“Make
him pay for it,”-Johanna, Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
She
knew what had happened to him. The
details weren’t important in this case, but the fact weighed down on her, her
eyes falling on the empty seat that had remained that way since its owner had
disappeared.
As
simply a citizen of district seven, she had never guessed at the absence of
that one victor, happy with the inkling of a life her family had given her. As a victor though, she was alone, her family
gone, and the Capitol becoming the ringleader in her now circus of a life. She had learned the lesson Snow wanted her
to, but too late, the consequences now burning a hole in her heart. Why she had ever thought that he had ever
made empty threats was beyond her. There
were plenty of victors who had changed drastically when they had won, and most
weren’t due to fame. God, she even knew
one, but Snow had made a mistake and he would pay. For now though, she was fine with waiting as
long as in the end Snow would get it.
A
Capitol man walked out on the stage, turning to her first and shaking her hand
with a smile. She smiled back, fake to
the core, but he was oblivious in his perfect little world. Oh,
how she craved to see his face when that all ended.
Crowded
into the packed square were the people of district seven, all of them forced to
stand while this show carried on. The
parents and children looked equally nervous, some of the kids glancing at her
and the few other victors their district could boast. Beside her, Blight shifted, also aware of the
stares aimed at them; aware of the small hope their presence gave. While both of them served as mentors, Blight
was the one who excelled at helping to prep the tributes. She, on the other hand, couldn’t afford to
even be remotely attached. If one of the
tributes survived, then good for them.
If neither did, no emotional pain to her. It was cold and callous, but it kept her
going, and that was all she cared for at this point. She had already lost too much to become
attached to doomed children.
The
Capitol took and took without giving anything back; an action that destroyed
more than its lowest castes. Many of its
citizens heralded Snow, but many knew nothing of the monster that had risen
ever since the twenty-fourth hunger games.
They hadn’t noticed the Victor that went missing in the height of his
life, gone mad with the same loss she knew now.
The people of Panem were the blind sort that only recognized that which
hurt them and nothing else. Johanna
remembered him though, and for now that would have to be enough. His name had been Kaede Johnson, Victor of
the twenty-fourth games, and the first in a line of many that Snow had
destroyed, life and soul. She would do
this for them, for her family, and more importantly for herself, but there was
a definite cost.
She
knew something that the all-knowing Snow didn’t; something that would tear
apart his child killing kingdom. The
kind of information that while it made her smile, also meant throwing herself
back into the danger that had put her there on stage; there was someone out
there that Snow had failed to kill and they would
rise. It was a fact that made her smile
darkly even now, facing the very cameras that fed directly to the man. She would make him pay for everything; the
pain, the sorrow, it.
For
all my friends, past and present, I know this isn’t the happy tears ending you
may have waited for, but nevertheless it is an ending. Thank you for sticking with me through all
the projects that never came to be.
Here’s to hoping for some more opportunities.
I’d
also like to thank the readers who found this story of mine and kept on
reading. You all are the reason I’m able
to pull myself together when I hit the wall of writer’s block. Thank you for your votes, comments, and
overall support. Don’t think I’m leaving
you with nothing else to read.
If
you liked this and are alright with branching outside of Hunger Games
fanfiction check out: (All are on Wattpad under AWriterCanDream)
-Wastelands:
Dawn of the Desert (March 2016, Sci-fi)
-The
Collection: Short Stories and Misfits (already going and includes some misc.
fanfiction)
-The
Calm After the Storm (Sci-fi)
-The
Power of the Uchiha (Naruto one-shot)
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