circus | finnick odair

encounter [2]

Finnick's POV

I sat in the viewing room, smiling when I watched Penn admire her necklace. One thing I wasn't happy about was Bentley and Issac but that didn't put too much of a damper on my spirits.

"Do you remember her?" Peeta said from the seat next to me, smiling at me.

"She looks completely different but once I heard that story, it clicked." I say, my smile never leaving my face. "I remember everything, especially the rock."

"Tell me the story," Peeta said, leaning back in his seat.

~~~

I had started the day like I did every other day; got up, showered, ate breakfast, then listened to my duties.

Kai was especially nervous today. It was his ally's district, his ally that is dead. Todrick was his ally in his Games who sacrificed himself for Kai.

Kai nervously paced the room, I could tell he was close to his breaking point. He spoke and thought about Todrick everyday; I know his death tore Kai apart.

"What if they hate me?" He would say to me each hour, more frequently as we neared District 8.

I would reply with the same thing every time; he wasn't the one that killed Todrick. If Todrick's family as as humble as he was then Kai had nothing to worry about.

I didn't know much about Todrick's family, I knew that his parents were executed and he has four other siblings but other than that, I was clueless.

Some days, Kai would just ramble on about Todrick; the games really got into his head and was slowly beginning to drive him insane.

His insanity was kicked into high gear when we pulled into the District 8 train station.

He was sweating, paling by the second. He looks liked he was about to throw up, but I had quickly ushered him into the awaiting car.

We were driven to the Justice Building in the town square; I could already see people crowding the stage.

Kai became fearful, he couldn't do it. He couldn't face the familes, the people, and their hatred for him.

I handed Kai his note cards, telling him to read exactly what they said, nothing more and nothing less.

I gave him a quick, light hug before ushering him out onto the stage, stepping into the shadows behind him.

As he began his speech, I looked around at the crowd. Some seemed mad, others happy, and others indifferent.

I heard Kai stutter, looking at the families. I sucked in a breath of air when his eyes wandered to Todrick's family.

When he turned to me, his eyes screaming for help, I nodded to him. I could tell he wanted to speak with them, hence the nod.

When he turned back to the crowd, my eyes fell upon the families. The female tributes was her parents but Todrick's was his siblings.

There were four of them; two boys and two girls. The eldest two had to have been twins, they looked the same age. The girl, who had to have been seventeen or eighteen, held a small infant. I smiled at them, the baby's eyes trained on the hologram of Todrick behind them.

Next, I looked at the eldest boy. His name was Thistle; Kai told me, after he healed from the games, about him. He was Todrick's younger brother, but his best friend. Thistle was the best hunter in 8, Kai told me.

Thistle glared at Kai and myself. Even though I could understand why, I felt my blood boil. Kai never asked Todrick to kill himself, he was too humble to ever do that.

After Thistle and I's stare down, I looked at the last member of the Opalson family.

She was short, cute. She was younger, maybe thirteen? I didn't know, but she seemed strong.

I sent her a slight smile, quickly turning my attention back to Kai, who was still struggling.

After a few more minutes of struggling, he finally finished his speech. I quickly grabbed his arms, pulling him back into the building.

"I want to speak to the family," Kai had said to me after we made it to to private room.

I told him I'd see what I could do and went to speak with the mayor, who saw no harm in it. Soon after, we were in a car, on our way to Todrick's household.

The two youngest were playing in the yard when we arrived. She ran inside with her younger brother after seeing us, but she was kind enough to invite us in.

I properly introduced myself and Kai, giving them my regards and simpathy. Thistle's cold demeanor scared away his youngest sister, I felt an odd, compelling voice telling me to follow.

So, once I spoke with the family for a few moments, I quickly followed the running girl to her hideaway.

It was a pond and I felt at home, the water was inviting. She was standing at the edge, throwing stones across the body of water.

When she hit the target across from us, I began to clap. And before I realized it, I had a stone whipped at my head.

She looked horrified with her actions, she stuttered out an apology before hiding herself in her knees.

I sat next to her, laughing quietly at her shyness. She had a great arm on her, it must've been in her genes.

She seemed sad, I couldn't blame her, so I offered her my condolences. She didn't seem fazed by it, I don't think she even replied.

Soon, her older sister appeared, bringing us back to their small house. Kai was holding his spear, anxiously waiting for the young lady.

I saw Kai look to Thistle before leading them into the woods in the back. I stayed behind, chatting with Rosemary and playing with the infant.

After some time, Kai and I needed to head back to the train. I gave the twins a hug and squeezed the baby's cheeks. Once in the car, I waved to the young one, who blushed.

Kai hugged them all then sat down in the seat next to me. He muttered a 'thank you' before tuning the world out.

I looked back at the house once, just a small square in the horizon. I smiled, silently thanking Todrick for having such a blissful family.

~~~

"Thank you, Peeta." I said, finishing my story.

"For what?" He said, standing from his seat.

"Helping me, through everything." I said, also standing to walk him out.

"Think of it as my payback for helping me, and Katniss, in the games," Peeta replied, clapping my shoulders before wandering out of the room.

I sat back down in my seat, my smile spreading across my face as I watch Penn on the screen.

I couldn't stand the fact that she was there, in the arena. I knew we needed the perfect time to go in and retrieve them, but I was still wigged out.

"God, Pennia." I breathed, shaking my head as she touched her necklace for the millionth time.

"I'm crazy about you."

~~~

Finnick's side of their first, and not their last ;), encounter!!

-M