Athena Hadley.
Like everyone in 2, force fed with the ideas of grandeur and fame.
Only for her life to collapse into a heap after her victory in the 66th, realizing all was just a dream.
From a proud 2 to a young woman that lost her childhood and li...
She was watching the little kitten pad around the table and actually eat away at what she had in her bowl, she let it since she didn't feel like eating and it was hungry.
She looked up, long face? More like being exhausted with life.
She was almost indignant, feeling it almost an insult that Cinna sat with her and that she saw no other victors yet.
There is a lot of almosts in Athena's life, but the absolute was more scary then an almost, and she was almost tempted to question his action as only victors were basically forced to sit here.
She didn't carry paper around but she had a pen on her now, carelessly writing on the metal surface of the table, it was a dry erase pen after all, it could be whipped off.
Once again another almost, almost happy that she was slowly getting her old handwriting back... Only an almost since all feelings felt like a cage, just about forcing herself to minimize them and not feel them to not hurt herself with them.
"Why do you insist on sitting here?" It was still shaky but she could move her hands well enough to spell correctly with not a lot of trouble, practice makes perfect and she worked hard to be able to somehow express herself.
"Will you always ask me this?" Cinna rose his brow. "Annie and Finnick have Mags, Wiress has a friend in Heymitch and Mags, Katniss and Peeta have Heymitch.... Sure, you know them all but they protect the young, the old victors look after the younger ones but you, you look out for everyone that is not you, someone needs to be there."
"You? Why do you insist on it being you? You can't fight, you can't do anything." She tried to erase her words but with her gauntlets it was hard with the metal against metal.
"I can't? Trust me, I have my ways."
Athena didn't like remembering the incident, she was basically a Capitol mutt, given the choice she will choose violence and murder before she can rationalize anything, her mind spiraling into conditioned madness... But fuck, were those memories cruel in sticking around.
"Who's your leg?" She wrote after a while, with her other hand grabbing the kitten by the scruff gently, keeping it from climbing into the bowl itself despite its protests as she set it on the table to wander.
"Athena you need to be careful what you write, it is How's not Who's." Cinna teased like a parent would a child, she just rolled her eyes. "But it fine, I have metal bones in there so only the skin must heal."
"Good."
"Anyhow, I am sorry for your brother, I don't remember if I or anyone said it." He put his hand on her cold metal hand, having heard of that mutt finally being killed, some senseless people saying that finally it was gone but they were all blind, the girl they were side eyeing for having protected it coped with seeing her brother in it even if she knew it was a fake. "Coin might not let you out just yet but I can promise he was put to rest in a nice little meadow." (I don't know why but that sentence brought tears too my eyes.)
Athena lifted her head to her face, grabbing her forehead and by extension hiding her eyes as leaned into it, lips pulled in a thin line as he pet her hand.
The little meows made her pull her fingers apart and peak through them at the little adrenaline junkie trying to climb her gauntlet but quite failing, scooping it up in the hand she dropped away, bringing it to her chest and having the little fluff rub up against her and settle in her clawed hand for the moment.
"It is adorable how much the little guy loves you already." Cinna said, Athena swallowing the ball in her throat and nodding. "Does it have a name?"
She.... Hadn't through that far.
She looked up at him as he waited for an answer.
It was not that hard to come up with something, freeing her second hand and slowly finger spelling it out.
"C-I-N-N-A-M-O-N"
She felt like it really fit, smiling a little at the complaining kitten.
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(You can, as much as it is bad taste, expect memes I make just for this book at the end of these chapters and I might even add some in previous chapters if I have the time.)
