The Princess and The Owl // Johanna Mason x OC

Chapter 23 - Stop, Knock and Drop

"Wow, I bet the detox was horrific, sweetheart," Haymitch greets her sarcastically, assessing Athena with a sceptical once-over.

"Let's put it down to being 'at one with nature', shall we?" She says rhetorically.

"Hmm, yeah," he chuckles, "I heard about your little, informal banishment to Seven. Didn't imagine that you were too disappointed though."

"What's that meant to mean?" She asks more defensively than she had intended. Watching how his eyes trail over her shoulder, a knowing smirk starts to emerge. But she's too stubborn to follow his eye-line, "What is it, Haymitch?"

"Oh, nothing much," his broad smirk now filling his alcohol spattered lips. With almost a laugh, he pats her shoulder good-naturedly as he walks away, "I'll see you around, sweetheart."

He quickly disappears behind a pillar, allowing her to immediately look at what he was watching over her shoulder. And that's where she is: Johanna. Fussing angrily with the reigns of the horses, Athena can sense from here that she should approach with great caution. It's no surprise that her tributes are too scared to speak to her. Either way, it still doesn't explain Haymitch's shit-eating smirk.

"Want a hand?" she asks somewhat warily. Immediately looking to her with a fiery stare, she can't help but wonder if this is how most people see Johanna. Once realising that it's her, the razor-edge of her gaze softens slightly.

"No, I'm good," she mumbles tightly. Slowly moving to take the tangled reigns from her iron grip, she instinctively flinches back, ready to strike. However, she controls herself, with what appears to be great difficulty, "I don't need your help, Two."

"I'm sure with a little longer you would work it out, Princess," Athena reassures her, already beginning to redo the harnesses as she talks. Knowing that she doesn't like to look helpless, especially in a place like this, she makes sure that she's quick about it, "But I grew up around quarry horses, with reigns just like these."

As Johanna watches her hands intently, she makes light work of the jumble. Despite her intensely intimidating gaze, her axe isn't currently buried in the side of het face; The older Victor counts this a win. With a final stroke of the horse's mane, she gives Johanna a light smile in parting. To her great surprise however, the raven-haired mentor catches her hand, "...Athena, I-"

"If I wasn't so glad to see you, I'd probably strangle you on the spot," the cheerful voice of Finnick interrupts whatever delicate thing Johanna had planned to say. Tugging her into a tight hug, she can almost smell the sea water on him, "You gave me and Annie one hell of a fright."

"It's good to see you to, Four," Athena reciprocates his friendliness, knowing that - in this moment - any tension between them is being ignored, "It takes a lot more than a Capitol-controlled phone to keep me away."

"Annie was worried sick. More than I was, if that's possible," he smiles, without the usual cocky or sultry traces, "When Jo told me that you were in Seven... it was as if I was meant to be."

"Why do people keep saying stuff like that?" the District Two Victor asks under her breath. The faint announcement over the tannoy alerts them that it's time to go - so with a few encouraging words from her - they eventually move to take the first elevator up to the viewing lounge. In a corner by the windows, it's just the three of them. Quiet conversation comes and goes about nothing much. But none of them mind: it's nice to not think for once.