"After interest in the Games drops to an all time low, President Snow is determined to regain the once amazing popularity. Twelve tributes. One 'arena.' And one game-changing twist. Welcome to the 80th Hunger Games, the Rebirth."
~ The Rebirth Games ~
Chapter Twenty-Six:
Aftermath
All I can do is stare at him. He recounts on his whole experience as the killer one more time. I stop listening a while after but I still hear his voice faintly in the background of my mind. For once, I block him out and I sit in silence. Silence. That's it, isn't it? That's all I needed. Some silence. Maybe a little bit of peace and calmness. I never got that. Maybe for a few minutes I did, but I never got it fully. I was always scared or awaiting the next attack. Now I finally get to have some silence...
..Wrong.
"Danix," I hear his tender voice whisper. His hand gently strokes my arm. He's acting almost like a caring father to a newborn baby. "Danix, we have arrived." We walk down the silver ramp and out into the warm air, something difference for once. I had already expected snow and a blistering wind. Instead I get all that warmth that I needed. I can tell where we are from the view; the roof of the Tribute Center. Few clouds drift in the sky and are blocked out by the shiny sun blazing down on us. The rays of light cover the entire stretch of stone and cause a shadow to appear up ahead. I check to see who it belongs to and I'm not shocked at all. I expect that cheeky, grinning face - I get that - and I expect something bold to come from his mouth.. I get that.
"Of course there had to be two winners," he says, running his fingers through his slick greased hair. "They would never let a twin be crowned as the victor and let their twin brother die. The Capitol loves this family crap."
I refuse to say his name. I shall not say the Devil's name. I don't even have to ask Are to. He does it straight away.
"Finnick. Nice to see you again! That chat earlier today was a pleasure!"
That one sentence ticks me off immediately.
"Wait, what?" I gasp. "How did you two speak?"
Finnick crosses his arms and takes a big step forward. "Well, well.. Maybe it was when you were knocked unconscious after Tren blew herself up." I see her face. I hear her voice. She calls my name. I'm back in that village and she has that stupid box. She twists the key in the hole and I'm yelling. Screaming. Begging her not to open it. Maybe this is my chance to stop what's next. Maybe I can change the outcome of what happens. I reach her and when she turns her head around, I lock my hands around her throat. Because this is not her. No. Not at all.
"She didn't blow herself up!" I yell as I squeeze on his skin. Finnick claws at my hands in pain, his face glowing a faint red. He struggles in my grasp and manages to choke out a few words.
"Get.. off.."
I feel the back of my shirt pull back and I'm dragged off of him. Are tosses me silly like a doll onto the ground.
"Are you crazy?!"
"No!" I yell. "Not at all, but I know that he is!"
"You tried strangling me!"
Within seconds the Peacekeepers are rushing over to us. Two have got my arms behind my back and pulling me away while another pokes at Finnick's throat. "You're psycho!"
This is not Finnick. This is not the Finnick I know.. Well, hey, was there ever a Finnick that I knew? There was the regular Finnick, the one I saw on television. The Finnick that acted creepy all the time. The Finnick that loved to tease me with Maris and whatever secrets I had. And now this one. What should I call him? The idiot? The arrogant moron? The betrayer? I think all of the above.
I'm carried through a doorway, down a flight of steps and back into the all too familiar halls of the Tribute Center. I walk - half dragged - to my room and the Peacekeepers throw me inside. They slam the door shut and I find that I'm completely trapped once I try to open the door. It's locked. There's no point even trying to get it open. I slide down against the wall and slump myself onto the floor.
An hour passes and an odd woman arrives. She's dressed head to toe in pink cotton candy. I never get to see her face. She whips out her bag and clicks it open, unveiling a set of makeup.
"Don't go too crazy.." I say. "I don't want to stand out too much." She nods and smiles, not speaking a single word. I don't need to ask what she's doing or where I'm going. I already know. It's the victors' interview. They hold them every year straight after the Games end.
She gives me a plain black suit to wear and guides me out the door and into the elevator. We flash down a couple of floors in seconds. The doors slide open and we walk down a narrow hallway and through a small door. Inside, I'm greeted by two familiar faces among a crowd of strangers. Are and Finnick.
"Hey Danix," says Are slowly approaching me, showing off his black suit. Of course they'd give the twin brothers the same clothes. He wraps his arms around me and gives me a tight hug. "This is it. We've finally gotten out... You've done so good and I will love you like the brother that you are to me."
"Thanks."
"You two need to stand over there," says Finnick. He points across the room and I see the large metal plate over by the wall. "It's going to launch you up onto the stage."
I take deep breaths as my head begins to rapidly spin. The only sign of light is the gentle shimmer of glass around me. I see my face in reflections as I spin my body around. My feet tumble over one another as I see a faint light up ahead. I don't feel a huge gush of wind or the climate changing at all. Instead I feel the same. The plate stops and I take a look at my surroundings. I see dusty boxes, cobwebs, plush toys, baseball bats- there's nothing deadly or dangerous looking. I press my hands against the wall and realize that I'm in a much smaller place than I thought I was. About a square-meter large room and that's it. Then I see the golden door knob in front of me.
" Let the eightieth Hunger Games begin, and may the odds be ever in your favor! Ten, nine, eight..."
"Danix!" Are snaps, holding onto my arm in fear. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah.. Just a bit dizzy I guess.." I reply.
We walk over and step onto the circular disk. After Finnick gives a five second countdown, it slowly lifts up beneath our feet. Are latches onto my hand and turns to face me. "Good luck."
"You too," I say.
The plate comes to a stop and I'm blinded by the fierce lights. The might roar of the cheering crowd. The intensity of the heat in the gigantic auditorium. Are pulls my hand up and we both stretch our arms up in the air, followed by even louder screams.
"Ah ha! And here they are, your victors of the eightieth Hunger Games!" I know that voice. There's no way anyone wouldn't recognize him. "Danix Tides and Are Tulgrid!"
We walk across the expansive stage and over to the chairs where I see Caesar. Dressed in a sparkly blue suit and a bright purple pompadour. He looks ridiculous, as per usual. Don't get me started on the crystal teeth. He shakes my head and I sit down opposite him, Are taking a seat beside me.
"Well, well, well!" he chirps as he falls back in his chair. "What a surprise. Two victors!"
"It sure is good for us that there could be two victors. Otherwise things could have gotten sticky," I say. Suddenly, the entire crowd erupts into laughter. Caesar too. He presses his hand against his chest and gasps out every bit of his breath.
"Oh my goodness, Mr. Tides! Mr. Tides is just so cheeky! Ah ha!"
"It's true," interrupts Are, not smiling or laughing. "I would never have been able to kill my brother.. Not in a million years." The laughing stops and is replaced by a heart-felt 'aww' from the crowd.
"Indeed," says Caesar. "No one can have a greater bond than family. It's time to take a look at this year's highlights.."
A screen on the wall behind us glows to life, showing an image of Celia marching through the tunnels. The very next shot shows her coming up from the floor and stabbing Mara to death.
Are puts his hand on my shoulder. "You don't have to watch it if you don't want to.."
"I'm fine," I reply. "I'm not going to let her make me turn away. She's dead and she's still haunting me." The tape plays on for a few minutes showing stuff I've already experienced or heard about, but then something shocking happens. Something that I've never saw before... Celia never attacked Destiny in the basement and chased her out into the snow. Celia never killed her and Crazy. No, not at all.
Are did not just kill Obedience and say that Umbree forced him to do it. No. Instead of that, Are attacked Destiny down in that basement. Are blew up Obedience, but this time he looked like he enjoyed every second of it with that smile on his face. Are shot Crazy to death. And finally, Are blew up Destiny.
Author's Note:
Uh-oh... CLIFFHANGER!
Hello everyone! Welcome to Chapter Twenty-Six of The Rebirth Games: Aftermath! Oh my god.. It's getting quite dramatic in here. So we found out some new information. ARE KILLED OBEDIENCE, CRAZY AND DESTINY! OMG! WTF! You're probably thinking "But MockingClove! Are told Danix the whole story about how they died in the last chapter via flashback!" Umm... It's a flashback for a reason. There's a difference between hearing what someone said happened and actually SEEING what happened. ;)
I can finally tell you how many chapters are left: TWO! Yes, just two. I am aiming to have one released tomorrow and then the final one on Sunday! It's going to be sad because this is one of my favorite stories I have written so far, but I guess all good things must come to an end. :(
What do you think is going to finally happen?! What is up with Are? How will Danix feel? WHAT THE HECK IS UP WITH FINNICK?! I will tell you this: in the very next chapter, ALL remaining questions will be answered. Yes, the next chapter will bring up a few more questions to be answered in the final chapter, but any current questions that you have will be gone by the next chapter! Isn't that exciting to hear?! ;)
I've been planning this story for so long. CHAPTER 27. The chapter where everything finally comes together...
Stay tuned. ;))))
Thank you all so much for reading, byeeeeeee! :D