Fire is Catching

Chapter 8: Interviews

CHAPTER 8: INTERVIEWS

Tonight my nightmares are plagued with Winston torturing me eternally, Snow drinking blood out of Lilyanna's mouth, and Chase being prostituted like Finnick. It's nothing different from the usual ones I get, but at least I'm not dreaming about dying in the Games. That has to mean I'm not afraid, right? I can't show fear-not now.

My prep team enters before I can even sit up.

Jassie opens the shades, and the light shines in. She wipes a tear from her eyes and turns to Livie and Linnet. "Let's get started."

"What am I wearing today?"

Linnet digs in his bags for hair care products. "It's a surprise!" He says in an excited tone. "Come on sweetie, get up. You don't have to shave today. It's just hair, makeup, and nails."

I sigh, and decide to get up. Jassie hands me my breakfast burrito, and I think about what to say in my interview. I'll be vengeful, yes. Maybe I'll try to focus on Lilyanna.

I wonder what Chase is doing. Is he playing cards with Lilyanna, neither of them paying attention to the game? Or is he sitting on his couch, waiting to tune into the interviews. I hope he'll take my side when this war breaks out.

Chase is my best friend. Maybe he was something more, I don't know. But all hell is about to break loose in Panem. I'll be in the very thick of it. If both of us even make it out, maybe I can afford to think about him like that.

"Sweetie, we're done." Linnet says, interrupting my thoughts.

I blink a few times and see that I'm looking at a beautiful young woman. Her dark hair is down in delicate curls. The makeup on her face is done spectacularly, covering dark circles and making her eyelashes pop. The woman's nails are white with green, blue, and purple polka dots.

"Thank you." I tell them.

And I hug each one, even Jassie, who I always have considered too extreme. They leave tearfully, for this is the last time I'll be seeing them. A few minutes later, after sitting in isolation, Livie comes back in.

"Kora says you don't have a token." She says. "A tribute of mine, from District 5, Sunny, gave this to me before she died."

Livie extends her hand to me, in which I see a necklace with a sun pendant. The sun is smiling.

The sight of it reminds me of the moment I recognized how much I loved Lilyanna.

5 YEARS AGO

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine, you make me happy, when skies are grey..." I sing softly to a 7 year old Lilyanna as I brush her long hair.

"Mom?" She asks, turning around. "You make me happy too."

I kiss her forehead. "Thanks honey."

Lilyanna smiles, showing her adorable dimples and freckles. "Can I go play now?"

I nod. "Sure Yana. Be safe."

"You'll protect me, Mama, won't you?"

"Of course." I tell her. "Now go play."

She jumps up and scurries off, strawberry blonde hair flying behind her.

PRESENT TIME

"Oh Livie!" I exclaim, now tearing up. That was when I decided that Lilyanna was the best thing that had ever happened to me.

Livie smiles. "My mother used to sing the song to me when I was younger."

The way she said mother made it sound like her mother had died when Livie was young. We had a connection that way.

"Come on, let's get you to Kora."

I slip the necklace on and follow her through the bustling halls, and to the dressing room, where Kora waits. Livie hugs me once more and leaves without another word.

Kora's face is one of deep concern. Despite his Capitol ways, he really isn't that bad. He cares about me. "You okay?"

I nod. "Let's just get this over with."

He pulls out the dress and I gasp at its beauty. It's strapless, with what looks like watercolored colorful stripes at the top. The waistline is covered in jewels, mostly silver and lavender. The bottom half of this dress has delicate but also extremely wild watercolor-splatterings. It is breathtaking.

"Do you like it?" Kora asks, even though he knows I love it.

I smile. "It's amazing." I say. "Thank you, Kora."

Once I have the dress on and situated, he twirls me around. "You look beautiful. They just called Finnick Odair. You're next. Go out there, and be you. They have to like you then."

I turn to go, but end up racing up to Kora and hugging him. His high heels are taller than mine, so he's a lot bigger than me. I have to speak into his chest.

"Thank you." I say. There are times for long, wordy thank you's, and there are times for short and sweet thank you's.

"Next up," Caesar Flickerman is saying. Kora ushers me to the door. "Is Alexandria Winter from District 5. We all remember her from the 68th Hunger Games, where she managed to defeat Winston Combes after he tortured her in the final battle. Here she is now!"

I put on a huge smile that's not incredible fake and walk onto the stage to the sound of applause. Caesar has plush chairs set up in the middle. I make my way to the red one.

We shake hands and he says, "Whew whew, Alexandria, my, my. That dress is beautiful. You look amazing darling. Doesn't she look amazing?" He asks the crowd.

The crowd breaks into applause and cheering. I didn't know I was that sexy! Actually, I did. Ego alert!

Caesar calms himself and speaks again. "Now, Alexandria, a lot of victors have been telling me their thoughts on this Quell. Anything to add?"

I look at the crowd. "Well, Caesar, I don't think the people who came up with this Quell considered that the victors are losing their families. 23 of them will never see their kids, love, best friends, parents, or anyone like that again."

"Are you talking about your daughter?" Caesar asks.

I nod. "Lilyanna Winter is my twelve year old adopted daughter. She wandered up to my doorstep 9 long years ago and I've loved her ever since."

Caesar and the crowd speak a unanimous 'awwww'. "What do you think should be done?" He asks.

"Well, I'm sure the rest of us share the same view, but I think we should draw another card out of the Quell bowl and use it instead."

The buzzer goes off, almost as if it was on cue. That didn't feel like three minutes.

The rest of the night is sort of boring. It consists of mostly pleading for the Quell to end. Johanna drops the f-bomb a thousand times, and I know it'll be amusing when Everdeen and Peeta take their turns.

Everdeen's stylist turns her into a Mockingjay, and Peeta not only tells us that him and Katniss got married, but that she's also pregnant. Why is it that I don't believe either?

After Peeta's 'announcement', the Capitol citizens are screaming, "Cancel the Quell, cancel the Quell!"

I wish they would, but I know they won't. They need us dead to prove a point.

I see Everdeen extend her hand to Chaff, and the hand holding chain continues. I nudge Domino and hold his wrist to make the old drunkard feel better. Finnick grasps mine and we thrust our hands into the air.

Our statement show unity, that we will not be ridiculed like this. We are fierce, and certainly not going down without a fight.