Chapter 13
The first thing Katniss was aware of is the blinding lights and deafening roar of the crowd that was so great that it felt like the ground beneath her shook.
Katniss' eyes searched for Clove on the stage and her grey eyes soon met the career's dark ones. They ran to each other and in the blink of an eye they were in each other's loving embrace.
The crowd cheered as Clove kissed Katniss passionately, making Katniss feel like her body was responding to Clove's every move. For one moment, it was only them. No one else. It was hard for Katniss to tell where she ended and Clove began.
After at least a few minutes, Caesar Flickerman tapped Clove on the shoulder, signalling that the show must continue. Clove responded by shoving him away, growling slightly and then kissing Katniss yet again. The crowd loved this and went berserk.
Finally, Haymitch interrupted the couple (ignoring Clove's glaring) and gently but firmly gave them a good-natured shove towards the victor's chair. Although as there were two victors, the one chair was replaced by a small sofa, called a love seat by some.
Clove held Katniss' hand and led them both to the sofa. When they both sat down there was barely any space to move and no distance between the two of them.
Katniss knew this wasn't enough and so she kicked off her sandals and tucked her feet to the side. Katniss placed her head on Clove's chest and Clove wrapped an arm around Katniss protectively, stroking Katniss' arm with her thumb gently.
As Caesar made a few jokes and humoured the crowd, Katniss had time to take in Clove's appearance. What Haymitch said about victors working together seemed to be correct as Clove's stylist seemed to have gone along with the theme of young and in love.
Minimal make-up had been applied to her face. Just enough to enhance her features, not cover them. Her long onyx hair hung loose and curled into little ringlets around her eyes. She wore a simple but elegant white dress that went just below her knees and cream coloured shin length boots.
Clove looked healthy, happy and stunningly beautiful. Katniss gazed at Clove in awe and Clove looked at Katniss tenderly. Clove leaned in close and whispered into Katniss' ear: "You look beautiful Katniss."
"I'm nothing compared to you." Katniss nuzzled Clove's neck. The crowd let out a big 'Aww' and were silent as all attention (including the victors') was on Caesar now.
The lights dimmed and a screen flickered on with the Capitol emblem. Katniss suddenly felt unprepared, she didn't want to watch the other 22 tributes die again. Clove sensed Katniss' unease and squeezed her hand gently, saying without words: It'll be okay.
Normally, they focus on the deaths of tributes with the victor's reaction in the corner of the screen. The show lasts exactly three hours and condensing weeks into that time is obviously very difficult, so they only focus on the highlights.
There is a short break for everyone after that and then the victors have a discussion live with Caesar.
However, this year the Capitol seemed to be focusing on the relationship between Katniss and Clove. Katniss was glad as that meant there was less time to look at the deaths of the others.
The first half an hour focused on the pre-arena events such as the Reaping, the chariot ride, the training scores and the interviews. There was a horrible upbeat soundtrack playing as if this is all some joke, not that 22 teenagers have been brutally murdered. But Katniss kept a still face for the camera.
Then there was the bloodbath. The camera seemed to flit between the various tributes dying. But for the most part, it seemed to focus more on Clove and Katniss. There was a replay of Katniss fighting for the orange pack and Clove killing the poor boy. Then as Katniss ran away, Clove threw the knife into her pack.
Then it skips forward a bit to when the careers are right under Katniss' tree and Clove and Katniss lock eyes with each other for a second before Clove directs the pack away.
There were other scenes like when Clove gave Katniss water and instructions to the nearest stream and Katniss looking like a wounded puppy when she was left alone. Clove rested her chin on Katniss' head comfortingly.
Then Katniss saw that Clove had been trying her very hardest to keep the careers off of Katniss for as long as she was with them. She warned Katniss while she was climbing the tree to escape them, she stayed up all night just to watch her in the tree and she carried Katniss away to safety when she was stung by Trackerjackers or taking on Thresh and stitching up her arm.
Even when she was kidnapped by the careers she stood her ground and didn't break. Katniss seemed ruthless in comparison by cutting down nests, blowing up the career stockpile and running away from the wall of fire.
Katniss did have her moments. Katniss saved Clove from the careers after she blew up the pile and she shot and killed Cato before he killed Clove.
The footage went on for a little longer, but Katniss noticed they hadn't shown big events like the double suicide yet.
Caesar turned from the screen back to the victors in each other's arms. Now they had skimmed over the highlights, it was question time.
"So Katniss, now that this is all over, how are you fairing?" Caesar asked.
"Well um, pretty good. A little nervous."
Caesar waved his hand dismissively. "Don't be, nothing you say will be wrong." Oh if only that were true.
Caesar is great at his job, I'll give him that. Clove thought. He had the audience hanging on to his every word, he joked and teased, he teared up where appropriate. The interview started off as easy banter, not really requiring much of a response.
Katniss and Clove went along with it, Clove knew how uncomfortable Katniss was and took most of the pressure off of her by talking the most so Katniss only had to give short responses.
However, soon the questions asked needed full answers, "So Clove, we know that Katniss has loved you since you gave her water when she needed it, her reaction to you leaving her made that very clear. But your feelings for her developed over time. It was very exciting to watch. When did you know you loved her?" Caesar asked.
"Well..." Clove thought. "It's difficult to say when. I mean my feelings for Katniss began to develop in the training centre but it was clear to me when she kissed me for the first time."
"Just before the careers found you?" Caesar asked.
She nodded confidently. "Yes, then."
"You ran away though, and left Katniss quite worried. Why did you do that? Were you scared?"
Katniss looked up at Clove gently and Clove met her eyes with a warm smile. "I was confused. Why here? Why now? Of all places. I was terrified that one of us was going to die, so I ran away to clear my head and I made up my mind."
Clove looked at Katniss firmly and continued. "I was going to stay with you until the end. I wanted my time with you to count for something."
Katniss kissed Clove on the cheek. "I'm glad you took that chance." The audience sighed dreamily.
Caesar smiled kindly. "Well I think you are a very sweet couple." The audience cheered in agreement.
When they hushed again, Caesar spoke: "Katniss, one question that has been on everyone's mind is what about Peeta? Did you just not feel anything towards him?"
Clove visibly scowled. Katniss replied; "Peeta was a good guy but I guess we can't choose who we fall in love with. I just didn't feel the same way about him as he did with me, as simple as that."
"It would've helped if he wasn't such an asshole." Clove muttered, earning laughter from the audience.
"Are you referring to your argument in the cave?" Caesar asked Clove.
Clove scoffed. "We argued all the time when Katniss wasn't around, but yes. That was a big one."
The screen flickered on again and Katniss saw Peeta looking very angrily at Clove. "It's not nice in 12 compared to 2 where I'm sure you live like Kings and Queens." Peeta said bitterly.
Clove spoke: "Oh really? You do seem to be the expert at pretty much everything don't you? In district 2 we are well looked after, fed and trained but it's all part of a bigger picture. We are all bred to kill or die trying, it's a sickening cycle and I would have no part of it if I had the choice."
"I have no family or friends and I would love to live in somewhere like twelve, you seem so close there, like you'd know everyone by their first name. Like one big family." Clove said softly.
Peeta scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Exactly my point, you don't know anything about all the labour we all need to go through simply to survive."
"Yes, that's what I'm saying, I don't know. But I would love to find out." Clove said honestly.
"Even if two people managed to live through the Hunger Games, what makes you think Katniss would ever choose someone like you?" Peeta spat venomously.
Katniss was shocked. Peeta had never been that mean to anyone when she was around. She didn't know he was really like that.
"I don't blame Peeta though. He was obviously jealous. I think he was just unlucky." Clove said softly. "I mean, dough boy annoyed me sure, but he didn't deserve to die the way he did, cold and alone." Katniss turned to Clove, quite confused. Clove hated Peeta. She's happy he died... Unless she's just acting nice for the cameras. Clove winked at Katniss, confirming her actions.
Katniss shuddered as she remembered the nightmare crows with their evil red eyes and horrific call that chilled her down to the bone. She winced as she remembered Peeta and his broken, desecrated body, his empty eyes...
Clove squeezed her hand. "There was nothing we could've done Katniss, it wasn't your fault." Regardless, those images will haunt me for as long as I live.
Caesar looked forlorn. "Ah yes. Those crows were terrifying. Peeta wasn't the only one to have suffered a harrowing death though was he?"
The image on screen changed to Katniss holding Rue in her arms. This was the part Katniss was fearing. Clove kissed Katniss on the forehead and held her tightly as she fought to keep a straight face.
"She was such a sweet young girl. At least she had you with her until the end Katniss, she wasn't alone." Caesar said comfortingly.
Clove nodded. "He's right Katniss, you did all you could."
"When Rue was... Killed." Caesar said softly. "It was with one of Clove's knifes. So naturally you would assume that Clove killed her. How did you feel when you found out it wasn't her, but instead the girl you shot?"
"Relieved... I didn't know what to think when I ran back to the cave. I wasn't sure if you were just tricking me the whole time. I thought I'd lost you." Katniss said quietly to Clove.
Clove held Katniss' head in both her hands and kissed her. "I would never do that. I'm not going to leave you Katniss."
Katniss snuggled into Clove so that their heads were touching. There were some sighs of adoration from the audience.
There were a few more questions but they were mostly directed at Clove. Caesar left Katniss alone until he mentioned the suicide attempt.
"I know that this has been a very tiring experience for you both, but I've got to ask: Katniss, what was going through your mind when you stabbed yourself in the chest?"
Katniss felt Clove freeze. She pulled back and looked at Katniss' face in shock. "What?"
"No one told you?" Caesar asked Clove gently. Clove shook her head.
The screen changed again. Katniss knelt down next to Clove and held her head gently as Clove closed her eyes. Katniss started to panic, she was having trouble breathing, she looked like she had gone mad. Then her eyes found the knife.
She fumbled with it, then looked at it closely. She gripped it in her hands. The bit where Claudius Templesmith intervenes was cut and so was Katniss' cursing to Snow. Katniss plunged the knife into her stomach and fell backwards after looking at Clove one last time.
The screen went blank. Clove looked at Katniss sadly and frowned. "Why would you do that Katniss? I-"
Katniss cut Clove off. "Because I love you! I couldn't let you die without doing something! Life isn't worth living without you Clove! I just couldn't do it. I had to be with you one way or another."
Caesar turns to the audience. "And there you have it folks. These two victors clearly care for each other more than words can say, so they let their actions speak for them."
He turned to the two victors. "One last question, for both of you." He smiled. "What do you plan to do now?"
Katniss and Clove looked at each other and turned back to Caesar. "We're both going back to District 12. Clove has no family, so she can be part of mine." Katniss said. Clove nodded and hugged Katniss again.
"Congratulations to both of you. I wish you the best of luck. Let's hear it one more time for the victors of the 74th annual Hunger Games!"
The crowd roared loudly and Katniss and Clove bowed and smiled one last time. They both held each other's hand tightly as they went back under the stage together.
"Did I do okay?" Katniss asked Haymitch.
"Perfect." He answered.
Katniss headed back to her room to collect her belongings, although she soon realised that all she had was the Mockingjay pin Madge gave her.
Clove and Katniss were then driven through the Capitol in a vehicle with blacked out windows and soon enough they were on the train again, on their way home.
They all ate an enormous meal and watched a replay of the interview. Katniss washed all her make-up off and put her hair back in a braid. She was now plain old Katniss Everdeen.
She stepped back in the main carriage to notice Clove had done the same, both were in normal clothes and both looked like ordinary people, not victors.
Katniss hugged Clove tightly. "Oof... Finding it hard to... breathe." Katniss loosened her hold and smirked. "Sorry."
Clove kissed Katniss deeply. "I'm excited to meet your family." She frowned. "But what if they don't like me?"
Katniss snuggled into Clove. "That doesn't matter, we're gonna be living in the Victors' Village anyway. Besides, they don't know you like I do. I love you and I'm sure they'll love you too."
Clove still looked concerned. "I have an idea." Katniss took Clove's hand in hers and led her to Katniss' room on the train.
They sat on a plush leather sofa and Katniss snuggled into Clove. Clove relaxed into Katniss. "This is nice." Clove murmured softly. "Relaxing, we're safe."
"I think we earned this alone time, don't you?" Katniss asked.
"Definitely." Clove responded and nuzzled Katniss.
Katniss buried herself in the crook of Clove's neck and closed her eyes, listening to her steady breathing. For once she felt calm, collected and safe. She couldn't help but fall asleep in the young career's embrace.
When Katniss awoke, she found Clove's arms wrapped around her. Katniss sat up and saw Clove's head was gently tilted so that their heads touched.
The door opened and both Katniss and Clove bolted up, alert and ready for action. Effie appeared, looking apologetic.
"Sorry! I didn't mean to wake you. We've arrived in District 12 Katniss!" Effie beamed. "You must be so excited to see District 12 again!"
Katniss grinned. She thought she would never see her home again. Clove on the other hand, looked nervous and started to drum her thumb gently against her side in a steady beat.
Katniss took Clove's hand in her own and gently tugged at the career. "C'mon, it's gonna be okay." Katniss said gently.
Clove relented and together they walked out of the room and stepped off the train onto the platform. The smell of coal and sweat was abundant in the air and to Katniss was a familiar and welcome scent. Clove recoiled however and frowned as if this smell was displeasing or surprising.
Of course the two victors weren't alone. Outside the train gathered a mass of people all with hunched shoulders and swollen knuckles, many of whom have long since stopped trying to scrub the coal dust out of their broken nails and the lines of their sunken faces.
They were all blatantly unfed and Clove guessed that you could easily see their ribcages if they were exposed. They had dirt covered faces and discoloured and broken teeth, their cheeks were hollow and everyone had dark circles under their eyes.
Clove looked at the inhabitants of District 12 in horror and disbelief. How is this level of neglect possible? No one is like this in District 2, even the poorest families are healthier than this...
Katniss nudged Clove. "It's alright Clove, look."
Despite the people of 12's poor health, Clove saw that they were smiling and cheering Katniss' name. That's right. Clove thought. The winner of the Hunger Games gets a year's worth of food for everyone in their district. No one will be starving to death for quite some time in 12.
"Katniss!" The huntress turned around quickly, obviously recognising someone she knew. "Prim!" Katniss beamed at her younger sister as she ran to her. Katniss knelt down and gave the young girl a tight hug.
"I told you I'd win." Katniss whispered into Prim's blond hair.
"You were amazing. I knew you'd come back." Tears of joy began to fall from Prim's soft blue eyes. "I missed you."
"I missed you too... How about we go home little duck?" Katniss suggested.
"Without greeting your best friend first?" Katniss gently released Prim and stood up. Although, Prim still wouldn't leave Katniss' side as if fearing she'd vanish into thin air.
"Gale!" Clove clenched her fists tightly when Gale wrapped his arms around her. Clove noticed he shared Katniss' dark hair, olive skin and grey eyes. They could have been related, but there was something about his manner around Katniss that instantly seemed a bit off. Clove didn't like it one bit.
After a hug that lasted just a bit too long in Clove's opinion, Katniss pulled away with a happy grin. "It's so good to see you Gale."
"Likewise Catnip." He smiled warmly at Katniss and seemed to gaze into her eyes tenderly.
Clove coughed loudly.
Katniss remembered the career and backed away from Gale and slid an arm around Clove's waist and relaxed her head on Clove's shoulder. "Gale, this is-"
"Clove." He finished bluntly. Gale looked at Clove with cold eyes, ones full of jealousy and spite. Completely different to the doe eyes he was giving Katniss (which she seemed none the wiser to).
He stepped forward in front of Clove and held out a muscular and scarred hand, still shooting the career daggers with his eyes.
Clove took his hand and shook it. However, Gale gripped her hand tightly as if to convey the obvious anger he felt towards her.
Clove was more than happy to return the favour even though Gale was considerably taller than her (she was about 5'4 and he must have been over 6 feet) and soon enough, both of them attempted to crush each other's hand in a show of power while both maintained unblinking eye contact.
"Katniss!" Prim called. Both Gale and Clove looked at Katniss' adorable little sister and relaxed. They released their iron grips on each other.
"What is it Prim?" Katniss asked gently.
Prim's eyes quickly darted between Clove and Gale and then finally back to Katniss like she knew that if she didn't step in, there was most likely going to be a heated argument or maybe even a fight.
Prim tugged on Katniss' hand lightly. "We should go home. Mom's waiting for you." She smiled sweetly.
Fire Girl laughed. "Yeah and I guess Buttercup's missed having me as his personal scratching post too."
"Maybe if you didn't try to drown him he wouldn't hate you." Prim said as she guided Katniss off the platform, forcing Clove and Gale to follow behind them.
Prim and Katniss lead the way to a small wooden house with a brick foundation that seemed to sink into the muddy ground as if slowly being swallowed by the earth itself. The house's outside walls were whitewashed in cheap paint. At the front of the house were a few windows with curtains drawn, a closed door and old looking set of oak stairs. They creaked under the weight of anyone who stepped on them.
"Well maybe if he wasn't such a flea infested, hideous cat he wouldn't need a bath." Katniss responded.
"But he's actually really sweet." Prim pined.
Katniss scoffed. "Maybe to you. He hisses at me and leaves hairballs and dead mice in my clothes." Prim pushed open the door after ascending the groaning steps and the two sisters went inside.
Clove was happy to hang back for now. She loved to see how easily Katniss and Prim interacted with each other.
Gale however kept a close watch on Clove, like he expected her to just lose it and start attacking people randomly on the street. "What's your problem?" Clove asked.
Gale scowled. "You're a career, you don't belong here. For all I know you're just using Katniss so you could win. I don't trust you. Killing is all a career is good for."
Clove sighed. She was tired and she didn't want to deal with Gale's bullshit right now. "Whatever. You can think whatever you want of me, but that doesn't make it true." Clove walked inside the house and left Gale outside.
"Wow, that was a big sentence. Did Katniss teach you that?" Gale asked bitterly.
Clove didn't respond and instead went to find Katniss. In a house this small, she doubted it would take very long.
The young career heard a loud hiss coming from the kitchen. I bet that's Buttercup's reaction to Katniss coming home.
The kitchen had a couple of rotting cabinets higher up on the wall and a counter with small basin for a sink. The pipes attached to the sink were crooked and starting to rust. It was cramped as it was such a small room. There was the sweet smell of a collection of herbs and remedies most likely in the cabinets.
Sure enough, Katniss was having a glaring match with an rough looking cat. He had a mashed-in nose and half of one ear missing, with eyes the colour of squash and a muddy yellow coat.
The cat bared its teeth and its fur stood up on end. At the sound of Clove approaching, Buttercup's ear pricked up. Buttercup looked at Clove with interest and jumped off the counter and gracefully landed on all four paws.
He scampered towards Clove and sat before her feet, curious about this new arrival. Clove knelt down and stroked Buttercup's head gently. Buttercup's tail swished lazily and he purred as he rubbed his head against Clove's hand.
"Good kitty." Clove whispered as she scratched behind Buttercup's ear.
"Aw, he likes you Clove. See Katniss? He's a good cat at heart." Prim said.
Buttercup turned to Prim and meowed softly then placed a paw on Prim's foot. Prim picked up the cat and stroked him under his chin, smiling and hugging him.
"I can't believe it." Katniss spoke. "That cat hates everyone but Prim and apparently now you too."
"I like cats, there were a few in District 2. Maybe he knows that." Clove responded.
At that particular moment, a woman who looked strikingly like Prim (only older) entered the room with a basket of healing supplies. She had long blond hair tied back in a ponytail with a sliver of hair that had managed to escape and dangle before her sky blue eyes.
Mrs. Everdeen saw her daughters and Clove in the kitchen and froze. She dropped her basket, allowing the contents to spill across the floor and she ran to Katniss and pulled her into a loving hug.
Mrs. Everdeen spoke quietly, but the compassion and relief in her voice was clear. "I have my family again. You did so well Katniss, your father would have been proud."
Clove felt slightly uncomfortable and thought she had no part in such an intimate moment, so the career picked up Katniss' mother's basket and began to pick up the various herbs and salves, placing them in the back basket.
When Clove was done, she placed the items on the counter beside the sink. By this time, Katniss and her mother had finished speaking and Mrs. Everdeen turned to Clove.
"Mrs. Everdeen." Clove started nervously. "I-" Katniss' mother hugged Clove gently.
Clove was speechless and took a second to react. "Thank you for protecting my daughter." She said.
"It... It was nothing." Clove stammered. She wasn't used to being thanked much less being hugged.
Mrs. Everdeen broke away just as quickly. She looked at Clove with sympathy and care. "As far as I'm concerned, you're as much a part of this family as Prim or Katniss." She smiled and then turned and started rooting through the cabinets.
"Katniss... Why don't you show Clove around District 12? Lots of people can't wait to see the person who helped bring food to District 12 for a year. Many people are grateful. In the meantime, I'll start dinner."
"Can I come?" Prim asked eagerly.
"Actually Prim, I need your help here. But don't worry, you can spend time with Katniss after dinner." She seemed to have a glint in her eye, but she kept quiet.
"Alright, come on Clove." Katniss took Clove's hand in her own and lead her outside. Then Clove realised that Gale hadn't bothered to come in the house in the first place, he was gone and Clove didn't care where.
Katniss and Clove walked at a reasonable pace for some time until most buildings were out of sight and they stood before a tall metal fence that read: 'DANGER: HIGH VOLTAGE' The fence seemed to separate District 12 and a large forest.
Katniss looked around as if to make sure they weren't followed, then stopped with her ear facing the fence and then crawled through a small hole in the bottom of the fence, hidden by some bushes.
"Whoa hold on Katniss, be careful!" Clove stopped Katniss from crawling through.
Katniss looked confused, then laughed. "Don't worry, this fence has been broken for years. I go through here all the time."
Clove relaxed when she saw that Katniss had passed through unharmed and followed after her.
"Isn't it illegal to leave your District?" Clove asked.
Katniss raised her eyebrows. "Look who's talking two." She grinned. "We're almost there, let's go."
The couple were soon submerged in the sanctuary of the forest. They were finally alone, other than the wildlife of course. Clove found the soft rustling of leaves in the wind and the odd bird call soothing. She knew she was a hell of a lot safer here than the arena.
Katniss bent down and retrieved a bow and quiver, complete with arrows from a hollowed out log and slung it over her shoulder.
"It's also illegal to have weapons I know, but no one comes here. They're too afraid that they'll get attacked by bears. There are a few around here by the way, but they're normally deeper in so we're fine."
The career looked worried for a second, then her expression relaxed. Clove trusted that Katniss knew what she was talking about. "It seems like you come here a lot." Clove observed with her arms crossed over her chest.
"I take down game to sell at the Hob to survive, but I also come here to be alone. My Dad took me here as a kid, he made me this bow too and he taught me to hunt." Katniss inspected the bow and went silent as if saddened.
Clove frowned. "He seems like a good man. Like your mother said, I'm sure he'd be proud of you."
Katniss smiled and squeezed the career's hand. "Thank you, I'm sure you're right."
Clove finally addressed something that confused her. "Your mother took me living here a lot better than I thought she would."
"Well, you did put your life on the line multiple times to save me when you didn't need to and you did attempt suicide so I could win. You've proven to her how much you care about me."
"Also, my mother left her life as a merchant to live with my Dad in the Seam. She left a wealthy life behind to be with my Dad and she left her friends and family when she did. I think she can relate to our situation more than anyone else." Katniss finished.
Clove and Katniss found a break in the trees and now looked upon a large lake. Katniss guided Clove to a large tree overlooking the lake. This tree didn't seem any different to the others in the woods.
Katniss started to climb the tree and Clove watched as she disappeared into the tree's higher branches until she was hidden from sight.
Clove gripped the tree and carefully climbed up after her. Katniss was a lot more practiced than Clove and the career took a little longer just to be sure she didn't fall.
Strangely enough, midway up the tree trunk a rope ladder dropped down. It was short enough that it didn't touch the ground and it seemed to almost blend in with the bark of the tree. Clove climbed the ladder and found herself in a small treehouse.
Clove climbed through an open hatch to see Katniss looking at her excitedly.
"What is this place?" The career asked in awe.
"This is my treehouse. My Dad made it when I was very young. It's high enough in the tree and small enough that it's very hard to find unless you know it's there. The tree itself camouflages it. Not even Gale knows about this place, just me and you now."
Clove stood up and looked around as Katniss pulled up the rope ladder and closed the hatch.
The treehouse was very quaint and had a strong earthy smell. It was only really one compact room with a sleeping bag on the floor and pillows and blankets accompanying it. There was a rucksack left partly open that seemed to be full of berries and roots and there was a small lantern next to the backpack that wasn't lit.
There was a small window, through which the lake could be seen. There was a green certain that could be drawn across to hide the window from any onlookers.
"It's amazing. Your Dad was a genius." Clove said as she took in her surroundings.
Katniss watched Clove dotingly while she sat on the sleeping bag. Clove sat cross-legged next to the huntress on the soft material.
Clove kissed Katniss on the lips and rested her head on Katniss' shoulder. "Thank you for sharing this with me."
Katniss beamed at Clove and wrapped her arms around her. "Not a problem. I'm glad you like it."
Clove looked down at the floor, distracted. "I didn't realise how bad things were here. I don't have an issue living here but it's just a shock y'know?"
"I can imagine." Katniss said evenly. "In previous Hunger Games, when we see the families of the last 8 remaining tributes, we always see the houses of the careers. Their bathrooms alone are twice the size of my house and the pets there are better fed than the people here. I know it must be hard to adapt to, but it time I'm sure you will."
Katniss nuzzled Clove. "I'll take you to the Hob tomorrow and you can get a taste of District 12 life. It's gonna be busy with all the food being sent in from the Capitol."
"Sounds good." Clove responded, although the girl would not meet Katniss' eyes and instead buried her face in Katniss' hair.
"What if they hate me? All the hard working districts hate the career districts." Clove whined.
Katniss held Clove tightly and stroked her back. "Clove." She cooed. "It's all gonna be fine. Everyone in twelve knows that you helped me win. You're the reason I won and that means you're the reason no one is going to go hungry this year."
"They'll love you I'm sure." Katniss continued. "If they don't, then screw them. We're gonna live in the Victors' Village anyway."
Clove sat up and rested her head against Katniss'. She smiled. "Yeah, you're right Fire Girl. It's all going to be fine."
Katniss and Clove stayed up in the treehouse until the sun began to set. Katniss sat in between Clove's legs and traced the career's features with her fingers. She caressed Clove's cheek and brushed Clove's lips with her thumb.
Clove looked at Katniss with an incredible tenderness and the corners of her mouth upturned in a bashful smile. Clove kissed Katniss and ran a hand through her hair.
Katniss eventually pulled away and looked out of the window. "As much as I hate to say it Clove, we should head back."
"No..." Clove pined and swiped at Katniss playfully. "I don't wanna. I wanna stay here with you."
The huntress chuckled. "Clove... You don't wanna be late to your first dinner here right?"
Clove pouted. "No." She said sadly. The career stretched out languidly and yawned.
"Fine." Clove relented. "Let's go back before I come to my senses and change my mind." She grinned.
The two lovers climbed down to the ground and went back to Katniss' house hand in hand. Clove nudged Katniss and grinned devilishly. Katniss replied by kissing Clove on the forehead.
Clove looked at Katniss, the surrounding woods and the not so far off boundary of District 12 that was a faint outline in the distance.
She had found a home at long last. Who would have thought that when things looked the bleakest, there would be hope. No matter how slim its chances were at prevailing, when Clove looked at Katniss she knew she had made the right choice. She didn't regret a thing.
Author's Note:
And that's it. I hope you all enjoyed my fic. I would like to thank you all one last time for staying with me until the end.
Oh and in case any of you were wondering, Mrs. Everdeen wasn't at the train to greet Katniss purely for plot purposes, I'm not trying to make it seem like she doesn't care. It was just easier to write this way.
Just as a brief thought however, I have been thinking about carrying onto the other books and rewriting them just like I did here. So obviously a lot of things would be very different. I may even create my own arenas if I'm feeling particularly creative. Or I could just leave the story here and leave any future events to your own imagination. It's up to you guys, you're the ones reading it after all.
Please bare in mind that if I do decide to carry on into the other books it most likely won't be for quite some time. I'm working on some other things at the moment.
While I'm here, I wanna say a special thanks to District 1 Luxury, District 2 Masonry and District 7 Lumber for your constant support with my story. I wouldn't have finished it without you guys.
I guess I'll see you all later. Have a good one guys.