Promises of a Sacrificial Lamb |Destiel x The Hunger Games|

-37-

The sound of rapid knocking startles me awake.  My heart leaps up to my throat as my eyelids snap open.  For a fleeting moment, I start to reach for something to defend myself with, but I quickly realize there's no need to when I hear Rowena's eager voice coming from the other side of the door.  Part of me is still in the arena, apparently.  I can't seem to shake that lingering dread.

"Up, up, up!"  our escort chirps, muffled by the walls of the room that's flooded with bright morning sunlight.  "We'll be at the train station in less than thirty minutes!"

What little adrenaline that began to subside when I realized I was safe and sound instantly makes a return, this time much stronger than before.  I push myself upright.  I think I've stopped breathing.  Only thirty minutes until we're back in District 9.  Only thirty minutes until we can see our families again.  Only thirty minutes to prepare for what comes next, and I'm struggling to decide if I'm beyond ready or wildly unprepared.

The mattress shifts beneath me as Rowena's footsteps start to fade away, and I glance over and see Cas sitting up.  One eye is more open than the other.  His dark hair is a ruffled mess, and he tries to suppress a yawn but fails miserably as he turns to meet my gaze.  I find myself completely enraptured by how endearing he looks.

"Well,"  he says with a sleepy smile, one that makes butterflies flutter in my stomach.  "Today's the day.  Are you ready?"

But as the reality of the situation begins to fully sink in, I realize just how conflicted I feel.  "I'm not sure,"  I admit to him.  I'm ready to see my family.  I'm ready to be home and far away from the Capitol.  But am I ready to live a relatively normal life again after everything that happened miles behind us?  That I'm unsure of, and it's unsettling me.

A small surge of relief courses through me when Cas nods his head, his shoulders heaving with a sigh.  "Me too."

At least I'm not alone in that regard.

Cas goes to his room to change out of his pajamas.  These thirty minutes are bound to fly by, so I make haste to change into something presentable.  I'm in the middle of rinsing off my blotchy face when Cas returns.  Thankfully, the cold water evens out the color of my skin, little by little, but then I wonder if it's even worth it.  There's no doubt I'll be crying at the train station again when we're reunited with our families.  Still, I suppose it doesn't hurt to start with a clean slate.

I comb out the knots in my hair.  While Cas combs his, I return to the bedside table and grab my silver locket.  There's no way I'm leaving this train without it.  I'm just clipping it around my neck when there's another knock on the door.

"Only a few more minutes until we're back home,"  Bobby says, letting himself into the room.  I don't mind, though.  After all the effort he went through to help keep us alive, he can do whatever he wants.  "How are you boys feeling?"

Cas pokes his head out of the bathroom at the sound of Bobby's voice.  He exchanges a glance with me—a rather apprehensive one—and joins us in the main room, all freshened up and ready to go.  "Nervous,"  he breathes, wringing his hands together.

"Definitely nervous,"  I agree.  My heartbeat has been steadily quickening since I woke up, and I don't think it's going to stop.

A faint smirk lights up Bobby's face.  "Well, I won't tell you not to be since I was a nervous wreck myself,"  he says, "but it'll all be good.  You worked hard to get here.  Try to enjoy it as much as you can."

A bout of silence falls over the three of us, only broken by the soft humming of the train.  I draw a deep breath and spare a glance out the window, my adrenaline spiking when I see the beautifully familiar hills of District 9.  The sky is so blue.  The land is so untouched, so vast.  I swear it's been centuries since I last set foot in those rolling fields, and we're so close to them that it makes my fingers twitch with anticipation.