A/N:
So sorry it took me so long to update. This chapter is about twice as long as the first so more words for you all to enjoy! (Disclaimer: I only own OC's. I do not own any Hunger Games characters or their universe.)
- Mil
oOoOo
"Storm Wildefall."
No.
No.
I feel like I've been shot. It takes a minute for the words to register. Scarlett's microexpression wasn't a figment of my imagination. She had just heard my name, so she knew it. It doesn't make sense. This is his second Reaping. Two slips among thousands. I wonder for a fraction of a second if I'm hallucinating. Shocked murmurs ripple through the crowd. Surely they are as thrown off by this as I am. Heads turn. The crowd parts. I see my sweet brother looking at me with wide eyes. Terror. And it's not concealed. All of Panem will see his fear and mark him as weak for it. He takes two steps forward, maybe three when something catches my eye, a disturbance in the crowd,
"I volunteer as tribute." I don't have to look. I talk to him every single day. Storm starts to protest. I see my dad rush in and take Storm off. Storm's screams echo through the silent crowd. In his eyes I see the terror, but also relief. Storm flails around in our father's arms but it's no use. I scan the scene, trying to process everything as fast as I can. I hear a sob, a woman's cry. I know it's Carter's mother. Storm fights our father. Carter walks to the stage, a peacekeeper on either side. Scarlett's expression is one of entertainment.
"Right and what is your name?" She asks him.
"Carter Woods."
"Well what a noble thing that you've done today! Now shake hands!" I stare at him. I think my arm meets his because Scarlett moves on, "There you have it! Your tributes from District 4!" I hear a smattering of applause. District 4 is closer knit than most and their displeasure with today's turnout shows. Either send in the siblings or best friends. Everyone knows this is our dynamic. They know Carter agreed to die so Storm wouldn't have to. Still, I'm shocked at how few people clap. As the peacekeepers escort us inside the Justice Building, I catch Finnick looking at me. I look away quickly.
Only when they separate Carter and I do I realize we've been holding hands since the handshake. The room I'm taken into is decently-sized and is mostly brown in color. There's a light brown sofa chair with dark brown swirls and patterns and a sink in the room. That's it. Right as I make the decision to sit the door opens and a peacekeeper escorts my brother and father in, saying we have 5 minutes. Immediately, Storm is hugging me and I sink to my knees on the floor with him. I hold him tight.
"You have to win, Cammie. Please. You can't leave me. I can see the conflict, agony, and fear behind his eyes. I cup his cheek gently. Seeing him like this, I feel the painful sting of tears trying to form.
"I'll win okay? Don't worry, I'll be back before you know it." It feels like a lie.
"But what about Carter?"
"I- I don't know Stormy...but I promise you I'll try to win for you, okay?" My voice breaks slightly and I avert my gaze, looking at the wood-paneled wall and taking a deep breath. I can not cry. My face will be all over Panem and I can not have puffy eyes.
"I don't want you to go! It's not fair!" He cries.
"I know. I know…" I gently smooth the back of his hair and pull away from our hug. I give him a kiss on the forehead and face my dad. It's obvious he's fighting back tears. "Oh, don't cry, Dad…please…" I whisper. He says nothing for a moment, just staring at me like- like it's the last time he'll ever see me. He kneels down and hugs me tightly. Fiercely. Like he's never going to let go.
"I'll try. I promise I'll try to win. To the end." I whisper, feeling the inevitable tear roll down my face. I pull back and look up at him. His tears have fallen too.
"I know you will, Minnow." The name stabs a knife through my heart. He hasn't called me that since I was…Well, I don't remember the last time he called me that. Storm joins our hug and I face him,
"Listen to me, Stormy, No matter what happens in there, know that I love you, and Carter loves you. Okay? We will always love you." He nods and opens his mouth to speak but just then the door opens and a peacekeeper comes in to escort them out. Storm starts to freak out again and my dad has to carry Storm out.
"I love you!" I shout as they leave. If I die, the last thing I'll have said to them is I love you. I sit on the floor for a moment and lean against the arm of the chair. Warm tears spill down my cheeks but no noise escapes me. The door opens again and I sniffle once and swipe my hands across my eyes, hoping to wipe away the tears. The woman who walks in is old. Very old. Her hair is tied back in a low grey ponytail. Her skin is tan and wrinkly but her eyes are full of life. And sadness. And I know these eyes.
"Grise, I uh-" I wipe my face again, "What uh- what are you doing here?" She regards me for a long moment, almost as if she's assessing me,
"Oh, Camille…You put up a fight, okay?" I nod, confused.
"I plan on it." She takes a step forward then stops. It looks like she's trying to decide something. Finally, she does. Her hands go up to her neck and remove the necklace she's wearing.
"Take it." My hands reach for the necklace. I don't have to hold it to know what it looks like. A silver chain with a small oval of silver attached. Etched into the oval, a trident with waves behind it and etched into the waves in tiny lettering, the phrase Potentia Maris. The first time I saw this necklace, I was seven.
"I can't take this, Grise." I've wanted this necklace since I first saw it years ago.
"You remember what it means?" She asks.
"Power of the Sea." I breathe out. I could never forget it's meaning. She nods,
"And I told you, I'd give you this the day you moved to fishing. To protect you on the voyages." I nod. "You take this necklace, Camille." It occurs to me she could want me to take it because she knows I'll never get to be a fisher.
"Okay." I whisper. She puts the necklace on me. She gives a small nod of approval.
"You're a tough one. In that arena it's just you. The ocean is merciless and you can be too to survive." I nod. I don't want to be merciless but I trust Grise. Her son died in the games long ago because he wasn't merciless. I think my dad grew up with him.
"I won't go down without a fight, Grise." She nods. We stand in silence for a moment before she does something unexpected. She hugs me. My arms automatically wrap around her. I can feel her shaking and for the first time, it occurs to me how much I might actually mean to her. She pulls back and I see tears in her eyes. I can feel them in mine too, trying to make a return. Grise is the second closest thing to a mom I've got. And I won't let her lose two kids to the games.
"I know you won't kid. Now wash them tears off. Don't let 'em see you down." The peacekeepers come then to escort her out and I wash my face in the sink. My next visitor shouldn't be unexpected but it is.
"Ms. Woods, I-" She interrupts me with a hug. Her eyes are dull and lifeless. She has given up. The hug is long and afterwards she simply holds my hand. She says nothing. She doesn't need to. Just knowing she cared enough to say goodbye to me too fills me with so much love for her. I might as well be her daughter for how long I've been around her. When the peacekeepers tell her it's time to leave she gives me another quick hug. I rinse my face once more, to be sure the evidence of tears is gone, and a peacekeeper is back, escorting me to the train. Cameras are everywhere but I keep my eyes fixed forward. They do not deserve my attention for wanting to photograph me on my ride to death.
oOoOo
I look out the window of the electric train as we leave District 4 and enter District 1: The luxury center of Panem. I close my eyes and take a slow breath.
"Camille," I look up. I don't even get the chance to curse him before he's apologizing.
"I'm so sorry, Cam" I hug him. I couldn't curse him if I wanted to.
"Oh how adorable! You two must be a couple! Oh…Oh that's heartbreaking." I pull back, Carter's cheeks turn a light shade of pink and I don't blame him for blushing. I face the source of the voice: Scarlett.
"We aren't a couple. Just friends. Best friends." I tell her.
"Oh, Well still...We'll be at the Capitol within the hour so I suggest you two clean up a bit before the public snatches their first glimpse of you. After all, good impressions are key, especially if you want to gain sponsors!" The cheery singsong tone of her voice makes me roll my eyes.
"She's right you know" a new voice says, I look over and see Finnick Odair, the most recent Victor, also from District 4. He's wearing a white T-shirt and a small gold chain necklace. He has the common mixed blonde hair of District 4. Everyone in Panem I'm sure knows about his victory since he was the youngest victor ever at the ripe age of 14, now a year older. It hurts me to even look at him.
"Yeah I know she is." I sit in a chair across from a mirror and begin to braid my hair, concentrating on making it as even as possible.
"Do you have any advice?" Carter asks. My eyes glance at Finnick through the mirror. He's so young but the question seems to age him. His expression darkens.
"Yeah, trust nobody. Do what it takes to survive." He says bitterly.
"We trust each other." Carter says, placing a hand on my shoulder. I lean into it just slightly. Finnick notices and almost scoffs,
"Now that's just sad. If you're lucky one of you will live. That's the sad truth." Nobody speaks after that. After my hair is braided I cross the train car to the sofa. Finnick sits on the other end of the couch, glancing back at the assortment of drinks beside him. Once I lean back, I replay the Reaping over and over in my head until I lose consciousness.
I'm outside on the shore of District 4, looking out at the beautiful blue waves. I can feel the gentle breeze on my face and the sand between my toes. I take in a breath through my nose, relaxation filling my body, I close my eyes and tilt my head back, enjoying the moment.
"Beautiful day, isn't it Cam?" Carter asks me. I have no idea when he showed up but I nod in agreement. "Too bad you couldn't have saved him" he says plainly,
"What?" I ask, looking at Carter,
"If I hadn't stepped up you would've died to keep your brother safe in the arena but I saved you that. Would you save me the way you would have him if it was just us?" I immediately start to object but a strong breeze causes me to look out to sea and suddenly Carter is in the water, bobbing up and down, an expression of pure terror on his face,
"HELP ME CAM! HELP ME PLEASE!" He cries out in desperation. Somehow, I know that we are in the arena and it's just the two of us left. I don't care. I dive in without hesitation and pull him to the safety of the shore. He coughs and chokes up water for a few seconds then he looks at me, his pained and scared expression slowly turning sinister,
"Did you really fall for that Cam? We were practically raised in the water and you thought I couldn't swim?" I can only watch in confusion and fear as he pulls a dagger from the back of his swimwear,
"You idiot. You're pathetic. And that's why you have to die."
"Carter, please, no" I plead but to no avail.
I wake with a start right as the blade pierces my heart,
"You okay over there?" I look over to see Finnick staring at me with a curious expression on his face. I shakily nod as he pops a sugar cube in his mouth. He must have got them from the drink bar behind him.
"Just a bad dream…" I mutter.
"I'll say," He finishes his sugar cube then holds up air quotes, "'Carter, please, no' already doubting your friendship?" He wears an almost half-smirk on his face as if this amuses him. I suddenly remember how he was before his games, when we were in school.
"The games changed you" I say. I see a glimpse of something in his eye. Shock, pain, anger? Coolly he replies,
"Wouldn't you come back different after killing other innocent people?" He stares at me. I look down,
"I'm sorry…" I quietly reply, "I just...Do you remember before you were chosen? We were classmates…Friends...and you were so nice and haughty and confident and we were so close. Then after you came back it was the same but it all seemed fake, it still does..." Finnick remains quiet for a moment, "What I mean is that you had it all before but after? You never trusted me again, your confidence had turned into fake charisma and….I don't know. It's like you're putting on a show. We used to be friends, more than that at one point." I can tell that I've got to him because suddenly I'm looking at the real him, the fake charisma has vanished and an almost melancholy expression appears on his face.
"Camille, I-"
"Don't. I'm sorry Finnick. I shouldn't have brought it up." I know the real reason we broke up is because there was no way for me to possibly understand what he went through, not that 14 year olds can be super serious or anything but I also knew inside that after what he went through in the arena he would probably never trust again.
"Camille…" Finnick starts,
"Finnick, it's okay. If I didn't understand why you cut yourself off from the world then I think I'm about to." Nobody speaks for a while after that. I reach across the couch and gently place my hand on his forearm. He looks at me and softly smiles, a real smile. I do the same and gently pull away.
"Finnick?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you think I can survive? Honestly?" He seems mildly taken aback by the question but recovers and quietly replies,
"I think that if you do, you'll change too. Worse than I did. Because of him," I don't have to look to know who he's pointing to but I still glance up at my best friend. He's having a quiet discussion on the other side of the train car with Scarlett. Suddenly I feel a wave of sadness wash over me. One or both of us will be dead in less than a month. I look back at Finnick,
"It's twisted, isn't it? Either way you were screwed. Your best friend or your baby brother. It's not fair but nothing really is." I don't know what to say so I change the subject.
"What would you do?" I ask,
"Well there's a few ways it could go. You team with him and somehow make it to the end where one of you will have to kill each other. You ally with him and he gets taken out along the way. You don't ally with him and hope he gets taken out so you don't have to do it. You ally with him then you backstab him or vice versa." A lump forms in my throat but I have to give it to him, at least he's honest. I'm still struggling for a reply when Scarlett walks up to us,
"Why hello you two, We've just arrived at the Capitol!"
"Oh joy." Finnick and I say in almost unison, we look at eachother and I see him smile, just for a moment, a real smile. Then he lays on the fake charisma. I glance out the small window of the train and I'm stunned. From just the peek, I know there will be a crowd. I stand next to Carter at the door and hold his hand. He smiles at our hands then looks forward. Scarlett and Finnick stand in front of us. The train stops.
"Ready?" Finnick asks, we nod. Then the doors open.
It takes my eyes a moment to adjust to the blinding light but when they do I'm stunned by the sheer volume of people standing at the station, the deafening roar of the crowd as we step into the light. We follow Scarlett and Finnick through the train station into a Capitol transportation vehicle.
Thousands, probably even ten thousand faces blur by as we ride through the Capitol. The colours are so bright and vivid and the makeup is so gaudy it's hard to keep a perfect smile on my face. I almost break when we drive past a woman with skin that must have been tattooed or dyed a pastel pink. She's wearing a solid looking shiny hot pink dress with ugly lime green rectangular earrings, bracelets, and necklaces for accent pieces. To top it off she has on a matching bright pink hat that flares so largely around her head I wonder how she's able to see.
The vehicle slows as we approach a high rise building. It's not as tall as some of the other buildings surrounding us but by my estimate, I'd say it's at least 10 stories. The walk to the fourth floor is a blur. I walk through my new temporary apartment until I find my room. They didn't do much for decoration but they're just for us to sleep in before the games. Unfortunately, I don't get to explore my new room for very long before Scarlett bursts in with three people behind her,
"Come now darling, this is Topaz, she'll be your personal clothing designer, and these two are Cerise and Electra. They will be your beauty consultants. We have to get you all washed up for the tribute parade!" All three of the new women are beautiful but Topaz takes my breath away. She has olive skin and bright green eyes as well as a smattering of freckles dotting her cheeks. She's tall, gorgeous, and has curves in all the right places. I gulp and follow them.
The cleaning process is...painful. And mildly humiliating due to the fact that Topaz is watching me the whole time. She's so pretty. They do something called sugaring to my legs which is a nice way to say they put sticky on my legs then brutally rip every last hair off of my body using the brown sticky solution. After that they have to wash me down again (much more gently this time) then they start slathering some white cream-consistency stuff on my legs,
"What's this?" I ask them,
"Moisturizer, and after this we'll be doing your hair." Says the one I think is named Electra. And she's right. After they apply the moisturizer they take me to a fancy chair and tell me to sit. Electra begins to dry my hair and Cerise goes to work on my nails. I'm unsure of where Topaz went, only that she'd disappeared sometime between my hair getting dried and me getting moisturizer rubbed on me. After the hair and nails comes the makeup, we don't wear a lot of makeup in District 4 since a lot of us work in the sun by the sea all day, Unless you grew up on the merchant side. Electra brings Cerise a 'palette' of makeup. There's a lot of colours and Cerise squeals in excitement as she looks at all of the options.
"Um, Could we not do a lot of makeup please?" I ask, "It's not really my thing…" Cerise gives me a sad look but agrees. I'm pleasantly surprised to find that my face doesn't feel ten pounds heavier after the makeup so she must have kept true to her word.
"Okay, time for the outfit!" Topaz announces and I briefly wonder when she reappeared, I go to glance into the mirror but Cerise and Electra stand in my way,
"No looking until you're all done!" Cerise says and I really pick up on her Capitol accent. She's way too eager about all this. I nod okay and follow Topaz to a back room.
"You truly do look stunning" She tells me as she holds up a bra looking thing. It's fishnet style and made of what appears to be real rope. Under that is an opaque fabric that almost exactly matches my skin tone, I note it only has one shoulder.
"Where's the other half of it?" I ask, she smiles and holds up the bottom, it's the same style as the top but they're shorts that go down to just below my mid-thigh, I hold them both.
"Is this it?" I ask and she laughs,
"Yes. I'll help you get it on so you don't mess up your hair or makeup okay?" I nod and the two of us carefully get me dressed.
"Are you ready?" She asks once we've finished dressing me,
"Sure?" I reply, uncertain. She smiles and picks up a small silver remote, she pushes a button and a small hole appears in the floor. I then realize a full length mirror is popping out of the hole. When I see my reflection I'm shocked. The fishnet getup fits me perfectly, my hair has been done into a long fishtail braid with just a little bit pulled out at the top to frame my face, my nails are a shining sea green, and my makeup is mostly around my eyes, sharp but subtle eyeliner, mascara, and eyeshadow that goes from blue to green to gold and almost perfectly matches my nails.
"Wow" is all I can say. I see Topaz's reflection smiling at me,
"Impressed?" She asks,
"Definitely." After that, Topaz escorts me to the chariots where I see Scarlett, Finnick, and Carter waiting for me. Scarlett is the first to see me, alerting the other two by squealing and running up to me. I hug her lightly as she begins to gush,
"I just knew they would bring out your true beauty~" She tells me as she and Topaz leave to go talk about who knows what. I look over at Carter who is shirtless and wearing a fishing net kilt-thing that matches the style of my own outfit as well a gold pendant around his neck,
"Wow." He says when I get close to him,
"You don't look too bad yourself~" I reply playfully,
"I don't mean to interrupt this lovely moment but there are people watching." Finnick states quietly. I subtly glance around, he's right. I see both of the tributes from District one staring at us, Their names were Shimmer and Glint if I recall correctly. I stop smiling.
"See?" Finnick whispers, "It's all an act." I roll my eyes but inside, I know he has a point. There isn't much talking done after that but Finnick feeds the horses some sugar cubes and Scarlett eventually appears out of nowhere,
"Alright you two, time to get in the chariot." I step into the chariot, it's beautiful. The sea-green colour matches my nails. It's lined in a golden paint that looks so realistic I think it's real at first. Topaz then passes me a long golden trident and I wonder how I'd missed that,
"It's not a real trident and I'd hate to see you killed before the games even began so please don't try to attack anyone with it." I nod,
"I won't." I promise.
"Do I get a super-cool, fake weapon too?" Carter asks hopefully,
"Sorry Carter, Only one 'weapon' per chariot and Topaz called dibs" Says another woman I hadn't noticed before. I assume she's Carter's stylist. I look at Carter apologetically but he just smiles.
Shortly after that the chariots line up and I find myself holding Carter's hand. He smiles as the two of us watch the first chariot exit. When our chariot reaches the entrance I realize that the crowd from the train station I thought was massive, is nothing compared to this one with its blinding lights and impossibly loud roaring of the crowd. I hold Carter's hand tighter as I survey the crowd. I see several banners with our names on them. People throw flowers, roses, and all sorts of tokens of 'love' at us. It's almost overwhelming.
The chariot walk continues for what feels like forever. Carter and I do our jobs well though as we smile and wave and cheer at the flood of audience members. Carter catches a deep blue rose and breaks off part of the stem before tucking it behind my ear. I'd thought the roar of the crowd was deafening already but in that moment somehow they managed to cheer louder.
Eventually, the chariots all stop at the end and form a wide semi-circle. I let go of Carter's hand and look up at President Snow. I feel anger slowly boiling inside me for a moment before I tamp it down. There's no point in being mad at something everyone has to go through. He gives his "welcome tributes" speech though I don't really listen because I've heard it year after year for as long as I'd been alive.
That night as we eat dinner I look around at our table. It's me, Carter, Finnick, Scarlett, Topaz, and Carter's designer. I listen to the Capitol folk talk and find myself angry at them. They're just getting us ready to die. Making us look favorable before certain death. I stand up quickly,
"I'm done." I say, fork clattering against my plate as I stand. I go to my room. I'm still hungry but I can't deal with them any more. I sit back on my bed and stare up at the ceiling, letting my mind wander. Why did it have to be me and Carter, or me and Storm? I feel bad for not thinking about my brother but I've been swamped with other 'preparations' for the Games. I don't feel bad for long though because I feel the bed sink down as someone sits next to me. I sit up and find Finnick looking at me,
"It's a lot, isn't it? The gleaming lights, The Capitol, Capitol citizens who have no idea what life is really like out there" He says.
"It's like going 200 miles an hour with no brakes and someone else steering" I whisper,
"I know." There's a brief pause, "I really am sorry this is happening to you, Camille" I don't know what to say for a moment.
"So am I…What um...What helped you...get through the games?" I ask,
"Honestly? You did. I'm sorry for leaving you when I got back but I couldn't let anyone I loved get hurt because of me. So I left you. I shut you out and I never really apologized for it." I'm shocked to hear such a confession from him. We'd broken up almost a year ago and I'd given up on trying to get answers.
"Finnick...It's okay. Maybe I don't totally understand but depending on how these Games go, maybe I will know."
"I do think you can win. But it will definitely change you." I nod, "Now let's go finish eating." I sigh and mumble some form of agreement, following him back to the group.