lost | the hunger games

• ii •

The old woman signed to me, Thank you, Pallas.

I smiled and the laughed as best as I could. "You're so sentimental and corny. Breakfast is downstairs--" I got cut off by the doorbell. "--and that should be Finnick."

He's early. She said. I shrugged.

"Always wants to surprise people."

Finnick silently met us halfway down the stairs to lead Mags down on her other side (he had a key to the house as did we to his). I let go of Mags to flip the last pancake while Finnick got her seated before joining me. He was wearing a simple white cashmere sweater and blue trousers.

"Hey, Pal," he joked. He sounded upbeat but there was a sugar cube slowly falling apart between two of his fingers. A nervous habit I noticed over the years.

I tried not to show the tiny tremor in my hands as I lifted the pancake onto the stack for Mags' plate. But Finnick saw it anyways. "Hey. It'll be different, okay?"

I nodded slowly, refusing to make eye contact. The last part he said more to himself than to me, I think. "It has to be."

I stood, squared shouldered, next to Annie and Mags next to her. Finnick stood with the only other middle-aged victor of District Four. Carl Shadwick. He had two children and three grandchildren. He was the only victor with children, actually. I hoped his children would live out their lives peacefully without ever having to be in the Hunger Games. But that was very, very unlikely.

Cynara Linen, District Four's Capitol Escort, walked up to the mike in her poofy neon blue dress. Honestly, I bet she lost brain cells just by carrying the fifty-pound silver wig on her head and the pound of makeup on her face. Giving us her brilliant white smile, Cynara tapped the microphone as a signal that the Reaping had begun.

"Welcome, welcome, to the 75th annual Hunger Games! And," she gave the audience a look as if what she was about to say was even better than children killing each other on live television, "welcome to the third Hunger Games Quarter Quell!"

The audience clapped along with Cynara, but it was distant and devoid of enthusiasm. Unsurprisingly, Cynara continued on merrily with her speech.

"Well! This year is mighty exciting! The tributes for this year's Quarter Quell as you all know will be reaped from the district's already existing pool of Victors!" Cynara looked like it was the best news ever. "As per usual, ladies first!"

For a slight moment, barely even there, she faltered a bit as she looked to Mags, Annie, and I. It seemed that even a capitol citizen like her wasn't cruel enough to wish for an eighty-year-old woman finally close enough to dying peacefully and a young woman severely suffering from PTSD to go back into that arena. But it ad left as quickly as it had came. Like that regret never existed in the first place. 

Just as peppy as she always was, Cynara put her arm into the bowl dramatically. She swirled her wrist in the bowl as if she had just as many paper strips this year as every other year. But no. There were only three pieces of paper and every single one of them had my name on it.

I withheld a breath as Cynara walked back to the microphone and unfolded the paper.

"Annie Cresta!" announced Cynara.

I was roughly the same height as Annie, and most of the time she seemed to be shrinking from all the weight she held.It made me tall enough enough to wrap her in my arms and be the bigger person in the hug. In the corner of my eye I could see Mags stepping forward about to volunteer.

"I volunteer as tribute!" I told Cynara. Finnick had also seen Mags about to step forward, and I saw the panic in his eyes before I volunteered. Relief set in his eyes before they turned guilty as he looked at me.

"Pallas, no!" Annie cried. "I can't let you do that!"

For a second I wanted to breakdown, but then I realized that the cameras were still there, and the entire Capitol including President Snow. I grabbed Annie's shaking hand and looked her in the eyes, as if to say It's okay. I'll be okay. I promise.

Mags grabbed my wrist after I released Annie from my hug. And she had regret in her eyes. But I stood tall with pride after hugging Mags too. Cynara beckoned me forward to say hello to the applauding crowd. I smiled shyly and gave my district a small wave.

I kept waving even as Cynara announced she would be choosing from the male victors as well. It didn't matter who got called. I knew that Finnick would be either chosen or wouldn't be. Carl was a nice man, but I knew that he was as loyal to the Capitol as the Victors were in Districts 1 and 2. If it came down to protecting Everdeen from him, I'd barely hesitate.

All of a sudden a sickeningly familiar voice rang out.

"I volunteer as tribute!"

My eyes grew slightly wider as I watched Finnick volunteer and come up next to me. He gave a charming smirk towards me and I replied with a small smile. I wasn't about to break character now. Together holding hands, as Cynara Linen announced us as the Quarter Quell's Tributes, we blew kisses to the crowd and to the District. Our faces were beaming with pride and our facades were more beautiful than ever in the face of the camera.

Almost everyone was cheering for us. There was no doubt that the Capitol was eating every moment of that up. They were gushing over the tributes pride and unity from the District and to represent them in such a fun Hunger Games this year.

Little did they know, our hands were gripping each other so tightly our knuckles had turned white. 

• • •

annie and mags have the purest hearts ugh. btw for anyone who's reading this, this chapter is about average length of each chapter or so. constructive criticism is always appreciated ! bye loves <3