Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games.
Warning: Due to themes present in this chapter, this oneshot is one of the ones which make this fic rated T. It is not suitable for younger readers.
A/n: Quick update while my printer dies on me, stopping me from doing any EU law reading... Enjoy!
24) Johanna Mason – Mattress
Mattress I
The first mattress which Johanna slept on was not a mattress in the traditional sense – it lacked springs and was, basically, cloth with straw and more cloth stuffed into it. But her parents told her it was a mattress and she believed them for a long time.
It was uncomfortable and had to be refilled often. People stood on it. Bugs crawled on it.
It was Johanna's favourite mattress ever.
Mattress II
The second mattress she slept on was in the Training Centre, before her Games. Compared to her 'mattress' at home, this was a sleeper's heaven. Soft yet sturdy. Made with the finest material the Capitol could use. This was luxury.
Johanna had trouble sleeping on it. Not only was it not like home but no matter how comfortable something is, it can't override the feeling that you are going to die. She spent many hours lying on that mattress, tossing and turning, imagining all of the horrible things that could happen to her.
On the very last night, she just slept on the floor.
(Even during the Quarter Quell – it was, after all, the same mattress – she slept on the floor. Maybe it was just for tradition's sake)
Mattress III
Technically, the third mattress was the second mattress in what it was. The same standard, the same luxury. But it was in a different location and Johanna was using it in a different manner. In fact, she was first aware of it when she actually woke up from medication.
She could sleep on this mattress. Even though she had gotten used to the hard ground of the arena, she was too tired to simply flop over onto the floor. But on this mattress, she accepted medication to make her better and agreed to be the victor, which meant she approved everything the Capitol had done. The only good things about the mattress were that she had more than four hours sleep in a night and she never saw it again.
Mattress IV
Her mattress in the Victor's house was like the ones from the Capitol. But it was hers and she instantly felt more comfortable with it. She slept relatively well, albeit with nightmares. She got used to life as a victor. For a while, it was a contender for the title of 'favourite mattress'.
However, after the events of the fifth mattress, she told Snow that she would never go to the Capitol again for him. In retaliation, the Peacekeepers came to her house and shot her family in front of her. Then they pushed her onto her bed and raped her.
Johanna refused to enter the room after that.
Mattress V
She didn't, technically, sleep on this mattress although certain phrasing would imply otherwise. Nor was it her mattress.
About nine months after her victory, Snow told her there was a man in the Capitol who was interested in her. When she declined his interest, he told her that if she didn't go, he would kill her family. She went.
The man was about ten years older than her and seemed to know that she had to do exactly as he said. Afterwards, he lay, snoring, as Johanna stared at the softly furnished floor. The bed covers were stained with blood. Her insides felt numb.
The mattress itself was insignificant to everything that had happened but there was no doubt in Johanna's mind that she would never sleep on another one like it again.
Mattress VI
The sixth mattress was in the hospital in District 13. Her experiences of it were marred by morphine, morphine cravings and the constant fear of being tortured. Whenever she was on it, all she wanted was to move somewhere else.
In addition, after she failed the combat exam, the mattress became associated with failure. She was supposed to go to the Capitol and get revenge for everything they had done to her. Instead, she had to lie on that mattress and imagine how the mission was going.
And on top of that, it wasn't anywhere near as comfortable as mattresses two to five.
Mattress VII
This mattress was better than most of them. She used it at the end of training days and she could use it to talk to Katniss or simply to relax on. But she never felt healthy and she never stopped having nightmares on it. She knew it was a feeling which would probably never leave her.
In terms of comfort, it was better than mattress one. But in terms of feeling comfortable, it wasn't as good as mattress one or mattress eight. Overall, if she hadn't been so messed up when she slept on it, she probably would have grown to love it.
Mattress VIII
They gave her a house in District 7. She could have gotten some fancy job but all she wanted to do was go home. Not to the victor's house or her old dwelling. Just somewhere she could call her own. In response, they assigned her a house.
The mattress was slightly better than mattresses six and seven in terms of comfort. By now, she was used to sleeping anywhere. For many years, no one else was even in the house with her so she could enjoy the silence and when she did, eventually, find someone she loved enough to share her mattress with – someone who understood her reluctance to have any type of relationship – she still slept well.
Perhaps she didn't rank it as her favourite mattress because she never stopped having nightmares, something which had never happened on mattress one. And the only time she could remember ever being truly happy with no worries past the usual ones – the Hunger Games, feeding families etc – was when she slept on mattress one.
But it was a very, very close second.