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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 10, 2010 21:49:27 GMT -5
Finnick sighed, looking around the unfortunately familiar room. Ever since becoming a Victor nine years ago, he had become all too knowledgeable with the ways of the Capitol. Setting his pack of clothing on the bed he had been in every year, Finnick frowned.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it." He was angry. And why shouldn't he be? Being here meant another 23 poor, innocent kids had to die. Even now, long past his time in the cursed arena, Finnick still woke up form nightmares of the unrecognizable him that had captured and killed all of the kids from all over Panem. By "winning" you still lost. But, that was the point of the Games. To show that no one can prove the Capitol to be weak.
Finnick laid down on his bed, and drifted into a nightmare-stricken nap. He knew it was only a matter of time before the god-awful President Snow "pimped" him out again, and wanted to relax somewhat before he was used and abused over and over again.
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 10, 2010 22:12:30 GMT -5
Annie placed her bags in her room. This was her first time being back to the capitol since her winning. Two years wasn't a long time to stay away from the games, but this year she offered since Paul was a tribute. She still loved him, and although she'd have to work with Finnick in order to get things ready, since she had only participated in the Games, never helped a tribute.
She sighed, she went over to Finnick's room and knocked on the door. She wanted to talk to him. She needed to see if he still hated her, and see if he would actually work with her. Things needed to work out, for the sake of her sanity.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 10, 2010 22:49:27 GMT -5
Tossing and turning, per usual, Finnick was only able to snag maybe a minute or two of real sleep. Images of his former fellow tributes being trapped ingeniously in Finnick's hand-woven net had been tormenting his nights for nine years. Nine years of suffering. Nine years of no sleep. Sometimes, he felt so hopeless about his life that he considered suicide. But he decided against it every single time. Someone would be punished, somewhere for his choice, and then all the tributes from District 4 now and to come would have one less Mentor. No, suicide was the chicken way out. And Finnick was no chicken.
Hearing a knock at the door, FInnick rolled out of bed. Still a little groggy, he stumbled to the door, opened it, and saw Annie. They hadn't talked much recently, but he had been there at the Reaping, and knew she was planning on Mentoring this year because of Paul. He felt bad for her, but pity was a feeling he rarely spared for others. Finnick was soaked in self-pity, and left-over pity was for tributes. Although Annie had been through the Games, Finnick remembered she didn't kill very many people. She probably could sleep still. His only feeling for Annie, was envy.
"Hello, Annie. Apparently we're co-Mentors this year, huh?" He smiled. No one saw his self-loathing side, no one.
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 10, 2010 23:27:45 GMT -5
Annie sighed. She hated waiting for people to open doors. She hated dealing with people mostly because of how she had been treated in District 4. People hated her because she was a traitor. Thats how people looked at her. She was fine with it of course. It kept people away from her.
She nodded her head. She didn't want to talk if she didn't have to. She was fine being silent, or perhaps staying away from everyone. She felt that everyone hated her, and she didn't want to change anything.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 10, 2010 23:39:39 GMT -5
Finnick wasn't really sure what to do. She had come to him, but now it seemed like she was being inconvenienced being talked to. Most people from District 4 had shunned Annie. Finnick honestly could care less. He knew what it was like in the Games, and the fact that District 4 expected Annie to have sacrificed herself for a stupid "Career" baffled him. Its not like they were District 2, where the Games were solely fun and games. Do those ignorant people even realize what its like when every second inside that arena is a fight for your life?
He kept smiling though. Years of pretending had perfected Finnick's ability to conceal his true emotions. "Annie, I know about you and Paul. I know this won't be easy, but you need to act strong. I don't expect you to actually be content with this situation, but Paul needs you to be strong. I need you to be strong. The only way to appease District 4 is to help produce another victor, and you can't do that shut off from the world." He had since stopped smiling. Finnick usually wasn't one to try and inspire others, but everything he had said he knew needed to be said.
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 10, 2010 23:44:18 GMT -5
Annie sighed. She knew he was right. She would have to get used to being around other people. She had 2 years of isolation. "I know" she said softly. She didn't know what to do. Things never went the way she planned. She was obviously just an immature little girl like a lot of people said.
"How can you be strong when you know everything will be in ruins in a matter of days" she said softly. She didn't understand how he could do the Hunger Games multiple times. Watching his Tributes die. She couldn't understand anything.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 11, 2010 0:00:56 GMT -5
Finnick gave a soft smile. Breaking through to her was the first step in helping her recover. As much as Finnick would love to have been in the same isolation Annie had been in the past two years, it didn't help anybody. Annie obviously hadn't turned out better, and District 4 hadn't prospered from not having her.
"You learn to cover it up. Few non-Career Victors actually are strong, no matter what they appear to be. The Games ruins everyone. Winners, obviously losers, everybody. I suppress so much hatred, depression, complete sadness everyday, all the time. Once you let your emotions show, game over." Finnick was nervous about revealing himself to Annie, his true self. But, if there was anyone he felt could understand him, it was Annie.
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 11, 2010 21:40:47 GMT -5
Annie sighed. She wasn't use to as much contact with other people. The Capitol was just as she remembered it. High strung, wasting things that they didn't need to. She sighed again. She knew he was right. The only reason that the capitol had left her alone for the time being was because she was trying to cope. She was marketed right after winning, but then a year later they let up a lot.
She tried to stay to herself as much as she could. She didn't want to deal with things that she didn't have to. "How does the capitol keep you in line?" she asked. She knew each Tribute was treated differently.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 11, 2010 22:17:27 GMT -5
Finnick began to actually smile. Not the convincing fake one he usually had, but a genuine smile. He almost felt guilty. Of course he felt guilty, but at some point, he couldn't take the immense weight that was his psyche crushing him. Hopefully Annie would end up being that person, the one Finnick needed to be able to vent to.
But for now, he wasn't entirely sure if he could legitimately trust her yet. His smile faded as soon as she asked. "How does the Capitol keep you in line?" The question was the one he had always managed to avoid, and he had been grateful for that one stroke of luck. It had been avoided for so long Finnick almost didn't even register was being asked.
Finnick desperately wanted to burst into tears and tell Annie of his problems. Of how year after year he was "sold" to the highest bidders, and made to sleep with countless Capitol women. It was awful. But Annie needed someone to be strong right now. Finnick once again sat aside his own problems to benefit another.
"It's not pleasant, believe me. But you don't need to worry about it, I can cope with it." "Though not well, usually." he thought, miserably. "But if you need to vent, I'm all ears." Finnick stepped aside, and offered Annie into his room. No need to continue standing in the probably watched hall-way.
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 11, 2010 22:55:58 GMT -5
Annie smiled. So there was a touchy subject. Past winners never talked about what happened with them outside of the arena. None of them wanted to. She wanted to know how everyone else was coping, but obviously there were topics that she wanted to talk to them about that they wouldn't. It was all at their discretion obviously, they could always lie to her and tell her the opposite of what really happened.
Annie entered his room, but felt awkward about it. She was just a teenager, at the young age of 17, he was a man. She knew him to be, about 24, if she did the math right from the time he was in the Hunger Games. She knew that he was just being nice, but she didn't trust people easily anymore. She knew that she wouldn't get sleep tonight. She had barely gotten any sleep since Paul proclaimed his love for her in the town square and gotten whipped for standing up for her and beating up a few careers. She had stood in and taken the punishment for him, creating still healing wounds on her back. Obviously a bunch of people from their district had seen it, and it would be a miracle if Finnick hadn't at least heard of it.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 12, 2010 12:06:21 GMT -5
To Finnick's somewhat surprise, Annie walked in. He had half expected her to decline and leave, but she was there, and the sole fact that she trusted him enough to come in made Finnick stop and reconsider telling Annie about his problem. "No, not yet. Opening up offers way too much hurt." That was all he ever thought. He couldn't help it, though. Exposing his-self would weaken him, and he wasn't ready to risk it yet.
Closing the door behind her, Finnick put on another smile. It was getting increasingly difficult to pretend in front of people, especially Annie who is just as broken as he is. "Annie, I know what happened with Paul, and I know how much harder that makes this. But the both of you being pathetic will not benefit him. I know I've already said it, but I'm going to keep saying it until it finally works." It felt weird, "mentoring" a Victor. She needed the tough love though, and he would break through to her.
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 12, 2010 21:38:27 GMT -5
Annie slightly smiled when he did. Things needed to change. The Hunger Games needed to change, and or stop at all. She knew things would never be the same unless the games stopped. She needed to be back in district 4 with Paul to work things out, not have him fighting to the death in the arena that she had lived through 2 years ago. A 15 year old non career could make it through the arena than an 18 year old career could make it through. Although she had made quite a lot of people mad at her because of the way that she did it.
"I know, i know, i know" she said as she walked over to the bed and sat down. She still didn't know what to do. She wanted Paul to win, but the other Tributes had just as sad stories. There was the avox, Annie felt bad for her, not being able to talk and still having to fight.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 16, 2010 20:34:43 GMT -5
Smiling again, legitimately this time, Finnick looked calmly at Annie. His message seemed to be sinking in, much faster than he had expected. Annie was a wreck. Almost more so than Finnick himself, it seemed. Maybe she was just suppressing some of her starting-to-ferment post-Games insanity. The two year mark was Finnick's worst. It was when his situation had really started to sink in. Even he hadn't been able to prevent breakdowns now and again. Fortunately, they had always been in relative privacy, so the public hadn't been exposed to his true side. But fellow Victors whom he was now confidants with had seen, which brought them closer. Perhaps this episode with Annie could bring them closer?
"Well at least it's sinking in. I remember my second year post-...," he wanted to say "mordum," but that would be a little too morbid and unsettling, he thought, "winning was the worst one, as of yet. You are just realizing your hopeless affair, coming to grips with the impossibility of escape. But it gets easier. Not better, no, but easier." He sat with her on his bed, and gently rubbed her arm. It was uncomfortable for him, but he was trying to pacify her. It was the only thing his scattered thoughts could pin down as "helpful."
[ooc: I think on this thread, we should just continue assuming Paul is still in the Games, because this started before the switch happened, agreed?]
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Post by Annie Dobrev on Sept 19, 2010 21:29:14 GMT -5
Agreed, then possibly in the middle a official comes in and tells them?
Annie looked over at him when he sat on the bed with her. Things were going to change. For better or for worse. She couldn't control herself. Not with the capitol still in power. But of course they hadn't used her yet. She had heard that they usually make the winners do something to make the capitol to look good by blackmail. She had no one back at District 4 so there was nothing that they could black mail her with, until now.
This must be their way of getting back at her. Paul in the games and they knew that she'd want to mentor him. They knew of the incident in the square. She was furious with the capitol. Things happened for a reason. She was here to make sure he lived. She would make sure of that. She looked at him while he rubbed her arm, before looking towards the door when someone knocked on it. It was unusual for someone to go see people when they were here for the games. Something was wrong. She wanted to know what.
She stood up. She then realized that it wasn't her room that they were in. Great. Something else to worry about. It wouldn't be good for someone to see her in Finnick's room. Something about past victors hooking up didn't sound good to her.
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Post by Finnick Odair on Sept 20, 2010 17:00:36 GMT -5
Comforting Annie was even more awkward than it had started. She was without a doubt gorgeous, but Finnick wasn't interested in just a hook up, he had too many forced upon him, and Annie was so in love with Paul that it didn't even matter if he did like her. He knew where the line was, and didn't even try to cross it. The silence was thick, and with neither of them talking, Finnick had time to reflect on what the hell was going on.
"Hunger Games 74. Avox girl and Paul are the tributes. Annie and I are co-mentoring them. T-minus who knows how long until my next "liason." My life sucks. In less than a week, 24 children will be sent to kill each other, for the enjoyment of the Capitol. Another two I'm supposed to be keeping alive, but I know only one could possibly come back. Annie is in love with Paul, therefore she's a mess. Great. 'And my the odds be ever in my favor.' Odds. Ha.[/color]" Finnick thought long and quick, not bothering to dwell on each miserable thought.
He was then jolted back to reality, still with Annie, by a robust knock on the door. Annie made for opening, but then remembered how bad it might look if she answered his door. So, he muttered something about Annie should go to the bathroom for a second, because this looks bad no matter how we try and spin it, and walked to the door. Upon opening it, a Capitol official began speaking in a low tone and monotonously. Usually when this happened, he was being "pimped" out, so he half-listened.
"The Capitol and the Gamemakers would like to inform you that the tribute Paul Wersbowski will no longer be your Male District Four Tribute. In his place, a young man by the name of Benjamin Thomson will be taking his place." He ended abruptly, and Finnick almost didn't respond. Listening to the Capitol wasn't a forté he had developed, and it took a few seconds before what the official had said was actually registered. "Wait, what? Paul's been replaced? Thank you for the information. I'll tell Annie, don't worry about that," and promptly slammed the door. He didn't have time before Annie inevitably either burst into tears, or screamed with joy. He pictured one of those two reactions happening, but it was also entirely possible she would have the same, uncomprehending phase Finnick had, but for an extended period.
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