Broken Toys - Johanna Mason x fem reader

Chapter 24 - Waking Up

I sank to the ground as my feet refused to support me any longer. Tears blurred my sight. "You can't do this to me, Rue", I whispered. "If I can go back, then I don't have a choice. I promised Johanna to return and I haven't kept my promise to you yet. Panem isn't free as long as people like Snow and Coin manage to have power." 

My little sister smiled at me. "I didn't expect any less. But don't worry. I'll be waiting for you and hope it'll take a while until our reunion." 

The sunlight intensified taking my vision from me. A few seconds later I noticed that it had been the lights of an unfamiliar room blinding me, a hospital room. I felt light-headed, but no pain. The morphling was dripping into my body steadily. 

Johanna? Was she really standing next to me? She had immediately jumped up and was yelling something, her gestures wild and furious. What was she saying? Her hair had grown a lot since I had last seen her. Now I could actually call it hair again and not just bristle. 

Was all of this real now or was I still dreaming? I could not differentiate it anymore. Why was it so silent? It was making me tired ...

"Finally you're awake again!" I heard Johanna's voice, when I opened my eyes again. 

Confusion filled me. How many times had I woken up? What had been a dream and what had been reality? 

"Jo ...", I uttered with a hoarse voice. 

"So you hear me?", she questioned. 

I nodded uneasily. I wanted to say something else, but my throat hurt badly. Carefully I sat up and took the glass of water standing on the small table beside my bed. But it slipped out of my hand and Johanna caught it just in time. Since when was a glass of water so heavy?

"Take it easy. You'll get your scolding later", Johanna promised and helped me drinking. I would have never imagined her in such a position. It did not suit her, but that made me appreciate her behavior even more. 

"What happened?", I wondered. 

Johanna took a deep breath. "You were in the Capitol and accompanied Katniss on the way toward Snow, remember?" I simply nodded. "You were hit by an explosion that almost killed you. Didn't I tell you not to be reckless?! And Finnick told me everything! I don't even know where to start ...!" 

I weakly put my hand over hers. "Didn't you say the scolding would follow later?", I reminded her with a smile. 

She growled in frustration and gently took my hand. 

"What's my state?"

"Actually, they've barely been able to save your right leg and you lost your hearing. It's artificial now." 

That shocked me. Honestly I could not identify a difference. "So I did wake up before?", I reassured. 

"Yeah. I was scolding you for being so fucking reckless, but you just passed out again without a reaction." 

Maybe I could be grateful for the temporary loss of my hearing as Johanna had apparently calmed down by now. 

Suddenly an image flashed through my mind. Katniss, Prim, me and the explosion. "What about the others? Finnick, Peeta, Gale, Cressida, Pollux, Katniss, Prim. Are they alright?" 

"Katniss woke up a few days ago. She's been in a similar state as you. Prim didn't make it." 

The explosion resounded in my ears. When was all of this finally going to stop? I could not take it anymore! In my mind several images of Prim replayed. And at one point they started overlapping with Rue's until I saw a world where they had been friends. It felt suffocating.