we all know the entire population of Panem, except those in the Capitol is making. I can hear the cheers from the people who populate District 12. Their children will be spared from now on.
"These Games are designed to show the people of the Capitol how they've been treating the rest of us, or how oblivious they've been to how the rest of us are treated. They will now know how the rest of us feel and felt. In the war that the Capitol lost and the Districts won, I was a commander for the rebel side. I plan to bring many positive changes to the people of Panem. I am doing everything that I can to help each of the Districts rebuild and move on with their lives from here.
"Everyone witnessed the reaping of these twenty four Capitol children. They will be taken from here to a training arena for the next week where they will be put through different trials and assigned a District. These trials will tell them that should they have been born into a District instead of the Capitol, which District they would have been born into. Once assigned a District they will travel to the District where they will live for a week with the Victors from there. Out of fairness, I will not be mentoring a Capitol child even though I am a Victor from District 2. After the week that they spend with their mentors they will have another week to train and get ready for the games like all of us before them have. The Games will begin in approximately three weeks from today. May the Odds be Ever in Your Favor." The screen fades and her announcement is over.
"Do you want me to try and get the video of the reapings?" Haymitch asks. He's already told us about the tributes.
"I don't think I want to watch that," I say sadly. Peeta squeezes my shoulders. He is on the couch while I am on the floor leaning against his knees. He had offered to let me have the couch but I told him I was more comfortable in the floor. I lean back against him and close my eyes. He bends down and kisses the tip of my nose and I open my eyes to find myself looking into his blue eyes. I have always loved the color of his eyes.
"I brought lunch," Grease Sae's voice causes us both to look up and we find her standing in the doorway with a pot full of soup.
~HG~HG~HG~
We spend the day outside after lunch. Peeta wants me to help him tend to the primroses beside the house. He did this for her and he barely knew her. Neither of us have looked after these bushes in a while.
"Hey Katniss, will you sing while we work?" he asks suddenly. I haven't thought about singing in a while.
"Do you have anything in mind that you want to hear?" I ask. It's only Peeta. Haymitch has gone into town for the day and Grease Sae is just inside the house. She lets us alone more than Haymitch does. When he shakes his head no, I have to think of a song myself. There was one song my dad used to sing to me when we were hunting. I start singing that one.
We're happily working in the bushes pulling out the weeds giving the primroses more air to breathe. I come across something that's not a weed.
"Hey Peeta," I say cautiously as I move the plant from around it. I hear him head my direction but he doesn't get far before I realize what it is. The only thing that I can think of is to scream and turn the other direction. I slam into Peeta.
"What, what is it?" Greasy Sae comes out running. Peeta has me wrapped in his arms and I'm sobbing so she doesn't ask if he's attacked me. The fact that he hasn't is obvious.
"Something in the bushes," he says as he strokes my hair and rubs my back. I hear her go to the bushes and gasp.
"What is it?" Peeta asks.
"A cat. Been dead for at least a few days if not longer," she says. I sob harder at the mention. It's Buttercup. I promised myself and Buttercup that I'd take care of him for Prim. He was one of the last things that I had of her even if I hated him.
"I'll take care of this, you go inside. It's a lot worse than it looks." Peeta takes me and leads me into the house so that I don't have to watch her pull the cat out of the bush. I hadn't thought about him in weeks. I figured that he'd take care of himself and come and go like he used to do.
"It's okay Katniss, it's okay," Peeta sits down on the couch and takes me in his arms. I nestle my head in his neck and soak it with my tears.
~HG~HG~HG~
The sun is shining on my face. I roll over and find my face in a pillow. It smells like Peeta. I open my eyes and turn my head to find that I am in my bed and Peeta isn't in the room.
"Peeta?" I call.
"Downstairs Katniss," I hear him call back. I sit up and put my feet on the floor. I look out the window and notice that the sun is still shining, but it has to be midafternoon by now. Peeta meets me in the doorway.
"You're awake just in time to watch the first day of the children's District training," he says. I roll my eyes.
"Yes, because I really care," I say sarcastically.
"I know you don't, but we have to do this."
"It doesn't mean I have to care," I respond. I cannot get attached to any one of these children. I've already lost almost everyone who I've ever cared about. Twenty three of these tributes will not come back and the chance that I'd care about the one that lives isn't very likely. Haymitch got Peeta and I out alive without caring about me. Peeta takes my hand and reluctantly I follow him downstairs to where Haymitch, Greasy Sae, and Effie, of all people, are already sitting in front of my TV.
"Katniss!" Effie greets me happily.
"Hey Effie," I reply.
"Have a seat dear, they're getting ready to start," she tells me what Peeta has already told me. Haymitch is in an armchair with an entire bottle of vodka. He sips it slowly and holds on to it like after tonight he'll never see it again. Greasy Sae is sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table and Effie is on the couch. I was going to sit on the floor on front of Peeta like I always do, but when he collapses on the other end of the couch from Effie he drags me practically into his lap. I sigh as I reposition myself to be beside him instead of in his lap. He puts his arm around me as the Capitol Seal begins.
"Not everyone is watching this I'll have you know," Effie says, "It's only being played in Victor houses for those Victors who want to watch." The only thing that will be televised for everyone to watch is the Games themselves. We all grow quiet as the tributes come on screen.
They show names, faces, and ages of every tribute. I only take note on a few names but together Peeta and I keep track of all the ages. President Snow's granddaughter is in this group. I hope that she ends up in a District other than 12. Her name is Lisa Snow and she's sixteen years old. The brother and sister pair are named Jason and Autumn. He's only twelve while she's seventeen. I can tell by watching them that she'll do anything she can to protect him even if that means sacrificing herself.
Another girl who gets my attention is named Olive. She's fifteen years old and has the attitude of a two year old that couldn't have her way. Another boy named Nathaniel, who also is only fifteen, catches my attention. He's extremely muscular and I can tell that his weapon of choice is a throwing knife. The last tribute that catches my attention is a thirteen year old boy. The only reason he catches my attention is because he reminds me so much of Prim; of Rue.
I watch them walk around and pick up different weapons. Most of them don't know what to do with any of them except Nathaniel and Autumn. Autumn impresses me with all of her skills. Her brother, Jason, knows a few things but it's obvious that he was only just beginning the training that Autumn went through. I watch them all, but I really hope that we get stuck with Autumn or Nathaniel; someone who knows what they're doing. The rest of them clearly don't. When the testing for the day is over the screen goes blank.
"Well I think this will be an interesting selection," Effie says. I have to refrain from rolling my eyes.
"Interesting! That's what you've said about plenty of Games in the past," Haymitch calls out as he takes a swig from his bottle.
"Well fine, what do you think about it then Haymitch?" she asks glaring at him.
"I think, that we're in for some really stupid kids who are just going to die anyways," he says.
"That's what you said about us wasn't it? Both of us are still here," Peeta says adding an emphasis on 'both'.
"That was before I knew you. Before I knew and saw that you're both pretty capable of handling yourselves under extreme pressure. It's when you're not under pressure that you can't handle yourselves." Haymitch takes another chug of his vodka.
"Nathaniel and Autumn seem to know what they're doing," I comment.
"Autumn's weakness is her brother. Take him out and you'll probably be able to take her out within minutes. Nathaniel might be the only one who's got a decent head on his shoulders who won't be able to crack easily. Don't count on us getting either of them. It won't happen." Greasy Sae silently gets up and goes to the kitchen where she begins to make tonight's dinner. None of us say another word and I find my eyes getting heavy as I rest my head against Peeta's chest. I don't want too mentor Capitol children. I don't want to be used as another part of the Capitols Games. Again.
~HG~HG~HG~
We spend all week watching the tributes train. Tonight is the night they assign them all a District and sometime tomorrow two of them will be rolling into District 12. Effie left yesterday to retrieve them.
"I thought she wanted a better District than us," I say to Peeta as we were climbing in bed last night.
"She confessed to me and Haymitch that she doesn't want that anymore. She's been with 12 for a few years now and I think she'd feel out of place in another District," he tells me.
I keep thinking about that as I think about how Effie and the tributes will be here by this time tomorrow and I'm expected to care.
Plutarch Heavensbee is Head Gamemaker again. Caesar Flickman also is still the host of the Games. It is he who announces where the Tributes are going to go. There are six tributes who I remember. Lisa Snow, Autumn, Jason, Nathaniel, Olive, and the thirteen year old boy who I found out is named Collin. I listen, watch, and take down names and ages of each of the tributes and which District they are assigned.
District 1 receives Clayton, age fourteen as their male tribute and Jamie, age sixteen as their female tribute. District 2 receives Nathaniel, age fifteen as their male tribute. It makes sense that the kid who has had training with a knife would go to a career District. His female partner is named Erin, age twelve. District 3 receives Jason, age twelve, and Allison age sixteen. I watch as Jason almost has to be ripped from his sister's arm when they don't call her as his fellow District partner. Autumn has her eyes trained on Allison for the entire rest of the time glaring her down, daring her to lay a finger on Jason.
District 4 receives Kurt, age sixteen, and Autumn, age seventeen. Even as she walks to District 4's Capitol escort, her eyes never leave Allison. Haymitch had told me not to count on getting the two tributes I'd wanted; both go to Career Districts. I think of poor Annie having to mentor these two on her own. Pregnant, insane, lost, lonely, who knows what watching this is doing further to her. I make a mental note that when this is over I want to go to 4 for the purpose of getting to know Annie. I feel like I owe Finnick that much.
District 5 receives Lance, age fifteen, and Hillary, age thirteen. District 6 receives Ross, age sixteen, and Mallory age seventeen. District 7 receives Max, age fourteen, and Marcy age sixteen. So far, there are seven Districts and fourteen tributes down leaving only five Districts and ten tributes. Out of the six tributes I knew, only three of them have been picked. Lisa is still patiently waiting to be assigned a District. I'm sincerely hoping it isn't 12.
District 8 receives Ted, age fourteen, and Jennifer, age thirteen. District 9 receives Nelson, age sixteen, and Saundra age fourteen. District 10 receives Allen, age seventeen, and Annabelle, age thirteen. That still leaves the other three that I knew before, Collin, Olive, and Lisa Snow. The odds are not in my favor.
District 11 receives Rod, age fifteen, and Olive, age fifteen. I throw my pencil in the air and walk out of the house at this. Collin, age thirteen, and Lisa Snow, age sixteen were assigned District 12.
"I'm not doing this," I yell as I make my way out the door.
"You are too," Haymitch yells back. I know Peeta wants to follow me, but I also know he will finish watching the screen so that he at least doesn't miss anything. I walk around to the primrose bushes and sit down in front of them. Months ago I couldn't stand them because they reminded me of my sister. A week ago I ran away from them because I'd found Buttercup in them. He'd been mauled by some animal bigger than he was and got caught and died in these bushes. He found as much comfort in the bushes as I did. They reminded him of her as much as they reminded me. Tonight, these bushes keep me from losing my temper or my head.
The last of the sun is fading behind me, but its warmth still lingers on my back as I close my eyes. I try not to think about how tomorrow I will officially be meeting Lisa Snow. I try not to wonder if she hates me because I am, or was, the Mockingjay that destroyed her beautiful home. At least I assassinated Coin instead of Snow. He may have been more on my side than Coin ever was. I'm still glad he's dead either way.
A hand touches my shoulder and I flinch, but I stay calm because I know the feel of the hand. It's only Peeta. He sits down beside me and the rests his head on my shoulder.
"It's going to be okay Katniss," he says, "I love you." I lean my head against his. My ear becomes warm against the top of his head as we sit there together with our eyes closed soaking up the last of the sunshine and enjoying each other's company.
"Come on you two, dinner's ready," Greasy Sae says softly to us after we've been out here for a while. I'm not sure how much time has passed, but enough that it is fairly dark out. My thoughts wander to tomorrow as much as I try to divert them. Tomorrow is going to be one of the longest days of my life.
AUTHORS NOTE: 3/28/13
This story has been edited and re-uploaded. No promises on when the next chapter will come around. I only changed things like the verb tenses where they needed to be fixed and took out a few words here and there. No major changes that will require you to go back and re read anything :) (Unless you want to...) :)