TW- mention of dubious consent. Also a bit of gore but it's not really bad or that graphic, at least I think.
TwistedVictorious- Thank you for reading and reviewing. We're getting close to the games that were at the start of the canon series so we'll see.
"Come back to my room."
Peeta shuffled uncomfortably, after what they had just done he really didn't want to look at Johanna in the eyes for the rest of his life. The worst thing was because Johanna was there the whole night was a loss because he didn't know if he could trust her. That meant he couldn't figure out if the man was someone who would change his loyalties for the right price.
"I don't think that's a good idea," he said, looking down at his shoes.
"Not for that, I think neither of us wants that. I'm not some creep going after young boys. All I'm saying is I heard a rumor that tonight they were going to force the finale. I thought you would like to watch it and not be alone. He is from your district after all. Dating your brother too?"
"How did you know that?"
"His interview, were you not paying attention?"
He really wasn't; Gale's interview was after Shay's, and he had been comforting her. He really couldn't let anyone find out about that, he would be killed on sight and everyone that helped.
"I barely know him."
"Doesn't he live in your house?"
"I don't really like to be there. Mostly I'm over at Haymitch's or…"
"Or what?" He wasn't about to tell her that he spends hours and hours days on end staring out into the forest, wondering if he ran would he make it to 13. He knew it was there, he knew they were protected just underground. Julius had save several of the people that he cared about that weren't lucky enough to be born in the Capital.
In the beginning he begged Peeta to go, fly off in one of the hovercrafts that Julius himself was sending out. But Peeta knew, just like Julius knew, no name Avoxes and pleasure workers wouldn't be missed by the Capital, just their families if they had any left. If Peeta up and disappeared and no body was found, anyone he had showed any familiarity would be killed. Morse. Katniss. Haymitch. Little Ivo. No way was he risking their lives to save his own.
"Nothing. Just nothing."
"Fine but come on. If you can't look at other victors you have to perform with all you'll be looking at is Chaff and Haymitch." Clearly she had been trying to get a laugh, he gave her a small smile. "Thankfully, most of the older victors have younger ones in their district so they don't come to the Capital much unless they're forced to and then they are more like paperweights."
"Paperweights?"
"Not really important but does have some use. I've got cake in my room."
Since winning he had been able to make any cake he wanted, there really was no appeal here.
"I don't want any."
"Trust me, you'll want this one."
Curiosity got the better of him. After losing the last piece of his naivete a few hours ago anything to take his mind off of it was better. He had dreamed Katniss would be his first, not like he ever thought that was actually going to happen, but it was still a dream. She never really seemed too interested in anyone, and that he could understand. After the mine disaster she was all her sister had. Their mom fell apart, and they all almost starved to death, but Katniss saved them because she was a fighter. If it had been her in the games, she would have won on her merit, not like him. But he prayed she would never be part of the games. What were the odds really? Him, his brother, Gale volunteering and Katniss getting picked. Not possible.
Both Gale and the boy from 11 were at the land bridge, both on opposite sides. The boy from 11 looked really bad.
"I wonder what we missed?" Peeta asked Johanna.
Before he went to see his newest 'fan' Gale had been in awful shape but 11 had been alright. Almost as if he willed it into being, Caeser came on the screen, that dumb fake smile on his face. Peeta had been around him more than he cared to and knew the man was all fake. He pretended he liked or loved the victors, sad about tributes but it was all lies. He got off on it as much as Snow did.
"In case you are just joining us, let's see what happened just an hour ago to Geo from District 11."
They watched as Geo, the boy from 11 pulled his empty water bottle out. He puts it to his mouth as though it's going to make the tiny droplets stave off his thirst. The screen splits and shows Gale on the other half, doing the same with his water bottle. It looked like both spotted a stream on their side. Both kneel down to the stream but that's were they stop doing the same things. Gale looks at the water for a moment with a curious expression on his face. Soon it's replaced by a scowl he aims at the sky, where he knew a camera was filming him most likely, then he gets up, puts his bottle back into his bag and continues to walk.
But on the other side Geo dips his bottle in. As soon as his hand and bottle met the water they both started to dissolve. It's horrifying and disgusting. Geo screams, falls back clutching his bloody stump where his hand used to be.
He stays there for a few minutes but then a small silver jar floats down to him, dropped off by the drone. Using his bloody stump, he holds it against his chest as his remaining hand struggles to open the jar. Finally, after a few moments it's open. Inside is a bluish-purple paste. There is a note, but the wind catches it, and it flies into the water, dissolving on contact too.
Hesitantly the boy puts two fingers in the paste and rubs it on his stump. The open wound starts to close, the bleeding stops. He struggles to stand up but is able to, putting the rest of the paste in his bag, he slings it over his shoulder and starts hobbling to the land bridge.
Caeser is back on screen. "As you can see both streams to be filled with some kind of acid. I wonder how our brilliant boy from 12 knew it was dangerous?"
"Easy, everything there is dangerous," Johanna said from beside Peeta.
They were sitting on her bed and eating the cake. Johanna had been right; he had never tasted anything as good as the cake before. The more he ate the more he wanted and now it was almost gone he wanted more food.
"I see you looking at the last piece, take it. I'll order some food."
"I don't know why I'm so hungry," he said.
"It's what they put in the cake. It makes everything better, at least for a while but it also makes you so hungry you could eat anything. I'll make sure an Avox helps you back to your room. With as much as you ate you'll be flying most of the night and hard."
He didn't get want she meant but shoved the last piece in his mouth. He could almost hear his mother saying bad little boys don't get cake, bad little boys don't get anything at all. But as fast as the thought came to him it left, just leaving a light feeling instead.
Looking back at the screen he saw they were back showing Gale and Geo just staring at each opposite sides. The land bridge was narrow, no more than a foot in width. Being that narrow it could fall as soon as one of them put any weight on it. Peeta was sure that wouldn't happen. They wanted a battle to the death, not one falling and the other winning for being too much of a coward to try it.
If he listened real closely Peeta could swear he could hear Gale's heartbeat. Thump-thump. Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
"What are you doing?" Johanna asked, he had forgotten for a moment she was there.
"What do you mean?"
"You keep saying thump, thump like some weirdo."
"Oh."
There was a scream and Peeta turned. He watched in horror because Geo's sword was sticking out of Gale's stomach. Gale was on the other side, meaning Peeta missed Gale walking over. It must have been how Geo with one hand and in serious pain was able to stick Gale. But Gale hadn't been the one to scream. That had been Geo, his wound had opened back up and was oozing black, congealed blood. Even though he couldn't smell it, Peeta could bet it was horrible. Gale fell back but with one last move kicked Geo into the chasm below. The cannon went off and Peeta wasn't sure who it was for because Gale looked pretty dead to him. But then Claudius Templesmith's voice rang out.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victor of the 73rd Hunger Games…Gale Hawthorne."
Before Claudius had even finished his announcement the hovercraft came in, pulling up Gale's too still body. Peeta hoped it wasn't too late, he liked Gale even when the man was grumpy.