WORD COUNT: 2223
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EARLY MORNING SUNLIGHT streamed through the half-cracked window, illuminating the pair of serene lovers tangled together under silk, crimson sheets. The first to stir awake was Kyra, her dark curls sprawled across half the bed, as her head rested atop Coriolanus's bare chest. As the cloud of fatigue lifted from her dazed mind, quickly reminded through her aching body their night of passion, Kyra recalled another morning they had awoken in this position. Only, this time, she did not panic at the sensation of Coriolanus's tight hold around her, as he slept peacefully on Sejanus's side of the bed.
But it did not belong to Sejanus. Not anymore. And neither did she.
Kyra Tanwen unequivocally belonged to Coriolanus Snow.
If two weeks ago someone had told her how being partnered with her rival would turn out, Kyra would have laughed in their face, and likely slapped them for insinuating something so offensive. And yet now, she couldn't be happier with his arms wrapped around her bare body, able to admire his tranquil beauty as the warm rays of the sun glowed upon his blond curls.
As if sensing her gaze upon him, Coriolanus's watercolour eyes gently fluttered open, met with the sight of Kyra's warm smile.
"Mhm, good morning, Tanwen." Coriolanus greeted in a voice hoarse with sleep, his own lips curving in response to her infectious adoration.
"Good morning, Snow." Kyra's gentle smile widened, folding her arms over his chest and resting her chin atop them, unable to tear her eyes away from the man she allowed herself to love.
A deep chuckle rose up Coriolanus's throat, prompting a giggle from Kyra, amused by the unpredictable turn of events the rivals had found themselves in, and still carried from the high of their relinquished hearts. Naturally, the frustrating man beneath her immediately resorted to arrogant teasing, "So, was last night enough for you to forgive me?"
"Hm, I actually have one more condition. If you wish to be forgiven."
"Oh, was three orgasms not enough for you, my love?" Coriolanus fired back confidently, the hand on her hip drifting down mischievously, and causing Kyra to ruffle his curls in retaliation.
"Careful! I will shove you out of this bed!" Kyra threatened playfully, narrowing her eyes with the same fierceness he had seen from her time and time again.
"Oh, I know, you've done it before." Coriolanus chuckled, before his expression melted into earnestness, "What do you want? You already know I'd give you anything."
"Well, I want everything." Kyra commented with a smirk, before leaning her face closer to Coriolanus's and whispering, "But you can start by being mine."
"Kyra... I've been yours since the mo... since the moment our hands danced across your piano together. And perhaps even before." Coriolanus whispered back breathless, a weight to his words and a heaviness to his hooded gaze, before meeting her lips as if unable to hold himself back a second longer.
As their lips danced together, confident and practised and totally sure of each other now, Coriolanus gently urged Kyra onto her back, propping himself up over her as they fed on each other's poison.
"What about..." Kyra pulled back slightly from the kiss growing more feverish each second, mumbling against Coriolanus's insistent lips, "...You and... Meddy..."
Coriolanus's lips did not falter as he mumbled back between eager kisses, "Who?"
Kyra pulled back in an instant, eyes alight with anger, as she cried out, "Medea Cupid, you-"
"I'm joking, Kyra!" Coriolanus laughed, amused by how quick Kyra's irritation flared up and faded, before taunting, "I should've realised the only humour you're well-versed in is bad cake-related puns."
"I'm serious, you and the floor are about to become very well acquainted!" Kyra threatened, her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.
Coriolanus shook his head in exasperation, placing a taming peck onto Kyra's forehead, before answering her previous question seriously, "I'll end things with her today. They weren't all that serious anyway."
"She'll be out for revenge, you know. For both of us." Kyra pointed out, not wanting to even imagine what it would be like the next time they crossed paths. It was undeniable that their friendship would be well and truly dead, but frankly, Kyra had only really liked the redhead for her ambitionless support and vague similarity to Sejanus. Neither of which mattered now that she had Coriolanus by her side.
"Good thing she doesn't have any dirt on us, then." Coriolanus shrugged nonchalantly, adding, "Besides, I'm good at talking her down. Though, we probably shouldn't rub this in her face too much, if we want to avoid getting burnt."
Kyra nodded, her mind briefly drifting to Antonius. She had roped him in to be her spy on Coriolanus, something which served little purpose now. But Medea and Antonius were also friends, at least close enough that she had run straight to him when she thought Kyra and Coriolanus slept together. Kyra wondered if she could use Antonius to simply make sure Medea didn't try anything, or at the minimum know about it before she went ahead with it, and also whether she should let Snow in on this little web she'd created.
For some reason, Kyra elected to keep it her secret.
While her mind wandered down this rabbit hole, her delicate palms mindlessly rubbed Coriolanus's back. Her fingertips grazed the scars on his shoulder blades, tearing Kyra from her thoughts as she felt Coriolanus tense up from her touch. However, he didn't move her hands away like he had done when they slept together in the common room. Taking this as an invitation, Kyra's fingers gently traced the bumps and ridges of his large scars, memorising their shape.
"Coriolanus?" Kyra began, but he already knew what she was about to ask.
"The larger one is from when the arena got bombed. A beam on fire fell atop me, nearly killed me from how badly it burnt me." Coriolanus explained, his eyes not quite meeting hers as they glazed over in memory, before continuing in a quieter voice, "The other was... from when I went into the arena during the 10th games."
"You what?" Kyra gently pushed him off as she sat up in shock, turning his body so that she could examine the scars on his broad back.
"Dr Gaul sent me in to retrieve... Sejanus. I think he wanted to make some sort of... point about the games. Nearly got us both killed in the process." Coriolanus explained in a strained voice, not particularly wanting to dig up old memories, but knowing Kyra would press sooner or later. And she wasn't one to back down when she did.
"I can't even imagine..." Kyra breathed out, wondering how little she knew about Sejanus after they separated, and how often Coriolanus had been the rock she couldn't be for him, "He was so lucky to have you as his friend."
Snow stayed silent, glad that Kyra couldn't see his clenched jaw, before eventually diverting the conversation, "That boy from 8 attacked us. I had to... put him down."
"Oh my gosh... That... That must've been awful for you..." Kyra whispered, her hand reaching to cup his cheek and turn his face back towards her, genuine concern within her gaze...
...Alongside a hint of sadistic curiosity.
"It was... Taking a human life, even district, it was... sickening." Coriolanus admitted, though leaving out the part that it was only sickening because of how natural it felt.
"Oh, Coriolanus... You did what you had to do to survive." Kyra's eyes softened, and yet there was something strangely artificial about her sympathy, especially as she continued to press the dark subject, "Was it... hard to do? Or... easy?"
"Strangely... easy. I didn't really think I simply... let my survival instincts kick in." Coriolanus answered hesitantly, testing the waters while keeping a close eye on her every minor reaction. Daringly, he added, "Afterwards, it sort of felt-"
"-Powerful." Kyra finished for him.
This time, the understanding in her eyes was genuine.
"Yes..." Coriolanus breathed out, brows knitting together in confusion at how she could possibly understand.
"When you beat Antonius..." Kyra's voice was barely audible as she spoke, "There was a part of me that... almost didn't want you to stop. It felt justified seeing the man who hurt and humiliated me get punished. And if you wouldn't have overpowered him, he would've overpowered me. Just like you and that boy in the arena."
Coriolanus felt his heartrate increase at Kyra's words, her own pupils dilating as she spoke them. An animalistic, arousing tension rose between them, one that had Kyra glancing away shamefully, denying herself. Affectionately, Coriolanus brushed back her hair as he reassured, "It's human to feel like this. But no one likes to admit it. We pride ourselves on order and civilisation, until the uncivilised force us to face our worst selves. Ultimately, that's what the Hunger Games are for."
Kyra was silent for a long pause, not meeting Coriolanus's gaze as he continued to stroke her hair, weighing up his words. Eventually, she pulled away and shuffled out of bed, reaching for his discarded button-up while clearing her throat, "I'm going to, um, get us some breakfast. I'm starving after last night."
Coriolanus made no attempt to stop her, simply leaning back and watching as Kyra dressed herself in his oversized shirt, and made haste exit. She wasn't ready to face that part of herself yet, and he understood. But he knew she would come around one day.
Heading downstairs, Kyra decided to not trouble the Avoxes so early in the day, making her way to the kitchen to prepare breakfast herself. However, upon entering, Kyra was surprised to find her mother already in there, downing a small vial of an unfamiliar cloudy liquid.
"Ah, Kyra!" Circe jumped upon noticing her daughter, quickly shoving the empty vial into her purse.
"What was that?"
"Hm? Oh, nothing serious. Just something my doctor prescribed me to give me a bit of energy in the mornings." Circe waved her off, the words falling from her lips as smooth as butter, before diverting quickly, "I've got a meeting for TanTech in an hour. Can you believe it?!"
"It's a Sunday, you should be in bed!" Kyra scoffed, leaning against the counter with her arms crossed, shivering slightly from the coldness on her bare legs.
"Life of a business owner..." Circe smiled, before nodding towards Kyra matter of fact, "You'll be in charge of all this sooner or later."
"Later, preferably." Kyra chuckled, turning to put on a pot of coffee, and missing the strange flash in Circe's eyes.
"Whenever you have to take over, I know you'll handle yourself fine." Circe mused, getting out three mugs, while her voice turned teasing, "Hopefully, you won't be too distracted from your career now..."
"Why would I be?" Kyra retorted in amusement, turning back towards her mother, who glanced up at the ceiling with a knowing look. In an instant, Kyra understood what she was implying, her cheeks dusting red in realisation as she awkwardly apologised, "I'm... really sorry... if it was too loud or..."
"Hey, don't apologise! I've been waiting for the day where my little girl grows up and uses her beauty to her advantage." Circe slapped Kyra's arm playfully, a proud smile on her lips, as she lowered her voice, "And you couldn't have picked a wealthier man to do it with."
"That's not..." Kyra rolled her eyes, unsurprised by her mother's money-focused mind, correcting, "That's not why I slept with him! I... I have..."
"Feelings for him? Oh, who would've thought!" Circe commented sarcastically, laughing as Kyra gently shoved her away, knowing her mother had been right all along, "I told you, Kyra. Mothers know best!"
Circe had never been much of a mother, but it was moments like these where Kyra enjoyed Circe's lack of parental skills. It felt more like talking to a sister than a parent, and Kyra wondered whether she could've bridged the distance between them years ago if she had treated Circe like a friend rather than expecting her to be a mother.
Watching as Kyra poured the coffee, Circe turned strangely serious, "Remember to be careful, Kyra."
"Of what?"
"Love can blind you. Using someone's feelings against them, keeping yourself detached, it's much easier." Circe explained, her intense stare focused on her daughter, while Kyra kept her gaze locked onto the darkness of the swirling bitter coffee, "You have to prioritise your own security, before anyone else's, and you do that with money. Thankfully, that boy up there has a lot of it, but don't neglect your own career, your business, your ability to get out before his empire falls apart."
Kyra wasn't sure what to say. Her mind knew Circe was right, having the importance of financial security drilled into her from a young age, and yet her heart wanted to disagree. She wanted to believe that having someone on her side, someone who truly understood her for the first time in her entire life, was far more important than wealth. Then again, that person happened to be very wealthy, and suddenly Kyra realised she couldn't distinguish between the two.
"Just... think about it." Circe whispered, taking her coffee cup and beginning to leave the kitchen, speaking while she walked, "It's why we ended up here, struggling for money. It's why I stuck with your father, running a business I never wanted."
Kyra watched her mother leave, an unsettling pit forming in her stomach, as she reflected on Circe's words.
Would she still love Coriolanus if she couldn't rely on him? And would he still love Kyra if she didn't need him?
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A/N: Wasn't that a (mostly) wholesome chapter? You guys can't say I don't give you happy moments! Hopefully, you enjoyed seeing some softer Corya now that they're finally together :)
The next chapter will bring Act 1 to a close, but do not worry, there is SO much more to come. Act 2 will be getting a LOT darker as we follow our twisted pair of lovers becoming more influential in the Capitol by any means necessary. It's about to get very manipulative, political, and undeniably evil up in this bitch.
Just a reminder for the new readers (and those that are wanting a slightly more good-aligned story to refresh them), I have another Tom Blyth fic posted focusing on his character Billy the Kid. It's a great show that I really recommend, and if I manage to convert some of you into Brunet Blyth lovers, I'll consider that a win. Looking forward to seeing y'all in chapter 20!