The Life of A Victor || Finnick Odair

CHAPTER 5

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Dove woke up to the sound of her sister's voice. The sun was shining brightly outside. She probably should be at school by now, but she didn't care. Looking at her older sister with a straight face, she wondered why she had woken her up.

"The games start in no time. Thought you wanted to know." The words took time to register in her brain, but eventually, they did.

"Yeah. Thanks," her tone wasn't sweet, but she tried not to sound ungrateful or angry. She was angry, but not at her sister, so she shouldn't pay her anger on her. After getting up from her mother's bed, she went downstairs slowly, with a good grip on her older sister's hand.

"What do you want for breakfast?" Angel asked calmly. Dove knew her sister had been trying to not break down in front of her. She was playing the older sister role, which didn't suit her clearly swollen eyes.

"Angel, we have to talk. I'm not eight years old anymore. I'm not crying, asking you why you have to leave my side for the Reaping. I am young, not naive. So, please, stop looking at me like I'm wounded. I want to help you and mum. Please, let me help you." Dove said. She had been thinking it for years, but never got the courage to express it.

"I-" Angel trailed off. She still treated her little sister like a vulnerable child. Technically, she was still a child, and Angel would probably look at her as such for the rest of her life. Dove would forever be her baby sister.

"I-I am so sorry. . ." her sister mumbled. This is not what Dove wanted. She didn't want her sister apologising to her for such a dumb reason.

"Don't apologise. I don't want that. I want you to tell me what's wrong and let me help you as much as I can. I'll learn how to cook, I'll learn how to fish, I will do anything for you." She hugged her older sister, trying to reassure her.

"I will do anything for you too, my beautiful songbird." To Dove's delight, her sister told her every worry she had in mind until the games started. A full hour of expressing her feelings made Angel feel more relaxed. Like she had just dropped a heavy weight from her shoulders. She wasn't the only one.

At some point, their mother stepped into the kitchen and joined in. She explained little. Librae listened to her children more than anything. That's how her mother was, she didn't talk much. Dove had the theory that her games had something to do with it, but she never tried to ask her about it. She was too scared of the reply.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let the Sixty-sixth Hunger Games begin!" Claudius Templesmith's voice roared through the room. Sixty seconds until the Bloodbath. She thought.

Once she took a better look at the Cornucopia through the close-ups of the cameras, she saw something strange. There's a trident in the middle of the cornucopia. Weapons like that are extremely rare in the Games. Finnick only got his through sponsors. She thought.

"This year is a tropical Arena. It doesn't seem like there are any visible dangers. So there must be mutations in the most needed places. Maybe near water." Dove looked impressed at her mother, who had analysed the Arena in less than twenty seconds.

"The mutts will look either as a threat or harmless." Her older sister commented. "Probably both, so they can't put their guard down." On this occasion, Dove was the one to talk. They were so focused on discovering the Arena's secret that they hadn't thought about anything else. Their minds were fully focused on the television in front of them.

The gong's sound announced the start of The Hunger Games. Now, the tributes could move to either flee or fight. Her brother joined the ones who chose to fight, and went directly to the Cornucopia. Once he got his hands on the trident, he grabbed a nearby bag and made a run for it to the forest. Alone.