Author's Note: Sorry for the wait everyone! Oh and I want to say sorry for hounding everyone for reviews last chapter! Where I live, we start the school year in February, so I was completely oblivious to everyone else in the world starting their year now.. silly me! I totally understand how busy it can be getting used to new schedules and classes.

Anyway, I'm going to stop talking now. Please review if you have time, but don't feel like I'm not going to continue if you don't. Without further ado, here's chapter eight!

Crowd of Two

Chapter Eight

Grey's POV

Thoughts of a possible rebellion disturb my thoughts as I take a shower in my room on the train, making it an unpleasant experience. Every time the train rocks, which is quite uncommon because the ride is so smooth, I press myself against the walls in the fear suddenly peacekeepers are going to barge in and arrest me in the middle of my shower. I eventually finish washing myself and when I get out of the cubicle I inspect my body in the mirror. The little cuts and scratches that were too insignificant to have been removed by the medical team back in the Capitol are beginning to fade and I no longer look like a mottled blanket with all the scars and swelling.

I'm interrupted by the sound of knocking and I can hear Cato calling me, asking to talk. I keep the door locked and ignore him, because I know that what he wants to talk about is just going to stress me out and I can't afford that right before I arrive in my home district. I think he knows that I'm ignoring him but rather than pointlessly losing his temper, he eventually gets sick of waiting and I hear the sound of footsteps as he makes a move to walk away. I begin to walk over to my cupboard, rummaging for something to wear to bed, when I hear a gruff voice call out to Cato on the other side of the door. It's not until they both move closer that I realise the mystery person is Brutus.

"What are you doing, boy? We aren't in the games now; you don't need to keep up this love story anymore. Do you know how much danger the two of you are putting us in?" I feel uncomfortable listening to this but since leaving the room by walking straight past them is completely out of the question, I instead resign myself to lying in bed.

"You don't know anything, old man." I hear Cato reply. Boy? Old man? I have to smirk at the endearing nicknames that Cato and his mentor share. There's a pause and an, "Oof" and I piece together that the tribute has tried to push away the mentor, earning a rough shove back.

"You think I want to be here keeping you alive? You think that I don't have anyone waiting for me back in 2, people that don't want to wait anymore? It's time to get over yourself and realise that the world doesn't just revolve around you." Cato doesn't reply and I hear heavy footsteps as Brutus disappears down the hall. I stand shell shocked on the other side of the door, having gotten up midway through the argument, and I would have sworn that even though there was no way I could have seen him, Cato looks towards my door for a few seconds before disappearing into his own room.

My sleep is relatively peaceful that night, as my brain was too busy sorting the information it had collected over the past few days to bother with nightmares. We get the announcement of our arrival in District Four straight after breakfast, and almost instantly I grab my bag and run to the door, my small procession of Capitol helpers rushing along behind me. As I jump on the balls of my feet, Cato pushes gently in front of me and peers out the window curiously as the train begins to slow down. Finnick is silently watching the whole ordeal from the couch, but although he looks calm I don't miss the way his hands are wringing nervously. Brutus has yet to make an appearance this morning, which surprises no one even though Finnick knows nothing about the argument that occurred between the mentor and his tribute the night before. Since Finnick didn't accompany us into District Two, I presume that Brutus won't be coming into my district either.

I turn towards Cato just as he rubs the back of his neck in anxiety and I slip my hand into his, causing him to start in surprise.

"You okay?" I murmur to him, and he vigorously nods in response.

"Of course, I'm fine. I've just never been to District 4 before so I don't know what to expect." His voice is gruff and I rub his hand with my thumb in lieu of saying anything. Any comment he has to try and persuade me that he's okay is interrupted by the sound of the train's engines shutting down so we stand in silence with our hands clasped as a tin voice with a Capitol accent announces our arrival in my hometown.

For a few seconds the carriage moves past an empty train platform, but then suddenly we pass a group of people I recognise, led by a certain dark haired boy.

"Titus!" As soon as I'm able to disembark from the train I shout for my friend, tearing along the concrete and leaping at full force into Titus' arms. Once we've recovered somewhat from our reunion he sets me on the ground and brushes a piece of blonde hair out of my eyes.

"I knew you would get out, I knew it." He whispers as he grins widely at me.

Titus had been there for me since I was a little kid, always making sure no one was too tough on his "little friend." Somehow I knew that I'd never be his little Grey anymore, I had seen too much of the world already while he had been forced to watch through a screen. I don't realise that there are tears streaming down my cheeks until Titus is telling me not to cry. I manage to smile and unattractively rub a fist across my eyes to clear away the tears, a movement that would possibly make Domitia faint. It's a good thing that she is currently greeting some of the more prestigious people of the district on the other side of the platform.

After a couple more seconds standing and simply smiling at each other, I hear Cato clear his throat from behind me and I quickly introduce him to everyone. Cato curtly offers his hand to Titus and greets the people standing beyond him but stays very solemn and quiet, a trait that doesn't fit with his normal personality. I decide that he must be a little tired and nervous and it's making him cranky so I make an effort to include him during the rest of the reunion. Terra has her hair up in pigtails, a style that must be the new Capitol trend, and she blinks so slowly at Cato that she just looks dim. Cato looks to the side uncomfortably, avoiding eye contact with the bouncy girl in front of him, but seems more in his element when one of the boys I knew from training taps him on the shoulder and asks for some advice about weapons. It relaxes him enough to temporarily forget about me while I go in a whirlwind motion trying to greet everybody else who has come to see our arrival.

At one point I feel a tap on my shoulder and turn to see Cato looking at me with wide, almost innocent eyes as he points towards the other end of the station. Finnick is embracing a young woman with ruffled brown hair and as we watch he tucks a piece of it behind her ear and grins. He whispers something to the woman that makes her giggle, the sound carrying over to us.

"That looks like Annie Cresta, a past victor," Cato whispers to me, "Who knew the 'Capitol playboy' has a love here?"

"Don't call him that." I growl, annoyed that he would refer to my mentor in such a way. Cato steps back, a look of shock crossing his face for a second before he puts his career wall back up and turns his back to me, resuming a conversation with someone else as I turn back to Titus.

After ten minutes or so we manage to escape the clutches of the crowd, but only after promising Terra that we will of course spend time with her and unhooking her arm from mine, and Titus whispering in my ear to meet him on the beach that night. Cato's nose crinkles slightly when he overhears our plan but he says nothing and I start to think that maybe he's feeling a bit more than fatigue and nerves. It's cemented when Titus gives me a bear hug as we walk away towards my house and Cato almost instantly wraps an arm around me and gives me a passionate kiss on the mouth, which causes a squeal from Terra's direction.

I take Cato's hand and begin to lead him towards my house by the beach. It's not far from the train station at all, a fact I only realise now that I use the train. I had thought that I would feel uncomfortable showing Cato where I grew up after seeing District 2 because his upbringing had been so posh where mine had been so… middle class, but he hasn't mentioned anything about the difference in social status since he arrived. Even our appearances are drastically different here, after persuading Cato to throw on a pair of shorts instead of his usual jeans or slacks he looks quite dashing in his casual outfit. Very district 4. I'm wearing a light sun frock that picks up the gold in both our hair colours and we fit into the township perfectly.

We walk as a content couple for a while, but I can feel Cato is holding something back from me and eventually my curiosity wins out and I have to say something.

"Are you jealous?" I blurt out suddenly, instantly regretting my choice of words when I see Cato tense.

"No." He growls sharply, the tone in his voice telling me to let it go. But I can't stop now and I almost want to apologise as I continue to hound him.

"I saw how you looked at Titus and I while we were talking. It is Titus, isn't it? I'm sorry if I hurt you Cato but-"

"No. Don't. You threw yourself at him while I was right there, which was fine, but did you stop to think about whether I was comfortable? No. I stood there on my own, in the middle of a district I'd never been to before, waiting for my supposed girlfriend to stop talking to some guy and maybe introduce me to someone. I stood there for a good few minutes just waiting. Seriously Grey?"

Although I know that my actions are going to escalate the situation, I step towards Cato angrily. Why doesn't he understand?

"What, so now I'm not allowed to have friends? I need your permission for everything? And I did introduce you, get a grip Cato!" He hisses and his eyes flash furiously. For a moment I'm afraid that he's going to slam me into a wall, there are plenty of buildings around, but instead he strides over to a nearby power pylon and rams his foot roughly into it. He doesn't even wince and I'm instantly at his side, rubbing his shoulder, my side of the argument completely forgotten.

But Cato hasn't forgotten and he shrugs violently away from me, walking quickly along the road. He nearly crashes into the girl standing in front of my door and I have to call out to make him pay attention. He stops at the front step and tilts his head sideways at the intruder, growling "Yes?"

"Oh, uh, I thought… I made you these!" I recognise the girl as Eunia, who had been there beside me in the crowd on reaping day. When I catch up to the two of them she is holding out a decorated basket out to Cato, and I can see the tips of golden cookies poking from the top.

"What, for me?" Cato asks in genuine surprise, tilting his head forward slightly to look into the basket. His anger completely fades away as he gets handed a sweet from Eunia, and he munches on it contentedly like a child as I approach the girl myself.

"Of course, when I found out about you and Grey coming home, I wanted to do something nice! I heard that they make these in District 2…" Her small voice fades away but she smiles when Cato compliments her baking, telling her that back in training he never got sweets because of his dieting restrictions.

I thank Eunia and she hands me the basket before skipping off to her own home down the road, wishing the two of us well without waiting for any more small talk. Cato's face follows the basket of cookies, a typical boy controlled by his stomach, and he grasps my hand while spooning another cookie into his mouth. I open the door and lead him inside the house. It's dark and I scramble with my hands to find the light switch for a few seconds.

"She was nice," Cato says cheerfully, "Is she a friend of yours?" I'm about to answer when someone else does it for me.

"I agree; she looks like a lovely girl. Very well behaved, and not a hint of rebelliousness in her at all. Pass me a cookie will you, Cato?" When the light illuminates the figure sitting on my couch, I begin to scream, dropping the basket on the floor. Cato grabs my arm and pulls me back behind him, protecting me from the man that started this whole mess. President Snow.