nightmare + f. odair✔

17

"Hello?"

Octavias voice was drained, had lost all emotion and was simply defeated. Not by the idea or killing, like it had been all those years ago.

It was of leaving her sister.

It was of being killed.

That's what the games did- they took your innocence and any selfless qualities and transformed it to a mindset of hate and selfishness, it made you into the type of person Octavia never wanted to be.

"Tave, I-"

"No, Finnick," she refused to have thid conversation with him, she refused to give away whatever shred of joy she had left, which was him. Her best friend.

"Do you remember the day we met?" He asked through the phone, and Octavia sighed, mumbling a 'of course.'

f l a s h b a c k

The mayors building in district four was lovely, high columned walls with such a detailed architecture. It made her question how many days it took to build and craft it.

It was a large room that had been converted to a formal dining space. Octavia had just finished her speech to the district, which had gained her more boos then she expected.

She was the only one, besides for two peacekeepers, in the room.

She stood next to a long wooden table set with three kinds of forks and plates that cost more than her entire lifes worth of earnings. The intricate detailings of the table runner caught her eye, the gold sewed into red. It made her give a tiny smile, as a reminder of her dress.

Of the games- her smile dropped and a grimace took its place.

She found her eyes drifting to the sharp knife that lay alongside the other silverware, and she reached to hold it, for some sort of comfort.

When her fingers gently touched the knife, she was reminded of the large scar on her leg from Alixs sword, and the odd scar in her shoulder that would still cause her pain when moving it incorrectly, even though it had been almost two months.

"I know what you're thinking, Octavia."

She turned, the knife still in her hand as she raised it above her head.

"You don't want to do that, sweetheart," Finnick Odair chuckled, reaching to take the knife from her hand.

She relaxed, her hand shaking.

"God- I-I'm so sorry," Octavia rushed, realizing how stupid she was. Almost putting a knife through the head of a victor? Not her brightest moment.

"I get it. I couldn't sleep without a knife under my pillow and a trident at my bedside for weeks," his voice was gentle, soothing almost. Octavia closed her eyes, taking a deep breath.

"I still cant," she laughed dryly, toying with the hair that framed her face.

"The relief lasts for moments, and the trauma lasts forever," he spoke, his captivating ocean blue eyes meeting hers.

"Sometimes I question if it was worth surviving."

Octavia smiled, a real smile for the first time in a long time.

And that was the beginning of something beautiful.

_

After her much needed talk with Finnick, which was more him explaining that she didn't have to go into the games and relive her trauma, that she could just allow Persia to volunteer or be sentenced to death. It was ridiculous- but the thought is what counts supposedly.

When she hung up on him, Adriana stood in the kitchen doorway, a lone tear streaming down her face and her eyes red and raw. She had been crying.

"Ria," was all Octavia had to say for her sister to barrel into her arms, and for the cries to surface.

"I'm so sorry, sweet girl," Octavias eyes watered relentlessly, and she bit her lip to hold her choke-like sob in.

Pushing the younger girl away, Octavia looked at her with a serious expression.

"I'm not going to water it down and lie to your face like I did ten years ago," she said, watching Ria nod slowly while she braced her hands against the island counter.

"I- I'm not going to make it far, Ria. I'm no longer the pity case," both sisters knew what had to be done, they both knew that the two reigning victors were the ones that needed to come out alive, if the whispers of rebellion in their district had anything to do with them.

"The reaping is tommorow- and the money that I've gained since winning will last you a lifetime-"

"Why are you telling me this now?" Adriana said suddenly, staring down her sister.

"Because, Snow is mad. And if hes mad, then I dont think that supporting the rebellion is going to get me any where other than six feet under."

_