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Dove looked at her surroundings. A beach suddenly appeared out of nowhere under her feet. It was a weird place. Everything seemed to go around a lake in the centre, while a forest enclosed the place around it. The forest was the furthest thing she could see, no mountains or buildings in the distance.
Birds chirped behind her, where an entrance to the forest made its appearance. The sun was bright, allowing her to follow the path with barely no complications. However, the more she distanced herself from the lake, the darkest it became, and the gloomier the birds' chirps got.
However, Dove didn't stop walking until the chirping stopped abruptly. That wasn't a good sign. Scared, she turned around to run to the lake, but the path was no longer there. She was trapped in the forest, birds watching closely her every move, silently, like a predator to its prey.
Vines crawled their way up on the trees, covering her view and creating a sort of cage around her. Flowers bloomed in them, which she recognised immediately. Clematis vines. She thought, while desperately looking around for an exit.
A Mockingjay landed in front of her, staring intensely at her before singing Alder's death song. Dove fell to her knees. That was too much to handle at the moment. Another Mockingjay joined the song, followed by others until there wasn't a part of the forest in which it didn't echo.
Dove covered her ears with her hands, hitting her forehead repeatedly on the ground to keep herself sane. Two boots appeared in her sight. They were part of the 67th Hunger Games outfit, which was the same for all tributes. Looking up, she saw Alder's eyes. He looked down at her with a mocking grin.
"Did you miss me?" He asked, crouching down to her position on the floor. "Did you really think you could ever forget me? Evade me? I'm right here, Dove." He commented, pointing with a finger to her forehead.
"And I'll never go away. You're a murderer! You killed both your allies! How could you kill us mercilessly?!" Alder yelled, causing the Mockingjay's chirp to echo his voice, overthrowing his death's song.
"Alder, I'm sorry! " Dove cried, letting tears leave her eyes. "But I. . .Wait. What do you mean mercilessly? You asked me to do it. . .You're not Alder!" She realised, raising her head to look at the boy directly in his eyes.
"You're not him! He forgave me! I only killed him because I didn't want my friend to suffer anymore! Is it truly that horrible? " Her yells echoed around the forest louder than the Mockingjays' chirps. He seemed displeased at her answer.
The boy in front of her, who once she believed to be Alder, turned into a mass of fog, slowly surrounding her. Once it came in contact with her skin, an involuntary scream left her mouth. Her body felt as if it were burning. She was no longer capable of controlling or moving her arms or legs. The world spanned around her, not letting her concentrate. Her body fell into a pool of blood, calming her pain for a second before the burning sensation came back again.
"Ah!" Dove screamed horrified as she sat up in her bed. Her eyes frenetically looked around the room as she tried to stabilise her breathing. That room wasn't her own, it was her train's assigned chamber. A hand suddenly stroked her back, startling her.
"Don't worry, it's me." Finnick's hushed voice caused her to let out a sigh. Her heartbeat was going crazy, and probably, even him could hear it thumping frantically.
"You almost gave me a heart attack," Dove whispered, a hand rested on her chest as if that action would instantly calm it down. Annie's mumbling made her look back in front of her. "Since when is Annie here?" she questioned, glancing to her left, where Finnick sat.
"She came a bit after you fell asleep. She had a nightmare and wanted to sleep here with you. Let's just say she got the wrong idea when she saw me here already," he explained, taking his hand from her back as they stared at their friend. "You two fall asleep so easily. She literally hugged you like a pillow, and five minutes after she was sleeping soundly."
"I have that effect on people," Dove commented playfully, turning to her left to meet his gaze. "What about you? Have you slept anything?" she asked worriedly, to which he shook his head.
"No, I couldn't take what you said earlier out of my mind. And, by the looks of that nightmare of yours, neither did you. That tribute from Twelve does look a lot like Alder." Finnick confessed. His eyes kept on hers as he caressed her hand reassuringly.
Dove recalled now. She was in the middle of the 74th Hunger Games as a mentor for District Four, alongside Finnick, Annie, and Ron. Just hours before, they had seen the recap of the reaping all over Panem, and it was an absolute surprise when she saw District Twelve's tributes.
Firstly, there was the girl who had volunteered for her little sister, Katniss Everdeen. Volunteers were scarce in Twelve. There hadn't been one in decades. And the appearance of District Twelve's salute after her volunteering couldn't be overlooked. It was a gesture no one had seen them do since Dove's Victor Tour.
Then, there was the male tribute, Peeta Mellark. A boy of the same age as Alder when he died, and with the same physique. If it weren't for the different last names, Dove would believe they were related. Who knows, maybe Alder's mother was a Mellark before changing her last name to her husband's, or vice versa. She thought.
Only Ron and Finnick understood why those two tributes would affect Dove. But, it did not only impact her, she almost had a mental breakdown in front of her own tributes. With the excuse of her illness, she practically ran to her room, where she cried until Finnick appeared later.
"Either him or his district partner will win this year. It's been 23 Hunger Games, but District Twelve will finally have a new Victor." Dove muttered under her breath. It wasn't a belief or her own desire. That year's tributes weren't memorable in any way.
However, Katniss made a name for herself by volunteering for her little sister. All eyes were on her already. And, if Peeta was as similar to Alder as she thought, he would make up a story around himself, interesting enough for everyone to have their eyes on him.
"Yeah, I think so too," Finnick confessed in a whisper, wrapping his arms around her waist as both stared at Annie. Her mental state would only get worse, and both knew it. It was never easy to see the children, who they were supposed to protect, die.
Annie already had a mental breakdown after seeing both her tributes die in the bloodbath during the 71st Hunger Games, Johanna Mason's year. Johanna wasn't as ruthless as everyone thought, but it took time for her to appreciate anyone, Dove being one of those lucky ones.
She attributed Johanna's state to the loss of her family. News travelled fast between Victors, and one day, she heard a drunk Haymitch talk about the deal to her, to which she replied 'too late' with an annoyed face.
"I've had this question for a while. How did you do for Johanna to like you? I'm pretty sure she hates me," Finnick whispered, trying to cheer her up. She just shook her head, a chuckle escaping her lips. "No, seriously. I think if she had the chance, she would kill me on the spot."
"Don't be such a drama queen. She doesn't hate you. Actually, I think she finds your Capitol behaviour funny. She became bolder after you two met." Dove replied, ruffling his hair before catching a glimpse of light through the window. "I think it's time for Prince Charming to go back to his room."
Finnick turned around to see the light slowly entering the room. With a sigh, he looked back at her. "Yep, that's my cue to leave. See you later, Princess." He commented with a snicker. Softly, he kissed her forehead before going to his room.
The following day, Dove chatted with Johanna as they waited for their tributes to appear all dressed up, which would take a long time. A few metres away from them, Haymitch and Finnick conversed lively, both of their Capitol characters showing immensely. Although Haymitch's attitude wasn't too faked, since he drank until he passed out, a thing that didn't seem likely that year. He appeared to be holding up better than other times.
"If you're going to continue looking at him with heart eyes, I swear I'll puke," Johanna commented, crossing her arms in front of her chest as she let out a mocking chuckle.
"Do it, it'll be fun to watch the news tonight," Dove replied, a grin on her face as she saw her friend fake gagging. "OK, OK, stop. I don't want anyone to scold us for acting weird. Victors should be role models. Perfect in every way." She commented, her accent changing to the Capitol's usual one.
"Having some fun over here, girls?" Ron asked, walking closer to them as he did a barely noticeable gesture with his finger in Haymitch's a Finnick's direction. Annie, who stood next to Ron, smiled the best she could for the cameras and crew around.
"Maybe, maybe not," Dove commented, clasping her hands together behind her back. "We were slandering Finnick—I mean. . ." she said loud enough for Finnick and Haymitch, who were getting closer to the group, to hear.
"I mean, we didn't badmouth him, obviously. How could we possibly criticise one of the handsomest Victors in all Panem?" Dove commented playfully as she changed to a Capitol accent again.
"It's a sin to be as handsome as I am." He replied, allowing Dove free range to start a war or let it go. And she decided to continue it. The small playful battles between them were something they usually never did while on the Capitol. However, a few tributes had already arrived, causing all the attention to go to them.
"Oh, for sure. Maybe one day some Peacekeepers will arrest you and take you to jail. But don't worry, I'm sure your sentence won't be too long. Although, I worry about Melo. They'll charge him with a life sentence." Finnick gasped, placing a hand on his chest for dramatic effect, while Ron and Haymitch looked pleased with the scene going on in front of them.
Johanna laughed loudly as she rested an arm on Dove's shoulders. Annie joined in the laughter and stood next to her friend as they faced the three men. The group, without a word, got divided into two sections. Haymitch and Ron, who backed up Finnick with a grin, and Annie and Johanna, who enjoyed Finnick's dramatic offended expression.
"I beg your pardon—" Finnick tried to say. "Beg all you want, the sentence won't be longer than a year. Well, maybe they'll reduce it to 6 months. One year might be too excessive for your handsomeness." His mouth was wide open. Out of the corner of her eye, Dove saw her district's female tribute, who was finally changed into her Parade clothes.
"If you excuse us, Annie and I should get going. We've got work to do," she said, winking an eye in his direction discretely as she held Annie's hand to guide her towards District's Four chariot.
"I'm gonna marry her someday," Finnick muttered under his breath in a dazed state, which caused Ron to cross his arms in front of his chest, glancing from his daughter to the boy.
"Good luck with that. Her illness seems to be uncontrollable. She might be dead before you put the ring on her finger," Johanna said with a bitter chuckle, keeping her arms crossed as she looked at Finnick.
Four years after Dove's new deal, the routinely poisoning didn't stop, which was covered by saying she was receiving illness experimental treatments every two months. However, that fooled none of the Victors, much less her family and loved ones.
President Snow made sure the poison wasn't deadly, but that didn't mean the marks from coughing blood didn't show. They were less notorious and dissipated with time. Still, when they were finally gone, her next visit was only days away, causing more wounds to appear. It was a never-ending vicious circle.
Moreover, her poisoning symptoms were so similar to her supposed illness' ones, that those who didn't know about what Victor's life truly was like believed it easily. Dove's sudden headaches, her occasional dizziness, her steady loss of appetite, and the occasional puking were completely overlooked.
Finnick had tried to make her eat when she didn't feel like it. Although he stopped quickly once he saw her running to the bathroom to vomit right after the first spoon of soup. Not because she wanted to, but because her body didn't accept the food. The vomiting and loss of appetite only contributed to the increase in her weight loss, which became worrisome the year before.
Thankfully, even after all that Dove was going through, she never lost her spirit. Her silly and sarcastic remarks were still present, although her jokes became more self-deprecating than before. A thing she shared with Finnick, who looked for any excuse possible to be all day long next to her, holding her hand, or just staying by her side.
"Finnick, let's go. The boy's ready." Ron announced, causing Finnick to go back to his senses. They said their goodbyes to the fellow mentors and walked to District Four chariots, where Annie and Dove chatted with the girl tribute. They were explaining the strategy for the ride until the Training Centre.
"These Hunger Games are going to be very different," Dove muttered to Johanna, who joined the group after their tributes left through the doors. They stared silently as the District Twelve's tributes left the place with awesome outfits while holding hands.
"Why are their outfits so cool when in Seven we're still dressed as trees? It's not fair!" Johanna exclaimed, raising her arms as if to make a point. "And you, what the hell happened to that awesome designer of yours? Your tributes have been nothing but fishes since your games," she added, turning around to face Dove.
"Ohan was promoted to being my private designer since I frequent the Capitol so much. No one wants to see the Capitol's Songbird with a repeated dress. Everything must be bright and new," Dove commented irritatedly, although she had her Capitol smile plastered on her face. "There's now another guy for female tributes, although I don't even know his name. But I think I should thank him, since his outfit helped Annie so much."
"From experience, not even the most ridiculous outfits can help you. So you owe him nothing," Johanna said seriously, glancing in Haymitch's direction, as she clenched her hands together. It was true, Johanna's outfit was an absurd dress that represented a tree, which didn't help her not be considered desirable. The Capitol's fashion sense was bizarre after all.
"Noted," Dove muttered, rubbing her friend's arm softly as they walked to the ride that would get them to the Tribute's Training Centre, where the remaining six days until the interviews with Caesar Flickerman flew by in a blur.
The interviews, in comparison, passed by slowly. Most of the tributes played their angles perfectly, even her own District, but some felt so forced and unnatural, that Dove couldn't help but close her eyes and space out for a while. At least, until Katniss Everdeen's name was called, to which got her back to reality.
The girl was clearly nervous and didn't even hear Caesar's first question, which he laughed off as if it were nothing. Dove felt slightly disappointed. Where was the courageous girl who had volunteered for her sister? However, in Katniss's defence, she was trying her best, almost treating Caesar as a friend.
Why does the interview seem so similar to mine? Dove wondered as Caesar asked the tribute about her volunteering. I know we both volunteered for our sisters. But, come on Caesar, you can come up with something better than this. She thought, staring at the girl up and down as she twirled around on the stage, showing her flammable dress.
Gotta say that's pretty cool. Dove admitted inside her mind. "She's not!" One of the Gamemakers shouted, getting her attention back at the questions. It seemed Katniss had done either something impressive or something horrible to the Gamemakers during the evaluation.
"She asked me to try really hard to win," Katniss stated while referring to her little sister's words during the farewell time. "And what did you say?" Caesar asked, drawing the crowd's attention to the girl's words.
"I swore I would." She replied confidently. Caesar only had time to acknowledge her words before the buzzing sound made its presence. Katniss Everdeen, District Twelve's tribute time was up.
The boy who went after her drew Dove's attention even more. Peeta Mellark, District Twelve's male tribute and almost an identical copy of Alder Caldwell. The boy stood confidently, joking around with Caesar for some time before they got into a more serious conversation.
"Handsome lad like you. There must be some girl. Come on, what's her name?" he insisted, causing Peeta to sigh.
"Well, there is this one girl. I've had a crush on her ever since I can remember. But I'm pretty sure she didn't know I was alive until the reaping." The crowd sympathised with him. Unrequited love. Who hadn't gone through that? What could be more relatable than that?
I don't like where this is going. Dove thought, analysing Peeta's every move. But, to her dismay, the boy confessed his love for his own district partner in front of all Panem in the simplest way she had seen since Alder. "Because. . . She came here with me," he replied simply.
There was it, the bomb-dropping that reminded her so much of Alder. Had Haymitch seen the boy's potential and wanted to use him exactly like he had done with Alder? At first, everyone's eyes were on Peeta, but shortly after, they were on Katniss. Everything was too similar to Dove's own Games, causing her headache to get worse.
Haymitch is reusing the crossed-lovers' act! After the failure with Alder? Is he trying to get the girl back by all means? Even if that means leaving Peeta behind? I can't. . . Dove rambled inside her head, her breathing getting quicker by the second. Although she tried to calm herself down, it didn't work.
"It's OK," Finnick reassured her in a hushed voice, before the roar of the crowd overthrew it. There was no way anyone could have heard him with all the yelling and encouragement from the people.
The tributes went to the lifts, while the mentors followed close behind. However, Dove stood in her place, waiting for District Twelve's mentor and crew to go inside before going in herself.
"Hey sweetheart!" Haymitch said, faking his cheerfulness as he gestured for her to enter even though the doors were already closing behind her.
"Cut the bullshit. You're using your boy as you did with Alder? What the fuck is wrong with you?" Dove asked, not caring about the escort or the stylists who were staring at the scene, brutally shocked.
"Well, it worked perfectly fine for you, didn't it? Oh, how heartbroken you must be. Peeta is like Alder's lost twin, isn't he? That just makes the show so much better. The boy the Capitol couldn't save. Who knows if they're family? But, now, they have a second chance. They can save Peeta to make up for Alder's death." He explained, a grin on his face as he gestured with his hands to get his point across.
"You're sickening." Dove spat just before they got to District Four's floor. However, before she could get off the lift, Haymitch said his last witty comeback. "I get told that a lot!" he replied with a chuckle.
Once she was in the commodity of her assigned room, Dove untied her rope from her hair, causing it to fall down to the bed, spreading around as if it were an accumulation of blood streams. Glancing back at the rope, she tried not to think about Alder or Peeta. Anything related to reality made her want to puke the scarce food she had eaten.
Many knots appeared and disappeared in her rope in a matter of seconds, demonstrating the years she had spent practising, even after her games. Her hands almost acted by themselves. Everything was fine for a few minutes until she got to the Constrictor knot, a simple knot to tie, but difficult to untie once tightened.
Fuck! Dove cursed as she tried to loosen the knot, which she had never achieved before. Finnick always chuckled when he saw her struggling, before taking the rope from her hands and untying it with no trouble. But, he wasn't there at the moment. Frustrated, Dove threw the rope to the wall, causing a loud thud to echo around the room.
She raised her hands to her head, trying to keep her hair out of her face. Her breathing was irregular, forcing her to take deep breaths at some points, and at others to hold them for a few seconds. Her eyes opened and closed a few times, trying to decide if everything was real or if it was still a dream.
"Dove, are you OK?" The last person Dove wanted to hear at the moment was there, in her room, watching her break down. Annie Cresta, her friend and soon to be sister-in-law, who still remained mentally unstable despite her progress, was watching her have a mental breakdown. "Don't worry, you know, I get them too. You always help me. Let me help you this time. . . So. . . Do you want to talk about it?"
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