25: Victory Interviews
Gale POV
Portia has spent all morning fussing over my hair. I must admit, now dressed in my suit with my hair dyed in fiery colours, I look pretty good. Portia did a good job with my hair- it doesn't look too ridiculous and obvious, more undertones. My leg is recovering, even without painkillers it isn't too hard to walk now.
Katniss sits opposite to me in a waiting room. She looks truly beautiful, her dress seems like a reflection of her character. Fiery, but also gentle and loving sometimes. The soft, candlelight glow is not so flashy as the other dresses, this dress is here to make her look pretty, not to help her make an impression. Not to say that she didn't look pretty in the other outfits.
"What are we going to say?" Katniss mutters to me.
"We'll say the truth. That we couldn't bare to be parted. Then we can just answer their questions," I reply. Both of us leave out mentioning the rebellion aspect of it, that part of us just wanted to spite the Capitol. This room is probably being watched and I don't really want to bring it up now.
A head pops around the door. It looks around for a second, then Haymitch enters. "You're alone," he says, and Katniss and I nod to confirm it. "Good. Have you thought about what you're going to say for the interviews?" he asks us.
"That we loved each other so much that we didn't want to live without the other," I reply. "And then answer their questions. Is there anything wrong with that angle?"
Haymitch pauses. "No," he responds. "No, that's what I came in here to ask you to do. That's the angle that everyone wants you to play up. To keep you safe," he adds. Katniss and I both know what he means. Our actions may have been for love, but they were also for rebellion. Quite a large part for rebellion. If Snow catches on that we are dangerous and stirring up rebellion, he will kill us.
"We understand," Katniss says. "Was there anything else?"
"No," Haymitch says. "That's it." He leaves the room. A few seconds later, I hear Caesar Flickerman call out our names to the crowds, our cue to go onstage. I grasp Katniss's hand in mine and we walk up on stage, hearing the crowds yell our names. There are more people than usually turn up to a victory interview, we are popular.
Katniss and I sit next to Caesar Flickerman. He is still in his blue phase, blue hair, skin, eyes and clothes. Capitol freak- but one who'll help us greatly.
"So, Katniss and Gale, the star crossed lovers of District 12," he greets us. "We've all been watching you with bated breath. Can you answer a few questions that we've all been curious about."
"Of course," I force out, hoping I look natural.
"Well we've all been wondering- what made you take out the cyanide?" he asks. Straight in to the main question.
"I just love him so much that I couldn't even comprehend a world without him," Katniss says. Cheesy, but it's what the Capitol want. I can comprehend a world without Katniss- I just don't want to live in one. I value Katniss's life above my own. "So I wanted to die and let him live."
"But I couldn't let Katniss die for me," I continue. "So I tried to commit suicide and let her win. That was my purpose in coming to the Games."
"I know Gale well enough to know that he wouldn't back down on this. I suggested that we take it together so that neither of us had to live without the other," Katniss says.
"And it worked," I finish. "Only much differently than I expected. Thank you," I say. "Thank you to all of you who sponsored us and wanted us to survive. We couldn't have made it without you." We couldn't have made it in here without you either, I add in my head. I hate playing up to the Capitol audiences.
"So who have you got waiting for you at home?" Caesar asks us.
"I have my sister Prim and my mother," Katniss replies. "Prim- if you're watching this, I'll be back soon," she addresses the cameras.
"My brother Rory and my sister Posy and my mum," I respond. "I've missed them more than anything in these Games."
"Well I'm sure they'll be glad to know that," Caesar tells us. "We interviewed your families a few days ago and they feel exactly the same way," he says. That doesn't surprise me much, every year when they're down to the last few tributes they interview the remaining tribute's families. I know that mum and Rory and Posy are smart enough not to say anything that would make us seem like criminals or rebels.
The interview goes on for another fifteen minutes or so with Caesar asking questions about main parts of the Games and the fire outfits and Aravis. We answer most of these honestly as there is no need to lie. None of these have implications of starting a rebellion. When it comes to Aravis I say that she was a smart, loyal and kind girl who didn't deserve to die the way she did. There was a chorus of awwws across the audience. If they cared so much, I think in disgust, they could have at least sponsored her.
After the interview, I walk back to the tribute rooms with Katniss to change out of our outfits and to wash the dye out of my hair. I change into some plain, black clothes and Katniss changes into the training clothes that she wore because their was nothing in her wardrobe which was plain or comfortable.
"We should go for a walk," Katniss says after a few minutes of sitting down. "See what's in the rest of the buildings- we've hardly seen anything of the Capitol yet." I realise that she is right, the only places that we've seen are our rooms and the interviewing space. Oh, and the training room. Maybe we can go back there and train with weapons for a bit.
"OK," I reply. "How about the training room?" I suggest.
"Fine," Katniss says.
We head over to the training room. I'm surprised that I remember the way, but I can remember a lot of things that happened before we went into the Games clearly. We walk in silence, there's nothing much to say. Now all I really want is to get back to my family, back to Twelve.
I still don't feel comfortable around Katniss as we are still in the Capitol's eyes. Probably playing for them even more now because we have to mask any trace of hatred if we don't want to be killed for rebelling against the game makers. I'll be going back to 12 in a few days though, back to hunting and playing with Rory and eating my mum's game stew. Back home.
We reach the training room. The door is locked, but only by a bolt, so Katniss and I open it. To our surprise, the lights are all on. The dummies are still there and the stations and the game makers area. Then I notice and give a small gasp. The game maker's tables are all clear, except for one large bottle.
Even from this far away, I can recognise it. Cyanide.
Katniss has noticed to and is running up the stairs to the tables. I follow her and when we reach it, there is a bigger surprise. Sitting down, looking rather panicked, is Seneca Crane. He doesn't look good, he looks tired and his hair is unkempt. It takes me a minute to put two and two together.
Seneca Crane screwed up. There was only meant to be one Victor and he allowed two. Therefore President Snow needed to have him killed. And Snow is sadistic. Ironic murder- that Seneca Crane will be killed by committing suicide with cyanide, just the way that we were going to.
"Katniss Everdeen, Gale Hawthorne," he greets us.
"Seneca Crane," I reply warily.
"I should have let you do it," he says, laughing hollowly. "But I couldn't. I was sentimental- and I would have been killed either way. Well-played," he praises us.
"You were sentimental," Katniss says doubtfully, sarcastically even.
"I could have let you die," Seneca snaps at her.
"So why didn't you?" I ask curiously.
"They loved you," he replies. "Everyone loved it- the star-crossed lovers, the drama, the romance. I admit that I loved you too- you were my masterpiece, the Games that everybody would remember. I couldn't bring myself to just kill you off." I nod at his explanations.
"And now you're being killed for it," Katniss says.
Seneca nods. "Let me out," he says. "Let me go- I have enough money and contacts to start a completely new life," he says.
Part of me wants to cram the cyanide down his throat for what me did to me and Katniss, but part of me wants to let him go. As much as I hate to admit it, I am in this man's debt. And I hate letting a debt go unpaid. Katniss appears to be thinking the same things. I move aside almost at the same time as her.
"Go," she says. "Count this as our thanks for letting us both live."
I make a noise of agreement and Seneca looks up at us gratefully. "Thank you," he says. "Most tributes would have just let me die here." He's right about that, apart from the careers, only us and maybe Foxface and Rue would have let him live. He seems genuinely grateful though, not just that act that Capitol people seem to put up.
He leaves the room quite quickly, probably afraid that we'll change our minds. I walk up to the sword fighting station and pick up a sword like the one that I used in the Games. I swing powerfully at a dummy, releasing all of the confusion and frustration that I have felt over the past few weeks. I hit it again and again until it breaks in half, then I drop the sword.
I look around for Katniss and see her accurately impaling targets straight through the eyes with arrows. Not just at the archery station- all the dummies in the training room except for the one that I was hacking apart. Seems that she needed to get her frustration out too- not that I blame her. She's had to put through as much as I have in these Games.
I comfort myself with the thought that I'll be back home at District 12 with Rory and Posy and mum and Katniss by tomorrow. The Hunger Games are over.
xXx-X-xXx
Just one more chapter left now! Sorry that this update is a bit late, and thanks to all of you have have read this far and reviewed, favourited and followed (or intend to). Bye until the last chapter...
-MoonOfPluto