-Kat Valentine, Capitolite-
Boy it was a good thing she didn't get motion sick. Because they were not in a good spot on this train. Well, of course they weren't, they were train-jacking rebels. But still.
Kat looked between Jill, Waverly, and the boy that was with them. There was something pretty weird about the group drawing sticks to figure out who was going to escort the group on the train.
"Shortest stick is the lucky duck on a new big quest!"
"Well…" said Kat, biting her lip. "I mean, it's not that we aren't delightful, but… We do need more of your help. We have someone at our base in Thirteen that's looking for a way to get back to District Seven. He's… A weird… Nut."
"Gotta be Pocomoke." Hollis, or Three, laughs. "It's Pocomoke isn't it?"
"Ugh, not that asshole." Hayden – or Two - the boy that was with them now on the train was the first to start complaining about it. "Oh come on. I always have to deal with his ass! Someone else take a turn!"
"Oh I am so sorry," said Jill, reaching over to pat Two's head a few times. "From what I heard he's an absolute lunatic."
"Oh, he sure is," said Two.
"But he's a hot lunatic!" said Mere, or number One, and he quickly threw up his hands to start signing at them so they closed their eyes.
"I'm sorry. Did you just say… Hot?" Waverly started and Kat was comfortable enough with her from traveling with her from District Three to go ahead and just put a hand over her mouth.
"No. Don't listen to them. Just watch your little shows and do your…" What was it called? "…Simping."
"It's actually called stanning," Waverly tried to say into her hand, and Kat pulled it off with a sigh.
"Do not stan him," Two said right away, glaring at Waverly and pointing at her.
"Uh oh, there's only room for ONE bitch with a vibrant hair color in this boxcar," teased Lennox, number Five. "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
"Hot witch Mama would kick your ass," the first words from Nat, number Four and the youngest of the group.
"Shut the fuck up!" Two protested, but by now his face was bright red and he was starting to pout.
"I don't want to fight!" protested Waverly right away – a definite Mom friend, which it seemed like this group truly needed. They were a hot fucking mess.
"Man, I wanna stay here forever!" said Jill with a laugh because she was just loving this chaos.
"No you will not," said Kat. She was so close to getting everyone in one place and she was really trying because she hated them all being separated and possibly in danger. "We're going together and we need someone to take Pointer back home at his insistence. But we're not doing a whole hovercraft heist for his dumb ass."
"Oh, he's fucking dumb," said Two.
"You seem to know a lot about him," said Jill.
"Well yeah because they always make me deal with him!" said Two, throwing up his hands and fixing his purple hair. "That's why!"
"Oh please, don't let him act like the abused puppy," said Three, who just knew something the others didn't about him.
"I mean, I would be willing to do it," said One, finally opening their eyes when they were satisfied that they had ignored enough because they wanted to be part of the conversation. They were always the one that had mercy on him.
"No, we'll draw the stupid sticks," said Two, putting his hand over the line in Three's hand and bringing it down to pick. They moved the sticks when he reached and he grabbed it, pulling it up and of course, it was naught but a little niblet of a stick.
"Woo!" cheered Four and Five together. "Not our problem! Not our problem!"
"Oh, that's too bad," said Three, but they had an evil look on their face. "Guess you're going to get him, again."
"Yeah yeah, fuck you," said Two, going to get his stuff.
"Hey, but at least you get to take three beautiful girls with you and see District Thirteen!" tried One, putting a hand on his shoulder which he quickly shrugged off with a pout. "Then you just have to deal with him."
"Girls don't excite him," said Four, and even though they were younger, they still got a big hiss from Two in response.
"Alright, pack your bags, Two. And we'll go over the plan."
It was a good plan – at first the group almost seemed worried about how to get the girls close to Thirteen, but they had it figured out in almost no time at all. Now it was all a matter of execution. But for how whiny and confrontational Two seemed to be, he was knowledgeable and had gotten them on this final leg of their journey, to the northeastern outskirts of Twelve where it would be the safest route to walk on foot to the ruins. Much less populated than trying to get to the western side from Six, or even Three.
Now, how Hayden was going to get Pointer from Thirteen all the way across the country back to Seven? That was going to be quite the feat. But while it all blew Kat's mind, it seemed as easy as walking to the boxcar group, so she let them handle the expertise.
"So why did Three move the sticks for you?" asked Jill – Kat loved her, but the girl really didn't know when to shut up.
"Just let it be," Kat told her, sighing but that was just Jill. She was just like Stellan in that way. They were way more similar than Jill would ever admit - even though it made Stellan so proud.
"Aw, I wanna know too," said Waverly. "I mean, you're surrounded by girls, we're gonna wanna gossip."
"I don't need to gossip," said Two right away, turning his head as if that meant something.
"Awwww," said Waverly but he didn't even react to her. Kat squinted. It was as if he couldn't even hear them. Maybe he couldn't. There was a reason he was signing at One earlier.
"Let it go, ladies," said Kat. "Let's not anger the one who is helping us."
"You're talking about me, aren't you?!" Two didn't keep his head turned for long and whipped back around to face them. "And him?"
"Who, Pointer?" asked Jill, just giving the others a confused look. "What? No."
"I told them to let it go," Kat said, just a little louder, before she inhaled a whole bunch of coal dust and started coughing. She couldn't imagine riding in here with actual coal being transported from Twelve other places – but she supposed, Hayden would – and he barely seemed to mind it.
"Yeah, let it go," said Two, but he didn't seem to let it go as he was still crossing his arms.
"Well gee, I was just asking," said Jill, quick to play the innocent card and Kat just elbowed her to get her to shut up.
"Well, we appreciate your help. On both fronts. We know how Pointer can be – well, no we don't, never met the guy, but I've heard. Regardless, he's a great mind, and we need his help. So thank you for dealing with it, even if he sucks."
"Yeah he does suck," Two said right away. "He really sucks. Suck suck suck." But he was blushing a little bit. "I always deal with his ass so whatever, it's fine. Just doing my job I guess. Just wish I could fucking read in peace."
"Oh you're a nerd!" said Jill before Kat could stop her and Two immediately stuck his tongue out at her and flipped her off.
"I just like the banned books!" he said right away. "Gah."
"Yeah," said Kat, unable to even imagine the things in those books because she grew up so far removed from them. She never really did read but part of that was just… Well, there wasn't anything all that great to read out there where she lived. "Maybe if we ever get out of this mess you can recommend me some."
"You don't read," said Jill and Kat just put a hand over her mouth. Jill licked it, but Kat didn't care. They were sisters on the run and honestly, nothing disgusted Kat anymore.
"There are so many good ones," Two said, and it was the least defensive he had been all day.
"Oh, I like to read sometimes," Waverly added, trying to be helpful, and it seemed to work just a little bit.
"I e oi ta i o ead," Jill said into Kat's hand, but Kat didn't let her say the thought – whaever it was – out loud because honestly – not even when Jill tried to bite her hand. She'd definitely felt worse.
"Does Pointer like to read?" asked Waverly and Jill lit up and pointed to her, while Kat just groaned and defeatedly let her hand come off of Jill's mouth.
"I bet he does!" she said loudly, clapping her hands.
"Shhh," said Kat to both of them harshly, because if they made too much noise, their asses were grass.
"Yeah yeah," Two grumbled. "Of course he does. We've been to Eleven before to get some books."
"Oooooo," said Jill and Kat just sighed and stopped trying to control her because those two were just too much for her.
"Don't oo at me, I hate him!" said Two, crossing his arms again and closing his eyes to end the conversation.
"Thank God this is almost over," said Kat, because her responsibilities were almost at an end – at least, her responsibility for Jill's life. There was just one more leg of the trip.
The silence lasted until the brakes were screeching and the train was coming to a stop. Hayden knew exactly how to sneak out without detection – and even with Jill's total lack of physicality, they were all able to make the escape cleanly. Then it was just a hike. A long-ass hike, and of course Jill and Hayden were bitching the whole time. Waverly actually tried to comfort them – foolish girl – while Kat just kept moving, wanting this to be fucking over already.
But she remembered, of course, how could she forget… The end of the journey meant being back in Stellan's arms. And she had been waiting for-fucking ever it felt like to be back there. So she was sure to keep the breaks short and move with plenty of purpose, even when Waverly wanted to admire the nature. It became quickly clear that she was going to keep going without any one of them, especially towards the end of the trip.
It was clear to tell when they approached the District – overgrown rubble, few trees, and big slabs of age-old metal and concrete. Far different from what Kat had seen in her history books growing up, it felt… Almost calm, above the surface. Serene, and green. As if it was a long-forgotten memory. And for a long time, it was.
But somewhere, buried underneath the ivy, the dirt, and the rubble, was a tunnel. It was smaller than the tunnel where the hovercrafts flew into, and took them into a different section of the winding pathways and numerous compartments, but it was exactly what they needed. Kat could have cried when they got the door open, and as soon as she knew the others were all inside, she started running.
"I'm here," she said quietly, and when she saw nobody around, louder. "I'm here!"
She passed the room with drawings all over the walls, moving towards where there was more light. "We're here!" she said louder, and then she was yelling. "WE'RE HERE!"
"They're here!" when she heard Coda yell first, the tears really did start to flow from her eyes.
Kat almost barreled right into Camellia who was first to greet her, yelling out just a bit in surprise at suddenly stopping but just so excited to see them all again.
"Wow, you are disgusting," said Camellia.
"Oh I feel gross," said Kat, but it didn't stop her from getting a nice big hug from Malloy and followed by Jo.
"Welcome back. We all missed you."
"You too," she said, pulling back to squeeze his cheeks. "Your beard is growing so fast!"
"Don't remind me," said Jo, but she just chuckled and hugged Kat. "We've put out a summons for Stellan. And by that I mean we sent Maggie's new weirdoes from Eight on a mission to go find him."
"Maggie has weirdoes now? Oh well I have to meet them," said Kat, but she quickly went to Coda and pulled him in, wanting to get the children hugs done fast because while of course she loved them, she knew she was going to drop everything. "Were you good?"
"Oh please, I was great," said Coda with a scoff.
"Yeah right," said Tessa, more occupied with Jill but giving Kat a squeeze anyways before going off to introduce Jill to Lis.
"I want a hug from Kat too!" whined Freddy, butting in to get his turn.
"Hey!" said Jace, almost falling over.
"Sorry bro, forgot you're blind!" Freddy said as he was hugging Kat. "Kat help me, they are being too nice to the evil man."
"Alright alright, let me hug everyone and then I'll see what I can do," she told him because she absolutely had words for Bonnie. But first she had to let herself be happy.
"Let me in now!" Jace said. Even though they had seen each other in Three before parting ways, he was worried sick about her – and of course, about Trap.
"You okay?" Kat asked him quietly as they were hugging.
"No," said Jace, tearing up at just the question before steeling himself a little bit. "Hanging in there." He cringed a little hearing how loudly Tessa, Jill, and Vasilisa were already talking and laughing with each other.
"Oh, that's trouble," said Kat, watching Camellia try to also butt in to be a troublemaker. "We'll talk later," she promised him. There was a lot she wanted to know.
"Oh, hi Kat," said Lis when she looked over, but that was quickly moot as she could hear the footsteps and knew who they belonged to. Kat dropped absolutely everything and went running to him – she just had to, there was no way she could control herself. "Oh right, get it girl."
Kat didn't even care about the commentary from the peanut gallery – for once. Because fuck it, she was back in Stellan's embrace and she didn't even care how much she blushed and giggled like a schoolgirl in that moment, she was just too happy. "I missed you," she said, swallowing a lump in her throat.
"I missed you more."
"Wh- no you did not!" she protested right away.
"Yes I did."
"No you didn't!"
He was grinning even though she was getting fired up and pouting and just gave a very simple and fast,"Yes I did."
"Shut up, you're so dumb," she said, shaking her head in disbelief because not even two seconds and he was already back to driving her crazy. "I love you."
"Yeah, I love you more."
"Ugh, I love you the most, now stop that."
"I love you more than the most."
Kat let out something between a laugh and a small sob, now that she was back to her safety. "I hate you so much, Stellan," she said, but she couldn't picture a single universe where that was actually true… "You're so difficult."
"It's just because I love you," he said, giving her a smile before he just put his face in her hair. When he looked back up at everyone, he looked at least five years younger, like a ten ton weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. Even if just for a moment.
"I love you too," Kat said, closing her eyes and grabbing handfuls of the back of his shirt. "Let's not do that again."
"Agreed," said Stellan, finally relaxing enough to let go of her – just barely.
"I see I see, your sister is chopped liver," Jill said, blowing a raspberry with her tongue. "Kat fucking Valentine is in the room."
"I don't think you're chopped liver Jill," said Freddy, but Camellia was laughing, putting an arm around Malloy when Jill finally went over to hug Stellan – incredibly awkwardly since everyone was watching them.
"Boooo, I know you can hug better than that!" Camellia, but a fear of bad greeting hugs was suddenly growing deep within her.
"Stop looking at me!" whined Jill as Stellan squeezed her and lifted her up a little bit.
"I'm not looking at you Jill," said Jace, but after Kat talked to him like that it was a little tough to keep it together since it was so clear to him that something was missing.
"We all know you two love each other," Tessa said with a laugh as she gave Jace's arm a slight squeeze.
"Nobody has to know that!" said Jill, wiggling out of Stellan's arms who just laughed and went to Waverly who was anxiously awaiting a hug from him but she knew to let go quickly because it was obvious that he and Kat just wanted to be together.
"Well that's great and all, but I have one more message to pass on today for Trap," said Stellan.
"Not without me!" said Kat as she grabbed his arm.
"Oh yeah, me too," Camellia said, already starting to march back to his little control hub. "Let's go, I want to know what Champ is up to!"
"Sorry for her," said Jo to Waverly and Hayden, but Waverly just giggled about it and Hayden just had his arms crossed and shrugged. "Come in, we'll find you a compartment for the night."
"Wait! Did I miss Kat Valentine!?"
"Okay, Malloy will find you a compartment," Jo said, shaking her head and making haste with Camellia, just to avoid Pointer.
"Guess I will," Malloy sighed before turning to Pocomoke. "You just missed her."
"Oh-" he started, before he noticed the new additions – well, one of them. "It's you," he said, all thoughts of Kat Valentine washed away for a second as he went over to greet their travel companion.
"No, fuck you," said Two, but he didn't push him off when he gave him a hug.
"Bro, you got to meet Kat Valentine? I want to hear everything. Oh, and is that Wolf's sister? Oh wow. You're a lucky duck! Look I'll make you some tea!" He grabbed Two's sleeve and started dragging him away. "I got it from here, Todd!" he called loudly.
Malloy looked at them for a second, wondering if he should save the guy, but Waverly just giggled.
"Let it be."
Well, he wasn't going to get told twice. "Aight. Come with me then, I'll help you out."
Lis quickly followed with Tessa, both of them wanting to be included, talking about District Three, or how much they loved her hair.
Another piece of the family, back together.
Just one more to go.
~.~.
-Trap Principato, Rescued Tribute-
Push harder.
He looked around the tunnels, still a little bit worried about the… Things that lived deep in the darkness. Things that he only encountered once and… Fled from.
Fleeing. It was not the Principato way. No, the Principato way was to run faster, fight harder, never show mercy, don't relent.
No room for being a kid. Not even a toybox. Unless it was watching kids fighting to death in one.
Sure, it had been traumatic to him in a way, but it also brought him here. He wasn't going to stop. Sure, Boss had thrown in her towel – done her job and stayed home. Even Coach was done at this point, and ready for safety. But not Trap. He was never content with hiding and safety.
Despite all the ways he'd grown, he still failed to understand them in that way. Now was absolutely not the time to give up, it was the time to be out there helping people. And that was why he was here. On a complete and total whim.
But damn… The sewers were even more confusing than the first time. And this time, Trap was completely alone. Good. It was just better that way.
Trap stopped for just a moment, deep in his thoughts, and shook his head a few times. Was war just bringing this back out of him? Or was it truly who he was, and no amount of love would change it? He didn't know.
But he didn't have time to decide. He had to go back to that person that could just shut it all off. There was something to that mindset that had been engrained into him. There was something good about being able to turn it all off. Because now, that special skill was going to be used to help people, not hurt them. That was all he ever really wanted to do in the first place. It was something that those outer District kids just didn't comprehend.
…Those were his friends. No, he didn't think that in a derogatory way, it was just… Well, they were just fundamentally different. That was all. They understood that. He wasn't a bad person anymore…
He wasn't a bad person anymore.
But how could he ever be sure?
He sloshed through the shit water and shined his light around every few steps to make sure he wasn't being followed. It was just so easy to get lost and he had a sudden newfound respect for that nut Domino for being able to map this out so thoroughly. He didn't even know the full extent to which this whole system existed – then again, too busy training for the Games to really care where things went when he flushed them. Speaking of that, District One people really needed to cut it on the fucking eggs. It was fucking nasty.
Trap pulled the cloth mask a little more over his nose. It was to protect his identity just as much as it was for his sanity and safety down here. There was a certain… Power that came to being able to hide. He felt it when he got to be Theodore, and he felt it now. It put him in a different sense of mind. Helped him to focus on what needed to be done.
He was abruptly pulled from his thoughts. Was that… Breathing? The sound of a shoe on a ladder? Trap pointed his light up and didn't see anything immediately. Oh shit that could be from anywhere.
He heard a great sound of sliding and a crash, a heavy sewer cap being pulled into place, shut. Trap pulled up his gun. He sure as hell didn't intend to die here. But still… He kept walking.
Again. Breathing, ladder rungs. He shone his light all around. Still nothing yet.
Splash. Feet hitting the water. A fucking gag. A female gag.
Hey, that didn't mean anything yet. There were still some evil-ass women in his District that could kick his ass. Not even a full suit of armor could keep him from being killed.
He kept walking. Looking around slowly. And in the distance…
A silhouette.
He kept his gun at a ready position as he started to pick up the pace. Not walking anymore. He didn't know what he was running into but that never fucking stopped him before.
Footsteps in front of him got faster. Running away, not a hot pursuit. There was something deep in him, a primal prey drive, that kicked into action as he picked up the pace, despite the water.
Run faster.
Work harder.
Put those blocks away, throw those out Belladona. They're useless.
Fight.
Don't let it get away.
He hustled a little more. It was the one thing he could do so he wasn't going to fail.
But when he got closer, it was like that instinct disappeared in a flash of a second, and suddenly the gun went down, back in its holster.
"Wendy?"
It didn't slow her down. But the closer he got on her, the more he became sure.
"Hey!" he said loudly. There was no use in hiding anymore, so he took off the mask. For this… He had to show his face. "I'm not going to hurt you, it's- oh FUCKING CHRIST, SHIT IN MY MOUTH! I GOT SHIT! IN MY MOUTH!" He immediately gagged, clutching his stomach as he was seriously afraid he was going to throw up, that was the nastiest thing he'd ever lived through – and he saw Freddy Smith naked.
For some reason, of course, that made the sloshing and splashing go to a quick stop.
"BLEH!" Trap gagged, grabbing his stomach as he spit ten thousand times and it still wasn't going to be enough. "GEH!" He heard more footsteps – gentle ones now, not splashing fucking sewage away in a hot pursuit.
"Bruh, why would you take that off for even a second? While you're running?" Wendy shook her head a little bit, but her face softened when he looked up at her and she saw very familiar eyes, even in the dark. "It really is you."
"Smart decisions were never a strong suit. When he said I would eat shit because of it, I didn't think he meant literally."
"Don't worry, there's piss in there too, it builds immunity," Wendy said, punching him on the arm. "Good for your complexion."
Trap wretched again and coughed as he spit again. "Shut the fuck up, that was the worst thing I've ever experienced, and I was dead at one point."
"Huh," said Wendy, still a little bit… Not untrusting, because after that whole show there was no doubt in her mind that it was actually him. But just… Lost for words. She had so many questions deep within her but didn't have the nerve to ask a single one now that he was back in person. "A bit dramatic, don't you think?"
"I don't think so," Trap said, but he just went into a grin. He had no reason to be ashamed of his sharpened teeth around her, she was one that really understood. "You wanna eat shit if it's not so bad?"
"Oh I never said it's not so bad," Wendy said, shaking her head but she finally couldn't help the smile and laugh that came onto her face.
"Yeah that's what I thought," Trap said, shaking his head as he pulled up his Holo again, trying to figure out what was next. "I figured you might be coming back here. Trying to do something. I know because I guess that's why I'm here too."
Wendy shrugged a little bit. "Yeah," she said. "I've been doing what I can. But it's a little hard with nationwide fame. And I can't really bring a sword to a gunfight."
Trap noticed the sword on her back and leaned over to look a little better at it in the dark. "Guess not," he said. "Oh but she's a beauty."
"She's aight for a sword I stole," Wendy said, proud of herself because that was a dangerous mission but of course she was able to nab it. As soon as the sword was in her hands… Well, it was fucking game over.
"Well thankfully you've found someone that knows how to shoot a gun," Trap said, shaking his head. "What exactly were you trying to do?"
"I don't know," sighed Wendy, shaking her head a little bit. "I just couldn't go hide with the lovebirds in a bougie safehouse. I don't know if I agree with Basil, but at least he did something. I mean, nobody's heard a thing from him since he went to supposedly rat out the rebels that saved our lives so that's not really optimistic, is it?"
"It's completely a Career thing," Trap told her with a shrug of his own shoulders. "Guess it's just how we were raised."
"Guess so," sighed Wendy. "Shows how little they ever valued our lives, if not even we value them," she sighed a little bit.
Trap frowned and thought about that for a second. "Guess you're right," he said quietly. "I-I mean, no, this is brave. I just can't sit back."
"I mean…" Wendy sighed a little bit and shook her head. "I guess so. At the moment, I guess I would rather just be alive than brave. Maybe? Maybe if I had a Rory or a Chiwi of my own, I would have chosen what they did."
Trap frowned a little bit. "Well…" he said, thinking about that. "What do you mean?"
"Oh come on, you," Wendy said, punching him a little harder on the arm and knowing he could actually take it. "You're smart enough to know what I mean. If there was someone that really loved me like that, I wouldn't have even considered being so fucking reckless like this."
"Hey now," said Trap, shaking his head. "It's not reckless. It's heroic."
"Eating shit is heroic?" Wendy asked him, and Trap just looked away from her. "Look, I get it. But also, I think that I would have chosen differently if I got the chance. Actually chosen to value myself for once instead of trying in vain to help others. Hindsight is 20/20, right?"
Trap frowned a little. "I guess so," he said, but he was deeply troubled thinking about all of that.
Wendy looked at him for a moment. "Are you actually dating the pea?" she finally asked him.
"His name is Chief- I mean, Jace," said Trap quickly, and that was all the answer she needed.
"Why the fuck are you here then? I mean, seriously, I want to know. What do you think you are gonna do?" She stopped and pulled on his arm a little bit, and he just kept walking.
Trap rubbed his face a little bit. "I… I don't know, kid, I just… I'm not going to cower away there, alright? I'm going to use what I have to help people for once, and not hurt them."
"Totally fair," said Wendy, not wanting a fight and just putting her hands up. "And I get it, obviously, that's why I was just running away from some Peacekeepers." She sighed a little bit, taking a left when it came up. "And I got directions to a spot that'll take us closer to the gate, in a quieter part of the District. A safe meeting place where we can reconvene. Because apparently, there's shit down here – I mean, there's, like, mutts or something, I know there's actual shit."
Trap just nodded a little bit and let her lead for once, because he was just a little lost – and now he was definitely lost in thought. "Sure," he said.
"Oh," Wendy said, because with all the roughhousing and teasing, she'd never actually seen him get upset like this. That was… Unsettling, in a way. "I didn't mean to make you, like, feel sad."
"It's fine," said Trap, shaking his head. "Guess I just softened up since everything."
"Hey, that's not a bad thing," Wendy said. "You make your own choices, obviously," she added. "So if you can find fulfillment in all of this, that sure is brave. You know, I just think that there's also a bravery in knowing when it's time to put yourself first – whether that's because you're trying to love yourself like me, or… Because of someone else that loves you. Lucky bastard," she teased, trying to up his mood, but she just frowned a little bit.
"I… Yeah," Trap said, thinking about one person that did die bravely, and just left everyone else in shambles. The real reason he didn't want to face his family yet. "I guess I just don't want to go there yet." Coach was returning later that day, and once they were all together… They would finally have to face the facts together and Trap wasn't ready to tear himself apart with grief again.
"Why not?" Wendy asked. "I mean, I don't wanna pry."
Trap just shook his head. He felt like he could tell her anything. "They're waiting for me to come back so they can finally have a funeral for Numi," he confessed, looking down as the cloth mask absorbed some of his tears. "I guess I'm just not ready to open the wound up and let it bleed." He did everything to help him and it just felt like it wasn't enough.
Wendy frowned and put her hand on his shoulder gently, before they both shuddered at how unnatural that felt and she just punched it again awkwardly. "So then… I guess we both know what the brave thing to do would really be," she told him with a heavy sigh.
Trap sniffed just a little bit. She was right… "Yeah," he said quietly. "Can we try the hug thing?"
Wendy just laughed a little and opened her arms. "Sure," she said, and while it was just weird hugging him, she did like it. And she could tell that he needed it. "Think about it. Kid."
Trap laughed a little bit and shook his head, blinking the tears as he was too dirty to use anything to wipe them away as they kept walking. "Sure," he said, and he would. Because he wasn't sure he was ready to be that brave.
"Alright, just up ahead," Wendy said, pointing to a ladder. "I was lucky to trip over a little rebel group while I was there and they gave me this spot. So either we are going to be good or get sold out."
"Nice," said Trap, shaking his head a little bit. "I'll go first then."
"No-"
"I got the gun," he said, holding it up to keep her from protesting and jumping up to grab the ladder and pull himself up it to the sewer cap. Sure enough, when he pushed the cap up a little bit, it was lifted off by a couple of scrappy kids. "Aight, we're not dying yet," he said, but he was suddenly a lot more afraid of it than he was when he was alone. He climbed out and helped Wendy do the same.
"You made it," said a redhead who had a lighter in her hands and kept flicking it on and off as she talked.
"Oh," said the boy beside her – with a tremendous voice crack as he had to be puberty-aged. "So that's the knight of wands," he said, nodding a few times. "Alright, I get it, I get it." He had a deck of cards and shuffled it a few times.
"Don't let his ego get too big now, TowTow," Wendy said, ruffling his hair a little bit. "We made it. And this is Trap."
"Duh," said the redhead. "He got played by the girl from Twelve, hard to forget," she said mildly.
"Gee, thanks," said Trap. "Why is it always the gingers?"
"That's Whisper," said the boy, obviously more excited to meet a tribute from the dead. "And I'm Tower."
Trap thought about it for a moment. "Whisper. Tower. Hm." He pulled up the note that Mino made on his sewer map. "You're Domino's people."
"You know Mino?!" Tow asked right away, and as the girl pretended to not be interested, Whisper was leaning toward him.
"Unfortunately," Trap said, before clearing his throat. "I mean, of course. No wonder we all got together in the sewer then." Now he really had no reason to not go back to safety….
"He ate shit," Wendy said, grinning at the animated reaction it got from the other two.
"Stop-" Trap started before he got a buzz and reached over to push his earpiece back in a little bit. It had become like a part of him since he got separated from everyone. "Wait." They noticed the seriousness and all got quiet.
"Hey there Trap, where are you at?"
"By the border. I found Wendy by the way, oh, also Mino's people, conveniently. So what's up?"
"I'm supposed to tell you you'd better be careful – okay, hold on!" Stellan complained as Trap could faintly hear a collection of voices in the background. "Look, Kat just got back, sorry – anyways, I got one more job for you."
"One more job?" Trap asked, frowning a little bit and looking at the others. "Alright. But after this… I think I'm ready to come back." And have the funeral, and be with Chief…
"Oh?" Stellan asked, surprised by this. "Alright."
"So what's the sitch Cap?" Trap asked, looking at the group.
"I'm going with," Wendy said. "I'm not done quite yet."
"Alright, alright," said Stellan over the female voices still talking over him, giving a sigh about them being pushy before he lowered his voice a little bit.
"We need you to retrieve Viola Wallace from the Capitol-One border. Alive."
~.~.
-Jun Kozart, Ex-Capitol Agent-
He had been to a few Districts in the past, but never Eleven.
What a place. It was warm. It was sunny. It was… Quiet. Green. People lived like this? How? Jun couldn't imagine life without the hustle and bustle of the city. Here, there was nothing to distract from his own crushing mortality.
Oh, and the birds were nice, he guessed.
He wished he could find even a little bit of the childlike awe that lived in Lizzie's eyes as she looked at the blue sky, the few white fluffy clouds, and felt the breeze in her pigtails. How? How? She had been dragged around like crazy, how was she still… So… Happy? He wanted to know. How could someone be so tired, banged around from the car, exhausted from the hike, and still look around an absolute shithole of a District with such wide eyes? He just didn't understand.
"Wow," said Lizzie, still swinging her arms a little bit next to Jun. "Look at this place."
"Yeah," said Jun.
"The sun hurts," said Pri, holding his stomach and staring at the ground. Jun didn't want to bring him along for this, he really didn't. He never saw Pri at a single UV concert, and if he couldn't even handle that stress, there was no way he was gonna get through this. He did prove Jun wrong – much like Phil – but now that they were close to the end of their mission, he was quickly unraveling. "God." But to his credit, he still put one foot in front of the other.
"This heat is making me glow," said Lili. The "And not in the good way."
"What? No," said Lizzie, and even though the sweat was dripping down her face, the way she said it… Her fucking little voice… That voice just made him want to believe her.
"Oh please," Lili said with a small chuckle.
"You two little ladies look lost." It was a voice that was unexpected and immediately made something snap in Jun. He turned around, whipping out his gun and pointing it at the few guys – dirty, ragged cothes, little coin pouches on their sides, knives. Jun barely had the gun up for a second before the men in their pursuit let out a little scream and turned around with an apology, hightailing it the other way.
"Yeah," said Jun, tempted to fire even after they were running away, but… He couldn't. Not when someone's back was turned.
"Wow, thank you!" said Lili and Lizzie as they both giggled.
"Oh please ladies, it's just my job," said Jun, puffing out his chest a little as he turned around and letting out a surprised noise when they were talking to a girl that was absolutely ripped. Jun's mouth fell open a little bit as he lamely dropped his hands with the gun. Oh of fucking course.
"Cowabunga, man," said the buff chick, giving him a rocker sign. "Sup?"
"…Hi," said Jun with a sigh. He didn't expect to feel this emasculated today.
"That was so cool, she just had to walk over and they were running!" said Lizzie, but she just grinned even as Jun was pouting. "I mean, I'm sure they didn't wanna get shot either."
"That was wicked-" Lili started, but they all looked over to Pri, who was leaned over and vomiting on the ground.
"Oh nasty!" said Lizzie, jumping a little closer to Jun as Lili was the one that was compassionate enough to go rub his shoulder.
"You good?" she asked, and Pri took a few deep breaths and wiped his mouth a little bit.
"Yeah," he said, but it was obvious that the past few days of travel and no sleep had really done it to him. "I'm not contagious, it's a migraine."
"Migraines," Jun said. That explained a lot. "Aha."
"Yikes, that sucks," said the buff girl, and then she just threw Pri over her shoulder like he weighed nothing.
"Queen," said Lili quietly.
"Alright then," said Jun, glad that at least if he was being emasculated, Pri was being emasculated right along with him. "Awesome, let's go."
"Gee thanks," said Pri but it was tense due to the pain and the position he was in on her shoulder.
"Panya," she said as she walked. "And you'll meet my brother Inky. He's my best friend and if you make him cry you will regret it," she said holding up a fist with the arm that wasn't hoisting Pri.
"Oh yes ma'am," said Lili, and Jun just gave a thumbs up.
"We're here with some muttation files and we need your help," said Jun. "Also I could use something good to read."
"We're your one-stop shop then. By we I mean him, he's the brains. Obviously." Panya greeted a few people as the walked past.
"So… Like, no offense, but where in the hell are all the Peacekeepers around here?" asked Jun, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. But no, everyone they passed was just… Raggedy, poor, and yet… Hopeful, and good-natured.
"Pfft," said Panya. "That's a fucking joke. Nobody wants to be stationed here in the pits. Most of them spend their time being cruel in the orchards if anything. Good and bad I guess. We get to take matters into our own hands."
"Wow," said Lizzie, looking around a little bit and moving a little closer to Jun, taking his hand in both of hers and practically leaning into his side.
"That's quite an oversight, isn't it?" asked Lili.
"They can't get eyes on every inch of this place," Panya shrugged as she took a key to unlock the back door of the shoddy little house.
"Wow," said Lizzie as they went in. It was clean, but it was an organizational nightmare. And yet… She still had that awe-struck look in her eyes.
Jun looked around a little bit, anxious to see what kind of books there were – oh grandpa Deck would love hearing about these – and then at the scrawny man sitting at a desk with a light over a worn page, trying to restore the text.
"Hi," said Panya loudly, and the man jumped up and turned around to face them with a hand on his chest.
"You always scare me," he said, before looking at the lot of them. "Hi there folks. I'm Inkalamu, but everyone calls me Inky."
"Hi Inky!" said Lizzie. "Wow, that's so cute and fun!"
"Hi, we're here to talk about classified war secrets," said Jun off of her, just for the deadpan.
"Oh, yes," said Inky, gesturing them all in. "I'm so excited, this is going to be fascinating."
"Oh, he's a nerd," said Lili as Jun produced the holo. This thing had better not blow up.
"It responds to the twink's face," he said.
"I can still hear you," said Pri even though he didn't sound so hot. "My name is Priapus- I mean, Pri."
"Oh! That's Greek!" said Inky excitedly. "Did you know he's the fertility god? Wow, what a great name. Livestock, vegetables, fruit plants… Oh, and of course-"
"-Don't finish that thought," said Pri.
"…Well? And what?" asked Lizzie, her brows adorably pulled together in confusion.
"Penises, Lizzie," said Pri. "It's penises."
"Oh," said Lizzie as Jun started laughing loudly.
"No shit?" asked Lili, before having mercy on Pri and quickly trying to pull it together even when the others were laughing.
"What's wrong with penises?" asked Inky, which made a lot of them laugh louder. "I think that's a great name."
"You're the only one," lamented Pri as Panya dropped him on the sofa.
"Well, let me get my hands on this data and see what I can find. And in the meantime, you are all welcome to a hot meal and wherever you want to sit in the house. If you need a rest we have a few straw beds."
"And he never sleeps in his because he sleeps on his desk," said Panya, rolling her eyes. "Let me get you all some water boiling."
"Boiling? Oh," said Lizzie, and yet… She was still just as naïve and surprised. "Huh. Well, okay, I'll claim a bed. Jun? Can you come with me?"
Jun raised his eyebrows, but that wasn't unusual for Lizzie. "Sure, I'll see you to a room," he said, as Pri unlocked the Holo with his face and Lili hung over them to watch. He walked along with her toward the back of the little hut. It was a small little room but just seeing the straw bed made Jun feel a little tired. "This looks good."
"Yeah," said Lizzie, but she pulled on his hand a little bit. "Will you just… Stay here with me a little while?"
Jun's heart started to pound a little faster – whether in anticipation or horror he still wasn't sure. "Oh, sure," he said. "But just for a little bit," he added.
"Thanks. I appreciate the company. It's just a little exhausting out there," she said. And for the first time, he saw her shoulders slump over and the true pain and exhaustion of the past few days finally showed itself on her face.
"Oh," said Jun, and he slowly frowned because it felt unnatural to see her this way. "Are you okay?"
"Of course I'm not," Lizzie said with a sigh and shook her head. "Why would I be? Why should any of us be?"
"Yeah," said Jun, looking at her for a moment. "I don't get it," he said finally. "Why waste all the energy with the smiles and laughing?"
Lizzie looked at him for a moment and shrugged. "I'm more than used to putting on a show, Sir. Guess it's just impulsive now."
"I don't even know how you do it," Jun said with a small sigh as he shook his head. "How you constantly do it and don't lose that… Spark."
Lizzie smiled and shrugged. "I've been hurt before," she said, a little quietly. "By putting up more defenses I let them win. I let them change me. Guess that no matter how many times it ends poorly, I just… I can't let that happen."
Jun frowned a little bit, because right now, looking into her eyes, he absolutely could see straight through her to her pain. The many ways she had suffered. "You don't protect yourself."
"I protect myself fine," said Lizzie, but she didn't fully believe it and just sighed. "Guess I'm just always hopeful for when things get better. Just thinking about that day helps me keep kicking. And when that day comes, I don't want to regret a single thing." Her expression changed and Jun's heart dropped to his stomach. "Which is why I have to tell you something." He could feel the color draining him from his face. "I really like you, Jun," she said, and that happy sparkle appeared once more in her eyes. That genuine love of life, and her smile, that fucking smile. "I just want to tell you that, I guess," she said, looking into his face and her brows went down because of course she could read him right now. "Oh no." The words broke his heart when they came out of her mouth. His heart started beating quickly when he saw her eyes tearing up.
That was all he ever wanted to say to Owen. And here she was, just coming right out with them. She was so much braver than him. What a shame it was wasted on someone like him.
"I'm sorry Jun," she said softly, and that shattered his damn heart.
"No sweetie," he said, shaking his head a few times. Even when he said something as simple as sweetie, the hope came back into her eyes. It was fucking horrible, there was a special coffin waiting for him in hell just for this. "It's me," he said, but of course that wouldn't make her feel better. "It's for your own good, Lizzie, truly," he said. "There are some things you still don't know." And he would try to protect her from those secrets forever.
"What could it possibly be?" Lizzie asked, still holding onto his hands and searching his face. Oh, she loved him like he loved Owen, back then. But now he just… He didn't deserve it. "I don't understand."
"You never need to."
"I feel like I do," Lizzie said. "I've heard it all, Jun. Tell me, go ahead! What'd you do? Robbery? Drugs? Alcohol problem? Worse?"
"It's not your burden to carry."
"Well maybe I just want to help you!" Lizzie said, throwing up her hands at him. "Maybe you should try opening up instead of internalizing everything because it makes you feel better. Leaving me hurt and just confused."
"Lizzie you couldn't even fathom-"
"Making mutts? Dropping bombs? Hired to make me like you and then kill me?" Lizzie asked, counting on her fingers, and there was a new look on her face. She wasn't giving up. She was never going to give up. Jun could feed her a lie but it would only mitigate the problem. It would never fully solve the problem unless… "Talk to me Jun!" He told her… "Please…" the truth.
"I shot the bullet that killed Markov," he said, finally, because he just couldn't hold onto it anymore. "This is what happens when you play with fire. I killed him. It was me, I was following orders. This whole fucking thing started because of me, and now all of our lives are in danger." It wasn't a rage-filled outburst. It was just… The cold, hard facts. And he could see the color leave her face, he could see the horror that ran deep into her eyes. A horror that he understood well, because it was his lived experience. But for some reason it was even more crushing to see it reflected on her face.
"A… Are you sorry?" she asked finally, staring at him.
"Of course," Jun said. "But you can't apologize to a dead man, can you?"
Lizzie's mouth was just dropped open thinking about it, trying to process that the same person in front of her did such a thing… Even following orders. Took an innocent life. She slowly let go of his hands and reached up to cover her face.
"I never wanted to hurt you, Lizzie," he said softly, and he really didn't. He just knew it was imminent from the start and it was stupid to ever let it start. "I never wanted to hurt anyone. But I did, and it's a scarlet letter I have to wear for the rest of my life."
Lizzie had tears on her face. "Did you tell Pri?" she asked softly.
"He doesn't need to."
Jun could sense that someone was walking around outside, in the bathroom, across the hall. He knew the place wasn't that big. He really wasn't surprised. Nor was he horrified. Not relieved. Just… Numb. It was something he did that he could never escape. He lived so long worrying that one inflection of his voice was going to trigger them into realizing. But now it didn't even matter. Just like that, it was done. He was finally able to speak out. And see the pain that he had been imagining in his nightmares, right in front of his face. Now they finally knew. He could have saved Phil. But he didn't.
The tears were making trails down Pri's pale, exhausted face. He looked to Lizzie's face, and saw her eyes cast away from him. Not even all the good he tried to do would ever make up for what they lost.
Pri was the first to speak, through his teeth, his voice shaking. "Tell me Wolf isn't so cruel," he said slowly. "Tell me!"
"No, Stellan doesn't know either," said Jun quietly, not looking at any of them. "Nobody knows. It was a secret I planned to take to my grave."
"I wish I had never known," Pri said, shaking his head. "Just… Don't talk to me first," he said, shaking his head a little bit. "I just need to process what the fuck is going on," he said, turning around and going back to the other small room with a mattress in it, closing the door. But the sound travelled and everyone could hear him yell.
Lili was the first to run over and Jun hurried to intercept her.
"Let him be," he said, looking at Lizzie.
"I'm sorry, I just… I need a moment too," Lizzie said softly, and Jun gestured Lili into the room with her. "I still don't hate you, Jun," she said, but her voice, for the first time, sounded… Unsure.
"I'll go," he said, because he knew it was all his fault, he was the unwelcome one. And he just wanted to leave what he created, pretend it wasn't real. But it was part of who he was.
He lost it all once, and he was helpless.
He lost it all again, and he caused his own destruction by his words and actions.
It was only a matter of time before the word spread like wildfire, and then what? Fire was not kind, nor was it merciful. Fire left nothing in its wake but ashes.
He lost it all because of what he didn't do.
He lost it all because of what he did.
Memento Mori.
This was his last chance to pick up the broken pieces.
A/N: Move the counter down to 11.
Some deleted scenes are going up in the past few days that feed my Kodiak Chay Wholesome Angst Fix (TM), as well as a sloppy drawing guide to all these side rebels.
Next Chapter: Maggie tries to help fix the Primos (no salad included), hot doctors and their Dysfunctional Runners, and a chance meeting on the streets of the Capitol.
