Crimson... Oh how she'd come to hate that color soon enough.
Athena looked at the white walls, weakly flicking the puddle of red, flicking droplets on the vertical surface, wanting to paint it all red but the cold made the warm blood steam against the ground, solidify and dry rapidly.
All felt sore and numb in the best places, she couldn't tell if she had broken bones or not since all the feelings were blending into one, all she knew is that she was on the ground, black and blue, unable to move a muscle.
For once the cold of this room was a welcome despite the constant nightmares that kept her awake because of it if it wasn't for the shivering that chased the tears away.
Oh how she hated the sound of a door opening.
"Get up Hadley." The voice came. "You have the choice to come easily or the hard way."
Choice.
She hated having a choice.
Once wishing for freedom, three? Four? Or even more days of it made her regret ever wishing for it, all she wanted is someone else to make the choices finally... That way she wouldn't be to blame for what happened too others...
She pushed on her arms, feeling her elbows shake as she sat up, pulling up the T-shirt from the bloody ground, tearing it off the ground it froze too.
"Hurry up, or your little friends will need to be hurt again."
This control is bullshit, she doesn't want it! She wanted to be master of her own life! Not that of others! She was going mad with Peeta's screams, she was going mad with her own screams, why couldn't they all just be dead?!
She dragged her feet underneath her and stood with the strength of the wall holding her up. She must listen, she needs to listen, she need to be the little Capitol sweetheart again, that will save them, that will protect them, she must protect them, she can't fail them.
"Good girl." The hair on the back of her head stood up in a shiver of disgust but she gritted her teeth, this will protect them, she will not fail another, she will protect them.
She pushed off the wall with a deep breath.
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"Katniss Everdeen has consented to be the face of our cause to help unite the districts against the Capitol. In exchange, I have promised several concessions. First, we'll assess all opportunities for the extraction of the victors held hostage in the Capitol. Once freed, they will be granted full pardon for any and all crimes committed against the rebel cause."
That was the only good news in 13.
Sure Johanna got to laugh at Katniss doing a shitty job at acting for a propaganda shoot and they tried to have her come along for a filming session in what was left of 12 but she turned it down, they ended up taking Mags for the 'sad old lady looking at death' shot they wanted to make which was a bit ghastly.
"How do you think they are doing?" Johanna asked Finnick who was sitting with her in the mostly empty chow hall, only a few little groups around.
He was tying and untying a length of rope in all the different ways he knew, mind swimming but hands working.
"Dead." He said. "I wish they'd all be dead."
"But we both know they would never be that lucky."
"I wish I could be in any of their places."
"Yeah, I do to, I wonder what they'd do too me." (Oh sweet summer child.)
"I wonder what they are doing too them."
And almost as if summoned by Finnick's words, the screens turned on with the Capitol logo.
Sure this time Peeta was lacking from the screen but that's not what most took Johanna's attention.
Compared to her first appearance, there was much difference too Athena.
She held herself a little straighter, her outfit was neat and orderly tho creasing created as she had her arms crossed and legs at the knees, her hair in its eternal style but looking almost plastic in its perfect, not a hair out of place, symmetry too it and how tired her face and eyes looked. The drumming of her fingers on her upper arm also being a bit more agitated them at first.
"Dear watchers, with the constant rising threat of the rebels, we are here tonight with a spectacular fighter to tell us about what to expect from them."
"Well Caesar I don't know much about how the rebels fight per se but you know me, we 2 victors have a few tricks up our sleeves." She said with a little shrug as she uncrossed her arms, neither acknowledging their last meeting.
"She is playing it like Peeta." Finnick said as he watched. "Siding with the Capitol for some reason."
"Yeah but what would make her switch up this soon?" Johanna knew Athena as stubborn, a week shouldn't have been enough to break her, were they constantly torturing them? That thought made her shiver.
"Oh? Had the rebels never told you when you sided with them?"
"Well I promised you I'd kill Katniss yes?"
"Yes, yes you did."
"Well they wanted to kidnap and use her so they didn't really trust me that much sadly so I can only tell you a little. I knew they wanted to save us from the arena but they they only took three victors and abandoned me."
"She is lying, not one of us knew the extent of this all." Johanna sighed.
"Well, can you tell us about what you know?"
"Of course, what I know for sure is much of their forces have fled, having amassed in 12, meeting in the mines out of view and so when you heroically intervened there, they scattered, sadly I do not know where they went from there, Heymitch didn't trust me which honestly hurts."
"She is good." Finnick said, Athena looked calm and collected as she talked, with a few gestures of ease here and there.
"She played with a facade for most of her life, she just needs to put it on we'd be none the wiser."
"Wow, you hear that people, it hurts my heart to know 12 used its own victor for this ghastly act. But lets move on to protecting ourselves, what can you say on that?"
"Well from what I know they stole peacekeeper weaponry, even if they don't know how to properly use it, they can be dangerous. What I propose too our dear fighters against these rebels would be a long rang fight, we have better training, better aim, we'd take out several before they get close to touching us. If you need to go up in close quarters, a strong jab to the throat, that would put them out of commission."
"Ah of course the throat, oh you."
"You know me Caesar, the Reaper is cut throat, literally, that's my signature move." She shrugged, the smile never grazing her eyes, Athena looked like she just wanted this to be over.
"Well our time is reaching its end, one last advise before we say goodbye?"
"Maybe one." She looked into the camera. "Stay strong."
Johanna felt awful, knowing that those last few words were not meant for the Capitol, for the rebels or anyone else.
"Alright." She said too herself. "I'll be."
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Athena was exhausted and in pain, and instead of being brought back too her room, she was pushed into a circular one with a man she didn't know.
She was out of the Capitol outfit, the man dressed the same as she was.
"Hadley, kill him." Came the voice.
"WHAT?!" The man yelled, instantly lifting his arms, she didn't know him so he must be from 1 or 4, this being a very basic fighting form that anyone could throw up with no prior experience but it was done too flawlessly to be someone that was not a career.
Athena looked at him, sighing, flexing her fingers as she lifted her arms.
She'd kill.
She'd kill him before he can even scream.
Because who knows what will happen if she doesn't make that choice...