Katniss POV
I guess there is no hope for district 12 this year, my tributes are two townies that never even held a weapon in their lives and after talking to them on the train the also don't have any special skills, wait, let me rephrase that.
They have nothing.
They have no skills in fighting, no people skills seeing as they still treat me like trash and no intelligence to even hold a proper conversation. They're completely and utterly screwed and no matter how many sponsors I get them, they'll never make it out of it alive.
I'm being harsh but it's the truth.
I'm discussing this with Johanna and Finnick and from a different point of view it looks like I'm being an idiot by telling the mentors of my tributes enemies their faults but we are all friends and they are doing the same.
"God, my tributes are complete asses. They spent the whole trip saying how they can work an axe. I know, okay? We all know how to work an axe, we're from the lumber district but when I told them that they just got pissy and went to bed. Idiots."
"You done Jo?" Finnick is grinning at her and of course Johanna can't back down.
"Oh look who's talking! You got wimps this year too!"
"Hey, don't talk about my tributes like that!"
"Oh please, you know it's true."
"Yeah but you don't actually have to say it."
"What are you scared of? That brainless is going to tell her tributes to kill yours? Hers are even worse."
I deflate a bit at that and just agree to what Jo said.
"She's right, my tributes can't even hold a weapon."
"Katniss, it'll be better next year."
"No, it won't. I'm sick and tired of sending kids to their deaths!"
Jo is stepping a bit closer to me and when she speaks is a bit quieter than usual. "We're all sick of it brainless but it's something we have to deal with because if you give up you will be just sending kids to their deaths."
"But this year it doesn't even matter if I could find them a hundred sponsors they'll still lose. I'll still try of course but I just think it's a wasted effort."
Finnick is looking at me with his green eyes filled with pain and I can't look at him anymore, I turn away to see that the parade as started so I warn both of them.
"Look, it started."
They start chatting beside but I don't pay them any mind because I'm busy looking at something else. Someone else.
The district 2 tribute didn't even wave to the crowd just stared right at me and I couldn't look away and neither could he.
When the time came that Snow is nearly finishing is entirely too long speech I nod at the boy and leave so that I can meet my tributes when the get out of the chariots and when I get there they are acting like total morons complaining, loudly I might add, that the costumes were itchy.
"Oh shut up the both of you!"
"Did you just tell us to shut up slum rat?"
"I am your mentor and you will respect me. Who are you to call me a slum rat when you are so clearly an idiot? You are no one and you will die that way if you continue this. Now, I can help you but one more word like that and I'll make sure no help comes for you two either way. Understood?"
They look down clearly embarrassed that I just humiliated them in front of the other tributes and mentors but I will not allow them to disrespect me.
"Understood?"
"Yes."
"Good."
I look up front their faces to see the district 2 boy looking at me with a smirk on his face and a raised eyebrow.
I raise my own eyebrow and tell my tributes we should leave and as we are get in the elevator I look over and see him still staring at me so I give one of my smirks as the elevator door closes.
Cato POV
She was looking right at me and when she nodded and disappeared I thought that it was it, I'd had my moment in the spotlight but then she came to meet her tributes that were complaining about their outfits. Morons.
Watching her teach her tributes a lesson about respect I couldn't help but smirk, she's just how I pictured her to be, yet, nothing alike.
The fire I thought she had is nothing compared to the real thing, even in a subdued form I can feel her strength, and to think she is still sixteen is bewildering.
Brutus and Enobaria take me and Syrina to the District 2 living quarters and as soon as I get there I go straight for my room taking off my gladiator outfit and getting in the shower letting the water wash everything away.
It's over far too soon and it didn't wash everything away, I kept thinking about my, I don't even know how to call it, let's say encounter with Katniss. That was probably all I was going to get but I couldn't help but hope.
I dress myself in sweatpants and a light blue t-shirt that I was told compliments my eyes, and go into the dining room to find that everyone is already there waiting for me.
Syrina hissed at me. "Took you long enough." Someone must be hungry.
"Yeah well I'm here now."
Dinner is passed with few words exchanged and I'm glad for that, gives me time to think. I wish I could go clear my head someplace. I need fresh air. Then I remember the roof button in the elevator.
That night I wait for everyone to fall asleep before I sneak out. The elevator, unlike the ones back home, makes no noise whatsoever except for a slight buzzing and as soon as I know it I've passed all the floors and the door opens.
A gust of fresh air assaults me as I get there and I feel good, not nearly as trapped as I felt in my living quarters but I notice someone is also there on the ledge of the building, must not have heard me coming because the elevator is so quiet.
As I take a few steps closer I can tell who it is and for a moment I've never felt so lucky.
"Don't jump."
She turns around to face me head on and for a moment I'm stunned by her beauty, I've never seen her this close but now, now I can even count the flecks of gold and brown in her eyes that are staring at me with confusion.
Even without make-up and the dresses and everything else she is beautiful.
"District 2?"
"Cato."
"I know your name." That I got to admit shocks me a bit.
"You do?"
"Of course. My tributes might be idiots but I'm not. I watched the replays of the reapings all over the districts, saw you volunteer for that twelve year-old boy."
"I was meant to volunteer anyway."
"The only real threats in these games is you and the boy from 11, Thresh."
"I know, he's huge and seems to be good with a weapon."
"How do you know he's good with a weapon?"
"By his hands. They have calluses from working with a weapon for a long time, one would think he's adept at it."
"Very well. If only my tributes were nearly as thorough." She looks impressed and I'm feeling pretty good about it.
"I've been training for a very long time."
"That is true. At what age do they place children in the Academy?"
Throughout our conversation we both had sat down in the ledge looking at the dark sky were you could see little to no stars.
"Eight."
"Oh, I didn't know they'd be that young."
"Some even younger if their parents don't really like them and send them there the first change they get."
We sit in a comfortable silence for awhile and all that is running through my head is:
1.I'm on a rooftop alone with Katniss Everdeen;
2.I just told her about things in the Academy;
3.I don't want to leave.
"There are no stars here."
"It's because of the lights. They're too bright and too many so you can't really see any stars. In district 12 the sky is full of them, I can even see the constellations."
"It must be beautiful."
"It is." A small smile is on her lips and I feel the urge to kiss her.
Suddenly she's looking right at me and says. "You know, even if you wanted to you couldn't do it."
For a moment I'm scared that instead of a thought I'd actually said something or scared that she might know what I'm thinking just by looking at me but she must have seen the confusion in my eyes and points to nowhere in front of us.
"Jump. The first thing you said was 'don't jump' but even I you wanted to you couldn't. Well you could but you'd bounce right back. See?"
She picks up a pebble and throws it at thin air but it hits something and goes flying somewhere to our left.
"The force field was put in when a tribute killed himself before the games began. They were scared that something like that could happen again so they put the force field."
"How'd you know?"
"My mentor told me my first year after the games when he found me up here."
I feel curious about her, her life, everything. Watching her from a screen equals nothing in real life and curiosity is swallowing me whole.
"Tell me about you."
"What?" She looks shocked as if no one has ever spoken these words to her.
"Tell me about yourself."
"And pray tell why."
"Because I want to know. All these years hearing about the great Girl on Fire and I doubt many people truly know you."
She gives a little laugh and looks at me with a smile playing on her lips.
"You're not the typical Career are you?"
"Afraid not."
"Ok, then let's make a deal. You tell me about yourself and I tell you about myself."
"Deal."
"You're not worried about how I may plot behind your back with all the information you'll give me?"
I look at her then and see complete and utter seriousness so I say with all belief in the world. "I may not know much about you but I do know you are a good person and would never do such a thing."
She smirks and nods at me to start telling my story.
And so the night begins.
A/N: Here's the second chapter of Serendipity. Hope you liked it! I know the whole thing of them meeting on the roof is cliché and all but I just had to :)
I don't know when I'll be able to update again because I'm going to do some volunteer work but I'll try to get you guys another chapter on Saturday or Sunday.
If you want something to read in the meanwhile visit my other story The Divison. It's also Catoniss.
I also wanted to thank everyone who read, followed and favourited this fic. A special thanks to my two reviewers HeyoMyFellowReaders101 and Julie-Anna12.
Read & Review my darlings!