Behind Those Violet Eyes ▸ Hunger Games

Chapter Sixteeen: Gale Hawthorne

Chapter Sixteen:

Gale's POV

I yawned deeply and stood from my bed that morning. As I unzipped the tent, I spotted Cyra sleeping on the ground.

Her long wavy black hair was fanned out in all directions. Her eyelashes were fluttering softly, and her nose was twitching. I looked at her lying there, and spotted a ring, with the number four in gems on her finger, and a bracelet with a blue wolf on her wrist.

Wolves... I suddenly remembered.... The memory came back suddenly.... I had met Cyra before, just once, years and years ago.

Gale's Flashback:

It was four years ago. Back when I was fourteen, and Cyra was eleven.

Back then, the Capitol only had one day where we were allowed to leave our Districts. District Four was having a celebration and a couple of randomly selected children from each District were selected to go. Because of the fact District Twelve dosen't have many children, I was selected to go along with a couple of others.

When we all stepped off of the train, we were all informed of a tradition in District Four. It was that, when a visitor came, they were given a small pearl from another person. A sign of respect to the other.

As we gathered around after getting off the train, we were sent out to find someone to collect a pearl from.

As I scanned the crowd, I spotted two other very familiar people. Alia Fletson and Cato.

They seemed to be laughing at the District Four beach cottages. I clenched my fists. Compared to the homes in District Twelve, these houses were huge. Arrogant Careers.

As I searched the crowd, I spotted a small girl, about eleven, sitting alone near the edge of the beach. There was a painting in front of her.

The painting was of thirteen wolves. A large golden wolf in the center. The golden wolf was smiling brightly. It would have been amazing, other then the fact that it's eyes were completely black.

The other twelve wolves were smaller. They all ran in circles around the larger wolf. They were painted brilliant different colors. Blues, blacks, reds and greens. As amazing as they were, there was fear in their eyes. Further in the back of there eyes, was a spark of gold. Almost like a glimmer of hope, surrounded by the fear of doing one wrong thing in front of the big wold.... Like it might kill them.

When you looked at the painting for the first time, you just may have thought it was a painting of wolves. But if you look closer, you spot the tiny details you may not have seen before. Like how the small wolves were rather skinny, and you could count the ribs in there rib cage... or how the big golden wolf seemed to have an evil, twisted smile across its face.

"What are you doing?" the girl suddenly snapped, waking me from admiring her painting.

"Sorry...." I sighed, "I was just supposed to get a pearl-"

She shoved a sparkling white pearl into my hands and dipped her brush back into the gold paint.

"Go..." she huffed as she softly dragged the paint brush along the paper.

I turned to walk away, but then paused. I sat down across from her and watched her paint for a moment, when she glared at me again.

"What?!?" she snapped and stared at me.

I finally got a look at the girl. She had long wavy black hair, that barley reached her shoulders. She had small scattered freckles across her nose. The most amazing thing, was her bright violet eyes. They were wide, and sparkled, catching the glimmers of light off of the waters in District Four.

Overall, she looked nothing like the average citizen of District Four.... In fact, she didn't look like a citizen from any District. I had never seen anyone with such amazing eyes. In a unique way, she was beautiful...

I smiled at her and glanced back down at her painting. "You're really good at this." I smirked and smiled down on the painting.

The girl smiled and pushed her black hair behind her ears. "Thanks... About the only thing I'm useful for...."

I stared at her in confusion. "What do you mean...?"

She ignored my question and turned away.

I pushed her forward to face me.

"Well, you're really good at this...." I smiled softly. "I'm G-"

I never got to finish, because at that moment a tall woman came storming out of a blue building by the beach. I assumed it was the school.

Her light blond hair was tied in a tight bun, and her hands were painted with red nail polish. Her eyes were a cold sea blue.

"Get back inside!" she snapped to the girl. "This is to showcase the BEST of District Four... Not the ones who don't quiet fit in with the rest!"

She grabbed her hand and pulled her off the ground and back into the school.

As I watch the two of them storm back inside the school, I glanced down at her painting on the ground. I picked it up slowly, and held it in my hands for a moment, admiring the young girl's amazing brush stokes across the painting.

Carefully, I folded the painting and shoved it back into my pocket, along with the pearl.

Flashback Ends:

It took me four whole years the figure out the secret meaning behind Cyra's painting. Even then I knew, it couldn't just be a picture of colorful wolves. But now, standing here in the arena, I finally understood it.

The golden wolf was the Capitol. It was smiling down at the other wolves, laughing at their pains and starvation. It had dark eyes, because the Capitol is truly blind to anything other than themselves.

The other twelve wolves were the Districts of Panem. Each color represented whatever that District supplied. They may have seemed scared of the Capitol, but in the back of there eyes... That little spark of hope, is predicting an upcoming rebellion. To show Panem that we Districts don't have to be walked on all the time.

The most amazing part still is the fact a little eleven year old girl named Cyra Merison figured it all out.

And if anyone is to lead this rebellion she predicted.... I think it would be the little Violet Wolf herself...